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mint-yooxgi · 5 months

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Fight or Flight - Yandere!Redcap!Mingi X Tall!Chubby!Reader

Fae!AU & Yandere!AU - Part of the CoDN Thrill of the Hunt Collab

Genre: Fantasy, Mature, Horror, Angst, Fluff, Smut

Pairing: Mingi X Reader

Words: 7,327

Rating: Mature - 18+ MDNI

Warnings: Please read the warnings carefully, as this is a very heavy story dealing with many dark topics. This is also all of the warnings for this fic as it is one long one shot that I had to split into multiple parts, and I'm too tired right now to individually categorize all of these warnings to their respective parts. 8 ft tall Mingi. Slow burn. Violence: depiction of a massacre, a deer being slaughtered, as well as physical, verbal, sexual, and emotional, both alluded to and not. Blood and gore. Abuse: physical, emotional, verbal, and sexual, both alluded to and implied. Assault: physical, and sexual, both alluded to, implied, and attempted. OC has a really rough past, really this isn't for the faint of heart. Whipping, both alluded to, and done. Mentions of branding. Heavy themes of possession and ownership. Deception. Arson. Really, there's a lot of dark subject matter. Mingi falls hard and fast, thus, he simps a lot for the OC, but it's not a story written by me if Mingi doesn't simp for the OC. The reader is mentioned to be both tall and chubby, but it is not mentioned often, so it shouldn't disrupt the flow of the story when ready if you are not tall and/or chubby. I think that's everything, but if I missed something, please let me know! Smut: Biting/marking, outdoor sex, fingering (fem. rec), oral (fem. rec), hand job (male rec), come eating, overstimulation, Mingi has a dig bick, sex in a spring, really, it's very soft in comparison to the subject matter. This is a Yandere story, it will contain themes such as stalking, violence, obsession, possessive natures, and just general overall creepiness and swearing. You have been warned.

P.S. If there are any spelling or grammatical errors, please ignore them. I did my best through many rounds of editing, but some are liable to still slip through.

A/n: I am SO sorry this took me LITERALLY forever to complete. I meant to have this out so much earlier, and actually posted on time, but it turned out much, much longer than I ever anticipated it being. I'm really proud of how this story turned out, and I didn't want to split it into multiple parts because I felt it would take away from the story as a whole. I'm super excited for you all to read this one, as I had a tremendous amount of fun writing it, and I really hope you all love Mingi's and OC's journey as much as I do. Huge shoutout and thanks to @anyamaris and @kwanisms for listening to me ramble and rave about this story both before and during the writing process, and for always encouraging me while writing! Also, huge thank you to @sanjoongie for being so patient and understanding with me as I write this all out in full. I hope you all enjoy! As always feedback is greatly appreciated! Enjoy!~

Summary: Out of one horrible situation and into another, the cycle of abuse never stops. You've lived with monsters your whole life. So, what's one more?

P.P.S. Please don't let this flop guys. If you enjoyed it, please reblog!!!

Mini Masterlist

An annoyed sigh leaves his lips at the incessant chatter he hears around him. Low whispers rise in volume until the dull buzz of voices consumes him, interrupting his post meal relaxation. Irritation mars his features, his brow tugging downwards as he pulls the broken sliver of bone he had been using to pick at his teeth with out of his mouth.

“What is with your incessant whining?”

All Mingi had wanted to do was relax after dinner. In peace, within the confines of his makeshift encampment at the heart of his battalion, but it seems there’s been a commotion at the far edge.

“Humans, General.” One of his underlings, a vice-captain under his command, Darius, hisses. “They say they want to make a deal.”

Mingi scoffs, rolling his eyes, “Not too bright, are they?”

“When have humans ever been known to be smart?” Darius snickers.

Mingi heaves a long sigh, standing to his feet. “Given the length of this interaction, I can’t trust any of you to be competent enough to end this quickly.”

“They’re persistent, General.” He replies, flinching back as Mingi turns his sharp-eyed gaze to him.

“You let them think their words had any merit of importance to us.” The redcap general snaps. “No wonder they’re being so uncooperative.”

Striding through the encampment, the whispers finally come to a halt. A dead silence surrounds his soldiers as Mingi strolls through their ranks, eyes zeroing in on the small gathering of frail humans. Darius rushes along behind the proud general, whom stands a good eight feet tall. The tallest amongst his redcap companions.

A red sash is tied around Mingi’s bicep, alerting all to his rank within the gathered redcaps. There is a clear air of respect the others hold for him as he walks passed, holding his head high, no falter in his steps. Some even go so far as to look upon him in awe while others incline their head out of respect.

Reaching the edges of his encampment, Mingi scowls. “What’s the big idea here?”

“Ah, General!” Lias turns to him, a malicious grin tugging at the younger captain’s lips. “These humans insist on making a trade with us.”

“How did they even find us in the first place?” Mingi darts his gaze over to the three standing before him, just over the threshold of their protection line.

A woman seems to be holding another in her arms. The one with her head down doesn’t say much, but the one holding her trembles as she meets Mingi’s gaze. The male, slightly taller than the woman being held, stands a little straighter.

“We know mushroom rings will bring us where we want to be, or rather, to whom.” He replies, almost defiantly. “You just so happened to be the closest in the area.”

“Why are you wasting our time?” Mingi growls, teeth bared over much too sharp fangs.

“Please,” the woman holding the other in her arms seems desperate as she attempts to take a step forward.

That’s when he notices: the tall women is unconscious, being held up by the other. He quirks a brow, unaware a frail human such as the small one could ever be so strong.

“We just want to make a deal.” The man states, rather firmly.

Mingi’s gaze darts between the two humans.

“They want us to take their daughter for them.” Lias snorts, Darius laughing along with him. “As if we would care for such a useless mortal.”

“We know a little about your kind.” The woman continues. “Please, we know she’ll be better off here. We don’t want anything in return, just her safety.”

“She can earn her place.” The male adds. “She can look after herself, just please, take her with you.”

“We’re not about to gain something you don’t want.” Mingi retorts harshly, crossing his arms over his chest. “She has no use to us.”

“That’s not it at all.” The male is quick to shake his head, attempting to take a step towards the gathered redcaps only to be greeted by snarls and snapping fangs. He freezes. “Please-“

“We don’t need one of your kind slowing us down.” Mingi states, narrowing his eyes at the way the unconscious woman sways slightly. Honestly, he’s surprised this woman hasn’t fallen over yet, or caused the other holding her up to collapse under her seemingly dead weight.

“She won’t slow you down!” The woman is quick to protest.

“Watch your tongue, mortal.” Darius snaps. “This is no ordinary general you’re speaking to.”

The woman bows her head, cowering back and holding the other tighter to her chest. Though, due to the height difference, it looks quite awkward. A fact only echoed by the snickers Mingi can hear echo out behind him.

“Oh, come on,” Lias tilts his head slightly, a mischievous gleam in his gaze. “This could be fun. We could always use another pack mule.”

Some more snickers are heard from around the area, along with the snapping of jaws in agreement. The harsh clicking of fangs only rises in sound, and Mingi can smell the spikes of fear from the two conscious humans. A taste he absolutely revels in.

“The human would be safe with us from whatever outside forces you’re referring to.” Lias continues, his lips stretching widely over all too sharp teeth.

Mingi spares a glance around at his men, noting their sudden change in attitude. The eager gleams he sees throughout the crowd have him heaving a sigh.

“Very well,” he turns, beginning to walk away from this whole matter. He’ll let his men have their fun, and with any luck, the human will be dead come morning. “She’s your responsibility, though. If she survives.”

A cheer rises up through the surrounding redcaps as the tall women gets torn from the other’s arms and dragged across the protection barrier. Mingi thinks nothing of the way a faint smell of blood rises on the air, knowing his men are probably already having their fun after bringing the human properly into their realm. The other two have already been sent back, their memories altered forever. If they even remember having a daughter at all would be a miracle.

Entering his own private tent, Mingi settles into his favourite chair. Kicking his feet up onto a little stump, he leans back, relaxing into the evening chill that begins to settle over the land. They’ve still got a long ways to go to return to their keep, the scouting mission having taken a lot out of them. The rogue redcaps they had been hunting have all been dealt with. Traitors, every last one of them. The fight they had put up was gruesome, but as always, Mingi and his men came out on top.

Despite it all, some of his men still have energy to burn as he hears the familiar hooting and hollering of his subordinates last long into the night.

***

The next day, Mingi wakes to the encampment practically all cleaned up. Some of his men are finishing last minute preparations for travel, their bags packed and stored for easier maneuvering. All that’s left is to secure his own lodgings for the next leg of their journey.

“The human finally woke up.” Darius informs Mingi as he steps to the head of the line.

“She’s not dead?” Mingi quirks a brow, barely bothering to scan the gathered ranks to see if he can spot the women he saw last night.

“We figured we could use her for some entertainment-“ at Mingi’s sharp glare, Darius stops himself. “She’s surprisingly stronger than she looks. We’ve loaded her with a few packs and told her to carry them for us, or else she won’t like the outcome.” The vice-captain shrugs. “She complied.”

Mingi hums to himself, turning towards the direction they’ll be setting off in in a few minutes. He finds it odd for a human to be so complacent. All of the stories he’s heard contradict such simplistic actions. He was expecting screaming, and an attempt to run the first moment she regained consciousness.

Even more shocking is the fact that you’re still alive.

“Don’t let it go on too long,” Mingi shoots him a look out of the corner of his eyes. “Have your fun, but make sure she doesn’t slow me down.”

“Of course, General.” Darius nods, saluting him before running off to finish some last minute things.

Quietly, Mingi observes his battalion. He can see Lias barking orders at some subordinates to finish packing the rest of the camp quickly. Others appear to be scrambling about, and true to Darius’ word, Mingi spots that same tall woman from last night standing off to the side.

There’s nothing special about you. At least, from what Mingi can tell. You stand upright, spine straight with three packs carried on your figure. Their bulk simply adds to your own, nearly drowning you in their sheer size. Your face looks worn, and tired, but you move around where they instruct you to without complaint.

Mingi just hopes you can keep up with them.

A few minutes later, the redcaps are on the move. Multiple shoot you looks of disgust as they run passed, growling lowly in your direction. Some even go to far as to purposely run into you, spitting on you as they knock you over in your attempts to keep pace with the company.

It isn’t more than an hour into the morning when you start to fall behind.

Mingi heaves out a sigh, smelling the faintest bit of blood again in the air. A scent not uncommon in a group of redcaps, given their premise. Though, what truly annoys him is the subtle limp you attempt to hide as he marches over to you at the very rear of his guard.

Again, his men part for him silently. The simple power he exudes enough to silence even the rowdiest of the bunch.

“Are you that incompetent that you do not know how to walk properly, mortal?” He sneers, irritation clear on his features.

“I can walk just fine.” You reply bluntly.

“Then, keep up.” He snaps, turning so as not to waste another word on you for the moment.

With Mingi’s back to you, he fails to notice the harsh glare you send his way, but his subordinates do.

A harsh slap rings out through the forest, a dull thud heard soon after.

“You dare look upon our general with such vile contempt in your eyes?” Lias’ voice booms out through the surrounding redcaps, catching Mingi’s attention.

He freezes, turning to spare a glance over his shoulder.

There you rest, face down on the ground as you attempt to push yourself up. Your clothes are even more disheveled than before, dirt smearing your cheek. Yet, that harsh look still rests upon your face, even as the smell of blood becomes more prominent in the air.

“I didn’t ask for this.” You keep your voice low, but still clear enough for everyone around you to hear.

“Well, get used to it, Sweetheart,” Lias hisses, tugging you harshly back to your feet by the back of your neck. “You’re no better than a pet, now.”

You say nothing, instead opting to purse your lips. Your eyes narrow as you watch Lias retreat from you, hands fisted around the straps of the packs you carry as your whole body seems to tremble.

If Mingi didn’t know any better, he’d say you’re angry.

No… not angry. Disappointed.

Turning back to face front, Mingi decides to ignore you for the rest of the day. You’re not his responsibility, and how his subordinates treat you is truly none of his concern. Really, if it were up to him, he would have sent those two other humans bargaining for you to join them here in the fae realm packing. Perhaps he should have made an example of you all when he had the chance. Only, now, he’s stuck with you, and he’ll have to learn to deal with it, for the sake of his men. It’s not like you’re the only human he’s ever dealt with before.

Luckily, for the rest of the day, travel does not get halted again. You manage to keep up just fine, only falling behind once more near sunset. Mingi had wanted to travel for longer this day, covering more distance and hearing no complaints from neither you nor his men.

The faster they get home, the swifter he can deal with the mess that is you.

Mingi wants nothing to do with you. All you are to him is a pathetic little human. So frail, he could break you with the flick of his wrist. His eyes narrow on your figure as he sees you collapse against the side of a tree, none of his underlings sparing you any supplies as they set up for the night.

No food is offered to you, but you manage to scrounge some water. Your throat burns, and your feet ache as if they’re ready to fall off at a moment’s notice. The stitch in your side is finally calming down, and you’re just grateful none of these fae have ordered you to help them set up camp for the night. No, they stated they didn’t want you touching anything, or doing something wrong, and for once, you’re thanking your lucky stars for such a harsh verdict.

Lightly, you rub at your leg, right where you know that fresh wound still resides. It’s not a deep cut, but twisting wrong, or moving around too much aggravates the scar. Not to mention your limp which has returned even worse than before, due to the speed at which you’re expected to move.

Despite it all, you don’t say anything. No, you learned the hard way what talking back meant. Though, that might just be your one salvation through this all. Perhaps tomorrow you’ll see how far you can push these redcaps, and discover if their nature really lives up to their legacy.

For now, you settle deeper against that tree. It’s late, and you are exhausted. Sleep is one of the best things for you now, especially since there’s no way you can return to the life you previously once had. Thinking back on it now, you don’t know if you’d ever want to.

Not that you really ever had a choice.

The next morning brings another early start, you being commanded to carry even more than yesterday on your back. The only saving grace is that it seems the speed at which the band you’re travelling with has lessoned, but that doesn’t stop your whole body from aching.

Two more days pass like this, insults thrown at you by the surrounding redcaps, only for them to take out their amusement on you by either scratching you by ‘accident’, spitting on you, or pushing you to the ground. You manage to get some food, but it’s both rotten and vile. You’re honestly surprised your body hasn’t given up on you, yet.

You start to complain, but to your relief, or rather, disappointment, no one bothers to take your whining seriously. That, or they’re quick to shut you up, but not in the way you so desperately hope.

It’s around midday when you feel yourself lose your footing. The sun is shining brightly in the sky above your head, a few clouds drifting lazily by as you tumble harshly to the ground. The worst part is, you end up landing badly on your injured side. Unluckily for you, both that scar and your bad ankle are on your right leg which just so happens to land awkwardly on top of the root you tripped over.

You attempt to keep them at bay, but the sudden sharp pain you feel shoot up your leg sends tears to your eyes. You can practically feel your cut tear itself anew, a dampness seeping into the material of your tattered pants. Your breathing is heavy, and you can hardly force yourself back onto your hands, your entire body groaning in protest. Every ache pulses through you with each heartbeat, and in the back of your mind, you wonder if this is truly the end.

“What’s the hold up this time?” You hear a stern voice huff out above your head.

Mustering enough energy, you tilt your head upwards at the approaching figure. There’s a brief moment where the sun blinds you, filtering through the branches in such a way that burns your vision with a bright light until a shadow looms over you. Blinking reveals the redcap’s general standing before you, a look of pure ire marring his features as he glares down at you.

“Get up.” He growls, not even bothering to nudge you with his foot. You’re too far beneath him to bother.

A sad attempt is made by you once more before you’re collapsing on top of your weakened arms.

“I. Can’t.” You manage to get out through gritted teeth, squeezing your eyes shut through the pain.

Mingi snorts. “Pathetic.”

With a roll of his eyes, he storms away from you, barking out orders to set up the encampment. From what you can hear, he plans to move out during the night.

They need to stop to eat, anyways.

Insults are hurled your way by various underlings, some even going so far as to step on you as they walk passed. It’s as if you are worth no more than the dirt beneath their feet as you continue to lay there, weak and injured, just waiting and begging for death to finally claim you.

“You’ve really been a thorn in the general’s side ever since you joined us.” A voice to your left catches your attention.

“I didn’t ask to become a slave.” You retort is half grumbled into the earth, brow furrowing as you glare in the voice’s direction.

A chuckle is heard from above you. “Last I checked, you weren’t actually bound to this group.”

Out of the corner of your vision, you see a male, or rather, what appears to be a male, crouch beside you. He appears a bit shorter than his companions, perhaps even an inch or two shorter than you, and that’s saying something.

“My name’s Windfel,” he says lightly. “I’ve never met a human before. What’s your name?”

“Don’t worry about it,” you huff, finally managing to push yourself upwards and shrug those packs off of your back.

A hiss escapes you as you accidentally apply to much pressure to your right side, hand grasping over where that reopened cut resides. The dull throbbing you can feel, mixed in with the sight of days old blood and dirt only has you wincing. The wound is more than likely infected, and probably has been for the past few days. Only, you don’t have anything to treat it with, and it’s not like you can go around asking for help.

“Oh, you’re more clever than we give you credit for.” He grins. “You must know that telling a fae your true name means they have complete power over you.”

“You’re the ones who assumed me incompetent in the first place.” Your retort is low, and almost immediately, you flinch, as if bracing yourself for an impact of some sorts.

Again, he only chuckles. “That we did.”

“Is there something you want, Windfel?” The question is a bit harsh, despite you avoiding his gaze.

“Not in particular at the moment,” he hums. “I’m simply satisfying a mere curiosity. I’ve read a lot about you humans, thanks to the experiments in the Latha Court.”

“You experiment on humans?” Your eyes widen, a surge of panic washing through you.

“Yes.” He replies, somewhat cheerfully with a nod of his head. “We learn a lot about your kind that way.”

“You’re despicable.” A shudder caresses your spine.

“So I’ve been told.” He grins. “I am a redcap, you know.”

Out of the corner of your eyes, you notice him tip a flat cap stained dark red in your direction.

“I’m aware.” Your answer is blunt as you attempt to stand to your feet. You don’t get very far, for you immediately fall back onto your ass as your arms give out beneath you.

A small ‘oof’ escapes you as you land on your right side, eyes squeezing shut as more tears spring up from beneath where you’ve always tried to hide them.

“You’re not looking so good,” he observes.

“Thanks for noticing.” A low grumble is all he receives in response as you attempt to push yourself upwards once more.

Another chuckle. “I like your sense of humour.”

A side-eyed look is sent his way curtesy of you, “If you want to call it that.”

“Come on, I’ll help you.” He goes to lift you to your feet.

Immediately, you cower away from him, a brief panic filling your gaze as you fixate on his hands.

“I have no intentions of harming you right now.” He replies, somewhat calmly.

“Why are you trying to help me?” You eye him cautiously.

He shrugs. “I’m bored.”

As much as you don’t appreciate his answer, you have no better options. Somewhat reluctantly, you allow him to help you to your feet, guiding you to a tent already prepped and ready. He lifts the flap, allowing you to stumble your way inside and sitting in a chair as per his instruction.

The tent is large enough to fit three people comfortable, appearing more spacious on the inside than from the outside. You suppose it has to do with the magic of the fae, considering they’re able to store everything and carry it so efficiently in such packs, no larger than what you’re used to calling knapsacks.

“You know, you really have caused a great deal of annoyance for our general since your arrival.” He says as he grabs a roll of white medical cloth from a little side table.

“I never asked for this.” You mumble, keeping your head down.

“I’m aware you were brought unconscious into our ranks.” Windfel replies. “Is there a reason for that?”

“Not that I’m obliged to tell you.” Your eyes narrow suspiciously, watching every movement he makes closely.

You highly doubt anyone will come to your aid if you decide to scream for help.

“Just making conversation,” he responds, lifting his hands lightly in front of himself in a shrug. “I’m not a healer, so all I’m willing to do is let you wrap that wound. If you’re lucky, you won’t have to dress it when we get back to the keep.”

You purse your lips, eyeing Windfel as he places the roll of cloth beside you. A moment later, and he’s moving around the tent, rummaging through his own pack and pulling out a fresh pair of clothes.

“What, exactly, is this ‘keep’ you all continuously talk about?” You ask, somewhat warily.

He completely ignores your question, tossing the spare clothes at you.

“I don’t use these anymore, and although we typically enjoy the smell of blood, we don’t enjoy when wounds fester.” His nose crinkles along with his words. “There’s a small stream about a quarter of a mile to the northeast. I’ll take you there once you’re ready.”

“You’re being awful nice to me for someone who doesn’t like my kind,” You observe, eyeing him carefully.

“I care about my general, and anything I can do to… lesson his burdens, I will.” Comes Windfel’s simple reply. “When you’re ready, I’ll be outside.”

You watch him step out the opposite flap of the tent he entered, brow furrowing as the material slaps shut. Shouts can be heard outside, along with the hustle and bustle of the rest of the encampment being set up. You bet the rest wouldn’t have even notice you moved from that tree, yet.

Tilting your head downwards, you look at the clothes in your hand, feeling the fabric between your fingers. It’s been far too long since you’ve gotten any type of new clothing. Back in the human realm, the only time you got a new piece of clothing was when- no. You shouldn’t be thinking about that right now.

Swallowing thickly, you look over at that roll of white medical cloth. As much as you don’t trust this redcap, this is the first ounce of kindness you’ve received in quite a long time. There’s a part of you screaming at yourself not to believe it, but there’s another part, a part much more vulnerable that clings onto the hope that maybe, just maybe, things are starting to look up for you.

Your life has never been worth much, but perhaps someone is actually starting to see value in you that has never been there before. Then again, you probably shouldn’t get your hopes up. They’ve fallen too many times for you to count.

Taking a deep breath in, you grab that roll of medical cloth. Carefully, you wrap it in the bundle of clothes from Windfel, and stand back to your feet. Though you wobble slightly, you’re able to steady yourself, and within a minute, you’re exiting through the same flap that redcap did only moments before.

A single nod is all you give him as you stand outside the tent. A single nod of which he returns, motioning for you to follow him deep into the woods.

***

The journey to the stream is slow, taking well over an hour to get there. The distance is much greater than you were expecting, and the path isn’t easy at all. As much as Windfel seems to be ‘helping’ you, he did not once offer you a hand through the rough terrain of the woods through your travels.

“Will there be enough time?” You ask, eyeing the trickling water at the edge of the bank.

“Relax,” Windfel huffs out lightly. “Knowing the general, he’ll probably spend at least another two hours resting. So, as long as you don’t take too long, we’ll be fine.”

You purse your lips in response, but say nothing.

“I have no interest in watching you bathe, either, human.” He says, turning so his back is to you. “So, you needn’t worry about that.”

“I’ve never had much privacy, anyways.” You grumble, but as soon as the words leave your lips, your eyes widen. Terrified, you glance at Windfel’s back.

Choosing to either ignore your statement, or you entirely, he stands there, unmoving, His back is straight as he gazes out into the woods in the direction you both came, paying no mind to even the sound of water trickling behind you.

You turn back around.

Darting your gaze to the stream once more, you notice how clear the water seems to be. The movement against the stones appears languid, a gentle breeze flitting through the trees in the next moment. It’s almost as if the stream is inviting you in, luring you into it’s pristine waters, and the longer you stare at its enchanting depths, the more you long to dip your feet into its calming waters.

“What’s the catch?” You grit your teeth, cursing yourself for being so stupid.

“You humans always think there’s some sort of trick to everything, don’t you?” Windfel chuckles, and suddenly, you feel his hot breath on your neck. You didn’t even hear him move. “I could push you in, if you like, but I don’t think that would bode well for your wound.”

Your spine straightens. “I can get in myself, thank you very much.”

“You are most welcome.” The way you can practically feel him smile against your back has a shiver running down your spine.

A moment later, his presence at your back lessens, and you find yourself able to breathe easier once more. You spare a glance over your shoulder to see him resting in that same spot as before, his back turned as he begins to hum a small tune to himself. Eyeing him cautiously for a few moments, you finally turn back around to face the stream, deciding that he won’t actually do anything to you. Besides, even you are starting to not be able to handle your own stench, and that’s saying something.

Slowly, carefully, you begin stripping yourself of your old clothes. The tattered shirt you wear gets tossed onto the ground beside the new one, your pants following shortly after. You have enough mind to leave your undergarments on, just in case Windfel decides to play a trick of some sort on you, or run away with both sets of clothes. You still need something to wear, and Windfel is still a man.

Men are never good at keeping their promises. You learned that the hard way.

Stepping towards the very edge of the stream, you take your time sitting down. Each movement is stiff, pain shooting through your right side as you finally get a good look at the cut on your upper leg.

The wound festers, dried pus caked on the edge. The cut itself is swollen, days old blood littering the skin around it. From how bad it looks, you’re scared to even touch it, but a creeping thought in the back of your mind keeps you inching towards the water with every passing second.

You’ve had worse.

Carefully, you dip your toes into the crystalline water. It’s a bit cool to the touch, and causes you to jerk back, surprised by its icy feel. Yet, it’s alluring in a way, as if it’s the softest of silk that has ever caressed your skin. A luxury you have never been afforded, and you take the time now to savour it, despite the chill that clings to your feet as you submerge them beneath the gentle flow of the stream.

In no time at all, you feel yourself get used to the water’s icy chill, sinking deeper and deeper until you’re fully sitting on the edge of the river bank. Being mindful of your leg, you angle yourself so you can lean towards the water, cupping your hands together in order to gather the cool liquid in your palms and clean your wound.

The first few handfuls sting, but you grit your teeth and bear it. With each handful of water, more and more of the dirt, grime, and blood is washed away, revealing the cut to have gotten longer over the past few days. All that running around must have strained it, and reopened the wound over and over again, leading to the edges widening, and the cut deepening.

No wonder your whole leg has been aching. You just hope the infection isn’t already in your blood. There’s no telling what may happen to you, then.

“Oh my, that looks bad.”

A voice from above your head startles you, and you nearly go toppling into the stream. Looking up with a hand clutched over your chest, your eyes wide in panic, you see Windfel leaning over you, inspecting your cut.

“A few more days and you would have had to cut it off,” he remarks casually.

You physically feel your heart drop, your eyes briefly shifting to your right ankle. You swallow thickly, a jolt of pain travelling all the way from your foot upwards to your hip as tears unwillingly spring to your eyes. Almost involuntarily, you begin rapidly shaking your head, protests falling from numb lips.

“I’m just shanking ya!” He laughs, boisterously at that. He even goes so far as to pat your shoulder a few times, wiping tears of joy from the corner of his eyes.

“You’re not very funny.” You whisper, expression hard.

Windfel blinks, “Geez, tough crowd.”

You purposely avoid his gaze, looking back out over to the opposite bank of the stream. Your lips are pursed in a thin line as you slowly manage to get your breathing under control. Even you can hear the thunderous pounding of your own heartbeat, so you sure as hell know that Windfel can, too.

“I thought you weren’t going to watch me.” You mutter, slowly turning yourself further into the stream.

“No, I said I had no interest in watching you bathe.” He remarks, matter of factly. “There’s a difference.”

“If you say so,” you mutter, slipping into the water and putting a little bit of distance between you and that redcap. Not that it would really matter, in the long run.

The chill of the water causes your body to stiffen for a moment, only for the entirety of your muscles to immediately relax. The chill morphs into a gentle caress, and as you sink down to allow the water up to your neck, you find yourself letting out a small, blissful sigh through your nose. Involuntarily, your eyes slip shut.

“Feels better, doesn’t it?” Windfel hums.

Your eyes shoot open, turning to look over at the redcap who is back to standing in his original spot, facing away from you.

“I-“ you swallow, keeping your voice low. “I haven’t had a chance to bathe like this in a long time.”

“Yeah,” Windfel snorts. “I could tell.”

He makes a gesture similar to fanning the air in front of himself, and you find yourself rolling your eyes. You even go to far as to splash water in his direction before you can stop yourself.

Even though not a single drop of water touches him, your eyes still go wide. Not a muscle moves as you stare at him, your heartbeat thudding once more in your ears.

“Damn, human, you really are uptight.” Windfel snickers. “As if a little water could hurt me. It’s nice when such creatures are playful. Adorable, even.”

“I don’t think many would agree with you.” You mutter, gently pushing yourself backwards and creating just a tiny bit more distance between yourself and him.

“You’re probably right,” he hums. “Though, we all can agree on liking to be amused.”

“You confuse me.” You state blankly, rubbing at your skin lightly beneath the water and washing away any excess dirt and grime you can see.

“The feeling is very much mutual, human.” He replies. “I bet if you lived on your own as long as I have in the wild, you’d feel the same way.”

“Oh, yeah,” you hum, clearly not convinced as you dunk your head under the water briefly. “I’m sure.”

“Oh, come on! You’re telling me you’ve never lived in the woods before? Never fought for your own survival all by you little lonesome?” Windfel’s voice is slightly mocking, and you know he’s probably only trying to get a rise out of you.

Unfortunately, though, it’s working.

“I think you and I have two very different definitions of survival.” You say, scrubbing a bit harder at your skin.

“Perhaps that is true,” he hums once more, as if considering your words. “But come on, you can’t tell me you’ve never wanted to know what it’s like to live on your own.”

“How do you know if I’ve lived on my own or not?” You retort, eyes narrowing slightly in suspicion.

“I don’t.” Windfel shrugs. “From what those of us who care enough to read about your kind can gather, it’s observed that you usually go out on your own once you reach a certain age.”

“And you’re one of those that have read about my kind?” You quirk a brow.

The longer you spend talking with Windfel, the more you seem to ease into the conversation. Though the water continues to feel nice around you, you also decide that it’s time to remove yourself from the stream so you can quickly dry off and make it back to the others. The last thing you need is for something to happen, or for you to finally face the wrath of a redcap.

At this point, that may just be a blessing.

There’s almost a slight tug at the back of your mind. With each step you take towards the bank and your awaiting clothes, a small voice tells you to stay. The water seems to be caressing your entire body, becoming denser around you with each step. It’s almost as if the stream is trying to hold you down, to force you to not leave its waters. Yet, despite it’s almost enchanted callings, you persist, managing to pull yourself out of the crystalline water and back onto the side of the bank.

The consequences of staying far outweigh the rewards in your mind.

You fail to notice how Windfel’s brow quirks in surprise, but he continues on the conversation as if nothing is wrong.

“I’ve read a few things, yes.” He confirms. “Knowledge is power, or haven’t you heard?”

“Power is power, no matter where in the world.” You grumble, flicking off as much excess water on your body as you can before beginning to wrap your upper thigh with that medical cloth. Once finished, you tie it off quickly, but not tight enough that it will hurt you even more than you already are. A moment later, you stand back to your feet.

“Spoken like a true scholar,” Windfel teases lightly, his back still turned to you.

Slowly, you begin pulling on the clothes he leant you. The pants are a little short around the ankles, but they fit surprisingly well. Considering the size difference between the both of you, you’re surprised the shirt even managed to pull over your head, but it’s loose, and you’re grateful for the soft material that graces your skin.

“Still, you should definitely try living on your own at some point.” He remarks casually. “There’s no feeling quite like freedom.”

Your whole body freezes, gaze slowly trailing over to where Windfel stands, now at the edge of the wood. He seems to be holding a bundle in his hands, and when you look down, you realize that it’s your old, raggedy clothes.

“I wouldn’t know.” You state, rather firmly as your eyes narrow at the redcap across from you.

“Oh, yes, well,” he finally turns back around to face you, a grin tugging at his lips to reveal all too sharp fangs. “About that…”

“If you’re going to kill me, get it over with.”

Your words clearly catch him off guard, for now it’s his turn for his eyes to widen in shock.

“My dear, why would I want to kill you?” He chuckles, shaking his head. “You’ve done nothing but be forced upon us since the start. I may be a monster, but I’m not unreasonable.”

“Like I’ve never heard that one before.” You mutter, rolling your eyes.

Again, your breath hitches as soon as the words leave your lips, and you find yourself flinching backwards away from Windfel instinctually.

He frowns, but doesn’t comment on it. Instead, he says, “I told you. I care about my general and how much your presence burdens him. It’s easier this way if you just disappear.”

Your eyebrows shoot up in surprise. “You want me to disappear, but not kill me?”

“For the most part.” He blinks, as if it’s the most obvious thing in the world.

“How do you expect me to do that?” You frown, doing whatever you can to hide the clear exasperation in your voice.

“Run away.” He states.

“Excuse me?”

“Run away.” He repeats with a slight shrug of his shoulders. “I doubt they’ll even notice you’re gone.”

Now, it’s your turn to blink at him. Once. Twice. Three times in disbelief as you cannot keep your mouth from falling open in shock.

“You’re shitting me.”

“I think the whole point of you bathing was for that to no longer be the case.” He says smartly. “I told you. You’re a burden to our general, and if I can relieve that burden from his shoulders, I’ll do whatever it takes. You’re not currently being hunted, so there’s no reason to kill you right now.”

“And where will I go?” You ask, incredulously. “I have nothing-“

“Find the Latha court, I’m sure those human lovers will take you in.” He cuts you off, a slight twitch to his brow. “Go that way,” he points off to your left with a clawed finger. “There’s a small town. I’m sure someone will give you a hand.”

“Like you did?” You quirk a brow, eyeing Windfel carefully.

“Exactly.” He nods. “Now, you best be on your way, little mortal. My patience is starting to wear thin.”

Though the last part of his words he says in a cheerful voice, the way his eyes gleam in the light of the setting sun unnerves you.

Without waiting for another chance, you take the one presented to you.

