Needles and Knives

X he/him | Whump Prompts | Askbox open for whatever |

[timetowhump]

“You can’t run from me,” Whumper hissed into the shadows.

Whumpee clamped a hand over their mouth, nails digging into their skin hard enough for blood to join the tears marking their cheeks.

Shadows danced around them, bending the light with every step Whumper took that brought them closer to their prey.

“Where are you? Where are you? My sweet little pet,” Whumper sang. Whumpee whimpered into their palm trying to fight back the sob building in their throat.

The steady pace of echoing footsteps stalled. Whumper’s shadow reached towards Whumpee, the top brushing against their toes.

“Found you,”

[timetowhump]

Smoke spilled past A’s lips staining the air around their head. The world around them bustled, fast in the way only everyday life could be.

Their own movements felt heavy, weighed down and slow. Their head titled back settling on the hard surface of the park bench. Dull eyes watched the clouds make their way across the sky.

Their scars burned.

A shaky hand brought the cigarette to their lips. Their lungs ached as the hand fell away.

Slowly smoke was released only to be swept away by cold wind. A shiver raked down their spine sending spikes of pain from their wrists.

A shadow sat next to them, “I thought you quit,”

More smoke filled the air, “So did I,”

A heavy sigh, “A,”

Their head turned, eyes collided, the first weighed by exhaustion and the second filled with concern. A looked away, taking another long drag from the cigarette before letting it fall to the ground to be crushed beneath their boot.

Distant shouting swept through the air. They didn’t know if it was real, didn’t know if it mattered.

“Let’s go back to the hotel,” B said gently.

A hummed, eyes watching the trees sway in the wind. They were so tired.

Warm fingers wrapped around their cold ones, squeezing gently. A heavy breath slid out of A’s chest taking with it the weight that had pressed against their lungs.

“Ok,”

[timetowhump]

The blood wouldn’t stop flowing and A was starting to get annoyed.

They ripped the soaked bandage off the cut cursing at the sharp sting. Tears prickled at their eyes as the frustration morphed. When would this fucking end? The pain was never ending, was it really worth it to constantly need to lie even to the ones they love? To live in fear and pain every waking moment.

“A, are you okay?” B asked through the door.

Tears were painting their cheeks, no words could come. A hand locked over their mouth trying to muffle their sobs but they were too late.

Strong arms wrapped around them pulling them in. It took everything in A to not collapse to the ground and curl into the body holding them close but they couldn’t. 

Sobs broke though the muzzle created by their own hand. Now that it started they couldn’t stop it, exhaustion, pain, and fear swept through them like a massive wave that crashed into them and forced them under until the light was far away and fading.

“A, -ou ne-d -- bre-th-,”

“Pl--se, A brea-he,”

They couldn’t do this. 

Large hands cupped their cheeks but the feeling was muffled, far away as if they were wearing a mask so all they could feel was faint pressure. Eyes filled their vision, blurry and dark but they knew those eyes.

“Breathe,”

Their chest was tight, were they not breathing? Nails dug into the skin around their mouth, was their hand still muzzling them?

“A look at me,”

Their eyes wouldn't focus. Air couldn’t flow through their lungs. 

“A,” the voice snapped. They jumped but the eyes in front of them snapped into focus, “Breathe. Come on with me, you can do it,”

B. B was in front of them. They were in their bathroom, on the floor. When did that happen? They weren’t breathing, their hand was covering their mouth. Their arm dropped and A inhaled sharply causing them to cough harshly.

“Are you okay?” B asked, their hands still cupping A’s cheeks.

A almost laughed at the ridiculous question thinking the answer was obvious.

“No,” they said through tears. B leaned forward so their foreheads touched and A could breathe in their scent.

“I’m here for you. Always,”

A closed their eyes and they smiled softly, “I know,”

[timetowhump]

B woke and at first they didn’t know why. The air was still, the kind of calm that only came in the middle of the night.

Next to them A shifted, nothing out of the ordinary but then they moved again and B knew something was wrong.

They turned over slowly taking in the view of their partner. A frown marred their features, face scrunched in fear. B’s heat broke that even in sleep A couldn’t escape their past.

Slowly they reached a hand out softly and calmly petting through A’s hair. They whimpered tears falling from their eyes.

