There's a lot she doesn't understand, but one thing she does understand is this: there is a very high chance that anyone who happens to be outside of their room on a Thursday night in this castle will die. So when she comes to in the menagerie instead of in the bed in the room she shares with Hiro, and looks up to see moonlight instead of sunlight, her blood runs cold and her breath catches in her throat.
...she doesn't want to die. But she's here because someone has told the Crafters that they intend to kill her, and the Crafters didn't say no. Hand shaking, she reaches up to her hair and feels for the ornament she keeps forgetting to remove before she falls asleep - and, luckily, it's still there. It's not ideal. It's not a weapon, not exactly. But she's sharpened the ends of the wooden sticks, just in case, and maybe it will allow her to defend herself long enough to run for help.
Hiro has an Editor assignment tonight, she remembers. He might still be out in the grounds somewhere, or in the castle. If she can run and find him, then... maybe it will be okay.
She can't die here. Her life is tied to his. If she dies, he might, too. The other Narrators know he's an Editor, so they might not save him if he doesn't have a partner--
A twig snaps from somewhere behind her, and she whirls around to face whoever is coming out of the shadows, her hairpin clutched tightly in one hand.]
[It took him a long, long time to come to this point. Five weeks of avoiding it and five weeks knowing that no matter how hard he ignored it the objective wouldn't change and it wouldn't go away. But the fact of the matter was that he was now working on borrowed time, not to mention the fact that heroes were lagging in their objectives.
It wasn't an excuse by any means. It wasn't something he wanted to do at all, and he knows that Yona maybe knew something was up. He hadn't spoken much during the day even though they stuck close. She knew he had an Editor assignment, too, but...it wasn't just that.
Why he'd picked the menagerie is still a mystery to him. It was far out of the way and maybe it was with the hope that they wouldn't be disturbed and she couldn't run that far.
It was best to get it over with now.
She calls out as he internally scolds himself for breaking a branch under his feet, and he doesn't answer right away. After a few moments though, he steps out from the shadows with his hood drawn up and his shoulders hunched.]
Sure, Hiro was quiet earlier in the day, but - neither of them really likes the Editor work. Yona might notice his difference in behavior, but the truth behind what's happening here is so far removed from anything she thought could ever be possible that she'd ascribed almost every other possible explanation for it in its place.
Maybe Hiro was closer to the person he was assigned to take out than he had been to the others. He's had more time to get to know the rest of the Narrators, after all.
Or maybe he's worried about the trial, since he'd been outed as an Editor previously. When another corpse turns up without evidence, everyone will know.
Or maybe it's just that this has been going on for so many weeks now. Taking lives has already taken a toll on Yona, and Hiro's done more work than she has.
(Standing in front of her now is proof that it's not any of those things. But she won't accept it. She can't accept it, Hiro would never--)
She should loosen her hold on her hairpin, but she's still gripping it like a weapon, and she doesn't relax - her heart and mind may not be willing to accept what's happening here, but her sense of self-preservation is active enough to make up for it, at least.]
What's... going on? Um, did you need help with the assignment after all...?
[He knows that she knows, even if he doesn't want to admit it or own up to it. He knows she's not stupid and she never has been and that's what makes this so much harder. It's knowing that he's actively betraying her and that she won't understand.
He hopes maybe she'll forgive him someday, but he's resigned himself to not receiving forgiveness anytime soon.
His hands are in his pockets and he nods slowly.]
You could say that. I guess just...[He bites his lip.] It's not time yet. So I'm waiting.
["You could say that" - it's not a yes, he needs help, they're going to work together on this assignment. Yona is acutely aware of that, and she forces herself to take a deep breath to try and stay calm.
(This can't be what she thinks it is. There has to be some other explanation.)]
...waiting for what?
[She looks lost - like she's hoping desperately he'll tell her anything other than the truth here.]
The right time. [He still can't face her.] You know how it goes, Yona. We always have to time stuff right or it doesn't work out. So...I'm waiting a bit. [He pauses.]
...we should go inside. [He knows they won't be able to though.]
[Yona shakes her head. When she speaks, her voice is very small.]
