Ikarishipping Story: Light and Dark
So you know how the story is called "Light and Dark"? Yeah, this is probably the "dark" part.
Prepare to create additional pylons.
Chapter 7
With one last swift motion of ebony, powerful wing, the diabolically faithful Honchkrow softly landed upon the dead land that sustained King Shinji's castle, people, and now, his future bride. He clutched her strongly within his grasp as he leapt off of his Pokemon, returning it to its respective Pokeball shortly after. He took his eyes off of her for the first time that evening to gaze upon the night sky that had finally fallen upon the acumen agglomeration of islands. The moon was but a sliver of glimmer, thus, making the night practically black, much to his preference.
He looked back down at the beautiful blue-haired maiden in his arms as she lightly breathed in her comatose state. She had passed out from the mental exhaustion and shock that had overcome her within the past hour or so. He thought nothing of it, other than it would just be easier to get her back to the place where she belongs.
He stood in that one place for a while, enveloped in the darkness. Slowly, he raised a rough, callous hand to touch the soft, white velvet skin of her left cheek, noticing that even as she slept, it, and its opposite were still rosy and full of life. He kept his hand there, slightly cupping her cheek, being careful not to wake her. His hand went from her face to her royal blue locks, methodically finger-combing the first few silky strands. He removed his hand, and cupped it back under her knees.
He sighed.
He carried her in the traditional bridal style as he slowly walked toward the castle, except, her head uncomfortably dangled over his right forearm, her limbs hung numb and lifeless, and her mouth was the slightest bit open. It was as if a monster were taking away his captured prey, rather than a man carrying his beloved to a safe resting place. The way he looked at her was not of love or compassion, but rather, grim ecstasy and possession.
The feeling that circulated through his body at that moment was far more than just love.
A strong gust of wind followed the blustering bang that reverberated throughout the castles empty walls as Shinji kicked the two front doors open. The main hallway that seemed to have no end was dimly lit by the eerie glow of old-fashioned candles that hung on the walls; it was as if they were floating in midair, the hallway was so dark. There was nothing on the walls, except for the candles of course, as well as architectural décor. It was cold, claustrophobic, and usually empty. However, a few servants had previously meandered into the vicinity, only to be halted by the blaring boom that echoed through the halls.
What they saw was the shadow of a towering figure clasping the dainty, unresponsive figure of a young woman. Another gust of wind, equally brisk, blew past the two at the doorway, making the princess's hair flutter into the air, as well as the king's long, spiky hair. They immediately recognized their imposing ruler, but they all couldn't help but stare at the lady who lied in the arms of their otherwise known asexual king. Hikari's famous blue tresses fell so low to the ground that they nearly touched the China black marble tile floors as the king slowly made his way down the corridor. His heavy boots made sharp, loud thuds as he strode, the chains on the neck of his cape eerily clinking together as well. Immediately, the servants kneeled in respect, bowing their heads, somewhat in obedience, mostly in fear, as he walked by.
He did not acknowledge their worship at all; not like he had ever done so in the past. However, in this instance, his eyes were on Princess Hikari and her only. His awe of her being in his presence was not due to any past dubious thoughts of his plans to obtain her, for he knew that she was destined to be here with him, regardless of what anyone or anything did or said. It wasn't anything complicated, but the fact that even he had not realized the zenith that his affection had reached. He wasn't expecting for his body to be shaking in perverted excitement of finally having her in his dangerous domain, nor was he expecting for it to have been so painfully easy to execute his plans.
'Simpletons.' He thought to himself, bowing his head with a sneer and a low chuckle.
He couldn't help but admire her attempt to escape, for even he had not known that she had a highly obedient, not to mention chivalrous flying Pokemon that would come to her rescue. Although, that Togekiss probably hadn't the slightest awareness of what it was getting itself into when entering his playing field. Again, he softly laughed to himself as he reached the spiraling staircase at the end of the hallway.
"Will the lady be requiring anything, sir?"
King Shinji abruptly turned his head when hearing the feeble voice speak. It was one of his male servants, his tone reading concern at the sight of the wan, lethargic princess. The king stared down at the man for several seconds, making the servant cautiously move back a couple steps.
"She has everything she needs."
The male servant continued to stare as the king made his way up the stairs holding onto Hikari noticeably tighter than before. In his head, the king was outraged over the fact that a servant dare speak to him regarding his bride. He had not considered that particular servant a threat, but, just for the hell of it, he stopped in his tracks, but did not turn around.
