Guess who is actively working on AGD Chapter 8 after who knows how long -____-'' XD As well as something a bit more personal >w>
Not sure how long it'll take but I do have the next chapter outlined, I just need to write it out. I did have the beginning of it done, just needed the rest as I wasn't sure where I wanted to take it BP
Anyone who needs a refresher or hasn't read it yet, here's part one:
A Grim Destiny
A Grim Destiny (Ao3 for those who prefer their layout more)
For those who don't know, it's a Philip Wittebane X Powerless Witch!Reader during a time before Luz and Lilith came to the past and after Caleb. It has Yandere elements and it will probably become more ramped up in the next couple of chapters once I get them out. NSFW chapters will be marked as they come.
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Part 1Â -Â Part 2Â -Â Part 3Â -Â Part 4Â -Â Part 5Â -Â Part 6 - Part 7 - Part 8 - Part 9
GN!Reader is a witch with a birth defect: They were born without a bile sac, rendering them helpless when it came to magic. Because of this, certain people tend to bully and ridicule them. They are currently trying to find their place in life and itâs not going well.
From here on, I'm going to tag this series as NSFW for various reasons. (And so I don't forget).
While Philip is trying to find a way to tell his beloved about his affliction, he falls ill at the worst possible time.
This is a slow-burn Yandere fic and it will get darker as time goes on. Fair warning.
Read it on Ao3
It has been weeks since I proposed and I am finding it quite difficult to hide my affliction from Angel. I have suddenly been exhibiting strange side effects. Just days ago, while I was researching our next goal, I found my right arm essentially rotting away without any warning while I was at my desk! My entire arm detached itself from my body in some sort of greenish sludge! I was lucky to have been able to reattach it before Angel had seen it.Â
I am sure Angel and I are safe for now. I am positive that imbecile Blight believes that we are nowhere near civilization given the direction we took before circling back to Bonesborough. We shall stay here for another week before continuing our journey. However, I am afraid that I am feeling a bit under the weather. Iâm sure itâs nothing and I donât want to alarm Angel. For now, I must somehow tell them what I am. I just hope that benevolent creature shows me mercy after everything weâve been throughâŠ
âAngel, my treasure, I have a confession to makeâŠâ Philip inhaled, bringing his hands together as he paced the floor of the cave. âItâs been a long time coming⊠Thereâs⊠I have⊠Well⊠I have to consume Palismen to keep myself from turning into a monster, the same monster you ran into the night near the fishing hamlet⊠that scared you so badly you⊠refused to leave my sideâŠand⊠Damn it allâŠâ
Philip dropped into the chair near his workstation with his head in his hands. Each time, he had started strong but it fell apart quickly. He wrote it out several times but each time he would be unsatisfied with it and tossed it. A small mound of discarded paper balls had piled up around his desk and it made him switch tactics. He decided to try to wing it instead, which fell flat entirely. Damn him for waiting too long. He should have told you that night. If he had, this wouldnât feel so impossible. Confessing and proposing to you was easier than this.Â
With a heavy sigh, Philip lifted his head slightly to look over his fingers in thought.Â
âWhat am I to do? Theyâll leave me for sureâŠâ
A moment passed when he suddenly felt something caress his shoulders and he jumped to his feet with a yelp. Spinning around like a deer caught in headlights with his hand clutching his chest, he found you staring at him in surprise.
âO-Oh!â he breathed. âAngel-!â
He leaned back on his workstation with a relieved sigh. You furrowed your brow at his reaction while setting a basket of voidberries down beside the desk.
âIâm sorry, I didnât mean to scare you,â you murmured, stepping up to him and placing your hands on his chest. This prompted an automatic response where Philip curled an arm around your waist to keep you close.
âScare me? No, no, you didnât- I mean, no, I was justâŠâ he chuckled nervously, waving his free hand dismissively but he wouldnât make eye contact with you which made you frown. Philip flinched as you touched his forehead.
âAre⊠you okay? You feel warm and your color is a bit off...â
Philip scoffed and took your hand.
âIâm fine, my love. I have a lot on my mind,â he shook his head and then paused. He gave you a soft gaze as he kissed your palm. âWe are engaged now, after all⊠I have a lot to live up toâŠâ
Your face warmed at the gesture and you couldnât help but smile. It had been weeks so far and you were still trying to wrap your head around the concept that the man holding your hand was to be your husband.
âWell, donât get ahead of yourself. I donât want you stressing yourself out.â
âOf course.â
With a quick nuzzle, you pulled away and picked up the basket of voidberries to head further into the cave to put them away. Philipâs smile faded and he pressed a palm against his temple with a wince.
âIf youâd like, I can make you some tea to calm your nerves,â you called back but the sound of something sliding across the desk and then hitting the cave floor startled you. Glancing back, your heart dropped into the pit of your stomach upon seeing Philip now laying on his side with his back to you, unmoving. Items from his desk littered the floor around him. âPhilip!â
Rushing over, you kneeled and rolled him to his back which made his head lull. He was out cold. Touching the skin on his face, you felt the heat again, this time at a roaring temperature. It had to be the beginning of something bad.
Composing yourself, you began to think back to what had been done when you had been sick. While your parents had other things to tend to while you were growing up, it was the servants who actually took care of you. You just never had the chance to take care of someone sick before.
âOkayâŠâ you huffed. âTo the bedâŠâ
It took all of your strength to move him but after some time, you were able to lay Philip onto his bed roll. You just didnât realize how much of a mess of limbs he had become during the move with the arm he was laying on pulled behind him, the opposite arm bent at his waist and dangling against his lower back, and his legs tangled with one another. His face was pressed into the pillow which you had to turn to let him breathe.
â... ⊠⊠Close enough⊠Now⊠What elseâŠ?â
The thought of how the servants removed any extra layers when you were sick to cool you down made your face redden. Kneeling, you carefully rolled him to his back and began to push off his jacket and vest. His head lulled from one side of the pillow to the other and his chest rose and fell with labored breaths as his brow furrowed. Sweat began to form on his face which made you open his shirt.
â... Ohhh⊠My headâŠâ
âShhhh, itâs okayâŠâ you whispered, your hand rubbing his exposed chest tenderly without a second thought as you watched his face. âIâm going to take care of you the best I can. Seems like you may have picked something up somewhere. Just rest, my love.â
He let out a groan as his head lulled away from you and you took that opportunity to remove the extra layers from his form, as well as his shoes. He was left laying with his shirt opened and his pants and stockings. Glancing down at him once more, you noticed what looked to be a tiny brightly colored mushroom slowly blooming on his head, parting his hair on the side of his head. In the dim light, you could swear it was glowing blue, the same color as his eyes.
It was the Common Mold. I remembered that Philip kept a book on Boiling Isle diseases and went looking for it only to find the page for the Common Mold bookmarked, which makes me believe heâs had this before. To think he had gone through this once before with no one to take care of himâŠÂ I also am unsure how this will affect him but the glowing mushroom makes me wonder. What does the Common Mold do to humans?
I did my best to accommodate Philip for now but as I went through the book, I realized that I did not have any of the ingredients necessary to help him fight this. Gathering them meant I would have to make a quick trip to Bonesborough, something I know he would disapprove of given everything that has happened up until now. If Philip is right, then Alder should not be anywhere near here. I swore to him I wouldnât leave the cave without him or go out of earshot.
Ugh, I canât just sit here and watch him be delirious. As cute as heâs being, telling me how much he loves me, that Iâm the best thing heâs ever had, that heâs been in love with me for much longer than I realized, and such, he needs medication. Thereâs also a soup recipe I found in the book that may be a great asset for his recovery. I will have to wait until he goes to sleep and heâs just going to get over me leaving the cave without him this time when heâs better-
Growling perked your ears as your pen paused on the page. Philip was no longer in a good mood and seemed more agitated than anything. You were going to ignore it, believing it was just the delirium talking but you froze at what he was saying.
âThose ears⊠Those damn ears⊠If it werenât for those damn earsâŠâ Philip grumbled feverishly. âI detest them⊠so muchâŠâ
âEars?â
âIf it werenât for those blasted things⊠youâd be human⊠Completely human⊠Youâd be absolutely perfect⊠Why canât you be humanâŠ?â
You stared down at him as your hand reached up to touch the tip of your ear.
âMy earsâŠ? Completely human?â
His weak rant went on, whining about how they get in the way, which reminded you of the situation that had happened the night he had proposed to you. The two of you had entered the cave near your hometown for the night after the rain had passed and upon entering, Philip had done something he hadnât done before. As you went to put the Galderstones in a safe place, his hand settled on your hip from behind to stop you. The strap of the satchel was pushed off your shoulder and the bag hit the floor beside your feet. As you turned your head to look back at Philip in surprise, his free hand settled on your waist and the hand on your hip began to caress it as he leaned over your shoulder with a nuzzle.
âPhilip-?â
âOur supplies are back at the tavern,â he murmured, watching you with a warm, sultry gaze, one that you only caught from him a handful of times but only had resulted in cuddling. You felt him step up behind you, his chest pressing against your back. âWe may as well forgo any work tonightâŠâ
Staring up at him, allowing the suggestion to process coupled with how he was acting, you finally smiled sheepishly and brought your hand to his cheek. Your heart leaped into your throat. This seemed different. Was it due to the proposal?
âA-All rightâŠâ
You followed his lead when he leaned in to kiss you, his hands running up and down your sides before moving you forward toward the bedrolls. His fingers began to tug at your clothes as the two of you lowered yourselves to the soft surface. You couldnât help but let out a giggle when he went for your throat which earned you a warm chuckle but somewhere between that and getting undressed, Philip yelped and sat up, covering his eye.
âAH! SON OF A-â he snarled. You jumped at his reaction and sat up.
âAre you okay? What happened?!â
Philip sat there, his exposed eye twitching as he seethed, his glare on the floor beside you and his hand curling into a fist before he pushed himself up and headed for the mouth of the cave.
âW-Wait, where are you-?! Philip-!â
âIâm going for a walk,â he growled as he tucked his shirt in and fixed his pants. The heat of the moment slipped away, leaving you confused. You had tried to wait for him to come back but had fallen asleep in that time, only to be awakened by him laying down behind you and wrapping his arms around you without a word, looking disgruntled. The next morning, he apologized for his reaction and swore to make it up to you. You couldnât understand what got him angry enough to leave like that and he refused to tell you then, but it was clear that you now had your answer. It wasnât just the fact your ear had poked him in the eye, but it was the one thing he didnât like about you.Â
This left you feeling hollow inside. You couldnât help your ears.Â
Shaking your head clear, you stood upon seeing that he had fallen asleep. You couldnât dwell on that. You had a task to do before either he woke again or it got too late. You gathered your cloak and satchel before making sure Philip was sound asleep and headed toward the mouth of the cave. You paused at Philipâs voice in the back of your mind making you swear you would never leave the cave without him, at least, not go far enough that you couldnât hear him if he called for you. With a deep inhale, you glanced back at the sick human.
âI know you wouldnât want this but⊠I have to get that medicationâŠâ you murmured. âIâll be back as soon as I can, I promise.â
With that, you pulled your hood up and stepped out of the cave.
âAngel? Angel, I feel horrible⊠Everythingâs spinningâŠâ Philip groaned weakly, his eyes cracking open. âAngel?â
When silence answered him, Philip pushed himself up the best he could, nearly overshooting his goal of getting to his feet. Upon looking around, he realized you were nowhere to be seen.
âA-Angel? Where are you?â
The man stumbled for the mouth of the cave and squinted out into the woods around him, shielding his eyes while continuing to call out for you. Without thinking, he started to wander out to look for you, ignoring how he felt.
âWhere have you goneâŠ? Angel⊠Gotta findâŠâ
Ugh, damn Bonesborough for being so interesting⊠There are so many stalls here with more knick-knacks and baubles that could keep oneâs attention for weeks. I could spend the entire day wandering the town if I had the time. Thankfully, I havenât run into anyone associated with Alder and the wanted posters seemed to have disappeared.
Well⊠The good news is that I got the ingredients and medication. I was able to focus long enough to do that. The not-so-good news is my eyes began to wander as I was leaving and⊠ah⊠I may have gone a bit overboardâŠ
Before you knew it, you had several items in your satchel that you may or may not have needed, including several books on the Isles and wild magic, a set of Hexas Hold Em cards, and a fully charged training wand that you thought about keeping on you in case of emergency. Oddly enough, it made you feel a bit better about being out on your own without Philip since it would give you enough time to get away from any situation that may arise. It also didnât help that you left the cave in such a rush that you didnât have any prepared glyphs and you only had the fire one down to memory. If Philip had known, you were sure heâd have a heart attack.
As you headed for the gates of Bonesborough, your eyes fell on a sign that was tucked away near a closed stall which made you slow to a halt. It was dark blue with imagery of eyes, noses, ears, horns, teeth, and such. In large gold letters, âbody modificationsâ was written out in the center.
âBody modificationsâŠ?â you whispered, your hand wandering up to touch your ear under your hood as you spoke. What Philip had said about your ears echoed in your mind. At the bottom of the sign, you found the times the stall was opened which made you realize it was a Night Market stall. Shaking your head, you tore yourself away from the sign and strode for the gates. âNo! Philip would kill me if he found out I went to the Night Market!â
As you came up to the start of the path, you paused and glanced back toward the sign in thought. Then againâŠÂ
A bell of a nearby church made you jump and bolt down the path toward the cave.
âDammit! Iâve been away too long! He has to be awake by now!â
Upon reaching the cave, you quickly dug through the sachel for the medication.
âPhilip! Iâm back!â you panted, heading straight for his bedroll but halted when you found it empty. âWhatâŠ? Philip?â
You turned the cave upside down looking for the human but had no luck.Â
âDamn! Where has he gone!?â you scoffed, bounding out of the cave to look around. âPHILIP!â
No matter where you looked, you did not see him. A quiet, serene forest by the lake greeted you. Your mind tumbled with the thought of what had happened to him. There was no sign of a struggle or drag marks leading outside of the cave when you examined the ground but you did notice that one set seemed to have irregular markings to them as if they were stumbling and shoeless. Seeing as you had nothing else to go off of, you followed the abnormal tracks.
âI hope heâs okayâŠâ you groaned, quickening your pace. Soon, the tracks began to be accompanied by something strange. A familiar dark green substance lined the footsteps and the scrapes they made in the dirt. Chills raced up your spine. One thing came to mind, only because you were covered in it once before, but you quickly shook it clear. You couldnât think back to that night. Philip needed you now. The tracks led you deeper into the woods and started to turn into dragging marks. You narrowed your eyes in confusion as it looked as if Philip had passed out and someone started to drag him along.
