Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Once again, just like every other night, you were tucked away all alone in your bedroom with your blinds flipped shut, sealing away the rest of the world from view. The night was still young, but you were tired—though, not physically, mentally, perhaps, with the idea of being outside just being… simply unappealing. 

You were content like this though; with your nose either tucked deep into a book that channeled into your escapism habits or mindlessly scrolling through every sort of social you had installed on your phone, until you grew bored. Hours had passed by that point, too, and it wasn’t that you were tired in the slightest, but you let your eyes drift to meet with the ceiling—the stark white surface seeming fuzzier than before, like lacing static.

However, just as you settled your gaze back onto the foot of the bed, that’s right about when you noticed someone else right there with you, sitting cross-legged, staring right at you, as if they belonged.

At first, when your eyes landed upon the person, you couldn’t quite comprehend it. You were alone, weren’t you? There was no possible way that a whole being could have just materialised in front of you within a matter of minutes and yet, here they were.

With glittering freckles that bordered on pearlescent adorning reddish skin made up the complexion of the person—or perhaps something else entirely, sitting right in front of you—one eye blushing plum hues while the other looked completely blank, matching your stunned expression. Your eyes drifted to catch a scar taking up one half of their face, long aged and settled deep. Their hair, like their freckles, was almost shell-like, boasting silvery whites, pinks and blues, blending into a pale amethyst. 

Tattered dragonfly-esque wings speared from their shoulder blades, limply sitting over the bed as they leaned forward to study you with a chilling intensity, despite their expression being warm otherwise. Their clothing, or lack thereof from the waist up, was made up of a worn down gauze wrapped around their left shoulder, their bottom half wearing baggy brown patchwork trousers.

As you studied them, they seemed to do the very same in return; tilting their head off to the side and slightly twitching their pointed ears.

“You can see me, can’t you?” they asked, a male voice filling out your ears. The being’s voice was pleasant; not too deep and full of melody that felt almost playful.  

You blinked at him, watching as his eyes slowly widened along with his smile. If you were being entirely honest, you weren’t too sure how you should be reacting. Your first impression of seeing some unknown person, let alone a man, was to scream—but for whatever reason—you couldn’t. 

In fact, you couldn’t utter a single noise at all. 

You pinched the skin on hand before you entertained the thought at all, the sharp sensation of pain coursing through your body confirming to you that this was all real. 

(But how?)

“What…?” was all you managed after a moment, practically choking the word out. 

Without thinking, you shot out your hand to try and wave through him, to try and disperse the image of what you thought was, one hundred percent a hallucination, only to strike him physically instead. The creature let out a breathless laugh, as if amused by your attempt to will him away, while you in turn, flinched at the connection. 

You recoiled so hard, that you pulled away, letting out a sharp gasp before throwing the blanket across the bed, letting it momentarily drape over his head. Within a matter of seconds, you retreated as far as you could, pressing your back right up against the headboard of your bed, snapping your knees to your chest with such haste, that it nearly knocked him back.

“Now, now,” he teased, steadying himself, “I’m not going to hurt you.”

You gulped hard. “W-who—what—who are you?”

The being smiled, settling his elbows over his knees so that he could rest his chin on his palms. His eyebrows raised slightly as his one visible pupil zeroed in on you, intensifying his voice as though excited, “I’m Eloyrn,” he whispered, tilting his head before levelling it once more, “you can just call me Elo, though.”

You couldn’t help but simply stare at this strangely friendly creature who spoke casually to you, as if they were an old friend of yours. Nothing about their tone was serious in the slightest, even when you in return, displayed clear signs of distress and just as you were about to ask what he was—or what he wanted—he leaned forward again, parting his lips. 

This time, he whispered your name, causing you to flinch again. “That’s yours, right? I love human names. So much variety, so much potential,” he spoke as though struck with awe, repeating your name over and over again in a near-worshipping chant.

“I’m sorry,” you continued when you were able to, interrupting him, “but what exactly are you?” you asked, pointing your eyes at his ears, his eyes, and his overall look. He couldn’t have been human.

Eloryn promptly ceased his mantra, sagging his shoulders into a relaxed posture. He tilted his head back to stretch out his neck, revealing a glimpse of his sharp jaw before meeting with your gaze once more. Keeping his tone light and playful, he tried to answer you, “I believe that you humans call my kind a fae.”

You blurted out your response, unable to stifle it, “Like a fairy?”

He laughed lightly but shook his head, “Not quite, but I suppose these pesky wings aren’t too convincing to counter my words,” he shrugged before leaning in, “I’m closer to a woodland spirit.”

“A woodland spirit…?” you repeated, narrowing your eyes, “but this is a city,” you added in a straightforward tone, still refusing to believe what you were seeing. 

“Ah, but this whole area used to be part of a forest at one point,” Eloryn corrected you, “you can call always me a city spirit though, if that makes more sense to you given the modern times – I’m quite… adaptable, you’ll come to find.”

For a moment, your mind was reeling with much too many unanswered questions that kept on piling up. Fae? Spirits? You must have either fallen asleep or have hit your head somewhere because this very exchange couldn’t have been real, and yet…

(He felt so real?)

“Okay…” you trailed off, trying to keep a handle on your barely contained panic, “and what do you want with me, exactly?”

Eloryn laughed at your question, finding your guarded mannerisms to be more endearing than something to be concerned about. “What don’t I want with you?” he asked as if it was obvious, “I have been around you for a while, you know, hovering over you, just… being near you,” he murmured, softening his voice that time in a way that was more threatening than it was gentle, “watching over you, memorising your habits—memorising you,” he then paused, pulling back ever so slightly, “curious that you can see me now, though, I wonder why.”

You creased your brows at his words, still not fully processing the full extent of the obsession he had just confessed to you, your mind stuck on a different detail instead. “Hang on, you’ve been watching me?”

Eloryn’s lighthearted demeanour returned within an instant at your question, adopting a loud, bursting tone, “Of course!” he exclaimed proudly, before smoothing it down into a softer tone once more. “Always. I’ve been keeping you safe, keeping others away from you, all so that I can watch you day to day, every day—every minute—every second—”

At his crazed whispered worship, however, you tried to retreat further away once more only to be met with the wooden surface of your headboard kissing your back. You shook your head at the prospect, rejecting his worship, not liking this a single bit. Something about being watched—let alone perceived by an invisible entity filled you with a great deal of dread.

The fae, not wanting to let you escape so soon, moved closer to you, kneeling over you, planting both of his hands parallel over your body so that his palms flattened near your hips. Hovering over you, his icy breath ghosted over your face, leaving you frozen solid into place and unable to move beneath his looming form.

“You can see me,” he repeated, “you can feel me,” he emphasised, retaining that uneasy tone, “which means you can’t get rid of me by just moving on with your life,” he added, almost crazed, “god,” he spoke, uttering your name once again, “you’re stuck with me forever – how exciting!”

Just as you wanted to push him back, however, to shove him as far away from you as possible, your mind went blank. Suddenly, an anchoring, compressing feeling enveloped you, plunging you into darkness. Your mind went elsewhere and your body turned rigid, forcing you into a deep slumber. 

Though, right as you felt yourself slip away, you felt a slight weight settle beside you, as if someone was pressing their body right against your back—completely unseen to you—pulling you into the deepest sleep you’ve ever had.

When you next awoke in the morning, you thought that this odd event might as well have been a dream or at the very least, a realistic nightmare. As you came around, however, artefacts of the night before had remained. Things like the sudden absence of warmth from someone lying closely next to you or the creeping sensation of not being entirely alone.

You tried to get through the course of the upcoming day regardless, and other than feeling that something—or someone—was potentially lurking in the shadows, nothing out of the ordinary occurred, until you had to go back home.

Your usual time for leaving your job was in the evening, but before it got dark, so around six. Your boss was, however, who was not unknown for demanding overtime, often making anyone he could get away with pressuring to do just that, talked you into something along those lines. Needing the money, you begrudgingly accepted it, even if it meant getting off work when the skies were growing darker. 