"…do you question her safety?"
His voice traveled throughout the castle, remaining in the air for a good, scary while. All the other servants looked upon their comrade with tremor, for they knew his life hung in the balance at that moment. The male servant in question widened his eyes, and immediately began to fervidly shake his head "no" while reiterating the phrase verbally. His voice trembled and his tone was distressed, making Shinji smirk as he unconcernedly threw a Pokeball into the air. He had no idea which of his equivalently evil Pokemon it was and he didn't care, but he knew he only had to say one sentence to get what he wanted from it.
"Have fun with him."
His voice was low and breathy, like a snake.
As screams of terror flooded the hallway, as well as the crackling sounds of smoldering lava entering the atmosphere, Shinji casually continued up the stairs, silently thanking his Magmortar. The fact that someone, a servant of his, was being brutally murdered by his Pokémon behind his back fazed him not in the slightest. If anything, his Pokemon got more things accomplished for him than his human servants, which was telling of the level and location of loyalty, in Shinji's eyes.
He usually did not feel guilty whenever his servants suffered for stepping out of line, but that night, he was in far too good of a mood to even think of caring about others. That night, Shinji was feeling highly exuberant in his own hellish way, ironically due in part to the most pure and innocuous figure in the land.
As he walked up the long staircase, Hikari's head fell into the crook of his elbow and abdomen. He immediately noticed, and couldn't help but think that she was snug in his embrace, even if she wasn't awake. He considered it to be an unconscious decision, and he definitely took a couple seconds to bask in that light—well, darkness—for a while.
When the king finally reached the top, he stopped to take a breath, and take a look around his all too familiar surroundings.
'She has finally come…'
It was a rather romantic sight, compared to the rest of the castle, but he would never envision it that way. The entrance to the staircase was but a small rectangular hole in the far right corner of the room, the spiraling beam of the staircase swirling above it. Clear, cold glass took up the space of three out of four walls, a single door being on the fourth wall. To his left, a broad view of the Island of Newfound Hope, as well as the pristine, white castle, lie dead smack in the middle. There was a single chair, a Toscano Antoinette style loveseat for one, and a rollaway cart completely packed with bourbon, vodka, scotch, and various types of hard liquor. However, there weren't any telescopes, binoculars, or anything like that for spying. Instead, Shinji would simply sit there, maybe with a small glass of vodka over ice, twirling it in a circle, staring at the castle ever since the homicide of the former king.
He would lounge in the one decorative chair, scheming, contemplating, and perhaps even daydreaming. Whichever one it was, it all came back to the girl in his arms. He reminiscently looked upon the sight beyond the window, thinking back to all the time he had spent waiting to strike the island for the gold within it. All those days of restless anxiety, knowing that he was so close to her, yet she was so far away from him.
And now, she had nowhere to run but into his arms.
She had nowhere to be but in his arms.
She was home.
He grunted and turned to his right to face the single door on the fourth wall. It was his dormitory, purposefully separated from the rest of the house because he preferred quiet isolation. When he kicked the cumbersome door open, the young princess slowly began to stir, whispering a moan from a headache that had just struck her. She instinctually attempted to raise her hand to her head, but found that it was stuck between her body and a cold one. For a moment she was puzzled, but slightly peered upward to see the face of Tall, Dark and Heinous.
Holding her.
She didn't know whether to kick him and run, or to just play unconscious for a little while longer. She was able to remember that when she tried to escape previously, he had caught her within a matter of seconds. Not to mention that he petrified her to the point of momentary paralysis all throughout her body. Since she was literally within his grasp, she deduced that it would be better to just keep her eyes shut and imagine being elsewhere. Any position other than the one she was currently in would be far superior.
Her bliss was short-lived.
"I'm glad that you've finally awakened."
Her eyes flew open when she heard the sorely familiar deep intonation address her. She chose not to make eye contact with him, but she could feel his gaze digging into her. It made her fidget a couple times as he entered the room.
He heavily breathed in and out, his broad chest colliding with Hikari's small frame.
She remembered the gray and black bed that she had been on just hours before, as well as the bleak décor, and the single pink rose in the vase on the one piece of furniture other than the bed, the wooden desk and chair.
He traced her line of eyesight.
"Pink roses are your favorite flowers, are they not?"
