A/N: Spooky season is a go. As promised, a year has passed and I return once more, here and now, in the month of October.
Hopefully folks enjoy this chapter, brief though it may be, and a Happy Halloween to one and all. Might move this to the regular update rota if folks enjoy it enough; though it seems we won't be getting a sequel or a remaster anytime soon, which is a proper shame given how much I've enjoyed this game.
I'm just a humble author trying to make his way in this wild world, one word at a time.
Time and feedback will determine if this remains a story. Simple as that.
As ever, I own no quotes, references, themes or memes.
They're tributes to greater legends one and all~!
This chapter's full of sweet, sugary fluff.
May it bring a smile to your face!
"You're only young once.
Do your best to enjoy it, eh?
Wait, what's that? Whaddya mean you've never heard of Halloween?!"
~?
Trick or Treat
Iosefka prided herself on the healing arts.
She was a medic after all, a lover, not a fighter.
Not that she couldn't fight, mind you; she simply preferred not to.
She'd seen many hunts in her heyday and tended just as many wounds. After all, injuries where not always of the body, but often of the mind. The Healing Church often scoffed at such; they claimed there was nothing the Blood could not heal, but she herself was often wary of using it herself, given the rumors she heard. Even so, it wasn't uncommon for many injured to seek her on the Night of a Hunt. She was after all, one of the foremost healers in Yharnam.
She wasn't surprised when someone inevitably knocked on her door one such evening.
Cleaning her hand on a nearby towel, she rose and paced to the door.
"Greetings." she hummed. "Are you injured?"
Low laughter answered. "Not at all."
"Are you out on the hunt, then?"
"Suppose you could call it that, miss." the rich timbre of a young man's voice answered, muffled through the door, but still enough to send a little thrill through her. "You good in there?"
Miss? My, but he was a polite one, wasn't he?
"I am." And I'm very sorry...but I cannot open this door." she nearly bowed, but caught herself once she realized the stranger couldn't see her. "I am Iosefka," she introduced herself by way of apology. "The patients here in my clinic must not be exposed to infection. I know that you hunt for us, for our town, but I'm sorry."
"Nice clinic you got here."
"You think so?" Iosefka preened. "I've been a bit busy, I have so many to look after. A curious woman came by, but I turned her away...
"Alright, doc." glancing towards the opaque glass, she spied his silhouette. "Be safe. And keep this door shut until I come back."
Her cheeks warmed a little and unbidden, she felt herself squirm happily at his stern words. Such a kind hunter.
Alas, he left before she could even think to give him a blood vial, leaving her with just a hint of regret.
She returned to her patients, tending their wounds as best she was able, but it was lonely work.
But as luck would have it, a few hours later, the stranger returned, heralded by his knocking.
Iosefka cleaned her hands once more, and rose quickly. "Is that you, good hunter?"
A mild chuckle answered. "You're the second one to call me that now, ya know."
Another? Something squirmed in her gut.
It felt like jealousy.
She didn't like it.
"What else am I to call you, then?" she huffed at him. "Please, try to understand my position."
"How about my name, for starters?"
She puffed out her cheeks in mild indignation, knowing he could not see her. "I cannot, good hunter, for you did not give me it!"
A startled laugh burst out of him, rich and genuine, before he rallied. "I really didn't, huh? Lemme fix that."
He told her.
"Naruto." Iosefka took his name into her heart, tasted it, rolling over her tongue as she spoke it aloud. She would remember if, even if no one else did. Granted, it didn't sound quite so noble as the legendary Gehrman or Ludwig or Lady Maria, but it radiated a proud sort off dignity of its own. Strength, even. Any hunter capable of lasting so long on a night like this must surely be worth their salt.
"Naruto, then." she dared to place her hand against the pane of glass. "I will pray for your safe return."
He mirrored the motion and something in her skipped, moreso when his fingers eclipsed her own.
My, but he had rather large hands. And you know what they said about large hands...
"You might want to consider leaving your clinic. Its getting dangerous out there."
"I cannot." she lowered her hand and lifted her chin in stubborn defiance. "My patients are suffering from grievous wounds and cannot be moved."
"They are? I'm a bit of a healer myself, ya know," his words rang with noble concern." I could help you."
Iosefka nearly did...but her pride won out over common sense.
"I appreciate the offer, but no." she shook her head at the last, knowing he could at least see that much. "You have your burden to bear, and I have mine. It would be remiss of me to add more weight to your shoulders."
"Just be careful." his voice rumbled a warning. "There's only so much you can do on a night like this."
He left her with those words, and again, she realized she'd forgotten to give him a vial.