“I better not see you around again.” Windfel hums, and you can hear him beginning to trudge in the opposite direction that you are. “You won’t like it if you do.”

A shiver caresses your spine at his words, and you find yourself picking up your pace. Reaching the opposite end of the little clearing where the stream is, you quickly spare a glance over your shoulder. Windfel is nowhere to be seen, and you do not know if it should relieve you, or terrify you. All you do know, is that you have to put as much distance between yourself and that gang of redcaps as you can. To start, you just have to keep putting one foot in front of the other.

The trek into town is a lot easier than you thought it would be. It only takes you about forty minutes to reach the outskirts, and with every step, you seem to gain better footing than before. The ache in your leg is dulling, and your head is the clearest it’s been in weeks. You don’t trip over any roots, or stumble over any rocks, either. If you didn’t know any better, you’d say things are actually starting to look up for you.

That’s when it hits you.

Is this even reality anymore?

Windfel could have cast a glamour over you. You could be under some sort of spell, or undergone some weird magic while bathing in that stream. You have no way of knowing what is true or not, unless you talk to someone. Even then, your chances of them tricking you are high, but it may be the only way to tell what is true or not.

Standing at the edge of the town, you do a quick scan of those you can see. The sun has already set, and the faint glow of lanterns casts a warmth around the surrounding buildings. There seems to be only a few people milling about, and honestly, you shouldn’t really call them people at all. From what you can gather, all these beings appear to faeries. Some have grand wings that sprout from their backs, ranging from feathered to those of the insect variety. Others, you can only discern from their height and pointed ears. The few flashes of razor sharp teeth aren’t that reassuring, either.

The only relief seems to be that all of the inhabitants steer perfectly clear of you. Save for one, who watches you fidget from across the way. His gaze dances with amusement, and you don’t know if that unnerves you more than if he were glaring. Long, dark hair is pulled back in a half-ponytail to showcase his sharp features. He sits on the edge of some steps leading up to what appears to be a shop of some sorts, his elbows resting on his thighs as he leans forward.

The moment he catches you staring, his eyebrows quirk curiously.

Turning away quickly, you curse yourself. You’ve always been used to blending in back home, that you didn’t realize just how much you’d stick out in the Fae realm. Perhaps you really are in over your head, but where else are you supposed to go?

A voice, smooth and deep, coming from behind startles you.

“Are you lost, Little One?”

#thrill of the hunt #cultofdionysusnet #mfu-net #yandere mingi #yandere ateez #mingi scenario #mingi imagine #ateez scenario #ateez imagine #kpop scenario #kpop imagine #yandere kpop #kpop au #fantasy au #chubby reader #tall reader #fae au

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mint-yooxgi · 5 months

Text

{6} - Fight or Flight - Yandere!Redcap!Mingi X Tall!Chubby!Reader - Final

Fae!AU & Yandere!AU - Part of the CoDN Thrill of the Hunt Collab

Genre: Fantasy, Mature, Horror, Angst, Fluff, Smut

Pairing: Mingi X Reader

Words: 16,687

Rating: Mature - 18+ MDNI

P.S. If there are any spelling or grammatical errors, please ignore them. I did my best through many rounds of editing, but some are liable to still slip through.

Summary: Out of one horrible situation and into another, the cycle of abuse never stops. You've lived with monsters your whole life. So, what's one more?

P.P.S. Please don't let this flop guys. If you enjoyed it, please reblog!!!

Mini Masterlist - Part One - Part Two - Part Three - Part Four - Part Five

The village is eerily quiet. Not a single lamp is lit, nor even a breeze drifts through the dark stillness of the night as a singular shadow creeps through the streets. It’s almost as if the inhabitants no longer reside in the town as they all rest in their beds, unaware of the raging storm that approaches with every step.

Mingi’s resolve is deadly calm. That red sash covers his forehead, tying his hair back to keep it out of his face for what he prepares to do.

He left you back in his realm, nestled up under that tree by the spring. Sure, he may have stretched the truth a little bit about the tea, but he didn’t want you waking up while he was gone. At least he knows this way you’ll also sleep through the night, his glamour that he left on you protecting you from prying eyes.

There is no limit to his fury, sharp eyes blazing beneath the light of the moon as he stalks through the town centre. He’s always been good at tracking, and he makes sure to put his skills to good use this night as his gaze zeros in on the large house on top of the hill.

You were right, this is quite a small town. No more than about sixty inhabitants. Surprisingly, no children. A fact which will only make his job here much easier.

Stealth is his top priority right now as he covers ground with each step, plotting out every escape route and figuring out how best to bottleneck his prey into his awaiting trap.

As the moon crests high in the sky, a true monster gets unleashed.

Shrill screams of pure terror fill the air as claws render flesh from bone. Blood splatters against walls, painting the night in crimson florals, the heavy stench of death permeating the air. No matter how desperately they plead for their lives, none survive, and by the time Mingi makes it up the hill, he is covered in viscera from his brutal kills.

The most satisfying death, he saves for last.

Mingi knows the man can hear him coming. The shrieks from the town down below would’ve reached his ears by now, filling him with a sense of dread. There is no escaping the hunt, and your husband is about to find out what it truly means to be reduced to absolutely nothing.

The sound of the door shattering as it gets kicked in causes the already pertinent fear Mingi can smell radiating through the house spike. The man cowers pathetically in his room, the exits having long since been sealed by the fae in preparation for the decimation that is about to take place.

Stepping through the doorway, Mingi stands there, letting the light from the moon illuminate his massive figure. The way the man screams in horror when he sees Mingi’s blood-soaked appearance only causes a malicious grin to pull at the redcap’s lips.

“Found you.” Mingi’s expression is downright maniacal, his eyes glinting wildly in the darkness.

The man cowers back, attempting to push himself further into the wall as Mingi takes a menacing step forward.

“Who sent you?” His voice is frantic, eyes wide with tears as they begin to spill down his face. “What do you want?”

Mingi’s grin stretches wider across his features, his tongue darting out to taste the blood covering his lips. “I’m here to collect on a debt.”

“A debt?” The man frowns, heart rate accelerating in panic.

“You hurt something of mine,” Mingi’s voice is but a low drawl as he stalks towards the shaking man huddled in the corner. “Something very precious to me.”

“Is it money? Money that you want?” The man’s eyes dart every which way around the room, looking for a possible exit. “I can give you all the riches you desire-“

“Stupid human.” Mingi hisses. “As if money could ever pay for the life you stole.”

There is no escape. Not now. Not ever. Especially not for this coward.

“What are you-“ Confusion tugs at the man’s brow for a brief moment before realization is settling over his features. “That bitch! She sent you!”

In the blink of an eye, Mingi has him pinned against the wall by the throat. The force at with he pins the man causes cracks to appear in the plaster, chunks falling to the ground in a rain of dust.

“Speak of her like that again, and I will ensure to draw this out for as long as possible.” The words are but a low growl on Mingi’s lips, claws digging into the skin of the man’s throat.

Desperately, the man begins to struggle. His hands attempt to tear Mingi’s own from his throat, clawing at the fae uselessly as his legs kick in the air.

“What did that whore promise you?” The man chokes out, struggling for breath. “One round with that cunt and you’re ready to kill for her?”

Mingi snarls, tightening his grip over the man’s throat as his vile blood begins to coat his hands.

“I bet she’s making you work for it. That’s why you’re doing this, isn’t it?” The man taunts, blood beginning to spill from his lips as Mingi nearly slams him through the wall a second time. “Stupid fucking whore was the easiest lay I ever had in my life. I feel bad for you. She normally spreads her legs for any man-“

“I am not a man.”

The words are spat out harshly, Mingi throwing the man behind him onto the floor. A satisfying crack echoes throughout the room, and the man cradles his one wrist to his chest, whimpering pathetically.

A wild grin stretches across blood red lips, eyes crazed as Mingi looks at the human from over his shoulder.

“Run, little rabbit,” Mingi’s voice drawls lowly, fangs glinting in the moonlight. “The beast wants to play.”

Without hesitating, the man scrambles to his feet, darting out of the open door of his room. Mingi can hear his laboured breathing as he nearly trips down the stairs, and the fae cannot help but laugh.

Little does this human know what Mingi has in store for him.

Slowly, Mingi begins creeping out of the room, and down the stairs. Once he reaches the bottom, he tears a wooden post from the banister, snapping it near the tip. He tests the point against the pad of his thumb, humming to himself as he stalks outside.

Desperately, the man scrambles to get away, nearly tripping over his own two feet.

Spinning that pole in his hand, Mingi reels back. The rod strikes like lighting through the air, hitting its intended target and causing the man to go tumbling the rest of the way down the hill.

An ominous hum is all the man hears approaching him as he attempts to crawl away. His hands tear through the dirt, uprooting the grass as he tries, and fails, to pull himself towards the edge of the woods and to a false sense of safety.

A sharp cry of pain rings out through the night air as Mingi steps on the back of the man’s calf, right where that wooden bannister now protrudes.

“And here I thought you would put up more of a fight,” Mingi hums, almost disappointedly. “Pathetic.”

A satisfying snap echoes through his ears, and the man shrieks as his tibia breaks from the force of Mingi’s full weight stepping onto it.

“I suppose we won’t need this anymore,” Mingi say lowly, tearing the wooden post from the man’s shin and snapping it in further half.

Another scream pierces the air as the man’s hands get pinned to the earth using each half of the now split banister. His legs uselessly kick out behind him, stuck flat against the ground on his stomach as whimpers and pleas to spare his life fall on deaf ears.

Reaching down, Mingi tears open the back of the man’s shirt, exposing his bare flesh. A sick, twisted grin cuts itself onto his features as he runs a clawed hand over the unmarred skin, and he feels the man shudder in terror beneath him.

“What are you-“

A sharp cry of pain causes the man to cut his words short. Mingi, having stood back to his full height, snapped the man’s other ankle, crushing it with his foot.

For a frightening long moment, all is silent. Not even the trees sway with a breeze, nor does a single creature make a sound. The weight disappears from the man’s foot, and the ominous chill that creeps down his spine only makes waiting to see what happens to him next all the more horrible. All that can be heard are the man’s desperate and miserable whimpers, begging to be set free.

A sharp snapping sound, like thin leather suddenly being pulled taunt, silences the man’s pleas. Cold, dreaded realization settles deep within his core, and he begins thrashing violently at the fae’s feet.

The world stops.

“For My Beloved Blossom.”

The sharp crack of the whip slices through the air.

Once.

Twice.

As many times as it takes until Mingi is satisfied.

Flesh renders from bone, blood splattering the once green earth bright red, and splattering all over his face. His features are schooled into a look of pure concentration, anger radiating off of him in waves as he finally shreds this disgusting excuse of a creature apart.

The stench of blood fills his burning lungs, pieces of bone chipping amongst the torn flesh with every strike. Chunks of skin cover his face, his hair stained red as he revels in the horrific shrieks of his mutilated prey.

Still, Mingi does not stop.

Only when the man’s entire spine is visible does Mingi toss aside the whip and switch to his bare hands. He knows the bastard is already dead, but that does not stop Mingi from tearing out his spine, or ripping him limb from disgusting limb.

Nothing is too much right now, and even in death, Mingi does not want this man to find peace.

He hurt you, and for that, he must pay. They all must pay.

Bathing his sash in the blood of his kills has never felt so satisfying in his entire life. He takes his time, moving through the village to soak the strip of cloth in each of his victim’s remains, humming lightly to himself as he does so. Mingi purposely both starts and ends with that bastard, dipping his cloth through what’s left of the man’s scattered remains before setting the whole place on fire.

As the flames blaze brightly in the early hours of the morning, Mingi has one final stop to make.

The glow of the raging inferno behind him is nothing more than a spec in the distance as he comes across an empty field. Fireweed covers the vast expanse of land, some patches of earth still charred from the blaze that stole your happiness from you some time ago.

Softly, his gaze scans the area, walking through the weeds now growing through what once was a beautiful field of your favourite flowers. His eyes catch on a single stem growing through the ash, and his breath catches in his throat.

The sun begins to rise.

Falling to his knees, Mingi stares down at the lone red spider lily that blooms almost defiantly within that field of wreckage.

A single teardrop falls to the earth, wetting the soil just beside the flower. It is followed by another, and then another, until the tracks cut lines into the blood staining his face.

Ever so gently, Mingi begins to dig. Dirt coats his fingers, getting stuck beneath his nails as he carefully pulls that plant from the earth. He cradles the root bulb in his hands tenderly, smiling softly down at the flower which now holds so much meaning to him, too.

Turning back to face the woods, Mingi begins the short journey back to you. Back to his home.

***

The light of the early morning sun peeks through the leaves of the trees around you. Warmth pools over your skin with every shifting beam, the gentle sway of the breeze caressing your entire body. The sound of birds chirping fill the skies, and you can faintly hear a gentle hum from the wildlife resting nearby.

Slowly, the environment begins to rouse you, the scents and sounds of the early morning calling you back from sleep’s warm embrace. Your one hand holds onto that stem of spider lilies, and you curl in closer to yourself. Only, something feels different.

Blinking your eyes open, you rub lightly at your face. A yawn escapes you, and you sit up only to realize what’s been wrong this whole time.

Mingi is missing, and you cannot find him anywhere in your immediate line of sight.

A light frown tugs at your features. Your mind is still heavy with sleep, so it takes you a moment to properly gather your bearings.

Mingi must have just gone off to gather some supplies for the start of your daily journey. He normally has breakfast for the both of you ready by the time you wake up, anyways.

Movement from the bushes off to your right draws your attention. The sound of something approaching you through the woods grows louder, and your heartbeat accelerates. It sounds like it’s moving slowly, carefully, almost as if it’s stalking towards you.

Moments later, a large figure steps through the trees covered in blood. A red sash is tied around his forehead, and in his hands rests the most beautiful bloom that you’ve ever seen in your life.

“Mingi!” Your eyes go wide, worry immediately pulling at your features as you scramble to your feet.

Slowly, the fae in question lifts his head. His features are soft, mild concern tugging at his brow as he sees you rushing towards him. He’s well aware of what seeing him covered in blood does to you, and he was hoping to get back before you woke up. He wanted to clean himself off before you saw him like this, but at the way your hands frantically run over his chest and up to his neck, he knows that in this moment, you’re not scared of him.

“Are you okay? What happened?” Your voice is still lined with sleep, but the panic comes through loud and clear. “I woke up, and you were gone.”

“I’m sorry for worrying you, Blossom.” He says gently, a tender smile pulling at his lips as he looks down at you. “I was hoping to be back before you rose.”

“Mingi,” your eyes search his face, trailing over the blood and chunks of flesh clinging to his skin and embedded in his hair. “What happened?”

Shifting the flower he holds to rest in one hand, he tentatively reaches towards you. Hesitantly, the tips of his fingers caress the curve of your cheek as he stares at you with the most satisfied, loving look resting on his features.

“There was some business I had to tend to,” his voice is soft, his eyes searching your own. “A village that needed cleansing.”

Your breath hitches in your throat, your heart skipping a beat inside of your chest. Your gaze trails down to that lone flower resting in his one hand. Only, instead of feeling any sort of fear, or unease, you can only feel relief.

You take a deep breath in, and notice that beneath the stench of iron, Mingi also smells faintly of ash.

“Are you-“ Your voice catches. “Are you hurt?”

A soft chuckle falls from his lips. “As if they could ever hurt me.”

You shoot him a look in return, worry still clear in your eyes.

“No, Blossom,” he smiles, cupping the side of your face gently. “I am not hurt. Please, do not worry about me.”

A light exhale escapes you, and your eyes fall shut. “I’m glad.”

“No longer will any monsters ever haunt you,” his voice is low, and full of the deepest form of sincerity that you’ve ever heard someone speak to you with. “No monster will even hunt you again. I made damn well sure of it.”

Your brow furrows slightly in response, searching his features for an answer hidden beneath all of this gore.

That’s when it hits you. That’s when you fully accept the reality being presented to you.

“There’s nothing left of them, Blossom,” he tells you gently, that same look of undying love and loyalty resting deep within his eyes. “I made sure to burn them all to the ground.”

For a moment, you forget how to breathe.

“They cannot hurt you anymore.”

Your fingers begin to tremble lightly against the skin of his chest, the familiar sting of tears pricking at your eyes. All you can do in this moment is focus on the fae before you, covered in blood and guts, and all in the name of your honour.

He fought for you.

He punished those who have long since ignored you, beaten you down, and destroyed your sense of self worth.

He turned those that made you feel like you were nothing into nothing themselves, and now, all that is left of them is naught but ash and dust.

Silence stretches on between the both of you as you continue to stare at him.

Mingi is conscious of every movement you make, of every slight hitch in your breath and every twitch of your fingers against his skin. His hand still cups the side of your face, and he worries, for a brief instance, that what he’s admitted to doing has just pushed you further away.

Only, just as he goes to pull his hand away, you lean into his touch.

Despite the dirt, despite the blood, ash, and other viscera that clings to his skin, you turn your head, placing a gentle kiss onto the palm of his hand.

This time, it’s Mingi’s turn for his breath to catch in his throat.

“Come on, Min,” you breathe out, reaching your own hand up to cup his gently. “Let’s get you cleaned up.”

Taking his hand into yours, you lead him over to the edge of that spring you bathed in together last night.

Turning back to him, a soft smile graces your features. Carefully, you reach out your hands and he immediately places that single spider lily into your palms.

“It was growing-“ he swallows, voice thick with emotions that you understand all too well. “In the field that was burned, it was growing. I- I had to bring it back home to you. For you.”

“For us. For our home.” You glance upwards from the flower to stare into his eyes, and the way you see his expression soften at your words makes you smile. “Thank you, Mingi. Thank you. No one has ever-“ your voice catches slightly, and you blink away your sudden tears. “It truly means a lot.”

“It’s as I’ve said before, Beloved,” His lips tug upwards tenderly in the corners. “There is nothing I wouldn’t do for you.”

You nod softly, eyes crinkling in joy.

“As terrifying as it is for me to admit,” you breathe, smiling down at that flower in your hands, “I’m starting to believe you.”

A slight grin pulls onto his features, chuckling lowly.

“How happy I am, then, to make you believe.”

You return his soft look, moving to place this flower with the other you left resting by the tree. By the time you turn back around, Mingi has already stripped himself of his soiled clothes and is waist deep in the spring. His back faces you, and you cannot help but to let your eyes roam over the unmarked skin for a moment longer than you probably should.

Swallowing the sudden dryness in your throat, you hurry back over to the edge of the spring. Rolling up your pants to just above your knees, you sit on the rocks lining the mouth of the spring, dipping your feet into the cool water.

Lightly, you kick your legs beneath the surface, causing ripples to form. The way Mingi turns to smile at you, face still covered in blood and grime doesn’t deter you at all. In fact, it only makes your heart skip another beat inside of your chest.

For once, the blood is not your own. There is no monster coming to hurt you, or hunt you down. That blood has been spilt for you, and you cannot deny the relief that floods your veins when you think about it. Not only that, but gratitude.

All of your life you wanted someone to fight for you. To protect you, and bring justice to those that wronged you for so long. Which is exactly why you can only feel elated at the fact that such a ‘monster’ would do something so personal for you.

He cares, and he’s more than proved it.

Too many times you’ve fantasized about taking control of your own life. You wanted the power to make your own decision, and to be able to get back at those who have wronged you. You resented them, and you wanted for them feel even an ounce of the same pain that they made you feel.

They did, and all because of Mingi. Because one other person - a fae, no less - could see, and decided, that you had worth.

Your heart swells in your chest, and you glance that red band laying beside you in the grass. The material is certainly darker than you remember it being last night, and given the colouration, you can tell that the strip of cloth is still wet in certain spots.

You don’t know why, but it makes you smile.

Turning your attention back on the fae in front of you, you motion him closer.

Slowly, Mingi walks over to you. He had been resting with his shoulders beneath the water, so once he stood, small trails of pink droplets had begun to cascade down his chest, mixing with the blood still marring his skin.

Once he’s close enough, you reach out and take his hand.

Wordlessly, you begin to bathe him just as he did with you last night. Your touch is nothing short of tender, scrubbing the dirt and blood from his skin and from beneath his nails. When you ask, he even unsheathes his claws to show you, and all you can do is marvel at how sharp they are.

A mental image of these claws tearing through the people of your village fills your mind. Though, instead of feeling disgust, or horror at such a gruesome act, you can only feel pride.

These claws are meant for you. They will tear through anyone or anything that threatens your safety, or makes you unhappy. They will always protect you, and never will they be used on you in such gruesome ways. A fact which only warms your heart the more you think about it, settling happily into this moment with Mingi before you.

Once you have finished washing his hands, you move onto his torso, working your way up his body until you reach his head. At this point, he kneels before you, making the reach much easier for you while revelling in the way your fingers thread through his hair.

Small pieces of bone are removed from his blond locks, which are now tinted the faintest shade of red in certain spots from the amount of blood that had covered him. The damp strands are pushed away from his face once you’re done, his sharp eyes staring up at you with nothing but adoration as he watches you clean him up.

Really, Mingi could get used to this. Coming back to you after a hunt is a dream come true, and the idea that you could be doing this with him every time only serves to make his heart race inside of his chest. The fact that he hasn’t scented any fear or unease from you since he’s return makes his whole body come alive, falling even deeper for you with every passing second.

“Okay,” your gentle voice manages to pull him out of his thoughts. “Done.”

Water cascades down the plains of his chest as Mingi stands back to his full height. Droplets cling to the ends of his hair, dripping onto your clothed thighs as he leans into you. An arm rests on either side of your torso, yet, despite his closeness, you do not feel trapped.

“Have I ever told you how incredible you are?” He keeps his tone low, voice rumbling from deep within his chest.

Your eyes shine, glancing up at him through your lashes. You can feel your heart swelling with warmth, and you cannot prevent the way a subtle heat rises to your cheeks.

A hand comes up to cup your face, his thumb languidly stroking over your cheek.

Still, he leans into you.

“I never want you to forget how special you are,” he breathes out, placing his forehead gently against your own. “How special you are to me.”

Your gaze, which had been shyly averted to your lap, lifts back up to meet his own.

“Did you really do it?” The words are naught but a whisper on your lips. “Did you really kill them all for me?”

“None of them deserved to life for a second longer for what they did to you,” his fingers press a little firmer against the skin of your cheek, and he steps closer. “I would do it all over again, too. As many times as it took, until you are satisfied.”

Slowly, carefully, you lift your hands to his face. Your eyes search his own, and nothing but sincerity shines behind his gaze. A fact which only causes the warmth in your chest to grow even further, beginning to spread outwards and all the way down to the very tips of your fingers.

“I care about you, My Blossom,” he repeats these same words to you now, just as earnestly as the first time. “I want to see you thrive, to see you bloom.”

“You… wish to be with me?” Your voice is a little hesitant, unsure of the words you seem to be speaking right now.

“More than anything,” he breathes out, and you can feel his warm breath ghost against the skin of your lips.

“You… want me?” The question is innocent enough, but his response is immediate.

“In any and every single way you’ll let me.” The words are but a low growl on his lips, dark eyes staring deeply into your own.

“You… want to-“ you pause for a moment, steadying your nerves, “belong to me in the same ways you would like for me to belong to you?”

Mingi takes a shuddering breath in, his eyes slipping closed. “Desperately so.”

Your lips part, tongue darting out to wet them.

“Are-“ you swallow the sudden dryness in your throat, “Are claims mutual?”

“Yes,” his reply is instantaneous, albeit a little airy. “Claims are-“ his tongue darts out to swipe against his bottom lip, “Claims are meant to be mutual between all parties involved. That’s how they are always intended to be, as they are the most sacred of bonds we can share with another.”

Softly, you nod your head, hands sliding down his cheeks and over his neck to rest on his shoulders. You can feel him shiver beneath your touch, stepping in even closer to you.

“When I say I want to claim you…” his eyes slip closed, revelling in the way your thighs part for him so that he can slot himself between them. “I have always intended, and will always mean for it to be mutual. I do not own you. You are not meant to be my possession. I do, however, desperately wish to be able to call you mine.”

The inhale you take is soft, hands tightening ever so slightly over his shoulders.

A moment passes in silence, letting his words wash over you. There is no doubt in your mind about what you want right now, and the answer is standing right before you, pouring his soul into every word that he speaks.

“Mingi…”

The call of his name is so tender from your lips, that all he can do is hum in response.

“I wish for you to claim me.”

There is no denying the way Mingi’s breath hitches. In fact, you swear he stops breathing completely, his eyes flinging open to stare deeply into your own. Not even a moment later, you can feel his chest beginning to heave with every breath, lips parting as he attempts to control himself for your sake.

“Are you-“ his tongue darts out to wet his lips, leaning the slightest bit further into you. “Are you sure?”

The way that he asks, that he’s making sure that this is something you do want, only serves to warm your heart, and solidify your decision.

You smile, repeating back to him the same words he spoke to you earlier this morning. “More than anything.”

You physically feel the way his heart skips a beat in his chest, the pounding resonating beneath your fingertips. You swear you can also feel him beginning to tremble beneath your touch, both of his hands coming up to cup your face tenderly.

“You do not know how happy you’ve made me, hearing you say that.” He says lowly, tilting his head forward so that your noses brush.

The corners of you lips tug upwards, fingers dancing lightly along his skin.

“Anything you want, everything you desire, is yours.” He whispers, his lips barely brushing over your own.

A small gasp parts your lips, your eyes hooding over as you briefly glance downwards at his own.

“I just want you,” the admission is but a sigh on your lips, wrapping your arms fully around his shoulders as your fingers begin to thread through the hair at the nape of his neck.

You swear a soft moan tumbles from him.

“Then, My Dear Blossom,” he steps impossibly closer. “May I kiss you?”

Your lips quirk upwards, heart swelling with warmth inside of your chest. The fact that he even asked, after everything you’ve been through…

“I would love nothing more.”

Instantly, his lips are on your own. One of his hands slides down the side of your neck, softly tracing over your shoulder and down the curve of your spine. His large hand splays against your lower back, pulling you in closer as he presses himself fully against you.

Water seeps into the material of your clothing, but you don’t care. Not with the way he’s kissing you to lovingly, holding onto you as if you are the most precious thing he has ever had the pleasure to experience in his life.

From the way you can feel his fingers trembling lightly, his cock twitching against the skin of your thigh, you know that to him, you are.

His touch is gentle as he moves his lips over your own, your hands tangling in his locks to pull him in even closer. Yet still, he doesn’t push you too hard, easily letting you pull away if need be.

Never does he want you to feel trapped with him. Always, it will be your choice.

Your choice to let him kiss you, to let him touch you.

Your choice to let him claim you, and for you to claim him.

Your choice to be with him, and to let him be with you.

You are his entire world, and he will do everything in his power to make sure you know just that. A fact of which he never wants you to forget.

He parts from you only to begin trailing his lips over your cheekbone and down to your jawline. His nose nuzzles gently over your skin, taking a deep breath in as your scent begins to completely overwhelm him in the best of ways.

Gently, he dips his head lower, placing tender kisses over the side of your neck and directly over your pulse. He can feel the way it flutters against his lips, and he cannot help but smile against your skin.

Taking another deep breath in, Mingi’s eyes flutter closed. A soft moan escapes him, and his free hand comes to settle on your waist, thumb brushing over the fabric of your shirt gently.

“I don’t-“ he swallows audibly, “I don’t want to push you too far, Blossom, but I fear that if we continue like this, then I won’t be able to stop myself from acting on my deeper desires.”

Your hands tighten in his hair, and you feel him shudder beneath your fingertips. “What is it that you desire, Min?”

A low groan escapes him, and he presses his face deeper into the side of your neck. “You, completely relaxed, and letting me take care of you like you’ve always deserved.”

Your breath catches lightly in your throat, and you pull him impossibly closer.

“I want to touch every inch of your skin, and show you how beautiful you are to me.” He continues lowly, his lips ghosting along the skin of your neck. “I wish to drown you in an ecstasy you never knew possible until you gave me the honour of pleasing you. I wish to give myself to you fully, and in return, I hope that you will give yourself to me, too.”

His name escapes you as no more than a gasp, expression softening as he pulls away to stare deeply into your eyes.

“I never want to push you too far, or make you uncomfortable. I would rather burn alive than ever take advantage of you like that.” He leans in to rest his forehead on your own once more. “I only want your pleasure, and if at any point you are uncomfortable, or you want to stop, you immediately let me know.”

The emotions that fill your chest overwhelm you, and you cannot help the tightness that you feel building within your throat. Tears well in your eyes, and you find yourself blinking them away rapidly while nodding your head.

You’ve never felt this deeply cared for, nor understood in your life.

“I will,” you manage to swallow the emotions that threaten to choke you out at any second. “I promise.”

Softly, Mingi smiles, leaning forward to peck your lips.

“Likewise, if there’s anything that you want me to do for you, Blossom,” he breathes out lightly. “All you have to do is ask.”

Again, you nod your head in understanding.

“I will never take more than what you are willing to give, and I will never give more than what you are willing to take.” He says gently, his hands sliding down you body to settle along the sides of your thighs as he pulls away to stare down at you. “I love you. I care about you deeply. I never want to do anything to jeopardize that.”

Your heart feels as if it’s about to burst forth from your chest, eyes shining with nothing but pure awe and appreciation. Your hands slide down the front of his chest, settling along his waist as you tug him in closer, wrapping your legs around him while meeting his gaze.

“Mingi,” the call of his name from your lips is so tender, even the birds seem to stop their morning songs to listen. The silence of the clearing seems to swell around you, and you take that final leap, knowing that he will be right there to catch you. “I am in love with you, too.”

Mingi swears that he forgets how to breathe. His heart simply flutters inside of his chest, and tears of his own well in his eyes. A happy laugh escapes him, the smile that pulls at his lips one that is not easily contained.

Leaning into you once more, Mingi presses his lips to your forehead. He lets his touch linger for as long as possible, pouring everything that he wants to say into the press of his skin against your own. He holds you tightly, eyes falling shut as a cascade of happiness spills over his cheeks.

“I love you so much,” he mumbles against your forehead, and not even a second later, he’s littering tender kisses all over your face, repeating the phrase with each one.

Your soft giggle is music to his ears.

The moment Mingi presses his lips to yours, you gladly wrap your arms back around his shoulders. You allow him to set the pace, grateful to be held in his embrace just like all of those times before.

His kiss is soft, taking his time to fully explore your mouth as his tongue moves languidly against yours.

You hum, feeling his hands trail up your thighs and slip beneath the material of your shirt.

A sudden heat rises to your cheeks at the thought that drifts through your mind.

“Mingi,” the gentle call of his name draws his attention, and he pulls away to stare into your eyes. “Can you- uh…” he waits patiently for you to continue, noticing how your eyes squeeze shut in embarrassment as you rush out the words, “Can you cut me out of my clothes?”

Mingi’s eyes go wide. To say your request catches him off guard would be an understatement.

“They-“ you fidget slightly, hands suddenly pulled back into your lap. “They used to do that whenever they would have their fun, and I don’t want to remember them doing that anymore.”

His one hand comes up to tenderly brush his knuckle over the side of your cheek.

“Do you wish to forget?” He asks softly.

“I’m not doing this to forget,” you shake your head. “I want to replace those bad memories with newer, better ones. I don’t want to think about them cutting off my clothes. I want to think about you.”

It’s slight, and you believe it’s subconscious on his part, but he pulls you in even closer against him. Your body is almost pressed flush against his own, his loving gaze darkening at the implications.

“I will do anything if it means you thinking of me,” he mutters lowly. “Anything to make you happy.”

The hand that had been caressing the side of your cheek slides down to your shoulder. Carefully, he unsheathes his claws, hooking the tips beneath the collar of your shirt. At the way he hears your breathing pick up, he pauses, glancing at your face and noticing how your eyes remain shut for the moment.

Lightly, he tugs at your shirt.

“May I?” His inquiry is so gentle, that you cannot help but blink your eyes open to meet his gaze.

You swallow your nerves.

“Please.” A single nod accompanies your response, your heartbeat ringing in your ears.

Mingi’s movements are slow, precise. There is no harsh sound of tearing fabric. Instead, he pulls the shirt until it’s taunt with his nail, allowing his claw to cut through the thin material slowly.

The whole time, he maintains eye contact with you. At any sign of hesitance, or discomfort, he vows to stop. The last thing he wants to do is hurt you, or push you away.

Your breathing deepens, and within another blink of your eyes, Mingi has managed to cut right through your shirt. His hands settle on your hips, gently sliding upwards as the material parts following the path he takes up your body.

Tingles erupt on your skin as he traces his hands over your shoulders, pushing the now torn fabric gently down your arms. His touch is nothing but soft, his gaze soon following in the same path over your skin as your torso is fully revealed to him.

The sound of your shirt hitting the ground is synonymous with the low moan that escapes him. His eyes flit everywhere over your chest, following the gentle curves of your breasts all the way down to your stomach which he adores. Every scar he sees only adds to the perfection of you before him, baring yourself like this for him to see.

Him, and only him.

“You are absolutely captivating,” he breathes, eyes flitting once more over your torso before darting upwards to meet your gaze. His hands reach out to you, stopping just short of your waist. “Do I-“ he swallows, fingers trembling as his tongue darts out to wet his lips. “Do I really get to touch such beauty?”

His question, posed so earnestly with wonder shining behind his gaze, makes your breath catch in your throat. Fondness shines in your eyes as you stare up at him, nothing but tender love and affection swirling deep within your chest. His words make your entire body heat, a pleasant feeling erupting beneath your skin as you simply revel in the way he looks at you.