The stubborn princess remained silent. When she heard him snicker under his breath, she couldn't help but quiver a little. She didn't know how, but he'd always manage to daunt her with anything he said or did. The first time that the two were in the same room together in the first meeting of royals, just the act of him opening the door significantly intimidated her. The day that he bore into her eyes, it seemed as if he installed a permanent fear of him in her mind, making her completely helpless against him.
And oh how she hated it.
For a while, Shinji just stood in the middle of his quarters, staring out the window, quiet as a mouse. Hikari circumspectly opened her eyes, observing the dull glow in the room from the moon. It was at the position in its cycle so that it shone its beam directly onto his bed, making the satin silver sheets shine. He made his way over to the window, and looked down at the small town where his inhabitants lay rest.
"They'll all be so thrilled to know that you've finally arrived…" His voice was deep and breathy, and remained that way.
He looked down at her, and frowned to see that she still refused to return his gaze. "It'll be the first good news they've had in a while…"
Then, unexpectedly, Hikari was tossed onto the unfortunately familiar, yet comfortable bed behind her and her abductor. Immediately, she curled herself into a protective shell, facing away from the man who looked down at her with the most invading of glares. Beneath her hands, her eyes were shut as tight as they could be, fearing that her death had at last arrived.
But, the room went silent, and stayed that way. There were no angry growls of discontent, nor any threats of death; pure stillness. Although it would be preferred to not have her life be put into another's cruel hands, the sudden quiescence was unsettling for her. There were no prevalent means of shielding herself from whatever twisted plots King Shinji had in his similarly twisted mind. All she had was her own body, and her deteriorating will. When she heard the shuffling of feet, the apprehension started to incessantly pick at her brain, so she cautiously opened her eyes.
Black eyes stared at her, causing her to jump and yelp in consternation.
"What do you want from me?!" She shouted at him, backing away to the far upper corner of the bed, creating a large gap between the two.
He rose to his feet, and clenched his fists as he continued to stare at her.
She winced at this, turning away from him and shutting her eyes. "And would you stop looking at me like that? Just tell me what you want and I'll make sure it happens!"
She heard that same laugh.
"I'm fairly confident that you will highness." His voice hung in the small room.
But then the same pitch was softer, and closer to Hikari's ear. "Rather, fully confident…"
Once again, she opened her eyes to see him right in her face, causing her to, once again, jump back. But this time, he swiftly grabbed her wrist, and kept her there. She expected him to yell at her, but instead, he looked up at the ceiling.
"How do you like me now, sir?!" He proclaimed, smirking with an otherworldly form of pride. "You're no longer in control, I am. Now you'll learn to actually take me seriously, instead of just laugh in my face like you always did!"
'…he's mad…' Hikari worriedly thought to herself, flinching back at him as he continued to scream to the ceiling, as if someone were there.
He rose his other clenched fist up to his chest. "Now you know…I'm more powerful than you'll ever be!"
His attention quickly shifted back to his capture, and her eyes widened in dread as he began inching closer to her. His smirk was contained and haughty, but his eyes were ablaze, determination of a different kind restlessly boiling within them. For some time, Hikari remained in that frozen state, but she slowly started scrambling away from him until she was on the edge of the bed. Her fingernails dug into the sheets as she tried to maintain her balance.
"Stay away from me!" She exclaimed, but then she felt herself falling backward. As she screamed in reaction, she felt her lower and upper back being grasped by two rough, strong hands. Instinctively, she grabbed ahold of whatever was in front of her. When she looked up, she uttered out a high-pitched squeal of terror as he saw him hovering over her, holding her back from her fall. Her eyes widened when she realized that she had tightly grabbed onto his back as well, but she immediately retracted them to sit herself up.
But he kept his hands firmly on her back, and she gasped again when he dug his nails into her skin.
"Don't worry…" he whispered in that same breathy voice.
He then jerked her back towards him, sliding her completely underneath him so she had nowhere to look or run. Slowly, he leaned down to her ear, placing his hands on either side of her shaking body.
"…I won't let you fall, highness…"
She shuddered as she felt his cold, yet smooth lips trace the outer shell of her ear, taking as much time as he wanted. His breath was hot now, which made Hikari even more uncomfortable. In addition, his slow pace was torture, and it didn't take long for her to start squirming and moving away from him.
"Tell me, how does it feel to finally be where you belong?" He asked, continuing to play with her ear.
