I have been struck by sudden inspiration once more. Another one shot here but it's a lot shorter than my other ones and timeline wise, happens a while after chapter 3 or maybe before it. I'm actually not sure. So guess what I'm doing again. If you guessed procrastinating, you are correct. I should be working on an English project right now or working on the next chapter of Double Edged. I have unfortunately, or fortunately, hit a writer's block in both and I'll be charging up my creative juices here. We'll be returning to Ty's POV for this one and she's a lot…rougher. This one-shot came into being when a friend pointed out that Ty having a red cape with a hood and Drakath being the leader of the Darkwolf Bandits seemed like I was trying to take a stab at symbolism. I honestly didn't notice those similarities till they mentioned it. Said friend also requested another chapter that was more…intimate. Also there might be some suggestive themes in here. I'll put the warning there just in case that makes you uncomfortable but this story is rated teen after all. Anyway, the relationship, if you can call it that, is somewhat established here and that's it. Have a nice read I hope.
Le Petit Chaperone Rouge
It was during the dead of a hot summer night that I had snuck into Drakath's tent when all the other bandits had retired to their own cots. Only a few were awake to keep watch but they weren't a challenge to get past.
Lamplight leaked from Drakath's tent and it was strange. Lately, he'd been staying up late into the night sitting at a work table that he probably stole on one of his raiding trips or something like that. He sat on a wooden chair looking over the maps and writings spread out across the desk's surface. His back was arched over and he was so engrossed in his work that he didn't notice me sneak up behind him.
I decided to leave my armor at home that night. It was too hot and the armor would have made too much noise. I even left my sword at home. I wasn't looking for that kind of fight at the moment so I just brought my belt, the red cape that I received from King Alteon after the debacle with Xan and an old book that I dug up a few days ago.
For a while, I leaned on the back of Drakath's chair and reread the thin red book. The chair creaked as I did and my shadow flickered and had grown in the lamp light.
Drakath didn't notice.
It was a recent development. Back during the times when we had just met, Drakath had always reacted nervously in my presence whether he was aware of me being near or not. He'd look over his shoulder frequently, become restless and overall very uneasy.
Nowadays, I could sneak up behind him and practically be breathing on his neck and he wouldn't be disturbed. Either his senses were dulling or subconsciously, he didn't consider me to be a direct danger anymore.
I continued reading the book. I hadn't read it in years and it was just as disturbing as I remembered it. I probably stood there and read for an hour in silence enjoying the book and Drakath's company as he scratched writing on the papers with the quill that I may have dropped into his possession long ago.
When I finished, I flipped back to the beginning again and looked up to rest my eyes. Inspecting the tent, I noticed the cot in the back corner with a pile of chests and bags of goods beside it with Drakath's purple cape thrown on top. Briefly, I wondered if he still kept his own personal belongings under his cot before thinking out loud.
"You know, it isn't good for you to stay up this late."
Drakath gasped, jumped a little in his seat and accidently scratched a sharp black line across his work as he did. He turned swiftly in his seat and finds my back. The movement ruffled my red cape slightly and I looked back over my shoulder to smirk.
When the initial shock subsided, his annoyance became apparent and his mouth twisted into a frown as his shoulders relaxed. He muttered under his breath before turning back to his writing, scowling at the bleeding dark line of ink.
"What is it now?" He sighed, crumpling up the paper and tossing it to the corner of the tent and pointedly kept from looking at me.
"I just came to see you," I pushed myself off the back of the chair. "But I'll leave since you seem busy-" A hand grabbed my wrist and gripped it tightly, keeping me from walking away.
"I didn't ask you to leave." Drakath said, voice firm but his frown was still set. His grip shook a bit though and he squeezed tighter. It was almost like he was afraid that I would shake his hand off and leave anyway.
"Well isn't that cute." I laughed softly, unable to keep my thoughts to myself.
Drakath frowned harder and drops my hand before turning back to his papers. Amused, I moved beside him and hopped on the table to sit with my legs dangling off the edge.