His words would soon prove prophetic; one of her patients perished as the night dragged on. Another succumbed to madness and began gibbering in their sleep. A third mysteriously vanished when she wasn't looking; she was only alerted to their absence by the sound of shattered glass and a broken window. No amount of effort on her part turned up any clues as to their trail. In the end, she was forced to accept that they'd left of their own volition...no matter what her heart might say otherwise.
Some hours later, something scrabbled against the door.
Iosefka heard the noise and bridled. "Good hunter?"
A feral snarl answered her.
Something struck the wooden frame. Once. Twice. Thrice. It held, but only just. Each blow rattled its ancient frame, and with a fourth strike, horror dawned.
A beast had found its way to her clinic.
She reached for the weapon at her hip, the blade never far from her hand, even as the door shuddered. From there she braced herself as she had been taught, ready to strike the moment it burst into her home. She would only have one shot, one opportunity, once chance to strike while it was distracted by the door...
The wooden frame cracked and a baleful golden eye glared through the gap.
Iosefka blew out an anxious breath and raised her blade to defend...!
A wet splat reached her ears.
Without warning, the pounding ceased; in its place something slid down the door and struck the floor with a dull thud. She heard the telltale sound of a body being dragged away, accompanied by a loud bang as someone threw the corpse downstairs, then out into the streets of Yharnam proper.
Boots stomped back up the steps and then, ever so politely, someone knocked on the door.
Iosefka dared to peek through the narrow gap the beast had made in a vain attempt to glimpse her savior.
A merry blue eye and a blond brow stared back at her from within, alas, they were all she could see. "I warned you."
He'd come for her. Swooped in when all seemed lost to slay the foul beast at her doorstep. Such a good hunter.
She wilted a little. "I suppose you did. I take it you killed the creature. You are safe, then?
"I am."
"Thank goodness." she heaved a hearty sigh. "But I'm afraid nothing will change my mind. I cannot open the door." A thought occurred to her then, and she fumbled in her white robes for something she might offer him in return for his heroism. "Perhaps this will help you, if only in some small way."
This time she managed to push a blood vial through the narrow gap in the door and heard it fall into a man's hand.
"Good hunter, might I be so bold...?"
"The night may be long, but morning always comes." keeping up her courage, she thrust her hand through the gap after it, letting her fingertips push through the broken wood to linger over his own. "Someone of your caliber won't fail us, of that, I am certain." daringly, she squeezed his hand, threading her fingers through her own. "And once the night of the hunt ends, we can speak face to face...then I can finally see what you look like."
He squeezed her hand back; my, but his fingers were so...very warm.
What would they feel like in other places, she wondered?
Her body quivered, just a little.
Such impurity. She was a healer; she shouldn't be thinking these heretical things. She was of the church. And yet at the end of the day she was also a young woman. She had her wants. Her desires. She'd never been all that interested in...well, that sort of thing, but here and now she found herself curious.
What did he look like? She knew his name and had likewise heard his voice so many times now, but it was so difficult to put a face to that.
They say battle drives men mad; he could have torn his palm from hers and beaten down the door to get at her, had his way with her some like beastly brute. But he didn't. He retained his humanity and held her hand in silence, even now, on this most beastly of nights.
Was that not also a sign of his nobility? Of his dignity? His forbearance?
With his free hand, he reached over pressed something into her palm, a small charm of sorts, though she couldn't see it with the door between them as they were.
Tugging her hand from his, she took a moment to inspect the tiny talisman; it was small and red, carved in the symbol of a whirlpool. She could feel it hum under her touch, veritably vibrating with energy, as thought it were somehow alive...
"Hold onto that," his voice instructed from the other side of the door. "It'll keep you safe."
Her heart skipped a single, treacherous beat.
Even now he thought of her.
"I shouldn't be thinking this, but I am...rather looking forward to seeing your face." a small, shy smile plucked at the corner of her mouth as she spoke. "So please, be careful out there. I will pray for your safety. May light shine upon this night, and your fortunes."
He stood, and through the crack, she glimpsed the leather armor he wore, the weapon at his side, his slender frame. Another tantalizing glimpse of what he must look like.
"I'll back."
She bowed her head. "I know you will."
Something shrieked in the night, the distant call of a terrible beast.
Her good hunter turned his back toward the sound, but she couldn't see his face at this angle; rather than storm down the street, he turned and bounded away.
With his absence, Iosefka reluctantly returned to her patients.
Despite her utmost best efforts and her frantic ardent labor, the last of them perished. One began to transform into an awful beast when a baleful blood moon unexpectedly rose in the sky, and she was subsequently forced to put the poor fellow down before he could attack her as the last had. Another succumbed to the madness and bit off their own tongue, while the final one dashed their head out against the wall. Madness and monstrosity claimed them one and all, much to her dismay, and she was left to dispose of the bodies in miserable silence.