“You’re okay,” B said softly, repeating it over and over, moving their hard from A’s hair to cup their cheek gently swiping away silver tears.

Hazy eyes slid open, awake but not aware. B moved forward until their forehead rested against A’s letting their eyes fall shut and they continued to whisper sweet nothings between them as A pulled themselves out of their mind.

“I’m okay,” breached the air. B smiled softly pecking their lover on the forehead before settling down and pulling A close.

“Can you go back to sleep?”

A nodded snuggling in closer, “As long as I’m with you,”

[timetowhump]

Do you have a list of all the Siran drabbles?

Siran

The Knife

Wings

Capture

The Cage

Eye

Help

Exhaustion

Christmas

Hopefully one day I will have the time to get back to writing him.

[timetowhump]

A voice cracked through the air, breaking through Caretaker’s sentence and shattering the world around Whumpee. Autumn trees melted into gray walls, soft wind turned cold and stale. The weight of familiar chains pulled down Whumpee’s neck and arms. 

No, no, no, no, please. They couldn’t breathe. The cool grass beneath their feet warped, bending and shifting until the green became concrete. The heat of the sun vanished only to be replaced by iridescent light. 

Their entire reality wavered and shook, edges were blurred and misshapen but to Whumpee it couldn’t have been more real. They were back. They never escape. It had all been a hopeless dream. 

They couldn’t - 

“Whumpee, listen to me it’s okay,”

Hands against their face, warm and comforting.

“You’re okay. You’re not there. I promise,”

Soft voice, kind eyes.

“Come back to me,”

A forehead pressed against their own. The call of birds. Green grass and orange leaves. Wind, cold and fresh. Sunlight, warm and yellow. Whumpee breathed and realized they were safe.

[timetowhump]

Whumper’s laugh echoed down the hall as Whumpee cowered in the darkness.

Cold walls surrounded them as a voice as sharp as knives called their name and footsteps chimed creating an echoing symphony.

Terror ice cold swept through their veins as the song of fear only grew closer.

“Come out. Come out my little pet. Our game isn’t over,”

[timetowhump]

A did their best to clean up their bruises but they still covered their face in canvas of pain.

The cut on their temple was the worst, a deep red line cutting through their skin in an impossible way to hide without a bandage that would draw just as much attention.

Red blood and violet bruises mixed over any skin spared from pain making it look all the more worse than it truly was.

Footsteps sounded outside the closed door and before A could move it swung open. B stopped, frozen in the doorway as their eyes locked in the mirror.

A ducked their head trying their best to hide the pain but the damage was already done. B burst forward hands hovering over A as if unsure of it was safe to touch before gently cupping their cheek, thumb rubbing under the deep bruise masking A’s left eye.

“Who,” B paused licking their lips and the fear look slowly got swept away in a wave of anger but their grip never tightened and their hand continued the gentle caress, “Who did this?”

[timetowhump]

“Don’t let go,” A cried gripping B’s hand. Above them their other hand screamed, blood flooding towards their grip making their grasp on the rock more difficult than they could handle.

“A,” B said, they sounded resigned, calm in a way dangling from a cliff didn’t call for.

“No, I’m not letting you go. So shut up and help me figure out a way to get us both out of this,”

“A,”

“No!”

“A, we both know there isn’t a way we both get out of this,”

“Shut up B. I’m not. I can’t,” they grasped for words but their concentration shot to their hand as blood flooded beneath their fingers and their grip began to slip.

“A!”

“No. No I can, I can get us both out of this just hang on,” A panted.

[timetowhump]

The floor burned cold against their forehead, pain erupting across their knee. A steady pile of blood was growing and A knew they had to get up and moving but they just wanted to sleep.

“A are you okay?”

A pressed their head deeper into the ground and bit back a groan. They didn’t know how to handle B, they weren’t why B helped them. They couldn’t go through another betrayal like Whumper’s, they couldn't’ do that again. What was B’s angle, their point. People didn’t do nice things just because they could, there was always something they wanted.

A soft hand settled into the view in front of them before moving out of the way and prodded at their knee, A hissed but was too exhausted to move.

“Let’s get you up,” B said softly, A didn’t like the sound of that but didn’t protest and pushed their arms up and turned to avoid as much weight off their knee as they could. B watched them with concern that A ignored.

