Oh, To Be The Lady's - [A Lady Dimitrescu/Female Reader-Insert Story]

Chapter Five: To Be Traumatized

A/N: This chapter is dedicated to the lovely @Persie33 on Archive of Our Own, who requested the Reader having a nightmare and our Lady helping her through it 🥰 I hope you all enjoy this chapter! 💙💜💙💜

**TRIGGER WARNING: Descriptions of past domestic abuse and violence and descriptions of a graphic panic attack/nightmare**

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The scream that builds in your throat burns on the way out.

You lurch up in bed, chest heaving, eyes clouded with tears, scooting backwards until you rest against the headboard. Bringing your knees up to your chest, you sob, muffling your terror-filled cries by biting against your own hand. Your entire body is shaking, shivering so hard that your teeth chatter.

Alcina, having jumped up herself at the first sign of your distress, is just settling down herself, retracting her long claws back, lips turning from a vicious snarl into a worried frown. She rests a warm hand against your quivering knee, ducking down slightly.

"Darling?" She whispers and you shake your head, biting into your hand even harder, the sting doing absolutely nothing to ground you. You whimper as your wife carefully takes your hand in her own, pulling it away from your mouth. "You're going to hurt yourself, dear heart."

"Don't care," You sob, rocking slightly. You can feel your own heartbeat fluttering in your chest, as fast as a humming bird's wings. "Don't-Don't care, please --"

"Oh, my beloved, shh." Your Lady coos, bringing your aching hand up to her lips, kissing your red knuckles. "What do you need, hm?"

That's the problem. You don't know what you need.

Your nightmare flickers behind your eyes, shouted words, fists raised, hitting you again and again and again . You lay on the ground, struggling to breathe, struggling to think. The smell of your own blood, sharp and fresh, stains the air around you and you choke on the next whine building up.

He stands above you, dark eyes blazing in fury.

You blink and he's gone, replaced by your Lady's concerned golden gaze.

"Please," You repeat, shaking your head again, trying in vain to clear away the memory burning through your mind. You're starting to feel light-headed, cold all over and you shiver. "Please, Alcina, please, please --"

"Anything, my one true, anything you need." Your wife says, reaching out and you grip at her hand, practically clawing your way closer to her, needing, needing -- "You have to tell me, sweetheart."

" You ." The wail bursts from your chest, so strong you're nearly knocked from the force and you go to bite your hand again, to muffle it because he didn't like noise, didn't like anything you did. "Need you, need, please, pleaseplease --"

Alcina drags you fully into her embrace at this, caging you close to her chest with her strong arms and you bury your face against her, squeezing your eyes shut. You know deep in your heart that your wife can scent your fear, your pain and you feel a burst of guilt join in too, mixing inside of you until you're nauseous.

You're still clawing at her, trying to burrow as far against her as possible.

"Shh, hush now." She says, humming the words deep in her chest, leaning down to press kisses against your face, brushing away your tears with one hand. You vaguely notice that she's scenting you as well, nuzzling her chin against you, smoothing her scent into your skin and you cry harder at that. "My little love, shh, you're going to make yourself ill, it's alright."

"He --" You start, needing to explain, needing to get it out because if you keep the nightmare inside, it will consume you. You can barely speak around your distressed cries but you try just the same. "He was, he-he was hitting me again, burning me, touching me . . ."

You don't need to explain to your Lady who he is.

She knows, has known about him and the unspeakable things he did to you back in your old life, when you were forced to sit at a kitchen table in a far-away city, alone and cold and afraid, since you arrived at the castle all those years ago. Your past-fiance was anything but a nice man and you bare witness to that on more nights than you would like.

She understands and you can feel this understanding burn within her, can feel it in the way she holds you tighter, possessively, her lips slowly moving from your own down to your neck, brushing against your mark. You tremble, curling up further in her hold.

"He can't touch you again." Alcina says, the words spoken in a low, possessive growl, the glint of her fangs reflecting the dim glow of the moon slicing through the curtains. "He can't harm you anymore, love. You're mine and you're safe. Shh."

And you know this.

You've known this, but that doesn't stop your cruel mind from causing you to forget, for a few breathless seconds, trapped in that dark room again. You sob harder, your never-ending stream of tears coating your wife's nightgown, but she doesn't seem to mind, brushing her hands gently through your hair.

Alcina begins to hum, a wordless tune and you listen to it, struggling to get your rapid breathing under control. Finally, after what feels like hours, your cries turn to occasional sniffles and hiccups. Leaning upwards, you're about to wipe your face on your nightshirt when your Lady does it herself, patting around your puffy, stinging eyes with a tissue.

"There we go," Alcina coos, cupping your cheek in her free hand, brushing a thumb across your cheekbone. "Still as beautiful as ever, my dove."

Blushing, you avert your eyes, suddenly embarrassed for having woken up your Lady when you know how hard it is for her to find sleep. Swallowing, you're about to apologize when Alcina leans forward, brushing your lips with hers and you follow in kind, wrapping your still shaking arms around her neck.

The kiss is soft, slow, closed-mouthed and you bask in the familarness of her taste, of the feeling of her arms around you, holding you close.

When you pull back, you're crying again, silently this time. She brushes away your tears, kissing your cheek and you cup her own cheek, meeting her golden eyes through the silver-darkness.

"Hi," You whisper.

"Hello, sweetling." Alcina says, eyes searching your face, her brows pinched. "You had me quite worried."

You swallow, licking your dry lips and you watch as your wife struggles to keep from following your tongue with her burning gaze, her resulting sigh lifting you up a few inches before slowly falling back down. "Thank you for, um, for that."

"You don't need to thank me, darling." The corner of your Lady's mouth quirks up in a small smile and you feel your chest bloom in love and appreciation. "I'm just thankful that I was able to be here, to calm you down."

"You always do." You whisper, sliping closer to Alcina with your own soft sigh, still slightly trembling in the aftershocks and she gathers your blanket closer, tucking it around you both. "From this month, to the next--"

"--and the many more years to come, I am yours as you are mine." Your wife finishes the statement, smiling against your hair and you press a sweet kiss in thanks against her chest, right above her heart. "Get some sleep, my one true, my beloved."

And when you finally drift back off, encased in Alcina's protective, loving embrace, her perfect lips pressing against your temple, you dream of nothing else but eyes as golden as the rising sun and a love that's just as bright.

A/N: Thank you for reading! ❤️❤️❤️