Thereafter, she was left alone. There was no longer any reason for her to keep the door closed.
Yet the charm Naruto gave her did its work well, keeping her safe from all harm.
And still the door held; a good kick might well shatter it now, but it held.
When the knock came some hours later, she all but leaped to her feet.
"Good hunter?" she called out, "Is that you?"
The knocking intensified tenfold.
"Won't you answer me?"
Abruptly, it ceased.
But this time she saw no one at the door.
...perhaps a peek was in order? It wasn't as though she had anything left to lose, after all.
Bracing herself, Iosefka unlocked the door and swung it open. Ill-used hinges moved with a ponderous creak, revealing the staircase and the street beyond. Of the once fearsome blood moon there was naught to be seen; it had come and gone, leaving a healthy lunar orb in its place. And yet, when she looked down...well.
Iosefka had seen much in her time; too much, some might say.
Battles and blood and brutality.
Nothing compared to this.
Two small masked children clad in costumes awaited her at the door; each bearing pale hair and bright eyes and each holding up empty sacks of cloth.
"Happy Halloween!" Said the little girl, her round face hidden behind a wolf's mask.
"Trick or Treat!" cried the young boy wearing a bat mask.
Eeeeee!
'Precious children!' Her heart cried out in rapturous joy! 'Protect at all costs!'
But it also begged a terribly important question:
"...what, pray tell is Halloween?"
"Orpheus! Ophelia!" A strapping young man in burnt hunter's armor rounded the corner, his blue eyes bright, whiskered cheeks dimpled in a smile, all framed by wild bangs of tawny blond hair. "What did I say about running off on your own?!"
The girl tilted her head. "To not to?"
The boy thrust a finger at the girl. "It was her idea!"
The girl rounded on her-brother?-with a most fearsome pout. "Liar! This was your idea!"
The masked boy hissed at her. "Shhhhh!"
"Honestly, the two of you...
Iosefka blinked.
Wait.
She knew that voice.
Could this really be her good hunter?
If so...oh. Oh, my, my, my~! He was well fit, even more than she'd dared imagine.
Her heart didn't just skip a beat this time; it performed a somersault into a reverse double backflip and landed in a handstand besides only to fall flat on its face. All the while her mouth went dry, and she was dimly aware of sever things happening at once; first, he stepped closer, second he took ahold of her hands, and third...
What had the children said? Trick or treat? She saw no trick here-only a treat.
A mist delicious treat indeed.
Hmm...
"I'm so sorry." he smiled her way, forcing her to focus. "I accidentally told them about Halloween and they went wild. They've been going door to door asking for candy ever since. Your the first one to answer."
Iosefka brain fizzled out spectacularly and she squeaked, unable to form words, nor even a coherent thought for that matter.
"So this is what you look like. Well?" Naruto tilted his head. "Do I measure up to your expectations?"
Her tongue betrayed her spectacularly. "...bend me over a barrel and give me babies."
Naruto's brow shot straight up into his hair.
Gah! Foul tongue! Slay me now!
"I mean...!" she floundered. "I mean...! What, pray tell, is Halloween?
Those whiskered cheeks dimpled, but he let the faux pas slide. "That's really not a thing in this world, is it?"
"Little ones going door-to-door asking for sweets? I'm afraid not...
The children pouted.
No! Her heart!
"A-Although," she rallied, "I may have some sweets in my clinic...
The little ones perked up, eyes alight, and practically ran inside, nearly tripping over one another in their haste.
Iosefka took the chance to look away, lest she swoon over them anew. "You are their father, then?"
"More or less." Naruto shrugged one shoulder, still smiling her way. "I look after them most of the time."
Be still my heart! He really was a handsome sort. A single father? With children? And he'd said he was a capable healer earlier, hadn't he? She didn't see a mother around either. The latter was highly unlikely -little ones didn't come from nowhere after all- but since none had stepped forth to claim him or brush her aside. Someone might in the near future, but right here, right now...
Which meant! There could only be one conclusion! One decision she made, and made most gladly!
Iosefka all but pounced on Naruto and welded her lips to his.
Mine!
A/N: Should we end it here? Don't tempt me. I just might.
There's still so much we can DO, but I can't bear to write a story, let alone update it regularly, if the readers/reviewers don't enjoy it.
There we are, a chapter from Iosefka's perspective, the real one, not that awful impostor who did such terrible things; while the kiddos get a chance to have some fun.
Aaaand there we go. As ever, reviews keep me alive. Without them, I cannot write. So...in the Immortal Words of Atlas...
...Review...Would You Kindly? No previews this time.
I'm sore, weary, and sad.
R&R~!