Your legs tighten ever so slightly around his waist, eyes fluttering shut as you feel him pressing right against you. At the way you hum in confirmation to his gentle inquiry, you can feel his cock twitch against your thigh once more. The way he positively beams at your answer only makes you tighten your own grip on him, needing to feel him pressed against you in every way imaginable.

Gently, his hands settle onto your waist, squeezing your flesh appreciatively before tracing his touch over your sides. A low moan escapes him as he brings his hands up to cup your breasts. His thumbs trace over your nipples, the thin fabric still covering you barely doing anything to hide what lies beneath.

A soft moan parts your lips, and you find yourself arching into his touch. Your own hands slide up his sides, nails grazing his flesh lightly and causing a shiver to caress his spine.

Not even a moment later, Mingi hooks a finger through the thin band of fabric between your breasts. One quick tug from him, and the material snaps, the straps sliding down your shoulders almost instantly.

You visibly watch his eyes darken, his tongue darting out to wet his lips as he stares down at your chest. He wastes no time in cupping your breasts, feeling the weight of them in his hands as he gives them an appreciative squeeze.

“So soft,” he moans, thumbs flicking over your nipples once more before circling over the pert buds. “So perfect.”

At his words, you press yourself further into his touch, soft pants escaping your lips. You can feel tingles erupting all over your skin wherever he touches, and the feeling only serves to make your head spin.

You could get lost in him, and from the way that his eyes shine tenderly down at you, you have a feeling that that’s exactly what he wants you to do.

Trailing your hands upwards, your fingers dance across his chest. The way he shivers beneath your touch has you smiling up at him, purposely dragging your nails over his skin.

“You’re so handsome, Mingi,” you breathe out, taking the time to admire his sculpted torso.

His breath catches lightly, and his hands involuntarily squeeze over your breasts.

“You think I’m handsome?” The questions is posed so innocently, that his voice rises slightly in pitch.

“I do,” you hum, your one hand coming up to cup the side of his face. “You are the most stunningly handsome being I have ever had the pleasure to rest my eyes upon.”

You watch his throat bob as he swallows thickly, lips parting with the gentlest of gasps. His one hand slips around your back as he leans in, pulling you closer as he wastes no time in pressing his lips to yours once more.

Mingi pours every single emotion he has for you in the way his lips move against your own. The fingers of his one hand still cup your breast, beginning to pinch and roll your nipple between them. His tender movements mirror the gentle caress of his tongue against your own, and it only causes your breath to hitch lightly in your throat.

Eagerly, he swallows all of your moans, loving the way you cling to him desperately as he feels you beneath his touch. Your skin is a delicacy which ignites a fire beneath his own, and with every passing second, he only wants more.

Slowly, Mingi trails his hand that had been squeezing at your breast down your torso. His fingers dance lethargically against your skin, tracing over every dip and curve presented to him. The way he caresses you, trailing his fingertips over your scars lovingly, has your whole body heating, eagerly leaning into his every touch.

Desperately, you begin to crave more.

Soon, his fingers begin slipping beneath the waistline of your pants, never dipping more than a knuckle deep. He’s cautious, pulling away to meet your gaze to check in on you, wanting to make sure that you’re still okay, and that he’s not moving too quickly.

Your eyes stare up at him, wide and pleading, and he feels your hips shift the lightest bit forward. The smallest of whimpers escapes you, and the sound goes straight to his cock, lips parting in another moan as the scent of your arousal completely fills his every sense.

He can practically taste you on his tongue…

“Touch me, Mingi,” Your voice is barely above a whisper, airy and desperate. “Show me how beautiful I am.”

A low, pleased growl rumbles out from his chest. “With pleasure.”

Without wasting another moment, Mingi tears right through your pants, pulling the shredded material away and tossing it to the side. His hand comes down to settle on your thigh, thumb stroking lightly over your skin as he spreads you the slightest bit more open for him.

His lips find your own once more as his fingers creep up your thigh, skimming gently over the edge of your underwear. The fact that he can hear you whimper against his mouth only makes him smile into the kiss, deepening it without a second thought.

A moment later, he hooks a finger through the band, snapping the thin material and fully exposing you to him.

The full, unfiltered scent of your arousal bombards his senses, and he cannot help the way he gasps against your lips. His chest heaves with every breath, shifting his hand to cup you over your mound, the heat of you settling enticingly against his palm.

The hand he has splayed on your back tugs you in closer as the fingers of his other hand part your folds gently. Carefully, he drags the tip of his middle finger over your cunt, his eyes nearly rolling at the wetness that greets his skin.

A soft gasp escapes you as you feel him using the tip of his finger to circle over your clit, the movement making your whole body jolt in pleasure.

His touch is soft, tentative almost. He wants to take his time exploring you right now, letting you feel his devotion to you in every movement that he makes. Anything and everything to get you to sigh his name in bliss, to have you clinging to him, and begging for more.

He adds the slightest bit more pressure over your clit.

Your eyes flutter, and another gasp escapes you. This time, of his name.

“There is no sweeter sound than the call of my name from your lips, Beloved,” Mingi breathes out against your neck, pressing gentle kisses against your skin.

The tip of his finger slips back down to circle your entrance, dipping lightly through your folds before pushing only a single knuckle into you. He slips it back out before pushing deeper into you each time, repeating the process until his finger is buried within your warmth, feeling the way your walls squeeze him so beautifully.

A moan falls from your lips, purposely clenching around his finger as you cling to him. Your head falls forward, eyes hooded as you glance his toned body before you. The moment you feel his thumb find your clit, you reach down, taking his cock into your one hand and pumping him a few times just above the water.

His hips jerk forward involuntarily, a low groan tumbling from his lips.

“Beloved,” his voice is strained, brow furrowing as he focusses on the way you shift your hand over his cock. “I don’t expect-“

“I want to.” Your own voice comes out breathlessly, clenching around his finger once more as he begins to move it within you. “I want to please you, too.”

“Your mere existence pleases me,” he replies airily, adding the slightest bit more pressure to his thumb circling over your clit. “I’ll allow it. For now. But after, I want it to be all about you.”

“But-“

The protest dies on your lips as you feel him wrap his one arm he has at your back fully around your waist. There is now barely any space between your two bodies, just enough to allow you both to continue your ministrations over the other as you hold one another close.

“Do not underestimate what being able to please you does to me, Blossom,” his words are but a low drawl on his lips, curling his finger deep inside of you and making you gasp. “You feel like heaven around me. Seeing you, getting to feel your reactions to me, is one of the greatest pleasures I will ever receive in my life.”

At the way you feel his cock twitch in your hand from his words, you know there is no greater truth to him than what he’s just spoken. A fact which makes your stomach twist in pleasure, squeezing around his finger buried deep inside of you as his thumb continues to circle over your clit.

Another moan escapes you, and your hand tightens subconsciously around his cock. You do your best to mirror the pace of his finger currently massaging your inner walls, but the pleasure that threatens to drown you at any second makes it increasingly difficult to think.

Your free hand clings onto his back, fingers digging into his skin. The press of your nails only causes him to shiver in pleasure, lips parting as low groans escape him. The way your hand feels, languidly stoking over his cock, makes his head spin. The moment he feels you swipe your thumb over his slit, he has to bite his lip to keep himself from coming.

He needs to see you fall apart before he can even think to let himself go.

Slowly, just as he did with the first finger, he works another into you. His pace is gentle, pushing in so far only to pull back out as he stretches you open for him. His thumb never once leaves your clit, either, circling that sensitive little nub as his lips return to your own.

Eagerly, he swallows your sounds, offering you ones of his own in return. At the way he can feel your hands beginning to shake against him, he knows that you’re close.

“Give it to me, Beloved,” his breath escapes him as no more than heavy pants as he pushes his fingers into you. “I’m right here. Let yourself go.”

The moment you feel his fingers bury themselves deep inside of you, pressing firmly against your inner walls, your eyes roll. The tips lightly brush over such a sensitive spot inside of you, his thumb circling over your clit in time with his movements, making you see stars.

You come with a loud cry of his name, eyes squeezing shut as your body collapses forward into him.

Of course, he is right there to catch you, to steady you as you fall.

Your hand stills over his cock, squeezing him firmly as he moans deeply, beginning to thrust lightly into your grip. Not even a moment later, you feel warm spurts of come painting your stomach, his breath heaving as low, pleased growls escape him with every exhale.

The feeling of Mingi’s hand gently stroking over your spine slowly begins to bring you back to reality. Your chest rises and falls dramatically with each breath you take, revelling in his touch. Your forehead presses against his chest, and you can feel it vibrating contently beneath you as he finally removes his hand from your cunt.

“So beautiful,” he coos, one hand sliding up to cradle the back of your head while the other settles onto your thigh. His fingers press delicately into your flesh, thumb stroking over your skin lightly. “So perfect.”

Ever so carefully, Mingi begins to dip you backwards, laying you gently upon the stone you rest on. His figure looms above you, nothing but love shining deep within his gaze as he stares into your eyes.

You finally release your hold on his cock, hand coming up to settle on his chest while the other shifts to tangle in his hair. You waste no time in pulling his lips back down to your own, heart swelling inside of your chest as his hands roam all over your body. Carefully, he avoids the mess he’s just made on your stomach. For now.

A blink, and Mingi begins trailing his lips down the side of your neck. His hot breath fans over your skin, contrasting the coolness of the rock at your back.

“Still okay?” He asks gently, gazing up at you through his lashes as his head rests just above your chest.

You nod, quite eagerly, as you still attempt to catch your breath. “Don’t stop.”

The smile that pulls at Mingi’s lips is so tender, that you cannot help the way your heart flutters in response. Almost instantly, he eagerly begins to trail more kisses down your chest, suckling lightly at your skin.

His hands return to your breasts, kneading the flesh tenderly as he takes one of your nipples into his mouth. A flick of his tongue over the pert bud has you moaning, arching once more into his touch as your thighs squeeze around his sides.

Softly, he suckles on your nipple, tongue swirling around the sensitive skin as he hums against you. A moment later, he’s releasing you with a soft pop, kissing his way over to your other breast to give it the exact same attention.

Your lips are parted, eyes hooded over as you lift your head to watch him move over you. Your one hand tangles in his locks, nails scratching at his scalp as your fingers thread through his hair.

What truly makes your head spin is when you see him detach himself from your nipple only to press his face directly between the valley of your breasts. His eyes flutter closed, and he inhales deeply, a stuttering groan falling passed his lips. Then, he’s tilting his head forward, placing a lingering kiss right over the skin of your beating heart.

“Mine.” He growls out, his eyes flashing open to stare deeply into your own.

Your breath hitches in your throat, heart stuttering inside of your chest. Only, your reaction surprises you. You cannot deny the way your stomach twists in pleasure at the way he says this, nor the way you feel yourself clench around nothing.

So, you respond in a way that feels both natural and right in this moment to you.

“Yours.” The word is but a sigh on your lips, but the effect it has on the fae before you is instantaneous.

A desperate groan escapes him, his eyes falling shut as he presses his face against your chest once more. You can feel his every breath hitting your skin, his hands settling onto your waist and pulling you in closer. His fingers dig into your skin, firm enough so that you can feel the need in his touch, but not enough to hurt you.

No. Never enough to hurt you.

“As I will always, and forevermore, be yours,” he breathes out onto your skin, blinking his gaze open to stare up at you lovingly. He hums contently, “My Beloved Blossom.”

Slowly, he begins trailing kisses back down your torso, his hands still eagerly gripping at your sides. His eyes briefly flick down to your stomach, noting the lines of his come still covering you in him.

Something deep within Mingi snarls with unabashed pride, and he smirks.

His tongue comes out to lave over your skin, tracing the trails of his come all the way from bottom to top. After each line, he places open mouthed kisses against your stomach, laving his lips over every inch of you, and loving the way he can feel you begin to squirm beneath him in pleasure.

Your hands tighten in his hair, pulling him impossibly closer. “Mine.”

The moan Mingi lets out against your skin is deep, his fingers sinking a little firmer into your sides. His chest rumbles pridefully in agreement, his sharp eyes flashing as he looks up to meet your gaze.

“Say it again,” his voice is but a growl on his lips as he sinks to his knees before you.

With a slight hitch in your breath, you comply.

“Mine.”

His hooded eyes lock onto your own, licking his lips eagerly as he slides his hands under your thighs, pushing your legs further apart.

“Again.” He growls, shifting forward slightly to hook your legs over his shoulders.

The way your pussy clenches right before his very eyes has another pleased rumble shaking his chest.

A small whimper slips passed your lips, and Mingi can feel the way your thighs begin to tremble against his shoulders.

“You’re mine.” Your fingers come down to thread back through his hair, tugging lightly at the roots.

Mingi’s eyes flutter once more, a pleased hum escaping him.

“I am yours, Blossom,” he leans his head gently against your one thigh. A moment later, he’s turning to place a tender kiss right over where that cut he helped heal had previously marred your flesh. Then, his eyes are flashing open, and he tugs you closer to the edge of the spring. “Now, let me watch you bloom.”

As soon as those words escape his lips, he’s diving into you, parting your folds eagerly with his tongue. The moan he lets out reverberates against your core, licking a broad strip upwards to begin flicking gently at your clit.

Your whole body jolts at the first touch of his tongue over your cunt. A whimper of his name falls passed your lips, thighs naturally wrapping themselves around his head.

A pleased growl escapes him, vibrating pleasantly against your clit as he sucks the little bundle of nerves between his lips. His hands wrap around your thighs, pulling himself in closer to you as he positively buries his face in your cunt, licking eagerly at every drop you have to offer him.

You moan, eyes falling shut as you cry out his name once more.

“That’s it, Blossom,” his voice rumbles out against your folds, his nose pressing into your clit as his tongue swirls around your entrance. “Let me hear how good I’m making you feel.”

His tongue dips between your folds, pressing deeper into you with every lick.

“So good,” you moan, fingers tightening in his hair to pull him in closer to your cunt. “Fuck- Mingi!”

His eyes flutter in bliss, moaning shamelessly into your pussy as he laves his mouth over you.

“Just like that, Blossom,” his tongue comes up to flick eagerly at your clit again, his one arm shifting beneath you. “I want you to drown me in you.”

The second those words slip passed his lips, his fingers are back at your entrance. Slowly, he begins to push two back into you, working you open just as he did earlier.

He needs to feel you squeezing around him again. He needs to see you fall apart for him again. He needs to feel you coming for him, and him alone.

“Such a pretty little pussy,” he hums, pulling away to watch his fingers slip inside of you. He nearly moans at the sight, cock twitching as he feels your walls clench around him. “So pretty, and all for me to devour.”

Another moan tumbles from your lips, tossing your head back in bliss. You can hardly maintain eye contact with him for long, the heat from his gaze setting your soul on fire, and bathing you in in the warmth of his love, of his desire.

It’s for you. It’s all for you.

The wet sounds of his tongue on your core fill the clearing as he returns to suckling on your clit. His fingers move languidly in you, massaging against your inner walls until the tips are finding that familiar spot that has your breath hitching. Once he feels is against the tips of his fingers, he curls them, humming over your clit as he shakes his head from side to side.

Your thighs begin to shake around him, that familiar pressure building within you with every flick of his tongue over your clit. The pleasant stretch of his fingers buried in your cunt only makes you clench around them, breath stuttering as he continues to massage the tips over that special spot deep inside of you.

Gently, you feel him grab one of your hands in his own, tugging it loose from his hair in order to lace your fingers with his. His eyes plead for you to fall apart, squeezing your hand now held within his own as he flattens his tongue against your clit.

His warm breath hits your cunt with every desperate pant that escapes him, moving his tongue languidly in circles. In the next moment, he pulls away to flick at the sensitive little nub rapidly, watching your every reaction intently as he curls his fingers once more.

Your orgasm crashes into you without warning, your legs trembling violently around his head. Naturally, your thighs squeeze together, back arching off of the stones as you cry out his name. Your eyes flutter shut, brow furrowed as you cling onto his hand like a lifeline, drowning in the ecstasy he so willingly provides.

Moans and whimpers of his name fall from your lips, attempting to catch your breath as you feel his tongue continuing to lick over your dripping cunt. It’s slow, and tender, collecting every last drop you have to offer him as he removes his fingers from your core.

He hums, chest rumbling pleasantly as his thumb rubs over the back of your one hand held in his. His other is settled on your upper thigh, resting just below your hip to help steady you on the rocks.

Pulling his head away, he licks his lips, and you can see your essence dripping down his chin as it shines beneath the light of the day.

“I love making you come for me,” his voice escapes him as no more than a content growl, turning his head to place tender kisses upon the skin of your inner thighs. “True solace resides here, between the heat of your legs.”

Your expression softens, a gentle sigh of his name falling from your lips.

“I never want you to stop calling out my name,” he breathes, the ghost of his breath tickling the skin of your thigh.

Carefully, he lets your legs fall from his shoulders, and back into the water of the pool below. The grip he has on your one hand loosens, and he stands back to his feet. His touch trails up your sides as he leans over you, pressing his lips to yours and kissing you deeply.

You hum against his mouth, arms wrapping around his shoulders as your fingers thread back through his hair.

Gently, he pulls away, resting his forehead against your own.

“Are you okay?” His tone is soft, staring deeply into your eyes as he holds himself above you for the moment.

A tender smile pulls at your lips. “More than okay.”

He returns your loving smile.

“Do you want to-“

“Make love to me, Mingi,” your gaze holds nothing but the most fond of looks as you bring your hand around to cup the side of his face, staring deeply into his eyes. “Make love to me as you claim me as yours.”

There is no denying the hitch in his breath as he stares down at your form, naked and spread out beneath him. His gaze searches your own, and all he can see staring back at him is the same tenderness that he knows is held within his own. There is no uncertainty in your eyes, nor hesitance, and the way you soon pull him in closer only serves to make his heart swell with even more love for you inside of his chest.

“I would love nothing more,” his reply is gentle, his fingers coming up to trace over the side of your cheek.

Taking a moment now, Mingi commits this beautiful scene to memory for years to come.

Pushing himself slightly upwards, Mingi lets his hands trail over the length of your body. Love pours from his gaze and into his touch as he looks down at you. A love that he can see, that he can feel returned in your own.

Out of the corner of his eyes, he glances something that has his heart skipping a beat inside of his chest at the mere thought of. Briefly, his eyes flit from your face, to the side, and back before he’s cupping your cheek in the palm of his hand once more.

“I want you to wear something for me while I make love to you, Beloved.” He licks his lips. “Can you- can you do that for me?”

Your eyes search his face for a moment, trailing all over his features as you lift a hand to rest on top of his own.

Slowly, you nod your head, a soft ‘okay’ falling from your lips.

Carefully, Mingi reaches his hand out above you, grasping something in his grip. Your eyes track his every movement, and the moment he pulls back, your breath hitches slightly in your throat.

There, in his grip, rests that crimson sash, stained fresh with the blood of all those who had ever wronged you.

Your lips part in awe, heart swelling at the meaning behind his request. Not to mention the fact that this band is his most prized possession, and now he wants you to wear it during such an intimate moment shared between the two of you.

Mingi helps you sit up, his hand on your back to steady you as you grip onto his shoulders. He can hear how fast your heart is beating, and he knows that his is doing the exact same.

You tilt your head up to meet his gaze, and your expression says it all. No words need to be said between you as a deep understanding passes over one another. One that says you care about him, and he cares about you, both in your own ways. You will let him take care of you, just as you’ve always wanted. Just as you’ve always deserved.

Leaning forward, Mingi presses a gentle kiss to your forehead. He allows his lips to linger, his eyes falling shut as he absolutely revels in this moment here with you. There is so much wants to tell you, so much he wants to show you, but for now, he’ll start with this.

“I love you, My Blossom,” Pulling away, Mingi makes sure to stare deeply into your eyes. “So much.”

A smile tugs at your features, tender and loving. “As I love you, My General.”

“Mingi.” The corner of his mouth quirks upwards as corrects you. He shifts forward, securing that sash carefully around your forehead. “For you, it’s always Mingi.”

The sound of the fabric tightening as it’s tied reaches your ears, but the knot is anything but. He ensures that band is securely around your forehead, eyes shining with nothing but admiration and awe as he pulls away to stare at you.

Slowly, his fingertips trace back down over the curve of your cheeks, wrapping his arms around your back. He draws you in closer as you part your legs for him, letting him press himself flush against your chest.

Your hands slide down the front of his torso, eyes following in their wake as you take the time to fully admire him. You cannot help the way your tongue comes out to wet your lips, stomach flipping pleasantly as the realization that he is yours settles over you.

You smile.

“If I hurt you-“

“You won’t.” Your voice comes out firmly, gaze darting back up to meet his own. “I trust you.”

Mingi’s breath catches in his throat, and his heart skips a beat inside of his chest. Your words mean everything to him in this moment, and he swears to never break that trust for as long as you both shall live.

As he stares deeply into your eyes, you know that he won’t, either.

Scooting closer to the edge of the rock you sit on, you manage to wrap your legs around Mingi’s waist. The way you pull him in closer in such a way only causes a smile to tug at his lips, his hands sliding down your sides and settling lightly on your waist.

“Hold onto me, Beloved,” he says lowly, his hands shifting to grasp your ass and lift you slightly towards him.

Immediately, you comply, your arms wrapping themselves around his shoulders as he pulls you into him.

His hold is gentle as he walks himself backwards and into the centre of that spring. The pool deepens, the water now coming up to about his chest height, but still, he carries you, making sure your head, and that sash, stay dry.

Carefully, he adjusts you so that his one hand is supporting you beneath your ass, while the other reaches down between the two of your bodies. He takes his cock into his hand, pumping himself a few times before lining the tip up with your entrance. He takes the liberty to drag the head of his cock through your folds, bumping over your clit a few times as he meets your gaze.

“Tell me you want this,” his words are a bit desperate, eyes pleading as he holds you both still, waiting for that final confirmation to fall from your lips. “Tell me you want me.”

Your heart swells in your chest, warmth flooding your veins as you cup his face in both of your hands. Your eyes shine with nothing but love and admiration, desire swirling deep within your irises as you hold his gaze. The fact that he still waits, the fact that he’s been so gentle and caring with you this whole time, only proves to solidify your answer.

“I want this, Mingi,” the words are but a tender whisper on your lips. “I want you.”

Mingi’s heart simply flutters at your admission, and he doesn’t waste another moment before slowly letting you sink down on his cock. He’s nothing but tender, and oh, so, careful as he pulls you down only so far before lifting you off of him again, repeating the process as he pushes deeper and deeper into you each time.

The warmth of your cunt makes his head spin, and with every inch that he sinks further into your tight walls, he finds it harder and harder to control himself. Yet still, he does.

For your sake.

Your hands dig into the skin of his shoulders, clinging to him tightly as he stretches you out. You can feel yourself clenching around him with each delicious inch that stretches you out, eyes nearly rolling once he finally sheathes himself fully into your tight heat.

His arms are around you, holding you flush against his chest as his brow furrows. Small pants escape him, low moans spilling from his lips each time you shift slightly above him.

“You feel like paradise around me, Beloved,” he drawls out huskily right beside your ear. “Like you were made for me.”

A soft gasp slips passed your lips as he shifts beneath you, clenching around him as you feel his cock pulse deep within you.

“So wet,” he coos, nuzzling his face into the side of your neck. “So warm.”

“For you,” you breathe out, and you hear the way a choked moan escapes him. “All because of you.”

This time, there’s no mistaking the moan that falls passed his lips. His chest rumbles with a low, pleased growl, his lips finding purchase on your skin.

“Feel how hard you make me, Blossom?” He hums, tongue darting out to lave over your pulse. “Feel how well you let me fill this tight little pretty pussy of yours?”

He gives a tentative grind of his hips into your own, and your eyes nearly roll into the back of your head.

“Yes,” you moan out, tossing your head back as you tighten your hold around him. “Feel so good filling me, Min.”

You emphasize your words by clenching around him, hearing a choked gasp of your name fall from his lips.

“You are my everything,” he whispers, one hand shifting to grab at your ass and squeezing the flesh appreciatively. Again, he rolls his hips up into your own. “My Beautiful, Beloved, Blossom.”

This time, it’s his turn to emphasize his every word with a roll of his hips into you, his voice coming out as no more than a low growl. His opposite hand comes up to cradle the back of your head, bringing your lips to his in a desperate, but searing kiss.

Slowly, but surely, he begins a languid pace, rolling his hips up into yours as he holds onto you just as tightly as you cling to him. Each movement is precise, letting you feel his devotion in the way he brings his hips up to meet your own, and pouring every ounce of love that he can into the way his cock fills your tight little hole.

Low hums and soft sighs fall from your lips, his name gracing your tongue with every gentle thrust he gives you. Your arms wrap around his back, nails tracing lightly over his skin and leaving marks of your own in their wake.

A pleased rumble shakes his chest, and he begins to snap his hips a little firmer into you. The way you body bounces with each thrust captivates him, and he drinks in every expression of pleasure you give him eagerly, committing them all to memory.

A choked cry of his name parts your lips as the tip of his cock brushes against that tender spot inside of you. Adjusting his hold on you, he makes sure to hit that spot with every thrust, grinding his hips into your own each time.

That red sash rests like a crown upon your head, and as Mingi glances your ethereal form beneath the light of the morning sun, his heart feels close to bursting. His pace begins to quicken, low rumbles shaking his chest with every move he makes. The way he can feel you clenching around him has his cock twitching deep within you, hands desperately clinging onto you as he pulls you into him to meet his every thrust.

“I love you,” The words are but a strained whisper, falling from his lips repeatedly with every snap of his hips into your own.

Only admiration and the deepest, sincerest form of love can be seen in his gaze as he stares intently into your own, captivated by the glorious sight that is you, falling apart on his cock.

You fingers thread through his hair, pulling his lips to yours for another searing kiss. Eagerly, you swallow his moans, just as you offer up your own to him.

You can feel that familiar tightness building within you, close to snapping at the skillful way he fills you with his cock. No movement is wasted, and the way you feel him squeeze your ass again has you tightening your legs around his waist.

Parting from your lips with a gasp, Mingi’s eyes flutter shut. Not even a moment later, he’s letting his head fall forward, burying his face into the side of your neck.

His lips find purchase over your pulse, sucking lightly at the skin there before laving his tongue eagerly over the spot. His breathing comes in jagged pants, hot breath fanning over your flesh as low growls begin to escape him with every exhale he makes.

“Touch that pretty little clit for me, Blossom,” he breathes out onto the skin of your neck. “Touch that pretty little clit, and make yourself come all over me.”

Another moan of his name slips passed your lips, and you do as told. Almost instantly, your hand slides from his back down to your clit, flicking over the sensitive nub with the tips of your fingers.

You clench hard around him, a desperate whine escaping you as you nearly fall right over the edge.

Gently, the hand he has supporting the back of your head tilts you to expose your neck fully, his pace never once faltering as he laves his tongue over your pulse once more.

Your eyes flutter shut, and with one final flick over your clit, you come, screaming his name.

The instant Mingi feels you coming around him, his fangs sink into the tender flesh of your neck. An animalistic snarl reverberates against your throat, his hips snapping into yours before he stills within you. The hand he has gripping your ass pulls you flush against him as he spills deep inside of you, clinging onto you as desperately as you cling to him.

Your whole body shudders in his hold, the euphoric feeling of your orgasm only intensified by the feeling of his fangs in your throat. You never expected for it to be this intense, and it takes you several long minutes to calm down, whimpering with each small ministration against you. Even the water is starting to become too much against your skin, every feeling intensified and making your shake in overstimulation.

Slowly, you begin to feel something wet and hot dragging itself along the skin of your neck. Pleased rumbles vibrate against your chest as you catch your breath, and finally, your vision returns. Blinking at few times, you focus in on that redcap before you, noticing how he pulls away with red dripping down his chin.

He licks his lips, the most heartwarming smile tugging at his features as he strokes a hand tenderly over your spine.

“My Blossom,” he hums, gaze shining with nothing but tender love and affection as he looks at you. “How beautiful it is to watch you bloom.”

Happy tears well in your eyes, burying your face into his chest as he slowly walks you both back over to the edge of the spring. Your arms hold onto him tightly, humming as you nuzzle into him. You can still feel his cock buried deep inside of you, and it only serves to make this moment that much more special, for you know that he wishes to be part of you for as long as he possibly can.

Despite the bite you’ve just received, your neck doesn’t hurt. Instead, you feel a warmth blooming deep within you. A feeling of tremendous comfort and safety wraps itself around you like a blanket, and with the way he begins to gently wash the both of you off, you know that this feeling resting deep inside of you is pure and true.

Carefully, he unties that band from around your head, placing it gently to the side.

“You did so well for me, Beloved,” he coos, his hand tracing over the contours of your spine. “How I love you so. Very much.”

You can only offer him a hum in return, fatigue suddenly overwhelming you as you rest in his arms. The feeling of his cock slipping out of you makes you moan softly, clenching around nothing as he continues to clean you both up.

“Get some rest, My Beloved.” He chuckles lowly, cradling your head in his one hand. “I’ll take care of you, don’t worry.”

And so you do, falling asleep in the arms of the one who loves you most.

***

The moment you wake, Mingi is there. He brings you water, making sure you’re well hydrated before feeding you some food slowly. Most importantly, he makes sure that you’re okay.

Gently, he rubs your muscles, working over any soreness you might have from the events that took place earlier in the day. He even goes so far as to kiss over every single inch of your skin, stating that he wants to make good on his every promise from earlier.

The rest of the day is spent like this, with Mingi taking care of you and you resting in each others arms. He is at your beck and call, and as evening comes, hues of red, orange, pink, and yellow painting the sky, he pulls you in even closer.

Never is he going to let you go. Never does he want to.

Beneath the light of the stars, Mingi makes love to you a second time. He holds your hand tightly in his own, interlacing your fingers together as he makes you cry out his name to the heavens.

Always, it’s all about you.

He treats you with a tenderness you never knew possible for someone like you. A tenderness which you gladly lose yourself to each and every time he offers it, and when you look at him, you realize that everything will all turn out okay.

He’s here now, and he’s not going anywhere.

The next morning is spent wrapped in each other’s embrace.

The soft sounds of birds fill your ears, light filtering in through the breaks in the trees. Gently, leaves sway in the breeze, filling the clearing with the pleasant scents of nature. Your head rests on Mingi’s chest, and you cannot help but glance those two stems of spider lilies beside you, laying almost parallel to you and him.

A smile pulls at your features.

“Good morning, Blossom,” Mingi’s deep voice manages to pull you out of your thoughts. You turn to look up at him, noticing him already staring down at you with nothing but love shining within his gaze. “Did you sleep well?”

A soft hum escapes you as you settle your head back onto his chest, listening to the comforting sound of his heartbeat. “I always sleep better when you are near.”

You can hear the way his heart simply flutters inside of his chest at your words, a content rumble echoing around the clearing.

“Then, it’s a good thing I love holding you so close,” he grins, pulling you impossibly closer into him.

You hum, rolling on top of him, but saying nothing in response. Simply, you revel in this moment, and his touch, curling around him as his hand begins to gently stroke over your spine.

His eyes catch on that fresh bite mark on your neck, the indents from his teeth shining under the light of the morning sun. Another pleased rumble shakes his chest, and softly, he brings a hand upwards. His fingers trace lovingly over the claim on your neck, revelling in the way you positively shiver beneath his touch.

“Can I-“ your voice comes out a bit small, uncertain. “Do I get to give you one of my own?”

Mingi freezes beneath you, his eyes going wide. You can audibly hear the way his breath catches, feeling his heart begin to thunder against your chest as you press up against him.

“You- you want to give me a claim of your own?” His gaze shines with something akin to hope, love and admiration swirling deep within.

“Is that not how it works?” You tilt your head slightly, your brow furrowing as you worry you may have misunderstood him.

“No, no, it- it is.” He inhales a shaky breath through his nose. “I just- I didn’t think you’d wish to-“

“Of course I would want to.” You smile at him softly. “Claims are mutual, are they not?”

His eyes shine with unshed tears, happiness swelling inside his chest and causing his veins to flood with pure ecstasy. Tingles erupt under his skin wherever you touch, and he finds that he cannot get enough.

Slowly, he begins to nod his head.

“Yes.” He swallows the building emotions in his throat. “They are.”

You shift slightly above him, pulling yourself closer to his face so you can stare down at him tenderly. “Then, will you let me claim you, Mingi?”

He blinks, the first of his tears spilling from the corners of his eyes and falling down to the earth to stain its soil with his happiness.

“I would love nothing more.”

The corners of your lips tug upwards as you lean in to press them against his own. His one hand comes up to cradle the side of your face, the other settling onto your lower back and holding you steady over him.

You pull away to stare deeply into his eyes, and Mingi tilts his head to the side, exposing the side of his neck for you.

“Claim me, Beloved,” his words are but a plea upon his lips. “I am yours.”

Slowly, you lean into him. Your lips trail a path from his jawline all the way to the side of his neck, nipping gently at the skin with your teeth. You can hear his breathing deepen, tightening his grip ever so slightly over you as you dart your tongue out to lave over his pulse.

“It’s just a- just a bite, right?” You ask, breath ghosting against his skin.

“Yes,” His reply is airy, tilting his head further to the side as a small, desperate whine escapes him. “Just a bite.”

Teasingly, you drag your teeth over the side of his neck, and you can feel him shiver beneath you. A moment later, you clamp them against his skin, but not enough to be considered a proper bite.

“Blossom,” he pants out, pleading with his eyes despite the fact that you cannot see his face in this instant. “Blossom, please-“

His words get cut off by the feeling of you sinking your teeth into his neck.

A loud moan escapes him, his hips jerking upwards as his eyes squeeze shut. His head nearly gets tosses back at the pleasure that courses through his veins, skin heating beneath your touch as you slowly detach your lips from the side of his throat.