"Why are you here?" Drakath repeated, rubbing his eyes from exhaustion but still trying to concentrate on the wrinkled pages.
"No one was home and I wanted some company. Someone to talk to, y'know?" I picked up one of the pages on the table with a gloved hand. The writing began neat but soon dissolved into messy scrawls. Judging by Drakath's drooping eyelids and the quill tipping out of his hands, he was going to pass out any minute. My sudden intrusion woke him up for a second but he was already nodding off again.
I was so distracted by staring at him that I let the book slip off of my lap. Feeling the weight of the book disappear, I shot my arm out and grabbed it just as it slid off.
Drakath's attention shifted to the book and he raises his brow at the cover with a red hooded young girl traversing dark woods. In the back, the faint silhouette of a wolf standing on its hind legs could be seen spying on the little girl from the bushes. The title was embellished with gold crawling ivy decorations. The book itself didn't move him but when he looked back up to my expression, his eyes widened, he sat up straight in his seat and stared intently at me.
"What is it?" I asked. "I almost dropped a book. That's no reason for you to look at me like that."
Drakath crossed his arms and said nothing. He just kept staring.
"Something wrong?"
"Nothing," I replied quickly. "I just wanted someone to talk to." I shrugged. I wasn't trying anything tricky this time.
"…Why are you reading a children's book?" Drakath questioned, pointing to the book in my lap.
"I found it this morning. It's quite nostalgic for me actually. My mom used to read this to me all the time," I explained, opening the book to the first page. "It always freaked me out as a little kid. It freaked out my dad too. He'd always ask "Why would you read this to children? It's scary" and then mom would argue that it taught a good lesson."
"But it's Little Red Riding Hood." He scoffed at the words that I echoed from my dad.
"Someone wrote Little Red Riding Hood here too?" I asked, curious.
"Of course they did. It's a story telling children to beware of strangers." Drakath spoke the word "children" in a tone that other people would use to describe plague carrying rats. "The title's different." Drakath stated, noticing the different wording on the cover.
"It isn't. The language is just different. It's in a language called French. Back where I came from, my mom's home country was a place called France and she moved far away from there before meeting dad and creating me," I skim through the pages. "Mom had a big collection of fairy tales and the like. She loved reading them out loud to me and scaring my dad."
"Scaring him?" Drakath asked, lamp light flickering across his eyes. He was fully awake and attentive now. His chest rose and fell steadily and I reach out and brush an imaginary fleck of paper from his shoulder, subtly brushing my knuckles against the side of his neck. His breathing staggered then returned to normal, his expression set in stone.
"What's the version of your Little Red Riding Hood like?"
"Little girl in a red hood is sent by her mother to her grandmother's house through the woods, alone for some reason, and tells her not to talk to strangers. The dumb girl speaks to a magic talking wolf on the way and tells him where her grandmother lives. He runs ahead to the house, stuffs the grandmother in the closet before dressing up as her and waits for the girl. The girl walks in and mistakes the wolf for her grandmother either because she was stupid or because she was blind. They go through the exchange of "why are your teeth so big?" and "the better to eat you with" before the woodsmen bursts in and chases the wolf off. The end." Drakath finished and looked at me expectantly. He wasn't particularly interested in the topic but he still went along for some reason.
"That's a pretty cute and happy version," I smiled at the retelling. "I wish mom had told me that one instead."
"What was yours like?" He goes back to looking at his papers and writes something more legible on the document.
"Let me start from the beginning," I coughed to clear my throat. "Here's something clichéd: Once upon a time, there was a naïve little girl with dark locks of hair and eyes the color of the deep woods who wore a hood of red." I said in a faux motherly voice.
"Yeah." Drakath sighs, resting his head on one of his hands as he keeps writing. His elbow was touching my thigh and he paid no mind.
"Her mother had packed an assortment of breads and sweet jams into a basket to give to the young girl to deliver to her dying decrepit grandmother," Drakath briefly glances over at me before continuing his writing.