As you were trying to make sense of the change in the tracks, the smell of fire nearby and menâs voices wafting closer made your head perk. Bushes along the path up ahead rustled, making your heart jump into your throat and you dove behind a nearby tree.
âHell if I know. Never seen anything like that before,â a gruff voice grumbled as two figures in dark robes appeared and headed in the direction you had just come from. Judging by their attire, you assumed they were Demon Hunters. âWeâll see if itâs logged into any of the archives after we get supplies. Might be some sort of were-beast that got into something it wasnât supposed to. Should still fetch us a nice price to the right buyer.â
âYou sure Horak can hold down the fort with that⊠thing? Heâs still a kid.â
âPsh, heâll be fine. The beast looked out of it when it was trying to thrash about as we were capturing it.â
âHe looked downright terrified that the thing was changing-â
âLook, he begged us to bring him with us out here to experience what we do. If he canât handle this, maybe he should stay back until he can. Now, letâs get going. The sunâs going to set soon and I want to get to the Night Market before all the good stuffâs sold.â
You watched the two figures wander down the path and once they were out of view, you stepped out, staring after them.
âWere-beast?â you whispered. What did that mean? Turning your attention back to where they had emerged made you bite your lip.Â
First, the appearance of that goop, now talk of a were-beast? If you werenât looking for Philip, you wouldnât have had a second thought about it but memories of Philip trying to tell you something since the proposal began to emerge. Dread rose in the back of your mind. The night you saw that monster was beginning to make sense.Â
Regardless, you forced this to the back of your mind. As much as you wanted to deny all of it, you had to make sure that what these people had was Philip or everything up until that point was just a coincidence and Philip was just lying out cold in a bush somewhere.Â
Stepping through the bushes, you found the Demon Hunterâs camp where a roaring fire had been lit with tents surrounding it. No one was in the immediate area, thankfully, so you crept in.Â
It was a moment or two before something strange stuck out to you. Dozens of crates were scattered about the camp but instead of being filled with provisions, you found things that were supposed to be rare: galderstones, pelts and parts of nearly extinct animals, and trinkets that could only be found while graverobbing, among other things. From everything youâve ever read, you couldnât recall Demon Hunters needing any of these items. They didnât deal in rare or stolen items. Moving through the camp, something caught your eye that made your blood run cold. In one of the stacked crates, you found yourself looking at a massive collection of already carved Palismen, some adorned with what looked to be jewels. A note on the side of the crate gave instructions on where to sell each Palisman to keep them from being found out by the original owners.
In mounting horror, you began to realize that this was not the camp of Demon Hunters. Only Trophy Hunters dealt with stolen palismen. It explained all of the other items as well.
A soft roar made you jump and snap your attention away from the paper and a voice of a young man stuttered out.
âS-Shut up, you-you monster! D-Donât make m-me u-use this!â
Your hand delved into your satchel and clutched around the handle of the training wand you bought back in Bonesborough. Moving quickly, you ducked behind a crate leading out of the camp where heavy groaning could be heard followed by another roar and a scared yelp. Carefully, you crept around the crate and saw a familiar massive form tied up on the ground with a humanoid figure standing over it in a dark robe. In the figureâs hand, you could clearly make out an electric weapon. It was obvious that the monster couldnât move or was too weak to do so.
âI-I said shut up!â
The figure brought the tip of the weapon down and prodded the monster which roared louder, this time in pain. Something inside you snapped upon seeing that the monster couldnât move due to how tight the binds were or that it was too weak to do much at all. The idea that this could be Philip made rage soar through your veins. Without thinking, you pushed yourself to your feet and rushed forward. Before the figure could turn, you shoved the tip of the wand into his neck.Â
âW-What-?!â
âDrop it!â you snarled. âDo it! Youâre too far away from any healer talented enough to deal with fourth-degree burns!â
With a surprised whine, the robed figure did as you said and dropped the weapon on the ground while putting his hands high above his head.
âO-Okay! Okay! L-Letâs not be hasty!â
âShut up! Back away from him! Now!â
The figure started to do what you said but when the monster let out a noise, you turned your attention to it. You couldnât help but stare. Its face was turned away from you but the white hair and thin green body that rose and fell from labored panting were unmistakable. This was the monster you woke up to that night. What caught your eye was the small brilliant blue mushroom parting its hair near its temple. Your heart sank.
âIt is youâŠâ
With your attention elsewhere, the man suddenly shoved you to the floor beside the monster and pointed a finger at you with a gold circle at the end of it. The training wand you had scuttled across the ground in the opposite direction.
âI-I donât know what made you think y-you could just come here and t-try to do⊠whatever youâre t-trying to do, but-!â
You only stared up at the circle as your hand felt around on the ground under you for something to defend yourself with. Your mind blanked entirely on the glyphs you were taught. All you could see in your head was Philip showing you blank circles as if the centers had been erased but when you wrote them, something was certainly there. As panic rose in your chest at how unhinged the man was becoming as he spoke about what the âothersâ may do with you when they got back, your hand fell on the prod he had dropped which was now pressing into the side of the monster behind you. When you tried to grab it to defend yourself, it went off. A roar of pain made you jump as the hot end severed one of the binds holding the creature down. This caused the monster to rear back, breaking several other ties, and it turned to the hooded man who stumbled back out of fear.
âO-OH NO!â he gasped then bolted toward the camp as you scrambled to your feet. Seeing him face to face, those blue eyes glowing menacingly in an unhinged gaze as he turned his head in your direction, caused you to freeze. At that moment, you were unsure if he remembered you due to the feeling that he was looking through you instead. When he moved, you clenched your eyes shut, bracing yourself for an attack. The large form brushed past you and you heard the man start screaming in fear as the slamming into the crates echoed over the woods with the clear intent to do harm or worse. Your relief of not being the target was short-lived and you turned on your heel to see the tents and crates in the sleeping area start to be torn apart. The manâs yelps at least told you he was still alive.
âWait! WAIT!â you cried out, chasing after the monster. âPHILIP!â
He had the man cornered near a stack of crates when his head shot up and snapped in your direction. The dread of being attacked returned and you froze, slowly putting your hands up.
âE-Easy⊠I-Itâs meâŠ!â you lowered your voice to a soothing tone. The monster you were sure was Philip panted hard as he slowly stalked toward you, almost feverishly. The man he had cornered near the stacked crates took this opportunity to sneak away not before catching a glare from you which made him suppress a yelp and scramble into the woods.Â
âAn⊠gelâŠâ A deeper voice croaked out, one you were not used to. It still held the soft accent, but was almost the voice of an entirely different person.
âYes,â you nodded. Swallowing down your fear, you reached out to touch him. âItâs me⊠W-What happened to youâŠ?â
âAn⊠gel⊠I found...â
Philip leaned his head into your hand, his glowing eyes boring into you. A shiver rushed down your spine as you felt how clammy his âskinâ was, even if you could call it that.
âY-Yeah, y-you didâŠâ
Ignoring the feeling, you hesitantly reached out to touch the other side of his face. This earned you a trill which made you smile some.Â
âHow did you even get out hereâŠ?â you whispered. Philip watched you only for a moment before his massive body collapsed onto the ground without any warning and the blue of his eyes disappeared. The fall not only forced you to your knees to try to catch his head but had caused some of the nearby stacked crates to topple. You couldnât move. Your legs were pinned under his massive form. With no other course of action, you quickly shielded Philipâs head the best you could while bracing for the impact yourself. More smashing followed and you were lucky enough not to have anything fall on you. Instead, you heard one of the heavier crates smash into the one right next to you and the sickening crush that followed made you realize it was the crate holding the stolen palismen. Your heart sank and your eyes widened in horror upon seeing the green magic oozing out of the broken wood near your leg.
âNo!â you gasped. Without warning, the ooze morphed into a green cloud and descended on the creature in front of you. âW-WhatâŠ?â
You watched in confusion as Philipâs monstrous form rose with a deep inhale as his nose and mouth took the cloud in. Before your eyes, his form became smaller and more human-like. The white hair slowly took on a dark brown hue and the clothes you had left Philip in began to take shape, his white opened shirt, brown pants, and white stockings, now dirtied with the dark green substance. When the transformation had finished, Philip let out a labored pant. His hair was now sporting more mushrooms due to his affliction.
With a furrowed brow, you glanced between the smashed crate and your fiance.
âSo thisâŠâ
It took all I had to get Philip back to the cave before those hunters came back. I was unsure how I pulled it off but I did and now my love is resting on his bed. Several more mushrooms had sprouted during our walk- er, hobble home. Once I got him settled, I immediately made the soup and gave him that and the medication but I noticed something on his bare chest that made my blood boil. You could see where that monster had been torturing him. Those horrible witches! Barbarians! He was already tied up, how could they do something so cruel!?
⊠⊠⊠Be that as it may⊠I may not exactly be the best one to judge cruelty as I have done something dreadful myself. Seeing the result of palismen magic on Philip, I gathered as many of the creatures as I could that were still intact. Thankfully, they wouldnât come to life for me as I am not their owner or anyone they trust so that made this a tad easier. I canât say it is the best feeling in the world, quite the opposite, but⊠itâs for Philip and this⊠curse of his⊠My love, who did this to you? No matter, heâll only use them until I can figure out a cure for it. It has to be linked to some sort of forbidden magic, right? I will have to do my own research into this. Maybe a demon hunter would know or there could be a book in one of the many libraries we pass on our journeys.Â
I also came to the realization that Philipâs strange behavior may have stemmed from wanting to tell me about this. As well as despising my ears, I guess⊠but more importantly this. Thinking back to that night, he must have been more scared of me leaving than I was of him harming me. He did keep his promise of not leaving my side at any point.
I will have to keep that stall in mind-
You stared down at the page for a moment before carefully and quietly tearing those pages out. In the event that Philip got ahold of your journal, you couldnât let him know you knew about how he hated your ears or that you had been wandering around Bonesborough while he was sick. Thankfully, he wouldnât have to know since you had already ditched the items you bought in favor of filling your satchel to the brim with stolen palismen which you side-eyed as you crumpled the paper with a heavy heart. You had abandoned it by Philipâs workstation when you brought him in.
A groan made you tense up and glance back toward Philipâs bedroll where he was now laying back, fed, medicated, and clean with his shirt removed and his hair fanned out over his pillow. The sight of him made your gaze soften. He looked so peaceful as several more mushrooms began to slowly grow and part his hair. When Philip settled back down instead of waking, you turned your attention back to your satchel. The transformation back into human form from the monstrous one after the Palismen were killed played over and over in your head as you picked it up.Â
âIâm sorryâŠâ you murmured as you moved to your station, removed the scrolls from their place in the basket beside the desk, and placed the satchel inside, the flap slipping away to show the gleam of one of the jewel-encrusted Palismen sitting atop several which you immediately fixed. âI swear if there was any other way, Iâd take itâŠâ
Hearing a groan, this time a more conscious one, you quickly replaced the scrolls, hiding the satchel entirely.
âWhat was that?â Philip groaned. Turning, you found Philip sitting up and stretching, his head now full of shrooms as he looked your way with a sleepy gaze. âAngel?â
âHm?! O-Oh, I-I was just-!â you tried to smile but stopped yourself and shook your head while clearing your throat. You quickly went to his side to keep his attention away from the basket. âNevermind. How are you feeling, my love?â
âHorrible, if Iâm honest,â he grumbled, running a hand through his hair and disrupting the growth. Upon seeing the dislodged fungus that fell into his lap, Philip only rolled his eyes and muttered something about ânot againâ before he froze, his eyes wide. â... ⊠âŠâ
âWhat?â you frowned with your head tilted.Â
âDid you⊠Have you beenâŠ?â
âTaking care of you? Of course,â you smiled when you pieced together his thought process. âI couldnât just leave you sick like thatâŠâ
Philip looked away, his face reddening.
âYou didnât have toâŠâ
This made you stare before giving him a playful smile.
âOf course I did. You are going to be my husband, arenât you? Maybe this is practice for what may come laterâŠâ you nuzzled him while placing a hand on his chest. âFor all I know, the next time it could be the fire flu.â
Philip didnât answer but leaned into your affection as his own hand found its way around yours and his free arm wrapped around you, pulling you close then back onto the bedroll.
â... FineâŠâ
You couldnât help but grin like an idiot as you laid your head on his chest and settled in.
âIâm just glad youâre okay,â you sighed upon feeling a kiss on the top of your head.
A comfortable silence fell over the cave and you suddenly found yourself mulling over everything that had happened.
âI had the most terrible dream while I was ill.â
Your head perked at the sudden break in the silence to find Philip staring at the cave ceiling with his brow furrowed.Â
âHm?â
âIt felt so real but I dreamt that you had disappeared and I had to go out and find youâŠâ
You listened as he recounted the whole ordeal but when he didnât bring up the monster form part, you frowned. The way he spoke and refused to make eye contact with you made you think he was hiding something.
âThatâs all you remember?â you whispered. âO-Of your dream, I meanâŠâ
Philip was still for a moment then nodded.
âYes.â
âI see⊠Well, you were quite feverish,â you sat up with a slightly nervous smile which made his eyes narrow. Seeing this, you cleared your throat, your face reddening in return. âYou were also telling me a lot of things that I did not really think were trueâŠâ
Philip cocked a brow.
âLike?â
âLike⊠you being in love with me since the moment you laid eyes on meâŠâ
Philipâs look of shock coupled with the brilliant red that exploded on his face made you realize it was true. Your heart leapt in your chest. Him immediately grabbing his pillow and laying back with a hard flop while holding it over his face as he groaned amused you to no end.Â
âSo⊠thatâs true?â you poked his side. âLetâs see, what else did you sayâŠ?â
âWeâre not talking about this!â
âI take that as a yes?â
âIâm going back to sleep! I'm still too sick for this!â
âAww, but you were so cute when you were telling me all of this-â
âY/N, no!â
âY/N, yes! Now, what elseâŠâ you teased which earned you a muffled grumble. As much as you liked the turn in the conversation, you frowned slightly. He still didnât come clean. Now you had a new conundrum on your hands. Do you tell him you know or wait until he is ready to tell you? How would he react if you told him you knew about a secret he had been guarding this entire time? With a sigh, you settled back down against him and stared toward the wall. Maybe it was best to wait.
GN!Reader is a witch with a birth defect: They were born without a bile sac, rendering them helpless when it came to magic. Because of this, certain people tend to bully and ridicule them. They are currently trying to find their place in life and itâs not going well.
Change of plans.
This is a slow-burn Yandere fic and it will get darker as time goes on. Fair warning. It is SFW for now. Just keep that in mind.