Pulling away, you hold yourself above him. You spare a glance down at his face, noticing how his lips are parted and his eyes are glazed. His chest heaves with every breath as he takes in the sight above him that is you, his blood staining your lips bright red.

The second you dart your tongue out to taste the crimson substance adorning your skin, you moan. Almost instantly, your face buries itself back into the side of his neck, laving at the fresh mark you’ve just given him.

Mingi groans in response, his hands finding purchase on your hips, guiding you to begin grinding over his semi-hard cock. The call of your name is so tender from his lips, that you swear he believes you to be some form of divinity.

In his mind, you are.

The rest of that morning is spent in each others arms, proclaiming your love for one another as you lose yourselves to the pleasure the other provides. Never has anything ever felt so pure in your lives, each desperate for the other as you claim one another over, and over, and over again.

By the time you’ve both finished, the sun is cresting high in the sky. You spend the afternoon cleaning each other up, and by the time the early evening rolls around, you’re finally ready to continue on your journey back home.

Those two stems of spider lilies rest in your hands, and you eagerly take a step forward in the direction of the keep. Only, your right leg gives out on you as soon as you put any sort of pressure on your ankle.

Luckily, Mingi is right there to catch you before you fall. Just as he always will be.

“I’m sorry, Beloved,” his eyes shine with slight remorse. “I overdid it.”

“Not at all.” Immediately, you shake your head. “I can walk.”

Again, you go to take another step, much to Mingi’s protest. Yet, again, your leg gives out on you.

Before you can say anything, Mingi is scooping you into his arms.

“Get some rest, Blossom,” he smiles down at you, placing a gentle kiss onto your forehead. “I’ve got you.”

Your one brow quirks, almost playfully. “I thought you said you weren’t going to carry me?”

Mingi laughs, beginning the final trek home to the keep.

“I’m not carrying you,” he says lightheartedly, a smile tugging at his features. “Think of it as holding onto you while walking. There’s a difference.”

A giggle graces his ears as you curl into him, resting your head on his chest. “Sure there is.”

“I’d carry you to the ends of the earth if it meant getting to see you every day.” He replies earnestly, glancing down at you with such a loving look resting on his features.

“I don’t plan on going anywhere anytime soon, Min,” you hum, nuzzling deeper into his chest.

A pleased rumble greets your ears, his grip tightening around you as he pulls you in even closer.

“Get some rest, Blossom,” he repeats his words from mere minutes earlier. “There’s not that much further to go. I’ll get us there safely, don’t you worry.”

The corners of your lips tug upwards in a soft smile.

“I trust you, Min.” Your eyes flutter shut, already feeling the familiar pull of unconsciousness tugging at your mind as the steady rocking of each of his steps begins to lull you to sleep. “I love you.”

You fail to see the tender smile that pulls onto his own features, but you can hear his contentment clear in his voice all the same.

“As I love you, My Beloved Blossom.”

***

Whispers are what rouse you from your sleep.

The sun creeps over the hills, its morning rays lighting up the sky as you blink your eyes open. Mingi had walked with you in his arms all through the night, managing to cover more ground as you slept. He could practically taste the stale air of the keep, the stones beckoning him home.

Getting closer with each step he takes is a somewhat large castle. Half of it lies in ruin, but the keep still stands almost defiantly amongst the rubble. It’s beautiful, yet tragic in a way, but it’s home. A home which you are grateful for, for you know it means Mingi will be there, too.

After all, he is now your home, just as you are his.

Lifting your free hand, you rub at your face. More and more hushed tones follow you as you rest in Mingi’s arms, most if not all, harsh in their musings of disbelief.

“Is that the human?”

“How is she still alive?”

“Never mind that, did he claim her?”

“It won’t mean anything."

“There’s a mark on his neck, too!”

The comments come one right after another, and they only cause you to curl deeper into Mingi’s chest. The implications behind most of them make your heart drop, and though you know that none of them are true where Mingi is concerned, you cannot help but to wonder about those other humans in this realm much unluckier than you.

“Enough!” Mingi’s voice booms out, immediately silencing the gathering redcaps surrounding you. “If you have any issues with who I’ve chosen to imprint on, you may take up your grievances with me in a duel.”

Your breath catches slightly in your throat, curling in even closer into his chest as an eerie silence stretches on around you.

“If I catch any of you treating her with anything less than the utmost of respect, I will carve out your tongue, and feed it to the crows. There is no limit on what I will do to you, should you choose to harm her in any way.” Mingi’s sharp gaze looks over his gathered subordinates, his arms tightening over you almost subconsciously. “Do I make myself clear?”

Immediately, the redcaps all straighten. “Yes, General.”

Mingi grunts, turning back to continue making his way through the keep.

“Dismissed.”

You don’t have to peek over his shoulder to know that the other fae have immediately obeyed his orders.

The rest of the day is spent with Mingi showing you around the keep. He takes you out back to an empty field, helping you plant that one red spider lily with him. The way he smiles at you when you turn to look up at him in awe says it all.

Finally, you’re home.

A few days pass, and you seem to have no incidents with the other redcaps. Things are a bit interesting at first, to say the least, with them not used to having a human around, let alone treating one with respect. However, they respect their General, and will obey his every command, and thus, they are respectful to you.

It’s only when you’re in your new bedroom, alone, do you feel a chill raise on the back of your neck.

“You should be dead.”

A voice from the open doorway causes you to turn to see Windfel standing there with his arms crossed over his chest. A frown mars his features, only visible from the downturn of his lips as that red flat cap is pulled low over his head.

You blink at him, tilting your head in inquiry as your brow furrows slightly.

“No, really,” he pushes himself off of the doorframe, beginning to stalk his way forward and into your room. “He should have killed you.”

You involuntarily take a step backwards at the sudden dark look in his eyes.

“He was supposed to kill you!” Windfel shouts, appearing before you in the blink of an eye and pinning you to the wall by your throat. “I should have just done it myself to get it over with, but I thought it would be fun to have the general go on a little hunt.”

Your heartbeat thunders in your ears, throat constricting as fear builds within your chest. All you can do is stare at the crazed redcap before you, struggling to free yourself from his grip as your vision begins to fade in the corners.

The hand around your throat tightens even further.

Tears line your eyes, spilling freely down your cheeks as you attempt to cry out for help. Mingi had been scouting the area outside the keep today, so if only you could just get enough air to fill your lungs to scream…

“You humans think you’re so fucking special,” Windfel spits, one of his claws tracing over the top line of your claim almost mockingly. “Seduce one fae, and you suddenly believe you’re untouchable.”

Your legs kick out uselessly beneath you, your right ankle throbbing as your lungs burn. With every moment that passes, you can feel yourself getting weaker and weaker, only being able to think of Mingi in what you believe to be your final moments.

A roar so deadly pierces the air, shaking the entirety of the keep.

Within the blink of an eye, Windfel is torn away from you, his body being thrown through the window beside your bed. Mingi is beside you in an instant, hands shaking against your form as you heave air into your lungs. Fear, pure and unfiltered, rests in his gaze as he check you over gently, making sure that you’re okay before standing back to your feet.

“How did you…” your words trail off, coughing lightly at the pain speaking brings you right now.

“I could sense you,” Mingi responds, tightening his hold around you as he cradles you to his chest.

It is then that you feel him place a soft kiss over his claim on your neck.

A shiver caresses your spine as he helps you back to your feet. You can hear shouting coming from the courtyard below, and as Mingi leads you outside, your hand held in his own, you see him shift into every bit of that cold persona of the monstrous general you have come to love.

“What is the meaning of this?” His voice booms out across the courtyard, sharp eyes darting around at the gathered redcaps.

You notice Windfel being held back by both Lias and Darius, their claws sinking into his flesh unforgivingly. Blood drips down his features, pieces of broken glass embedded in his skin.

“You’ve gone soft, General,” Windfel spits, turning his hate filled eyes towards you.

Almost instantly, Mingi steps in front of you, blocking you from the other redcap’s sight.

“You purposely sent me on a hunt in hopes that I would kill her.” Mingi’s voice is but a low snarl on his lips, dangerous in every right. “I thought it was strange that you would take her to bathe. When the wild stream wouldn’t kill her, you had hoped that I would.”

An unbridled fury shines within Windfel’s gaze. However, it is only unmatched by Mingi’s own.

“That’s why you let her go.” Mingi’s eyes flash as he bares his fangs at the redcap before him. “Didn’t you?”

Windfel purses his lips, and his silence speaks volumes.

“Speak.” Mingi snarls out the command, the cadence of his voice causing some rubble to crumble to the ground at the side of the courtyard. “Your general asked you a question.”

You can see the surrounding redcaps backing up slowly from the other two, both Lias and Darius shoving Windfel to his knees before Mingi. The captain and the vice-captain under his command may be nefarious, but at least they are loyal. At least they understand respect.

A heaviness settles in the air between the two fae as Mingi towers over the smaller redcap, anger radiating off of him in waves. No one dares interfere in this matter, for they all know what will happen to them if they do. Their general is not afraid to make an example out of anyone.

“The bitch should have died.” Windfel spits. “If not at your hands, then at someone else’s.”

A deadly silence passes over the entire courtyard, and you notice both Lias and Darius suddenly flanking you on either side. It’s as if they’ve stepped towards you for your protection.

At the way you notice Mingi’s hands shaking in fists at his sides, you know this to be undoubtably true.

“Get up.” Mingi commands the fae at his feet, his voice leaving no room for arguments.

Windfel’s brow furrows, but he still does as told.

Little do you see the maniacal look that stretches across Mingi’s features.

“I accept your challenge.”

The entire courtyard goes silent, and you swear you could hear a pin drop. All the colour drains from Windfel’s face as he takes a step back in shock.

Slowly, you watch as Mingi unties that red sash from around his upper arm, wrapping it around his forehead and securing it into place. His claws unsheathe, and you swear all the redcaps around you stop breathing.

“My Beloved Blossom,” The sudden, gentle call of your name from Mingi catches your attention as he stands with his back facing you.

You take a deep breath in.

“Close your eyes.”

245 notes · View notes

mint-yooxgi · 5 months

Text

{3} - Fight or Flight - Yandere!Redcap!Mingi X Tall!Chubby!Reader

Fae!AU & Yandere!AU - Part of the CoDN Thrill of the Hunt Collab

Genre: Fantasy, Mature, Horror, Angst, Fluff, Smut

Pairing: Mingi X Reader

Words: 9,085

Rating: Mature - 18+ MDNI

P.S. If there are any spelling or grammatical errors, please ignore them. I did my best through many rounds of editing, but some are liable to still slip through.

Summary: Out of one horrible situation and into another, the cycle of abuse never stops. You've lived with monsters your whole life. So, what's one more?

P.P.S. Please don't let this flop guys. If you enjoyed it, please reblog!!!

Mini Masterlist - Part One - Part Two

You were wrong.

Not only is this redcap the most infuriating fae possible, but he has no tact when it comes to handling you. Clearly, he’s never dealt with humans before, and he doesn’t even try to hide it. Every chance he gets, he’s shoving you around, pulling you harshly to your feet and snapping at you to ‘get a move on’ if you’re not moving at a quick enough pace for him.

Gone is the almost surreal atmosphere of peace the morning had brought you. Instead, as evening shifts into night, only irritation seems to fill the silence between the two of you. Whether he’s upset at himself for relating to a human or not is unbeknownst to you. All you do know is that he seems to dislike you more than he did the previous day.

“Are you done yet?” His voice cuts through the gentle sounds of the pond you’re currently bathing in.

Your head turns to stare at his back, noticing he stands a better guard than Windfel ever did. Not once did this fae turn around even to toy with you. Truly, he kept his word about being respectful about this kind of stuff, and for that, you should be grateful. Only, a creeping sense of dread begins to sink into your bones.

Slowly, you begin to make your way out of the pond, not quite feeling as refreshed as you should. The constant pounding of your heart within your chest reminds you that you’re still alive, and as you pull on the new clothes, you cannot keep your hands from shaking.

“Have you finished? I need to wrap your wound.” His arms are crossed over his chest, that much you can tell.

“I can do it myself.” Comes your somewhat sharp reply, looking around for where he put that roll of bandages he scavenged from a nearby town.

“No, you’re going to do it wrong.” He sighs, beginning to tap his foot against the ground. “I don’t want your wound getting infected again and slowing us down even further.”

Your features pull into a scowl. One which you are grateful he cannot see at the moment. You remain silent, tugging the loose shirt over your head once dry enough to do so. Only a grunt is given to acknowledge he can turn to face you, one which he seemingly immediately understands.

“Sit down.” He commands, walking over to you with another leaf filled with fresh paste in his one hand.

You comply, barely holding back your grumble of discontent. “Yes, General.”

The fae lets out a sharp breath through his nose, kneeling beside you on the ground. He says nothing as he begins to apply the paste over your now healing wound.

The cut on your leg is doing tremendously better in such a short amount of time. No longer does it crust at the edges, and the swelling has gone down significantly. There’s a small scab that rests over the deepest part of the cut, but the edges are much fainter than before, almost scar like in appearance. Sure, it still aches, but it’s nowhere near as horrendous or as infected as it once was.

Carefully, he spreads the paste over your cut. You notice his claws have retracted once more, and though he’s focussing intently on what he’s doing, he isn’t all that gentle. At one particular point, he adds a bit too much pressure to his fingers over the worst part of your cut, and you flinch.

A sharp hiss escapes you before you can stop yourself, and he removes his hand.

He says nothing as he discards of the leaf this time, reaching over to grab the roll of bandages. Wordlessly, he slides his one hand beneath your knee, tugging it upwards without warning.

Your initial response is to scold him, but given how close he is to you right now, combined with the fact that he is treating your wound, you don’t want to give him an opportunity to attack you. If he’s this good with treating them, then obviously he’s even better at causing them. Besides, there are ways he could torment you with the worst pain imaginable, all while making sure to still keep you alive.

It’s not like that hasn’t happened before. You would know.

There is no time, nor opportunity for you to be embarrassed right now. True to his word, he barely takes his eyes from your wounded leg the whole time he treats it. No roaming hands. No snide remarks, or suggestive comments about anything.

Whether he takes notice of the other scars lining your legs is unbeknownst to you, for he doesn’t comment on a single one. Instead, his brow is furrowed in concentration, his hands moving roughly around your thigh as he wraps the bandage around your wound. It’s almost as if he’s working subconsciously, letting his muscles repeat the monotonous motion of covering your wound without thinking. Almost as if he’s done this a thousand times before.

In the back of your mind, you begin to wonder about him. What was his past like? How did he learn to treat wounds this well? Is he truly as terrifying as you’ve been led to believe?

You catch yourself, blinking a few time to clear your vision. These are not things you should concern yourself with. You need to worry about yourself, and only yourself right now.

Looking back at the fae, you notice that his eyes are glazed. Still, he stares intently down at your thigh. You can tell he’s not paying attention, for he bandages your thigh too tightly, tying it off without a second thought.

“It’s too tight.” A blunt comment which seems to snap him out of his thoughts.

“No, it’s not.” He clicks his tongue, standing back to his feet. “Quit complaining, and let’s get a move on. I’ve already wasted enough time waiting for you today.”

“Isn’t it dangerous for me to travel at night?” You remark, tugging the fresh pair of pants over your legs as he walks over to the tree line.

“Not with me, it’s not.” Comes his gruff reply as he begins to stalk deeper into the woods. “Keep up. I’m not stopping if you fall behind.”

Without another word, and with a deep sigh, you take off after him. That stem of red spider lilies you still have with you gets hastily tucked back into your pants pocket. Despite the petals wilting every day, you cling onto it. It means too much to you, and the fact that you were able to find a single stem in the wild still makes your head spin.

Your favourite flower, come to bring you home.

Surprisingly, you manage to keep pace with the fae quite well. You can tell he’s not travelling at his top speed, but the trek is still manageable, and your thigh doesn’t throb once.

Your ankle on the other hand…

Sometime over the course of the night, your foot had started going numb. Your limp has become more prominent, and with every step you take, pain shoots up your right ankle. You manage to bear it for quite a bit longer. That is, until you lose your footing, tripping over a sudden root in your path and falling to the ground with a loud thump.

An annoyed sigh greets your ears, followed by even louder stomps heading back in your direction.

“Are you that incompetent-“ A sharp intake of breath. “You’re bleeding.”

“I’m always bleeding.” You push yourself upward, feeling pain shoot through your fingertips.

Oh, yes. You forgot. You cracked your nails.

Sitting yourself on the ground, you let out a sigh of your own. Gently, you go to raise your hands to your face in order to assess the damage. However, before you can get very far, two large hands envelope your own.

“You’re a walking disaster.” He clicks his tongue, studying your fingertips thoroughly.

His touch is not soft, but it’s not as rough as this morning. Still, he turns your hands in his without thought, tugging your arms lightly forward as he brings your fingertips closer to his face.

Your expression hardens, pursing your lips. “So I’ve been told.”

He says nothing, but you do notice his gaze flick upwards to your face. A moment later, and he’s letting out another sigh. “Is there anything else I should be made aware of?”

“Well, since you’re asking,” you reply smartly, pain and irritation ridding you of your normal filter. “I haven’t been able to feel my right foot for over two hours.”

He swears lowly under his breath. “Why didn’t you say anything?”

“Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t realize you were now my own personal doctor.” You snap.

A low growl greets you in response, and you freeze. With wide eyes, you meet his own.

“I would like to make it back to my home without any further setbacks.” He snarls. “Preferably with you in one piece.”

“Didn’t realize I was so important to you, General,” you tug your hands out from his grip, and surprisingly, you do not feel the sharp sting of fresh cuts adorning your skin from his claws. In fact, it looks as if he retracted them before he even started examining your hands.

A strange, yet welcomed fact which you didn’t bother to notice until now.

“You’re not.” He spits out his reply, standing back to his full height in the next second. “Wait here. I’ll be back in a bit with some supplies.”

Without waiting for a response, he takes off into the night.

All you can hear are the sounds of the forest around you, and the faint stomping of the fae away from you as you drag yourself to rest against a tree. Finally, you feel as if you can breathe easier.

There’s a war going on within yourself. You still want to make the general so mad that he kills you in a fit of rage, while another part of you is genuinely regretting that decision. Whether it happens or not, is still yet to be seen. At least you no longer have starvation, dehydration, and infection clouding your mind.

About an hour later, the fae returns to see you having stripped yourself of your pants. The bandage he had tied around your thigh rests to the side as you let the wound breathe, and it looks the best it has in weeks. Whatever that paste is made from has really helped, for now all that remains of the initial cut is a small scar, and a minor scab.

You notice he spares a glance at your thigh. “How’s your leg?”

Your brow quirks, but you school your features into a neutral expression almost as quickly as it comes.

“Well, I’m starting to gain feeling back in my foot.” You say, watching him carefully as he crosses the short distance between the both of you. “I told you the bandages were too tight.”

“Do you ever stop nagging?” His features twist in irritation as he crouches beside you.

Almost instantly, your breath catches, and your expression falls. Your throat bobs as you swallow thickly, averting your gaze to the side. Old memories, ones you had shoved deep down inside of you resurface, and bile rises in your throat.

“I suppose I should feel grateful for having you keep me from dying.”

“Feel whatever you want to, mortal,” he sighs, handing you a canteen of water. “I have no ties to you, and you have none to me.”

“Then, what do you call this?” Pointedly, you spare a glance down at your almost fully healed thigh, making sure to catch his gaze.

“Insurance.” He states bluntly. Not even a second later, his eyes fall shut, and he’s breathing out a long sigh. “Look, I’m getting tired of repeating myself-“

“I know.” You cut him off. “I’m useless if I can’t function properly.”

“That’s not what I said.”

“You didn’t have to.” You turn your head, jaw twitching as tears prick at your eyes.

You’ve heard it all before. Over and over for what feels like your entire life. Friends, family… all those that were supposed to love you, to care for you.

You nearly scoff.

Love. What a useless emotion. You’re not even sure it exists anymore. Though, you’re sure your parents would argue that they did even this for you out of whatever twisted love they claim to have for you.

No. They wouldn’t know love even if it hit them right in their faces.

No one has ever loved you. No one ever will.

“We’ll rest here until you’re fully healed, and then we’ll continue the journey back to the keep.” His voice, solid and stern, pulls you out of your own thoughts. “That way there’s no excuse as to why we need to make additional stops.”

“Yes, General,” your voice is much weaker than before, barely coming out as more than a hoarse whisper. It’s as if you’ve suddenly lost the will to fight. If you ever even had it in the first place.

A grunt is all you hear from him in response. In fact, that’s all you hear from him for the rest of the morning, and as the sun begins to rise over the horizon, you fall into a deep, restless sleep.

***

It takes two full days for your wound to fully heal. Granted it only took one for the cut to become nothing more than a scar, but it was better to be safe, than sorry.

Despite the setbacks, Mingi actually feels relieved now that he knows you won’t be able to slow him down since your thigh has healed. Looking after you hasn’t been so bad, either. Your company, surprisingly enough, can actually be quite enjoyable.

There are times where you don’t seem to filter yourself as heavily as others. He enjoys those the most. You have an attitude to you that he can appreciate. An attitude which reminds himself of his younger days, before he became the seasoned general that he is now. He honestly wishes he would see it more often from you, but every time you allow yourself to snap back at him, it’s as if you expect him to hit you for it.

Not only that, but the past few times you’ve fallen asleep, you seem to be tormented by terrors unknown to him. He can hear you thrashing against the tree you rest on, whimpering into the stillness of the night as your body attempts to curl in on itself.

It bothers him, and he doesn’t understand why.

Ever since he saw you attempting to frantically crawl away from him that day after he had slaughtered that deer, something within himself has shifted.

Mingi has always known he’s a monster. He was born a monster. He was raised a monster. He is a monster, and he’s never for one moment denied that part of himself. Of course, he has his own moral code he lives by, but again, he doesn’t enjoy wasting his time on easy prey.

If it’s not worth killing over, it’s not worth dying for.

Besides, no one respects him for the minor kills. He wouldn’t have gotten where he is today if he took the easy path. He has a reputation to uphold, and killing people that are not even worth his time only makes people fear him.

Fear isn’t what can drive people to be loyal. Respect can.

No one gains respect by slaughtering countless humans here. At least, in his opinion. It would be the same as targeting children. Who gains honour from tearing apart the weak and defenceless? Certainly not him. He never has, and he never will.

There’s no valour in that.

Still, there is something about you that irritates him to no end. Every time you call him general, he wants to rip your tongue from your throat. The way he catches you looking at him from time to time makes him want to gouge your eyes from your head. Yet, there’s something about the way you’ve come to rely on him, about being able to actually take care of something in such a way instead of destroying like he’s used to. Something about the way he feels as if he can just live around you, causes his guard to weaken and start to crumble.

A vulnerability he hasn’t felt in a long time. A vulnerability that, in actuality, he doesn’t think he’s ever felt in his entire life.

Maybe that’s why you irritate him so much.

Stupid human making him feel stupid things he’s never felt before.

The sun sets in the distance, casting a golden hue across the surrounding area. A gentle breeze cools the humid air of the day, giving way for the crisp stillness that night is sure to bring.

Still, you limp along.

Your stamina has improved since your wound has healed, and you seem to be more keenly aware of your surroundings. Enough so, that Mingi can see the familiar shine of recognition behind your eyes as the forest begins to thin up ahead.

“Shouldn’t there-“ you swallow, panting lightly. “Shouldn’t there be a town up ahead?”

A low hum in confirmation is all you receive in response as Mingi breaks through the tree line. He pauses, waiting for you to catch up. Taking the time now, he scans over the area, no annoying pests in sight. Of course, there are the town’s other inhabitants, but at least the pain in the ass seems to be gone for the moment. If his missing scent is anything to go by, Seonghwa hasn’t been home in quite a few days.

Perhaps those small set backs were more of an advantage than Mingi thought.

“Come on,” Mingi says, leading you towards a tavern across the way. “We’ll stay here for the night. I could use a decent rest in a bed instead of on the ground for a change.”

Eager eyes follow the both of you as you cross the short distance between the woods and the tavern, and Mingi can already hear the whispers floating in the air. He knows that he’s easily recognizable, given the red band tied around his upper arm, but hearing them comment about you sets his skin prickling.

The worst part is, he doesn’t know why.

Stepping inside, the familiar smells of malt ale and other fermented substances greet his nostrils. There’s a distinct stench of body odour, and malcontent lingering in the air that irritate his nose the further into the tavern he goes. The rowdy patrons are all around, laughing and jeering amongst themselves as he steps up to the counter.

Even though he spares a glance over his shoulder to check, he knows that you’re scurrying after him as fast as you can. You seem to be able to feel the pointed stares sent your way as Mingi discusses lodging arrangements with the owner.

Out of the corner of his eyes, Mingi watches you shift uncomfortably on your feet, curling in on yourself as loud voices reach the both of your ears.

“Isn’t that that infamous redcap general?” A loud whisper cuts through the noise of the tavern.

“What’s a human doing with him?” Another hisses, and Mingi can feel his one ear twitch.

“You think he’s claimed her?”

“I don’t see a mark.” Such a smug comment causes Mingi’s jaw to tick in irritation.

What ever happened to minding one’s own business?

“You think we could convince him to let us have some fun with her?”

“Maybe I should give her a mark of my own-“

“Watch your tongue before you lose it.” The words are out of his mouth before he can stop them, his sharp gaze locked onto the fae that had uttered such a repulsive phrase.

A sudden silence encases the entire tavern, and even your eyes go wide.

The comment from the general is so unexpected, it seems to even surprise him.

Mingi is acutely aware of all eyes on him now. Not even a drop of condensation falls against a single glass as he snatches the ward key from the counter. With his opposite hand, he pushes you along, only causing you to stumble forwards and towards the stairs at the back of the room.

“Don’t concern yourselves with business that is not your own.” Mingi snaps, practically shoving you up the stairs and out of sight from hungry, prying eyes.

Eyes of which that seem to follow you all the way to the room. A fact which only serves to irritate him more, a scowl tugging at his features as he unlocks the door with the ward key. A moment later, the entrance swings open, and he’s dragging you inside.

“This was a bad idea.” He begins to pace, rubbing a hand over his face.

“I was fine the last time I passed through this town.” Your reply is much softer than he’s used to, and he spares a glance in your direction.

There you stand, still fidgeting in your spot. Your hands tug at the long sleeves of your shirt, shoulders curling in on yourself as you intently stare at the ground. Your eyes have lost that faint shine he’s come to know over the past few days, the brightness having dulled suddenly into a blank nothingness.

He bets you’re thinking about their eyes on you, and how everyone was gazing at you like you were a piece of meat. Even he can still see the way tongues ran over sharp teeth, lips curling back against fangs in malicious grins as the scents of excitement and thrill bombarded his senses.

His own lips draw back in a scowl, and he nearly growls.

“Do you understand what they were implying?” Mingi can barely keep his breathing under control as he turns to look out the window.

Claws dig into wood, fingers nearly snapping the window frame from the pressure of his grip. What only makes this worse is he doesn’t understand why those comments have set him off so much. It’s simply typical fae talk, no different than what his subordinates had said when you first showed up at the edge of their encampment.

Thinking back on it now, the thought nearly makes him snarl.

“It’s nothing I’m not used to with men-“

“They are not men.” Mingi snaps, his chest heaving as he turns to face you.

Immediately, you recoil back, mild shock on your features. That is, until you’re schooling your expression and taking a deep breath in.

“Why should it matter what they say, then?” You keep your voice low, steady.

“It doesn’t.” His reply is quick. Too quick.

“Aren’t they your kin? Don’t you think the exact same way?” Your voice rises slightly, and the tears he can see shining in your gaze cause his chest to begin to ache.

“I have never- will never think that way.” Mingi shakes his head, fingers tangling in his locks and tugging exasperatedly at the roots. “I may not like your kind, but I don’t agree with treating them however we want to just because we can.”

His head is spinning and throbbing all at once. He feels both freezing cold and burning hot, and he cannot prevent his eyes from shifting from you to the door. His breathing, which he has always been able to master, comes in erratic pants, fangs bared as his claws scratch at his scalp.

“You had no problem with it before when it was your men saying it.”

A silence so deadly settles over the room.

In the blink of an eye, Mingi has you pinned against the wall. His arm rests over your upper chest as he looms over you, teeth bared in a snarl. Raised in the air above his head is his opposite arm, claws glinting beneath the light of the moon as he prepares to strike.

Only, the hitch in your breath pulls him back to reality.

Immediately, he stumbles away from you, staring at his hands in horror. He doesn’t register the single sob that echoes through the silence of the room like a knife, nor does he hear the frantic beating of your heart over his own racing in his ears. What he does catch, however, is the single tear that cuts a path down your cheek, and the way your trembling body collapses to the floor.

The moment you touch ground, you go limp, staring vacantly at the wall across from you.

Mingi’s hands drop to his sides, balling them into fists as he stomps over to the door.

“I’ll be back.”

The last thing he sees before the door swings shut is you supporting yourself with your hands braced upon the floor. He doesn’t give himself time to think as he storms back downstairs and straight over to the bar, ignoring the pointed stares sent his way.

He needs time to think, to sort out the mess that is his head. Perhaps you could use this time alone, too. Besides, it’s not like you can escape the room you’re in. Only he has the key to get in, and it’s not like you can jump out of the window. The glass is too strong for you to break.

You’re trapped, just like you’ve always been since he caught up to you. Yet, for some reason, that simple thought makes his brow furrow.

He doesn’t want you to feel trapped…

Frowning down into his glass, Mingi downs his ale. A few moments later, and his glass has been refilled. What a perfect way to end the day: by drowning his sorrows in a room full of boisterous fae, drinking until even the most proper of them cannot tell up from down.

About an hour into his drinking, he senses a few other fae saddle up beside him. The scraping of the stools on the ground cuts through the noise of the tavern, and much to Mingi’s annoyance, the fae from earlier that were making comments are the ones that surround him.

“So, what brings you to town, General?” The one with muted butterfly wings on his back asks. He was the one who commented on convincing Mingi to have some fun with you.

Mingi takes another sip of his drink. “Hunt.”

“Oh, so that’s why you’re with that human.” Another hums, small horns protruding from the top of his head. His skin has a slight green hue to it, and Mingi recalls the way he spoke about giving you a mark of his own. “Mustn’t have put up much of a fight, eh?”

A scowl mars Mingi’s brow, but he hides it behind the rim of his glass, downing the rest of its contents in a single shot.

“Surprised she’s not torn to shreds.” Another hums, leaning casually against the edge of the bar. He’s a bit shorter than the other two, but Mingi notes the way he bounces his one hand in the air, almost impatiently. “Or are you saving that for later?”

“Oh, you sly general, you,” the one with the horns nudges Mingi’s shoulder. “Lure the human into a false sense of security, then tear her asunder when she least expects it!”

The three fae share a laugh, fangs glinting beneath the light as their lips curl deviously in mirth.

“I thought I told you to not concern yourself with business that is not your own.” Mingi replies gruffly, slamming his now empty glass back on top of the counter.

“It’s not our fault you brought an unclaimed human into our midst.” The one leaning against the counter titters.

“Really, you should share some of the fun with the rest of us,” the winged one laughs, flicking his eyebrows in a suggestive matter.

“And what would your town’s overseer say if he could hear you now?” Mingi turns his sharp gaze towards the two fae on his right side.

If there’s one thing that Mingi can’t fault the pain in the ass for, it’s that he maintains good control over those that follow him. At least, those that reside in this town.

“Seonghwa’s not here.” The fae with the horns hums. “What he doesn’t know won’t kill him.”

Mingi’s jaw twitches. These fae have clearly done this multiple times with humans before, and gotten away with it despite Seonghwa’s rule not to touch any that enter the village under his watch. Though, with that specificity, Mingi isn’t that surprised.

“Come on, General,” the one with the wings taunts. “Think of how satisfying her shrieks of terror will be.”

A flash of you scrambling away from him in terror flashes through his mind, your desperate cries ringing through his ears.

“Humans are such weak, pathetic creatures, anyways.” The one leaning on the counter rolls his eyes as Mingi stands to his feet. “It’ll probably be the only action she ever sees in her life with how ugly she is. She’ll probably be thanking us by the end of it for make her feel desirable.”

An image, soft and pure, of you tenderly gazing down at that wilting stem of spider lilies flits through his mind, and Mingi tenses. A blink, and the once peaceful scene shifts, blood splattered over your face as tears cut fresh tracks through the dirt and grime smeared over your cheeks.

“Don’t you want to feel the warmth of her blood spilling onto your hands as you bathe yourself in its crimson flow?” The fae with the horns grins maniacally. “Taste its bitter scent as it drips down your tongue?”

Mingi’s hands, which are currently clenched into fists at his sides, begin shaking.

“Come on, General,” the one that’s leaning against the bar continues, pushing himself forwards to lean into the silent redcap’s back. “Let us have our fun. We’ll take her off your hands.”

“Yeah,” The winged one smirks, eyes glinting in the light of the tavern. “Don’t you know human meat is a delicacy around here?”

“Let alone one so young, and fresh,” the horned one snickers, his grin widening as he licks his lips. “Oh, I can’t wait to tear into her-“

Blood splatters across the top of the bar, and every patron turns to see what the sudden commotion is about. Not a sound can be heard for several tense moments as realization settles over the entire room.

The horned fae can do nothing but open and close his jaw, blood spilling from his mouth as he stumbles away from the redcap across from him. Horror paints his features for a brief second before anger is taking over, watching as Mingi drops the now severed muscle in his hand, the horned fae’s tongue thudding against the floor.

