#impes

The sound didn’t happen again and you didn’t know if that comforted you.  If it was something smart… it’d stand still and wait.  

You shouldn’t have watched that last slasher film.  You should have turned it off and put on a comedy, some stupid romcom.  You know HE wouldn’t have minded the change in genre.  He wouldn’t have judged, but no… you liked the excuse to cuddle close to him and seek comfort. 

You reminded yourself to breathe and listen.  You couldn’t hear anything distinctly human nearby.  No music, no cars, no fires, nothing.  

You could hear frogs singing.  The rains must have recently stopped.  You could hear the wind working its way through the canopy above, but… other than that, this wooded area was eerily quiet.  Animals flee when something is nearby right?

Swallowing, you stepped back and winced as your toes sank into cold mud.  You hadn’t taken your eyes off where that sound came from despite your eyes belying no useful information.  No matter if you could see… something or someone brought you out here from the safety of your home.

Reaching a hand behind you, you felt for trees and shrubs as you took cautionary steps back.  

For a while this worked and you could feel the tension leaving your form as a little giggle worked its way up your throat.  You probably looked like an idiot doing this little backwards, blind shuffle.  Besides, if something was gonna come at you, it’d be better to be facing the other way so you could run right?

One last glare ahead of you then you turned on your heel and walked straight into something that did not feel like a tree trunk or shrub.  

Your nose immediately filled with the scent of pine and iron, but more importantly… that was fabric under your nose and something solid and distressingly warm lurking underneath.  Something very much alive.

You froze instinctively and it shifted.  Muscle rolling and you squeaked realizing this was this being’s stomach you were level with.  You didn’t want to look up and acknowledge how it towered over you.  Didn’t want to see it, but curiosity won out and you forced your head back.

You couldn’t see much even this up close, but you could make out that the general shape was masculine and humanoid.  The glowing eye that resembled molten glass stood out, illuminating the edge of what looked like a round hole in a mask. 

Not human.

Trembling, you took a step back as the being adjusted their footing before lifting something above one of their shoulders.  Something long and it wasn’t until they cocked their head, it clicked what was going on.  

Turning on the ball of your foot, you tried to run, but the slick mud sent you tumbling and you swore you could hear what you were sure was a wooden bat now slicing through the air above you.   Gasping, you rolled to the side and scrambled to your hands and knees, crawling into the shrubs and off the path.  

You tried not to think about the second close call.  You’d only heard it, but that splat and gush… that had been his boot in the mood.  He’d tried stomping you!

Biting back a whine, you rushed to your feet and took off deeper into the woods.  

The grass didn't have much better grip than the mud and you sobbed as turns often resulted in you sliding off your desired course.  Every root, stick, and vine seemed to have a vendetta against you and tried to trip you up or tangle around your legs.  A briar had already gotten at your naked legs and you winced as dirt and dew touched the shallow cuts.

At first, you could hear his foot falls behind you.  The steady, building thumps and wet smacks, and the occasional snapping twigs under foot.  They seemed to get louder.  Closer.  Too close.  

You thought you could feel calloused skin brush your elbow.  You swore you could hear his eerily calm breathes; in contrast, your own breathes felt too short and too loud for how little oxygen they seemed to provide to keep you going.  

You couldn’t plead for your life even if you wanted to.

Then suddenly it was gone.  You couldn’t hear him behind you.  

You almost stopped to look, but reminded yourself to keep pushing ahead.  Don’t look.  Don’t fucking look. That’s how people die in horror films.

You fought to keep your body moving forward.  A chant of "Don't stop" on repeat in your mind as you rushed and weaved through the trees. It was so dark the trunks appeared as silhouettes in the night and only the scarce light of the waning moon lit your way.  

Fruitlessly, you tried dodging twigs and sticks to avoid making more noise than needed, but with your breath coming in gasps and pants and brush crunching underfoot.  You doubted you were being sneaky.

Finally, you could see a brighter area up ahead and hope bloomed in your chest.  

Breaking the tree line, that hope shattered and you stifled a sob.  It was just a small clearing.  Only brighter because the meager light of the moon could actually reach the forest floor.  

The trees around you twisted in your vision.  They looked like the bars of a cage with nothing but impenetrable dark between them.  A cage… you were caged prey.  

Your heart felt like it was trying to beat its way out your chest and you struggled to catch your breath still, even though you were no longer running.  The adrenaline was still flowing strong and you itched to get moving, but you had no clue where your pursuer was.  

What if you ran right into his clutches?  Right into that bat he was wielding…

You swallowed. 

A mistake as you found yourself choking on your own spit and hacking.  Tears threatened to blind you during the fit and you mistakenly wiped at your eyes with your dirty hands.  It only made it worse and now you were panicking as sand and dirt only brought on more tears.

You needed to see!  You could afford to be blind!  

You hiccuped and fumbled.  No, no!  The sobs just worsened and you missed the steps getting closer.

A short hum was all the warning you got before large hands caught you before you could try running off blindly.  Their hold was firm and eased you to kneel on the ground.  One of their hands rubbing at your back to sooth the coughing fit you hadn’t quite escaped.

They were quiet and all you could hear was a stretch of jean fabric and the squeak of leather in between your hiccups and pleas.  You didn’t need to be able to see to know their long legs were either side of you.