“I’m fine,” A could hear the exhaustion laced in the two words.

“Have you slept recently?”

A ignored the question, feeling that the answer was obvious. B huffed, then pulled A onto their foot. B’s expression somehow got softer.

“Let’s stitch you up then you’re getting some sleep,”

A huffed as B helped them to the side of the room. B spoke a few more times as they stitched A’s skin back together but they didn’t hear what B said, between the added pain and exhaustion that settled on them as heavy as a bout, their mind couldn’t focus on anything but staying awake.

[timetowhump]

They flipped the small knife in their hand before flinging it across the room, they grimaced when the knife didn’t land in the center.

“Again,” Leader snarled, Whumpee flinched at the harsh tone in their voice. They followed Leader’s order even as their fingers ached, small droplets of deep crimson blood falling off their fingers where skin was torn from how many times they threw at the targets without stopping.

“Leader, maybe you should give the kid a break,” Healer spoke up, having come over.

“They can take a break when they hit the center consistently,” Leader snapped. Whumpee flinched again, throwing the next knife. This one flew off their hand wrong, slipping in blood, and Whumpee winced when they knew the knife went off wide, almost not hitting the target.

Leader’s steps echoed through the room and Whumpee swore it went completely silent though a part of them knew that was only in their head. Whumpee didn’t look Leader’s way, eyes locked on the slate grey floor.

The pain followed quickly after flooding their system and Whumpee flinched harshly but their eyes remained on the floor.

“Leader that’s-”

“Quiet,” their voice was barely above a whisper but Healer was silenced immediately, “If you do not hit the center,” Leader said in Whumpee’s ear, “You will feel more pain than this,”

The knife in Whumpee’s thigh twisted. The pain of teeth driving into their tongue holding back a desperate gasp was nothing compared to the way their leg was screaming. Blood pooled down, soaking their pants. Their knee threatened to buckle, their heartbeat drumming down to their foot.

Whumpee nodded, steeling themself. Leader backed away leaving their dagger in Whumpee’s thigh. Their hands were shaking as they grabbed the next knife. It didn’t matter which hand they threw with, both were torn and painted red. Whumpee took a deep breath pushing down the pain as best they could.

Please, they begged and let the knife fly. They didn’t look, they couldn’t look. It didn’t sound different than the others when it slammed into the far wall and slowly Whumpee’s hope diminished.

Leader stepped into Whumpee’s space once again, their hand landing on the hilt of their knife. Even that slightest touch sent agony up Whumpee’s spine making their breath stutter.

“Well done. Do it again,”

[timetowhump]

Whumpee stared up at the blank ceiling that towered over their bed. Sleep pulled their limbs and dragged their eyelids down but once the darkness over their vision, their eyes shot open in panic.

Fear. That’s what kept them awake. Fear of so many things. They hated it. Ever since Whumper took them they’ve been afraid. Of loud noises, the dark, being alone, of sleeping. They hated how weak Whumper made them.

They hated how Whumper haunted them.

[timetowhump]

A didn’t stop. Wouldn’t stop. Even when Leader said it was enough.

They attacked again and again and again, relentlessly fighting, training. They couldn’t stop. Not until they got B back. Not until they were strong enough to get B back.

“Enough!” Leader shouted, shattering A’s concentration and getting a near kick by the training bot in the face because of it.

“When I said we were finished I meant it,” they chastised deactivating the training bot, “I get why you are training so hard-”

“No you don’t!” A interrupted, “I’m the reason B got caught. I was too weak protect myself. I-”

Hands on their shoulders silenced them, “A, it’s not your fault. They made their choice and we are doing everything we can to get them back,”

A hugged themselves tightly, seeming to cave in on themselves, “I just want them back, “ they said their voice cracking on the tears that were fighting to travel down their cheeks.

“I know, we will get them back. I promise,”

[timetowhump]

Whumpee is lost in their nightmare, memories trapping them in their own head. They awake with a sudden burst of movement as if resurfacing from drowning water. Caretaker is in front of them but that’s not who Whumpee sees. The dark changes features, creates images in the shadows. 

[timetowhump]

Whumpee’s hands were shaking too much, they knew they were standing out in the crowd. They were jumping at every sudden movement flinching away from every hand, no matter how hard they tried to still. They were waiting for someone to grab them. Waiting for someone to realize who they had been and drag them back. They couldn't go back. They wouldn’t be able to survive again.