He was very careful with what he showed you. Philip was so proud of himself for how he caused you to go starry-eyed with his entries. It was apparent how sheltered you were over the years and it was strangely endearing. You believed every word that came out of his mouth and didnât seem to mind that he skipped over a lot of pages when he told you they were just day-to-day activities. He made sure every word was carefully chosen, every move was executed at the right time, and it brought you closer to him. He had gotten well versed with his storytelling that he had put the journal aside and regaled you with other experiences that he only briefly wrote about. The longing look in your eyes made him weak. Knowing he had gotten the bulk of what he needed from the library, he had an idea.
âY/N,â he started when you stood to head to your bedroom. You paused and sat back down to listen.
âWhat is it?â
âForgive me, but I have been thinking. What if we left sooner?â
âSooner?â you blinked. âAs inâŠ?â
âTomorrow. Er, night. Right at twilight. It would also avoid a confrontation with that dreadful Blight fellow.â
âO-Oh⊠It would be safer for you then too. Do you think thatâs enough time to gather supplies? And what about the study?â you motioned upstairs.
âIâve had my fill and have duplicated the maps so we wouldnât just have one. Itâll be there if we need to return. As for supplies, it shouldnât take long to gather what we need,â he picked his journal up and thumbed through it. âHere, Iâve already made a basic list. We can shop in the morning and have everything ready by evening. Youâll also need whatever youâll be bringing. I do suggest packing lightly.â
As he handed you the paper, the starry-eyed gaze returned and once you looked the item list over, you grinned.
âO-Of course we can leave tomorrow!â
You jumped to your feet and started to ramble on about what you needed to gather before rushing off upstairs. Philip stared a moment or two longer before chuckling to himself. You were adorable. Though there was something that still had the potential to ruin this for him.
The witch, Alder Blight. If he had eyes for you as Philip had suspected, he could try to get you to see past what heâs done to you and convince you to not go. It was a very slim chance but still a chance all the same. That monster would try to keep you stationary when you wished to fly. He had to make sure you did not see Alder at all from now until after the two of you left.Â
Cracking his journal open once more, he flipped to the page where he last left off about you. This time, instead of narrating, he remained quiet to keep you from hearing him.
Thus, we became companions. I cannot be any more elated with their acceptance.Â
A demon came looking for me today. A vile thing that cornered Angel and demanded to know my whereabouts. Angel fought valiantly to fend him off to the best of their ability but I had to intervene before that thing hurt them. I refuse to allow harm to come to Angel and I will go to war with anything that has the audacity to assail them.Â
The demonâs name⊠Alder Blight⊠That name is just as disgusting as the being it belongs to. I must do everything I can to protect my angel from this walking disease lest it takes them from me. We will be leaving sooner than we planned. Angel believes it is to protect me when it couldnât be further from the truth. I need to protect them. Our journey starts tomorrow night.
-------
Surprisingly, the shopping trip went well. There was no sign of Alder and you were able to find most of the things you needed on the list Philip had given you, plus a little extra. You went ahead and sold any maps you didnât need from the study in order to have more snails to work with in case the two of you stopped in any other towns.
âI donât want to stay in the other towns though⊠I can make or find us shelterâŠâ Philip grumbled as he followed you around the marketplace.
âWe may not have a choice if it decides to rain and weâre near one, though,â you glanced back at him. âCan your skin handle the boiling rains?â
Philip gave a heavy sigh and glanced away.
âFine.â
âI assure you, it will only be for emergencies or supply runs. Weâll try to avoid the towns otherwise so youâre not attacked again,â you placed a hand on his arm with a sympathetic expression. At least, thatâs what you believed his concern was after he ran into Tusk and Timber the day before. It surely wasnât the fact he didnât want anyone around you to try to coax you into leaving or to snatch you from him. Philip only uttered something under his breath before wandering into a book store ahead of you when you reached the part of the list for parchment and pens. While looking through the list, a black leather-bound book caught your eye.
âAre you going to get it?â Philipâs voice rang out behind you which made you jump slightly. Turning, you had found that he was watching you as you shop. The man then reached past you to pick the book up to inspect it and flipped through its pages.
âI donât knowâŠâ you looked down at your list. âI donât want to take anything I wonât use. We already have your journal.â
âAh, but a personal traveling journal would be a wonderful idea. It is a great way to organize your thoughts and focus on the important aspects of your day,â he smiled as he handed you the journal. âOne day, you might want to look back on our adventures together, maybe share it with⊠future generationsâŠâ
You stared at him a moment then glanced down at the journal, a small smile forming on your lips.
âOkay, yeah,â you nodded. âIâll⊠I guess Iâll get it then.â
âFantastic!â he chuckled before walking off with his arms folded behind his back. âTrust me, youâll be glad to have it. I donât know where Iâd be without mine.â
After purchasing everything, the two of you headed back to the house and prepared for the departure. Philip gathered anything he may have needed out of the study. You had packed a travelerâs backpack and split the materials between your bag and Philipâs satchel. As requested, you had placed the torches in his bag since he cryptically told you he had a way of lighting them. While you were curious, you had to finish up making sure the house was in order to lock it up for however long.
Then the time came. The lanterns outside were just being lit up and down the street by lamplighters and you stepped out in a long black cloak with a hood up. Philip followed, leaning around you to look up and down the street to make sure it was clear. He too wore a long black cloak but his hood was down and the front of it was opened.Â
âCoast is clear, love,â he murmured softly. With a nod, you turned back to the door.Â
As you locked it up, a soft, meek voice called your name, causing both you and Philip to spin around in surprise. Your entire body seized up at the sight of Forsythia standing a couple of feet away with her hands holding onto one another nervously over her stomach. Her brow was furrowed and her gaze was on the ground.
âForsythia,â you breathed then cleared your throat. You glanced between her and Philip, who wore a stone-faced expression toward the girl. âW-What are you doing here?â
âI had a f-feeling that you would leave early a-after hearing about what Alder didâŠâ she murmured, twisting her fingers.
âYou didnât tell him, did you?â you stepped toward her, your mind racing through several scenarios of what may happen if you stepped foot outside of the city now that someone knew.
âN-No! I didnât!â she gasped, putting her hands up in defense.Â
âIf you think youâre going to stop Y/N and I from leaving-â Philip stepped up behind you with a hand on your shoulder. Forsythia shook her head.Â
âI-Iâm not here to stop e-either of you!â she stressed then looked at you. âY-Yes, it is true that I-I panicked upon seeing you with M-Mr. Wittebane the night before the last a-and I went to Alder, which is why he showed up yesterday⊠I was scared for you with everything being said about him ,â she motioned to Philip. âBut⊠But after hearing what Alder said when he returned, a-about how you said itâs all rumors and gossip, I realized that⊠you were rightâŠâ
Philip cocked a brow in surprise and you exchanged glances with him.
âReally?â you blinked. Forsythia gave you a small smile and a nod.
âYes. I-I actually think this might be a good thing for you. I hope this doesnât sound bad, but I think itâll be good to have someone around who doesnât care about your magic abilityâŠâ
Your body relaxed with a sigh of relief.Â
âOh thank TitanâŠâ
âI just wanted t-to come see you off⊠a-and⊠apologize for everything we- er, I did,â she moved forward and took your hand. âI am so sorry. I should never have allowed myself to be dragged around by those two⊠Please be safe, okay?â
Philip tensed when the girl turned her large green eyes to him.Â
âY-Youâll keep them safe too⊠right?â
The humanâs expression softened and he placed a hand on his chest and bowed slightly.
âYou have my word as a gentleman,â he answered quietly.
Forsythia nodded with a small smile.
âGood⊠Now you two better get going before Alder really shows up to make sure you are still here.â
After thanking Forsythia, you and Philip put your hoods up and quickly made your way to the town gate.
âSo thatâs it, huh? Weâre just going to let him waltz off with them?â a voice scoffed as Baronâs form stepped up behind Forsythia with his arms crossed.Â
âYeah, I guess.â
âFine, but Alderâs not going to like this.â
âNo, heâs not, is he?â
âWhatever. Come on, letâs head down to the beach. I think I saw some old classmates I used to mess with back when we were in school.â
Forsythia didnât move and continued to smile after you, giving a soft sigh.
âYou know what?â
âHm?â
âFuck you, Baron. And fuck Alder too,â Forsythia said sweetly, as clear as a bell before heading down the path. âIâm going back to my flower shop. Donât bother me anymore.â
Baron stared in shock after her, absolutely speechless.
-------
You kept glancing over your shoulder, dreading someone noticing you two. Philip watched you out of his peripherals.
âKeep your attention forward. Iâll watch for anything that may stop us,â he lowered his voice. âI have a surprise for you once we get away from the town.â
A surprise? You turned your head up to look at him to find him looking about like you had been. What kind of surprise would a human have for you? Your heart was in your throat as the two of you passed the town hall and were about to walk under the arch. As Philip stepped through, you paused, staring down the path ahead of you. He moved forward a couple of feet before realizing you werenât beside him.
The cobblestone path before you was bathed in the light of the full moon overhead. A wind blowing through rustled the trees and leaves across the ground. You had only ventured this path a handful of times in your life. It cut an intimidating path as it snaked into the woods before you. Were you actually about to do this?
âY/N?â Philip called, snapping you out of your trance. You shook your head hard.
âHuh?â
The human gave you a concerned look as he turned his body to face you.
âYouâre not having second thoughts, are you?â
A chill raced up your spin at his words but you shook it off and stepped past the arch. You dared not to glance back.
âAbsolutely not.â
Philip looked pleased with your answer and held out a gloved hand to you. Once you slipped your palm against his, he firmly grasped your hand and led you down the winding, moonlit path. Anxiousness filled your chest. It felt as if you were being led away from safety by a malevolent being but you chalked it up to what everyone had been telling you about traveling without a âreal witchâ since you were a child. The rumors didnât help your thoughts either but Philip did not seem like a dangerous person as everyone said. Despite the anxiousness, you felt⊠safe.Â
âShouldnât we light a torch?â
âI donât want anyone to see us⊠Hold on just a bit longer, love.â
After about ten minutes or so of walking, you found yourself at the mouth of a massive cave in the center of the dark woods. The moon was hidden behind the looming trees overhead and your anxiousness increased. When you tried to ask the man what the two of you were doing there, he just put a finger to his lips with his free hand. His other hand left yours as he reached into his satchel and walked into the inky blackness of the cave. You listened to his footsteps echo off the walls of the cave, followed by paper crumpling and fire suddenly lit up the area.Â
Philip glanced back over his shoulder, revealing a torch in his hand and he beckoned you in.
With a slight hesitation, you followed him further into the cave, your heart slamming against your chest.
The further you went into the cave, the more you began to realize it was a lived-in area. Papers and items scattered the floor and what looked to be a makeshift bed of straw lay in the corner.
âYouâve⊠been staying out here?â
âFor now,â Philip grunted as he took his satchel off and laid it against the wall. âItâs only one of several caves Iâve gone back and forth with. They are much better shelters than anything made by hand, given that they are stable enough.â
Seeing him settling in caused you to do the same by placing your bag against the wall and pulling out the sleeping mats you had bought. When you turned to lay them out, you found Philip kneeling over a pile of wood and he laid a piece of paper on top of it. On the paper was some sort of symbol you had never seen before.
â... What are you doing?â
The mischievous smirk he gave you startled you as if he was hiding a dark secret.
âI told you I had a surprise for you. Come here,â he held out a hand to you. You set the sleeping mats aside and took his hand, kneeling down next to him as you stared at the paper. âWatch.â
Philip reached out and tapped the paper and it suddenly burst into flames, causing you to gasp and fall back.
âOOF! What-?! How?!â you gasped, wide-eyed at the fire that took hold of the wood he had set up. The man let out a chuckle when you looked up at him in shock. âYou-You can do magic?! Youâre human!â
âYes, but itâs not an innate ability, Iâm afraid,â he sighed as he picked up another piece of paper, scribbled on it, and set it beside you. You stared down at it and he tapped it. Several flowers sprouted from the paper and he smiled at how your eyes sparkled at the sight of them.Â
âO-Oh!â
Philip drew on another piece, set it down, and tapped it. This time, a ball of ice appeared.Â
âAnd this is only the beginning,â he murmured close to your ear. âIâm sure there are others. I just have yet to find them.â
âWhat are those?âÂ
âPicto-glyphs. I found these symbols all across the Boiling Isles. This one I found in a snowflake, and the plant one in the center of a flowerâŠâ he motioned to each of them. When he looked at the campfire, he glanced back at you. â... I enraged some bees accidentally while finding that oneâŠâ
You glanced between the three then looked up at him while setting your hand on his.
âPhilip, teach meâŠâ
Philip insists that I keep a journal from now on of our adventures together. He thinks it would be great to organize my thoughts and focus on our tasks. He rambled off a list of things he wants to try to find so this journal should help me keep up with that. He doesnât want anything to weigh my mind down that could distract me and put me in danger. Heâs already sworn to protect me.
But this night was amazing! First I took the leap in leaving town and then Philip showed me an alternate form of magic! No wonder he had so much parchment on that list! The fire picto-glyph eats up the paper like nothing. I was up most of the night learning how to draw them and deploying them before I started to get drowsy. Figured I should write this before I passed out. Philip stayed in the corner, watching me as he wrote in his own journal. He wanted to make sure I didnât hurt myself.Â
-----
⊠⊠⊠Theyâre asleep now. Poor angel seems to have tuckered themselves out. Oh, how ecstatic they were when I showed them my secret. They are the only ones in this god-forsaken place that know how Iâve come to survive here. Being without magic themselves, I found it prudent to have them learn in the case that I cannot defend them. I need them to be able to return to me on their own if they are taken.
So far, they seem to favor the fire picto-glyph. Odd. I would have thought they would have preferred the plant picto-glyph considering it gives new life. However, I'll take it as a sign of us forging our bond instead. Regardless, I adored every glance they sent my way as they learned the basics. That smile is heavenly and the way their eyes sparkled in the firelight? Intoxicating. Such a beautiful creature. I was so busy sketching that I hadn't noticed Angel falling asleep among the parchment.
Once Iâve perfected the combination glyphs, I shall-
With a sudden painful grunt, Philip dropped his pen and held his right arm to his chest as it started to morph horribly. He scrambled to his feet, glancing toward you to make sure he didnât disturb you. You had already fallen asleep on one of the sleeping mats with a pen in your hand and parchment scattered across the ground. Philip stifled several more loud, agonizing grunts then snatched up his bag before rushing toward the front of the cave, looking back to make sure you didnât wake.Â
Fishing desperately into his satchel, he pulled out a strange-looking Palisman before cracking it open between his hands. The green essence inside rose up and entered his eyes and nostrils, causing his eyes to glow green and then blue.Â
âThat was close,â he breathed, his voice overlapped with a soft, deeper one as he pulled his sleeve back to reveal the carvings in his skin. âI have to be careful⊠I donât need them to know just yetâŠâ
Once he calmed down and his voice was back to normal, he reentered the cave. Instead of going back to where he had been sitting, he stopped just above your sleeping mat and stared down at you.
