#dbd reader insert

It is no secret that killers have their favorites in the foggy realm. When you first joined your fellow survivors warned you that a killer could pick you, and that could either be favorable or a down right nightmare. You've witnessed first hand in the trials such treatment: from the Doctor almost always letting Feng Min go; the Huntress going easier on the women; how Michael Myers will seek out Laurie to kill her; all the killers seem to despise Ashe for some reason; or how Wesker will focus on getting Chris, either out of bloodlust or something else.

And outside the trials too, in the dilapidated village and meadow near the campfire, killers and survivors can mingle if they so choose. For some reason the Entity–who you've been told is the spider-like legs that brought everyone here–doesn't seem to care what happens outside the trials as long as no one hurts the other too gravely. So, you've gotten a chance to somewhat interact with killers outside of being chased and hooked, and get to see some of the tenuous friendships, or understandings, forged. You can’t quite wrap your head around befriending the killers, but Sally, Philip, and Anna (whose names you learned outside the trials) seem nice enough to where you’re comfortable interacting with them in that meadow.

No killer has seemingly decided to favor you inside the trials and you weren’t sure if you were grateful for that or not…until they joined the realm.

Well, you aren't really sure what they are, per se. They may have a human man's form, but it's clear by how twisted they look or the tentacles emerge from their back that they are something else. They're probably something the human mind can't comprehend. Their voice is layered and stuttery, and honestly, the give everyone the creeps.

And yet, when you both came in contact with each other in their first trial in the rainy Red Forest, they stopped and their form twitched violently. You remember them uttering one single word: you.

Ever since then, they haven't harmed you. The Unknown actively avoids hitting you, opting to just follow you around unless someone gets close to you…then they chase them. You suppose you can be grateful for the fact they never hook or kill you, giving you somewhat of a break. Although, you can’t help but also feel guilty that your teammates get the brunt of their damage if they so much as look your way.

You're not sure what to do or to say, and you've never really seen them outside the trials either. It's clear whatever the Unknown is understands human speech and attempts to replicate it. They've tried speaking to you but nothing much comes out of it other than them asking for you to stay near them in the trials you both are in. But what do they want then? 

You groan as you wake up near the crackling fire, feeling like you always did when you're sacrificed: sore and in pain. You were the first–and hopefully the only–one killed by the Clown and despite the pain you feel from the hooks, the Entity's claws, and those pink gas clouds of his, you're just glad he didn't straight up kill you and take your finger like he has before.

“I got you, I got you.” You hear a soft voice whisper as large hands help you up. You give Jeff a strained, but grateful smile as he assists you to your feet.

“Does it ever get better?” You ask with a weak chuckle, knowing the answer he'll give.

Jeff laughs back as he guides you to the logs around the fire. He lets you slump against his form as you both sit down and lay against the wood. “I wish I could say yes, but…”

“I know.” You huff and see movement in your peripheral. Both Quentin and Zarina have returned from the same trial as you. “You guys make it?”

“Yeah, sorry we couldn't get you in time.” The younger male gives you a guilty look which you wave off. 

“Don’t worry about it…where's Ashe?” 

“He wants to find hatch and rub it in.” Zarina says with a roll of her eyes before she sits across from you on the other side of the fire. Before anyone could say anything else, Ashe's boisterous laugh fills the clearing.

“I got the hatch!” He grins and takes a seat next to you. He bumps your shoulder gently as you stay leaning against Jeff. “Sorry I couldn't save you, sugar, but your sacrifice did not go in vain.”

“It's okay. Glad you three got out.” You sigh, feeling a little better as the time passes. You suppose you could be thankful the lingering pain doesn't last for too long. The remnants of pain grew tolerable as you relaxed, staring at the fire. You miss your home and family dearly, but you're glad you've created something of a family here with your fellow survivors. 

A few more bodies join the campfire, some looking in pain from being sacrificed while others appear fine. You've gotten to the point where the aches are barely present and you no longer feel the need to rest against Jeff's shoulder. Some people chatted about trials and others talked about their lives before the Entity claimed them. You pick on a few of them wanting to head to the meadow and you decide to join them.

“Are you sure you're good to go? Need any help?” Jeff asks softly while you move to stand.

“Nah, I'm feeling better. Some walking will do me good.” You smile at his kindness and stand with a stretch and low groan. It's true you wanted to walk around; it gets boring after a while just staring at the never-ending campfire. But also, you did want to speak with a few of the killers you liked. You were bridging the language barriers with Rin and Anna, and Sally grew on you outside the trials. 

You linger towards the back of the small group of survivors. It's only a five minute walk to the desolate village and meadow, and your group arrived in no time. You didn't see Rin despite the Oni–who apparently is her ancestor–sitting at his usual spot, nor did you see Anna. 

They must be in trials. 

You did spot Sally, so you break away from the splitting survivor group and approach her. Her head perks up a little when she spots you. Despite her rather gaunt appearance without her usual hood, she is a beautiful woman. Her eyes meet yours before she smiles your way.

“Hello again.” She rasps, her head tilting slightly as her unblinking eyes watch you approach. 

“Hey, Sally.” You instinctively go to ask how she is doing, but you've learned not to ask that of killers and they don't ask you. It leads to an awkward conversation about killing and being killed. “Philip is busy?”