“I warned you.”

Without another word, Mingi is storming outside the tavern to get some fresh air. The rest of the fae around him immediately part to let him pass, low whispers following him all the way outside. His hand clenches repeatedly, feeling disgusted by the wet warmth that covers his fingers.

Normally, Mingi would revel in the feeling. He loves the way blood coats his skin when he goes in for the kill, not to mention maiming something that annoys him. Sure, he has his morals, but that doesn’t mean he won’t put in the effort when the time calls for it.

Mingi doesn’t quite exactly know why he reacted the way he did. He put up with his men boasting about wanting to do much worse to you while back in the encampment. Yet, how three unknown fae could rile him up so easily only makes the confusion and anger he’s feeling all the more prominent.

It’s only because you’re still technically on a hunt with him. You’re not home free just yet. At least, that’s what he tells himself. He has to make sure you both make it back unharmed, and that includes not letting other fae take advantage of you.

No other reason.

None at all.

Taking a deep breath in, Mingi lets the crisp night air fill his lungs. He flicks his wrist, more blood splattering against the ground as he scowls down at his hand. His whole body is tense, and he’s surprised his teeth don’t crack from the force at which he clenches his jaw.

He should probably check on you soon. It’s been a long day, and all he wants to do is rest. No more dealing with this stupid shit for the moment. It’s time for him to turn his brain off.

Besides, he could use the downtime.

Heading back inside after about five more minutes, Mingi flexes his hand. The now dried blood cracks over his skin, and a feeling of unease settles inside his chest. The other three fae are nowhere to be seen, and at the way a few of the other patrons spare looks his way out of the corners of their eyes, he can tell something is off.

It’s quiet.

Too quiet.

***

For half an hour, you do not move from your spot.

Your ankle throbs as you curl up on the floor, hugging your knees to your chest as best as you can. A familiar position, as you find your tears quickly depleting as your entire being goes numb.

Blankly, you stare at the opposite wall. You were this close to getting him to kill you, and you don’t know if you’re more upset at yourself or him for not seeing it through.

It’s not like you trusted him, nor do you necessarily trust him in general. However, faced with the same scenario you’ve played out so many times before, all you could see was that monster covered in blood, ready to strike you down once more.

There’s a bitterness that builds within your chest, but you don’t know if it’s at yourself, or the fae. You were so close to being done with all of this. Are you that horrible at committing to something, and seeing it through, that not even a fae wants to kill you? Are you that useless that you can’t even do that right?

Taking in a shaky breath, you finally push yourself up into a sitting position. Your whole body groans in protest, muscles aching due to the position you had been laying in on the cold, hard floor. Slowly, you pull yourself to your feet, mindful of the twinge in your right ankle as you hobble over to one of the side doors.

You’re pretty sure you saw a bathroom on the way in.

Time seems to pass languidly, and much too quickly all at once. By the time you pull yourself out of the tub, you have no idea if the redcap has returned or not. You didn’t hear his telltale footsteps stomping through the room, but you’ve learned that he can be quite light on his feet when he wants to be. Who knows how much time you have left to yourself, anyways.

As you’re drying off, you can faintly hear a commotion coming from the direction of the stairs. It seems as if one of the patrons has gotten too rowdy, for all seems to still a moment later.

You shake your head, wrapping the surprisingly fluffy towel around your plush body, and limping back into the main area of the room. The redcap is nowhere in sight, but there seems to be a fresh pile of clothes laid out on the bed. There’s even a clean set of undergarments for you, and as you look closer, you realize that it’s actually your old set. Upon a thorough inspection, they appear as if brand new, washed and dried to perfection.

Such a small gesture, whether through some form of magic, or something else, causes your heart to swell. It’s been a long time since you’ve had anything done for you like this, and to say it means a lot would be a tremendous understatement.

Feeling the material of your undergarments between your fingers, you let out a soft sigh through your nose. Sitting on the edge of the bed, you begin to change, managing to pull everything on quickly. There’s still a faint warmth clinging to the material of the clothes, as if they’ve been left out in the sun for too long, or have rested beside an open fire. It calms you, and breathing starts to become a little bit easier.

Standing from the bed, you can hear muffled voices begin shouting at each other from down the hallway. You figure them to be other patrons staying overnight, so you think nothing of it to walk towards the bathroom to hang your towel upon the back of the door. You’re sure you saw a little hook there before…

Just as you go to reenter the bathroom, the main door to the room swings open. You expect it to be the redcap returning from wherever it is that he went, but instead, what you see, or rather, whom, has you freezing right in your tracks.

Three unfamiliar fae stand before you. One has light green skin and horns, who seems to be bleeding from his mouth. Another has large wings, akin to a butterfly, with a neutral coloured pattern painted over them. The third is very human-like in appearance. He’s shorter than his two companions, with pointed ears, sharp teeth, and claws that adorn his features.

“Well, well, well, look what we have here.” The one with the wings steps forwards, a malicious grin tugging at his lips.

Naturally, you take a step backwards, your heart jumping into your throat. Your eyes dart between the three fae as they creep towards you, matching their pace with each step backwards you take. In the back of your mind, you begin to wonder if it was the redcap that gave them the key to unlock this room.

“Don’t act so coy, Doll,” the human-like fae drawls, his fangs prominent as he smiles wickedly at you. “We’re only here to have some fun. You’d like that, wouldn’t you?”

“Please, I don’t want any trouble,” you say weakly, lifting your hands before you slightly in a defensive position.

Boisterous laughter greets your ears as the door to the room swings shut behind them, sealing your fate. There’s no way the other fae is going to come back to save you now. You’re stuck, and this time, you really will die at the hands of three unfamiliar fae who look at you like an object they’re going to enjoy ripping apart.

“You should have thought of that before you waltzed in here without a claim, acting like you own the place,” the one with wings spits, and you can hear the green one gargle out something that sounds like a noise of agreement. Only, more blood escapes his mouth, and he ends up spitting it in your direction and onto the floor at your feet.

“You’re not going to look much different than that pile of blood once we’re done with you,” the human-like one says, a sick, twisted sense of glee lighting up his features.

“Until then, you live to serve us.” The butterfly winged fae adds sharply. “We’ll take all the pleasure we can from this pathetic body of yours, and after each round, you’re going to thank us for even bothering to touch you.”

You swallow the sudden dryness in your throat, skin prickling in disgust as bile builds in your chest. Your stomach drops, and before you can think, you spin on your heel, attempting to make a break out the window.

“Where do you think you’re going?” The human-like fae blocks your path, grabbing your wrists in his hands harshly and holding you in place.

“Let me go!” You begin to thrash around to no avail, tripping over your own feet as you get dragged back and towards the one bed.

“Oh, this one has some fight left in her,” the winged one snickers, leaning casually against the wall as he observes the scene. “Looks like that general was too easy on this one. Guess we’ll have to make up for lost time.”

“You should be thanking us for even looking at a disgusting creature such as yourself.” The one that had dragged you towards the bed throws you upon it, wasting no time in pinning you down upon the mattress.

Your protests and pleas to stop fall on deaf ears. In fact, the more you struggle, the more it seems to delight the three fae closing in around you. Thrashing beneath his harsh hold only earns you a knee to the stomach, and you cry out in pain.

Tears leak out of the corners of your eyes, blurring your vision as you feel hands groping you all over as the fae above you keeps you captive beneath him. This scene is all to familiar to you, and just as with all those times before, no one is coming to your rescue.

No matter how loudly you scream, no matter how much you beg, struggle, and cry, no one will care.

The only certainty that now awaits you is death.

“Stop struggling,” the fae above you hisses, his one hand pinning your wrists above your head as he adds more pressure to the knee digging into your stomach. “Shut up, and take it like pathetic human you are.”

The moment you see the fae reach a clawed hand towards your shirt, you stop breathing.

It feels as if time stops. One moment the fae is above you, pinning you down unforgivingly. The next, he’s gone, the pressure on both your wrists and stomach completely having disappeared.

A sickening crunch echoes throughout the room, followed by an immediate scream of pain.

A blur moves through the room, and suddenly, you see a wing get tossed towards the window, followed shortly by another. The tearing sounds resonate through the room, followed almost immediately by muffled screams and pleas for mercy.

Only one figure remains within view, and as he uncurls himself into a standing position, his full height looms over the entire room. His towering form fills the space around you, and as you lay upon the bed, you feel as if you can breathe again. Never have you been so grateful to see that terrifying redcap standing across from you, but still you cannot prevent your body from shaking.

“All this for a fucking human.” A voice from the ground spits harshly.

Looking down, you see the green fae cowering in the corner, and the one with the once beautiful butterfly wings laying face down on his stomach. His back is completely torn asunder, blood coating the entire area as his wings lie in torn heaps upon the ground.

“You’re going to break code just for a stupid mortal?” The same fae hisses, pure anger on his features as he trembles beneath the redcap’s piercing gaze.

“You can’t kill us.” The one human-like fae by the window laughs. He seems to be holding his hands before himself, fingers severely deformed and sticking out in odd angles. Bones peek through his flesh, and blood coats every inch of his hands, but that does not prevent the way his whole body trembles as the redcap takes a menacing step towards him.

“You’re not dead yet, are you?” The general spits, gaze sharp as he pointedly looks between all three fae cowering around the room.

Frantically, they shake their heads.

“That’s what I thought.” He snaps, lips pulled over his fangs in a snarl. “I doubt any of you want to chance a duel against me given the state you’re all in. Not that’d you’d survive, even at full strength.”

Again, the three fae shake their head. Though this time, scowls adorn their features.

“Now,” the redcap’s eyes flash, a low snarl permeating the air. “Get out of my sight before I rid you all of yours.”

All three fae scramble for the door, the human-like one managing to trip over his own feet and land harshly on his broken hands. A sharp cry escapes him, and the horned fae ends up having to pull the other to his feet, soon supporting both broken fae as they tumble out of the room.

You can hear the redcap muttering under his breath, leaning down to pick something up from the floor. Not even a second later, and he’s crushed what appears to be a second ward key in his hand, tossing it over his shoulder without another thought.

He turns to you.

There you lie, stiff as a board on top of the one mattress. The other bed lays untouched to your side, but all you can do is stare with wide eyes at the redcap before you. Your gaze darts over the blood splattered on his skin, the red dotting his clothing in random patterns.

Your lungs burn, and your eyes sting. Yet, still, you do not move. No words escape you, not trusting your voice for the moment as you wait for him to move.

He takes a cautious step forward, but you fail to see the way his gaze softens as he does.

A whimper escapes you, another tear sliding from the corner of your cheek.

“Hey, hey, it’s okay,” he lifts his hands, palms facing upwards to show you he means you no harm. “Breathe.”

Oh, yeah. You should probably fill your lungs with air. No wonder your chest is burning.

A stuttering gasp escapes you as you heave a large breath into your lungs. However, the second you do, a harsh sob escapes you. Immediately, you’re scrambling back on the bed, a hand clutching over your stomach where that fae dug his knee into you. Your wrists throb, more tears blurring your vision as the redcap takes another step towards you.

“Stay away.” The plea is but a desperate whisper upon your lips, chin trembling as you attempt to curl in on yourself.

“I’m not going to hurt you.” Still, he keeps his hands in the air, palms facing towards you. “You have my word.”

Your gaze catches on the blood staining his clothes, smeared over his skin, and you shake your head.

For a moment, you swear you watch his brow furrow, only for realization to line his features. He straightens, doing his best to move in the least threatening manner possible.

“Stay here.” His voice is low, an edge of worry lining his command.

Before you can even react, the fae disappears into the bathroom. You can hear the sound of water, followed by some frantic scrubbing. Then, more water trickling along with the movement inside the bathroom.

The whole time you sit on the bed, your gaze is locked on the little opening where the main door to the room and the door to the bathroom reside. You can faintly hear things being shuffled around you, and you swear you catch something dart across the room out of the corner of your eye. It’s small, and quick, but when you shift your head to look, all that greets you is empty space.

An empty room devoid of any of the mess you just witnessed stain it.

The blood splatters are gone, along with the tattered remains of the one fae’s wings. There’s even a fresh set of clothing at the end of your bed by your feet, completely identical to the ones you’re currently wearing.

You swallow thickly.

Turning your head, you begin to look around the room once more. Your eyes search for one thing in particular, and you find it resting beside you on the bedside table. It’s almost as if it had been placed delicately beside you after someone had realized the horrifying events that have just taken place.

The red spider lilies are crushed, the stem broken in two. The flower that means so much to you has been tread upon like it’s nothing, reflecting exactly how you feel in this moment. Only a few petals remain, wilted and dead, clinging to the plant for dear life in a final attempts to maintain what once was pure.

Slowly, you reach over and take the dying stem into your trembling grip.

A choked sob escapes you, and you’re quick to slap a hand over your mouth. Your eyes squeeze shut. The hand you have holding the flower also clutches at your throbbing stomach as your whole body shakes with the weight of your situation.

What you’ve been through - what you’re going through - you cannot take it anymore.

The hand that caresses the top of your head is soft, but the unexpected touch still makes you nearly jump out of your skin. Pain lingers in your gaze as you turn to see the redcap staring at you with an unreadable expression on his face.

No, not unreadable. You just cannot accept that someone is actually looking at you in concern, rather than pity for once.

He pulls his hand away, hesitant in the way he leans the slightest bit over the bed that you’re curled up on. His normally looming figure doesn’t seem so intimidating all of a sudden, almost as if his features have softened beneath the faint glow of the moon.

You watch him carefully, observing his every movement with a wary glint to your gaze. He saved you. He protected you, and you don’t know if that scares you more than if he had sent those other three fae after you like you had originally thought. His actions confuse you, and more than anything, you’re tired.

Exhaustion doesn’t even come close to the immense fatigue you feel. You’re tired of the life you were given. Tired of the life you’ve been forced into. Tired of living.

Honestly, you don’t know what to do anymore. It seems accepting your fate isn’t going exactly as you thought it would, nor is it as easy as it seems.

“Are you hurt?” Though he keeps his voice soft, the sudden timbre cutting through the silence of the room still makes you jump.

You shake your head, hand tightening around that broken flower over your stomach.

His eyes glance the movement, and his expression falls slightly.

“I only wish to make sure you’re okay.” Again, he keeps his voice soft, tone steady as he meets your gaze.

You bite your lower lip, attempting to keep it from wobbling as a single sob wracks your entire body. Then another, and then another, until you’re breaking down before his very eyes.

Tears stream down your face as you continue to muffle your sobs behind your one hand. Your eyes squeeze shut, simply wishing to disappear in this very moment. You wish you had never been born, where nothing but servitude, injustice, and hell rule your life with an iron grip.

From the very first memories you can recall, someone has always been using you. Whether it be your parents, friends, or other family members, you’ve always lived to serve. No one has ever cared for you, and no one has ever fought for you.

It all feels like one big joke. A lie concocted by the monster stalking you through your every waking nightmare, ready to jump out and laugh at you for even thinking anyone could ever care for you.

Yet, despite the darkness swirling within, a light begins to peek through.

Softly, the bed dips as the fae rests a knee on the mattress. His hand strokes gently over your head, tentatively pulling you into his arms as he settles himself against the headboard.

“Shh, it’s okay,” his voice is calm, soothing. “I’ve got you.”

He holds you against his chest, cradling your head in the palm of his hand. He’s hesitant as he comforts you, making sure his arms are loose enough to allow you to pull away if need be. Only, you do not shy from his touch, instead finding it oddly satisfying that he of all creatures chose to comfort you.

Most important of all, you let him.

“I won’t let anything else harm you,” he says softly. “Not while I’m here to protect you.”

His one hand strokes lightly over your back, and though a shiver caresses your spine at the first touch, you find yourself melting into the warmth of his embrace. It’s soothing, and everything you’ve always needed but have never gotten in your entire life. A safety that shouldn’t be as welcoming as it is.

His body is firm and lean against your own. A solid foundation which holds you steady as you cling onto the fabric of his now clean shirt with your one hand. Your sobs are muffled into his chest, your sadness being absorbed into the material adorning his skin as he cradles you to him.

After some time, you feel his one hand shift downwards, placing itself over your own on top of your stomach. The warmth that you can feel radiating from his skin is welcomed, and it helps to ease the ache you feel lingering within. Softly, he begins to hum, his chest vibrating with the gentle sounds as he continues to cradle your head to his chest using his opposite hand.

The steady sound of his heart pulses beneath your ear, and the constant sound soothes you even further. You don’t realize it, but you curl in closer into him, breathing finally evening out as you start to calm down.

“Why did you-“ You swallow the dryness in your throat, sniffling lightly. “Why did you do that?”

Though your voice is barely above a whisper, you know he still hears you loud and clear.

“I… don’t know,” his brow furrows slightly, tongue darting out to wet his lips. “My body just moved.”

You say nothing in response, unsure of how to reply to such an admission. You know that he cannot lie, but that doesn’t mean he cannot stretch the truth. Really, you shouldn’t be letting yourself be coddled by him, it’ll only make it hurt more when he betrays you in the end. At least, that’s what you keep telling yourself.

You are so used to disappointment, of having false hope, that anything you believe to be too good to be true always is. Tomorrow you’ll wake up, and he’ll be back to despising your existence, only finding value in what you can do for him.

The same as it always was. The same as it always will be.

#thrill of the hunt #cultofdionysusnet #mfu net #yandere mingi #yandere ateez #mingi scenario #mingi imagine #ateez scenario #ateez imagine #ateez au #kpop au #kpop scenario #kpop imagine #fantasy au #fae au #chubby reader #tall reader #yandere kpop

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mint-yooxgi · 5 months

Text

{2} - Fight or Flight - Yandere!Redcap!Mingi X Tall!Chubby!Reader

Fae!AU & Yandere!AU - Part of the CoDN Thrill of the Hunt Collab

Genre: Fantasy, Mature, Horror, Angst, Fluff, Smut

Pairing: Mingi X Reader

Words: 9,105

Rating: Mature - 18+ MDNI

P.S. If there are any spelling or grammatical errors, please ignore them. I did my best through many rounds of editing, but some are liable to still slip through.

Summary: Out of one horrible situation and into another, the cycle of abuse never stops. You've lived with monsters your whole life. So, what's one more?

P.P.S. Please don't let this flop guys. If you enjoyed it, please reblog!!!

Mini Masterlist - Part One

It’s early one morning when the redcap encampment explodes in an uproar. The sun has barely crested over the hills when a cry rings out, echoed by another, and then another until Mingi can no longer hear himself think.

“Quiet!” His voice booms out over the encampment as he steps out of his tent, silencing everyone in their path. “What is the meaning of this?”

“General!” A gleeful voice cuts through the silence. “General, it’s the human!”

Mingi’s eyebrows raise, eyes widening slightly in exasperation as he watches both Darius and Lias approach with grins wide enough to showcase their sharp teeth.

“She’s gone.” Darius snickers, his tongue darting out to trace over his top row of teeth.

“Speak clearly.” Mingi commands, his brow furrowing as he stares down at the two redcaps before him.

“We don’t know exactly what or when it happened, General,” Lias is quick to say, his eyes shining in glee. “All we do know is that she’s gone.”

“What do you mean gone?” Mingi looks between the two fae, lips pulling back in a snarl. The last thing he needs is to be carting around a dead human until they can properly dispose of the body. That, or his men tearing into your flesh because they got ‘hungry’.

“She ran away.” Another voice cuts through the looming silence, and all heads turn to see Windfel holding the tattered remains of your clothing.

This… this is somehow worse.

“The human tricked us?” A voice of disbelief rises in the crowd.

“She couldn’t have gotten far.” Another says, many beginning to stir as some already begin to look around the area in search of you.

“Who was the last to see her?” Mingi sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose.

Great. Just what he needs. Another setback to keep him from returning home to his keep, where he so badly wants to be. He knew this human would be trouble, and now he has to worry about going to find her.

All eyes turn to Windfel as he tosses your worn clothes to the ground. “She stunk so badly, I told her to change.”

“She must have slipped away at that point!” Lias growls, his teeth snapping together in ire.

“When was this?” Mingi rounds on Windfel.

“Not three days passed.” Comes Windfel’s reply.

Silence so deadly settles over the encampment that no one dares to breathe.

“She’s been missing for three days?” The loud timbre of Mingi’s shout causes a flock of birds to take off in the distance.

Windfel cowers back, taking note of the snarls now sent his way by both Lias and Darius. “I told her to wash herself in the stream and change. I returned with her clothes, but they must have been enough to overpower the senses.”

“She never returned?” A voice from the gathered redcaps shouts.

“I wasn’t about to watch her bathe!” Windfel shouts in defence of himself.

“You trusted a human to go off on their own?” Another calls out in disbelief.

More and more cries of outrage rise through the crowd. Seeing as the human was their responsibility and you’ve now escaped, each and every single one of them knows what this means. Yet, none want to waste their time taking a detour to find you, even if they would get the immense satisfaction of ending your pathetic excuse of a life. None, except for one.

“I’ll go.” Windfel drops to his knees before his general, bowing his head to the ground. “Let me amend my mistake and rid us of this pest once and for all.”

“No.” Mingi’s voice is firm, and his response garners a few shocked exclamations from the gathered redcaps. “Since I can’t seem to trust any of you to watch over one measly little human, I’ll go.”

“But General-“

“Return to the keep.” Mingi cuts Windfel off, his tone leaving no room for arguments. “I’ll be back soon.”

Without another word, or even waiting to hear an ounce of protest, Mingi takes off into the woods, back in the direction in which they came. He’ll travel faster alone, especially if he travels light. The sooner he gets this done, the sooner he can put this all behind him. Perhaps he’ll even dispose of you while he has the chance.

Stomping his way through the bush, Mingi curses his subordinates. The only reason he agreed to take you in in the first place was so that they could have fun. They wanted you to do who knows what to, and he allowed it.

That was his first mistake.

As Mingi soon disappears from sight, all that follow after him are the sounds of his encampment bursting back into action, and a wicked grin pulling over blood red lips.

***

Seonghwa is infuriating.

Nothing gets Mingi’s blood boiling as much as that smug faerie and his ‘holier than thou’ attitude. Talking with him is like pulling teeth. Though, in actuality, Mingi quite prefers that. At least pulling out someone else’s teeth can be enjoyable!

A full day and a half has passed since Mingi set off on this hunt, and so far, all he’s learned is that you passed through this town, and took a dip in the wild stream. If his guess is to be correct, it shouldn’t take him that much longer to find you. Being both injured and human, you can’t have gotten far. Besides, this is the direction your scent lingers in, and though it’s faint, he knows that this is most likely the way to go.

What’s even more irritating is that you smell faintly of Windfel. The two scents mix together in an unnatural aroma, guiding Mingi through the bush as he stomps his was through the forest and towards where you must be hiding.

In the back of his mind, he wonders if you know he’s coming after you. Are you scared? Do you think you have any chance of escape? Will your panic cause you to make a mistake? Is he already too late?

Stupid Seonghwa wasting his time with games. Yet, what surprises him most is the fact that the faerie even involved himself. Ever since the incident, the elder fae has changed significantly. At least, that’s what Mingi has been told. He never knew Seonghwa before meeting him how he is now, and currently, that’s the least of Mingi’s worries.

Perhaps he’ll take a page out of the faerie’s notebook and stop outwardly caring about those around him. Only involving oneself to their own benefit does have its perks. He could simply stick to hunting and ravaging, both of which he’s quite good at.

Mingi has always prided himself on his tracking skills. Not only is he a fast hunter, but he’s thorough. Not a trace will be left of you once he finishes, and he’ll finally be rid of this irritating side quest once he catches up to you. If you’re still alive, that is. It really all depends on the state in which he finds you in. There’s no telling what could happen to an unaccompanied human in this realm. Maybe he’ll get lucky and find you already torn to shreds, saving him both the time and energy of having to bring you back.

Yes, Mingi could just kill you, but where’s the fun in that? He much rather prefers when his prey fights back, and against a human, there’s no fight at all. Mingi easily overpowers you, and bathing the band currently tied around his upper arm in your blood would be a waste.

No real general prides themselves on an easy kill, least of all him.

Taking a deep breath in, Mingi calms his nerves. Though he’s irritated, he knows he’ll think better with a clear mind. You’re close, he can almost taste it. It won’t be long now, and soon, he’ll be able to finally determine your fate.

After another full day and a half of travel, Mingi finally spots you through a thicket of trees. You seem to be sitting on the ground, your back resting against the trunk as your sleep. Your hands are clasped over your stomach, legs outstretched in front of you as if you have not a care in the world. In your hands, a lone flower stem rests.

Furrowing his brow, Mingi picks up his pace. Like hell is he going to let you get away from him now. Not when he’s spent the last five days hunting you down. It’s been a parade of none stop walking, tracking your every movement until all paths lead him here. Oddly enough, it looks as if you’ve been placed on display, as if someone has set a trap…

Mingi freezes in his spot, using the thicket of trees as cover. His lips pull back over his fangs in a snarl, nearly letting out a low growl.

That’s when the smell hits him.

He freezes, his eyes widening ever so slightly as he gazes upon your seemingly peaceful figure laying against that one tree. Now that he’s closer, he can see that the flower held in your clasped hands is a sprig of red spider lilies, and he scowls.

You reek of decay. Of infection.

Of death.

Were it not for the faint beating of your heart he can still hear echoing throughout the empty woods as he focusses in on you, he would have believed you have already died. Not that you aren’t already inches from death’s door at this very moment.

Taking a deep breath in, Mingi crinkles his nose. He doesn’t try to mask his approaching footsteps now, each stomp crashing through the bush as his sharp gaze zeroes in on you.

He watches you crack an eye open, hearing you hum softly.

“Oh,” your voice is hoarse. Weak. “It’s you.”

Mingi’s eyes flash, a low growl permeating the air.

“Are you here to finally kill me?” Your voice crackles from lack of use, taking in a harsh breath in attempts to fill your aching lungs.

It’s as if it’s getting harder and harder for you to breathe, your chest rising and falling much slower than what Mingi is used to. He’s surprised you’ve lasted this long on your own, being both human and severely injured from the looks of things. The fact that you reek of infection is an obvious side effect from the wild stream. No being escapes those waters unharmed. You should be shrivelled up, gasping for water and air by now, but there seems to be some fight left in you still.

“Hurry up and get it over with,” you continue to fill the silence stretching on around you, settling slightly further back into the tree you rest upon as you close your eyes.

“I’m not here to kill you.” Mingi replies gruffly, that frown still pulling at his features as he glares down at you.

You hum lowly. “Shame.”

“Do you wish to die, human?” Mingi’s nose scrunches, the stench even worse the closer he stands to you. “You stink of death.”

“I feel like death,” you agree, eyes still shut. “Or maybe I’m already dead. Hell’s not so bad after all.”

“Why didn’t you run?” Mingi counters, eyes narrowing warily at you. He keeps a little bit of distance between the two of you still, unsure if this is a trick or not. Though, he doubts you could overpower him in the slightest. “Surely you knew you were being hunted.”

“Whispers,” you wheeze, chest heaving as you begin to hack out a cough. Your whole body violently jerks, eyes squeezing further shut as your face contorts in pain. “Always whispers.”

Mingi crouches down, observing you carefully. “You should be dead.”

Weakly, you shake your head. “Never dead. Always dying.”

Another cough wracks your whole body, and Mingi sighs. “Frail little human, can barely handle the wind.”

“You’d be surprised what I’ve survived.” Your eyes are suddenly sharp, lips parted as each breath escapes you as a wheeze.

He can’t help it. Mingi laughs. A loud, boisterous laugh that causes him to toss his head back, his eyes crinkling at the sides.

“If this is your attempt to make yourself sound tough, all it’s doing is amusing me, mortal.” Mingi grins, his fangs flashing beneath the eerie glow of the moon.

The canopy you both reside under is abnormally bright, letting you see the redcap general in all his glory. Claws rest on the tips of his fingers, filed and polished to perfection. Teeth as sharp as razors line the inside of his lips, of which are now pulled back in amusement as his dark eyes glint in the moonlight. His ears, which taper off into points, are slightly hidden behind bright blond locks, the faintest of hues of red splattered throughout the strands.

“Get up. We’re returning to the keep.” Mingi stands back to his full height, looming over you as he lets out a sigh through his nose. “I’m not making another detour for you again.”

You don’t respond.

“Get up. Before I make you.” He snarls, kicking your left foot with the tip of his own.

Still, you don’t respond. You don’t even flinch when he touches you.

“Oh, for fuck’s sake-“ Mingi goes to haul you upwards and onto your feet, only to stop cold in his tracks.

Slowly, the hands you had resting on your stomach begin to slide to either side of you. The single stem of red spider lilies falls from your one hand as both hit the ground beside you. Your head lolls to the side, as if suddenly too heavy for you to hold up, and your shoulders droop.

The smell of decay fills his senses, and Mingi curses lowly. He crouches near you once more, studying you carefully. Faintly, he can see your chest rising and falling in laboured breaths, and he exhales a long breath through his nose. At least you’re not dead.

Shaking his head, Mingi soon moves to crack his neck. The past five days have been spent non-stop travelling to find you, only for him to greet you as you sit at death’s door. Some hunt this has turned out to be; not even worthwhile.

Well, it’s not like Mingi expected much. He was so annoyed at his subordinates, he didn’t realize just what he was getting into. You’re probably both severely dehydrated and starved. Not to mention the blood red hue that graces your right leg, the smell of infection wafting from beneath your clothing, originating from that very thigh. You’re going to need some tending to before Mingi can even think of beginning his trek back to the keep. If he’s lucky, you’ll be back on your feet by tomorrow afternoon.

Letting out a sigh through his nose, Mingi scouts the area. At least he can gather some resources while you sleep. Who knows. Maybe by the time he returns you’ll be dead and he can just leave you to the crows. Either way, he knows that even he needs to rest, and you shouldn’t be left on your own for too long. Who knows what’s wandering around the dark depths of the forest at this time of night.

At least you won’t be able to run away while he hunts for some supplies.

The next morning, as the sunlight is streaming through the branches and casting a warm glow on your surroundings, you finally begin to stir. It’s slow, and your breathing is still laboured, but you manage to blink open your eyes, vision blurred as your body feels the weakest it’s ever been in your life.

Shifting your head, your brow furrows. To your left rests three new things that weren’t previously there the night before. One seems to be some berries on a large leaf. They’re small and red in colour, the juice already staining the green. Another appears to be a canteen, with what you can only hope to be water residing inside it. The third and final thing is another leaf, a dark green paste of sorts residing on the light green plant. The paste is a little grainy from what you can tell, but there’s an almost sweet aroma rising around you which you can only assume comes from the dark green substance beside you.

Cautiously, your gaze darts from the items beside you to the redcap sitting across from you. He hasn’t taken his eyes off of you since you opened your own, and you can just tell that he’s watching your every move carefully.

You stomach twists in hunger, throat burning with thirst. You try to swallow the dryness in your mouth, but every movement is a challenge, and your limbs feel as if they are made of lead. Your wound on your right leg stings, and if you weren’t severely dehydrated, you’re sure tears would be springing to your eyes at the way you can physically feel your body shutting down.

Your fingers on your left hand stretch open, twitching as you attempt to reach for the canteen of water first. If you could only take a sip, you’re sure more strength would return to you…

“Fragile little human,” the redcap tuts, shaking his head in disappointment. “Should have saved your strength for now instead of wasting it picking flowers.”

The most you can muster is a glance in his direction, vision blurring at the edges as you attempt to reach for the canteen of water once more. You hardly notice the fae standing to his feet across from you, approaching you slowly. It’s only when you hear the crunching of grass right beside you that you spare a glance upwards at the shadow now looming overhead.

“Do I have to do everything for you?” He rolls his eyes in annoyance, taking a knee and snatching the canteen from the ground.

Harshly, he undoes the cap, irritation marring his brow. A moment later, he leans in, fisting the back of your head in his hand, his nails pricking at your skin. He doesn’t even flinch when you attempt to pull away from him, your eyes wide as you look between him and the canteen he shoves against your lips.

As he tilts the container against your lips, your eyes fall closed, finally accepting your fate.

The moment water touches your lips, cold and refreshing, your eyes are flinging open. A small gasp escapes you, greedily drinking from the canteen as liquid spills over your chin and onto your shirt. Only, you don’t care, drinking your fill of this addicting nectar that floods your senses as he holds the canteen to your lips.

“What?” He scoffs, his grip tightening ever so slightly on the back of your head. “Did you think it was poisoned or something?”

You can only muster a glare at him, your mouth occupied with taking in as much water as you can for as long as he’s offering it. It doesn’t taste like anything in particular, so you assume it’s the same as you’re used to. Hopefully, no major, or magical, side effects.

“If I was going to kill you, I wouldn’t poison you.” The redcap shakes his head as if it should be obvious. “I’d have torn out your throat a lot earlier if I had wanted you dead.”

Your eyes dull, looking forward as you focus in on the water filling your throat. Sounds begin to muffle, taking note of the low timbre of his voice droning on in the background as the flow of water from the canister begins to slow. Then, and only then, do you focus back in on your surroundings, noticing how quiet it’s gotten within a few seconds.

“I asked you a question, mortal.” He pulls the canteen away from your lips, his gaze harsh and unforgiving.

You blink, swallowing lightly as you attempt to catch your breath. You can feel some strength returning to your limbs. Enough so, that you are able to lift the back of your hand to your mouth to wipe at the remaining water that clings to your skin.

“You did?” Your brow furrows slightly in confusion, blinking up at the redcap beside you.

You watch as his eyes close, hearing him let out a long, exasperated breath through his nose.

“I did.” He confirms, blinking his sharp gaze back open to meet your own. “What is your name?”