âI do hope youâll accept me like thisâŠâ he whispered under his breath, his eyes gliding over to your journal beside you. âI donât know what I will do if you donât.â
Part 1Â -Â Part 2Â -Â Part 3Â -Â Part 4Â -Â Part 5Â -Â Part 6 - Part 7 - Part 8
GN!Reader is a witch with a birth defect: They were born without a bile sac, rendering them helpless when it came to magic. Because of this, certain people tend to bully and ridicule them. They are currently trying to find their place in life and itâs not going well.
From here on, I'm going to tag this series as NSFW for various reasons. (And so I don't forget).
Philip meets some people at a legendary tavern who seem to be seeking out Titan's Blood and he makes a rash decision to pursue it, not realizing too late that it was a trap.
This is a slow-burn Yandere fic and it will get darker as time goes on. Fair warning.
Read it on Ao3
Iâve only seen this tavern mentioned in old adventurerâs journals so I was quite excited when Philip and I came across it. The Wyvern-Leg Inn is far off the beaten path away from any of the cities where many young adventurers got their start! It is an ancient, three-story structure made entirely of elder wood that houses a museum containing a collection of items donated by daring adventurers as they trekked across the Wilds of the Boiling Isles.
When I told Philip about what kind of place it was rumored to be, he perked up. He wouldnât tell me what he intended to do but said it would be a good place to stop and rest as it was out of the way of any of the caves. I was honestly surprised at how eager he was to get a room there. I am looking forward to relaxing on something soft for once since we have agreed to stay for a couple of days as a small vacation of sorts. I somewhat hope that this becomes an opportunity to see how Philip really sees the two of us considering everything we've been through.
As I was getting settled in, Philip, after deciding that he didnât want to sleep in separate beds and pushed the two together, headed downstairs âfor a drinkâ at the bar. I just hope he behaves himself this time.
-
Philip has been gone for far too long. The bar should be closed by now. Iâm going to go look for him. He better not have started a fight or heâs in big trouble!
â-
Â
I met someone interesting at the bar the night before when I left Angel in the safety of our room, a demon named Warthrope. He apparently saw Angel and I enter the tavern and found us to be a strange pairing. I thought he had motioned to me as I apparently stick out like a sore thumb among witches but it seemed he was referring to Angel, commenting on how they looked to be a âpedigreeâ and not built for adventuring. When I met the rest of his team, I could see why he may have believed it. They were hardy, well-traveled adventurers. Angel was born with a silver spoon in their mouth and looked as if they hadnât gotten their hands dirty once. Thank God they donât act like it.
Accompanying Warthrope was four others but their names escape me. There were two female demons, a male demon, and a male witch. I am unsure of what any of their roles were within the group but I cannot say that Iâm entirely interested in finding out. I was, however, interested in the topic I overheard his group talking about. Upon hearing âTitanâs Bloodâ, I tried to get as much information as I could out of them only to be stonewalled.
Warthrope refused to discuss it with me willingly. I did, however, notice he and his companions had a weakness for alcohol, and for that, I proposed a wager in the form of a drinking contest. First, one to drink the other under the table will give up the information needed. I wanted to know about Titanâs Blood, Warthrope wanted to know why Angel chose me as a traveling companion, implying that there were much better adventurers that would suit their needs. I ignored this, mainly because the contest was over before it began. I did not build a tolerance for alcohol back home for nothing. I am only thankful that the stuff is about the same here and I can stomach half of the offerings.
Granted, Angel was not happy to find me sloshed on the staircase but I prevailed and obtained the information I needed. Upon hearing about the arrangement I have made, we had a bit of a row and they are not speaking to me at the moment. I was aware that they wanted to use this time to rest and I did tell them that Titanâs Blood was the last thing I wanted to find so I am not surprised by this.Â
I was tempted to leave them at the tavern but Warthrope had instilled the idea of Angel meeting someone else in the tavern while I was away so I decided it was best to bring them with me. The last thing I needed was some muscle-headed cad trying to convince them to leave with him. My only concern now is where Titanâs Blood is located. Our journey will take us close to Angelâs hometown so I will have to be careful and make sure they stay out of sight and out of harmâs way.
I assured Angel that I would make it up to them but they were not in a good mood at the time.
â
Part of me regrets introducing Angel to these rogues. I donât like how the Warthropeâs men look at them. Some of the comments are borderline inappropriate but I let them slide. I need Titanâs Blood and if theyâre willing to help, I canât risk them walking off. The women seem very interested in Angel upon finding out they could not do magic on their own.
The site Warthrope mentioned is an old mining site that was abandoned some years ago. If I remember correctly, it was posted on one of Angelâs maps. Imagine my surprise that the very substance I needed was in the same area where I found my companion all that time ago. Angel must be my lucky charm.
Angel is still cross with me. First, they were upset with me over making these arrangements, now theyâre furious that I will not let them into the mine. They argued with me when I told them that they will not be entering with me or the group but I am sure they will understand why later. I may have said a few things along the lines of what Warthrope had said about them, being inexperienced and all that I will need to apologize for later. I am fairly certain I came off harsher than I intended with how Angel reacted. Their downhearted expression felt like a dagger to the chest.
Thankfully, the ladies volunteered to stay behind with them so Warthrope, his men, and I could go forward with the task at hand. I was not fond of Warthorpeâs comment âloverâs spatâ as we entered the mine. In my haste and anger, I regrettably denied it. I was halfway through the cave when one of the men informed me of the look on Angelâs face when we left which assured me that they had heard what I said. I will definitely have to make sure they know I did not mean it.
-----------------------------------------
The pounding in your head was nearly unbearable as your eyes opened, your vision blurry at first and you forced yourself up from a soft surface. You had the strangest dream. You and Philip had arrived at a legendary tavern in the middle of nowhere in the Boiling Isles and he drank someone under the table to get them to help him find something in an area near your hometown. The group he âhiredâ was composed of five people, three men and two women who were seasoned adventurers, and you were left with the women at the sight while he had gone on with the men into an old abandoned mine. It infuriated you since you didnât want to be separated from him as well as be left with people you didnât know. Philip assured you that he would make it up to you, believing you were angry you didnât get to go.
However, while you were waiting with the ladies, they began to ask about you and Philip. It was playful and a bit suggestive which made you begin to wonder what you and Philip were. After him denying that the two of you had a âloverâs spatâ, it made you curious as to what he saw you as. He pushed your beds together at the tavern as he had done with your sleep rolls, he had kissed you a handful of times, used pet names, and the list just went on from there. Even the little things made you wonder what he saw the two of you as. Â They had asked you if you and Philip had been intimate which you immediately turned down but the way they laughed made you think your face had gone bright red.
But then you remembered something that made you reconsider calling it a dream. One of the ladies poured you a drink, claiming that it was a âspecially brewed teaâ that she learned how to make. You remembered that it had a floral scent but a fruity taste and it was bright purple. It was⊠sparkling in a way but you didnât think anything of it. It made you feel fuzzy after drinking it and the next thing you remembered was this, waking up with this massive headache.
âWhat was in that drinkâŠ?â you groaned, rubbing your temples gingerly.
âSleeping nettles,â a familiar voice answered, causing you to freeze. âI told those idiots not to overdo it but what did I expect? Theyâre sellswords, not apothecaries. Nor are they bards or I would have had them resort to a lullaby.â
When your eyes adjusted to the dark, you saw a figure with its back to you standing over a table where a yellow glow emitted. You immediately recognized the outline.
â... Alder?â
âYouâve got quite the talent for disappearing, donât you? It took me months to find you. Then again, it wasnât entirely your doing, hm?â Alder turned with a cocked brow and an amused smile. âNo matter. Youâre home safe.â
âHome?â you muttered, glancing around. You certainly didnât recognize the room you were in and your own bed was not as big as the one you sat on. Nowhere near as cushy either. âBut this isnât my-â
âYouâre at my familyâs vacation home right outside of your hometown. You know theyâre originally from Bonesborough,â Alder stirred a finger as he approached the bed and the lights grew bright. You had to shield your eyes to allow them to adjust and once they did, you noticed a glass of clear liquid in his hand. âYour home is still locked up since the day that human kidnapped you.â
You furrowed your brow hard.
âPhilip did not kidnap me-!â
âLook, I know you are going to defend him tooth and nail and try to make it sound as if he has your best interest at hand but the fact of the matter is, he manipulated you,â the witch sighed as he set the glass beside your bed.
âHe convinced you to not meet with me the day you were supposed to leave on top of leaving earlier than you said. Itâs no wonder your father had me put out wanted posters for Mr. Wittebane..â
âWait, you involved my family?!â you looked from the glass to him.
âWhat else could I do? You were under the influence of a madman. I couldnât just let that go.â
âYou know how they overreact with everything I do! Why would you-!?âÂ
âOf course, theyâre overprotective of you, Y/N. Youâre the only child that cannot do magic and then they hear some human man came along and just whisked you away into the wilds?â
âI said âoverreactâ!â
Alder scoffed but it didnât seem to pertain to you. He began pacing the floor, speaking in a more grandiose tone.
âPerish the thought! Your father was terrified of what that monster would do to you!â
âPhilip is not a monster-!â
âNaturally, I knew what had to be done and set up a trap with one of the most legendary ingredients known on the Boiling Isles. I was certain that scoundrel would make a move for it sooner or later! Only those who have dark intentions seek it out!â
âHeâs not doing anything nefarious with it! Heâs trying to get home-!â
âThe fact alone that he sought it out is proof enough that he is up to no good! It did take me a while to find you to put my ingenious plan into motion!â
You let out a hard sigh, setting your head in your hands as he went on and on about how he did it. There was no way you were going to get a word in edgewise. He was too far gone with his monologue. At some point in his speech, he noticed your demeanor and smiled, his voice now holding a sympathetic tone.
âWell now, he wonât be bothering you any longer. Heâs been taken into custody and will be transported to Bonesborough to face charges of kidnapping,â Alder sighed, sitting on the bed near your legs. You lifted your head, staring at him in horror. âHe will be put away for a while, considering who your family is. Itâs for the best, Iâm afraid.â
âWhat?! No! They canât-!â
âNow, now, sit back and relax. Youâre safe. Here,â he reached past you and picked up the glass again, this time offering it to you. âItâs best if you just forget about the whole ordeal, Y/N.â
You stared at the glass before pushing yourself off of the bed.
âAre you out of your mind?! Who the hell do you think you are?!â You swiped the glass out of his hand and once the clear liquid hit the floor, it sparkled before dissipating. âIâm powerless, not stupid! You have no clue what youâre talking about and have no business sticking your nose where it doesnât belong!â
Alder stared up at you in shock for a moment as if he hadnât expected you to stand up for yourself. He soon became bored and sighed, interrupting you.
âI should have known that bastard would turn you against me.â
âTurn me against you-?! You did that on your own after years of bullying! How do you not see that?!â
The witch pushed himself up from the bed with his hands on his hips, his head bowed and his eyes closed in a solemn expression. He tutted and shook his head.
âAbsolutely atrocious. Wittebane has poisoned you against your own kind.â
âWHAT?!â
âI have a good mind to tell your father that prison isnât good enough for him. I thought he was being a bit lenient when it came to this. I will have to reiterate my original suggestion to him once more. Surely seeing you act like this will make him see reason.â
âOriginal-? What are you talking about?!â
âItâs nothing for you to worry about. You just settle back in and pretend the last six months never happened. The sooner you do that, the sooner we can return to some form of normalcy,â Alder suggested as he went to the door. You immediately followed him when it was apparent he was going to try to lock you in.
âWhereâs Philip!? What have you done to him!?â
âAs I said, heâs being carted off the Bonesborough. The rest is not your concern. Itâs quite apparent that you are unfit to be brought in as a witness and will only vouch for him so do as I say and relax. After I call your father and handle some business, Iâll be back and we can have dinner together.â
When Alder tried closing the door behind him, you immediately snatched it and slammed it open.
âI donât know why the hell you think you can do this to me but you are NOT going to treat me like this, Alder Blight!â you bared your teeth at him. âI am not a plaything that you can fight over on the blasted playground! Iâm not something that can be owned or a prize to be won! If I want to be with Philip, then I will damn well be with him!â
The witch paused in shock before a dark look fell across his face.
âWell then, it will be hard to be with a dead man once heâs executed for this,â Alder growled, storming back into the room which forced you to stumble backward into the bedpost. "Maybe I should tell them you revealed some devastating incidents, incriminating Wittebane in some of the most heinous crimes. Maybe it wasnât as innocent as you say and are convinced that it was all consensual-â
Realizing what he was alluding to, your face reddened and you pushed back.Â
âNone of that is true! Philip has never laid a hand on me like that! Why are you doing this?!â
Alder pulled away slightly, his eyes darting down to your hips for only a moment then cleared his throat and stood straight with his arms folded behind his back.
âOh. Good. Well, at least that part has been established. Regardless, it might be best to say otherwise. Youâre only truly going to be safe with him dead.â
You shook your head, absolutely appalled by what you were hearing.
âYouâre a monsterâŠâ
âYou can call me whatever you wish. In time, youâll understand,â he sighed before heading back toward the door. With one final glance, he scoffed softly. âYou should thank me for protecting you.â
You stormed toward the door once more but this time it shut completely. Letting out an enraged scream, you beat your fists on the wood and tried the handle, unsurprisingly finding it locked.Â
âYOU ASSHOLE! Donât you dare lay a hand on him!â
Once that was out of your system, you listened for a moment then pulled a piece of paper out of your pocket. You quickly drew the fire glyph on it and slapped it against the door knob.Â
âYou should thank me for saving you.â you mimicked him as the metal of the doorknob melted away due to the heat. âThank this!â
Listening out for any sound to indicate someone was near, you quickly made your way down the hall. The vacation home was a two-story house with several rooms so you knew you were at least on the second floor.
âThank you, but no, I will have to skip tea for now. I have some urgent business I need to attend to. I shall be back soon,â you heard Alderâs voice answer an elderly servantâs call to tea as you headed for the stairway. You ducked back behind the wall when you realized you nearly stepped out into full view of the door downstairs just in time to watch Alder grab his coat and hat and head out. Upon hearing âurgent businessâ, your eyes widened.
âI have to get to Philip before anything happens to himâŠâ you murmured. Once the front door was closed and the ground floor fell silent, you carefully and quietly headed down. Each noise you made seemed amplified and echoed through the vacant area which only made you more nervous. Someone was sure to hear you. Once on the ground floor, just feet away from the door, you heard someone start talking and a door from a room down the hall behind you opened. Startled, you quickly dove into what looked to be a parlor and closed the door behind you. Whoever it was was speaking on a crow phone, sounding distressed as they tried to calm down a woman who was screaming on the other end.