“Oh yes, he is away.” She sounds woeful as she looks out at the other killers. “I do hope I see him soon. We've been pulled in so many times lately.” 

“I was hoping to see him and get to know him more. He's so shy.” You chuckle and so does Sally. 

“That is my Philip, always so shy yet so lovely too.” If she could blush, you assume she would be by the way she cups her own cheek with her palm and how she looks away from you. “The other day he…”

Her voice trails off, making you furrow your brows.

“That is strange.” She murmurs.

“What’s wrong, Sally?”

“Oh, it's just…” She stares before looking at you again. “They've never come here before.” 

You slowly follow where  she was once looking and freeze. In the tree line, nearly obscured by the darkness and thick fog, stands the Unknown. Despite them not appearing to have eyes, you can just feel that their stare is on you. You swallow thickly. They're not moving save the occasional twitching of their form. You feel Sally place a hand on your shoulder, tearing your gaze away from them.

“Are you alright? Do I need to get Kazan or Tarhos?” She offers. “Or perhaps Portia and Snug?”

“No, they won't hurt me…At least, I don't think they will.” 

Unknown raises their twisted hand as their head tilts to the side. Their mouth doesn't quite open like a human's would but you still hear their distorted voice all the same, “Come-Come…here.” 

“I was not expecting that, to be honest.” You mumble and you can see their arm twitching a little, like they're trying to beckon you over. You're half-inclined to go over to them and half-tempted to go back to the campfire. You slowly inhale, hold it, then exhale. “I'm going to see what they want.”

“Be careful. Even they give a lot of us the creeps.” Sally whispers before you walk towards the Unknown. You swear their head perks up a little when you get closer and you feel like your stomach is doing barrel rolls inside you. You cross the threshold of the meadow and forest, and before you know it, you're right before them. You have to slightly tilt your head back to look at their face, their height practically towering over you.

“Hell…Hello.” You barely see their teeth move when their voice comes out; their face is stuck in that forever grin. 

“Um, hey.” You cringe a little at your awkwardness but how else does one greet and talk to an otherworldly being poorly disguised as a human? You take another deep breath in before speaking again, “I don’t mean to sound rude, but what…what do you want? Why do you follow me in trials?”

“Tr…Trials…” You swear you hear your own voice mixed with their voice and it is a little unsettling.

“Yes, the trials. You follow me and you don’t harm me despite it being what the Entity wants.”

“Entity.” You feel like this conversation won’t go anywhere, but then they surprise you. “Yo-You…Me. Pet. You’re my…my pet.” 

“...What?”

“My pet!” They sounded genuinely happy as their head tilts to the side. Their arm moves in a jerky motion towards you, their fist nearly hitting you. You stumble backwards and nearly fall onto your ass. In their clutched hand are crudely picked flowers likely from the meadow behind you. Most look withered and decayed but they hold them out proudly for you. “These are…are for you!” 

“Oh.” You blink and stare at the makeshift bouquet and then back to their face. You tentatively reach out and hold your hand out for him, facing your palm towards the obscured sky. A trill escapes the Unknown as they drop the flowers into your hand before pulling away. 

“Do…you like them?”

“They’re nice.” You smile as you look at the bouquet. It truly isn’t that nice, but it is the Entity’s realm and it’s really the thought that counts. “I like them. Thank you.”

“Happy. You’re smile…it’s nice.” 

Your smile widens at the compliment and you try to be polite back, “And I think yours is nice too.”

Another happy trill leaves them and their body unsettingly twitches. Their hand jerks out again and you attempt to not flinch back again. Their hand plops onto the top of your head before they start patting you. “Pet…Tha-Thank you. Good, pet. Good, little pet.”

“I’m almost wondering if you mean friend.” You chuckle. You see them tilt their head to the side and the patting stops for a moment. It was like they were confused. “You know, like someone you like and trust. Someone you want to be around.”

“Someone…you want to-to be around.” They repeat your words and once again you swear you hear your voice in the mix of voices.“Yes.”

“Then you want to be my friend?”

“Yes.” This conversation is not going where you assumed it would. You find yourself appreciating the efforts they have taken and it makes you a little more curious about them. 

“Still pet to me-me. Though…”

You chuckle again. “We will work on that.”

“What…What did you just do…? That noise.” 

“It’s called laughter. It means a lot of different things, but I am mostly just amused and a little bit happy.”

“Did I make you…you happy?” 

You suppose they have made you happy with the little gift and letting you know they simply wanted to be your friend. “Yeah, you did.”

“Good. I want to make…you happy, little pet.”

“That isn’t my name, you know.” You shake your head and tell them your name, to which they repeated. “But I hope I make you happy too then.”

“You…will.” The way their voice sounded and how they almost leaned towards you sounded a little cryptic. They resume petting your head for a few moments before slinking their hand away from you. You’re about to ask what they meant but you hear a familiar, low rumble above you.

Glancing up, you can see darkening clouds before the tips of the Entity’s claws emerge: another trial is starting and it looks like you’re going back into the fog. You grimace and you can hear the Unknown make an upset noise at your expression.

“I’ll see you again soon, okay?”

“Okay.” The reply as the claws get closer and closer to you. “Bye bye… little pet.”

The princess holds her coins out to the merchant. “I want two shovels of those morsels you have here,” she requests. The merchant grins, blackened teeth flashing her. “Aye miss, but where would ya like to get else?” 