By the time your bus had dropped you off at the usual spot, too, the neighbourhood was utterly empty save for the many lampposts dotting around the road, warmly illuminating the pavement. It was about a five or seven minute walk from the bus stop to your apartment, so you weren’t too worried, but your city was also not exactly known for being the safest either.

You didn’t fuss about it too much, though, thinking more about what to eat when you got back home, and definitely not about the approaching figure that was quickly closing in on you. Not who you’d expect, however, because you couldn’t have—that was just all just a dream, right?

It was quick as it all happened, giving you no hint or warning of what was about to come. Large calloused hands wrapped around the long sleeves of your arms, causing you to shrink back in alarm. Instinctively, you tore forward, stamping your heel over the stranger’s foot, causing him to hiss in pain, stumbling back a step. You swung your heavy bag to meet at his side, whacking him hard and prompting the assailant to finally let go.

Your eyes fluttered, thinking back to last night.

It couldn’t have been Elo—what’s his name—Elowyn, Eloryn? No, because he didn’t exist and even if he did, he wouldn’t have been that easy to fight off, given what he was, surely. 

Shooting forward, you made a break out of the attacker’s grasp, hearing his footsteps trail right behind you—pushing forward, forcing yourself to bridge as far away a distance from him as much as possible and yet—falling to your hands and knees as your breath tore out of your lungs. Gasping sharply, you tried to recollect your bearings before pressing onwards, only for the same rough hands to meet at your shoulder again. You jolted as you felt them tightly clamp around your back, yanking you back before letting go within an instant.

You paused, trying to process the events, your chest still heaving in and out. 

At first you couldn’t understand what you were hearing, but then—

A strangled cry came from the man behind you, followed by a sickening crack and snap; a sharp scream passed through your ears only to be then rapidly stifled. This sort of sound continued to slowly pass through the man, filling your ears with something you couldn’t quite comprehend. 

You shuddered as you turned around, unsure of what to expect, only to be met with the sight of your attacker desperately darting his eyes around, unable to understand where this sudden assault could have been coming from. While on the other hand, you saw the creature from the night before, standing there calmly—slowly, excruciatingly moving his fingers up his arm—dusting the bone into shattered rubble beneath the skin. With wide eyes, you watched as he then moved onto the other arm, and then to his legs, before turning the once confident aggressor into a blathering, broken stupor.

Crawling back on your feet, perhaps a minute too late, you tried to escape in a hurry but then you felt a cold presence sweep by you, only to be met with Eloryn standing over you, extending his hand to you with a cold smile on his face.

“I’m always going to be with you,” he said, pulling you up to sink into his chest, “you can’t get rid of me, remember?” he reminded you again, wrapping his arms right around you. “In fact, I won’t even let you try.”

Feeling scared, bewildered, but also just mostly confused, you froze up at the unreal situation you found yourself in once more, reluctantly leaning into his form—but not out of comfort—out of fear.

Because what on earth did you do exactly, to have attracted the attention of someone like this?

(And was he more of a friend? Or was he a foe?)

(If you were being honest, you were almost too scared to find out.)

Chapter Text

For a moment, it felt like all time had come to a halt. You were left frozen in the cool chill of the winter air, but not just because you were cold, but from the unreal situation that had crept into your life. Nearly being mugged was somehow more plausible to you to accept than a fae being real and tending to your aid and in such a terrifying way, too.

The very fact alone that Eloryn was supposedly real, but displayed such devastating strength against people, had admittedly left you feeling hesitant, even if he did such a thing to protect you. It was only out of fear that you even leaned into his touch, too, feeling a knot of uncertainty form from the moment he tightened his arms right around you.

Dread pooled in your stomach at that moment. Your heart raced. Your skin suddenly felt cold and clammy. In an instant, you tried to push him away, his body surprisingly soft against your touch. 

“W-w-wait, what am I doing?” you stammered, attempting to distance yourself from him. Your voice was steadily rising to a panicked pitch, and you took a deep breath to calm yourself, but no such sense of ease came. “I-I can’t,” you continued, glancing him up and down, “because, I… what even are you?”

Eloryn remained calm, and his reaction towards your panicked demeanour was anything but annoyed or frustrated, even if those were his true underlying feelings beyond the facade he put on. He loosened his hold on you, but didn’t let you get too far away from him. All that he let you do was breathe, before reeling you back in. His breath came out hot as it hushed into your ear, his voice low, “I told you - I’m obsessed with you,” he started, pulling back slightly so that he could hold your gaze, “and if anyone threatens your safety, then I’ll take it personally.”

You blinked, trying to process it all again. He was right about you being in potential danger. You could have been mugged, or worse. Maybe Eloryn wasn’t the enemy after all, but you still had this sinking gut feeling that you couldn’t quite digest, about him being something so much worse. 

Staying quiet for a moment, a particular thought crept into your mind.

(Just how far did his obsession go for you, exactly?)

You swallowed a thick gulp of air down, trying to rein in your emotions. If his goal was to eliminate danger, then surely you were safe now, right? The image of the man’s bones slowly being crushed beneath what seemed to be a gentle touch burned into your mind.

The fact that he was still a crumpled heap of flesh and dust just mere steps away unsettled you, and you didn’t dare look back. Perhaps then, it was that Elo was capable of such horror that left you feeling uncertain about him, but also, because you didn’t know much about him, even if he knew maybe too much about you.

All of a sudden, though, he let go of you.

You stumbled back slightly, trying to get a hold of your balance, watching in startled curiosity as his hand flew to his forehead and curled around his head. He seethed and grunted—hissing as though in pain. A brief idea passed through your mind to run back home and lock him out while he was still distracted, but the fact alone that he had shown up in your bedroom before undetected led you to believe that he had the means to appear whenever he so pleased.

As a result, albeit reluctantly, you stayed right where you were.

Your mind went in the direction of attempting to offer comfort next. You raised a tentative hand, extending it to hover around him as he tensed in pain. “Are you okay?” you tried to ask, your voice still shaky, but it was clear that you were trying to stay calm.

“I…” he tried, attempting to push past the searing pain, “I’m fine, this just… sometimes… happens,” he revealed, seeming reluctant with the amount of information that he was willing to reveal, “it’s just been happening more so lately because I—” he was about to say, before cutting himself off.

You stuck around with him as the ache eventually settled, and Elo seemed to be himself within no time at all again. The upper end of his temple was bruised, leaving behind the evidence of something painful, but you couldn’t understand what exactly plagued him so. When people—humans—had headaches, they wouldn’t get bruises afterward. This might have been something else as a result. 

What wasn’t he telling you?

It wasn’t that you felt entitled to know more about him, but if he was going to be a constant presence in your life, then you felt as though you had the right to know. For now, however, you dropped the subject.

Kneading into his skull, Elo soon seemed visibly relieved, too. 

“Sorry you had to see that,” he muttered before clearing his throat, “this doesn’t usually happen with you around to see it.”

That’s right. You only started to see him recently.

“What was that?” you tried to ask again, your curiosity getting the better of you.

Elo, however, seemed apprehensive all of a sudden and closed himself off to you in a way that you found frustrating. His jaw clenched as a muscle in his cheek ticked, as if trying to calm himself down. 

“Please,” you tried again, unsure why this entity who wasn’t going to leave you alone was suddenly treating you that way. It wasn’t fair. “You said that you’re going to stick around, right? You could at least let me know what I have to deal with it when it comes to you…” as you trailed off, however, you regretted your choice in words. 

Elo finally relented, budging at long last, but it didn’t seem that he was going to reveal his big issue. Instead, he sighed out a deep breath and brought you forward once more, wrapping his arm right around you. “I’ll tell you one day,” he promised, “but for now, we should head inside,” he added, darting his eyes around the vicinity in an almost paranoid manner, “can’t have you be spotted talking out loud to yourself like a crazy person, now can we?”