"The girl's mother knelt beside her and placed the basket into her tiny delicate hands and told her "Insidious creatures of ill repute roam the woods, dear one. Do not listen to their words even if they are as sweet as honey and raspberries. The sweetest tongue comes with the sharpest fang." The girl takes her mother's words to heart and walks down the overgrown path to her grandmother's cottage deep in the darkness of the woods." As I spoke those words, I could hear the faint voice of my mom in my head. I could practically feel her bony hands brushing my hair.
"On her way, the red hooded girl met a wolf. He approached her, tail swaying from side to side. "Where are you going, darling?" He asks, concern dripping from his lips as he hid his fangs.
"I'm going to my grandma's house." The little girl replied, enrapt by his shiny dark fur.
"It is dangerous to travel the woods," The wolf shook his head. "A pretty one like you should be careful. There are many monsters in the woods who would wish you harm."
"I will be safe," The girl answers, pointing into the forest. "Grandma's house isn't far. It's only a little while away down the path."
"Which path are you taking? The path of pins or the path of needles?"
"The path of pins," the girl replied, wishing to touch the wolf's soft ears.
The wolf nodded, satisfied by her answer and trodded closer for the girl to touch his ears. "I do hope that you will get to your grandmother's house safely."
The girl nods, smiles and heads on her way.
"Let us see who will get there first." The wolf watched the pale delicious legs of the girl skip down the path of pins before he began heading down the path of needles.
Drakath coughed then and nearly dropped his quill. He looked up at me again and frowned as if he didn't like where I was going with the story. I pretended that I didn't notice him watching and kept staring into space as I spoke.
The wolf arrives at grandmother's house first.
He breaks into the house and kills the old woman, ripping out her throat and devouring her whole. He feasts on her flesh, crunches the bones in his sharp fangs and leaves nothing but a piece of flesh and a small cup of blood.
The wolf takes the woman's clothes and disguises himself before slipping into bed to wait for the arrival of the pretty young child.
"Grandma." the girl calls into the open door of the cottage.
"Dear one, come in." The wolf welcomed the little girl into the cottage.
"Grandma, mother sent me here with bread and jam."
"Put them down, dear one," the wolf said. "Are you hungry, dear?"
"Yes I am, grandma." The girl nodded.
"Are you thirsty, dear?"
"Yes I am, grandma."
"There is a piece of meat on the table, dear one. Cook the meat and drink the cup of red wine that I left you."
The little girl took the piece of meat and cooked and ate her grandmother. She took the cup of red wine and drank her grandmother's blood.
"Aren't you tired, dear one?" the wolf asks, keeping the saliva from falling out of his mouth. "Take off your clothes and come to bed, dear one. Let me warm you."
"Where will I put my hood?" The girl asks.
"Throw it on the fire. There is no need for that anymore." The wolf replied.
"Where will I put my apron?"
"Throw it on the fire. There is no need for that anymore."
The little girl repeated the question for each article of clothing that she had and the wolf would always reply with the same answer.
As the little girl climbs into bed, she remarked "Grandma, your eyes are so big."
The wolf replied "The better to see you with, dear one."
"Grandma, you're so hairy."
"The better to keep you warm with, dear one."
"Grandma, your arms are so big."
"The better to hold you close and tightly, dear one."
"Grandmother, your ears are so big."
"The better to hear you with, dear one."
"Grandmother, your teeth have become so sharp."
"The better to eat you with, dear one. Now come and lie with me."
"I must go outside and relieve myself," The girl says, realizing that it was not her grandmother in the bed but a monstrous and ravenous wolf.
"Then go, dear one. But you must come back swiftly. I will tie a string of tread around your ankle so I will know where you are." The wolf ties the string tightly around the girl's ankle.
The girl goes outside to the garden and cuts the string off with the garden shears lying on the grass beside the cut and wilting white lilacs. She ties the string to the garden fence and runs back into the woods.
"Are you coming back soon?" The wolf called out to the garden. Hearing no reply, the wolf leaps out of the bed and follows the string to the garden. Finding that the girl had run off, the wolf gives chase and-"
I paused, wondering what came next. Even though I had just read that damn book, I forgot the ending. Sure I've read a lot of other versions but forgetting that was really dropping the ball. I must be distracted.