âYes, I am aware that he did that. I am so sorry, madam. No, Iâm sure he had his reasons for breaking it off. I understand. Yes. Iâm sorry. No, heâs not here, he had urgent business to attend to. I will let him know you called. Of course. Good day.â
A sigh followed.
âThat man is going to need to get his priorities straight, I swearâŠâ
You listened to the footsteps wander toward the back of the house before giving a relieved exhale. That was close. You decided to wait a minute or two to make sure you werenât caught and glancing back into the room, you found it filled with considerably rare and priceless items that one would find traversing the Isles. Some items you had only heard about through the journals youâve read through. Pulling yourself away from the door, you found yourself wanting a closer look at the collection. Your mind started to mentally catalog everything you saw, mainly wanting to learn more about them later. It wasnât until your eyes fell on a display of glowing blue stones laid out on the mantle that it dawned on you what you were looking at. One of the ingredients on the list Philip had given you. Galderstones.
Those bastards! They attacked me and purposely caused a cave-in to try to kill me! This was a setup from the beginning! I should have known something was wrong when they started talking vulgarly about Angel as if they were trying to get me to admit to something! When I asked them to stop and that I was not that way with Angel, they decided to reveal their ruse! Of course, Blightâs name came up before they tried to attack me! By some miracle, I was able to get away but I was apprehended outside of the cave after it collapsed.Â
Damn the allure of Titanâs Blood! The signs were there and I ignored them. I should have realized something was amiss with the location of the said item and when they wanted to split Angel and me up. I foolishly believed it was because Angel was âinexperiencedâ and ânot built for adventuringâ and had allowed it. They referred to Angel as a âblue bloodâ and a âpedigreeâ, a rarity to see out in the wilds of the Boiling Isles back at the tavern. Looking back, it seems as if they were trying to say that I didnât belong in Angelâs presence due to how they were raised and who their family was. I know what Angel is and I will be damned if someone tells me Iâm not good enough for them. I will definitely be eating crow once I see Angel again⊠if I see them againâŠ
As I write this, I have been taken captive by the local guards who were waiting outside of the mine. I had to bear witness to Angel being taken, unconscious, by the people I left them with. It was then I realized Angel had been their true target. That bastard Alder was standing beside the carriage Angel was put in and that smug smirk on his face made my blood boil. Fighting was all for naught. No matter how hard I struggled, I couldnât get free before they shackled me. If only I could have called on that damn curse, this wouldnât be happening.Â
I hope Blight finds all this worth it. He lost three men due to this stunt.
I canât escape just yet. I need to know where these monsters have taken Angel. I doubt they would bring them back to their home. I need to save them from this hell.
The man they brought into the station was not the same man they arrested. The one who went into the paddy wagon was feral, swinging and kicking at anyone in his immediate vicinity while screaming at the top of his lungs for you. The one who came out was composed and soft-spoken with eloquence while compromising with what was asked of him. The guards who had handled him could not believe the change as he was placed in a holding cell. Philip, once he had calmed down, made banter with the guards. He had made them comfortable, and relaxed with his demeanor. Why, before anyone knew it, the guards felt as if they knew him all their life.
Then it happened. Someone made a comment about the witch who put all of this together. Alder Blight. It was about his obsession with something and how distracted heâs been. From there, rumors were circulated that perked Philipâs ears.
âDid you hear that Blight left his betrothed?â âNo, what?!â âYes. Seems like heâs lost interest entirely.â âHeâs taken up a new interest that seems to have gone on for months now.â âYou think thereâs someone new?â âWhy would he leave a prominent figure like her though?â
âWhy, indeed,â Philip fought the urge to roll his eyes. Your name never came up, however. A shame, as it would have had to save doing it himself. He began to wonder if these guards even knew why he had been arrested. It would make sense if Alder didnât spread around his business or someone would approach you for answers and find out any lies he had told. After all, these guards, from what he understood, were only following orders handed down by their captain. Before he could open his mouth, one of the guards gave him what he needed.
âI heard Alder has been holing himself up in his familyâs vacation home.â âThe one outside of town? Why there? Whatâs wrong with his own home?â âMaybe he was trying to avoid her before finally breaking it off?â
Thank God for bored people in small towns and their gossip. Philip knew exactly where you would have been taken and he had a pretty good idea of which place this was. He remembered wandering past an uninteresting two-story mansion nestled in the woods when he first came to the town.Â
It wasnât long before he was told the carriage taking him to Bonesborough had arrived, something that had blindsided him. Philip wasnât aware that they would be doing this in another town. This meant he had to escape as soon as possible. He could only guess Alder wanted him as far away from there as possible to keep him from getting to you when he escaped.
âThe prisoner is situated. Letâs get this over with. Bonesborough is still a ways away,â you heard one of the guards grumble after slamming the back of the paddy wagon shut. You stood not far from them in an alleyway, your hood up as you watched the scene. You were just shy of arriving in time to see them place Philip in the back of the wagon. âWhy we canât use a flying carriage is beyond me.â
âLast time we did that, the perp jumped off the side and disappeared into the woods, remember?â another chimed in. âWe can get some coffee and snacks for the road and then head out.â
When the two wandered off and the coast was clear, you made your way to the doors where a chain was wrapped around the handles. Just as you were about to place an ice picto-glyph on the lock, you heard a frozen sound followed by something metallic shattering, and something told you to get away from the doors. Not a moment after you moved, the doors were slammed open by a massive spike of ice, followed by a blast of fire that melted it enough to create a way out. Philip leapt out of the wagon and glanced back toward the precinct as he fixed his hair and clothes before turning to continue his escape. The two of you froze upon meeting each otherâs gaze. Conflicting feelings of relief and anger washed over you upon seeing that he was okay.
âPhilip?!â
âAngel!â Philip breathed, immediately grabbing your jaw with both hands and pulling you into a kiss. You didnât fight it, but the moment he pulled away, you struck him across the face with an open palm. âYouâre-â
âThatâs for getting us into this mess!â you hissed softly. âNone of this would have happened if we just stayed at the tavern as we had planned! You HAD to go drinking and make plans to get something we werenât even ready to get yet without even consulting me! You just expected me to go along with it! I canât believe you-!â
Philip held his stinging cheek in shock as you chided him and his gaze softened.
âYes, I know Angel. I should have never put you in that position, to begin with,â he murmured, taking the hand that struck him and kissing its palm. âIt will not happen againâŠâ
âIt better not! Alder has lost his damn mind and wanted to have you executed for âkidnappingâ me on top of several non-existent charges!â
His face fell when you explained what Alder had said, what he had alluded Philip to have done to you which boiled his blood. The sound of several guards nearby interrupted the conversation, causing Philip to grab your hand and the two of you fled town. Seeing as they couldnât go back to the tavern to get your things right away, you told him that the two of you would go back to the first cave he took you to until everything had died down. The angry expression you gave him when he tried to protest silenced him and he nodded in agreement.
The walk back was tense and both parties had their own reasons for being angry, you for what Philip had put you through, and Philip for finding out that he was being painted as a rapist and kidnapper. The only noise that cut through the silence was a rumble of thunder.
âOh bloody hell, not now!â Philip scoffed and ushered you under a protruding rock along the path with enough room for both of you to stand and sit. Moments later, boiling rain fell in a thick curtain.
You curled your legs to you and rested your arms on your knees with a hard sigh as you glared out at the rain. Philipâs anger subsided some and he leaned back against the rocky outcrop, watching the rain as well since there was nothing else to do besides hash out what had happened.
âI should have known better than to think Titanâs Blood would be that easy to find.â
âHm.â
âAll that and nothing to show for itâŠâ
Hearing this, you gave a thoughtful look before reaching down to the heavy satchel you were carrying and flipping its flap back to reveal the Galderstones you had found at Alderâs place. Their blue glow got Philipâs attention and you watched him shift in surprise upon realizing what they were.Â
âA-Are those-?! Angel?!â
âFigured Alder owed me for putting me through this and years of torment so I took them from his parlor.â
Philip picked several up in awe.
âThese are the third rarest items on the list! And thereâs so many of them!â
âHe wonât miss them.â
The man gushed about the stones for a moment or two before suddenly embracing you in a tight hug.
âAngel, youâre amazing-!â
You quickly shoved him away by the face with a sneer.
âDonât touch me! Iâm still angry with you!â
Philip immediately withdrew with a mixed expression of hurt and sorrow. A few moments passed before he wet his lips and opened his mouth.
âAngel, I truly am sorry for all of this. I let a strangerâs thoughts dictate my own and I got carried away with the promise of one of the rarest substances in the Boiling Isles,â he paused then moved from his knees to sit properly beside you. âI guess⊠I guess I thought if we could get it early, we could go home sooner.â
This struck a chord with you. âWeâ. He actually said, âweâ. After a short silence, you spoke.Â
âPhilipâŠâ
âHm?â
âWhat are we?â
âWhat are we? What do you mean?â
Philip flinched when you gave him a side-glare and he remembered back to the âloverâs spatâ comment.Â
âO-Oh, yes⊠Weâre traveling companions. We forged a strong bond of fellowship and⊠andâŠâ
He watched your hand tighten on the fabric over your knee as he spoke and you turned your head away from him to glare elsewhere. It was clear this wasnât what you wanted to hear. Philipâs heart leapt at this but the sensation only lasted so long when he was presented with a challenge. He had never had to confess to anyone before and, while he was good with words, he was never great at expressing his emotions. If he had any. With a deep inhale, he tried his best. âNo⊠thatâs not true. Itâs not like what Iâve done for you that Iâve done for others who Iâve considered traveling companions. You are⊠different⊠for me.â
He flinched when you snapped your head in his direction and he averted his gaze. His face suddenly felt very uncharacteristically warm and he swallowed hard.
âIâve been very affectionate toward you over our adventures, havenât I? Iâve kept you close, awake and in sleep, kissed you several times at least, among other things⊠Well, there is a reason for thatâŠâ
It killed him when you didnât say anything. He could feel your eyes on him, searing his skin. He deserved this for letting it go on for far too long. With a deep inhale, he ran a hand over his head as he struggled to find the words to continue.
âI admit⊠that I⊠may⊠have⊠become quite⊠smitten. With you. During our travels. And⊠I⊠did not want to ruin. Anything⊠byâŠâ
Your heart skipped a beat hearing this and your anger receded at his confession.
â... telling me you liked me?â
Philipâs eyes darted in your direction and he cleared his throat. At least you said something.
âT-Thatâs one way to put it, yes.â
âI doubt you would have ruined anything by telling me that. I believe the feeling is mutual.â
Philip felt you slip your arm around his and your hand into his gloved one as you leaned against his shoulder. Glancing at you, he found your expression was semi-content but still held a tinge of anger. His stare relaxed before turning his attention back to the rain. It felt as if his own heart was doing backflips. Before he could stop himself, he blurted out the next part.Â
âIf it is, then how badly do you wish to anger Alder for what heâs done?â
You stared forward blankly, the side of your mouth twitching before glaring at the rain.
âVery. He had no right endangering your life or making unfounded accusations against you or for kidnapping me,â you tightened your grip on his hand. âHe acts as if he has a say in my life and it sickens me.â
This answer steeled Philipâs nerves and his confidence returned trifold.
âHm. Well, we could commit to one another,â he sighed. âIf youâll have me, of course.â
Your brows flashed and your head snapped in his direction to meet his gaze. You slowly sat up as what he said sank in.
âWhatâŠ?â
âItâs only a thought,â Philip shrugged. âThough, itâs not as romantic as I would have liked and I donât appreciate that foppish gobermouch forcing my hand so soon. I havenât the chance to speak to your fatherâŠâ
Your gaze was that of a deer caught in headlights. Any anger you held onto was now gone as your head spun while trying to process the fact that he had just asked you to marry him. The shock of the idea someone actually wanted toâŠ
âYou want toâŠ?â
Philip chuckled some with a slight smirk.
âIt would twist his knickers to know I laid claim to you and you willingly accepted, but it would⊠give you a better title for what we are,â he sighed. âI would be your intended, or fiance. Your future husband.â
When you remained silent, he continued.
âI would like to believe I would be a decent husband to someone, though there wasnât really anyone back home who I was remotely invested in⊠like thisâŠâ he cleared his throat and looked away. âConsidering⊠everything, that someone might as well be you⊠if you are willing to marry⊠outside of your⊠race⊠You already know I will take care of you and protect you with my lifeâŠâ
Emotion welled in your chest as he spoke. He sounded so sincere and soft as he rambled.
âBut itâs not like we would need to get married soon, either. It can be a long engagement. However, my religion does not use rings for engagements forward but if you would prefer one, Iâm sure we can find one⊠Perhaps, once my journey is completed here, we could wed in my world and I can give you a proper life-â
Without warning, you threw your arms around him and embraced him tightly, hiding your face in his shoulder. Philip gasped from the sudden movement and caught himself from falling over as his free arm wrapped around you, keeping you close.Â
âI want thatâŠâ you murmured. âI want all of that. I donât care if Alder gets upset⊠In fact, I donât even want to do it for him!â
You felt both arms around you now, steadily tightening. Philip stared past you at the rain.
âSo be it⊠However⊠there⊠are some things you should know about before-â
âI-In time, Flip⊠Iâll deal with all of it in strideâŠâ you pulled away to look at him, your hand settling on his cheek. You hadnât realized the tears swelling in your eyes until one streaked down your face. âI donât care what it is. And I donât want you to go to my family. Theyâre just as bad as Alder.â
âI really think that I should tell you-â the man began but then paused. âWait, what?!â
Philipâs eye twitched when you reiterated what Alder had told you, including the part about going to your father to get his permission to retrieve you. The more he listened, the tighter his hold on you became and his eyes relaxed once more. You were too excited to notice the tone shift to a much darker one after he kissed your cheek.
âDonât worry, Angel. I will never let anyone take you away from me againâŠâ
... Yandere!Philip Wittebane anyone? This one is SFW, pretty much the beginning of an obsession. Other than bullying and the Reader shooting their mouth off, I don't think there's much else to warn about.
Remember that little hint I gave during the quiz post? Why I want to know which Philip to use? Yeah, this is it. So far, it's the pre-ass kicked Philip but I do have an idea that will transition it to be both. It takes place long before Luz and Lilith but Philip still has that long beard.
GN!Reader is a witch with a birth defect: They were born without a bile sac, rendering them helpless when it came to magic. Because of this, certain people tend to bully and ridicule them. They are currently trying to find their place in life and it's not going well. Cue them meeting the infamous human in an altercation that seems eerily similar to one that happens later on.