She gulped, and breathed out a couple times, trying to calm herself down. Her heart was palpitating, and her neck was doused in a cold sweat from the rush of events that had occurred to her in such a short period of time.
He overpowered her in more ways than one.
'Now they know how powerful I am…' He similarly thought to himself. 'Also…' he opened his eyes and inhaled her saccharine scent of blueberries and innocence. 'I finally have it…her…'
"You're a monster…" she finally sputtered out, not looking at him.
A frozen hand rested upon the left side of her face, making her recoil. His thumb caressed her skin like he had done before, but he felt her skin deeper, and longer.
"Barely complimentary…" he murmured as he moved down to her neck.
"Why are you doing this…is this a part of your sick game?" She questioned, her voice beginning to quake. "What are you really planning to do?"
"Since you asked so nicely highness…" he raised his head up to look straight at her, slowly closing the space between them until their foreheads touched.
Hikari slightly retracted as he spoke, for his voice still sounded like he was out of breath, but it was gritty and dark.
"As of now, your island has been completely invaded by my army…it's all mine, highness."
He pressed against her forehead more with his own, that grin coming back to his face. "Mine."
Hikari gulped again, trying to pull back from him as much as she could. But he wouldn't allow it.
"But I'm more than willing to be…" he lightly picked up a strand of her hair, and combed it with his firm fingers from the top to the bottom, repeating the gesture over and over, "…ruling partners."
He went back to her neck, letting go of her hair, and pressed his lips against her sensitive skin once. Hikari whimpered, feeling him smile against her skin as she shivered at his touch.
"I'll never be your partner in anything." Her voice rose, a sudden power coming over her.
She clenched her fists as he continued to speak to her, but it seemed as if he were in a completely different world, totally unaware of what she was saying to him.
Deluded.
"Don't be so coarse, it doesn't appear well." He spoke into her neck, his breath causing her arms and legs to prickle with goosebumps.
"I don't care what you think."
"Goddamn, don't hurt my feelings now…" again, he pressed his lips against the same spot.
She flinched, feeling a new wave of goosebumps tingle over her skin once more. "I'll have you killed for this..."
"By our forces? Highness, what governmental force turns on one of the two key parts of government?"
Hikari went silent. She was afraid, yes, but mostly because of how irrational he was speaking. Her mother had always told her that he was cold and calculating, completely logical in every aspect. She was able to make that observation herself within the short time of knowing him. But here he was, talking as if he weren't aware of what was going on around him, except for what he was doing to her. She closed her eyes, trying to take her mind away from the fact that he was rubbing her face and breathing directly onto her neck.
'Manipulation…' she thought.
'Resolution…' he thought, raising his head from her neck to look at her again.
He watched her grovel beneath him, struggling to find the words to say, the questions to ask, and the accusations to throw. But ultimately, there was only anguish, and the beginnings of desperate sobs.
Yes, he could see it unfolding before his eyes.
"You have such beautiful eyes, why close them to me?" He asked, moving his hand from her face down to her chest, and in a maliciously teasing manner, pressed the tips of his fingers against her breast.
Her eyes jerked open at this sudden movement.
He grinned. "Much better."
He shifted his hand back to her face, and began stroking it with his thumb once more. She felt the tears coming to her eyes, as the nightmare continued. As the tears began to flow, he marveled at how her eyes shone, even in the darkened room.
"They are unparalleled, your eyes..." he whispered, watching one of her tears drift onto the back of his hand and travel downward.
"You have my island…" she began, looking at the door, hoping that someone would barge in and rescue her.
"All of it, and nothing more…" he retorted, watching yet another tear come into contact with his hand.
"So you've gotten what you wanted…now let me go, I have nothing else to offer you…"
The only thing Hikari could do was feign defeat. She figured submission was what made his blood run, so if it took a little loss of self-respect to save her life, then so be it. Unfortunately, King Shinji's countenance cued that her act did not convince him.
"Oh no highness, there's still so much more…" he responded, with what seemed to be a genuine smile breaking onto his face, "don't you understand?"
"I don't understand anything about you, nor do I care to." She defiantly stated. "All I know is that I'm taking my island back, and there's nothing you can do about it."
The smile faded as quickly as it appeared, and the notorious scowl returned. "For a princess, you really don't listen well, do you?" His tone was not sarcastic at all, but annoyed. "Your puny island is mine. It's completely out of your grasp, highness."