Before you could respond, Elo started to walk you towards where your building was, and although he used a lighthearted, joking tone, he kept his eyes much sharper than before, as if scanning around for a threat greater than before.

As soon as you were inside, however, he dropped the serious demeanour before guiding you up the stairs. He didn’t seem to want you to take the elevator for some reason, despite it being clear that you were exhausted after a long day. He kept his hands off of you as you walked, but hovered around closely, quietly guiding you upstairs with careful guidance. 

Just before entering the apartment, too, he hung around a little behind you before following suit. If you were honest, everything about the way he was acting left you more on edge than ever before. The concept of something like him existing alone was starting to mess with your mind more than you cared to admit. Perhaps it was also the part where he claimed to be so enamoured with you that it reached obsessive heights. Or the part where he seemed to be paranoid in places you had written off as safe. Whatever it was, you couldn’t distinguish him as being a friend or a foe, and that greatly confused you. 

Sure, Elo might have been looking out for you, but what was the true reason that he was obsessed as he was?

You didn’t want to make too many excuses for him at the same time, either.

Had he been a human man, then he would have been the biggest of red flags for you. In fact, you would have gone out of your way to avoid him, even. 

So, why should you discount his behaviour just because he was from a different realm? People, no matter who they were, or where they were from, could be the same anywhere, after all. He couldn’t been that different from any other manipulative person out there who was eager to get close to someone they thought they could easily control.

You took a deep breath as a result, trying to enter your apartment with a clear mind, but everything about your situation was tiring you, even when Elo was now not doing anything particularly concerning, other than looking through your many kitchen cabinets. He seemed curious to study what you kept in your cupboards, muttering out barely comprehensible comments on and off under his breath, as if mentally logging the ingredients you kept on hand.

Just as you pulled out a paper cup of quick noodles from the cupboard, Elo let out a scoff. It was quiet but disapproving, and in your agitated mind, it served only to tick you off more than you already had been. Your eyes narrowed as he leaned his taller frame against the edge of the counter, crossing his arms to look you over.

“What?” you barked out, unable to keep to yourself. In your mind, this was still an intruder—one who was capable of being potentially dangerous, at that—so why should you relax when he insisted on staying?

Elo huffed out a snort of air, his lips twitching into a tight smile. His voice came off as dismissive, perhaps even condescending to a certain degree, “Come on, you have far better options than that, don’t you?” he asked, “do you really want to, after a long day at work, to avoid providing your body with much needed nourishment?”

You bit your tongue as you shrugged. “I’m tired and it’s quick.”

He pursed his lips off to the side, not liking that answer. To him, your health was important. He already clocked humans as frailer than the fae—much more fragile—so keeping your body in good condition was his top priority. He wanted you to eat well for reasons out of care, not because he intended to be controlling, as you likely saw him to be. The unspoken accusation was grating on his nerves, too, if he had to be entirely honest.

“Then,” he took a step forward, pushing himself from the surface, “maybe you’ll let me cook for you instead?”

“Wouldn’t your food be different from mine?” you hesitantly asked, not wanting to completely accept his offer. If you didn’t trust his intentions passively, then why should you accept his offer to prepare your food? No, you were rightfully cautious, you thought.

Elo hummed in amusement at that response. “Not necessarily - we’re both from Earth, aren’t we? Unless humans are from a different fauna variant than the rest of the animals that roam this earth,” he mused lightheartedly despite once again coming off as a little condescending, “we cook with the same ingredients that humans do, though, I suppose our tastes might different,” he paused, training his lips into a practiced smile. “Let me try and make you something. Please.”

You paused too. You were unsure of how to continue exactly. Maybe it wouldn’t hurt to take him on the offer, but also, maybe you shouldn’t. You both trusted him not to hurt you, yet at the same time, you expected him to do exactly just that from the second you let your guard down.”

(“I’m obsessed with you.”)

The words orbited around in the depths of your mind.

If you had to consider it, Elo could do many things to keep you perfectly intact in his perfectly controlled world. If his goal was to keep you in his sight at all times, then paralysing you crept into your mind, even if what he had otherwise proposed was contradictory to that threat. He seemed to want the best for you—so harming you would be the opposite. 

Maybe in that instance, you could trust him.

Or at the very least, give yourself some openings with him, before he has to resort to being deceiving to get close to you. You’ve had a stalker before; you knew exactly what could be done to get close to you—to get under your skin.  

Yielding at last, you sighed a deep breath, softening your voice, “Okay, but let’s not make it a habit - I can usually take care of myself.”

“Oh, my, my. What progress we’re making…!” Elo smiled, unable to resist making a little jab, though he held back to not agitate you too much. He still wanted you to tolerate him, if even slightly. 

Despite him believing it to be lighthearted, his response left you partially regretful of doing such a thing, but you persevered regardless. You wanted to put your trust in this entity, because if he truly wouldn’t leave you alone, then you could at the very least try to match his level.

Pulling up a chair to the kitchen table, you leaned forward on your elbows before nodding off to a restless sleep. You didn’t mean to doze off, but your eyelids felt heavier than usual. You were only then awoken by the inviting smell of food flooding your senses, jolting awake from the sound of porcelain scraping against the ringing wooden surface and the settling of clinking cutlery.

You blinked up, taking in the sight of some sort of lentil and vegetable stew that he had presented to you. You recognised some of the ingredients: lentils, potatoes, maybe spinach? Whatever it was, it smelled good—looked like it tasted good, too. Though you remained distrustful, eyeing up the spoon he offered before casting a glance back at him, as if expecting him to conduct a taste test before you took a bite yourself.

“Ah, I see,” Elo commented, correctly guessing what you were insinuating, taking a step back once more before returning with a spoon of his own; already familiarised with the layout of your kitchen perfectly well. He brought a heaped helping of the stew to his lips, softly blowing on the hot liquid before gulping down a bite. Blinking up, he tilted his head to the side, studying you before prompting you with the temptation of a good meal, “Tastes fine to me. Aren’t you hungry?”

Pushing forward, you swallowed hard upon taking a cautious bite. And then another. And another. Somehow took all of your lesser liked—but stocked up during healthier shopping hours—ingredients and produced something delicious. If his intentions were truly good, then maybe you shouldn’t be turning away something like this. Maybe this should be something you could nurture. A protector who took care of you. That didn’t sound too bad in your head, at least.

Elo all the while simply just smiled as he watched you eat, feeling contented from watching you nurture your weary body. His eyes remained fixated with an unsettling intensity, however, leaving you feeling slightly wary. Though once you were done with the bowl, he offered to do the dishes for you, fully intent on lightening up the load you had outside of work.

He would, however, have to start maintaining his level of control better than this, he thought while rubbing against his head, feeling as a horn started to protrude against his scalp. It was because of his jealous streak that he had gotten to this state to begin with, and now with you watching him constantly, his presence wasn’t as hidden as it was once before.

Elo, after all, knew everything about you to the point of it being genuinely concerning, even to someone like him. All of those potential would-be dates that had mysteriously vanished, leaving you feeling sorry for yourself after you had finally put yourself out there again. All of those weak attempts of your ex lurking outside your apartment, that had ended with… well.

(Nothing that he could ever admit to you—not yet, at least.)

He’d simply just be much more careful now, taking on the role of a careful (potential) lover instead. He’d get you so used to him, so dependent on him, that you wouldn’t even feel like you were missing out on anything with humans at all.

Not when you’d have him.

As long as you kept your eyes on him and him alone…

…Then there wouldn’t ever be a problem at all.

The next day arrived as quickly as it had ended—with you passed out on the sofa, a whole room away from your everyday alarm. The meal was heavy enough to have you out cold on the sofa just minutes after finishing up a second helping, not bothering to drag yourself off to bed. Your phone was close by at least, ringing loudly into your ear, jolting you right out of sleep.

From the moment you heard the ringtone, you knew you were in trouble.

(Oops.)