She thinks for a moment, before finally gesturing to the section of fruits. “Those there, the purplish thing.”

“Aye, the szilva?” the merchant offers one to her. The princess grins, tightening the fabric to cover her face better. 

“Will give you as much as I have in my satchel,” she responds delightfully. 

The merchant nods, giddily adding the rich fruit into the rucksack he will give to her. She hands him a handful of florentinus. 

The merchant gawks, his one good eye bulging. “My, my, yer more than just a traveler.” 

She grins beneath the scarf, nodding her head. “A secret, if you will allow this.” 

“Aye, ya have my word,” the merchant says. 

Tarhos tracks down the girl easily. A merchant had told him the whereabouts of a young woman passing through. Fitting the description perfectly.

Him and his men set off westward of the town, heading towards the otherside where the merchant said she’d be. 

It was simple. He could sniff out a princess, pretending to be hiding among the regular everyday peasantry. That isn’t too hard. There’s a gait and a certain way women in this century hold themselves. It’s a refining standard. Their heads held up high, their confidence oozing with every single step of their leather bound shoes. 

He runs into something, gripping their arms tightly. The veil falls from their head, cover blown. 

“Found ya,” he grumbles roughly. She sneers at him. The scar across her, then he feels the pelts of her legs; nothing is felt for him. He nearly laughs in delight.  

“Let me go, or I’ll–” 

“You’ll what? Kill me?” Tarhos inquires, a grin forming. 

His strong fingers dig into her flesh. The princess is here in such a disgusting place. To Tarhos, to his men, and in this horrible corridor where there are moans nearby. 

“You frequent places such as these, do ya, girl?” he pulls her up to whisper the filth into her ears. She thrashes again, her kicks pinging against his armor. 

Tarhos laughs. He glances at his men, signaling them to depart ahead of him. They already know the look. 

He glances back to the princess, an odd thing to behold in the dimness of night. 

She is exactly what he expected her to be. A wonderfully cruel and defiant thing. 

“You,” she hisses. “I’ve seen you following me at the market.” 

He leans in close, nose bumping her temple. The scent, the hair, the eyes. This is the king’s daughter. A horribly, unretained woman. He nearly licks the side of her cheek, an alluring emotion growing inside of him. 

Strong emotions for a person so wicked. 

Tarhos reels back, knowing she is lethal in ways he is unaware of. He cannot let his guard down with her. 

He feels the odd sensation of something hot and tight in his gut. The slim dagger forcing itself into his side, slicing the bit of flesh it can pierce through even with armor. Clever girl, he thinks. 

“Let me go,” she grits out, eyes ablaze. It doesn’t feel like anything. Pain is secondary to him. 

The struggle he’s endured before this. Before now. The princess thinks she can wound him, down him with a single piece of scrap metal. Laughable, really. 

Tarhos grabs her hand, covering her own with his and forcing the weapon even more into his side. If she can kill him correctly then he will let her, if she hesitates he takes her. “You’re already here,” he challenges. “Finish it.” 

She snarls, pushing into him and he grunts. Ah, that pinch of pain. 

The sensation opens him, uncoiling a flame beneath him. Hot and heady. She is blissfully obstinate as he heard she is. 

Tarhos presses himself to her, entangling her with his free arm, allowing the dagger to push through. He groans deep, the sound rumbling in his chest. The moans around them grow louder, the sounds of a pleasure house only exceeding in drowning out their own foreplay.  

“You,” she murmurs, eyes widening, glancing down quickly at his side. She moves away from him as quickly as she can. This cannot be, her mind warns. 

He grabs her, baring his teeth. “Finish, girl.” 

The princess swallows, her lips parting. Hesitation will only bring about more suffering. He plunges it for her, grabbing her hand and thrusting the weapon deeper into him.

She gasps, more so at the way he’s gripping her, how he seems enthralled by the action. This is a pleasure for him.

No Knight has ever done such a thing. 

“A reward, princess,” he says. 

“What?” She asks, breathlessly. Confused by the turn of events. She realizes their lips are so close. It is the devil’s work. Tarhos is a knight. A foul mercenary doing his king’s bidding. 

The knight pulls her into his embrace, her hands dropping to her side. “Slay the knight that has tried to capture you, and you will be set free,” he tells her.

She swallows dryly, feeling the sweat prickle against her back, rolling down her skin. The moans in the alley grow louder by the second; lovers interlocked. 

Is this what it looks like for them too? 

The princess shuts her eyes, the sounds, the smell of musk on her tongue. The iron is just beneath, the wound should kill him. 

It does not. 

The princess realizes there’s a freedom in the space he gives her. She runs, the dagger dropping and resounding in the alley. 

A sharp clang and she vanishes into the night. 

Arriving back to his men, empty-handed and bloodied. They all look at him quizzically. 

“The girl escaped?” Alejandro asks. His men look nervous, waiting with baited breath for what Tarhos will say next.

“Aye,” Tarhos responds. “I’ll track her. I’ll bring her back.” 

“By yerself? Now—“ Sander tries to speak, but is cut off when Tarhos speaks. 

“I’ll do it. This is my cargo.” 