The Crafters didn't bring me all the way out here just so I'd be able to go back inside, Hiro. [...] ...there isn't anyone out here except for us right now, is there?
[She can, but she wants to be wrong. She nods anyway, gripping her hairpin so tightly that her knuckles go white. If it was anyone else - she'd fight tooth and nail to turn the tables on them, and she'd run.
...but, she's not sure she can bring herself to try to hurt Hiro. So there's only one thing she can do.
[He doesn't chase after her immediately. Actually, he lets her run and he watches her go. He knows how this is going to end. There's no need to rush it.
He gives her a head start before he begins to follow at a normal pace. She can't run for long. He already knows that.
It's a matter of following her and keeping his sights on her. They can keep stalling the inevitable for a little while longer.]
[At first - she heads for the menagerie's exit. But by the time she gets to the turn in the road where she could go for the gate, she's already breathing heavily, and she knows it's going to be a difficult run to the castle.
Where can she go? Can she even hope to lose him on the grounds? ...maybe in the hedge maze? Or...
The glass enclosure catches her eye, and she changes direction for it. There's a door. If there's a door, there might be a lock.
If she can lock the door, maybe she can outlast this until morning. They can work this out. The Blotters are going to kill someone, and he's already done his assignment, the Crafters will have ink spilled, they don't have to spill hers too--
Her hands are shaking as she ducks inside and fumbles with the door.
[He walks at a normal pace, eyes alert and watching Yona dart ahead. He knows what she's thinking and he's already mapping out where she could go. He's memorized the layout of the castle by now and the dagger weighs heavily in his sleeve.
He finds her fumbling with the door and he approaches behind her, silently waiting.]
It has to be like this, Yona. [But at least he sounds like he regrets it.] I don't have a choice anymore.
[Yona bites down a scream when his voice comes from behind her and she whirls around to face him, trembling. She's trying not to cry, she really is - she has to stay strong so she can outrun him until dawn.
But this is a nightmare. She'd prepared herself for almost any of the other Narrators trying to kill her, but... Hiro...?]
There's-- There's always a choice, isn't there? [Her breath hitches.] I'm not your assignment, am I? You chose this.
I didn't--[Except that he did. He could have continued to hold off and not followed through with it. He could have ignored it a little longer, hoped that someone else would step up to the plate.
But desperate times and desperate measures means he's mapped out an entire plan on how to kill the girl he feels more affection for than he should.]
...the hero side is losing. You know this is a numbers game. We're losing too many of them from that faction and not enough of them are doing what they need to do. [And his voice cracks a little.] I have to help.
[Yona shakes her head again, not wanting to accept it - to accept any of this.]
Is this... b-because I did too many of my objectives?
[She's done a lot more of them than the others, she knows. And there's been a lot more villain ink dropped into that inkpot every week. ...is this her fault? Does he have to kill her because she's helped draw the villains too far ahead of the heroes?]
I won't finish any of them anymore. So-- so please, don't...
I'm not using a wish to save myself, but nobody's going to suspect that I killed my own partner either. It's...maybe the cleanest kill I'll have this whole game and it's the one I wanted to do the least.
[She can't look at him, because if she does, she'll start sobbing. She's already crying, but... she's managing to keep it together enough to talk, at least for now.
...
It would be so easy to transform here - to become the Beast. Maybe she could overpower him that way, and stay alive just a little longer. But the thought of fighting him makes her feel sick, and she has to put a hand out to the galss wall to steady herself.]
[Yona shakes her head a little uselessly. This is because she's the Beast, then... what if she hadn't told him her title? If she'd kept it a secret, like she'd planned to at the beginning of the game?
But there's no way of changing what happened.]
Y-you know I can't just let this happen, right? I have to... I have to try to get home.
I know. [There's a deep, rattling breath.] Yona, I promise I'll get you home after this. We'll figure it out. Just...please don't make this harder than it has to be.
What else am I supposed to do? [Watching her cry just makes him want to cry even if he refuses to, hand curling into the sleeve of his sweater. It balances the dagger he's hiding and it's a grip on reality he sorely needs.] How else am I supposed to help?