You purse your lips, a small spark igniting behind your eyes. You’re not going to fall for that.

“Would you rather me refer to you as ‘human’ this whole time?” He asks, cocking his head in irritation.

Again, you stay silent. Pulling your hands into your lap, you clutch that flower stem for dear life.

“Suit yourself,” He sighs, standing back to his full height and casting your figure in shadows once more.

“Why are you doing this?” Your voice comes out low, strained from the lack of use. A clear sign that you’ve been passed out for much longer than you thought.

He pauses, clearly caught off guard by your question.

“I told you,” he sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose. “We need to return to the keep.”

“Why not just let me die?” You whisper, staring down at your hands.

“You’re less use to me dead, than alive.” He states bluntly, walking back over to his original spot across from you. “Now, hurry up and eat. We haven’t got all day, and I’ve already wasted enough time looking after you.”

You purse your lips, pain slowly creeping throughout your entire body. “Why won’t you just let me die?”

Your question clearly catches him off guard, for he’s blinking at you in mild shock before schooling his features. He lets out a small huff, latching the canister back onto his belt.

“I just told you, you’re more use to me alive, than dead.” He rolls his eyes. “None of my other underlings can carry what you can over such distances without complaining. Well, for the most part. You’re useful, and you’re mine. Or did you forget your parents practically gave you away?”

The sharp sting of tears prick at the back of your eyes, but you hold them off. After all, this isn’t anything you’re not used to; you’ve heard it all before.

Opting to remain quiet, you avert your gaze to the side. Your eyes land on those berries, and without wasting another moment, you begin to eat. He said he wouldn’t poison you, but now you’re wishing he could lie. In the back of your mind, you begin to hope the water mixed with these berries you’re eating forms a toxin within your stomach to claim your life so you don’t have to go through this all over again.

Just when you had thought you had finally broken the cycle, and escaped…

“Eat slowly, fuck!” The fae shoots you a pointed look. “I don’t need you getting sick on the way home. You’re already fighting off a damn near toxic infection. What even happened to you?”

“Why do you care?” You snap, almost instantly regretting the words once they escape your lips.

You watch as the fae before you closes his eyes, taking a deep breath to steady himself before responding.

“I don’t care about you.” He snaps, his dark eyes flashing open. “I do care about the trouble you’ve cause me since you were thrust upon me by those stupid mortal parents of yours.”

“Then, leave me here to die!” You retort, a fire blazing now behind your irises.

Perhaps you can irritate him enough to give you what you want: peace from this godforsaken earth. A place you don’t want to live for one moment longer than you have to. Not after what you’ve been through.

“I’ve already told you,” he lets out a long sigh through his nose, “you’re more use to me alive than dead. Simply because you want something, doesn’t mean you’re going to get it.”

“You should learn to take your own advice, General.” You spit, eyes narrowing at the fae towering over you.

“Watch your tongue before you lose it.” His tone is sharp, gaze deadly as he leers down at you.

Your whole body shakes as you continue to glare up at him. You take note of his hands clenched in fists at his sides, and you decide right then and there that if he’s not going to kill you of his own volition, you’ll make him kill you. He doesn’t seem to have the most patience in the world, and of the few times you’ve observed him on your travels, his fuse is quite short. You’re not going to subject yourself to a life of servitude under another egotistical male who doesn’t know how to care for anyone other than himself. Not anymore. Not again.

Thus, you remain quiet. Your one hand clenches so hard around that flower stem, you’re surprised it doesn’t snap in half. Yet, for all of your own irritation, you cannot bring yourself to push him any further right now. The pain in your leg is far too great, and it’s taking all of your mental capacity not to start crying at the searing sting that stabs you with every shift of your thigh.

“Hurry up, and finish eating,” he turns his back to you, crossing his arms over his chest. “We leave at noon.”

“How do you expect me to travel with a leg like mine?” You quip, your own sharp gaze boring a hole into his back.

“It’s not broken, is it?” He replies smartly.

“I can’t put pressure on it-“

“What do you think that is for?” He cuts you off, turning to point at the leaf with the dark green paste on it. “I’m aware of how to treat injuries, mortal. I can do more than just cause them.”

“I’ve had worse,” you mumble, wincing as you shift your leg the wrong way.

Whether he hears you or not, you do not know. Instead, he chooses to blatantly ignore your statement, turning his back to you while keeping his arms crossed over his chest.

“Hurry up, and put that ointment on the infected area.” He commands, voice firm. “I will not be carrying you just because you can’t walk.”

A sharp huff of air escapes your nose, scowling openly at the general’s back. Almost reluctantly, you bring another berry to your lips, chewing angrily on that piece of fruit as you grab the leaf with the paste on it in your hand. Just as you open your mouth to say something, he cuts you off once more.

“Believe me, I have the same desire to gaze upon you as I do a gnat.” He begins walking back over to stand beside the tree he had been resting against when you first woke up. “You also stink, so the sooner you finish, the sooner I can find you something better to wear. Those clothes are awful on you.”

Again, you say nothing. Instead, you opt to do as told, and quickly as that. The sooner you get out of this place, the sooner you can put your plan into action. He doesn’t seem too keen on listening to you right now, anyways, so you’d rather not waste your time trying to rile him up when he looks as if he’s about to take off running into the woods. You doubt he’d let you get too far behind, anyways.

The process of tugging off your pants and unwrapping those now soiled bandages is long. The linen clings to your skin, and peeling back the now discoloured cloth is painful, a grimace resting on your features as you reveal the cut on your thigh.

The wound looks even worse than it did before you cleaned it at that stream almost a week ago, the jagged edges crusted over with dried blood and pus. It’s angry, irritated and swollen, and you fear touching it as every time you move, it feels as if thousands of pieces of glass are shredding into your skin.

You bite your lip, nearly hissing down at the wound. Hesitantly, you dip a finger into the paste, figuring you have nothing more to lose. Trusting one redcap led your this far. What’s one more?

The second the dark green paste touches your wound, you nearly breathe out a sigh of relief. Instantly, a cooling sensation spreads over the cut, and the more you add, the more you find your shoulders relaxing. Finally, after what feels like months, you’re experiencing some kind of relief.

Slowly, you watch as the paste begins to bubble, but the wound doesn’t sting at all. You can smell a faint aroma of pine and earth drifting from your thigh, and with every breath you take, the throbbing that you had been experiencing begins to ebb away slowly into a dull ache.

“Any longer and that infection would have spread to your heart.” A voice from across the way draws your attention.

Lifting your head, you stare at the broad back of the redcap general.

You purse your lips.

“I’ve never smelt an infection like yours in all my years.” He states bluntly. “You’re lucky to even be alive.”

You can’t help it. You snort. “I’ve heard that one too many times before.”

This time, it’s his turn to say nothing in response. Instead, all you receive is a grunt in acknowledgement as you continue to gently apply that paste over your wound.

A few minutes later, nothing remains of the paste on the leaf. However, just as you go to discard it, the redcap speaking draws your attention once more.

“Press the leaf over the wound. It’ll act as an adhesive until you can bandage it properly again.” He instructs, not even turning to look at you.

You nod, despite the fact that he cannot see you, and do as he says. The relief you feel as you press the large leaf over your wound is as instant as it was with the paste. A pleasant feeling travels up your thigh, causing tingles to erupt in its wake, and you find yourself breathing out a sigh of relief.

A small silence settles around you, nothing but the wind filling the space between you.

You swallow lightly, averting your gaze to the side. Keeping your voice low, you speak. “Thanks.”

You fail to see the way the redcap’s brow furrows in confusion. “Why are you thanking me?”

You hesitate, not wanting to tell him how grateful you actually are in this moment. Especially not wanting to imply that you’re grateful that he even cared enough to help you treat your wound, even like this.

“I don’t like to be indebted to others.” You reply, beginning to push yourself up after tugging your pants back on.

A grunt is all you receive in response, failing to see the way he spares a glance back at you from over his shoulder.

“Come on,” His reply is gruff as he begins the long trek back through the woods and towards the keep. “Let’s go.”

Silently, you follow after him, hobbling along with your injured leg. At the very least, your wound doesn’t throb with every step, but your ankle is another story. You just hope it doesn’t give out on you at any point. You honestly don’t know what will happen to you then.

About a day passes without rest, and by the time the sun is setting in the distance, you find yourself collapsing against the nearest tree. Despite quite a modified pace on your part, your chest still heaves, and your lungs burn with every breath you take. Your body still hasn’t recovered from the aftereffects of the wild stream, nor has it been properly able to fight off the infection from the wound festering on your right thigh. You’re surprised you’ve made it this far at all.

“Tired already?”

Looking towards the taller fae reveals him to be standing with a quirked brow. His arms are crossed over his chest, and you can just feel his gaze scrutinizing every inch of your body.

You nearly shudder.

“Not all of us are made of energy, you know.” You snap, leaning heavily against the tree as your legs begin to give out beneath you.

Not even ten seconds later, you’ve managed to turn yourself so your back is against the trunk. Another few seconds, and you’ve slid yourself to the ground, wincing as your ankle twinges uncomfortably. You can feel the wound on your thigh beginning to throb beneath the leaf you have adhered to it as a makeshift bandage. You should have collapsed from exhaustion by now, considering how badly your muscles ache.

The redcap lets out a long sigh. “Wait here.”

Without waiting for a response, the fae takes off into the woods. If it weren’t for the fact that he storms off in a different direction than that which you are headed, you’d think he might be abandoning you. Though, that wouldn’t really be a bad thing at this point. Maybe then you could pass on in peace. It’s not like you have anything waiting for you when you get back to the keep except another life of servitude.

Another life you don’t want. A life you have never wanted.

About ten minutes later, you hear rustling from the bush. Thinking it’s simply the redcap returning from wherever he went off to, you opt to ignore it for now. Only, the more rustling occurs, followed by no snarky comments about you having passed out, you realize it’s not actually him.

Cracking an eye open in the direction you register the noise coming from reveals a deer to be stepping out of the shrubs. From the spots on her back, you can tell the doe is young, or at least, you believe her to be. Time works very differently in this realm than your own, or so you’ve been told.

Cautiously, the doe approaches you. Each step she takes is light, her ears perked and listening for any abnormal sounds around you. Sounds even you won’t be able to hear, despite straining your ears. Her eyes are brown, and wide, and you can’t help but admire the almost innocent gleam that shines within them as she creeps closer.

You steady your breathing. This is the closest you’ve ever been to a doe before - hell, any wild animal - and seeing one like this only makes a tightness form in your throat.

So, there is beauty in this world, after all. There is a light at the end of the tunnel.

Ever so slowly, you begin to lift your hand towards her snout. She rests mere inches from you, treading carefully beside your left leg. You can see her nostrils flaring as she scents you, probably more interested in that stem of spider lilies you still have tucked within your pocket than anything.

You’re so close, and if you reach out a little further, you can touch her. However, before you even get the chance, a high pitched squeal fills the air. Something warm and wet lands on your face, and you blink in shock, the doe no longer standing before you. A blink and you hear movement as if there is a struggle happening right behind the very tree you rest upon.

A loud crack echoes through the forest, and all goes still.

Reaching the hand you had extended out to the doe to your face, your fingertips drag through the wet substance coating your cheek. You can feel the warm liquid smear against your skin as you pull your hand away to see red, and you cannot help the tears that spring to your eyes.

She was so young. She had her whole life ahead of her, and now she’ll never get to live it. Ever.

Turning your head towards the sound of approaching footsteps, you hear the familiar slide of a limp body upon the ground. A body which has given up. A body which has stopped struggling and accepted her fate, awaiting the familiar pain that is sure to come next.

With shaking hands, you shift your gaze upwards to see that redcap walk into view, dragging the bloodied corpse of that doe back into your line of sight.

“Perhaps you have more than one use, after all.” He says with a slight hum, completely ignoring how you avert your gaze to your lap.

Staring intently at your palms, you attempt to stop your hands from shaking. “Why did you do that?”

“What do you mean?” He frowns, and the dull thud of the deer’s entire dead weight falling upon the earth makes you flinch. “We have to eat, don’t we?”

No response escapes your lips. Instead, a feeling of both disgust and nausea builds in your stomach, creeping up your chest and into your throat. You can feel your jaw twitching as you hold your tears at bay, mourning for the life you never knew. The life lost once the first drop of blood had been spilt upon your skin.

Silence surrounds you. Something you’ve learned to be quite good at. You had to. It was the only way to survive. Long since has the loud, boisterous girl you used to be been forced into the shadows. She still slips through from time to time - an old habit, really - but you’ve learned that each slip of the tongue has never been worth anything in the end. Or at least, so you thought.

An advantage you’ll use once you have enough strength to think again. Once you have enough strength to fight back.

The muffled stillness around you is soon drowned out by the pounding of blood in your ears.

No, wait.

That’s the sound of flesh tearing. Of bones breaking.

Shifting your gaze back into focus, your eyes catch on the horrifying sight before you. A shriek of terror leaves your lips as you see the corpse of the doe, or rather, what’s left of it, completely eviscerated before you. Entrails cover the ground, staining the once vibrant green flora red. Jagged bones stick up in odd ends, pieces of flesh tossed upon the dirt as meat is torn from her hide.

You nearly lose what little contents you still have in your stomach as you see the redcap crouched over the carcass. Slowly, he tears the meat into strips, feasting on the raw flesh of the doe as blood drips down his chin.

Your response in involuntary. Almost immediately, you begin pushing yourself away from him, eyes wide as panic seizes your entire body. Your breathing quickens, and despite the sharp sudden pain that shoots through your thigh, you do not stop attempting to push yourself through the tree you’re resting against.

Slowly, the fae turns his head, staring at you with cold, dark eyes. His chewing slows, and all you can see is the monster that haunts your every living nightmare.

Before you have a chance to think, before you even realize what you’re doing, you push yourself to your feet. The moment you turn, you end up tripping over the roots of the tree you had just been leaning against.

The sound of your body colliding with the cold, hard ground echoes throughout the area. All that can be heard are your whimpers and choked breaths as you begin to crawl away from the terror bathed in blood behind you.

Blood. Blood… Always so much blood.

Your nails crack as they dig into the harsh earth, the brittle keratin no match for the sharp rocks and ruthless splinters that pierce your flesh with each desperate impact on the ground. The wound in your thigh burns, and you can’t tell if the warmth you feel spreading along your upper legs is blood or not.

“What are you-“

“Stay away!” Your shrill voice, terrified and desperate, rings out through the woods.

You fail to see the way his brow furrows as he stands back to his full height, his looming figure towering over you as you continue to claw your way through the dirt.

Sparing a glance over your shoulder, you see him take a menacing step towards you.

“No! Don’t touch me!” Your frantic plea falls on deaf ears as he begins to stalk towards you. “Not again! I can’t take anymore!”

Mingi freezes in his spot, cocking his head at your frantic wailing. He can smell more than just the deer’s blood in the air, and he lets out a sigh in exasperation.

Only, his reaction seems to set you off even more.

“No!” The word is but a shrill chant upon your lips as you grab another root to drag yourself further away from him. Your arms shake, legs completely limp behind you as your whole body begins to go numb. “I can’t- I can’t-“ You hiccup on a sob, choking violently. “I don’t want to die!”

Your breathing comes in ragged pants as you begin to hyperventilate. You just manage to turn yourself back around to face him when your vision starts to fade around the edges.

The last thing you see before your world fades to black is a large man looming over you, covered head to toe in blood.

***

There are sounds: a bird chirping faintly in the distance, the rustling of leaves above your head, and the crackling of a fire nearby. The smoke lightly fills your lungs, but not enough to sting, giving rise to the other scents hidden beneath the crisp burning of wood. Earth, damp and heavy rests just beneath the smell of the fire, an undertone of pine and sandalwood. Comfort during a long awaited rest.

Sensations begin to return, and you can feel the dirt beneath your fingertips. Softly, you scrape them against the ground, the soil giving way with each movement you use to steady yourself. Small jolts of pain shoot up your arms from the tips of your fingers, and you vaguely recall cracking your nails as you scrambled away from something, or rather, someone.

Air fills your lungs, and with each breath, your head clears, body feeling the lightest it has in weeks. There’s something small, and soft, supporting your head as you rest on the ground, your skin tingling as your eyes shift beneath your still closed lids.

You take a deep breath in, and slowly, you begin to wake.

A soft groan escapes you as you stir, blinking your eyes open to stare up at the canopy of trees above you. Stars twinkle in the sky above, and you can just make out the faintest hues of light stretching across the vast expanse of black, turning all that was once night to day.

“Good.” A voice cutting through the calm of the night has your eyes darting to the side to see that redcap standing amongst the trees. “You’re up.”

You say nothing, opting to finally gather your full surroundings properly. To your surprise, you appear to be in the exact same spot in the woods where you initially passed out. What’s even more shocking is that the eviscerated doe is nowhere to be seen, nor are any signs that there had even been a mutilated corpse at all.

Turning your gaze back to the redcap standing within the trees, you take note of his appearance. Just like the surrounding area, he is clean of any evidence that would suggest of his previous violent actions. Not a spec of dirt seems to be on him, and he even appears to be wearing fresh clothing. Most surprising of all, his claws are no longer visible as his hands rest at his sides. Almost as if they’ve retracted somehow.

He seems… different. Calmer, almost. As if he’s suddenly become cautious around you. If you could even call it that.

“Do you remember what happened?” He keeps his stare fixed on you, but for some reason, it doesn’t feel as sharp as before.

A blink, and you swallow, opting to remain quiet for now.

He purses his lips slightly, but doesn’t comment on whether or not he believes in your silence.

“You managed to tear your wound open again.” He states, glancing from your face down to your injured thigh.

This causes you to panic, immediately moving to sit up only for your head to begin spinning as soon as you do.

In the blink of an eye, he’s crouching beside you. “Careful. You don’t want to aggravate it more than you already have. The last thing you need is for the wound to split again.”

Your eyes widen at his proximity, and before you can think, you’re shoving him away. The sudden movement only causes your vision to blur, losing your balance on the one hand you had been using to support yourself on the ground.

Of course, he barely budges, his brow furrowing as he lets out a sigh.

“You’re only going to hurt yourself more.” He states gruffly.

Reaching out his hands, he grasps you by the shoulders. Roughly, he pulls you upwards into a proper sitting position, practically shoving you against the trunk of the tree. He moves so fast, that you feel your head jerk forward, only for it to be pushed backwards with that same softness now resting behind it.

It’s then that you realize he’s folded his old shirt into a makeshift pillow for you to use.

“I don’t need your pity.” You spit harshly, averting your gaze to the side as both anger and embarrassment culminate as the heat beneath your skin.

“It will truly be a sad day if I come to pity you.”

A tense look pulls at your features, but still, you refuse to look at him.

“You’re unfit for travel.” He states bluntly. “We’ll rest here for the day to gather our bearings, then continue the journey back to the keep in the evening. As much as I despise the delay, I am not carrying you.”

“Why won’t you just let me die?” You sigh, turning to look at him in exasperation.

An image flashes in your mind of a familiar monster tearing into a mutilated corpse, covered in blood. You flinch, quickly averting your gaze once more.

“I already told you,” this time, it’s his turn to sigh. “You’re more use to me alive than dead.”

“Then, treat my wound.” Your voice is bitter, demanding. “It’s the only way the both of us get out of this faster.”

“I already have.” His response has your head whipping in his direction, eyes wide in shock. “Why do you think I’m making you rest here for the day?”

Your lips part slightly, heart thundering away inside your chest as your veins flood with terror. You are quite literally at his mercy. You have been at his mercy for who knows how long. Given the way your body feels in its current state, you fear chancing a look downwards to see just what kind of damage he’s done. Not to mention the fact that you’ve been unconscious this whole time. Who knows just what exactly he’s done to you.

Unfortunately, it wouldn’t be the first time…

“Don’t give me that look, it’s not like I wanted to touch you. Believe it or not, I’m quite respectful when it comes to that.” He clicks his tongue, rolling his eyes. Not even a moment later, he points at your thigh, a sharp claw suddenly adorning his finger. “I even kept your pants on, and everything. You humans are so fickle about nudity, I swear…”

Pushing himself back to his feet, he stares down at you expectantly.

Sure enough, when you spare a glance downwards, you see your pants still on. The right leg of your pants is completely torn off, the fabric resting about an inch from the top of your wound. It seems as if he’s cleaned it properly and added more of that paste he made for you the other day, for when you remove the leaf from your skin, the cut is much cleaner than before. There’s also the familiar scent of pine and earth lingering in the air, originating at your thigh. The swelling seems to have gone down significantly, and there’s no more dried blood or pus around the affected area. The cut even appears smaller than before, as if your flesh is starting to mend itself properly the more you rest.

“You are to spend the entirety of today sitting. No pressure is to be put on that leg until this evening when I lead you to the pond nearby for you to bathe. Then, you’ll change into a fresh pair of clothes which I’ve scavenged for you after I’ve wrapped that wound up properly with bandages.” He instructs, voice firm and leaving no room for arguments. “We continue on foot from there.”

You purse your lips, fisting the dirt beneath your hands. “Yes, General.”

He takes a moment to study your features, the corner of his lips twitching upwards faintly.

“Good.” He huffs out dryly. “You do know how to listen.”

The glare you send him is harsh, but it only serves to make him chuckle.

“You’re about as intimidating as a rabbit, mortal.” He shakes his head in amusement. “Keep trying. Perhaps one day you’ll scare someone who cares.”

“Then, why help me?” Your mouth moves before you have time to think. Your voice is harsh, hands balled into fists at your sides. “Since you don’t care, why waste your time waiting for me to heal?”

The redcap pauses, as if considering his answer carefully.

“You are aware that I cannot lie, correct?”

“Yes.” You blink, brow furrowing in confusion as to where this is going.

“I have stated multiple times as to why I have kept you alive.” He replies bluntly, moving to sit himself across the fire from you, leaning himself against another tree.

“I’m just a means to an end for you.” You spit, bitterness residing within your tone.

“I may not like your kind, human, but I don’t necessarily kill without reason.” His sharp eyes narrow at you from over the fire. The light from the rising sun combined with the dancing flames cast an eerie shadow over his features, and it only serves to make him appear more intimidating that he already is. One of his hands comes up to cover his right bicep, resting directly over that red sash tied around his upper arm. “There is a meaning behind each time this has been bathed in blood. I do not like tainting it with those unworthy of death.”

“Great.” You huff. “So, now I’m not even worth killing.”

“Everything is worth killing, human.” The redcap blinks at you, as if stating the obvious. “What matters is when and how it dies. It’s less fun when your prey doesn’t put up a fight. Against me, you’d have no chance. Therefore, you’re not worth the effort it would take to kill you.”

Not even you can refute that. You know how strong the fae are. Hell, even other humans have always proven themselves much stronger than you. You wouldn’t last a second against a creature physically capable of splitting you in two.

A phantom crack echoes through your ears, and you are once again reminded of the image of the monster before you bathed in blood.

“Is that why you killed that deer?” You snap, tone low and resentful.

“To use your own words, it was a means to an end.” He hums, tilting his head back against the trunk of the tree to gaze upwards at the sky. “I’m sure you’re aware of what a food chain is. Just because I won’t bother to kill you now, doesn’t mean I won’t if it would serve me a purpose.”

“So, you’re saying you will still kill me.” You do your best not to sound too hopeful, tugging the spider lily out of your pocket to pick at its wilting flowers.

He shrugs, humming lightly. “Sometimes we do things to prove we can. Others, because we already know the outcome. You obviously knew that flower would die if you picked it, yet you still chose to snap its stem. All for what? A fleeting moment of happiness? What good will that last you?”

“You wouldn’t understand.” Your reply is barely above a whisper as you stare down at your lap, twirling that dying stem between your fingers gently.

He quirks a brow. “Try me.”

“Sometimes it’s those fleeting moments that are all it takes to survive another day.” The flower stills in your hand, and you look up to meet his gaze. “You hold meaning in bathing a strip of cloth in the blood of your enemies. It might seem trivial, but that same meaning for you is what this flower is to me.”

“You… use that flower to celebrate death?” His brow furrows in confusion, shifting to rest his one arm on his now bent knee.

“I suppose you could say that.” For the first time in what feels like years, the corners of your mouth twitch upwards faintly. “It’s more of a symbol, or a representation. It’s the things you associate with it that matter most.”

“I suppose it’s very human to find symbolism in the most mundane of things,” he hums, his eyes falling shut as he rests against the tree.

“Don’t count yourself out, General,” your gaze narrows at the thinly veiled insult. “You find symbolism in bathing fabric in blood.”

Instead of annoyance, which you thought he would have at your comment, a snort of amusement escapes him.

“I suppose I do. Remind me to tear your tongue out if you ever compare me to a human again.”

“Then, who would you have to host such wonderful, and thought provoking conversations with?” You grin, only to catch yourself immediately afterwards.

Your heart skips a beat, staring intently at the redcap across from you. You half expect him to lunge at you for what you’ve just said, but instead, he simply lets out a low chuckle.

“Perhaps you have more than just one use after all.” He hums, remaining perfectly relaxed against that tree. “Maybe I’ll even let you keep your tongue.”

A chill runs down your spine, but you say nothing in response. Reality creeps in around you that you’ve just been conversing, somewhat casually, with a highly dangerous fae general. What’s worse is that it’s the first conversation in months that you’ve actually somewhat enjoyed.

Maybe, just maybe, this won’t turn out to be so bad after all.

#thrill of the hunt #cultofdionysusnet #mfu net #yandere mingi #yandere ateez #mingi scenario #mingi imagine #ateez scenario #ateez imagine #yandere kpop #kpop scenario #kpop imagine #kpop au #ateez au #fantasy au #fae au #chubby reader #tall reader

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mint-yooxgi · 2 months

Text

One Love - Mingi X Reader

Part of the CODN Spring Event - The Language of Flowers

Genre: Mature, Angst, Non-idol!AU

Pairing: Mingi X GN!Reader

Words: 1,129

Rating: E for Everyone :)

Warnings: Big Sad, I don't want to spoil the reveal but it's angsty.

A/n: Thought I would take the meaning of this flower prompt and give it a little twist, so I really hope you enjoy! I'm still on hiatus, but it's nice to take a break once in a while to write something different for a change. I might have a few more of these up my sleeve, so stay tuned! As always feedback is greatly appreciated! Enjoy!~

Summary: The ones we love never truly leave us, do they?

Yellow Tulip - Unrequited or One Sided Love

Listen to: One Love - Marianas Trench for the full effect.

The soft brush of grass beneath his feet echoes alongside a gentle breeze which ruffles the leaves of the few trees surrounding him. The air is cool against his skin, chilling his bones despite the brilliant warmth the sun’s rays provide. A few clouds drift lazily through the sky as he trudges along the path, his head downcast and expression sombre.

“Today of all days…” Mingi sighs, pausing momentarily in his steps to squeeze his eyes shut.

Shaking his head, Mingi reaches up to pinch at the bridge of his nose while pushing up his glasses. The familiar sting of tears builds behind his eyes, sniffling lightly as the scents of spring assault his nose. He can feel the pollen of fresh buds from his garden still tickling his nose, the subtle sound of birdsong filling the empty space around him. Various bouquets line the dirt path around him, and their vibrant colours only serve as a beacon for him as he blinks his gaze back open.

He lets his hand fall back to his side.

Slowly, steadily, he continues on down the path until he finally reaches where you are waiting for him.

Where you’ve always been, and will always be waiting for him.

He checks his watch, smiling softly to himself.

“Made it just in time.” He hums, shifting his gaze towards you.

Mingi swallows thickly as you remain silent. Not that he had been expecting you to answer him, anyways.

“I missed you.” His throat works as he swallows, wishing you would look at him one last time. “Maybe it’s better to say that I miss you. I still do.”

Again, you don’t respond, not even being able to acknowledge that he’s there.

His one hand tightens on the bundle of flowers in his grip.

“I kept thinking about what I would say to you when I came today, but now that I’m here, everything I had planned keeps slipping my mind.” He chuckles lightly, bringing his free hand up to rub at his nose, sniffling gently. “There’s so much I want to tell you, that I want you to see, but I know that’s impossible now. There is nothing I can say to you that will bring you back to me.”

You continue to remain silent, unable to respond. You haven’t been able to respond to him in a long time.

Not since the day you left him behind.

His eyes squeeze shut, the tears he had desperately been fighting back finally spilling over his cheeks. Another shaky breath escapes him, chest stuttering with each inhale as he falls to his knees before you, wishing you could just simply look at him one last time.

All that stares back at him is a grave.

“I wish you were here.” He chokes out, voice stained as he clings that bundle to his chest. “I wish I could give you these in person.”

His hands tighten on the yellow tulips he holds so desperately.

“You’d probably smack me with them, given their meaning.” He lets out a pained filled laugh. “You were always good at that: picking out different flowers and telling me what they meant. I know I acted like I hated it, but I miss our yearly visits to the botanical gardens. It’s why today is so special-“ his voice catches as another tear falls down his cheek. “We’d always go for coffee before walking through all the flowers. You’d always point out your favourites to me, and then act surprised whenever I would bring you him bouquets of them just to see you smile.”

A brief pause as the breeze drifts passed.

“It just isn’t the same without you, now.”

Softly, Mingi settles himself onto the ground before your grave.

“I know these aren’t like the red roses I brought you last year,” he begins, his throat working as he struggles to get out the words, “but I wanted to bring you these, not just for you, but for me.”

The bundle of flowers are placed gently onto the bottom of your grave. The stark yellow of their petals contrasts the simple red string tied around them to keep them together, Mingi making sure they’re settled perfectly before pulling his hands away.

“You were always so proud of our front garden-“ his throat constricts, a fresh wave of tears stinging at his eyes. “I took up looking after it when you left. I could never bring myself to get rid of it. I always have a piece of you at home with me, now. Though, I will admit, the tulips are a new edition.”

Another airy laugh leaves him, the sound full of longing and pain.

“It’s been years since you’ve been gone, but I could never forget you. I’ve tried to move on, but no matter how hard I try, I can’t.” He swallows. “I won’t.”

His eyes shine as he stares at your grave, reaching out to place his hand on top of the stems, directly over that red string tying them together.

“I will never stop loving you, even if you can no longer love me back.” He whispers, his gaze falling to those yellow flowers. “Not in this life, or even in the next.”

Mingi takes a deep breath in, attempting to steady his nerves.

“No one will ever come close to being you; you’re all that I want, all that I’ve ever needed.” His hand tightens over the stems. “I miss your laughter, and the way we could just share a look and both have the other in stitches. I miss your smile, and how you used to look at me. There is nothing in this world that could ever come close to that look of love on your face whenever I caught you staring at me, and I only wish I could see you one last time-”

His words get caught in his throat, bringing his free hand up to cover the lower half of his face.

“There is no me if there is no you.” Mingi chokes out, voice strained and muffled.

He collapses forward, his shoulders slumping as his body shakes with more sobs.

“Come back to me.” He begs, desperate and broken. “Come back to me, so I can hold you in my arms and have you tell me that everything will be okay.”

Tears spill over his cheeks, flooding the earth below as he attempts to reach out to you one last time. In any and every way he can.

“I can’t keep living like this.” His breath stutters as he attempts to calm himself despite the deathly longing that settles within his very core. “I need you here with me. I can’t do this alone!”

His heart squeezes painfully inside his chest..

“Please…”

#cultofdionysusnet #code: spring24 #mingi x reader #mingi scenarios #mingi drabble #ateez x reader #ateez scenarios #ateez drabble #kpop scenarios #kpop x reader #kpop drabble

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mint-yooxgi · 5 months

Text

{5} - Fight or Flight - Yandere!Redcap!Mingi X Tall!Chubby!Reader

Fae!AU & Yandere!AU - Part of the CoDN Thrill of the Hunt Collab

Genre: Fantasy, Mature, Horror, Angst, Fluff, Smut

Pairing: Mingi X Reader

Words: 7,445

Rating: Mature - 18+ MDNI

P.S. If there are any spelling or grammatical errors, please ignore them. I did my best through many rounds of editing, but some are liable to still slip through.

Summary: Out of one horrible situation and into another, the cycle of abuse never stops. You've lived with monsters your whole life. So, what's one more?

P.P.S. Please don't let this flop guys. If you enjoyed it, please reblog!!!

Mini Masterlist - Part One - Part Two - Part Three - Part Four

“Mingi?” the soft call of his name from you catches his attention two days later.

Clouds cover the vast expanse of the sky as far as the eye can see, casting a muted hue over the surrounding forest. The day is dreary, and it almost looks as if it might rain.

The redcap hums in response, turning his head in your direction as you walk side by side through the woods.

“I have a question.” Your voice is a bit meek, hands fiddling with the hem of your sleeves almost nervously.

Mingi thinks it subconscious on your part, but your limp is a bit more prominent today than it has been before. That, or maybe it’s just the weather.

“You know you can ask me anything, Blossom,” he smiles encouragingly at you.

At your hesitance, he pauses mid-step. Turning fully to you, he notices how you seemed to have stopped walking for a brief moment, so he’s quick to close the distance between you.

Slight worry tugs at his features as he sees how uncertain you seem to be. “Don’t be shy, Blossom. Ask away.”

“What’s-“ you begin to say, only to catch yourself. Your mouth opens and closes, a slight furrow to your brow. Then, you’re taking a small breath in, eyes squeezing shut as you rush out, “What’s a claim?”

Mingi’s breath hitches, caught off guard by the type of question you ask. He would have never expected it from you. At least, not yet. The only time claims have been mentioned around you, as far as he knows, was when-

“I was thinking about things, and I remember those other fae from the tavern mentioning something about it-“

“Those fae would have died if they ever tried to force something like that upon you.” His tone is suddenly harsh, a scowl pulling at his features.