He leaves then, turning from his men as he can feel their eyes as he continues down the alley. He’d go back to the village and fetch her. He feels the thrum of his blood again, sucking in his teeth. Something about her makes him feel entirely roused, an utterly powerful sensation he hasn’t felt since he’s had his claymore slash against multiple men. 

The wound at his side pulses. He sucks his teeth in. 

This will be a game.  

He finds her at the back of a horse stall. When he hovers above her, he has half to pull her by the hair. Too long, too soft. He wants to know how she maintains it, what it would feel like draped over his face or his crotch. 

Tarhos hoists her over his shoulders. Her hands bound and mouth stuffed with a rag, it’s difficult managing her to behave. Her words come out in a muffled way, which are definitely meant to be various insults thrown his way. It thrills him really. A lady doing such filthy things causes his emotions to stir within him. 

A sort of forbidden fruit; delectable, vile. 

“Do not speak, you’ll only waste your energy,” he warns her.

He can hear her huff, shifting in his hold to get herself free. 

Tarhos considers this a part of the fun. 

She struggles, trying her best to kick him and to cause him harm. Something to make him hurt. She’s been running since as long as she could remember. Has been trying to make sense of all of this. Her cursed father, and his wretched kingsmen. She hopes they all rot in hell. 

“Keep trying, princess. It’ll only exhaust you,” he rumbles. 

She mumbles something angrily. 

Awful, man, she thinks. Rotten, terrible, vile, disgusting. His large hands cup against her ass and she nearly does manage to wriggle away. 

He nearly drops her into the gravel, but catches her carefully. 

“Now, now, we’ve got a long night ahead of us.” 

She thrashes one more time, feeling her body ache at the amount of running and moving she has done. 

Tired, winded, she’s done enough for a lifetime. Surrendering doesn’t seem like an option for her, but how can she get out of his hands? 

She needs to think, she clenches her teeth against the rag in her mouth. Her eyes closing as she thinks of every possible angle to get out of this hold. She will run away, she will be free, she tells herself. 

Tarhos lips twitch slightly upwards as he notices she’s calming down. 

Only he has managed to make her lose her mind. To completely unravel her being. Her sense of self. It drives him to inhale sharply. The essence of jasmine wafting in his nose, his hands grip tighter on the back of her thigh. 

The supple skin underneath. It stirs something deep in him. Insatiable and burning. 

A princess is a lady. A lady of a kingdom. The daughter of a King who wishes to have her head. 

A part of him almost wishes to drag this opportunity for his own selfish gain. He’s become fascinated by her, by her spitfire. She is by law a witch. One that would burn for her treasons against kin. Tarhos snarls, holding her tighter. He’d burn the whole kingdom down if it meant he got to keep what is rightfully his. His own. His. 

Some sort of possessiveness maims inside him, a roaring need. The King may have employed him, but some contracts are meant to be broken. 

Tarhos grins beneath his mask, the wound in his side still there as he carries her back to the Guardia Compagnia’s hideout.

You curse as the generator blows up in your face once again. Growling a few more curses under your breath, you go straight back to work, thankful for Spine Chill; the perk helping to signal when the killer - whoever it was - was looking in your direction. The ability had yet to trigger the hairs on the back of your neck to stand, so you felt relatively confident in continuing your work.

With the sound of running feet through the mud of the Red Forest, you take a moment to cast a glance and quick smile at Claudette as she came to help with the last leg of repairs.

"Any idea who it is?" You hazard the question just loud enough to be heard over the generator. She shook her head and took a glance around; both of your attentions being taken for a moment as a generator popped off somewhere across the forest.

"No idea. I haven't heard a--" You flinched as you heard Meg scream as she got downed. Your eyes widened as you looked at one another. A one-hit killer; that, coupled with no terror radius, left only two killers in your mind to guess between: Michael Myers or Ghostface. If you were being completely honest, you were hoping it was Ghostface since he - in your personal opinion - was less intimidating and frightening as Michael.

You both sped up as carefully as you could, trying to get the repairs finished before the fateful scream of your teammate going on the hook. No matter how many times any of you were put on it, it never dulled the pain.

The generator roared to life just as Meg's scream echoed through the trees. Claudette gave you a nod and ran off in the opposite direction, your only assumption to try and find Jake. You push off the gen and start carefully making your way towards Meg, thankful this was her first hook; it gave you a small handful of seconds to be careful getting to her- trying not to attract the Killer's attention. When you finally made it, you scanned all around you to make sure it was safe before dashing over to pull her down.

As her feet touched the ground, your hairs stood on end and your ears picked up the soft click of a camera. You shuddered and refused to turn around, muttering for Meg to run quickly and nudging her along, keeping behind her to make sure he didn't strike her down again, so soon after being freed from the hook.

Your lip curled slightly into a snarl as you heard him laugh before giving chase. After a little, you take a breath and spin on your heel, running right at him; fill his attention enough to let Meg slip away and escape the chase. He laughed and struck, a yell left you as you dashed away from him, your heart pounding in your ears as he followed. That small fact tugged a small smile on your face as you led him to a section of walls you could loop him around. At least this way you knew that your friend would be able to get to safety.

Your arm was clamped at your waist where he had sliced you right down the side as you ran circles with him. Your breaths came in huffs as you limped around, cheeks burning and sweat dripping. As you leapt over a window, you heard another click and dared to turn around. Ghostface was just… standing there, looking down at his camera. You frowned and decided to take the moment to heal up with Self-Care.