"k-kkkkk..." Drakath didn't seem to be able to form proper words at that moment. He had started to become tense when the wolf had nuzzled up to the little girl and he let his jaw drop at the notion that the wolf tricked the little girls into eating her grandma. By the time the…stripping scene came, he looked positively revolted.
Drakath's an evil son of a bitch, just as I like him, and few things surprised him nowadays but the story was kinda…well even I had to admit that the story made me feel uncomfortable.
"W-well? You aren't done." Drakath said.
"I am." I hopped off of the table and walked away, arms crossed. "Would you rather the girl get caught or not? Give me your honest opinion."
Drakath watched me carefully and said nothing, sensing a change in the mood.
"I'd rather she live and be able to run away and forget. She was clever enough to realize at the near end that she was being duped and was about to get hurt. I sort of downplayed it since my memory isn't that good on this but the wolf's a charming bastard isn't he?" I commented, taking a seat on Drakath's cot. "My mom told me that this version was very old though. Many other people wrote their own adaptations and the meaning changes or becomes vague because of that. But you still get the moral of this one, right?" I asked as Drakath slowly stands up, wary.
"Be careful around those charming bastards," I tossed the book on the pile of goods by Drakath's cot and unclasped my cape. "They'll lure you in and before you know it, bam. Grandma's dead and you almost fell for the trick made by a cross-dressing predatory wolf. Life is ruined." I joked and leave the connotation of my words vague, watching Drakath walk closer to me. "Then again, most wolves don't need disguises. Their words are more than enough." I laughed and it sounded somewhat hoarse.
"What are you trying to say?" He demanded, tense and becoming angry. He was standing right in front of my knees now and his legs were touching mine. He glares at me, trying to intimidate an answer out of me even though he knows that'll never work. "Stop joking around and tell me straight."
"How would you describe me?" I gaze into his eyes levelly. "You've known me for a while now. Go ahead."
"You're infuriating, a general pest that I can't seem to be rid of and certainly not naïve. You know full well what you're doing!" He scowls and grabs my shoulders, squeezes and began shaking them. "Are you accusing me of-"
"Accusing? Oh…you must be mixing up the meaning." I said, shaking my head at his confusion. "And you forgot too. Yeah I'm infuriating, a pest you can't get rid of and not naïve but-" In a swift motion, I throw my red cape over him and yank him closer roughly and violently enough for his head to snap back. I pulled him down and whispered "-I'm charming enough to lure you here."
Though Drakath may be taller and bigger than me, he is most definitely not stronger.
I pushed him on to the cot and on to his back with ease as he struggled and protested. He grunted in pain as I pinned his arms to the cot and he futilely tries to push me off, panic in his wide green eyes.
I climbed on top of him and straddled his hips before wrapping my gloved hands around his neck to keep his head down. He grabbed my wrist in and attempted to tear them away from him but then I leaned down and pressed my lips against his.
The kiss is rough and at first, my lips feel teeth but eventually his defiance melted away and Drakath kissed back. His green eyes were squeezed shut as he winced from the pain, his chest was heaving and he trembled so much that it was driving me crazy.
I didn't want to close my eyes; I wanted to see him.
His forehead protector had become lopsided and slid down to cover one of his closed eyes as he flushed and made a needy sound at the back of his throat as I bit his lip. The pained noise he made was muffled by my mouth and I could practically hear his heart pounding in his chest.
There was no way I would hold myself back now.
His hands relaxed for a second and I grab his wrists and pin them down, gripping then hard enough to bruise. If he wanted me to get away, now there was no way he could say anything or throw me off.
He's just a weak human that could literally snap in two if I made any wrong move and frankly, being delicate isn't one of my strong points. Nor do I want it to be.
Then I felt the faint taste of iron on my tongue. Immediately, I pulled back and sat up, clamping my hands over my mouth. Blood trickled down my chin and I knew for sure it wasn't my blood. I stared down at Drakath who was wiping a red smear off of his own chin as dark bruises began to form.