Whumpee knows they are being irrational and that’s the worst part. No matter how many times they told themself they were fine. They were safe. No one knew who they were.

It didn’t change the fear that held them close to it’s chest. It didn’t stop them from spiraling at any sudden movement or sound. It didn’t stop the memories and the panic.

The pain was too close to the surface. They tried so hard to ignore it, push it away because it was useless. Whumpee didn’t want to feel it. Any time they stopped for even a moment they could feel it crawling beneath their skin begging for attention. If they stopped moving it would whisper in their ear. Whumpee could feel that what they were doing wasn’t healthy, it couldn’t be, but facing the pain sounded so much harder. It was easier to shove it aside and to keep moving, it was easier to face the pain in the dark cloak of night as the nightmares washed over them. But now back where it all started, that pain sat on their skin and screamed and forced them to notice it, they couldn’t push it aside and they were trying. It ripped the breath from their lungs, tore apart the rational thoughts and all they wanted to do was hide.

[timetowhump]

“A!” B screamed. Their voice ripped through the silence that overtook the battlefield.

“A!” B sprinted past the bodies around them and any survivors were long gone. A and B had been separated during the fight and B hadn’t stopped looking even as the battle ended when the sun rose and it was far on its way down the horizon.

“A!” Blood squished under their feet, a sound they were unfortunately getting used to.

“A! Please!” B’s hope had slowly been diminishing with the sun and as shadows stretched and darkness reined, they could feel despair tugging hard at every step.

“A!” B cried. Their legs had grown weak and they couldn’t stop themselves from falling as their feet caught on a wayward body. B crashed to the ground and their hope diminished as fast as gravity took them.

“Please,” they said, so soft only the wind could hear them. And the wind returned his call with its own.

“B!” The call was faint, only reaching them because the wind took pity on them. Their head shot up staring into the wind and their hope flared like the last rays of sun.

As silence overtook the air around them once more their last shreds of hope dropped with the sun.  

“I’m sorry,” they whispered.

“B!” The wind responded. The voice was louder and unmistakably A. They shot to their feet eyes searching the endless battle field. Only a hundred feet away a lone figure stood against the last shreds of twilight.

“B!” The figure started to run towards them.

“A!” B’s feet were running before the name even left their lips. The two figures collided, the force sending them to the ground.

B held A tight against their chest, one hand locked into the curls on the back of A’s head and the other holding like iron around their chest. A’s own arms were in a similar hold and neither had any intention of letting the other go.

“I thought I lost you,” B murmured.

“You found me,” A replied with a tearful voice.

“And I am never letting you go,”

[timetowhump]

Whumpee was tired, exhaustion hummed deep in their veins and their eyes felt weighed down by boulders. But they couldn't stop, they pushed past the exhaustion and didn't let their arms drop.

Whumpee didn't want to think about what would happen if they failed, if their power gave out and the shield they held high above them and the others, would shatter.

But it was so heavy. Their arms have gone numb with pain, their shoulders still stubbornly screaming with every breath. Whumpee couldn't focus past keeping the shield in place and their pulse thumping against their temples.

Voices filtered in and out but nothing was understandable. They hardly felt when their legs collapsed beneath them driving them to their knees.

More debris tumbled down from the collapsing building and slammed against the shield. Whumpee screamed in pain and their hold faltered for a moment as the weight settled onto their shoulder, the sound of other screams filled their ears as they felt the shield crack. Whumpee screamed again as they forced the crack in the shield to fade.

They wouldn't be able to hold for much longer, they could feel their power slipping through their fingers like water and it was getting harder and harder to hold it all together.

They couldn't hold back a scream filled with tears as the building around them shook and more debris fell, the shield around them shrunk and the group trapped with Whumpee pressed against them even more. They couldn't breath anymore, the pressure of the building on their shield settling over their chest.

Whumpee was tired. They couldn't hold for much longer, they had to do something. They curled forward on their knees, folding in on themselves even as their arms remained held above them. With every thing they had left Whumpee released one last scream and shoved.

As their vision faded and they felt their life drip past their fingers, Whumpee saw debris launch away, and their last thought was a hope that they saved everyone.