Your eyes widen in surprise, not having expected him to react this way. A fact which only serves to make you more confused and unsure of things than you already are.

You shrink back into yourself, picking intently at the sleeve of your shirt. “I’m sorry if I upset you.”

“No, Blossom,” Immediately, he’s kneeling before you, taking your face into his hands gently. “Please don’t misunderstand. A claim is meant to be reserved for those that share the deepest of feelings for one another. It’s a way to say that we belong to each other, and bond us together. What they wanted to do to you-“ his voice catches, and his fingers press a little firmer into your skin, but not enough to hurt, “They would have defiled you, and made you into their possession with a mark like that. You- you would have been marked for ownership, not what these claims are actually intended for.”

“What are claims for?” The words are but a soft inquiry upon your lips, blinking at him mildly. There’s a creeping sense of unease that builds within you from his words, worry gnawing at your stomach.

Your ankle begins to throb.

Mingi takes a shaky breath in as he stares deeply into your eyes. “Love.”

His response catches you off guard. “Love?”

“In this realm, we fae bite each other to display our emotions. It is meant to showcase a deep connection between the recipient and the giver, and each mark is unique to the bite of the fae giving it.” He explains softly. “The mark protects the bearer by stating that they belong to the fae that gives them the bite.”

Your heart drops heavily into your stomach. “Belongs?”

“Unfortunately, fae aren’t the only recipients of such marks.” Mingi frowns, looking to the side as if getting lost in his own thoughts. “Where humans are involved, many fae use these marks to designate a mortal being their property. Once marked, no other fae can harm or touch a human recipient of the bond. It’s the same for marked fae: it goes against the code of a claim.”

“Property?” Your voice rises in pitch, tears springing to your eyes at the implications.

Those fae were going to… No, you shouldn’t think like that. However, that is much more easier said than done.

“Normally, a claim is shared by all parties involved, but those unlucky enough to be claimed by another fae in such a way never get a choice in the matter.” He continues, his hands sliding from your cheeks and down to your shoulders. “The marks are always displayed on the neck. That’s the only way to tell if one has been claimed or not.”

The way his fingers caress the side of your throat has you shuddering beneath his touch, that sense of dread sitting like a rock in your chest. You can hardly hear him over the sound of your racing heart, skin prickling as your mind screams at you to get away from him. To get away from the now imminent threat.

Instinct kicks in, and you are forced to stand there, frozen to your spot as you feel your body shutting down. Once again, you prepare for the inevitable to come.

“Marking someone like this is meant to be a sacred bond between lovers,” his eyes hood over, staring intently at the way his fingers caress the skin of your neck. “I…” His tongue darts out to wet his lips, and you catch a glimpse of those razor sharp fangs lining the inside of his mouth. “I wish to claim you with a mark of my own someday.”

Time stills around you as you stop breathing. You can feel your skin heating beneath his touch, and suddenly, it’s as if he’s burning you wherever his fingers rest upon your skin. Your throat closes, and tears spring to your eyes, body beginning to tremble uncontrollably beneath his touch.

“No!” Your voice is shrill as you shove him away, scrambling backwards frantically to put some much needed distance between the both of you.

To say Mingi is shocked would be an understatement. Though you physically do not move him, the way you push him away causes his heart to squeeze painfully in his chest.

The worst part is, he doesn’t understand why. He would never force a claim on you. On anybody for that matter.

“Not again!” Your eyes shine with terror as you fall backwards, landing with a harsh thud on the ground. “I’m not your property!”

Mingi’s heart drops, his expression falling as pained disbelief pulls at his features.

He reaches for you. “No, Blossom, that’s not-“

“You can’t own me again!” Your visage is akin to a frightened animal, scrambling desperately away from him as he stands back to his full height. “I- I- I won’t let you!”

“I don’t want to own you, Blossom-“

Again, Mingi tries to speak, but right now, you’re inconsolable. Each step he takes towards you only makes you sob harder, and he is once more reminded of the way you attempted to flee him after he killed that deer.

His chest tightens, heart aching within.

“I thought you were different,” you’re passed the point of listening, too caught up in your own sense of panic to understand any reason. A harsh sob wracks your body. “I believed you could be different.”

“Blossom, what’s-“

“You’re no different than my husband.” The simple phrase you hiss out freezes Mingi right in his tracks.

Thoughts race through his head at the speed of light, connecting every little instance he’s had with you together. Is this why you’re so guarded? Is this why you flinch whenever there’s a loud noise? Is this why you cowered away from him, why you’re currently cowering away from him?

Mingi swears his heart has stopped. An immense anger begins to flood his veins at the thought of anyone bringing you harm, let alone someone who is supposed to care for you. He may not know a lot about humans, but he knows enough to understand what marriage is supposed to mean. He’s always equated a proper claim in this realm to marriage in your own, so to learn that someone has already taken advantage of you in such a way makes him see red.

Still, he tells himself to calm down. To control himself, so as to not scare you any more that you already are. He promised never to hurt you, to protect and care for you in any and every way he can, and he intends to do just that.

Right now, you need him, and that is far more important than any blinding rage he could ever feel. He needs to get a reign on his emotions, lest he do something that he will come to regret.

Your next words knock the wind right out of him.

“You men are all the same.”

In the blink of an eye, Mingi has you pinned to a tree by your throat. His lips are pulled back in a snarl, his gaze sharp as his dark eyes nearly bore a hole through your skull.

“I am not a man.” His gaze is absolutely wild, claws pricking at the skin of your neck as his chest heaves.

Your hands come up to grasp at his own around your throat, eyes wide as your heart thunders in your chest.

The idea that you could so much as imply he is anything like the man that could treat you in such a way sends Mingi spiralling. Rage bubbles beneath the surface of his skin, and he subconsciously tightens his grip around your neck. Gone is the fae who was attempting to make you understand, and calm you down. Right now, all that stands before you is the fearsome, ruthless general that everyone makes him out to be.

“Do it.” Your eyes are wide, desperately pleading with him as you stare into his own.

His nose crinkles, and he bares his teeth in disgust.

“You humans get turned on by the weirdest of things.” He spits the words out, shoving himself off of you and purposely taking a few steps back.

You expression falls, more tears gracing the skin of your cheeks as you collapse onto your knees. “Coward.”

You were this close. This close to finally escaping the hell you’ve been living in all your life, and he’s went and taken that away from you, too.

Mingi’s nostrils flare, eyes sharpening as he stares down at your form crumpled at the base of that tree. His lungs burn, chest heaving with each breath he takes as he clenches his hands into fists at his sides to keep them from shaking.

You swallow, lifting a shaking hand to your throat. “I guess fae can lie.”

Devastated doesn’t even begin to describe the state of Mingi’s heart as he hears you utter those words. His expression falls, the anger simmering to a low boil as he takes a step towards you.

You notice, but your scent surprisingly doesn’t spike in fear. No. All Mingi can sense from you is pain.

“You should be scared of me.” The comment is stated so softly, so casually, that is causes you to blink in shock. “I should terrify you.”

You remain silent, pursing your lips in response.

“I could break every single bone in your body.” He states, taking a tentative step forward while keeping a gentle tone. “I could tear you limb from limb without even batting an eye.”

Your eyes stare blankly at the ground, shoulders curling in on yourself as your hands support your weight. Almost subconsciously, your nails dig into the dirt beneath your fingertips, throat working as you sit there, as still as stone.

“I would have been delighted to skin you alive,” he continues, stopping just short of where you rest upon the ground. “To feast on your flesh as I did so, and make you watch as I carved my victory into your skin.”

A blink, and more tears spill from your eyes onto your cheeks. Your eyes are vacant, the shine that had been growing over the past few days completely gone. You barely even register Mingi coming to kneel before you. It’s only when he gently tilts your chin upwards using the tips of his fingers that you notice just how close he’s gotten to you once more.

“I could have killed you, that much is true.” His tone is soft. Possibly the softest he’s ever used while speaking with you. “But, I don’t want to. I cannot bring myself to want to harm you. Not anymore.”

Though your gaze is locked on his, there is no light behind your eyes. No spark of recognition, either. You don’t even register his words, your entire body going numb as your mind shuts down.

This is the end. You’ll make damn sure of it.

“Are you listening to me, Blossom?” He shifts closer, and he notices how you begin to shake violently. “I-“

“But yet, you want to own me.” Your voice is harsh, spitting the words out like venom on your tongue.

“No, Blossom, I-“

“Why can’t you just kill me?” Your hands ball into fists, nails leaving indents in the dirt as they scrape across the ground. There is a pain held within your gaze, swirling together with the anger that begins radiating off of you in waves. “You said there’s nothing you wouldn’t do for me. So, just kill me.”

Mingi’s eyes go wide, lips parting as he stares at you in shock. His heart feels as if it’s being suffocated in his chest, and the fingers he uses to support your chin with begin to tremble.

“Go ahead, General!” The title you spit out only serves to mock him. “Tear me to pieces! Render my flesh from my bones, and bathe your band in my blood! Carve my heart out of my chest after breaking every single bone in my body! Hurry up, and get it over with, and then just fucking kill me!”

His fingers fall from your skin, hands hanging limply at his sides as a single tear begins to trail a path down his cheek.

“You want to know why I’m not scared of you, General?” You’re hysterical at this point, shrill voice shrieking through the emptiness of the woods around you. “You want to know why I don’t fear you?”

Mingi blinks, and another tear spills down his cheek. His whole body shakes violently as you continue to scream in his face.

“I’ve already suffered through hell every single fucking day of my life ever since I was brought into this world. So, what’s one more?” Tears stream uncontrollably down your cheeks, and you inhale a stuttering gasp. “All I want is for this stupid fucking cycle to end, but you won’t even grant me that! I guess I should be fucking used to it by now. I never get what I want. Always- always, always, always, I’ve only ever lived to serve other people. A stupid means to a stupid fucking end.”

Your voice is harsh as you spit the words out, and all Mingi can do is watch as you fall apart right before his very eyes.

“You really are no different than my husband.” Bitterness coats every inch of your tone. That is, until a humourless laugh is falling from your lips. “No, actually, he was much worse. Because instead of just baseless threats, he would actually put some action behind them.”

The growl that tears from Mingi’s throat is pure animalistic. His gaze hardens as his hands clench into fists in his lap, chest heaving as the rage boils beneath the surface of his skin once more.

“You want to know why I’m not scared of you, General?” You repeat your question from earlier, gaze sharp as you look towards him through narrowed eyes. “It’s because I’ve already survived much worse than you.”

Mingi can feel the familiar prick of his nails digging into his palms, blood beginning to drip through his clenched fingers and onto the earth between the two of you.

“There is nothing for me here, except pain and servitude.” Your voice trembles with the weight of your words, and you furiously wipe at your cheeks. The dirt from your hands smudges against your skin, but you don’t even seem to notice. “So, hurry up, and get it over with. I don’t have anything to live for, anyways.”

His heart stops, and a numbing sense violence begins to course through his veins. His skin feels like it’s on fire, something deep within him roaring to be set free upon the pathetic excuse of a man that ever dared to call himself your husband. The need to crush this man, to tear him apart so that naught remains but chunks of flesh rendered in a bloody heap is so strong, Mingi nearly marches to the closest portal between realms to find this bastard right then and there.

“What did he do to you?” Mingi’s voice is deadly calm, the darkest look you’ve ever seen in your life residing in his eyes as he stares deeply into your own.

His question catches you off guard, blinking at him in shock at how intensely he seems to be reacting. You never thought he would care this much.

“It doesn’t matter-“

“It matters to me!” His booming voice echoes around the area, causing you to flinch in surprise. “What. Did. He. Do to you?”

You avert your gaze to the side, bitterness pulling at your features. “Why do you care?”

Without missing a beat, without any sort of hesitance, Mingi speaks, “Because, I love you.”

Instantly, your gaze darts over to his own. Your breath catches slightly in your throat, shock causing your eyes to widen ever so slightly. That is, until your expression falls.

“Yeah,” you scoff, but it comes out as more of a choked sob. “That’s what he used to say, too.”

“You don’t have to believe me,” he reaches a trembling hand out to you, caressing the side of your face gently to get you to look at him.

As much as it pains him to see you like this, as much as he wants to go storming off to tear this man apart to satiate some of that burning rage festering deep inside of him, he cannot. You need him here, and that is what is most important right now.

“But, I want you to know that I am.” He swallows the sudden dryness in his throat. “I am inexplicably, and irrevocably in love with you.”

A moment of silence as his words settle over your very being.

“Desperately at that.” He adds gently, his eyes holding every bit of truth behind his words.

You turn away, suddenly looking more pained than you ever have before.

“You shouldn’t be.” Your voice is barely above a whisper. “I’m more trouble than I’m worth.”

Mingi’s expression falls at your words. His hand moves back to cradle your chin in his fingers, turning your head to face him once more. “You are worth everything to me.”

Your gaze darts up to meet his own, eyes shining with unshed tears. You know that he can hear the way you inhale sharply, your eyebrows drooping as another sob wracks your entire being.

It is then that you notice his own tears, silently streaming down his face as his fingers tremble against your skin.

“I don’t want to own you, Blossom,” he continues softly, cautiously shifting closer to you. “I have never once thought of you as my property, and I never will.”

A hand comes up to cover your mouth as you choke on another sob, shoulders shaking with the weight of your emotions.

“I am truly sorry I upset you. I should have been more careful with my words.” His thumb gently begins to brush your tears away. “I won’t lie and say that I don’t want you to become mine, but not in the way that I own you. You belong to yourself, as I belong to myself. I would never force something like that onto you.”

Your heart skips a beat involuntarily in your chest, and slowly, with every word he speaks, you begin to relax. Your shoulders are the first to lose the tension they’ve been holding onto, the rest of your body following soon after.

“I want to call you mine in the same ways I want you to call me yours.” He adds lowly, tenderly brushing the tips of his fingers over the skin of your one cheek. “We belong with each other. Together. If we are to belong to one another, then it will be mutually. Never one without the other. Never one being the other’s possession.”

Slowly, you lower the hand you have resting over your mouth. A stuttering breath wracks your chest, but with every second that passes, you continue to calm down. Your tears begin to slow, and you feel him delicately wipe away the final ones that cling to your skin.

“I will never let someone treat you like their property ever again.” His voice is a little firmer as he says this, wrapping you in his arms as he pulls you into his chest. “I will tear them apart before they can so much as even try.”

Before you can stop yourself, another sob escapes you. This time, though, you find yourself clinging onto his shirt for dear life, curling into him as he holds you close.

Gently, his one hand strokes over the top of your head, cradling you to his chest. He sits with you on the ground, rocking you softly in his arms as you rest in his lap. A place solely and purely reserved for you. Always, and forever, you.

“I only want your happiness,” his grip tightens ever so subtly around you. “You are so important to me, that I never want to risk losing you. I never wish to damage, nor taint what we have. I will not kill you. I will not dull your light that has brought me so much joy since the very first moment I saw you shine. I will, however, do everything in my power to protect you, to show you just how much value your life has. I will destroy anyone or anything that even remotely implies otherwise. You do not deserve to be fed those lies any longer.”

Your hand tightens over the material of his shirt, crying into his chest. Never before have such words been uttered to you, and you find your heart close to bursting at the sincerity you can hear in his voice alone. The fact that you can still feel his own teardrops hitting the top of your head as he speaks only serves to add to the intensity of your own emotions surrounding you in this moment.

You underestimated just how much he meant to you, how much he means to you. His words, just as his arms do, wrap around you in a comforting embrace. One which you gladly lose yourself to, finally feeling like you have everything you’ve ever needed tucked within the solace of his touch.

“I’m here,” he coos gently, cradling you so tenderly in his arms. Still, he continues to rock you back and forth as you curl up in his lap, his chin coming to rest on the top of your head. “I’m not going anywhere. Not without you by my side.”

The words that remain unspoken by him echo loud and clear through your mind.

He will not abandon you. He will not let you go where he cannot follow. Always, he is with you, and always he will care for you. Nothing is ever going to change that.

Ever so slowly, you wrap your own arms around his figure, holding onto him just as tightly as he holds onto you. In fact, you go so far as to curl around him even tighter, allowing yourself to feel everything you never have, or have been too afraid to properly acknowledge before now.

For the next hour, you allow him to hold you in his arms. The two of you cling onto one another beneath the light of the setting sun, basking in the comfort you find in the other’s embrace.

It’s soft, and tender. The only noise soon becoming the gentle hum you can feel reverberating from deep within Mingi’s chest. Such a comfort begins to calm you completely, the steady sound of his heart lulling you into a deeper feeling of total relaxation.

Never before have you felt safer, or more cared for than you do in this moment. He’s proved to you time and time again that he isn’t all that he seems to be, and for that, you couldn’t be more grateful. There is no one like Mingi to you, for he is in a league all his own.

You’re pretty sure that if you asked, he’d say that he feels the exact same about you.

Your eyes remain closed, but you do not sleep. Your thoughts continuously drift back over everything that’s just happened this evening, going over every little detail meticulously to try and find something wrong with the scene playing out before you. There must be some kind of trick, some final twist to all of this. It’s all just too good to be true.

Either that, or you’re dreaming of a life that is all your own, again.

After a few more minutes of thorough examination, you find no fault in Mingi’s words. There is no final trick, nor sly slip of his tongue, only truth. A truth that makes your heart swell with an unfamiliar, yet pleasant warmth. A feeling that you wish to get lost in for as long as you both shall live.

Blinking your eyes open, you stare at the opposite side of the woods. There’s a slight furrow to your brows as you stare down at your lap, beginning to fiddle with your hands as Mingi rests with you against a tree.

Taking a small breath in, you steady your nerves.

“Mingi?” The call of his name is soft, barely above a whisper, yet he still hears you loud and clear.

A hum reverberates within his chest in response, his hand raising to cup the side of your face gingerly. His gaze is nothing but tender as he meets your own, thumb stroking lightly over the skin of your cheek.

“I’m sorry.” You avert your eyes to the side, shame washing over you as you recall the harsh words you spoke to him earlier in the evening. “I should have never compared you to my husband. You could never come close to being like the monster that haunts my every waking nightmare.”

Almost instantly, he shakes his head, concern marring his features.

“You have nothing to apologize for, Blossom.” He speaks evenly, keeping his voice steady; tender, but firm. “I regret ever making you believe I could even remotely do the same disgusting and vile things to you that he did. I promised to protect you, but I couldn’t even protect you from myself in such an instant.”

Now, it’s your turn to shake your head.

“I spent almost all of my life longing for death so I could escape the pain of my everyday life,” you breathe, staring intently down at your hands. “But, I don’t think I ever actually wanted to die.”

Mingi says nothing in response. Instead, he opts to take your hands into his own, bringing them up to press his lips tenderly against your skin.

His eyes fall shut as he holds you to him, his heart aching for you. That he couldn’t do something sooner to help you is his only regret. Right now, though, he can be here for you, and then, he vows to make every day from here on out better than the last.

“I’ve been close to death so many times, I’ve lost count.” You admit lowly, your throat working as you keep your gaze locked on your hands held in his own. “Never dead. Always dying.”

Carefully, you pull your hands out of his grip, and Mingi blinks his eyes open to see you turning around slowly so that your back is now facing him.

You kneel between his legs, sitting a bit rigidly before him. Your heart is racing erratically inside of your chest, and your palms begin to sweat. There is a sudden nervous air about you as you prepare yourself for what you’re about to do.

Taking a deep breath in, you take another terrifying leap. You know that Mingi will be right there to catch you with open arms as you begin to fall.

With trembling hands, you pull up the back of your shirt.

Mingi’s reaction is immediate. Not only does he stiffen behind you, but a sharp inhale can be heard as his eyes fixate on your back. His hands clench into fists in his lap, seeing red once more.

Scar upon scar rests upon your flesh, the raised mounds of skin covering what once was pure. Not a single inch of you hasn’t been mutilated in some way, shape, or form, and the moment his gaze lands on a particularly large piece of marred flesh, a snarl tears from his throat.

“He branded you.”

Mingi can smell the salt from your tears as they cascade down your cheeks for the nth time this night, and he realizes that he hates the smell. He hates it when you cry, and he hates knowing that it’s because of this bastard.

“The village doctor came to know me quite well.” You smile through the pain. “As to be expected, they were friends.”

“How did…“ His voice is deep, gravelly in the way he attempts to control his anger for the moment.

“My parents sold me to him when I was sixteen. I was told I was going to have a better life.” Your hands shake as you cling to the bunched material of your shirt. “All they wanted was status, and he gave it to them at a price. They never cared about me. They only brought me here to this realm to dispose of me. If I could serve them like a slave, I could serve my husband perfectly well. I could serve them a purpose. If I can’t do that, I’m completely useless.”

Mingi purses his lips, shaking violently behind you.

“The moment I stepped through that door, I was his.” Another snarl fills the air around you, and you wrap your arms tighter around your front. “I always had too much of an attitude, and he had to discipline me for it. His favourite were the whips, but never in places people could see what damage had been done.”

All those times you flinched after snapping back at him fill his mind. The way you never complained, never fought back, never tried to run… The only time you begged for mercy was when he killed that deer. Only, now, Mingi has a strong suspicion it wasn’t actually him you were pleading with to spare you.

“I lived to serve him, to please him, and him alone.” There’s a bitter resentment lingering on the edge of your words as you spit them out harshly. A resentment that Mingi unquestionably, and undoubtably, shares. “It didn’t matter what I wanted. I had nothing. I was nothing. If I wasn’t valuable to him, I was useless, pathetic… something to satiate his boredom with whenever he desired.”

“Everything I did soon became wrong. If I brought him meals, it wasn’t served fast enough. The food I prepared wasn’t the right kind, nor was it ever good enough. If I didn’t dress a certain way he liked, he would tear my clothing and humiliate me in public. I was too fat. Too tall. If I talked back, or out of turn, I was told that I was lucky to still have my tongue.” A scowl tugs at your features as hot, angry tears spill from your eyes. “He only let me keep it so that I could please him.”

Mingi swears he stops breathing. The rage swirling within comes to a boiling point, and he cannot prevent the way his lips curl over his fangs. His claws tear into the material of his pants, the sound of shredding fabric echoing throughout the woods as he tries to maintain a grip on his control.

“I was a toy given to him to play with. A pretty little ‘Doll’ sent to obey his every command.” Your whole body shakes violently, eyes squeezing shut so as to block out the memories that threaten to drown you at any second. “He would-“ you choke on a breath. “He would-“ your chest stutters. “He would let his friends watch, then let them take turns until they were all satisfied.”

Those three fae from the tavern flit through your mind, and you are reminded once again how close you came to reliving those awful memories.

“I never had a choice,” you release the grip you have on your shirt, letting it fall gently back over your skin. It doesn’t completely cover you, for a sliver of skin still peaks out, and all Mingi can do is focus on the edge of that horrid brand still visible on your back. “Anything I tried to do for myself was met with punishment. If I overslept, I was forced to stay awake for days, cleaning the entire house to make up for lost time. If I made a meal for myself unsupervised, or if I got myself something extra from the kitchen, I was starved. The only solace I had was escaping to that field in the middle of the night to sit amongst the flowers.”

Mingi’s breath hitches in his throat as you turn to glance back at him from over your shoulder. The most devastatingly heartbroken look rests on your features as you take a shaky breath in.

“He burnt that, too.”

Another low growl slips passed Mingi’s lips as his claws dig harshly into his thighs. He cannot even begin to fathom the pain that you’ve been through, yet he uses his own in this moment to ground himself.

He can wait.

He will wait.

This bastard is not living passed tonight, anyways.

“Didn’t-“ Mingi’s voice is rough, strained from the barely contained fury lingering beneath the surface. “Didn’t anyone in the village notice? Did no one try to help you?”

You let out a laugh at this, but it’s dry and anything from joyous. It sends a chill coursing straight down Mingi’s spine.

“Oh, they noticed.” Your breath stutters on a choked scoff. “Whispers. There were always whispers about what was going on, but never any action. Whispers about my situation, and how horrible it must be. I knew they all knew, but no one ever came to my aid. It’s not like they couldn’t hear my screams, I could see their looks of pity every time I walked passed them on the street. They were all complacent, and all because he was a fucking lord.”

“No one wanted to cross him.” You continue bitterly. “That, or they were already his friends. It was a small town. Besides, who would want to give up such a wonderful opportunity? It’s not like anyone would reprimand them, or care for that matter.”

A moment of silence as you sit up off of your knees to rest fully on the ground. Stretching your legs out before you, you flex your feet, a frown marring your features.

“You asked me once about my ankle,” you stare down at the limb in question, rolling it gently. “I tried to run away, once. It was in the early days, back when I still had some defiance left in me. He ensured I could never do something so stupid again.”

You can audibly hear his breathing deepen, jagged pants escaping him. Every exhale is lined with an animalistic snarl, and you notice his legs have stopped shaking on either side of you.

“That was one of the first nights he almost killed me,” you go on to say, eyes fixated on your right ankle. “He even brought a shovel with him. That’s how he broke it. I’m pretty sure he was ready to bury me alive, too.”

You blink, your foot stilling as you rest your hands in your lap.

“By the time he was done, he was bathed in blood. My blood.” Your eyes flutter shut, taking a shaky breath inwards. “I will never be free of him. He is the shadow I see out of the corner of my eyes. He is the figure lurking around every corner, waiting to drag me back into that hellhole any and every chance he gets. He is, and always will be, the monster that haunts my every dream.”

“So, no, Mingi, you are not a monster.” Your pained gaze shifts to look at him from over your shoulder once more. “You could never be what truly terrifies me, because I learned a long time ago that only humans have the capacity and will to be truly monstrous. They will hide in plain sight, and lure you in with a false sense of security. When you have the capability to do good, but choose not to. When you only think of yourself and your own personal gain instead of helping others when they need it. When the power you have is used to hurt others… That is what truly makes someone a monster.”

Your final words linger in the air, an unnatural silence stretching on around you. Intently, you stare down at your lap, blinking away more tears that fall with every breath.

A trembling hand placed upon your shoulder causes you to jump, and you turn your head to see Mingi leaning over you. Slowly, he leans in to press his lips against your forehead, holding himself there as you feel him trembling violently against you.

“Close your eyes, Beloved,” his voice is low as he mumbles the words against your skin. Though he tries, he barely manages to contain the burning rage lingering in his tone. “I do not wish for you to see who I’m about to become.”

For a brief moment when he pulls away, your eyes search his gaze. You can see the anger he holds within, a fury burning as brightly as the stars in the night sky. Yet, within the pits of that fire which blazes in your honour, you can still see that same tenderness he always looks at you with.

It’s an expression which you immediately understand.

Always, your safety and well-being comes first. He will never do anything to scare you, or jeopardize the way you see him.

So, you do exactly as told. You close your eyes.

Almost instantly, you feel his presence leave your side. You can hear some soft shuffling as he crosses the short distance to the opposite side of the clearing you’ve stopped in, and it feels as if the entire world goes still.

Not even a moment later, a tremendous roar echoes throughout the forest. The sound is full of rage, and anguish, bouncing off of the surrounding trees and causing your ears to ring as you hear a flock of birds take off in the distance. You can hear trees shattering, their root groaning as they are torn violently from the ground.

Still, you keep your eyes closed.

Snarls fill the air as branch after branch is snapped apart in his fury. Every resounding crash causes your heart to jump within your chest, but you can only find comfort in his complete desolation of the woods.

Finally, someone is fighting for you. Someone is filled with enough rage at your situation that they are actively lashing out due to the mistreatment and abuse you’ve faced. Someone who cannot fathom you ever being treated so horribly by the people who were meant to protect you.

It takes half an hour for Mingi to return to you. You can still hear his breath heaving as he fills his lungs with air, but the sounds of his destruction have long since quieted to a subtle breeze against your skin.

“You can open your eyes now, Blossom.” He says gently.

Blinking your gaze open, you rub at your eyes. Your vision is a bit foggy in the corners, but the moment it comes back into focus, you see Mingi kneeling before you. His shirt is torn in multiple spots, his hair completely disheveled. Dirt is smeared over his skin from head to toe, and you can see a few stray leaves sticking out of his blond locks.

Almost instinctively, you sit up straighter, reaching forward to tug the foliage out of his hair.

His gaze follows you the whole time, shining with adoration despite the worry on his features as he takes your hands gently into his own.

“I’m sorry you had to hear all of that,” he brings your hands up to his lips, placing a tender kiss onto the skin of your knuckles.

Cautiously, you peek around his shoulder, and a small gasp escapes you. Your wide eyes blink in shock as you see that he’s completely levelled a portion of the forest.

Trees have been uprooted and completely decimated, splinters of wood littered across the ground. Leaves are torn asunder, branches thrown in every direction except towards where you had been sitting. There are even a few sections of earth completely bare, the dirt ripped up and scattered across the wreckage that litters the ground.

“Don’t pay any mind to that, Blossom,” he smiles assuringly at you, helping you stand to your feet. “Let’s go get cleaned up, and then I’ll find us some food.”

True to his word, Mingi leads you to a small spring. He is nothing but gentle as he guides you into the water, bathing you softly as the stars shine overhead. He doesn’t let his gaze linger, nor does it wander, and for that, you’re grateful. He treats you like a person, which is more than you can say about how you’ve always been treated by your own kind.

With him, there are no expectations. You are free to just be.

He truly is the most respectful creature you have ever met, and when he catches you staring at his chest for a little longer than you should, he doesn’t comment on it. Instead, all that greets your ears is a soft chuckle and a fond smile.

A little while later, he’s helping you out of the spring, and back into your clothes. He seems to have somehow gotten a completely new set, along with your own, but when you ask him about it, he simply smiles in response.

“Rest here, Beloved,” he places a tender kiss to your forehead. “I will be back shortly with some food.”

Like always, Mingi is true to his word. It takes him no time at all to return with various fruits and nuts, feeding you eagerly as you sit in his arms. He even managed to find you another stem of red spider lilies to replace the last one that you lost earlier in the day.

He doesn’t seem to eat as much tonight, but he brushes off your worry when you comment on it. You, of course, don’t push, figuring it might be a fae thing, or possibly something about his emotions affecting his appetite.

What he does do, however, is brew you a special tea. It’s made from a specific flower that you vaguely recall hearing about back in your hometown. Besides, you trust him, and it’s not like he’s going to abandon you, or poison you. He already said he would do neither, and you believe him.

“Drink this, My Blossom,” he hands you the canteen carefully, making sure not to spill its contents over your lap. “It’ll help you sleep. I want you to rest thoroughly after the day you’ve had.”

Once the tea is finished, and the food is all gone, you end up curling into his side just like the night before. The embers of the dying fire glow beneath the darkness of the night sky, and you feel completely safe wrapped in Mingi’s arms. No chill settles in your bones, nor discomfort at laying on the ground, either.

It’s been quite a long time since you’ve been this content, this relaxed.

Surrounded by the warmth of Mingi’s embrace, you fall asleep, and for the first time in forever, no monsters haunt your dreams.

#thrill of the hunt #cultofdionysusnet #mfu net #yandere mingi #yandere ateez #yandere kpop #yandere au #mingi scenario #mingi imagines #ateez scenarios #ateez imagine #kpop scenario #kpop imagine #kpop au #ateez au #fantasy au #fae au #chubby reader #tall reader

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mint-yooxgi · 5 months

Text

{4} - Fight or Flight - Yandere!Redcap!Mingi X Tall!Chubby!Reader

Fae!AU & Yandere!AU - Part of the CoDN Thrill of the Hunt Collab

Genre: Fantasy, Mature, Horror, Angst, Fluff, Smut

Pairing: Mingi X Reader

Words: 8,188

Rating: Mature - 18+ MDNI

P.S. If there are any spelling or grammatical errors, please ignore them. I did my best through many rounds of editing, but some are liable to still slip through.

Summary: Out of one horrible situation and into another, the cycle of abuse never stops. You've lived with monsters your whole life. So, what's one more?

P.P.S. Please don't let this flop guys. If you enjoyed it, please reblog!!!

Mini Masterlist - Part One - Part Two - Part Three

For the whole night, Mingi holds you in his arms. You manage to pass out sometime within the same hour it took for you to finally calm down, and Mingi cannot help but hold you tighter.

His gaze lingers on your features, taking note of every dip and curve of your face as you rest in his arms. He studies the slope of your nose, the softness of your cheek as your eyes dance behind your eyelids throughout the night. He keeps his one hand resting over your own over your stomach, noticing how your body relaxes the longer he soothes you.

Not once does Mingi dare move. He doesn’t want to disturb you, and besides, you’ve been through a lot this evening. Letting you rest is his top priority. Getting to feel your body wrapped around his own is simply a bonus. One that he never knew he wanted until the very first touch.

It’s odd to him, how one so different from him can open up a whole new world he never knew possible. There is something deep within him that revels at having you near, a feeling that settles deep within his bones and tells him that being with you like this is right. A side within him arguing against everything he once knew and felt towards your kind, urging him to accept his basic instincts and always protect you.

He’s starting to care, and he doesn’t know whether that fact thrills, or terrifies him. All he does know is that he will keep you safe, no matter the cost.

Gently, Mingi lifts the hand he had resting over your stomach to your face. Tentatively, his fingers trace over the skin of your cheek, shifting to caress you softly in the palm of his hand.

Almost instantly, you lean into his touch.

His breath hitches, and his heart begins to pound within his chest. He’s never felt this way before. About anyone, or anything. You make something within him come alive, and he actively enjoys spending time with you. Seeing you scared, knowing you’re in pain, only serves to make his instincts go into overdrive.