"Shit." I swore before climbing off the cot. "Let me get a towel or something."
Before my foot could touch the ground, arms wrap around my waist and yank me back up.
Suddenly I was the one on my back with both of my hands pinned above my head and Drakath was staring me down. His lip was still bleeding slightly and a drop fell on my neck. We were both tangled in my cape and Drakath was half falling off the cot.
"You weren't finished yet," He breathes hard, still breathless from before. "You aren't leaving until we're done."
"…You're serious?" I asked for reassurance, heart fluttering.
"Do you think I'm a child?" Drakath asked, irritated as his eyes narrowed at me.
"Why don't you show me?" I smiled wryly, trying to keep cool and my voice steady. My breath hitched as he leaned his head down close enough to let our foreheads touch and I bit my lip as Drakath grinned, ready to return the favor.
Then the smile disappeared and I heard a snapping noise. Something cracked and the cot tipped over, making Drakath and I fall into a tangle of red and white cloth on the cool ground.
Drakath landed on his back, head bouncing on the ground, and I landed on his stomach, knocking the air out of his lungs.
"Ouch, son of a bitch!" he swore, strained. He coughed and shoved me off of him when I started laughing.
"Nice going," I stuttered in between a giggle as I lay on my back. "Haha, smooth. That was smooth. I guess the cot couldn't handle your fat ass anymore." I joked as Drakath clutched his stomach.
"You mean yours," He snapped back, back to scowling again. "Damn it, you probably fucking broke one of my ribs, you crazy bitch."
"Quit your whining already," I sat up and slapped his back. "If someone like me was heavy enough to break your ribs, you could probably get your ass handed to you by a ten year old. Or maybe it's happened already and I just haven't found out yet. It's highly possible if it's you."
"I fucking hate you." He growled, rubbing the back of his head.
"Keep telling yourself that." I said before getting up on my knees and giving him a small peck on his neck.
"Shut up." He replied and turned his head away as he blushed profusely, rubbing the back of his head as he did.
"But anyways-" I pulled the broken cot over and level it on the ground. "-I'm tired now so you can get back to your work or whatever," I grabbed my cape and the cot's sheets and tugged them over me. "I won't distract you anymore so carry on." I waved at him as he sat there stunned and stuttering before I lay my head down and closed my eyes.
"But-"
"If you haven't noticed, the moment's passed you by. Get a stronger cot next time."
In all honesty, I really was tired. When Drakath tried shaking me to get me up again, I was already half asleep. Before I completely fell into dreamland, I heard Drakath swear again.
This time it was at himself.
…
"Why aren't you sleeping?" I groaned groggily, rubbing my eyes. It probably hadn't been even an hour before I felt movement below me and woke up.
I was still on the cot but Drakath had decided to lie down with me too. His arm was wrapped around my shoulder as my head rested on his shoulder. He was reading my book in the lamplight, inspecting one of the pictures.
"No wonder you're such a freak." He commented, looking at the page where the wolf ripped the old lady apart. The picture only showed shadows but it was still quite gruesome. Knowing that the strange stripping scene was coming up, he closed the book and placed it on the grassy floor.
"You just realized it now?"
"No. Of course not." He huffed, turning over to hug me closer.
"You want to answer my question now?" I prodded, yawning as I did. "You had a lot of time to think."
"…Is this supposed to be some sort of test?" He asked, sounding tired. "Euugh, fine. I'd rather the girl run away." He looked me in the eye as he answered, serious all of a sudden.
"Are you just saying that to please me?" I smirked at him but he doesn't get angry. It surprised me a bit but at the same time, I felt relieved. "Then that means that if you wanted to leave, you would right? No need to be afraid? I mean, I'm not trying to trick you or anything but-"
"Is that what this is about?" He sighed, exasperated. "And you use a children's book to go about it. A creepy one too. Damn it, Ty. What kind of a person do you think I am?"
"Someone who has the most to lose if this relationship goes south," I answered, directing my gaze downward and pressing against him. "Face it, you don't gain anything being with me and you're most likely better off on your own."