"Gotta say, you're a much better model than any of the others." You glance up at him just as he does the same, shaking his camera around a little before positioning it to take another photo. Click.

Surprisingly, he let you finish healing up as he leaned on the sill of the window, casually browsing through his photos. You raise a brow and glance to where another gen popped; you could only assume - or rather hoped - that by this point Meg had gotten healed up. You turned your head back over to Ghostface.

"What're you doing?" His mask turned up to you. It took a lot of self-control to not flinch, the terror radius still pounding in your head. You stood your ground, however, and looked directly into the mesh covering of the droopy eye holes that let the killer see his surroundings - his victims. When he responded, you could hear the smirk in his voice as he pushed off the sill and tucked his camera away, leisurely hopping over to join you on the other side. Your nerves went back on end, ready to bolt if he decided to stop playing nice.

“What, can’t a killer take a break from killing every once in a while?” He chuckled and leaned a shoulder on the wall closest to his left, “Besides, it's not every day I get to actually have a conversation with one of you little chickadees!” There was just something so cheesy about calling you and your fellow survivors that you just had to roll your eyes and give a small shake of the head. Another gen popped just a few meters from the two of you, and you grew nervous once more as he sighed and pushed off the wall.

“Guess I should go take care of your little friends, huh? So we can chat nice and privately.” You could only assume he winked at you before swiping at you, giving you barely any time to even think about ducking out of the way. A yell ripped out of your throat as you fell to the ground, the fresh gash across your stomach and chest searing. You couldn’t help but berate yourself as you watched him stalk away towards the nearest unfinished generator as there was no way they would still be hanging around the newly completed one. Your head fell to the ground with a soft thud as you began to recuperate, deciding whether or not you wanted to try and block out the impending screams of pain from your team.

"You really ran him good; I'm honestly surprised he left you here." You heard Meg's voice as she ran over to you, helping to get you back on your feet. You huffed a laugh and shook your head.

"No idea, but let's not wait to find out. How many gens are left?"

"Just one. I think Jake is running him now, and last I saw Claudette was working on a hex totem. Let's hope he wasn't running NOED." You shudder and nod, unpleasant memories flitting through your mind as you ushered her to follow, making your way to a thankfully close generator that had yet to be touched.

The boom of a Hex Totem being cleansed rang throughout the forest as you and Meg worked on the last Gen. There hadn't been any sounds of pain from Jake being struck, so you assumed he was still--

"Thought I told you to stay where you were." You yell as Ghostface's blade strikes into your side. You had been so focused on fixing the gen that you hadn't realized Spine Chill acting up.

You push away and make a break for it, hoping you'll be able to lure him away just enough so Meg could finish. Your heartbeat thundered in your ears as he gave chase. Good. Your lips turn up in a smirk as you vault over a window, turning back to face him as you continue on, thankful for knowing the map like the back of your hand. In a way, you guess you should be thankful to The Entity for punting you onto this map enough times to make that statement true… but you would rather die for real than ever thank that clawed monstrosity of a deity.

Ghostface hopped over the window after you and continued the chase. With how little noise he usually made, and with that mask covering up what he really looked like, it was hard not to get curious as to what he was thinking in the middle of chases. Did he get frustrated? Angry? Or was it all a game to him, and he was smiling like a buffoon?

When the final gen popped - the same one you had led him away from - you smiled wide and winked before turning and sprinting as fast as you could away from him while he turned away for a split second, having just realized someone else had been on the gen with you when he came up on it.

Your lungs burned as you ran, hoping that you were going in the direction of one of the exit gates. You hadn’t really gotten a chance to glance around to see where they were earlier, but now it was a race against the clock - more so as a loud bell tolled and the ground erupted with glowing orange cracks. At least one of your team had been close enough to a gate to get it open while you were running the killer.

Taking a moment to pause and take in your surroundings, you do a full circle before spotting the barely visible outline of a gate amongst the trees further ahead. With a smile, you head that direction, a new hope drilling into your chest that your team was keeping him occupied at the other gate so that it gave you enough time to open this one.

You grunt as you pull the lever down and do a quick look around. Spine Chill remained inactive and you couldn’t see anyone nearby. The buzz that emitted from the lever as it was halfway through powering up gave your nerves a jolt and gave you cause to look around once more. You could feel the sweat on your palm making the lever slick and your hand slowly sliding off it even with how tight you were holding onto it. It wasn’t until the door buzzed one last time and began to open did Spine Chill activate. You released the lever and made a mad dash inside the gate, pausing just before the exit proper and turning around to face Ghostface, your chest heaving and face burning from exertion and adrenaline.

A low laugh came from him as his posture relaxed, hands going to settle on his hips as he looked towards you. It was a gut feeling, but you just knew the rest of your team already made it out. You hold your hands out, elbows against your sides.

“It's just you and me now, what did you wanna talk about?” He hummed softly and slowly walked towards you, twirling his knife in his fingers as he did so. You kept a piece of your guard up, ready to bolt in case he had NOED and wanted to make you the last possible sacrifice.

“Close your eyes and I’ll tell you.”