He paused, but continued to gaze at her. "That is, unless…"
She felt herself being lifted until she properly sat up, but she also felt her hand being taken into another chilled, callous hand.
"…unless, you accept my offer." He finished, staring at her melancholy expression.
It didn't take long for her to yank her hand away from his frigorific touch. When she did so, his hand levitated where he had previously held hers, and his mouth went agape from her action.
She didn't notice the fire that began to burn in his eyes. She didn't notice the anger building up in him, from what she had just done.
"Never," she quipped. "That island belongs to the prestigious line that is my family, not you. You cannot have it…it doesn't belong to you." She coldly stated, an unexpected bit of bravery coming through her at that moment.
'I can at least pay homage to my ancestors and my late parents…that's the least I can do now…' she thought to herself, feeling the air change around her.
His eyebrows lowered into a violent countenance, installing that disquietude into Hikari that she had thought she had finally surpassed. The two continued to stare at one another for what felt like several minutes, and Hikari could feel her heart pound with each passing second. She started to quaver with panic, feeling that her death was approaching sooner than she had expected. His impulsion was beyond anyone's measure or frame reference, and it made it difficult for her to perceive exactly what it was he was asking, feeling, or hearing.
She fervidly wanted to reiterate her past sentence, but for the life of her, she couldn't put words together in her brain, let alone speak them. Her body went numb, her senses completely void, that is, until she felt her arm being clenched. This time, unlike when he held her hand, his grasp was deadly taut. She watched her skin go paler than usual as blood flow began to be cut off. Whimpering from the pain, she tried to pull away, but even she knew that wasn't going to happen.
Then, that sadistic smile came back onto his face. "Your naiveté is charming."
Her eyes widened in terror as she felt herself being dragged up from the bed until she stood in front of him, her arm still locked in his death grip.
"Perhaps a physical demonstration is in order…for you don't seem to understand…"
His pace was sluggish as he led her to the door. Hikari didn't know what her eyes were going to lie upon, but she feared it would send her into a state of immeasurable hysteria. Knowing the king's selfishly horrid, he wasn't afraid to have others lose their sanity, just like he had. She had her head down, but looked up in confusion when she realized that he had stopped at the door.
He turned around, peered down at her, and sneered before flinging open the door with his left hand.
The ghoulish glow of a blazing red hue faintly flooded the mirror room.
"NO!" She instantaneously screamed out.
"Oh yes, highness…"
She wanted to run to the window-wall, but she simultaneously wanted to curl into a corner and never return from it. The Island of Newfound Hope, from the view of the same window, was completely engulfed in flames. The power of the fire was so strong, its light emanated all the way over to the Island of Lost Hope, and flashed through the windows, as well as upon the faces of the two remaining rulers of the archipelago. Hikari felt the tears coming in full flow once more as she watched the fire carelessly lick up the castle and spread onto the actual land where her people had been in tranquil slumber, relying on her to protect them from the evil that had captured her.
The one thing Hikari was thankful for was that she couldn't hear the shrieks of mothers or the cries of children.
As Hikari slowly walked towards the window, King Shinji stood there, staring at the same sight, his eyes completely vacant of any expression. Everything about him was stolid and stoic, except for the growing grin on his face. What was occurring in front of him was exactly what he had been planning this entire year. The physical and mental breakdown of the Island of Newfound Hope was the final blow to seal his deal against the fate of solitude he thought he was destined to live forever.
With the destruction of an entire island came his rebirth and he was more than willing to finally let it in.
"Does this assist in your comprehension, highness?"
Hikari turned around when she heard that menacing tone speak to her with no care for what he had just done to her. "Assist?! You…you're…you…"
She tried to yell out her frustration, but found herself lost in her own sadness and tragedy. Instead, she just held her head and cried as hard as she could, trying to find any type of happy place that she could escape to. Within the past twenty-four hours, her life had fallen apart even more, which she didn't think was plausible after her mother was mercilessly murdered for the sake of conceited desire.
Hikari rapidly turned to the window when she saw a colossal explosion of sparks fly into the air above her island, fleeting tints of yellow and orange bursting into the night sky.
"My…my island…" Hikari backed away from the window, her hands covering her blubbering mouth as images of despair and bedlam invaded her mind. "There's nothing left…"
"Oh, but there is highness…"
Rage instantly replaced turmoil as she turned around to face the man who turned her whole world upside down. "What more could you possibly want from me? You've taken everything you possibly can! Are you so rapt in your greedy narcissism that you're unable to realize how many lives you're ruining?!" She ranted, her voice cracking every so often.