In response, he remained silent and I felt him tense again.
"After my mom would finish the story, she'd tell me that the world was filled with wolves who knew the best tricks to charm and catch their…prey I suppose. She told me I should watch out and trust no wolf. But then my dad replied "What about you? Did I fall for a wolf unaware?" It was a joke but mom got really upset after that. She wasn't angry at dad at all but she got really worried…and you already know how my parents met, right?" I asked but didn't give him time to answer before I moved on. "It wasn't like "I tricked you into eating your grandma" bad but it was…interesting to say the least. But I'm worried about you too. I'm…not the best person to be around to be honest. I guess I'm also pretty bad at reading people sometimes and maybe I'm a bit pushy," I explained, embarrassed. "I just want to make sure y'know. You aren't-"
"Ty, how old are you?" Drakath asked bluntly, rolling us over so that he was on top of me. He propped himself up with his arms so he could stare me down.
"I'm halfway to being seventeen." I replied, saying it like I was asking a question.
"How old am I?"
"Twenty-three."
"Do you see something wrong with this picture?"
"No?"
Drakath breathed in deeply and sighed before fixing me with an incredulous look and laid himself down gently on my small chest.
"You're here because I want you to be here. I know what I'm doing," He said, closing his eyes, slackening as I wrapped my arms around him. "I'm not the one wearing the red hood and you know what you're doing too."
"Since when did you become so thoughtful?" I joked but smiled in relief. "Heehee, but you know what? I remembered what happened to the wolf at the end. You want to hear?"
"Not really."
"The little girl ran and ran and ran until she stopped in front of a river. The river's flow was too strong and she would've gotten swept away had she decided to swim. Distraught, the girl thought about jumping in anyway. Before she could, however, the water fey nearby laid out a sheet of cloth to wash and she took the opportunity to run across the sheet to the other side. The wolf ran after her and tried running across the sheet as well but the water fey yanked the sheet from under his feet and that creepy wolf drowned in the river."
Drakath stayed silent at first but then he burst out laughing.
"It drowned. Of all things it could've died from, it had to be by drowning."
"Ha ha, very funny." I said, not amused.
"Where did the fairies come from? They came out of nowhere."
"It's a fairy tale. Does a woodsman bursting through the walls of the cottage and cutting out the grandma and the little girl out of the wolf's stomach unharmed sound believable? Maybe but it's a stretch. But at least…"
"What?" Drakath asked, looking up at me.
"I won't see you running away any time soon. There aren't any wolves here." I smiled again sleepily.
"Of course not." Drakath agreed before the both of us drifted off into sleep.
Authors Notes: It's been a while. How have you been? Me? I'm still trying to get over writer's block but this one-shot came out of it so that's something at least.
As I said before, a friend of mine mentioned the thing about how Ty started to wear a red hooded cape and how it reminded her of little red riding hood. She was also the one who helped out with this story. She told me the Perrault version of the story which was originally in French and she also told me the version that she heard in a PC game that I didn't know of. I combined aspects of Perrault's version, the PC game's version (I forgot the name of the game) as told by my friend, old folk tales related to the red hood and my own embellishments. The overall message of little red riding hood varies from version to version but the one here is overtly sexual. There's a lot of symbolism in that story and the stuff I added may have some significance to the future of Double Edged (so for those of you who read DE, there's more to pick out here too).
This scene was also something I've been working on for a while now. I haven't decided if it's going to be in DE yet. There are a lot of references to DE as well so there's something for you guys.
A lot of people say that Ty seems to be the more dominant person in the relationship but I don't really think so. I find that no one wear's the pants in a good relationship. I could either mean that figuratively or literally.
I also added their ages in here. Drakath's age is speculation though but he's probably around early twenties. Age gap is somewhat large but it isn't that bad.
A good friend of mine beta'd this for me too. So if you're reading this friend, thank you very much!
That's all really. I might edit this later for errors I know I've missed (writing at one in the morning is quite hard) but other than that, thanks for reading! Reviews are very appreciated and I hope you enjoyed this segment.