An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
Kiyoko x Michimiya: Part 2 of Merlin Series
Rated: General
WC: 10857
Kiyoko’s breath shuddered as sweat dripped off her body, soaking into the mattress beneath her. Her eyes moved rapidly beneath her lids while the visions filling her mind caused her fingers to coil into the sheets and grip them tight. Ukai Ikkei, the court physician, had given her a tonic before going to bed to help her have a dreamless sleep. But as always, it did little to quell the nightmares that have plagued her for the past several years.
They were always different, disjointed snippets of memories that did not belong to her. One moment she saw Yui, her beloved servant with the brightest smile, screaming as she ran through a field with a sword gripped in her hands toward a large band of fighters. She wanted to see more of it to make sure Yui made it through, but as usual, the vision cut away to something else entirely.
It was dark and it took a few moments to make out a tall figure laying on a dirty floor next to a bed. Her heart broke when she recognized Kuroo, his body curled in as he pressed his palm against his mouth, so he made no noise. She could barely see the tears wetting his cheeks, but she felt his intense sorrow. If only she could reach into the vision and wrap her arms around her friend.
Colors blurred and a picture reformed with the King staring down at a bed in the royal chambers. The woman laying on it was very beautiful, but her skin was devoid of color, indicating that she was certainly dead. The King seemed much younger than he was as she knew him and more heartbroken than she could have imagined him ever to look. The vision rippled like a drop of rain in a puddle, and when it stilled it seemed the same. Then she realized it was Daichi and not the King, staring down at the same bed with determination in his clenched jaw and a tear slipping from his eye.
The vision went dark, and her heart sighed a breath of relief. But then an eerie blue light flooded her mind, silhouetting two figures across from each other. The one on the left was obviously Daichi, she’d know him anywhere even when no details could be seen. The one across was another man wearing a crown, taller and leaner in physique than Daichi. They held their hands out and clasped them together in unity, but out of the other man’s sleeve vines slipped out and wrapped around Daichi’s forearm, squeezing into his skin until they drew blood.
Kiyoko gasped as she lunged up in her bed, the room illuminated by candles. She winced as she looked around, but it was still too early in the morning for Yui to have already come in. Which meant that something else lit the candles that had been put out the night before.
She squeezed her eyes shut and hid them behind her hands. When the nightmares began several years before, there was usually only one vision a night that she needed to forget. Lately, there were several and each one was just as disturbing as the next. It wouldn’t be so hard if she didn’t believe in her heart that the dreams were prophetic. Unfortunately, many visions she’s had before came to fruition in some form or another. Some exactly as she saw it, others more based on interpretation.
The sound of swords clanging drew her from her dark thoughts. She swept the covers off and shivered as the cool air rushed over her damp skin. Her robe was laying on a chair next to the bed, and she pulled it off to drape around her as she shuffled to the window. It was early, the sun not even showing above the distant hills. In the dim light, she could just make out Daichi and his soldiers already training in the yard.
He never used to work so early, but he had instituted a training camp to shape up their younger recruits and they had been rising before the sun every morning. It was humorous at first, seeing their exhausted faces and grumbling whenever they were certain Daichi was out of earshot. But after that, she could see tighter bonds of friendship forming between them as they pulled together as a unit. The same fire of determination that always shined in Daichi’s eyes was blazing in each of his knights. Well, all of them but the exhausted Tsukishima, but Kiyoko knew it was only a matter of time.
She squinted as Daichi pulled away from the group for a moment, wandering toward the edge of the practice ring. A shiver ran down her spine when she remembered her visions, Daichi full of sorrow in one and being harmed in another. She wanted to stretch out her hand and cover him with a blanket of protection, but she knew that was impossible. At least that’s what she kept telling herself.
Her eyes followed Daichi until he was joined by Kuroo, who had a towel and waterskin ready for him. Kiyoko cocked her head and smiled as the two spoke, entering their own little world as Kuroo teased Daichi, who threw it right back at his servant. There was something about seeing them together that soothed Kiyoko’s soul more than anything as if she didn’t need to worry about Daichi if Kuroo was near him. It was a mystery why that was since Kuroo wasn’t a knight and had no abilities that he could defend Daichi with. But he was clever and loyal down to his bones, and to Kiyoko that was enough.
The smile on her lips faded when she remembered her vision about Kuroo. It was rare that she saw anything but a lazy grin on his face, perhaps occasionally a pout when Daichi returned a clever retort. She hated to think there was a point in the future where he would dwell in utter despair and the only reason for it that she could imagine inevitably led to Daichi.
Will I ever be free from these nightmares?