"There's a price to pay with every decision." He crossed his arms and smirked. "Honestly highness, for someone so passionate about the throne, you really know nothing about it, do you?"
Hikari growled at his supercilious, degrading tone. "I swear to God, you will pay for everything you've done!"
"Go ahead and try getting rid of me. It'll be entertaining." He continued to smirk, and eventually laughed at her.
"How dare you mock me…" she grumbled underneath her breath. "How dare you…"
"I see you still can't quite grasp it yet…" he said, pretentiously closing his eyes.
"What else is there to understand? You're hell-bent on the destruction of everything except of what you want. You're a tyrant, and don't deserve the throne any more than a fussy infant!"
"'Destruction' is such a stark term…" he opened his eyes and walked towards her, ignoring how she literally shook with irrepressible fury. "I'd like to think of it as an 'awakening'."
"Excuse me?"
"Forgive me if I'm wrong, but I do believe that change is inevitable in our world; hell, any world." He started.
"You haven't changed anything…you've only consumed all hope and peace these three islands had."
He grunted a condescending laugh. "I wasn't expecting such a narrow-minded answer from you, highness…you sound just like everybody else."
Hikari became more befuddled than irate. "You're making no sense."
"You see, princess…" he stepped in front of her, so his right side and her left side faced the window that displayed the flaming island. "You and I can see that I'm young, and a common trait in young folk is their desire to, how do you say…shake the system?"
She didn't respond.
He didn't care.
"I take your silence as you finally beginning to understand, bravo." He touched her shoulder with his other hand. "I gave your monkey of a father some suggestions, and just like the buffoon he was, he completely missed the genius that it was—"
"Do not talk shamefully upon my father. He was more of a man than you'll ever be!"
"Au contraire, highness. He was just as afraid as your mother, Satoshi, his pitiful mother, and that useless soldier were."
Hikari glared up at him, watching that smile come back onto his face.
"But of course, may God let them rest in peace." He added, grinning.
"Your idea of change is to demolish everything in sight?" She asked.
"Not everything…"
She found herself stepping back as he walked closer to her until there was but an iota of space between them.
"There is but one thing I wish to keep."
When he spoke, he possessively gripped her chin.
And with that gesture, suddenly, the atmosphere changed around them. It seemed as if everything had been blurred out, even the inferno of flames that was the Island of Newfound Hope, except for those two. When he rubbed her cheek, yes, she was repulsed, but not in the way she should have been. She hadn't flinched, nor had she had thoughts of slapping him across the face. Her feet were stuck in place, and she couldn't find herself able to move; she was paralyzed. With fear, though? The frightening part was that she didn't know herself.
At that moment, she almost felt intoxicated. By what? Sadly, she didn't know that either. It's possible that her mind had just relapsed from all the lack of continuity and abundance chaos that had broken out around her. Or…
"What you aren't aware of highness, is why your father died in my bloodied hands." He began, raising his thumb up to lightly rub her left cheek.
"I needn't know…" she whispered, moving away from his action. "It was probably just a brainless act of cowardice on your part."
"Perhaps," he immediately responded, "but it was mostly his refusal..."
"My father refuses no one. We are a family of respect, and I can assure you that he had no good reason to refuse you back then. Your opinion of my father is void and erroneous." She replied, her lips in a thin harsh line.
"What he didn't understand is that I know exactly why he refused, and it stems back to his initial fear of me, you see…"
"My father was not afraid of anything."
"Oh indeed he was highness."
"You're wrong—"
"He was very afraid..."
Hikari paused. "I—"
"He knew exactly what would happen...and now, it's happening at last, and he will unfortunately be able to watch it unfold before his lifeless eyes."
"You're absolutely mad…" she whispered out.
"But I'm not princess…for in the end, I get the opportunity I've always longed for..."
He leaned her chin up so she looked directly into his eyes.
"You."
Dark enough, or nah? Additional pylons, or nah?
I'm glad I could crank out this chapter, I've been wanting to get into these parts for awhile, but I have to build it up first, y'know...
I'm expecting a lot of layers in this romantically creepy story. Thanks for all y'all who have stuck around for it, and I'm glad y'all are getting into it!
Reviews are always welcome! :)
~AsanganiKalani