You frown, but take a breath and close your eyes, brows still furrowed. You heard the shifting of fabric, then warm breath on your neck. A soft gasp left you as his lips pressed against the juncture of your neck and shoulder, sucking softly before biting down with enough force to cause you to yelp and break the skin under his teeth, blood bubbling up from the small bite wound. He chuckles as he laps the blood up and pressing another kiss to the mark before shoving you back through the gate.

You’re not given any time to process what just happened before the Entity is pulling you through the gate and back to the Campfire. Finally, and realizing you were back on your feet, you open your eyes and put a hand up against where he had bit you. It was as if the entire encounter hadn’t happened, the skin perfectly smooth and not a speck of blood to be seen - not even staining the collar of your shirt. Your hands shake a little as you look back towards the dark forest that surrounds the fire, not even sure what you’re looking for. Your cheeks flush as you think about his lips against your skin, and you take a shuddered breath to try to calm yourself down.

“Édesem,” she hisses, mockingly. She throws his earlier name for her back at him. “I do not take orders from unruly men.” Tarhos doesn’t react, his looming presence not nearly as daunting as she thought. Perhaps she wounded his pride.

Alejandro grabs a hold of her. She kicks him in return, completely missing and he laughs. “This one, Tarhos, is quite the fighter.”

“She needs to come home in one piece,” Tarhos recalls, albeit begrudgingly.

Durkos snorts. “We’ll see if she doesn’t return bruised.”

Tarhos bristles at that, something overpowering coming over him. He slams his sword down, ceasing everyone's actions. Sander stands resolutely by his side.

“Were ordered to return this one back to her people. We do not threaten her for it is a liability. It’ll cost us our head.”

Durkos grunts. “I see no reason to keep her in one piece, she is acting as if she holds no tact. She disrespects you, my liege.” He takes a knee then. In a way apologizing for disobeying his leader. She makes a face of disgust.

Sander then grabs her by the face. Tarhos walks to her, removing the armor from his face to the young woman. She blinks, not nearly as shocked to find a normal man beneath the weight of chains and metal.

“I promise you this, princess. I’ll take you back where you belong,” he promises, through gritted teeth. She sneers. Tarhos has bowed to her, to this ungrateful young lady.

You click your tongue against your teeth as you rub your neck, a habit you had picked up after your last encounter with Ghostface. Needless to say, you weren't entirely pleased with it, and had even attempted to force yourself to stop it - to pick up a different one at the very least! - but whenever you left it alone for too long, a small phantom pain spikes, with tingling sensations around the area of pain. If you didn't know any better, it was as if the Entity itself was playing into this little game its seemingly favorite killer was playing with you. A soft pout pulled at your expression as you poked and prodded a hex totem; if he wasn't the favorite, why would he get away with so much?

The moment the totem crumbled, you scurried away, keeping an eye out for any sign of the killer; there had yet to be any distinctive noises in the distance to indicate one of the louder killers. For once, you were honestly hoping to see Michael stalking around somewhere! With him at least there wouldn't be this really weird and awkward sexual tension during a chase, or even when being hooked… you shuddered when you recall one match previous where Ghostface had you on his shoulder and, while you were squirming, had the audacity to spank you! Needless to say, the embarrassment from the yelp it pulled from you was seared into your very soul - not to mention his reaction to it. And it wasn't just you feeling this weird tension between the two of you, Nea and Yui had begun to tease you about whatever was going on between you and the masked killer while David seemed to get a touch more protective. Other survivors would ask either vague questions or just give you a side-eyed glance post match - possibly gaging your reaction to see if you had gone up against him or not.

"Hey, have you seen the killer yet?" You trot over and squat next to the generator that Felix was on. He gave you a quick glance before shaking his head.

"Nein." His voice was soft, accent thick, as he kept his focus tunneled on getting the gen completed as quickly and quietly as he could. You scan the surrounding area for a moment, narrowing your eyes to see into the shadows of trees and other environmental junk. You hated how many possible hiding spots there were in these maps. You scoff softly to get your slight annoyance and reached forward to help out with the repairs when he snapped his fingers at you. Blinking, you look over to see him gesturing for you to leave while staring over your shoulder. Your face paled as you just barely felt Spine Chill flicker; thankfulness burst in your chest as you carefully scurried away, trying not to leave any scratch marks behind until you were further from the gen and your teammate. Felix staring over your shoulder like that both told you exactly who the killer was and allowed you to run without being stared at.

After a few seconds of running, you crouch and start making your way back around, hoping you could go back and finish that gen while Felix kept Ghostface occupied. It wasn't the smartest choice, but it was so close to being finished! Biting your lip, you scurry as carefully and quickly as you can back to that area. To your delight, when you peek around the wall that hid the generator, it was sparking - showing that it had been kicked and was currently regressing. With Spine Chill safely inactive, you crab-walked over to the gen and got to work, your excitement dulling a bit as you realize just how far it had regressed in the time it took you to make your way back.

It wasn’t until you were just a few small repairs away from finishing the gen did Spine Chill start to erratically activate and your heartbeat began to thud in your ears as you were forced into Ghostface’s terror radius. Muttering a soft curse, you try to ignore the chase going on, silently praying that whoever it was didn’t --

“SHIT!”