Your coworker that you had always gotten along with was who called you first—a just in case you had with each other if either of you were either potentially running late. Hearing her voice, you were partially relieved, because if it was her you were hearing from first, then you weren’t in deep trouble just yet. 

“You didn’t drink on a weekday, did you?” Alina began, trying to keep it lighthearted.

You laughed, your voice coming off as hoarse as you yawned at the same time. You ran your palm across your eyes, wiping off the remnants of sleep away. Your eyes flashed across the clock on the wall, taking in the time. You were about an hour late, which was bad, but not fire-worthy, especially with your pristine record. You’d get a slap on the wrist and maybe a request for overtime, but nothing major. With a start, you were up regardless, massaging dry shampoo into the roots of your hair while throwing in a breath mint and hoping for the best.

“My alarm didn’t go off, that’s all,” you lied, unable to explain the true extent of your situation even if you had tried. “You think I’m done for?”

Alina hummed. “Maybe not, but only if you hurry,” she revealed, “the boss has their nephew over who seems to have scored a position at the company, so he’s trying to play the role of the cool uncle - it’s actually quite unsettling to witness…”

“Can’t believe I’m missing out on that,” you joked, unable to imagine your strict boss with a single relaxed bone in his body. 

“I can’t believe it either,” she laughed, “it’s quite the sight, too. He’s being so buddy-buddy with him that I have chills.”

“Maybe he’ll cut me some slack then,” you conspired, “if he wants to maintain that cool uncle appearance that is…”

As you trailed off, Alina instructed you to hurry, but you didn’t need to be told twice. By then, you were already out of the door and navigating through the maze of public transport, which was off its peak hours, so you were within the area pretty quickly, much to your relief. 

As you were rushing to get to work on time, you couldn’t help but feel watched, however. It must have been the lingering effect that Elo had on you, or something that he actively did. If you were the subject of his affection, then it was very likely that he quietly kept his eye on you throughout the day. You weren’t too thrilled about such a possibility, but you didn’t entirely hate it after an uneventful day yesterday, clocking him as less of a threat than before.

(Even though, deep down, you knew not to let your guard down so soon.)

Finally stepping into work, you were met with the sight of Alina giving you a wide side eye as you swiped your card against the reader, signing in for the day. As you sat down next to her, she rolled her chair right beside you, chewing on her lip in a slightly nervous way. You pursed your lips, trying to determine what this was. She either did this when she left out some crucial information—such as the spreadsheet she forgot to back up that one time—or when she had a crush.

“Think he’ll notice if I’m suddenly a model employee?” she asked, propping the end of a pen between her lips, her tongue flicking on the end.  

Your mind blanked as she asked that, before you slowly turned to your boss and the guy who followed him around like a lost puppy. He was handsome, you could admit that much, but he just wasn’t your type. Too much of a finance sort, you thought, but that also meant he was perfect for Alina, who would go exactly for men just like that. You remembered all too well, during after work drinks, how she got a ramble out of a guy just by asking him ‘why don’t they print more money?’ knowing fully well that it would ignite something.

You burst out into barely contained laughter as you logged onto your computer, shaking your head in the process. “He’s hot, I’ll admit that much,” you giggled, “but I think our boss will sooner have an aneurysm than accept that his beloved nephew was dating the woman that spilled wine on him at the Christmas social.”

Alina shrugged mischievously. “It’s perfect, I tell you. I’ll keep things interesting in that family.” 

The more you joked on and off with her, the more that a creeping cold sensation passed you by on and off throughout the remainder of the day. It seemed to happen at a higher frequency whenever you mentioned anything about your type or her type, or the prospect of finding someone decent again. To you, this was nothing more than idle small talk to get through work, but to perhaps a certain someone, this was a threat…

Such a prospect led you to wonder if Elo could actually selectively show himself or keep his presence hidden. It honestly kind of made sense to you, especially what with how he wasn’t always seen by you in the mornings, despite the lingering sensation of feeling constantly watched still feeling strong.

Sometime during break, you stepped outside to buy a coffee and a granola bar to get you through the evening. You usually packed your lunch on a good day—usually a sandwich or some soup—but you had zero time this morning. Your mind drifted to what Elo could potentially whip up if you claimed to be too tired again, wondering just what tasty things he could prepare for you from the expanse of your kitchen cupboards.

While lost in your thoughts, though, you didn’t notice Alina approaching you in rapid succession, with her elated state nearly knocking forward the paper cup of scalding hot coffee towards you.“Hey, guess what?” she beamed. “I did it!”

You rolled your eyes, tilting the cup forward in an instant to avoid getting anything on you. “Did what? Nearly give me a reason to go to the emergency room?” you sassed.

Alina laughed nervously as she recognised the severity of the potential accident she had nearly caused, the redness of her cheeks matching her crimson hair. “Sorry, sorry!” she tried to apologise, raising her hands in a placating gesture. “I—we, I… scored us a double date! You, me, Frankie and Jimmy.”

“Oh god, they even have finance bro names,” you half scoffed, though you didn’t dampen her excitement. Alina was usually good with reading people, and if the boss’s nephew passed her check, then he was likely a good fit—for her—unfortunately if it was a spontaneous double date, then the friend of the main date couldn’t have been vetted just yet.

While focused on the prospect of a double date, seemingly as soon as after work, you failed to notice the way that the air in the office had shifted, producing a heavier, much more suffocating atmosphere. It was to the extent that the others started to feel a certain aching coldness pass through the air, leaving the mood tense and somehow on edge from the threat that you failed to pick up on.

It wasn’t until after you stepped away to use the bathroom though, that you noticed just how hostile the world around you had felt though.

And then as if on cue, a familiar voice echoed through your ears, their breath hot, heavy and strikingly real against your skin, making your flesh prick up as goosebumps rippled through. 

“Just what do you think you’re doing, hm?” 

Chapter Text

Chapter Text

By the time Eloryn had returned, it was starting to get bright outside. You saw his silhouette enter, and then as the bleeding moonlight from your window highlighted the aftermath of what he went through. Blood clung to his body—to his clothes—slowly burning away like glittering embers, evaporating into the air.

You sat up ever so slightly, pushing yourself to lean back on your elbows. “Is… is it gone?”

Eloryn dusted off his hands, flicking an invisible dusting of filth with a disgusted sigh. “It’s gone, yes,” he replied carefully, “took a bit of convincing though, and a whole lot of hurting.”

His eyes drifted back to look at you, taking in the way you were tucked into bed. You were still drunk, but not as horribly as you were just hours ago. It seemed that for the most part, the worst of it had subsided. He smiled in approval, which left you feeling comforted from the unsettling situation, not knowing that it was because he felt some pride from you being able to do as you were told when it mattered to listen. 

“It… sounded so much like you,” you admitted with a soft murmur, biting back a yawn. “I was so close to opening up the door.”

Eloryn gulped a lump in his throat away, thankful that you didn’t. “But then you remembered an important detail, didn’t you?”

You nodded. “You don’t use doors.”

He smiled, taking up a seat on the bed. “I’m glad you’re learning,” he said, leaning forward. He wanted to cup your face in his hands, but then a debilitating pain shot through. His hand shot to his forehead before dragging it down his cheek in a pained hiss. 

You sat up straighter, souring your nose at the scent of burning flesh. Your eyes narrowed and trained onto his scar that seemed to have grown longer, now traveling down his throat, meeting at his collarbones.

“What is th—” you started.

He forced a smile, although it was surely strained. “It’s nothing. Really.”

“But you’re hurt,” you pressed.

Elo sighed in response, lifting his head and blinking up to the ceiling. He tried to smile again, even as his hands curled into tight fists, doing everything he could to settle the pain. “Just a little consequence from my realm,” he muttered, “it likes to punish those who meddle in yours.”

You wanted to ask him more about the matter, especially since you were still lost in the world he supposedly came from, but you didn’t even know where to start. 

“But that isn’t fair,” you protested slightly. Your voice came in a slight slur as you tried to think of a suitable response, but your alcohol-addled mind didn’t let you get very far.