And there are three ancestors who are giving the reader a hard time: Amity's, Boscha's, and Willow's.
âBlight! Knock it off!â you growled, trying to snatch a stack of papers out of the outstretched hand of Alder Blight, a bully that had set his sights on you for the past year or so. Two others stood behind him. âI need those!â
âIf you want us to stop, why not make us?â the male witch snickered. A pair of hands reached out behind him and took the stack. âOh, wait! You canât. You canât do magic!â
âYouâre supposed to be acting like grown adults, not children in school!â you chided, still reaching for your work. âArenât you a little old to be acting this way?!â
âWhat kind of witch canât even do magic?â the witch who had grabbed them started flipping through the pages, his three eyes scanning them as he completely ignored your insult. This was Baron. âWhat is this anyway? There are no pictures.â
âOne without a bile sac apparently,â Alder snickered, wandering up to look at the papers over Baronâs shoulder.
âItâs a history of the town I was asked to write by the mayor!â you pressed. âI worked for months on it! Please, give it back!â
The final witch in their group by the name of Forsythia Park rushed past Baron to look at you, surprisingly, with concern. She was the youngest out of the three and you had a sneaking suspicion that she was only with these two because she either liked one of them, couldnât say no and went with it, or just wanted to be popular.
âYou donât have a bile sac?! I am so sorry! I didnât realize-!â she cried with her hands together in a pleading gesture. âIf I had known, I would have never-!â
She was promptly brushed aside by Alder.
âWhat are you sorry for?â he scoffed then blinked and laughed. âOh wait, I get it! This is quite pitiful, isnât it?â
âI told you, itâs a birth defect!â you growled, finally managing to grip the stack to try to pull it out of Baronâs hands. From there, the two of you started a tug of war. âAnd I donât have time for this! I have to get it to the book binder before nightfall-!â
âYouâre not even half a witch at this point! Youâre as lame as that human whoâs been wandering the Isles! He canât do magic either!â Alder crossed his arms and shook his head with a smirk.
âOh, thatâs a new one! Comparing me to the human,â you rolled your eyes sarcastically. âHavenât heard that one since he appeared in our realm. Let go, Baron!â
âBaron, come on, give it back!â Forsythia stomped a foot, actually siding with you. âThis isnât funny anymore! Itâs probably the only thing they can do!â
This made Alder laugh so hard he cried.
âDear lord, Forsythia, youâre good at this!â
This caused the girl to go quiet and red in the face out of embarrassment.
âFine, fine, they can have it back,â Baron rolled his eyes. Your mistake was pulling too hard and not bracing yourself for what came next. Baron watched you with a bored look then grinned maliciously and let go of the stack. You lost your balance and fell back, hitting the ground hard. Hundreds of pages scattered the ground, some landing in puddles from the last rain, some blowing off in the wind. Others became entangled in the brush nearby. The group, minus Forsythia, burst into laughter again.
âNo!â you gasped, scrambling to try to gather every page you could.
âWoah, look at it go!â Baron shielded his eyes from the light and watched the wind whip around a handful of the pages. With a sigh, he dusted off his hands. âOkay, Iâm bored. How about we go torment someone else?â
âYou mean someone who can fight back? That seems interesting,â Alder wrapped a hand around his chin. âOkay. Letâs go Forsythia.â
The two started walking off, not worried about their third member who stood there, watching you. You had gathered as much as you could but there was still a large chunk of the stack missing. More than half. You sat there on your knees, staring off in the direction that the wind had taken the rest of the pages. There was a cliff nearby, so you were willing to bet that a lot of them had already fallen into the boiling seawater or burnt up.
âY/N⊠Iâm sorry-â
You pushed yourself to your feet, shoulders hunched, not bothering to look at her or to pick up what was left. You let the wind take whatever it wanted.
âJust go, Forsythia. It doesnât matter anymore.â
âMaybe we can salvage-â
âItâs gone. All that work. All that research. Gone. Just go back and do⊠whatever youâre trying to accomplish with those two.â
Before she could say another word, you turned and headed back into town.
A numbness filled you as you made your way through the streets. Maybe if you explained what happened to the mayor, heâll give you another shot at it and extend your deadline. Unfortunately, you had to wonder if you were only given this task out of pity for your handicap. Either way, it was worth a shot, you guessed.
Turning the corner, you caught what seemed to be the tail-end of a scuffle. A man with long, brown hair in a ponytail and a scruffy beard in a blue jacket was thrown to the ground at your feet by two thugs you recognized as frequent patrons of a bar down the way. Tusk and Timber. They were also the mayorâs demon bodyguards who had to keep clean public appearances if they wanted to keep their jobs. A glance at the man at your feet made you realize it was the human you were being compared to. He sat up and put his hands out to defend himself.
âNow, hold on-!â
âHa! Like weâd ever help a whelp like you! We heard what happened to the Gross brothers. They were last seen with you before disappearinâ! Pretty suspicious how that happened. Care to explain- eh?â one of them scoffed but then paused upon seeing you. He strode past the man on the ground and got in your face. âWhat the hell you starinâ at, not-a-witch?â
Without thinking, you opened your mouth. You were half surprised at what had come out, but you werenât in the mood to be polite.
âTwo empty-headed brutes who canât give a simple no, apparently,â you answered deadpan with half-lidded eyes, crossing your arms and shifting your weight to one leg. âI wasnât aware that you needed constant reminders. Iâll gladly remind you that you donât have the mental compacity to choose non-violent paths.â
The thugâs eyes widened, and he grabbed you by the collar, pulling you up high enough where your toes barely touched the ground. You kept your arms crossed and didnât react past raising a brow.
âWhat did you say?! You callinâ me dumb?!â
âMore like an imbecile, but I guess monosyllabic words work better for you, donât they, Tusk? I will say that itâs impressive that you have the ability to understand when youâre being insulted, given⊠all this,â you lifted a hand and motioned to all of him. The demon hissed at you. You caught a snort followed by a quiet snicker on the ground. At least the human found it amusing.
âOh, I donât care if youâre missinâ your bile sac, that mouth of yours is about to get you into a world of hurt!â he snarled, raising a fist in a threatening manner.
âSay it a bit louder, Tusk. I donât think the people living in the Toes can hear you. Might as well let everyone know I canât do magic. Maybe if you forgot that tidbit, youâll have enough storage in that tiny brain to remember important things!â you gave a wry grin then rolled your eyes. âSpeaking of which, hereâs where you need your reminder. Iâm working with the mayor right now. What would he say if I came into work with a black eye? Iâd have to be truthful and tell him that one of his men who are supposed to be keeping their noses clean in public did it, thus rendering your contracts with him obsolete. Are you starting to connect the dots?â
You slowly tilted your head to stare dead-eyed at Timber behind him who happened to be the smartest of the two⊠not by much though. His face fell hard in realization, and he immediately snatched Tuskâs wrist and shook his head.
âPut âem down, Tusk,â Timber pressed. âWe need this job.â
âRight, yeah, because itâs much steadier pay than having to loan yourselves out as sell-swords which, might I add, may not be illegal but frowned upon by higher society, the very people you want to impress,â you reminded him as he slowly set you down on your feet. The demon let out a growl before whirling around and stomping off down the street.
âThere. You got what you wanted. Weâll leave the human alone. Just donât say a word about this to the boss or weâll come find you,â Timber warned before following Tusk. You fixed your collar before clearing your throat.
âAnd Iâll have you know; the Gross brothers were into illicit activities long before the human arrived here! They probably realized they couldnât get much from him, left him to die then ran off to Latissa since they were the last ones he was seen with if he didnât come back alive!â you called after them. âWouldnât be the first time they pulled that, huh?! Iâd say think about that before throwing out accusations, but I donât think thatâs possible!â
Once the two were gone, you let out a sigh.
âFunny, telling off those brutes usually makes me feel better,â you narrowed your eyes and rubbed your chin. You then dropped your shoulders when you remembered losing your work and having to go back to plead mercy from the mayor. âOh. Right. Why couldnât I have been that ruthless ten minutes ago?â
âWell, if it is true that you do not possess the ability to do magic, your sharp tongue and wit certainly compensate for it,â a soft British voice called out behind you. Your shoulders flinched upwards only to drop again.
âUgh, why not? Iâm already considered the âtown freakâ, might as well interact with the human everyoneâs whispering about,â you grumbled under your breath. You glanced over your shoulder just in time to see the human stand, revealing himself to be taller than you anticipated. He turned his bright cornflower blue gaze to you as he brushed himself off and fixed his jacket. You couldnât help but stare a moment. â... Pretty eyesâŠâ
âWhat was that?â he furrowed his brow and tilted his head.
âNothing!â you snapped your attention away from him, face slightly red. He raised a brow before chuckling.
âSo, who do I have to thank for saving my hide?â he outstretched a gloved hand which made you cross your arms tightly and turn your body away, still unsure about him. The stories you heard about him swam around in your head, but you didnât know what was fact and what was fiction.
âYou need to be more careful around here,â you muttered. âSome witches donât take kindly to non-magic beings.â
âAre you speaking from experience?â
Your arms tightened at the question, enough to dig your nails into the skin. You bit back the urge to snap at him over it. He couldnât help it right? He was just human. Very few knew what this felt like. His fingers curled up and he retracted his hand.
âI see.â
âYou should leave⊠before anyone else decides to attack you. I was able to talk Tusk and Timber out of doing whatever they were planning to do to you, I wonât be able to do that again. Witches like them tend not to listen unless they have something to lose,â you sighed, then stepped away. âExcuse me.â
As you started in the direction Timber and Tusk had gone, you heard his footsteps begin to follow you.
âSeems as if you saved more than just me by intervening. Iâm sure those two are grateful you said something and let them keep their jobs. That was very kind of you,â the human sped up to match your pace and leaned forward to look at you. âAnd, ah, for the record, Iâm not following you. The town gate happens to be in this direction as wellâŠâ
Your face warmed some from the compliment as you rubbed the back of your neck.
âAfter I insulted their intelligence, sure. Grateful,â you grumbled.
âWell, for what itâs worth, thank you, âNot-a-witchâ,â he said in a playful tone with his brows raised. âI havenât met anyone else who stood up for me like that, especially referring to my ex-companions that way. I hope to meet more understanding souls like yourself on my journey.â
The man gripped the strap of his bag and strode past you. You stared after him a moment, slowing down. You had heard warnings about him, including the things about his ex-companions disappearing or perishing in horrific ways, but a lot of it was hearsay without any evidence. Pure gossip. Something would have been done about him if he was truly dangerous, right? He seemed nice and sincere. With an inward sigh, you decided to hell with it. What did you have to lose by interacting further with him?
âY/N⊠actually,â you called after him. The man paused before turning to face you, surprised at first but then gave you a kind smile.
âY/N⊠Charmed. Iâm Philip Wittebane.â
You repeated his name and closed the gap between the two of you.
âWell⊠Iâm headed to town hall, which is also near the gate. I⊠donât mind if we headed that way togetherâŠâ
Upon hearing this, Philipâs expression brightened.
âI would be delighted for the company, Y/N.â
And with that, the two of you continued the trek across town. You had told him what had happened right before running into him and the two brutes and it looked as if the man was about to have a heart attack when told how many pages you had lost.
âMy word! I would have lost all will to live if that had happened to me!â he gripped his satchel close.
âIâm⊠still fighting against that,â you rubbed your arm. âIâm just hoping I can get a second chance at it. If not, Iâm not sure what Iâd do.â
âIâm terribly sorry that transpired against you,â Philip lowered his voice. âI truly am. From one scholar to another.â
âScholar?â your head perked but then you shook it. âOh no, Iâm no scholar. Iâm⊠just trying to find something Iâm good at to find my place in a society that is heavily reliant on magic.â
âI disagree. If you did as much work as you said you did to create a book for others to have an easier time to understand your townâs history, you must be a scholar. Youâve learned all of that for the sake of learning. I canât imagine how that wouldnât make you one.â
You couldnât help but smile.
âThanks⊠I think I needed to hear that,â you sighed. Philip nodded with a soft grunt.
âI⊠hope you donât find this forward of me, but⊠you were born without a bile sac?â
âItâs a birth defect,â you answered automatically in a deadpan tone since you constantly had people asking about it. âSkips a handful of generations in my family and I was the lucky one who got it.â
âAhâŠâ
âThereâs three kinds of people, those who consider me a freak of nature, those who show pity to the point that they try to do things for me I canât normally do, or those that ignore my existence since, in their eyes, youâre useless without magic,â you explained. An awkward silence fell between the two of you before you were gently nudged in the arm.
âWell, Iâm pleased to say Iâm none of those considering Iâm in the same boat. I was born without a bile sac too. Thatâs where dignity and intelligence come in,â Philip shrugged. The playful tone kept you from being angry with him and you let out a snicker.
âSmart arse,â you muttered. âOff topic, but what⊠did you ask Tusk and Timber for that made them react that way?â
âOh⊠Well⊠itâs nothing I want to bother you with. Letâs just say I just needed a guide or two to get around the Isles. Itâs just since the Gross brothers abandoned me, everyone seems to believe Iâm cursed or that Iâve done something to them,â he flicked a hand. âAs if I even have the means to take down two powerful witches. I mean, look at me,â he motioned to himself. âCompared to them, Iâm nothing but skin and bones! I should really be careful who I speak to at the taverns.â
âYou really should. There are those who also try to collect rarities and being human puts you on that list,â you chuckled and folded your arms behind your back. âProbably right beside someone like me.â
âOh, well if that be the case, Iâd gladly let them take me if youâre right there,â he joked. âAt least Iâd have someone to talk to.â
You couldnât help but smirk and roll your eyes.
âHar, har. Thatâs even if youâre kept alive that long. They could just do to you what they do when they hunt rare beasts and mount your head on a wall as a trophy.â
âAH. Yes, that would be quite a hindrance, wouldnât it?â he stroked his beard with a furrowed brow. He then shrugged. âWell then, Iâll just have to develop a better sense about these things.â
âI guess youâll have to. This world is hard and unforgiving for someone who canât defend themselves without magic- as if I have to tell you that. Youâre living through it,â you flicked a hand but then came to a dead stop upon seeing the town hall looming over you. You became crestfallen with a hard sigh. Philip looked between you and the building.
â... As are you, hm?â
âYeahâŠâ you breathed but then inhaled to pull yourself together and you gave him the best smile you could muster. âThanks for the chat. I better get in there and see what can be done about losing all that work.â
âThe feeling is mutual, Y/N. Iâve quite enjoyed your company, regardless of how short it was. Good luck. I⊠hope to see you around? Again? Soon? Maybe?â he gave you a hopeful glance.
