𝐕𝐈𝐎𝐋𝐄𝐍𝐓 𝐃𝐄𝐋𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓𝐒 | 𝐛𝐚𝐤𝐮𝐝𝐞𝐤𝐮 | ✓

Act Three, Scene Seven

In my dreams, I am king for a day.

I lounge on the throne with the Blood Crown askew atop my head, piles of shining gold and glittering rubies stacked around me, spilling onto the ground. Around the dais, a gargantuan red dragon wraps its scaly body, tail slinking around the riches protectively.

At my feet, Deku is crawling before me, on his knees, huge round eyes staring up at me. He's pleading for something, but I do not know what, for as much as his mouth moves, it makes no sound. He raises his hands to me as if he were praying, revealing palms slick with blood.

The palace roof is gone and the night sky spreads wide, the full moon hanging like the face of a grandfather clock above us.

Somewhere in the distance, I hear ominous chimes for the stroke of midnight, the sound echoing in the chambers of my mind like a warning.

I tip my head back and laugh cruelly. "Time's up, Deku."

The dragon roars, exposing teeth of golden daggers, and lunges at Deku. It swallows him whole, and as its forked tongue licks its lips, I taste blood on my own.

♔

I am aware of a cold cloth being pressed to my forehead, of water and broth being lifted to my lips, of low voices murmuring to each other, but everything is distant, every sense dulled like a drop of water over the lens of a camera.

My veins run with ice but when I blindly reach for a blanket, it only makes me sweat more. The wound at my side hurts with every breath I take. I fall in and out of feverish sleep laced with muddled nightmares, of angels with rotten teeth, serpents with diamonds for eyes, and deadly lullabies sung by sirens.

At some point, a shadowy figure hovers over my bed, his mouth and eyes gaping holes of black smoke, long fingers like tendrils stretching for me, ready to take a hold of my soul for himself. I nearly hand it over to him, oh so tempted to just relinquish myself to his sweet nothingness, to slip away into the comforting embrace of death. But even in my delirium, I remember my promise to Deku. I will not leave him.

Finally, my fever breaks, and I slowly return to the realm of consciousness.

Deku is asleep in the chair by my bedside, his chin tucked to his chest.

I carefully sit up in bed, my eyes adjusting to the dark bedroom. Lifting my blanket, I probe my side gently and am met with only a dull throb – a great relief from the searing agony I've been subjected to in the past days.

Deku stirs beside me, his eyes flying open and landing on me. "Oh my god. You're awake." He shoots to his feet. "You're awake!"

Before I fully register what is happening, he's slapped me across the cheek.

"Ow, what the hell was that for?"

"Don't ever scare me like that again, you dick!" He is shaking. "You were running a 107 degree fever. I was so scared– I – fuck, I thought you were going to die!"

I rub my cheek. "You don't have to hit me for it."

"Sorry," he concedes. "How are you feeling?"

"Pretty okay. I think. How long have I been out?"

"Two weeks."

My eyes nearly bulge out of my head. "Two weeks?!"

"Yes. You're all healed, though."

I swing my legs out of the bed and stand up. The world sways sickeningly, and Deku grabs my shoulders to steady me.

"You know, I think I saw death. I mean, I think he came for me," I tell him. "I didn't let him win, though."

He looks at me strangely and presses the back of his hand to my forehead, checking if I still have a fever or if I've just gone completely off the rails. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Did you miss me?" I ask instead.

"Maybe a little."

"Only a little?" I press.

He huffs, pressing his lips together to ward off a smile. "Or a lot."

"Can I get a kiss?"

"Ew, no, you haven't brushed your teeth for ages. And you're all sweaty," he points out. "Shower first."

"Will you shower with me, then?"

"Two weeks without sex just made you more insufferable," he mutters.

"Is that a yes?"

"No. Go clean up and then I'll consider it."

"Fuck you," I say half-heartedly.

"Later."

After I emerge from the shower, the dregs of being bed-ridden for two weeks scrubbed away, I flop back into my bed, even though I want nothing more than to get out of the confines of my room and just do something, anything.

Deku slides under the sheets next to me. "My coronation is tomorrow," he informs me.

"Tomorrow? So if I didn't wake up today, I would have missed it?"

"Believe me, it wasn't my choice. But two weeks without a king has made the people restless. If I don't act now, suspicion will arise. Somebody else may try to claim the throne."

"Really?"

He nods. "Yes. The period between rulers is the most dangerous of all. Everyone is on edge. Ideas form, loyalties are questioned."

"Well, I'm glad I woke up on time. I wouldn't want to miss the very thing we've been striving towards for all this time."

"I'm glad you woke up, too."

I lift my head from the pillow to look at him. His eyes are wrought with dark circles. I wonder how little he has slept in the past two weeks, if he even left my bedside at all. "Get some rest. Big day tomorrow." I press a kiss to his forehead.

"Goodnight, Kacchan."

"Goodnight, Deku."