[She should run. She doesn't know where she should run to, and her legs are shaking maybe too much for her to actually be able to make a break for it, but she can't stay here. It's not safe anymore.
At Hiro's side is supposed to be one of the safest places in the castle, because they're partners in more ways than one, but it's not.]
...if I could change how this was supposed to go, I would. You have to know that. This isn't something I would do if I didn't have to. [It's not safe for either of them which really isn't fair. He's quiet and still before he shakes his sleeve, the dagger falling into his grip.]
[the mood whiplash of writing the last tag and then writing this one is real
anyway, yona swallows hard as the dagger falls into his hand, and her gaze drops from his face to the blade. ...this is really happening, isn't it? he'll probably be able to see the moment when she realizes she won't be able to change his mind - her expression falls, and she takes a deep, shaky breath.]
[what he's just asked is the real loaded question here. yona wishes she had an answer to that, but... she really doesn't. she can't bring herself to nod or say "yes," but she can't quite bring herself to say she doesn't trust him, either]
[Yona's eyes lock on the vial for a few long moments, and she swallows hard. If he's telling the truth, then it really will make this easier, won't it?
No. [It's nothing like that, not really.] I wanted to give it to you to keep you safe in case something else happened to you. I didn't think it would be me when I initially made the thing.
[How much she wants to believe that he's telling the truth is written all over her face. She takes a shaky breath and reaches out for the vial, her fingertips brushing against his before she takes it and uncaps it.
One more second to consider it, and then she brings it to her lips and chugs it with one gulp.]
[It should begin to work in ten seconds, maybe less. He tested it and reworked it and made sure it was perfect. He just never thought it would be used like this. He watches her, dagger dropping out of his sleeve and into his hand as he takes a deep breath.]
...I'll do everything I can to bring you back after this. I promise.
[It's all he says before he approaches, taking her by the arm to hold her still before it's a swift and steady stab to the chest.]
[It doesn't hurt. Hiro's concoction does its job well. It's not pain that causes Yona's breath to catch, and it's not pain that causes her to cry. It's the knowledge that there really isn't anything either of them can do to change this outcome that hurts the most.
There's something really terrifying about looking down and seeing her blood spilling out over the dagger, something distinctly wrong about her blood on his hands.]
Don't make promises you can't keep.
[Those are some pretty terrible last words.
Unfortunately, since she's gone numb, she doesn't realize that they will be her last words until they're out - and until, a moment later, she goes limp.]
I can't afford not to keep this one. [It's whispered, maybe, and he doesn't try to get her to talk any more than that. Her blood flows over his hand and down the dagger and he's excited the potion worked even if the act fills his stomach with dread.
He knows what will happen next. He'll receive a coin. He'll receive a wish. He'll have completed his objective and played right into the game. But in the end...he had to convince himself it would be worth it.
Maybe someday he'll believe it.
She goes limp in his arms and he chokes on a sob, letting the knife drop instead of her body and holding her up to continue looking at her. After a few moments, he sinks to the ground with her, sitting in the dirt and ignoring the way the blood smears over his clothes and his hands.
Who cares anymore. He did his part...let them come and find him.]
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grimmadventures2018-07-31 08:29 pm
chapter five - thursday;
There's a lot she doesn't understand, but one thing she does understand is this: there is a very high chance that anyone who happens to be outside of their room on a Thursday night in this castle will die. So when she comes to in the menagerie instead of in the bed in the room she shares with Hiro, and looks up to see moonlight instead of sunlight, her blood runs cold and her breath catches in her throat.
...she doesn't want to die. But she's here because someone has told the Crafters that they intend to kill her, and the Crafters didn't say no. Hand shaking, she reaches up to her hair and feels for the ornament she keeps forgetting to remove before she falls asleep - and, luckily, it's still there. It's not ideal. It's not a weapon, not exactly. But she's sharpened the ends of the wooden sticks, just in case, and maybe it will allow her to defend herself long enough to run for help.
Hiro has an Editor assignment tonight, she remembers. He might still be out in the grounds somewhere, or in the castle. If she can run and find him, then... maybe it will be okay.