âMaybe⊠I guess weâll let fate decide,â you hummed. âGood night, Philip. Please be more careful out there.â
Philip nodded before turning to leave.
âTo hell with fate, Iâll make sure we meet again soon,â he muttered quietly under his breath out of earshot of you. When you called out his name again, he flinched and whirled around. âY-Yes?â
You gazed at him with concern.
â... Donât let the gossip get to you. Itâll die down soon. Itâs just a bunch of bored people who have nothing going on in their lives making crazy things up to pass the time. Theyâll see once the Gross brothers come out of hiding after what they did to you,â you offered him a kind smile. He stared back at you and let out a soft chuckle.
âOf course. I figured as much. Donât worry about me, Y/N. I refuse to let anyone get in my way of my goals. And neither shall you, hm?â
You shook your head in response.
âNever.â
The two of you parted ways, you entering the town hall and him leaving through the gate.
Philip fished into his satchel to retrieve his book and skipped over pages that spoke about a grim ending to a set of brothers who had accompanied him to get to a clean one.
âHow fortuitous, I became acquainted with a saint in this horrid place,â he softly narrated as he wrote and walked. âAkin to finding a lost angel that was once snatched from Heaven by vile demons while traversing the ninth circle of hell itself. Despite their own misfortune, they valiantly saved my life from monsters that blocked my path without raising so much as a sword. I shall meet with them on the morrow to convince them to accompany me on my journey. I aim to return the favor and deliver them to safety. And the angelâs name? Y/N⊠Such a fitting name for one so gentle and kind. Their defect is their saving grace and I, their savior. It is destiny.â
Philip then closed the book and returned it to his satchel as he gazed back toward the town with a dark, determined expression.
âI will save you from this, Y/N. If youâre not considered a witch due to the lack of magic, then youâre human.â
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Something I tried to incorporate into the old version of the next chapter of A Grim Destiny that really didn't fit in once I started revising it so I'm just going to post it here. Philip has a nightmare. Ends on the more sweet and fluffy side of this ship.
Something brushing against his cheek made his eyes crack open. He could feel the heartbeat and body heat under him. It made him grimace when he realized what had transpired.
Not againâŠ! He thought bitterly. He knew what was brushing against his cheek and it enraged him. Too many times was he lured into laying with a witch and it sickened him. Lifting his body slightly, he moved a hand to his hip where he unsheathed a crooked dagger. The body under him began to stir and his other hand traveled along the soft surface of the bed before crossing over your mouth quickly, pinning your head to the pillow. You seized up under him.Â
âVile, disgusting creatureâŠâ he growled softly, pushing himself up to look down at you as he pulled the dagger into view. âTempting me to sin again⊠Damned witch⊠I shanât stand for it this time!â
He drew the dagger above his head, your eyes widening. One hand gripped his arm while the other pressed against his chest, trying to push him off. No matter how hard you pushed, he was steadfast.
âI shall end it here and send you back to hell where you belong, you accursed heathen!â
A cruel smirk spread across his face, his own eyes widening while yours shut tightly, and in one swift motion-
-
âNO!â Philip inhaled hard, throwing himself from laying on his side into a sitting position on the bed in a cold sweat. His hands patted down his chest and to his hip to find his dagger missing but a once over on the cave made him remember he put it satchel which hung near his workstation. Good. Glancing beside him, he found you asleep on the bedroll next to his with your back to him. Quickly checking you over, he let out a relieved sigh. He placed a hand over his face to try to calm himself down. âThank GodâŠâ
Philip turned his attention to the mouth of the cave, suddenly offended that the nightmare even happened. He was certain he would never have done that to you in the waking world, not even over your uncut ears. You werenât like the others. You were more than just a âmoment of weaknessâ that ended in a disappearance. He hadnât even touched you like that and the fact you were still breathing after all this time cemented that.Â
âIs something wrong?â
Your sleepy voice snapped him out of his thoughts and made him glance down at you to find that you were now watching him, half asleep with your upper body twisted to look back at him. His gaze softened. He adored seeing you like this. You were so vulnerable in that moment.
âNo, my angel. Nothingâs wrong,â he whispered and leaned over. âCome here.â
Philip hooked his arm around your waist and pulled you onto his bedroll before laying down once more. Your body stretched like a cat before rolling over entirely, entwining your legs with his, and settling against him. You then furrowed your brow and he felt your hand start to rub his side comfortingly.
âYour heart is racing and you're shaking⊠Nightmare?â
Philip tensed up before chuckling. He hadn't realized he was still experiencing an adrenaline rush.
âIâm afraid so,â he sighed, nuzzling you as he held you and planted a kiss on the top of your head.Â
âAre you okay?â
âYes, Iâm perfectly fine now. Go back to sleep, Angel.â
âHm.â
Philip lay there, eyes closed for what seemed like forever. No matter what he did, his mind hindered sleep and would replay the nightmare over and over again, sometimes even finishing the action that made him wince. After a long uncomfortable silence, his eyes cracked open.
âY/N?â
His heart leaped at the soft, sleepy trill you made and the sight of you lifting your head slightly with your eyes closed.
âYou know I will never harm youâŠ?â
âMm-hm.â
âGoodâŠâ
âIt was just a bad dream, Moonlight. Nothing more⊠Don't beat yourself up over it...â you murmured, your hand moving to his chest to knead it some before falling still. Philip leaned his head against yours with his eyes closed and a hand enclosed around your jaw with his thumb rubbing your cheek.Â
âYes⊠Of course.â
It took him a short time to fall back to sleep out of fear of revisiting the nightmare. His heartbeat echoed yours and it gave him the mental image that it was a very tender conversation after yours convinced his to calm down. It was soothing enough to cause him to drift off once more.
Part 1Â -Â Part 2Â -Â Part 3Â -Â Part 4Â -Â Part 5 - Part 6
Grim Diary Entries
GN!Reader is a witch with a birth defect: They were born without a bile sac, rendering them helpless when it came to magic. Because of this, certain people tend to bully and ridicule them. They are currently trying to find their place in life and itâs not going well.
((This chapter is a bit short. I had more but decided to turn it into its own chapter))
This is a slow-burn Yandere fic and it will get darker as time goes on. Fair warning. It is SFW for now. Just keep that in mind.
Read it on Ao3
Oh, my divine Angel, must I disturb your sleeping form? You look so peaceful⊠But alas, I must. That demon cannot find you. I must take you further away. Maybe toward the Knee. Or the Hand. Iâll figure something out. Forgive me, dearest. Iâll let you rest as soon as we get to a safer placeâŠ
âGalderstone⊠Selkidomis scale⊠Palistrom wood⊠Stonesleeper lung? Bone of Ortet?â you read aloud the list Philip had given you as you followed him down a path in the early morning hours. The man had made a point that it would be best to keep moving in case someone came looking for you since the two of you had left a day early and neither of you was far from your hometown yet. âWhat is all this for? Iâve never heard of a⊠bone of ortet?â
You glanced up at the man who walked ahead of you as he wrote something down in his journal.
âHm? Oh, itâs an experiment I want to try. I was given that list by someone in Latissa. Granted, there may be an extra ingredient or two missing but itâs a start,â Philip closed his journal and slowed down just enough for you to catch up to him. âI would like to try to get them eventually and I would imagine it will take us all over the Isles.â
âHm. I know Palistrom wood should be the easiest to come by but Iâm not sure about the rest. And⊠are we going to have to use the modern-day equivalent of a Stonesleeper? I thought those were extinctâŠâ you murmured. âNot having an innate magical ability somewhat hindered my knowledge in these sorts of thingsâŠâ
âUnderstandable. I am still learning myself.â
âSpeaking of learning,â you slipped the list into his satchel and looked up at him. âHow many more glyphs do you think there are?â
âI am not entirely sure, to be honest,â he rubbed his chin. âI havenât found another one in quite a while. Iâm sure when the world is ready to show the next one, weâll find it.â
âI seeâŠâ you sighed. You glanced at your surroundings as the two of you made your way down one of the trade routes toward another town. You were entering areas you had never seen before and excitement rose in your chest. It was beautiful, however, it did remind you of the comment Philip made about the Boiling Isles being a âgod-awful placeâ. âItâs so nice out here. I wonder though, is it anything like where youâre from?â
Philip scoffed and shook his head.
âNot even close. Sure, this place has its moments, but the human realm has a beauty that is incomparable. Green trees, non-boiling seas and rains, quiet nightsâŠâ he sighed. The longing look in his eyes made you smile sadly.Â
âThat sounds amazing⊠You must miss it.â
âDearly. I wish to return to it someday,â he glanced down at you with a smile. âMaybe youâll be able to accompany me.â
âReally?â you blinked and he nodded. âIâd love to see another realm! ButâŠâ
âBut?â
âBut first I would like to explore my own. I donât know anything about this place outside of books and maps. I think itâd be best to start here.â
Philip laughed light-heartedly.
âOh, Angel, itâll be a while before I can return. Thereâs much to do here first,â he placed a hand at the center of your back. You stared at him a moment, the name he just called you rolling around in your head. Has he been calling you that and you just now noticed? You had caught âloveâ a handful of times but not âAngelâ. He noticed the stare. âHm? What is it?â
âAngel?...â
Philip fell quiet for only a moment, his face turning red under his beard and he rubbed the back of his neck while avoiding eye contact.Â
âOh⊠Forgive me,â he started quietly. âIâll stop using it if youâre⊠ah, uncomfortable with it-â
âNo, thatâs not it. Iâm just wondering why that?âÂ
âWell⊠Your benevolence toward me these past few days have been nothing but angelic⊠SoâŠâ
âWhat even is an angel?â
Philip opened his mouth but then closed it and snapped his head in your direction with a look that screamed âI canât believe you just asked thatâ.
⊠⊠⊠then he went on for hours about something called Heaven where a god resides and all of his followers were angels and how there was this one angel that disagreed and went to war with the god⊠So thereâs a god in the human realm that is all-knowing and all-seeing but its teachings are told through normal people and if you donât do its will, it sends you to a place called Hell for all eternity? Then thereâs something called the âOriginal Sinâ that sounds⊠awful if Iâm interpreting it right. Ugh. Iâm so glad we donât have something like that here.Â
Well, at least it made Philip conk out when we got to our next destination. He wasnât kidding when he said he had cave setups all over the Boiling Isles. This one overlooks a boiling lake and you can see the Titanâs skull in the distance. Itâs so nice⊠Iâm going to continue practicing glyphs as well as gather firewood for tonight. Iâll write soon.
I did something unforgivable. I hurt Angel. They were trying to be playful and were trying to get to know me, I see that now, but at the time, I hadnât realized. I took it the wrong way and I said something horrible, something that poured salt into an open wound they had since before I even met them. They wonât talk to me now past one-word answers. Oh, why did I open my damn mouth?!
âHumans are weird,â you murmured after Philip told you about how he grew up in the human realm. The two of you had just settled in for the night with a fire between you.
âNo, we are not!â he scoffed. âTake that back!â
âYes you are!â you snickered back. âI mean, most of the stuff that youâve told me sounds like you live a very mundane life. Itâs boring. You have the freedom to go anywhere you wanted and yet all you do is work. I didnât and I still was able to have some fun in my day-to-day life.â
âBy being confined to a library?â Philip raised a brow.
âOr going to the beach to find unique things, climbing onto rooftops for the thrill of jumping from rooftop to rooftop knowing if I fell I couldnât magically heal myself, messing with the town guards to make them think theyâre crazy for thinking they saw something that wasnât there. I once got them to believe a Slitherbeast was loose outside of the gates with nothing but light and shadows,â you explained. Philip just stared over the fire at you. Memories of messing with people played in his head, even up until a year or so before- He shook his head. If he started talking about it, he would only say something that would get you to prod for more. It was probably best not to say anything. âSurely there was something you did for fun-â
He just scoffed.
âWe all did what needed to be done. While you had all the time in the world to muck about because you couldnât properly contribute, we had goals to achieve. Itâs not like your community didnât do the same-!â Philip crossed his arms and glared at the ground. When you didnât reply immediately, he glanced up. You stared down at the fire, disheartened. Your smile and playful demeanor were nowhere to be found. Philip, realizing what he had said, put his hands up in defense. âI did not mean it like thatâŠâ
âI guess⊠I did screw around a lot,â you answered quietly. âCouldnât figure out what else I was good for so and got tired of being yelled at for being under foot⊠I just went on my own and did things to entertain myself to keep from reminding myself how useless I was. Itâs not like anyone needed a powerless witch around when everything can be done by magic.â
âHold on, now-â
Philipâs mind raced to try to mend the situation. When you glanced up at him with a broken smile, a part of him died.
âI forgot that Iâm still the odd one out. It must be nice to be useful.â
âY/N, please-â he breathed as he watched you stand and gather some of the parchment paper and a pen.
âIâm⊠Iâm going to practice glyphsâŠâ you avoided eye contact with him. âDonât fall asleep too close to the fire. Your beard will catch again.â
Philips scrambled to his feet but by the time he did, you had left the cave. Panic flooded his mind. What was he going to do? What if you decided to go back to town because of what he said? After several minutes of pacing and trying to figure out what to do, he rushed out of the cave to look for you.Â
He was greeted with a nighttime setting with a full moon hanging over the boiling lake. You were nowhere in sight. Philip didnât call out for you, not wanting to call attention to the cave to anything that could be nearby, and went searching the immediate area. Still, no sign of you.Â
âOh, if anything happened to them, Iâll never forgive myself..â he growled under his breath. Just as he inhaled to call out for you, he paused. The sight of thick vines wrapping around two trees not far from the cave caught his attention and he followed them up to see a vine hammock several feet off the ground. He had walked under it three times so far.
âY/N?â he called up quietly and began to climb the vines that were wrapped around the base of the tree. Once he was high enough, he peered into the hammock. You laid there, staring up at the purple night sky with the same disheartened look you had back in the cave. A hand laid against your chest with crumpled up parchment in your fist. âMind if I-?â
âItâs not strong enough to hold two yet.â
âO-Oh⊠ListenâŠâ
You let out a soft sigh before rolling onto your side.
âIâm too tired to think about this right now⊠Can we talk in the morning?â
Philip opened his mouth to continue what he was going to say but paused upon hearing your request.
âOf course, Angel. Just⊠Just be careful out here,â he murmured before climbing back down. With one last glance at the hammock, Philip made his way back to the cave.
Philip clenched the strap across his chest, his mind on you as you trailed behind him, looking as if you hadnât had any sleep the night before. If he was honest, he didnât get much himself, trying to figure out a way to keep you from leaving because of it. Your head was down with your gaze on the path and whenever he addressed you, you wouldnât look at him. It was killing him. The straw that broke the camelâs back was when you stopped halfway down the trail.