Elo snorted as he considered the matter. “Well, it isn’t, but neither is the thought of something harming you.”

His eyes drifted over to your own, locking in on the sight of you lying so close to him. There was a possessive glint that sparked in the depths, his good pupil flashing with an adoring look. “I’ll gladly take the pain if I must.”

You stiffened, unsure of what to even say. Your mind wandered again instead, zoning out to wonder what might have happened if you pushed him away for good and what that thing might have done. He, in turn, slowly bridged the distance, coming to pull you closer to his chest as he lay back, both looking and sounding utterly exhausted. His hand idly stroked your arm as he leaned against you, his head tilting to take in as much of your scent as he could before letting out a deep exhale.

“I suppose,” he said after a while of silence, “that I should explain more.”

You blinked your eyes open, not quite asleep but not quite awake either. “Hmm?”

“I mean, all of this is my fault because I exposed you to it, even if I didn’t mean to do so,” he clarified, nervously laughing in a way that almost threw you off. “The fae realm—where I’m from—is a world hidden from humans. Some people might have a stronger connection to it, like you, my lovely one. But humans aren’t supposed to see it in full. Just glimpses at most.”

He rotated you ever so slightly, settling you on your side so that he could look and face you directly. “That’s where all the stories come from, by the way.”

“Stories?” you probed.

“You call us folklore, don’t you?” Eloyrn asked. “Strange little creatures that you might catch from the corner of your eye or lurking in the dark somewhere that’ll disappear if you blink.”

You listened along, flinching at the sound of thunder breaking out just outside. The clouds laced in the remainder of the stars and the moon, plunging you both into darkness, save for when the lightning flashed. Rain poured against the window and tapped along the panes. Eloryn snorted a half-laugh at your scared reaction, finding it endearing. There was something about you that brought out his gentler side, and he reached out the back of his finger to smooth along your cheek, hoping to comfort you. 

He continued in a level voice, trying to sound soothing, “Sometimes, beings from my realm can breach into your world, but it’s very rare. I believe humans call those hauntings. Or, rather, when an entity has a very strong tie with a place. You can only see me because I interacted with you a lot, for example.”

You blinked, catching onto a detail. “Hauntings…?”

Elo nodded. “Well, all of those sightings that people claim to be ghosts are real to an extent. They’re corrupted fae, or creatures that have strayed from their intended path in life. If a being has negative intent, then it’ll corrupt itself like that too, the longer it’s away from home.”

You nodded as he spoke, the lightning night slowly colouring in his features. It was still quite dark, especially with the storm outside, but it wasn’t too bad now. A thought then entered your mind.

“Was…” you began, catching his attention, “was the mimic a normal person before?”

Eloryn smiled. “Yes, the mimic was likely a fae who had become corrupted. Things like ghosts, imps, and other beings that humans don’t quite like are real and are the result of too much meddling. Beings that are stuck in between realms become a sort of anomaly. They’re too corrupt to return to the homeland, but they’re not exactly welcome in your world either.”

“Will that happen to you too?” you asked.

He shook his head. “Yes and no,” he replied, “I’m not here from ill intent, unlike that thing.”

You gulped and pushed the worry aside. Even if Eloryn’s arrival in your life was sudden, you supposed that he had good intentions. You hadn’t known him for very long, but it seemed to be different for him. Somehow, this wasn’t a red flag for you because he never abused his power or position. Besides that point, he didn’t seem bad company. Maybe you were wrong to push him away? At the same time, though, there was something about him that you just couldn’t push past. Something that he was surely keeping from you, which made you a little uncertain.

“Oh, okay,” you replied to him after a moment. “So, the things that are left behind in my world are like… cryptids?”

Eloryn blinked as if caught off guard, but then smiled. “Yes, I suppose so. To you and anyone else who has a stronger connection towards beings like myself, these creatures are visible enough to be seen momentarily, even if their presence doesn’t entirely linger.”

He then paused and leaned in even closer to you, ghosting his breath over your face. He looked at you as if he felt sorry for you, causing that strange feeling of suspicion you had for him to resurface. His fingertips traced paths over your skin, leaving goosebumps behind, sighing deeply to himself as he did that.

“Is everything okay?” you asked.

“Just fine,” he murmured, but then stilled his hand, “it’s just… it wasn’t always this way.”

You blinked at him, focusing your gaze.

“There used to be more of an overlap,” he added, dropping his hand from your face, “but humanity, as it is now, grew too fast. People were always exploring, settling, expanding, and… exploiting, and the fae, well, they’re different; they like to settle somewhere and leave the free hand behind for the rest of the living things. There’s an old saying we have, it goes something like we’re the root, whereas humans are the weed. Though, I suppose that’s an insult.”

You stayed quiet as he continued.

“So, when humanity started to build all of those cities and began moving forward by inventing all of those things that we’d only ever hear in stories, the fae got left behind,” he explained. “Out of choice, mind you, but still. Humanity became less about integrating magic and forging their own power. That’s what created the divide. The fae don’t like to share what should only be used for good.”

He raised his hand, brushing his fingers along your skin once more in an attempt to soothe himself. “We are certainly a stubborn bunch, though. There’s a lot that our kind might benefit from humans as well as the other way around.”

“Why would the fae need humans?” you asked softly.

“Well, we’re not quite as plentiful as humans, but there’s a lot of us by now,” Elo replied, considering his next words carefully. “We might benefit more than we want to admit from things like modern agriculture because feeding everyone fairly isn’t as elegant or equal as it used to be - comfort is one of those things too,” he tried to then joke, “we don’t have electric fans or air conditioner to cool us down when it gets too warm.”

You opened up your mouth, letting it hang for a moment before speaking, feeling your hangover settle into a headache. “Oh, that makes sense. I can’t imagine my life without a lot of the convenient technology we have today…”

“Correct,” he nodded, tapping your nose, “although some fae are trying to bridge such a gap. Scholars and researchers who are trying to find an in-between that can benefit the fae without needing to involve humans. Others go further and ask for dissolution, which is essentially a one-way trip into the human realms, but that means giving up their status as a magical being.”

You frowned, not understanding why someone would choose the mundane. “And why would someone want to do that?”

Eloryn shrugged. “Curiosity, I suppose. Avoiding corruption through dubious means of transport, too. The more you move in between realms, the more messed up you risk becoming. Hell, even I used to be much more handsome before I started to get involved in this whole mess,” he laughed to himself before making an effort to level his voice. “But dissolution just essentially means… that they’ll cross over permanently and then will later die as humans.”

“What does this mean exactly?” you caught on. “Die as humans? Do they lose their status as fae completely? Or do the fae simply not die…?”

“Of course we die, as living things must eventually do,” Eloryn corrected you, “just as not as quickly as your kind does. Humans focused on quick expansion—on claiming as much as they could—on multiplying. You’re all like shooting stars, bright and beautiful, but gone within a blink.”

“And the fae?” you asked apprehensively. 

“We take our time,” he replied, his tone twisting into amusement, “eighty years might be enough time for a person to say goodbye forever, but for a fae, that’s around the end of puberty. Adulthood is closer to just over a century.”

“W-wait,” you shot out, sitting up a little. “How old are you?”

Eloryn paused, realising his mistake. He tilted his head as he tried to find an answer that would comfort you. “Relative to you, we’re around the same age. If you’re in your twenties, then I’m around that, more or less, at least emotionally.”

You narrowed your eyes again as he feared, not accepting that answer.

“Alright, alright,” he relented. “I’m just over a hundred and thirty…”

You blinked at him in stunned silence.

“You’re… older than both of my parents and my grandparents…” you pointed out.

Eloryn took a deep breath, hoping he didn’t mess things up with you. “Yes… Does that bother you?”

You thought about it for a moment, watching as Eloryn started to fidget with his thumbs, looking around the room. It was clear that his age gap with you bothered him, but you also supposed that he didn’t look all that much different than you, and besides that, he wasn’t human. 

“It doesn’t,” you settled on.