Slowly, they released their grip on one of your arms and you sniffled, still babbling, but no longer struggling.  

Something soft and moist touched the apple of your cheek and you jumped, squeaking in surprise.  Their other hand moved to gently cup your chin and you stilled, letting them wipe at your eyes and clear away the debris.

“I’m sorry…” you finally mumbled, biting at your lip and wanting to turn away.  

You could hear him sigh above you and you could feel your eyes burning again.

“I convinced you to do this for me…” you continued, voice cracking and fingers gripping at your pajama shorts.  They were damp and you could just imagine how dirty they were.  “... yet I fucked it up,” you finished, sniffling and fighting back tears again.

He just sighed once again and finished cleaning your face, then moved to your hands, and lastly, your feet. You blinked your eyes open at the ticklish feeling and watched him tuck the cloth away once he was finished in his jean pocket.  

The giant really did fill them out nicely and with how he was crouched over you like this really showed off the size difference between you two.  

“Impes?” you called.  You didn’t expect him to speak.  He rarely did, but you really didn’t want him upset.

It had been your idea to do this sort of play.  Prey and predator… it had been something you’d always wanted to try, but he’d been reluctant.  You understood why.  He’d let in once on his past and the things he’s done that he’s not proud of.  This sort of play hits close to home and you guessed he was worried about relapsing.

He hadn’t.  

He wasn’t the one who ended up stopping the scene.  

You did.

Another little sob bubbled up and you went to apologize, but his next action silenced you.  For a moment you were blinded and then you could see, but your vision was limited to two round holes.  

Your hands came up to investigate what was on your face and felt smooth porcelain.  You could also feel the soft skin of his fingers that were holding it place and you gripped one of the long digits. 

His mask…

You hiccuped and breathed in.  It smelled like him, but more than that… you knew how much his mask meant to him, how much wearing it meant to him.  It helped him face the world.  Maybe he wanted it to help you right now?  

The thought brought a smile to your lips and you giggled at the cute gesture.  

“Thanks, Impes,” you whispered before releasing his finger and instead holding the mask in place.  It was way too big for you, but you weren’t giving it up for a while.  This was an opportunity not to be missed.

He hummed and let you have a moment to just breathe and entertain yourself, leaned up against his knee.  He was patient, ever patient, and occupied himself rubbing at your feet to warm them back up.  

You respectfully didn’t look up at his uncovered face and instead focused on how comically small your feet looked in his hands.  Playfully, you tried capturing one of his fingers between your toes before giggling as he seized the errant piggies instead with a chuckle.

His voice, his sounds, unmuffled was quite the treat.  It had this certain bass to it and you wondered if you could get him to be more vocal tonight.  You wanted to hear more.

Before you could make a move, he shifted his grip so his fingers were wrapped around your ankle and with a careful tug, he pulled you closer and onto your back.  

Your hands gripped at his mask to keep it in place during the short fall.  You wanted to try and sit up and see what he was up to, but that meant getting an accidental peek at his face. All you could do was feel.

Something pressed into the sole of one of your captured feet and you breathed in slowly to chase away the laugh that tried to break through and the urge to kick him.  Was he going to tickle you?  Really?  That idea fled as it pressed more firmly and rolled.  

An embarrassing little whine tumbled from you as he gripped your other ankle as well and tugged you once again.  Your shirt and shorts rode up and you could feel grass tickling your lower back and brushing along your ass.  

Soft, warm lips pressed to the arch of your foot and you shivered, leg twitching in his grip.  It still tickled and even more so since you had no clue where he would touch next.  

“Impes,” you whined.  Your tone warned him to proceed with caution, but you were curious and tried your best not to move.  It was wasted effort as you heard him laugh shortly before your world suddenly upside down and your body was suddenly no longer laid against the ground.  

He’d dragged you up higher and stood up, now holding you aloft by your ankles upside down.

“IMPES,” you screeched, trying and failing to free one hand so you could hold your shirt in place to cover you.  You couldn’t and ended up dangling like a freshly caught deer.  Whatever arousal you felt building up fleeing as all the blood started to rush to your head.

You could hear him stifling his mirth and could feel his hands shake with each suppressed laugh.  Each time resulted in you shaking along with it.  

“This is so cruel,” you mumbled, “I should drop your mask, bully.”  

He snorted and you felt him moving you until your back hit his front.  Lifting you higher, he released one of your ankles finally and you were tempted to kick him.  Or at least try to.  You couldn’t see to properly aim. 

He didn’t give you a chance to properly try as soon he had flipped you around and slipped you over his shoulder.  Then he was walking out the clearing and you guessed back home.  

Right, you two were outside.  In the woods.  Supposed to be playing out a scene you asked him to do.   

“Sorry again…” you mumbled, pushing his mask up so it completely obscured your vision.

He paused and hummed, nudging your hip with his cheek before continuing on.  He really wasn’t talking tonight it seemed.  His hand rubbing at your lower back and the purr you could hear start up eased your worries.  

He wasn’t mad.  He wasn’t disappointed.  

He just wanted to get you home, cleaned up, and safe and warm.  

Moving his mask as you heard a door open, you looked up to see Mikael standing in the door of their shared home with a blanket to wrap you up in.  He didn’t ask how it went or what happened.  He just smiled and opened the blanket wide, ready to receive you.