âY/N?â he turned when he realized you werenât behind him.
âWhy am I even here?â you muttered, causing Philipâs brows to flash.Â
âWhat are you saying?â
âYou could have just taken the maps and just⊠just left me there. I shouldnât be here.â
The sound of Philipâs satchel hitting the ground caused you to look up only to find Philip in front of you with an enraged expression. His hands lashed out, grabbing your upper arms tightly and pulling you toward him.
âP-Philip-!â
âEnough!â he snarled, his hands squeezing as he spoke. âI will not have this! I brought you with me because we made a deal!â
âY-Youâre hurting me-!â
âWho the bloody hell cares if you canât do magic?! Your skills would make you absolutely essential in my realm! I see your value where others are too damn blind to see it! If I thought you were useless, I would have never even considered bringing you with me! Do you know what kind of mind it takes to do what you do?!â
Your stare was fearful at first but it relaxed into one of realization. Your face warmed as you gazed up into those stern blue eyes and listened to him. When he finally released you, you stood there quietly.
âStop feeling sorry for yourself and buck up! Youâre invaluable to me. Start acting like it,â he growled, turning on his heel and snatching his bag from the ground. He glanced at you again with a glare as he slipped his satchel back on but his voice was calmer now. âNow, letâs continue. We need to get to the next area before nightfall.â
The aching in your arms from where he grabbed you was ignored as you stared after him. He found you useful. He actually said âinvaluableâ. Excitement rose in your chest as you rushed after him.
Once Philip noticed you out of the corner of his eye, he cleared his throat and folded his arms behind his back.
âI do apologize for what I said last night,â he spoke softly, his gaze on the path ahead. âI did not react properly and it was insensitive of me to say what I did.â
âItâs⊠Itâs okay⊠Iâm... Iâm used to it, you know?â
âNo, it is not âokayâ. I am genuine when I say your talent is very much needed and appreciated, regardless of what others believe.â
âThe only ones that seem remotely interested in my cartography skills are those who want maps to what doesnât existâŠâ you sighed, staying near him. âIâm⊠just glad Iâm able to help you with your goals.â
âI know. And I will continue to need your help for quite a while, Y/N. Please donât believe I can do this without you.â
You couldnât help but smile as your face warmed again and you turned your gaze to the ground in front of you.
GN!Reader is a witch with a birth defect: They were born without a bile sac, rendering them helpless when it came to magic. Because of this, certain people tend to bully and ridicule them. They are currently trying to find their place in life and it's not going well.
Reader has had a lot of free time in the past and realizes that they could be of use to the human they saved previously. They are unaware that he has plans for them as well.
This is a slow-burn Yandere fic and it will get darker as time goes on. Fair warning. It is SFW for now. Just keep that in mind.
âDonât worry about the book, we decided last month to go in a different direction! We want you on the project, but for the time being, we need you to go back to running errands.â
The mayorâs words repeated over and over in your head as you stared out over the boiling seas from the beach. The response just left you dead inside. When asked why no one told you since you had been openly working on it, the answer had been just as deflating.Â
âWe thought you just needed something to keep you busy since, you know, you canât⊠you-know-what...â
If you hadnât come from an affluent family, youâd wonder what the hell you would be doing with your life. The only reason you even had a job with the mayor was because of who you were related to. Regardless, you really werenât looking forward to going back to running errands but what else was there for you to do? A better question was âWhat did you want to do?â.Â
What havenât you done already? You charted the stars, you made maps by reading old discovery journals you obtained through the library and retired adventurers, and you blindly created a trade route using those maps that turned out to be extremely successful between the cities. And the kicker of it all was you actually enjoyed it. Everything youâve done so far pointed to traveling and discovering new parts of the Titan that had yet to be explored. Hell, even part of the book you wrote had geography maps of the town before and after and the established trade routes.
However, no matter how much you expressed your desire to travel, you were met with resistance from those around you. They grounded you with warnings of vicious beasts and dangerous roads, things you had already come across in those journals. Over the years you had learned techniques that werenât based on magic to soothe some of them, just to prove a point but no one paid any attention. That did involve learning several instruments from a couple of old bards that lived in town. Naysayers brushed it off as a sad attempt to fit in. Even with positive results, you were ignored. It didnât matter how much you tried to show what you could do, no one seemed to have had any confidence in you to survive traveling without a âreal witchâ with you.
When you brought up the use of a palisman, you were shot down again.Â
âDonât put so much pressure on the poor thing!â âA palisman is more than just a magical tool to get what you want! Donât be selfish!âÂ
It was what deterred you from getting a palisman in the first place. You were treated as if you would overwork the palisman instead of having a lifelong partner, that youâd be a burden to it. Seeing everyone with their palismen and how they built everlasting relationships with them over the years hurt. A lot.
With no one willing to help you or encourage you, you remained grounded, like a bird whose wings had been clipped by a careful owner.
Finding this too depressing, you shook your head and looked down the beach at seemingly nothing to try to find something else to dwell on to pass the time. The thought of going back home made your head hurt. You suddenly perked up at the sight of a figure slowly heading your way. Squinting, you made that figure out to be the human you ran into earlier that day. Philip Wittebane. He was walking by the shore and writing in his journal without looking up. He was a little ways off so you didnât move from where you were sitting, just watching him contently.
He was able to travel around without any innate magic ability. He was able to brave the wilderness and discover the isles with or without anyoneâs help for years now. Why could he do that as a human, but you couldnât do that as a powerless witch? What was the difference here?
The conversation you had with him mulled over in your mind as you watched him get closer, specifically the part about what he wanted to ask Tusk and Timber. His answer made your head slowly rise in realization. He needed a guide to get around the Isles. Even though he seemed well traveled, there must have been something he was trying to do that needed more expertise, something that needed guys like Tusk and Timber or the Gross brothers. While you were no where near what either of them were strength-wise, you did have your maps and journals. Why couldnât you be the one to go with him? True, he wasnât a witch, but at least you wouldnât be alone! The only thing you had to do was to get him to agree to take you along.
Pushing yourself up, you dusted the sand off of your clothes and made your way toward the man.
âThe angelâs longing stare captivates me as no other has. Itâs as if they are looking through the waves at whatever lies beneath them instead of at them. I have lost track of time watching them since I noticed their presence near the shore, trying to find the best way to approach without offending. They seem⊠dejected, the poor thing. Their task must have not gone well.â
Philip stood on the edge of the forest several yards away. He had been exploring the area while contemplating how to casually meet with you again. Several scenarios played out in his head, some of which would probably have gotten him smacked, but he nixed all of them.Â
He had already offended a witch in the previous town by⊠well, he wasnât exactly sure how. All he remembered was saying something along the lines of how some people deserved the fate handed to them, referring mainly to his past companions who happened to be of some relation to the witch. Granted, he wasnât implicated in the disappearance (or worse, as far as they knew), but it may have come off in poor timing. It wasnât his fault he was right. The hit stung like mad though.
Regardless, he was aiming to gain your favor, not to see how quickly he could offend you or how hard you could hit him. He had a feeling you may not use an open hand, but a fist instead if it came to that.
When he caught sight of you on the beach, his heart leapt into his throat and before he knew it, he had sketched your likeness on the page he was writing on in the margin. His mind raced on what to do next. This was the perfect opportunity to see you again.Â
âI was thinking, would you join me on my mission?â he practiced as he rushed further down the tree line away from you to find the perfect spot to cross to the shore without you seeing him. âForgive me, I had a thought earlier. You would accompany me- Join? No, accompany sounds better. Accompany me on my⊠my⊠mission? No, too formal. Theyâll want to know exactly what that means. Theyâre not an idiot not like the others, God forbid⊠Quest? Journey? Right, journey⊠to⊠across the Boiling Isles? Bloody Hell, get it together, Philip! Youâre not asking them to wed! Well, not yet anywayâŠâ
Philip found a large rocky outcrop where several strange touch pools were scattered about and he quickly fixed himself up. He pulled out his ponytail only to rake his fingers through his long hair, careful of any knots, and put it right back up. The small tuft of hair immediately sprung back up, causing him to sigh in defeat so he just moved on to his beard, then to his clothes. Once he was sure he looked presentable, he took out his journal again and started to write or doodle in it to make it look like he was working as he approached you. To his surprise, you noticed him immediately but he did not let on he knew you were watching him. His heart raced. What were you thinking with that pensive gaze? When he got closer, you stood, dusted yourself off and started to make your way toward him. This elated the man to no end and he began scribbling quickly.Â
âHow fortuitous,â Philip muttered under his breath, watching you approach him out of his peripherals. âThe angel has sought me out first.â
"Mister Wittebane-" you started. Philip glanced up with a smile when he noticed you and closed his journal with an audible snap.
âPlease, Y/N, call me Philip," he chortled. "There's no need for formalities. What are you doing out here? Isnât it a bit late?â
You returned the smile and shook your head.
âOkay... Philip... Unfortunately, I wouldnât have been able to sleep after today, honestlyâŠâ you rubbed the back of your neck. âWhat about you? Arenât you worried about running into any wild animals or demons?â
âHm? Oh, no. Iâve learned how to tread carefully and when to do so,â he waved a hand dismissively. âItâs nothing to worry about, my dear.â
Silence fell for only a few moments but you pushed through it. Philip was about to open his mouth to say something and looked shocked that you beat him to it.Â
âI know this is forward of me, but I want to offer myself as your guide,â you exclaimed. The human stared for a brief moment before giving you a soft hum while folding his arms behind his back. While he was enthused by your willingness, he wasnât happy about how you beat him to it. Now, he wasnât going to just accept so easily. He was going to play hard to get.
âAbsolutely not.â
His bluntness threw you off guard as the answer did not match the amused expression on his face.
âWhat? Why notâ?â
âYou look as if youâve never traveled a day in your life.â
âW-Well, only with other witches, but-!â
âBut never alone, hm?â
âNo-
âAnd I take it youâve never slept a night out in the woods?â
âWell, once, but-â
He continued to grill you on what youâve done and havenât done when it came to traveling and roughing it and each answer came back less and less appealing. It didnât matter to him one way or another considering he was going to accept in the end. He just wanted to give you a hard time first and tease you a little. He had every intention of protecting you if you had accepted him.
âI see. Iâm sorry but Iâm going to have to decline,â he sighed as he stepped around you and continued down the beach. âI donât think weâd be a good fit. Besides, itâs clear that you haven't a clue what youâre doing and have nothing to offer in return.â
âPhilip-!â you groaned in frustration. Upon hearing that, your head perked up. âWait! I do!â
This caused Philip to halt in his tracks.
âYou do?â his eyebrows flashed as he slightly turned his head. Before he knew what was happening, you had rushed up and taken his hand and began pulling him toward the town.Â
âYes! Come with me!â you smiled brightly back at him. Pulling him forward earned you a yelp but he quickly recovered and was able to keep up with you.Â
âEasy! Where are we going?â he laughed as you led him through the streets that were now lit up by lantern fire.
âYouâll see!â you answered, not looking back. You were so focused on what you were doing that you didnât acknowledge the sound of a heavy gasp and a pot shattering on the cobbled street. Philip glanced over to find the girl you knew as Forsythia staring at him with a startled expression, both of her hands over her mouth with her eyes darting from his hand in yours to his face. At her feet laid a broken flower pot with some strange plant inside. Without a beat, she quickly ducked back into an open door behind her and slammed it shut. The side of Philipâs mouth twitched some. That wasnât a good reaction. Something told him that his time in this town was nearing its end.
Philip found himself staring down at a table with scrolls laying haphazardly across the surface with maps and coordinates written on them with stacks of what looked like old books. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see the research you had done for the book you told him about. The walls of the room he stood in were decorated with various sketches of the Isles in between bookcases overstuffed with books and various objects.Â
âI was⊠not expecting thisâŠâ he answered quite truthfully as his fingers ran over the margins of some of the work.Â
âOf course, you werenât. No one ever expects anything out of me,â you answered, deadpan with an eye roll. Phillip immediately shook his head.
âN-Not like that⊠Forgive me, itâs just⊠This is⊠extraordinary. You did all of this?â he glanced back at you.
âIâve had a lot of free time.â
âA scholar and a cartographer⊠Absolutely fantastic⊠Are these accurate?â he picked up a map and showed it to you.
âSurprisingly, yes.â
âWait, if you can't leave the town, how on earth do you-?â
âI pieced together everything I had found in these journals,â you touched the cover of the top book on the stack. âOnce I plot out trails, the town guards scope out that area and report back to see if itâs a hit or miss. Once in a while, Iâm able to go with them and get a better look at the land. Unfortunately, Iâve only been from one town to another without many stops along the way,â you stepped up beside him to look down at the maps. âAccording to everyone around me, itâs too dangerous for someone without magic to traverse the Isles so Iâve been stuck here all of my life, waiting to either die here or marry a witch that would be willing to take me elsewhere.â
Philip stared down at one of the maps as he listened to you. You didnât notice his opposite hand curling into a fist in anger but the expression on his face remained neutral.Â
âThatâs tragic,â he finally answered. His attention turned to the stack of worn books but before he could touch them, you slipped yourself between him and the desk with your arms crossed. Philipâs face reddened slightly from how close you were and he took a step back while clearing his throat.
âLetâs make a deal. Iâll let you stay here a couple of nights to look through everything I have, but youâve got to take me with you when you leave for wherever youâre headed to next,â you leaned back on the desk with your head tilted and a determined expression. âAnd I mean we stay together to travel, not just âtake me somewhere once and thatâs itâ. Deal?â
âDeal!â Philip thrust his hand forward without a second thought. So much for playing hard to get. He was too determined not to lose your interest now. You were already invaluable to him, wanting nothing more than to keep you to himself as if you were a legendary treasure, but this made his desire become trifold. You became an asset he couldnât live without. With you at his side, he would accomplish everything he needed to much quicker. He was sure he could convince you to return home with him once his mission was complete. Not your home. His home.
You were surprised by his immediate acceptance but smiled and took his hand.Â
âAnd while youâre here, you could probably use some of that time to get cleaned up a bit,â you raised a brow. You then motioned to the far wall where a couch with a folded blanket was. âOther than that, anything in this room is yours to use. Maps, star charts, Boiling Isles history, legends, and folklore, itâs all here.â
Philip nodded but he wouldnât let go of your hand.Â
âI⊠ah⊠canât do an Everlasting Oath so weâre going to just have to trust each otherâs word, okay?â you muttered sheepishly and he nodded again, his wide blue eyes staring intently at you.Â
âO-Of course, Y/N. Anything you want, I will do itâŠâ
Your face warmed at how soft he said it and you cleared your throat after a moment or two.
â... You can let go of my hand now, PhilipâŠâ