She can't die here. Her life is tied to his. If she dies, he might, too. The other Narrators know he's an Editor, so they might not save him if he doesn't have a partner--
A twig snaps from somewhere behind her, and she whirls around to face whoever is coming out of the shadows, her hairpin clutched tightly in one hand.]
Who's there?!
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It wasn't an excuse by any means. It wasn't something he wanted to do at all, and he knows that Yona maybe knew something was up. He hadn't spoken much during the day even though they stuck close. She knew he had an Editor assignment, too, but...it wasn't just that.
Why he'd picked the menagerie is still a mystery to him. It was far out of the way and maybe it was with the hope that they wouldn't be disturbed and she couldn't run that far.
It was best to get it over with now.
She calls out as he internally scolds himself for breaking a branch under his feet, and he doesn't answer right away. After a few moments though, he steps out from the shadows with his hood drawn up and his shoulders hunched.]
...just me.
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Sure, Hiro was quiet earlier in the day, but - neither of them really likes the Editor work. Yona might notice his difference in behavior, but the truth behind what's happening here is so far removed from anything she thought could ever be possible that she'd ascribed almost every other possible explanation for it in its place.
Maybe Hiro was closer to the person he was assigned to take out than he had been to the others. He's had more time to get to know the rest of the Narrators, after all.
Or maybe he's worried about the trial, since he'd been outed as an Editor previously. When another corpse turns up without evidence, everyone will know.
Or maybe it's just that this has been going on for so many weeks now. Taking lives has already taken a toll on Yona, and Hiro's done more work than she has.
(Standing in front of her now is proof that it's not any of those things. But she won't accept it. She can't accept it, Hiro would never--)
She should loosen her hold on her hairpin, but she's still gripping it like a weapon, and she doesn't relax - her heart and mind may not be willing to accept what's happening here, but her sense of self-preservation is active enough to make up for it, at least.]
What's... going on? Um, did you need help with the assignment after all...?
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He hopes maybe she'll forgive him someday, but he's resigned himself to not receiving forgiveness anytime soon.
His hands are in his pockets and he nods slowly.]
You could say that. I guess just...[He bites his lip.] It's not time yet. So I'm waiting.
[He's stalling and he knows it.]
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(This can't be what she thinks it is. There has to be some other explanation.)]
...waiting for what?
[She looks lost - like she's hoping desperately he'll tell her anything other than the truth here.]
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...we should go inside. [He knows they won't be able to though.]
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[Yona shakes her head. When she speaks, her voice is very small.]
The Crafters didn't bring me all the way out here just so I'd be able to go back inside, Hiro. [...] ...there isn't anyone out here except for us right now, is there?
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[She can, but she wants to be wrong. She nods anyway, gripping her hairpin so tightly that her knuckles go white. If it was anyone else - she'd fight tooth and nail to turn the tables on them, and she'd run.
...but, she's not sure she can bring herself to try to hurt Hiro. So there's only one thing she can do.
She turns and runs.]
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He gives her a head start before he begins to follow at a normal pace. She can't run for long. He already knows that.
It's a matter of following her and keeping his sights on her. They can keep stalling the inevitable for a little while longer.]
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Where can she go? Can she even hope to lose him on the grounds? ...maybe in the hedge maze? Or...
The glass enclosure catches her eye, and she changes direction for it. There's a door. If there's a door, there might be a lock.
If she can lock the door, maybe she can outlast this until morning. They can work this out. The Blotters are going to kill someone, and he's already done his assignment, the Crafters will have ink spilled, they don't have to spill hers too--
Her hands are shaking as she ducks inside and fumbles with the door.
...there isn't a lock.]
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He finds her fumbling with the door and he approaches behind her, silently waiting.]
It has to be like this, Yona. [But at least he sounds like he regrets it.] I don't have a choice anymore.
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But this is a nightmare. She'd prepared herself for almost any of the other Narrators trying to kill her, but... Hiro...?]
There's-- There's always a choice, isn't there? [Her breath hitches.] I'm not your assignment, am I? You chose this.