Lead him to you…

As you were about to connect the final wires to get the gen running, Ace sprints right past you whilst unfortunately kicking his shin against the corner of the wall - thus shouting a curse and startling you enough to miss the wires and have the gen blow in your face. You reel back and shield your face from the sparks with your arms, turning your head away as well with a soft hiss of air between your clenched teeth. You also couldn’t help the annoyed anger rising in your chest as you realized that the terror radius was still as loud as ever, but was now coupled with the fact that Spine Chill was steadily active.

You were going to strangle Ace if you made it out of this alive.

“Well, aren’t you a sight for sore eyes, doll!” You sigh and glance over your shoulder, glaring at the killer that leaned against the wall just behind you - one hand tapping his knife against the palm of the other. The survivalist side of your brain screams at you to make a run for it, however, the rest of your being just can’t bring yourself to care; instead of fleeing, you turn back to the gen and begin making up lost progress.

“What’s with the nickname? Am I just special or do you have one for all the survivors?” You suppress a shudder when you feel the cold metal of his knife on the back of your neck, gently tracing down your spine and shifting to drift down your shoulder. He hums in thought, contemplating before responding with a low chuckle; leaning in close to speak lowly into your ear - his voice taking on an almost soft growl as the pitch dipped.

“No, doll, just you.”

As the goosebumps raised over your skin, your breath catching slightly and eyes widening just a touch, the generator pops with a loud rev and the floodlights above shine down on the two of you. You scream as his blade buries itself into your side. On one hand, you scold yourself for being so careless and stupid, but on the other hand, did you really have the energy to care after Ace’s stupid stunt that got you cornered? The jackass hadn’t even been doing anything all match - as far as you were aware or concerned.

You grunt as he jostles and hefts you onto his shoulder, laughing as he begins to walk you to where you only assume is a hook. Part of you wants to just accept your fate, but looking up behind both you and Ghostface, you spy Felix just around a tree. He gives you a soft smile and nod, ducking back behind the tree to safely begin tailing the two of you. With some form of hope now, you begin to squirm and try to push yourself out of Ghostface’s grasp. The man holding you laughs and tightens his grip around your waist, bringing his free hand up to give your thighs a pat and soft squeeze. It causes you to freeze for a moment, cheeks warming considerably, but doesn't dissuade you from continuing your escape attempts.

“Come on doll, it’s not gonna hurt that bad! How many times have you been up on a hook now? Surely your nerves have-” As he spoke, he passed right beside an upright pallet; Felix ran up right behind the two of you and slammed it down as hard as he could. You slip from his shoulder and are immediately grabbed by the hand and tugged away from the dazed killer. Felix pulled you to run ahead of him - keeping himself between you and Ghostface, who was once more on your asses - and pushed you forward a little by your waist in the direction of a jungle gym while he decided to double back and run at Ghostface. You couldn't help but raise a brow at the tactic - as far as you were aware, you hadn't seen anyone but yourself to try that before now. Ducking behind the walls, you could just barely hear the two colliding with Felix's shout of pain; you sent him a silent apology as you kept moving forward.

When you were certain that you were in the clear, you limped over to hide behind a stack of baled hay, crouching to look through a chest for a medkit. Hearing another’s grunts coming over, you glance up. Your face must have shown your displeasure as Ace held a hand up innocently, the other wrapped around his waist similarly to how you had been just moments ago.

“Let me help ya, okay? Least I could do after fuckin’ ya over like that. Didn’t realize someone was workin’ on that gen - thought it was regressin’.” A brow raised, and your annoyance dissipated slightly; at least he didn’t entirely mean to bring Ghostface toward you. You sigh and nod, moving away from the chest, and lifted your shirt just enough for him to see the stab wound that ran horizontally across your side. He sucked a breath between his teeth and muttered a few more apologies as he got to work.

During a moment of silence as you returned the favor, he glanced down at you from beneath his shades.

“So, you and Ghostface, huh?” You pause and look up at him, confused as to what he was hinting at, though part of you was forced to acknowledge the sinking feeling in your gut that you knew exactly what he was talking about. He shrugged and looked around, “The asshole has a tendency to blabber when taking us to hooks, ya know? Last match I was in he couldn’t stop yammerin’ about you.”

“Seriously?”

“As serious as my gambling debts.” He muttered a soft thanks and readjusted his shirt when you finished and handed him back his med-kit. Not wanting to really continue the conversation, you simply nod and give him a small salute before heading toward where you had heard Felix going up on a hook mid-conversation. It surprised you a little, how fast he went up, considering how much Ghostface liked to play with the survivors before downing them…

Keeping an eye on your Spine Chill, you crept towards the hook, ducking behind hay bales and trees, and even army crawling through tall enough grass - anything that could help you blend into the environment and keep the droopy dark eyes of Ghostface’s mask off of you. When you were close enough, you could hear a strained laugh come from your friend; looking up at him, you grin as he looks at you with a raised brow.

“He isn’t here. Nancy blew a generator and drew his attention away.” You nod and stand, doing a glance around before pulling him off the hook.

“Come on, let’s hide over here and I’ll patch you up.” He shook his head and instead, once again, took your hand and drug you over to a generator hidden in the shadows of the trees and brush.

“Let’s just finish up, okay? The sooner we’re out of here, the better.” Your frown deepened a little as you looked him over, trying to glean some kind of hint from his expression or body language that had him rejecting aid. He seemed a bit tense, but that wasn’t too unusual, right? You bit your lip but kept your thoughts to yourself as you got to work on the gen; it wasn’t long until Nancy came over, huffing and plopping herself on the last free side of the gen.