Eloryn smiled and wanted to talk more on the subject, but then you said something else first.

“Also, when you said that the fae can benefit from humans - I don’t think that they should try contacting them if so, like, genuinely keep trying to do it secretly,” you suggested.

He tilted his head to the other side that time.

“It’s just… we barely get along with each other,” you reasoned.

He snorted and then sighed, allowing his body language to relax with his voice. “Maybe you’re right. Your kind has been fighting with itself for as long as I can remember. It’s in our history books, too.”

You frowned. “That’s kind of concerning, I’m not sure I like being a human if this is how we all are…”

“Well,” Eloryn shrugged again, “you’re not like most of them. You’re kind and you can get along with me well enough, which either makes you insane or adaptable. But also, my lovely, please listen to me right now, because I need to explain a point to you.”

“Oh?” you softly asked.

“I dragged you into this mess, even if unintentionally, and now I’m going to assume responsibility for this,” he added, reaching for your hand. “I’m not asking for much, but I’m just telling you to be careful. Don’t pay attention to anything strange or out of place for very long. Don’t look into a mirror if it seems too dark. Don’t pay any mind to those insistent shadows out of the corner of your eye, and also, of course, don’t answer the door if you have a bad feeling.”

“I-I won’t,” you tried to promise.

Eloryn, however, needed to make sure you understood this thoroughly. The darker glint in his eye returned, focusing on you with determination. “I’m serious,” he strained. “Things from my realm, if they’re here, are not supposed to be here. Yes, you can argue that most things trapped here are harmless and are just trying to get by, but there are a significant few that will hurt you badly if they think you can see them.”

You gulped, unable to reply at that time. At best, you let out a shaky nod.

Eloryn fell back slightly, realising that he was scaring you. He exhaled and bit his tongue before moving in with a softer approach. “I don’t mean to make you afraid, it’s just…” he trailed off, trying to explain it to you in a way that you could understand, “long gone are the days when humans left out treats for hobgoblins or built shelters for the sprites in the gardens. Those were different times—softer times—the creatures you’ll encounter now are not the same sort that would bless your doorstep or leave you acorn bread for when you’re hungry.”

You tried to speak again, “I’ll be extra careful—”

Eloryn, however, wasn’t done talking yet. “If something happens to you, I won’t forgive myself. Just… now that you can see me, utilise that. Call for me when you’re unsafe, even if it makes you look insane. Just say my name and I’ll be there.”

“What if… there’s a chance that you can’t be?” you asked him, getting the worst case out of the way.

Eloryn frowned but supposed that it was a valid question. “If you don’t feel my presence, then run. There are certain places that evil things dislike. Places with many wind chimes or dream catchers, or mossy woods with mushrooms that are growing in a circle. Hang up some of those things while you’re at it, here. I’d rest so much easier if you were better protected.”

“Okay—” you tried again, trying to calm him down.

“—Promise me—”

“—I promise,” you said without skipping a beat, “I’ll call for you and I’ll go to places with wind chimes and I’ll decorate my home and—”

He caught you mid-sentence, crushing your face and form into his body to calm himself down more than you, and then, after a while, he finally relaxed his hold on you.

As you lay there for a moment, you tried to ask something that had been on your mind for a while. “Hey…”

“Still awake,” he murmured in confirmation.

You nodded into his chest. “Why are you… so attached to me?”

Eloryn paused and then exhaled a laugh, both out of surprise from being asked such a thing so soon, but also because he had been expecting that question for a long time now. “Well,” he said, “it’s a long story, or rather, it’s a lot of little stories. A string of events led me to you, and I can’t just leave you alone anymore. I… can’t explain it all just yet, but all I do know is that I like you—being with you—looking at you—it all just makes me want to stay forever.”

Your throat tightened a little and for a moment you wondered if this level of devotion would do more harm than good in the end. That creeping feeling that you felt before came back as a result.

“It’s not malicious,” he said, catching on, “maybe it’s a little cruel at best, though. Nobody else can see me, so people will think you’ve got a few screws loose from talking to the air all the time.”

You yawned and nodded, accepting that answer for now. 

Again, he didn’t seem to want to hurt you.

So maybe you should just go with it.

“I’m serious,” he said, bringing you in even closer to him, as if sensing your underlying worry, “I’m not going to hurt you like others have, both human and from my realm. Not like when—“ he stopped himself, “I want what’s best for you.”

You stiffened a little at his continued assurance, perhaps feeling that there was something more to it, especially since it was so excessive. You wondered if it was more of a human thing to feel so distrustful and suspecting, but no, there was something your gut couldn’t quite digest.

Eloryn all the while, stewed next to you. He knew that he was being intense and that it was likely making you uncomfortable, but that was simply because he had truly seen everything. Every time your heart broke, every time someone tried to lie to you, every time you cried yourself to sleep. 

He pulled you up slightly just as you were about to finally give into sleep. “Hey,” he murmured, “I’ll show you something special tomorrow to make you feel a little better about… all of this.”

You were jolted awake but only just. 

“What do you mean?” you sleepily mumbled. 

“I know I said to stay away from malicious magic beings and maybe I shouldn’t indulge you too much, but…” he started, looking at you with a look that intensified by the second, “I want to show you the good sides of magic. The kind that’ll make you feel warm rather than afraid. If you’ll let me.”

You thought about it for a second and finally nodded into his chest. Your voice had much more weight now and you were so tired, but ultimately you technically did want to see what magic—real magic, not just tricks—was like. 

“Okay,” you mumbled off some more, “that sounds nice.”

Eloryn held you tight as you drifted off to sleep, watching as your body gradually relaxed and as your breathing evened out. He brought the blanket up even higher, concealing your form underneath, and then his eyes flickered up into the dark and his smile finally faded. 

His gaze landed on something that couldn’t help but shift in the shadows, that also froze upon being seen. 

Slowly, it backed away until it retreated entirely and Eloryn sighed deeply. He meant it with all of his heart when he promised you that he would protect you from everything. 

Which meant that everyone else that crossed into this realm was now in trouble.

(But only if they got close.)

Chapter Text

Eloryn woke you up early the next time, his voice soft enough to coax you from sleep. He had promised you, after all, to show you what real magic looked like. He chose what he believed to be a safe spot for it. A nature reserve just an hour away from the city. Far from where the fae patrols took place, but centralised enough that nothing sinister should lurk nearby. 

You followed him in silence, stifling back yawns as you dragged your boots along, crunching into dampened grass. The forest stretched lush and tall above you, and the leaves wove tight, interlacing a mottled green canopy from where you stood. Filtered sunlight and shadows alike threaded in between, leaving something new—to you—in its wake. 

A silvery glimmer that glittered in the air, its path dissolving as it evaporated. Something that was too fluid to be orchestrated, yet undeniably natural. 

(Could this have been magic?)

He led you deeper, past the rocks covered in moss and ferns that hugged the trees. The air grew thick, and not just from the humidity, but from something left unseen. The weight of it gently pressed against your temples, the feeling not unpleasant, but more so, just as an afterthought. Undeniably there, but only if you noticed it. 

Colours beamed and sharpened the longer you stared. Every hue turned up its saturation before your very eyes. The skies were an impossible sapphire blue, the grass glinting a brilliant green. The trees that swayed around you blurred into your vision, lulling you into a sense of relaxation, much like a lullaby. Beautiful was one word to describe it, but if you were to be honest, it was also terrifying. 

Eloryn watched you quietly, his eyes ablaze with something you couldn’t quite decipher. You could feel his gaze searing right through you, not quite judging, but perceiving. He held tightly onto your hand, letting his fingers wander, his thumb occasionally clinging to your pulse point. He admired every beat about you, but found himself smiling when he felt it jump. 

“This… this is amazing,” you spoke, unsure if the word you used could do what you were witnessing any justice. 

Eloryn hummed, as if amused, but he didn’t care to tease you about it just yet. He wanted to give you a break after what you had just gone through, a distraction for you to discover at your own pace. Instead, he kept his tone kind, his voice low, “I knew you’d love it.”