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But desperate times and desperate measures means he's mapped out an entire plan on how to kill the girl he feels more affection for than he should.]
...the hero side is losing. You know this is a numbers game. We're losing too many of them from that faction and not enough of them are doing what they need to do. [And his voice cracks a little.] I have to help.
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Is this... b-because I did too many of my objectives?
[She's done a lot more of them than the others, she knows. And there's been a lot more villain ink dropped into that inkpot every week. ...is this her fault? Does he have to kill her because she's helped draw the villains too far ahead of the heroes?]
I won't finish any of them anymore. So-- so please, don't...
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...it's because I haven't completed mine.
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[She doesn't understand. She just doesn't understand.]
Our lives are bound together. If I die, you will too... then they'll have lost another hero.
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Don't you get it? You are my objective. You always have been.
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[Oh. Wait, no. If he gets away with it, then... She swallows hard.]
...you're going to use a wish. You really will be fine if I die. ...you never needed me at all, did you?
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I'm not using a wish to save myself, but nobody's going to suspect that I killed my own partner either. It's...maybe the cleanest kill I'll have this whole game and it's the one I wanted to do the least.
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[She can't look at him, because if she does, she'll start sobbing. She's already crying, but... she's managing to keep it together enough to talk, at least for now.
...
It would be so easy to transform here - to become the Beast. Maybe she could overpower him that way, and stay alive just a little longer. But the thought of fighting him makes her feel sick, and she has to put a hand out to the galss wall to steady herself.]
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...I wish you weren't the Beast. This would make everything so much easier. [He has to be pragmatic about this or he'll fall apart, too.]
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But there's no way of changing what happened.]
Y-you know I can't just let this happen, right? I have to... I have to try to get home.
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Please... please don't do this.
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[She should run. She doesn't know where she should run to, and her legs are shaking maybe too much for her to actually be able to make a break for it, but she can't stay here. It's not safe anymore.
At Hiro's side is supposed to be one of the safest places in the castle, because they're partners in more ways than one, but it's not.]
...please...
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...I promise I'll make this fast.
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anyway, yona swallows hard as the dagger falls into his hand, and her gaze drops from his face to the blade. ...this is really happening, isn't it? he'll probably be able to see the moment when she realizes she won't be able to change his mind - her expression falls, and she takes a deep, shaky breath.]
Is... is it going to hurt?
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Do you trust me still? After all of this?
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[what he's just asked is the real loaded question here. yona wishes she had an answer to that, but... she really doesn't. she can't bring herself to nod or say "yes," but she can't quite bring herself to say she doesn't trust him, either]
...I want to.
["but..."]
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I made something in the lab a week or two ago. It should help make everything go numb so you can't feel anything at all.
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...but, on the other hand...]
You've been planning this for that long...?
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One more second to consider it, and then she brings it to her lips and chugs it with one gulp.]
...make it quick, please.
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...I'll do everything I can to bring you back after this. I promise.
[It's all he says before he approaches, taking her by the arm to hold her still before it's a swift and steady stab to the chest.]
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[It doesn't hurt. Hiro's concoction does its job well. It's not pain that causes Yona's breath to catch, and it's not pain that causes her to cry. It's the knowledge that there really isn't anything either of them can do to change this outcome that hurts the most.
There's something really terrifying about looking down and seeing her blood spilling out over the dagger, something distinctly wrong about her blood on his hands.]
Don't make promises you can't keep.
[Those are some pretty terrible last words.
Unfortunately, since she's gone numb, she doesn't realize that they will be her last words until they're out - and until, a moment later, she goes limp.]
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He knows what will happen next. He'll receive a coin. He'll receive a wish. He'll have completed his objective and played right into the game. But in the end...he had to convince himself it would be worth it.
Maybe someday he'll believe it.
She goes limp in his arms and he chokes on a sob, letting the knife drop instead of her body and holding her up to continue looking at her. After a few moments, he sinks to the ground with her, sitting in the dirt and ignoring the way the blood smears over his clothes and his hands.
Who cares anymore. He did his part...let them come and find him.]