“What is his issue today? I don’t think I’ve ever seen him so… serious? It’s weird and really annoying - I just barely managed to slip away from him!” You glance over to her then Felix, worry starting to claw at your stomach. Had it been something to do with when he had rescued you earlier? Felix refused to comment, though that wasn’t quite out of the ordinary either. Still, it didn’t stop you from worrying just a little about what must’ve happened during his chase earlier.

The moment that the generator roared to life, and the buzzers for gate levers went off, the three of you began to make your way in the direction of one of the doors - however, Ace’s scream and a sudden, bone-deep shudder that ran through each of you, had you pausing and looking at each other in horror.

“Fucking NOED? Seriously?!” Nancy rubbed her face and gave a soft growl, annoyance written not only on her face but the way her shoulders tensed. Felix put a hand on one of them and nodded towards you.

“You two head for the other door, I’ll go get Ace. Keep an eye out for the totem.” You gave him a nod, muttering ‘be careful’ under your breath before heading your separate directions. Your eyes scanned every nook and cranny that the two of you ran past, looking for any sign of the lit totem. Nancy pulled her ponytail tighter and kept her focus forward.

“If you see it, let me know. I’ll watch your back and cleanse it while you open the door.” She glances back at you and you nod, though you weren’t entirely sure if you would see it once you got to the door.

By the time you arrived, there had been no sign of the totem and both of you were on edge. Felix had been downed getting Ace from the hook, and it hadn’t been too long until Ace was taken down again. From what you could recall of the match earlier, both of them were on Struggle Hook now, just like Nancy would be if she were to go back on a hook. You take hold of the lever and yank it down, the loud buzzing and clanking of the door causing your anxiety to skyrocket. Nancy stood behind you, keeping a lookout for any sign of -

“Going somewhere?”

Nancy screamed as his knife dug into her shoulder, startling you enough to let go of the lever. Instinct took hold and you bolted, feeling guilty for leaving her with him, but not wanting to die so quickly as well. Perhaps if you could stay away long enough, you could find the hatch? A low thrum resounded through the area as the sky opened up on the far end of the map, signaling the first sacrifice, and it wasn’t too long after that another sounded. Two down. Your heartbeat raced as you ran, an involuntary shudder coursing through you as you heard Nancy scream once more - the second hook, and soon to be Sacrifice. Curses flew from your mouth as you forced yourself to go faster, your legs and lungs screaming at you.

The moment the third sacrifice was signaled, your eyes immediately scoured the ground as you ran past, ears straining to hear the hopeful, low hum of the Hatch. Your anxiety was at its peak, your heart racing and your hands and legs shaking with the adrenaline in your veins. When was the last time you felt this scared during a NOED match? The last you recalled was against the Oni, and you had even laughed during your final chase against that monster of a man!

A tear fell down your cheek as the End Game collapse began - he found the hatch first. You paused to catch your breath, leaning heavily against a tree as you forced yourself to stay standing even though you wished to collapse yourself. The two exit gates were relatively close to one another, though still reasonably separated. If you wanted to survive this match, you had to pick the right door. You weren’t sure how far along Ace had gotten in opening his door, and you had only gotten about halfway; it was probably a safer bet to go back to your door…

You froze, eyes widening as you felt Spine Chill activate. You refused to move to look around as you heard his footsteps get closer - terror radius growing louder in your ears. When his steps stopped just behind you, you thought he was going to say something witty, or at least tap your shoulder or even hip with his blade… instead, a scream ripped from your throat as he dug his knife into the base of your spine.

When you fell, you clawed at the dirt and pressed your forehead against it, cursing at the pain that radiated from the stab wound, and when he yanked it out unceremoniously. You yelped as he sat directly on the wound, your forehead pressing further into the ground, teeth clenching so hard you figured you would fracture a tooth.

“You really should know better than that, Doll.” He hummed and leaned forward, lifting your head by the chin so he could speak in your ear, “You know you’re mine, right? Why let anyone else even touch you like that? Are you trying to make me jealous?” He chuckled and moved back. You could hear him removing his mask, though what startled you was that he tossed it to the ground before yanking your head back up by the hair. Another scream left you as he bit harshly into the juncture of your neck and shoulder, licking the blood that bubbled up and pressing an open-mouthed kiss to the wound. You felt him smirk against your neck as he pressed more kisses up and around your jaw, ending at your ear.

“Now let’s see if that scar will stay put.” He let your head drop back to the ground. One of his hands braced against your back as he slammed his blade into you, yanking it out only to plunge it once more into your side. Your vision was fading as he pulled it out once more, taking his hand off your back and, once more, shoved his knife into your spine, pushing it further in with both hands. Your consciousness was slipping fast as he pulled your head back up, barely registering the flash of his camera as you faded to black…

With your body limp underneath him, Ghostface hummed and sat back, smirking wide as he looked down at the picture he took. This was the only one he had of his kills in this fucked up place that he had taken his mask off for, but you were more than worth it to him. He shifted to his knees and rolled your body around underneath him so you were on your back, mouth bloody and lax, and eyes staring up to the sky past the treetops. His smirk softened as he pressed a palm to your face, thumb brushing gently over your cheek as he leaned down to kiss your forehead.