He then let go of your wrist and took a step forward, walking into a clearing unobscured by the foliage above. The sunlight was so bright in the area that you could barely see his features anymore, save for the silhouette. His skin gleamed like polished ruby, reflecting warm jewel hues. His hair, which was usually pale, now shimmered a pearlescent shine. 

He spoke again, his tone meant to teach. He wanted to tell you more about the world that was otherwise hidden from you, the good parts that seemed to be somehow rare. “Can you see how the embers cling to everything?”

You nodded absentmindedly; your brain too addled with everything else to even think simply. 

Eloryn gave a slight tilt of his head, letting slip a choked back laugh. He bit back the rest of it all, not allowing himself to be visibly entertained by your stunned demeanour. This was new to you, of course, so he had to be patient. What was normal to him was foreign to you. Instead, he chose to educate you further, turning what he wanted to poke some fun at you into something you might want to know. 

“Every little thing in this world has its purpose,” he murmured, taking your hand, pointing your fingers wherever you guided him, at first a bush of nettles. “These,” he began, thinking of a way to introduce his example, “sting you, don’t they? Most people avoid them. Cross a realm over, though?” he hinted. “Then you’ll find they have magic that can be used to ward. Either on property, against sickness, on crops.”

He then turned you around, guiding your hand to a point towards a near-perfect ring of mushrooms—one of them had been lightly trampled on—likely by fauna, he thought. The ring emitted the same sort of glittering light, shimmering in reds and whites and creamy, earthy hues. 

“This,” he explained next, “is a gateway; when a ring fully connects, you can travel between realms.”

Then he pulled you back to him, directing your hand to point towards the sky. His lips pressed against the back of your head,  but they didn’t linger. “Our home,” he murmured, “the world around us carries enough magic to contain life.”

You blinked up at the deep, royal blue sky that almost looked unreal to your very eyes. The same sort of flickering magic emitted from it, like a shroud of perpetually floating stars fading back and forth.

You were enamoured by just about everything, your eyes drifting around of their own accord. Everything shimmered and sparkled in clouding streams. From the grass you walked on to the little flowers that dotted the ground you stood on. From the sunlight itself to the bark on the trees. 

But then your eyes caught onto something in your peripheral vision, something that left itself from the naked eye but kept tempting you to look. 

When you’d turn your head, though, there would be nothing there. 

You thought it could have been a side effect because you weren’t used to this sort of thing. 

Eloryn, too, noticed that you seemed a bit distracted, but he brushed it off as you simply just feeling overwhelmed. 

“Magic is all around us,” he tried to soothe, just in case that was the issue, “your kind may have forgotten about it, but it hasn’t gone anywhere since.”

You nodded almost blankly, and that’s when he noticed the shift in your focus right away. 

You were just barely listening to him, prompting him to knit his brows in mounting confusion, but also concern. An instinct within his very core had awoken. He took a step back to look around, but there had been no immediate threat that he could pick up. Nothing changed in the air that could hint at something being wrong; so why did it feel like something was?

He fixed his gaze on you, studying what it could have been. You weren’t afraid of whatever it was that had captivated your mind, so he next guessed the same thing that you had concluded to. 

Maybe you just weren’t equipped to process something like this. Modern humans were less accepting of something to this extent, even if it looked them directly in the eyes. 

Still, he thought you looked beautiful like this, lost in the discovery of a world that the rest of the world had forgotten, on purpose, too. Your eyes followed around the fleeting auras on just about everything like a moth chasing light. Your smile was soft, your eyes glinting with awe. If it was just that, then he could relax a little; he could watch your mind work, and he’d bring you down from it all, one step at a time. 

He looked at you again and gulped, finding that the way you were being, also, at the same time, made his heart ache. 

You were otherwise always so quiet around him before; not shy, but reserved. You chose your words carefully so that he couldn’t read too much into them. You tolerated his presence, rather than accepted it. He supposed that he couldn’t blame you, since it wasn’t like you invited him into your life, but after he witnessed something he didn’t mean to, and intervened, he couldn’t help but stick around. It hurt so much when you finally realised his existence, but still pulled away from him whenever he reached for you, even in sleep. When your eyes would perhaps not intentionally, but still all the same, wander around and land on everything else but his. 

It seemed different now. 

You not only trusted him, but you also relaxed around him. You accepted him. 

That had to mean at least something, didn’t it?

Come to think of it, it was a recent shift. Right after the mimic, it was as if everything fell into place, because perhaps you realised that he wasn’t the danger and that there were beings much worse roaming around that might want to hurt you. 

Though this was an issue that could have been easily avoided. 

(All he had to do was walk away from you from when he first encountered you.)

But just as he was lost in thinking about all sorts of things, his mind a mess from whether or not you’re falling in love with him all the same, if you’re accepting him, if you’re being somehow pushed away—your voice cut through—pulling him out of his lovestruck stupor. 

“What about that?” you asked so simply. 

Eloryn was about to answer you, but then he turned towards where your focus was, to the retreating depth of the forest where the sunlight didn’t reach. He stilled, suddenly rooted to where he was, his jaw clenching and his eyes widening to take in what he was seeing. 

He missed something.

Dread began to bloom and boil in his chest, an anchoring feeling forming in his gut. That place that caught your attention for so long wasn’t the same as the rest. It didn’t shimmer or hum or glitter the very same, but the aura burned. The magic there didn’t sparkle, but churned. It convulsed like a pulsating sickness, what should be fleeting embers, snapping away like wisping smoke. 

Shadows rose through the air, and beyond the dark pull of the trees, he could tell it confidently in his heart. 

Something was there, watching, perhaps waiting for the right moment to strike, but it wasn’t directed towards him. 

Perhaps that’s why he missed it. 

The realisation gripped him with fear, because it was a bad thing when something like this slipped past him. Most threats could be easily picked up on because most benevolent entities were easily dispelled. Even the mimic was acting out of hungry desperation. Anything else he kept out of your home was just passing through. 

This, however, felt like a hunt. 

“Eloryn?” you asked, picking up on the tension that built around you. The shift in his demeanour didn’t go unnoticed by you. His features, once so soft, now looked as if they could have been carved from stone. 

You’ve seen him as many things before: happy, worried, but not like this. Not afraid. 

You swallowed hard, wanting to believe that this might have been nothing. Eloryn was protective, after all, and maybe there had been a chance that he was overreacting, but the set of his jaw said otherwise. He was bracing himself to face something. 

(But what?)

He didn’t speak at first as he tried to navigate the situation. Instead, for the time being, he stepped right in front of you with a hand branching out to keep you where he could protect you. 

You tried to ask for him again, hating being left out and alone in the dark. “Eloryn?” you pressed, hoping that he would shed some light on what was going on. 

He then spoke at last, but his tone had been stripped of warmth and instead laced itself in warning, “Don’t move.”

You froze, feeling your heart drop to your stomach, gulping down what you next wanted to ask. The air around you curdled into something sour, as if your very doubt started to break through the false comfort it tried to display. 

What had once been sweet with magic turned heavier, earthier, but not freshly and pleasantly. A faint metallic scent threaded through the air, like dampened soil but a little too strong on the senses. There was something in it that lurked within but you couldn’t pick up on it. Eloryn, however, did so right away. 

Your mind wasn’t equipped to handle such threats, after all, whereas his was. He had grown up with warnings and precautionary tales that the common folk otherwise spun into children’s stories, as genuine, practical warnings. He knew the signs and the tells of a hostile situation in the making; he knew how to spot the doings of the things that his kind called fiends. 

Desperately seeking comfort, perhaps you couldn’t be blamed for when your mind started to open up the possibility. Eloryn remained guarded, thinking that you would remain the same from fear, but he didn’t account for the fact that you didn’t process things like him at all. 

He didn’t notice it at first, but your grip on reality was starting to weaken.