You are as delicate as that flower you clutch so dearly in your hand. A blossom which Mingi will help flourish, nourishing you until he can see you fully bloom into the person you are meant to be.

He will keep you safe. He will see you smile, and make you laugh. He will do all these things and more, and he will do them to ensure your happiness.

Mingi may know nothing about your past, but he guarantees your future will be a bright one. He will make it so, even if it’s the last thing that he ever does.

***

Morning comes. The light of the sun creeps through the window, and casts a warm glow throughout the room. Faintly, birds can be heard chirping in the distance, and their tender song is what begins to rouse you from your slumber.

Groggily, you blink your eyes open. You can tell your face is a bit swollen from all the crying you did last night, and as you lift your hands to your cheek, you realize two things.

One: you fell asleep while held in that redcap’s arms last night. You currently do not know where he is, for he doesn’t occupy the bed beside yours, nor is he in your immediate line of sight. You also do not know how long he decided to comfort you, but from the way your heart feels, you do not care.

You actually got a decent rest last night, slumbering straight through until morning without a single night terror. For that, you are grateful, albeit surprised.

Two: you are currently laying down. A soft blanket is wrapped over your figure, and your body no longer aches. You seem to be resting on your side, facing the bedside table, a pillow tucked carefully beneath your head.

Resting upon the top of the table beside you is a fresh glass of water. You can see the condensation forming on the glass, informing you that the water is cool, and hasn’t been there for long. Though, that’s not what shocks you the most.

A single stem of red spider lilies lays beside the glass of water. The flower is in full bloom; vibrant and healthy. From the faint scent you can smell drifting through the air, you can tell that this plant has just been picked, too.

Your heart warms, and you cannot help the way you immediately reach for that flower. Very carefully, and with that stem held in your hand, you sit up in bed, noticing how your stomach doesn’t seem to ache anymore in the spot where that fae had been digging his knee into you.

Leaning against the headboard, you stare down at that flower held in your hand. Softly, you begin twirling the stem between your fingers, the faintest of smiles causing the corner of your lips to tug upwards. It’s been a long time since you felt this rested, this at peace.

Maybe you are dead, after all.

A figure out of the corner of your eyes startles you, and you drop the flower in surprise. It lands softly on your lap, a bright red to contrast the light brown sheets.

Standing near the end of your bed with a neutral expression on his face is that redcap, his eyes locked on your figure. You swear you imagine it, but for a brief second, you thought you saw the corners of his lips quirked upwards softly while looking at you.

“Good morning.” The low timbre of his voice fills the room. For some reason unknown to you, it wraps itself like a blanket around your figure, warming you from the inside out.

Your eyes dart from his face to the flower in your lap, then back again. Words get caught in your throat, and you find yourself unable to speak for the moment, opting to incline your head slightly.

Why is it that you suddenly feel shy around him? Did he actually do something for you, or are you simply imagining things while in a state of delirium?

“You should eat something.” He keeps his tone soft, motioning to the bedside table with his chin.

Turning your head, you notice a small tray of food resting just behind the glass of water. From the angle you had while you had been laying down, it made it difficult to see.

You nod, fingers fiddling with that stem in your lap as you avert your gaze downwards. It is then that you realize that your wrists are also no longer hurting, nor are they swollen. The fae must have healed you overnight, just as he’s always been doing.

A small silence passes between the both of you, and you notice how he doesn’t move a single inch from his spot. Although he keeps his gaze fixed on you, it’s not uncomfortable in the slightest. In fact, it’s probably the softest look you’ve ever felt him give you since you’ve met. A look you have never experienced before, but the longer he stares at you, the longer you wish to bathe in the warmth this new feeling provides.

You don’t know why, but you want him to keep looking at you like that. To always look at you like that.

You swallow lightly, lips parting as you take a small breath in. The dryness in your throat prevents you from speaking the words you wish to say.

“Here,” Slowly, he crosses the short distance to the bedside table, grabbing the glass of water in his hand. “Drink this.”

Every movement he makes is careful, so as not to frighten you. A fact which you appreciate more than even you realize at the moment.

Reaching your hand out, you take the glass from him. Lightly, your fingers brush over his own, and neither of you can prevent the way you both react to the other’s touch.

His breath hitches ever so slightly, but it’s so faint that you swear you imagine it.

You, on the other hand, swallow once more, a light shiver caressing your spine.

Neither of you comment on the other’s reaction, and for that, you’re both grateful. You’re not ready to acknowledge the sudden shift between you, certain that this is really only a temporary thing. The rug has been pulled out from under your feet too many times before, and you’d rather be prepared for the sudden shift in gravity than fall flat on your face again.

Bringing the glass to your lips, you take a sip of water. You don’t realize just how dehydrated you are until the first drop hits your tongue, downing the glass almost instantly. Once empty, you go to place the glass back onto the table, only for a gentle hand to reach out and prevent you from doing so.

Blinking your gaze upwards, you see the fae leaning forward lightly. A pitcher of water is in his one hand as he uses the other to steady your own. Without a word, or waiting for a response, he fills your glass once more.

Gently, he pulls away from you. Intently, you watch him place the pitcher onto the bedside table, shifting backwards soon after to sit on the bed across from your own.

You take another sip of water, letting a comfortable silence fill the room. Your back still rests against the headboard as you sit upon the mattress, gaze falling to your lap. In one hand, that glass rests, fingers curled around it as the crisp coolness of the water seeps into your palm. In your other hand, you hold that stem of red spider lilies, twirling the bloom softly between your fingers.

Your expression is the most relaxed it’s been in a long time, and for once your body doesn’t ache in pain. Breathing is the easiest it’s ever been for the moment, and filling your lungs feels refreshing for a change, rather than a chore. Your lips part slightly, and your tongue darts out to wet them.

You hesitate, before taking a deep breath in to steady your nerves.

“Thank you.” The admission is barely above a whisper, but from the way the fae seems to stop breathing across from you, you know that he’s heard you loud and clear. “General-“

“Mingi.” His tone is firm, but more so in an eager way than demanding.

Your gaze darts up in surprise to meet his own, and you notice him clear his throat. His Adam’s apple bobs as he swallows, the faintest hue of pink dusting his cheeks as he averts his gaze to the side.

You didn’t realize fae could feel something as trivial as embarrassment.

Not even a moment later, his once sharp eyes are drifting back to your own with the softest look resting on his features. You’ve never experienced anyone look at you in such a way before, and to say it makes your heart race would be a complete understatement.

Please, don’t let it be a dream. Don’t let it be a cruel trick you have become so used to. This feeling may be foreign, and terrifying in it’s own right, but the possibilities the outcome holds has you looking towards the future with hope for once.

“I wish for you to call me Mingi.” He breathes, his hands gripping lightly at the edge of the mattress he sits on.

It’s faint, but you cannot help the way your breath catches in your throat. Your gaze softens as you stare at the fae before you, heart swelling inside of your chest. You doubt this is his true name, but the fact that he trusts you enough to share such a part of himself with you has you feeling a certain type of way. A certain type of happy way.

A soft incline of your head is the first response he gets. The second is a slight upturn of your lips, and you’re certain he can hear the way your heart is thundering away erratically inside of your chest.

“Alright.” Your reply is gentle as you hum. “Thank you, Mingi.”

Such a tender, almost giddy smile, pulls at his lips. Even the corners of his eyes crinkle slightly, and you are suddenly taken by the beauty of this creature in front of you. Gone is the brute of a fae you met only a short while ago, and instead, in his place, is an oversized kitten parading around as a lion. Yet, you know that that beast still lingers just beneath the surface, ready and willing to strike at a moment’s notice.

Slowly, tentatively, you tell him your own name. A name no one has called you in years.

If you thought his smile was vibrant before, the second your name slips passed your lips his smile becomes downright blinding.

There’s something about the way he repeats your name slowly, as if testing the weight of it on his tongue to ensure he gets it right ever time, that has another warmth blooming in your chest. There is no malice in the way he grins at you once he’s perfected the way your name falls from his lips, and you find you can only smile faintly at him in response. A fact of which that only serves to make him more giddy.

“You should eat.” He repeats his words from earlier as he stands back to his feet. “Regain your strength for when we set out once more.”

You nod in response, reaching over to place the glass of water back onto the bedside table. Once your hand is free, you carefully slide the tray of food towards you, lifting it onto your lap to begin eating.

“Take your time,” he says casually over his shoulder. “We leave once you’re ready.”

Again, you simply nod in response.

There’s a sense of calm that hasn’t left you since you woke up, and the longer the morning lasts, the more you settle into this new feeling. You know you probably shouldn’t let yourself get too comfortable. The wool’s been pulled over your eyes too many times to count. However, there’s something about this fae - Mingi - that urges you to trust him.

After all, no one else has ever come to your rescue like he did last night.

Glancing down at that stem of spider lilies resting in your one hand, you cannot help the small smile that graces your features once more. It surprises you, because for a time, you thought that you may have forgotten just how to do such a simple thing. Yet, with this redcap, you seem to be relearning how to live again.

A girl that you haven’t seen in years, that you could no longer recognize in the mirror, is finally becoming the woman she has always been meant to be.

***

An hour or so later, and you begin to make your way back down to the main area of the tavern. Mingi said he would meet you downstairs to let you finish getting ready for the day. He told you not to rush, but you know not to keep him waiting. Besides, it’s not like you want to, anyways.

The tavern is much quieter than last night, with far less patrons. Only a few fae can be seen sitting around the space as you walk out onto the main floor, but that doesn’t mean their eyes still aren’t locked on you as soon as you appear.

More whispers about a supposed missing claim mark reach your ears, but you ignore them for now. You purse your lips slightly, saying nothing. Not when you see Mingi seemingly arguing with the owner of the tavern off to your left.

“Then, where the fuck did they get the ward key in the first place?” The redcap’s sharp tone is kept low, yet deadly all the same.

“I didn’t give them the key, if that’s what you’re implying.” The owner frowns, standing his ground. “If you’re that concerned about a human, don’t bring them into a den full of unknown fae. You, of all creatures, should understand.”

Mingi scowls, nearly reaching across the counter to scruff the fae’s shirt. His eyes glance over to you briefly, and you notice the way he stops himself, his hands clenching into fists at his sides.

“You have to activate the wards before a key can be used, do you not?” He hisses, irritation marring his brow.

“I must have forgotten to deactivate it when it was returned the last time.” The tavern owner replies without missing a beat. “If it’s taken from the return counter, I cannot prevent that.”

“You let them take the key off the counter?” Mingi’s voice booms across the tavern, and all heads turn to look at the both of you.

“Watch your tone.” The owner snaps, eyes suddenly sharp. “Don’t forget, you’re a guest here.”

“Fine.” Mingi lets out a sharp, exasperated huff.

Without another word, Mingi turns around to face you. Your eyes go wide as he places a hand onto your shoulder, turning you towards the exit. Though his body is tense, his touch is surprisingly gentle as he leads you out of the tavern and towards the edge of the forest, muttering under his breath.

“Stupid fucking creature left the key on the counter for them to take,” his voice is but a growl upon his lips, the stomping of his feet drawing attention from the few townsfolk outside enjoying the early morning air.

Your eyes dart every which way, glad that none of the other fae seem to be following after such an annoyed redcap. Of course, given the circumstances, you’re grateful. However, a chill still caresses your spine.

No one would have come to your aid should Mingi choose to take his annoyance out on you. Nor do they seem concerned that you do not belong with him, being a human and all. You’re in above your head, or at least, you would be, if you were in any immediate danger.

Walking through the woods, you remain silent for the time being. Given the morning you’ve had, you do not wish to upset the balance and make Mingi actually turn his anger towards you. You know he cannot lie, so his statement to protect you should hold true. However, you do not know how long that truth will last, or what might accidentally set him off.

This is completely new territory for you, and it both excites and terrifies you to no end. Someone felt that your life was worth saving, and not out of necessity.

It shouldn’t, but that means something to you. It means everything to you.

Passing by the stream you took that fateful bath in with Windfel as your ‘guard’ takes no time at all. In fact, you barely notice when you do, too caught up in your own mind for the moment. Still, there’s that familiar call from the water, beckoning you back towards its crisp coolness. A call which you rightfully ignore, just like the first time it sung to you.

You don’t have time for that, nor is bathing an option right now. Thus, you resist the streams’ call for another day.

Soon, hours pass with you traversing through the woods. No longer are you forced to follow after the redcap general. Instead, Mingi makes sure to walk right beside you. The only time he seems to speak is to alert you of a sudden root or rock in your path, or to let you know the direction you’ll be headed in.

Sometime later, and after he’s completely calmed down, you notice his arm starting to brush against your own. It’s gentle, and it could easily be passed off as his walking pattern, but after the third time he does it, you realize that maybe, just maybe, he wants to touch you.

His eyes are slightly out of focus, and you believe him to be walking purely on muscle memory alone. He must know the path to this keep of his like the back of his hand, for he doesn’t even blink when he steps over a few large roots you don’t even think he noticed.

“You’re lucky to be alive.” Mingi’s voice cutting through the silence of the woods has your eyes immediately darting over to him.

“So, you’ve said.” You reply lightly, cautiously.

This must be what’s on his mind. Hopefully, he’s not about to turn him saving you into a lecture about being in his debt. You’ve heard that one too many times to count.

“The stream you bathed in,” he begins, sparing a glance at you out of the corner of his vision as you walk beside him. “It should have killed you the minute you entered its waters.”

You breath catches in your throat, and you nearly trip over your own two feet.

“Well, that’s reassuring,” you exhale a long breath through your nose, frowning slightly.

Is that why Windfel…? No. It can’t be…

“I don’t know what drove you to dive into its waters, but the wild stream is enchanted so that once you enter, you can never leave.” He explains, keeping his head forward, gaze fixed on the path before your feet. “Or, well, it’s supposed to be."

“Windfel told me to bathe.” Comes your reply, staring down at the ground nervously. “He said I stunk.”

“Ah, so he pulled you out.” Mingi hums, as if the answer has suddenly been revealed to him.

“No, I got in and out myself.”

“That’s impossible.” Mingi frowns, turning to glance at you walking beside him. “The stream coaxes you into a sense of bliss, and the waters pull you deeper into its current the moment you set foot in it.”

“Well, I did hear a small voice encouraging me to stay.” You tilt your head slightly, almost in recollection.

“Yet, you still managed to pull yourself out?” Mingi asks, slight disbelief clinging to the edge of his words.

“We had to get back to camp,” you shrug, shoulders suddenly curling in on yourself. “There were things to be done.”

Almost immediately, Mingi stops walking. When he notices you get a few paces ahead, his hand reaches out to halt you in your tracks. Turning you to face him, you notice worry lining his brow.

“You escaped the waters of the wild stream because you felt a sense of duty?”

You purse your lips, eyes flitting everywhere around the area except to Mingi’s own.

“It’s not like that…”

“Then, how did you manage to escape Windfel?” He questions, both his hands resting on top of your shoulders now.

“I didn’t.” Comes your blunt reply, blinking up at the redcap before you.

You can feel your heart rate accelerate at the look in his eyes, fingers picking nervously at the end of your shirt. You know you should meet his gaze, it’s been drilled into since who knows when, but you fear the monster you’ll see looking back at you if you do.

“What do you mean you didn’t escape Windfel?” Mingi’s fingers tighten ever so slightly over your shoulders, frown marring his features. “It’s not like he would have just let you go.”

You say nothing, opting to purse your lips in response. You can feel your heart pounding inside of your chest as you continue to avert your gaze to the side. Given the way he’s currently reacting, you doubt he’d believe you anyways. Even if you tried.

Softly, he calls you name. His one hand gently cups you beneath your chin, turning your head to meet his gaze as he searches your own.

“If you believe I will get upset with you for telling me what happened, I will not.” His words are calm, yet firm, and there’s a certain look residing in his sharp eyes that makes you believe him.

So, you take a deep breath in.

“He told me to go survive on my own. That’s all.” Your body is tense beneath his hold as you tentatively brush his hands off of your shoulders.

He lets you.

Mingi purses his lips, clearly not satisfied with your answer. Only, despite the way you can visibly see his jaw twitch, he doesn’t push you.

“Come on,” he sighs, turning back to face the direction in which you’re travelling in. “There’s still a long ways to go.”

***

Two more days pass by like this, with you walking side by side with Mingi as you make the long trek back to his home. He’s a little more talkative than you’re used to, but not by much. He seems to be respecting your boundaries, for the most part. He doesn’t push you to answer him, nor is he as forceful with you as he was during the first few days you spent together.

Ever since that incident in the tavern, he’s been… nice. Well, as nice as a fae can be, all things considered.

In the evenings, when the sun begins to set and he notices your limp becoming more prominent, he purposely makes you stop to rest. He brings you food, and water, and if you get cold, he always makes sure to build a fire. He even goes so far as to sit near you, or against the tree beside your own, always making sure he’s close by in case you should need him.

The odd time, you even catch him glancing your way. Usually, he wears an unreadable expression on his features, but every so often, you catch that same soft look residing in his eyes as you did the morning you woke up in that tavern. It’s happened too often for you to just be imagining it anymore, and given the sudden way he’s been treating you, you find yourself relaxing more and more around him every day.

It’s beginning to look less and less like a false sense of security, and more and more like a genuine connection. Something which, now that you think about, you’ve never experienced before in your life.

The third day passes with no major events, but during the morning of the fourth, Mingi wakes you just before the sun rises.

“Come with me,” he says gently, keeping his voice low so as not to startle you from slumber. “There’s something I wish to show you.”

Mingi leads you up and around a small nearby hill, a beautiful pond stretching out before you. The water is as still as glass, and just as clear. You can see some wildlife faintly grazing around the edges, fish swimming beneath the surface of the pond. It makes you smile.

A few mountains can be seen rising in the distance, and the first rays of the morning sun begin to peek through their valleys. The tops of the surrounding trees begin to glow, the mist from the mountains rolling over the hills. Faintly, you can even hear birds beginning to sing their morning songs.

A small gasp of wonder escapes you as you see vibrant shades of pink, red, orange, and yellow light up the sky before you. The sun crests between the centre of the mountains, and you cannot help but to stare in awe at the beautiful sunrise spread out before your very eyes.

Blinking a few times, you can feel the familiar sting of tears beginning to line your vision. No one has ever done something like this for you, let alone shared in such a wonderful sight.

Standing here, you feel as if the whole world is spread out before you. A feeling you have never gotten to experience. Right now, you could be anything, do anything, or maybe even go anywhere.

For the first time in your life, you know what it feels like to be free.

Turning your head, you glance upwards to see Mingi already staring down at you. The same soft look rests on his features, his lips tugging upwards tenderly in a faint smile. His eyes shine with something you do not quite understand, but at the way the sunlight bathes his features in gold, you cannot help but feel that you do.

The hand you feel him place onto your back, right between your shoulder blades, is hesitant. Almost as if he expects you to pull away from him at any given moment. The fact that his touch is always so gentle now only makes your skin tingle pleasantly. For some reason, you just know that he’s also giving you the opportunity to pull away if need be.

Always, now, it is your choice. A choice you’ve never had in the past, nor ever been given the opportunity to take, even if you wanted to.

You swallow the sudden dryness in your throat, the tears that have welled in your eyes finally spilling over onto your cheeks. Though, for the first time in a long time, they aren’t out of pain or sadness.

No, grief does not cling to your lashes this time. This time, only a seed of joy can be felt, feeling it cultivate within your chest and beginning to grow outwards until it reaches the very tips of your fingers. A seed of which is beginning to bloom, and all because of him.

Movement catches your attention, and you look down to see a fresh stem of red spider lilies held between the tips of his fingers. The old stem had started to wilt, the flowers dying as their petals fell from the once vibrant flowers given to you that morning at the tavern.

It is then that you realize that he was the one who gifted you that fresh stem all those mornings ago.

You cannot help it. Your heart skips a beat inside of your chest.

“Is this-“ you swallow the emotions building within your throat. “Is this for me?”

Mingi smiles softly, inclining his head gently as he holds the flower out to you.

Carefully, you reach out and take that brilliant flower from his hand. Your fingers curl around the stem, more tears falling over your cheeks as you hold it tightly against your chest, pressing it directly over your heart.

Pursing your lips to keep your chin from wobbling, you squeeze your eyes shut.

It’s real. This is real. You are choosing to believe that what is happening right now is all real. What’s even better is that it is for you. It’s all for you.

At the soft touch you feel caress your cheek, you know that you’ve made the right decision. The decision to believe, even if you’re still terrified of what it means to take that leap.

Blinking your eyes open, you glance upwards to see Mingi already staring down at you with the most tender look you’ve ever received from anybody resting on his features. You can feel his thumb gently stroking over the skin of your cheek, wiping at the trail of your tears in the process.

Slowly, and ever so gently, he pulls you in closer.

“I want to see you thrive,” his voice is barely above a whisper, but you still hear him loud and clear within the silence that the morning brings.

It’s as if the whole world has gone still around you, and all you can see in this moment is him.

“I want to nurture you, and make you the happiest you’ve ever been.” His gaze never leaves your own as he tilts your head upwards slightly. “You have the most captivating smile, and I wish to see it more often.”

Your lips part in a silent gasp, heart pounding erratically inside of your chest.

“I wish to be the cause of it, of your laughter, your joy,” he leans in closer, his eyes hooding over as he darts his gaze down to your lips. “For you, there is nothing I wouldn’t do.”

There’s a slight hitch to your breath as your free hand comes up to rest against his chest. You swear you feel a slight rumble beneath your fingertips in contentment, too.

Again, his gaze flits down to your lips, and your hand tightens over his shirt. You swallow the sudden dryness in your throat, clinging to him as he continues to hold you so tenderly in the palm of his hand.

“More than all of that, though,” he breathes, and you can feel the warmth of his body against your own, “I wish to see you bloom.”

The second those words escape him, he’s pressing his lips to your own. His one hand cups your face so gingerly, pulling you in even closer as his opposite arm wraps fully around your waist. You can feel his chest rumble beneath your fingers once more, and this time, there’s no denying the pleased growl that escapes him.

Your eyes flutter closed in bliss, breath catching as you hear his growl of content surround you. The kiss is sudden, but welcome, nonetheless, and you cannot help but lean into him slightly.

All too soon, he pulls away, resting his forehead against your own. The light of the morning sun surrounds you both, and only serves to make the other glow beneath the golden hue of the surrounding hills. A warmth that covers you both as you stare into each other’s eyes.

“I have grown to care for you, My Blossom,” his gaze holds nothing but tender fondness as he says this, his thumb gently stroking over the skin of your cheek. “I only hope you will grow to care for me, too.”

The hand you have resting on his chest slides upwards, carefully cupping the side of his face in your palm. You notice his eyes flutter shut almost immediately, leaning into your tentative touch.

“I know it won’t be easy,” he keeps his voice low as he revels in your touch, “but I will always keep you safe. Nothing will hurt you while I am here to protect you.”

Mingi blinks his eyes open, shifting the hand he had splayed over your back to rest over your own over his cheek. His dark eyes glint in the light of the morning sun, full of promise and hope.

A look you’ve only ever dreamed of being on the receiving end of one day.

“Mingi,” the way you breathe out his name has his eyes fluttering closed in bliss once more. “I- I-“ you swallow the lump in your throat, “I think I’m starting to care for you, too.”

Your words have a brilliant smile tugging at his features. His eyes crinkle at the sides, and he stands back to his full height. Softly, he squeezes your hand in his own, intertwining your fingers together as he begins to lead you through the woods for the day.

“That’s good enough for me,” he hums, lightly swinging your hands back and forth between you. “The fact that you can come to care for a monster like me makes me the happiest creature in the world.”

Suddenly, you stop in your tracks, and Mingi turns to look at you with a furrowed brow.

“You are not a monster, Mingi.” Your voice is firm, albeit a little pained.

The furrow in his brow deepens, and he begins to speak, only for you to cut him off.

“I have lived with monsters my whole life, and you are the furthest thing from being one of them.”

The air around you goes still with tension, and you notice how dark the sudden look in Mingi’s eyes is. Not even the birds dare to speak as the sun dulls behind the canopy of trees.

“Who hurt you?” The words are but a low growl on his lips, his hand tightening subconsciously over your own.

You go to pull away, but Mingi tugs you back to him in an instant.

“Who. Hurt. You?” This time, he emphasizes each word carefully.

His gaze is sharp, and he can barely control his breathing. Lips are pulled back over sharp teeth, and his claws threaten to unsheathe any second at the anger building within. Again, his hand tightens over your own and you end up crying out in pain, pulling yourself out of his grip as he recoils from the sound.

Remorse paints his features, but there is no hiding how dark his eyes still are. He attempts to step towards you, wanting to make sure that you’re okay, but you take a step back. The smell of fear fills the air, but not just any fear.

Your fear.

Mingi’s expression falls. “I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

You say nothing in response, cradling your hand protectively to your chest. That sprig of flowers acts like a beacon, and Mingi is suddenly hit with the memory of how he first found you leaning against that tree all those days ago.

He inhales sharply.

“Please,” his dark eyes are pained, and he reaches for you once more. “Forgive me. I do not know what came over me.”

You blink rapidly, reaching your hands up to rub at your eyes.

Lightly, you shake your head, taking a deep breath to calm your nerves. “That you could get angry for me, not even knowing what’s happened…”

“Much as I would like to know, I will not pry.” He replies, suddenly appearing much more calm than he was mere moments ago. “Know that I will always get upset at the thought of someone hurting you. It is in my nature to want to protect the things I care about. It will… take some getting used to to remind myself to control my strength around you, as well.”

Averting your gaze to the ground, a small warmth begins to bloom in your chest. The fact that he seems so earnest in his explanation has a tension releasing from your shoulders that you didn’t realize you had been holding onto. He is fae, after all. You know he is much stronger than you, and from what you’ve gathered, hasn’t been around humans all that often.

As terrifying as it is to admit, you trust him. He’s done nothing to deceive you from the start, and if his words are anything to go by, he never will.

Tentatively, he offers you his hand. “Shall we?”

Your eyes flit from his face to his open palm, taking a cautious step towards him. Not even a moment later, you place your hand softly in his own, and he laces your fingers together without a second thought. Though, this time, it feels as if he’s holding onto you even more carefully than before. A fact which both surprises and elates you at the same time.

“I didn’t know you could be this gentle.” The corners of your lips twitch upwards, admiring the warmth that radiates from his palm to yours.

“There are a lot of things you don’t know about me,” he hums, a slight grin tugging onto his features.

“As there are many things you do not know about me.” You agree lightly, trying, and failing, to hide your smile as he begins swinging your hands between the both of you again.

“And yet, I grow more curious about My Blossom every day,” he responds, his thumb beginning to rub softly over the back of your palm.

The heat that rises to your cheeks is involuntary, and you avert your gaze to the side shyly. Subconsciously, you squeeze his hand, and you hear him chuckle lowly in response.

“Well, then, General,” your voice is light, teasing. A tone you haven’t used with anyone in a long, long time. “What would you like to know?”

His grin widens, and he turns his head towards you.

“Tell me everything.”

For the entirety of the day, the two of you talk. Conversation flows easily, and you get to know each other better. He tells you more about the keep, and why he chose that place to live. In return, you tell him a little bit about your hometown. However, as you talk about the field of red spider lilies that used to reside about two miles away from your house, you cannot prevent the sad smile that pulls onto your lips.

“It burned.” You recall with an expression akin to longing on your features.

“Then, I shall plant you a new one when we get home.”

His reply shocks you, and you cannot prevent the way your eyes go wide in response. The way that he says this so casually, too, has your heart swelling inside of your chest.

Mingi then goes on to tell you a little bit about his childhood. It’s gruesome, and wild. Everything you would expect for a redcap raised in this realm. Though, what surprises you the most is when he goes into detail about his moral code.

No wonder he is the way he is, and if you’re being honest with yourself, you wouldn’t want him any other way. It’s unexpected, but if you had to get stuck with any type of fae in this realm, you’re glad you got stuck with him.

It’s about an hour before the sun is supposed to set that your limp starts to become prominent again. You notice the way Mingi’s brow furrows in discontent, his gaze fixated on your right foot as he helps you sit down against a tree.

“Blossom, why is it that you have a limp?” His question is soft, his hands holding yours gently in his as he kneels beside you on the ground.

You stiffen, breath catching in your throat. Memories which you haven’t thought about since they happened flood your mind, and your chest tightens. Your lungs begin to ache as filling them with air suddenly becomes difficult, nearly beginning to hyperventilate.

Out of the corner of your eyes, you see that same monster covered in blood. Only this time, he’s holding a shovel.

Taking a deep breath in to ground yourself, you remind yourself that you are safe. Mingi will protect you from the monsters hidden in plain sight. He promised.

You turn your gaze to meet his own, speaking softly, “That’s a story for another evening. Okay, Min?”

His eyebrows raise slightly, but he doesn’t press the matter. In fact, you believe he’s far too distracted by the name you’ve just called him, for you hear him let out a low giggle, his eyes crinkling in the corners as he smiles giddily.

“Wait right here,” he tells you as he stands back to his feet. “I’ll be back with some supplies in a little bit.”

“I can help, too,” you go to push yourself off of the ground and back to your feet.

“No.” Instantly, he’s crouched before you once more, hands placed gently on your shoulders to keep you seated in your spot. “You stay here and rest. Let me handle everything. I want to take care of you.”

“Okay,” you breathe out, looking up at him through your lashes.

You’ve never experienced this before. Always, it’s been you fending for yourself whenever you can. First came others, then if you had a rare moment to yourself, you would treat her to something. Though, as more and more time passed, those moments came few and far in-between, until even so much as thinking of doing something for yourself caused you to recoil back in horror.

“I’ll be back before you know it.” Mingi smiles in response, leaning in to press his lips to your forehead before standing back to his feet. “I promise.”

True to his word, Mingi isn’t gone for more than an hour. He brings back with him some food and fresh water, along with the materials to build a small fire. One which he sets up quickly after handing you the food he found.

Once the fire is lit, Mingi shifts to sit beside you against the trunk of the tree you’re resting on.

“I thought I told you to eat,” his voice is low, his arm brushing against your own as he settles deeper against the wood at your back.

“I wanted to wait for you.” Comes your soft reply, holding out some berries he had picked for the both of you in the palm of your hand.

Carefully, he plucks up a fruit in his fingers. Only, instead of bringing it to his lips, he holds it to your own. You meet his gaze, and he only smiles at you, pressing the berry a little firmer against your mouth.

“Eat.” His voice is firm in his command, yet still tender all the same. “I will not until you do."

Parting your lips, you allow him to feed you the berry. He places it ever so gently onto your tongue, his thumb tracing over your bottom lip as the dark juice smears against your skin.

The sweetness of the fruit explodes onto your tastebuds as you bite down, chewing softly. You swallow, maintaining eye contact with him the whole time. You can hear your heartbeat ringing in your ears, and an actual thrill of excitement shoots through you. Quite a new feeling that you wish to feel again, and again, and again. With him.

One that gives you the courage to dart your tongue out, swiping at the tip of his thumb.

Mingi’s lips part, his eyes hooding over as he stares down at the way your tongue darts out to brush against his thumb a second time. He nearly moans at the feeling, chest rumbling deeply in contentment as he reluctantly pulls his hand away from your mouth.

The last thing he wants is to not be able to control himself around you, and scare you aware. He’s already tasted your fear, and he never wants to experience that bitter, repulsive scent ever again. He’s had enough of it to last a lifetime already.

A small smile begins to pull at his features as he watches you take a berry into your free hand. He cannot prevent the way his heart swells as you bring the fruit up to his lips, which eagerly part for the offering you provide for him. His eyes shine with that familiar tenderness, gazing upon you as if you are the brightest star lighting up his night sky.

To him, you are.

Slowly, carefully, Mingi wraps an arm around your shoulders. He shifts the slightest bit closer to you, but even if he senses the mildest form of discomfort from you, he will move away. Luckily, he doesn’t have to worry for too long, for you shuffle closer to him, tucking yourself against his side as you lean your head onto his chest.

“Is this okay?” He asks softly, his hand settling against the side of your waist.

Gently, you nod your head.

“More than okay.” The words are but a low hum as they fall from your lips. “I don’t-“ You take a small breath in. “I don’t think I’ve ever been held like this before.”

A pleased rumble shakes his chest, and Mingi pulls you in slightly closer into his side.

“How happy I am, then, that we get to experience this together.”

The rest of the night is spent curled up in Mingi’s arms, of which he is more than happy to hold you in. You take turns feeding each other berries, along with the other fruit he’s gathered, and by the time the moon has risen high in the sky, you are fast asleep against his side.

Like that fateful night not quite yet a week ago, Mingi absolutely revels in the feeling of you in his arms. There is no greater feeling for him than your body pressed against his own, and the fact that he gets to take this time to admire you while you sleep causes his heart to swell inside of his chest.

You are so peaceful like this. So calm. You fit perfectly with him, and just like the first night he got to hold you while you slept, he traces each and every contour of your features. Everything he sees, he commits to memory, letting his gaze linger almost longingly on your lips as he recalls the feeling of them pressed against his own.

Mingi smiles, tracing a knuckle softly against your cheek. The way you still seem to lean into his touch, curling deeper against his side subconsciously, only makes his heart race. A pleasant tingle erupts beneath his skin wherever he feels you pressed against him, and all he wants is more.

There is nothing he wouldn’t do for you, and as Mingi rests with you beneath the light of the stars, he vows to himself to figure out who these monsters are that you spoke of earlier that day. Anybody who brings you pain, who makes or has made you suffer, does not deserve to live any longer. Not if he has anything to say about it.

He’ll show these monsters what a true beast looks like, all while proving that a real monster fights for you.

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