First came the laughter, and it was oh, so sweet. Soft and almost girlish, in a way that couldn’t have been a threat. It passed around the surrounding trees like a call to you, beckoning you to come closer. It was playful and inviting, but the unsavoury smell in the air kept you from giving in entirely, warping from just dirt but giving way to something thicker, almost too sickly sweet. You heaved a little, grounding yourself just for a split second as you took in the aroma of rotting fruit, the air anchoring in your lungs, leaving you just short of dizzy. You gasped and coughed, trying to expel it, but it didn’t leave. 

When it was done settling in your gut, though, it started to feel right again, somehow, as if the infiltration had been successful. 

You didn’t even notice as you took a step forward, not by your own will, but something that urged you to follow into the woods no matter what. 

Eloryn was quick to notice—his hand shooting out to clamp around your waist—the gentleness gone from his approach. He held onto you possessively, if not in warning. His grip was tight, firm, and unforgiving. 

“Don’t,” he warned again, his voice low. “Fight it, please. Don’t let it get into your mind.”

Try as you might, though, the world shimmered around you. Whatever it was that tried to lure you in, played on your naivety, knew that this was a new concept to you, and that meant you were easier to manipulate.

You then caught a strange thing in the corner of your eye, more solid than that time. It was a figure, dancing around in such an alluring sway that it was impossible to ignore. It seemed almost familiar, like you had witnessed this dance before, even if you knew deep down that this much was impossible. 

Just like the other time before, however, whenever you’d turn to face it, it would disappear as if it had never been there in the first place. 

You took another step, and Eloryn’s grasp around you tightened. The allure of the unknown kept calling you in a way that slipped right past him, which gave him less to work with in protecting you. Whatever it was had disguised itself with a familiar brand of softness, presenting itself as the safety you so desperately sought. While Eloryn fussed and slowly lost his composure out of his love for you, though, he didn’t even realise that he was pushing you away, right into the belly of the beast. 

The laughter brightened, and the once black aura shimmered like gold, swirling around the forest in a way that it hoped to captivate you. The trees almost breathed with you, slow and soothing. 

Eloryn’s voice was already an afterthought. 

You could barely register his presence. 

Even if you could still feel his hands on you. 

All the while, his mind raced with a dozen possibilities of what this could have been. His initial suspicion, perhaps foolishly, was that it could have been a dryad. It wasn’t too uncommon for beings not that dissimilar to himself to wander a little too far out of the realm, but no, that couldn’t have been it. Those were gentle, healing beings. No dryad he had ever known had such unsettling intentions. 

He focused again, trying to find the cause, anything that seemed wrong right in front of him, and then, finally, it all fell into place. 

Right off to the side, he saw her. 

A figure just beyond the trees, using the shadows to conceal her. She swayed around languidly, her eyes fixed on you. 

While you saw the illusion she had dressed up in, the soft glow of her form, the ethereal light that had come to hug around her. The beauty that one simply could not ignore, offering both something you wanted, but on a deeper level, something you craved. 

Eloryn, on the other hand, was able to see the truth about what this was right away. 

A hag. 

Something rotten and unkind, starved for what she could never be. A creature with no beauty of its own, its entire livelihood built on deceit and assimilation, only for it to falter and wither away. A vicious cycle for a blighted being. 

What he saw beyond the cover made his lips curl back in disgust; limbs that sprouted far too long, the joints knobbly and protruding. Hair that was slicked down with seeping rot, her smile carved in jagged strokes, as if her flesh was bark. 

What unnerved him the most throughout this realisation, though, was that her eyes were not locked on him, but on you. 

He then realised it was too late; him noticing her was part of the delicate trap that she had laid out. You fell straight to the ground as soon as she made the eye contact she needed, violently tugging his hold on you, straight down. He gritted his teeth, tanking in the pain, leaving himself vulnerable on his right-hand side. It was just a sprain, though, nothing was truly broken. He could still fight like this if he had to, not minding too much at all, since everything he ever did in this realm was purely for you. 

The hag advanced as soon as she sensed the coast was clear, her form quickly bridging the distance and diving towards your unconscious body with her shadow following behind her at a delay, like a snake. Her hands palmed flat into your flesh, spilling inky black rot straight into your form, poisoning you from within. It wrapped tightly around you, constricting around your wheezing shape, like serpentine cloth. 

The hag settled into you, assimilating your body with her tainted filth. Eloryn attempted to prevent the ritual from reaching completion, but no matter what he threw at her, it wasn’t enough to dispel her for good. 

A moment of stillness passed, and he started to feel uncertain, not quite sure what to expect. Everything that he thought himself to be knowledgeable about was outdated or tailored to the wrong sort. He knew what fiends did to humans back in the day, but what of modern times? He knew that fiends could infiltrate elderly fae or if those very young were left alone, purely because their wills were weak, but it shouldn’t have been a problem for those in between. You were neither, but you were also just barely used to the existence of the fae realm and the magic that radiated from it. 

Your fingers twitched lightly, snapping him out of his dark thoughts but he didn’t find relief in the way that you moved. You sat up slowly over the forest floor, as if settling into your body for the first time. The eyes he made contact with didn’t at all belong to you. 

They were glassy, the pupils whitened out. 

“Not you,” he gasped, stepping closer and yet unable to properly formulate a plan that involved ripping her out of your body, lest you become hag-ridden; leaving you vulnerable to disease and death, or worse yet, bound to her whims forever and serve as a mere puppet for her taking. 

Eloryn’s jaw set in a grinding clench, trying desperately to figure out something, anything, that could help you at all. He didn’t want to think about the potential consequences of her rooting into your mind like a permanent parasite, nor did he want to think of her slowly whittling away at your life essence. She possessed the power to turn dreams into nightmares, which would eventually wear your soul so thin that you might never come back to yourself. 

He cursed at himself internally, thinking that he had failed you so utterly. He had been well-versed in just about everything else, though, so he grew overconfident. He knew how to deal with most things, knowing when violence was necessary and when it wasn’t. Though sometimes, he couldn’t help himself. That man, for example, who was close to following you home—that was close to hurting you under the cover of the night—he couldn’t quite stop himself from breaking his bones, slowly, enjoying the pain in the man’s eyes. 

He shook the dark thought away, going back to trying to seek out solutions. In a way, he would have preferred if this were somehow any other similar creature. An incubus or a succubus came to mind, since those were surprisingly easy to deal with. They were bound to an unspoken law, needing consent before continuing. Wanting it, even. The visitor he had last night heeded such a warning.

Eloryn paused again, taking a step back. 

He felt himself changing again, but not physically, perhaps mentally. He promised you already that he wouldn’t lose himself to the corruption he faced from continuously protecting you, but at the same time, he couldn’t help but welcome such power. He couldn’t deny that there was something sinister lurking in the back of his mind that he didn’t entirely try to keep hidden away. 

The concern in his eyes at such a revelation shifted into something else. It was no longer a simple sense of worry, but it was pure possessive rage that took root instead. 

A plan surfaced in his mind, even if it was unsteady, but his desire to keep you close won out. He would execute it, and then hopefully the hag who dared put her hands on you. 

There was one way to separate a hag from her victim, but he didn’t like the path taken to accomplish it. 

Essentially, it meant breaking you off into two. 

Hags, most of the time, especially when fighting lovers who tried to save the subjects of their affections, gambled everything they could that they wouldn’t attack them. Especially if they took on a familiar form. She had your looks, and her body was essentially fused into yours, but it wasn’t a permanent assimilation. 

He could knock you out of her, but it required striking you while she was still possessing you. 

That was the part he didn’t like. 

Then there would be two of you; one who was the disguised hag, and then you, essentially locked in a sleepwalking slumber. The hag would attempt to mirror you, to save her own face, but there would be something that she couldn’t ignore. 

A deal; one that this hag would no doubt, twist to her advantage. 

One that Eloryn was determined to outsmart her on, and bring you back to him, where you belonged. 

He was willing to do anything for you, after all.

Even if it risked everything he had ever known to deal with a threat like this.