DUNE ONESHOTS | PAUL ATREIDES X READER

after nightfall (I) - paul atreides

SYNOPSIS: Paul has been on a mission for months now, leaving the reader in the dark about what is happening. When he comes back, something terrible is clearly haunting him.

The sun hung low at the end of the horizon on Arrakis, covering the entire fortress in an extreme golden hue, its color so much more vibrant now than it already is during the day. You enjoyed these calm and silent evenings when all the heavy gates were finally open and you could really feel the sun hit your skin.

The tingling sensation on your face felt almost as good as Paul's hand caressing your cheeks. Almost. You sighed at the memory of his touch, it has been way too long since you had last felt it.

"Everything alright, madam?" Taima, your servant, stood at the door, curtsying before she entered the room. "Forgive me, but you seem in no good spirits. Is anything depressing you, milady?"

You forced a smile, not wanting to bother your servant with your heartache. She already did so much for you. "I don't want to burden you with those stories, Taima."

Stepping away from the sunlight on the balcony, you crossed the room to where Taima was preparing your bed for the night. She adjusted the cooling device, but only one of the air-flow pods was exchanged. The other one floated above the end of the bed, still unused just like it has been for the past four months now.

"Oh, ma'am. I know what's causing your discomfort, and you could never burden me with your worries. But, please, rest surely. The duke is well protected. He will arrive safely in just a few days, milady. You'll see."

She finished up her work and placed a sleeping pill and a glass on your nightstand, assuring you once more that Paul would make it home without a scratch. You thanked her and she curtsied once more, wishing you a good night before she left the room.

In came a few of your guards now, closing the big stone doors of your balcony again, before eventually leaving you on your own.

It was hours later when you woke up. You startled at the sound of water running in the en-suite bathroom. Fear ran through your veins immediately when you realized the bedroom door was closed, and there was absolute silence outside the room.

The worst possible scenarios came rushing to your mind as you paced through the room, trying to figure out how to protect yourself.

The guards might be dead, therefore the silence..., you thought as you rushed to Paul's nightstand, searching for one of his knives that you knew he kept in there at all times.

It was there, its shiny silver blade reflecting the light of the floating lamp beside you. Grabbing it, you hid behind the door of the bathroom, mentally preparing yourself for a fight.

Gratefulness overcame you as you thought back to the endless hours of training Paul had put you through. 'One day, you'll thank me for it,' he had said countless of times 'cause you liked to complain about it infinitely.

The moment has come, and you could feel your heart beat in your throat when the door was finally opened. You charged forward at the intruder, almost striking him, but his reflexes were too good. You stood no chance.

"Oh my God, babe," his deep voice sounded in the shadows of your bedroom. "Are you trying to kill me?"

It was Paul. Immediately dropping the weapon at the realization, you jumped into his arms, the water of his wet hair dripping onto your arms as you wrapped them tightly around his shoulders.

"You're here," you whispered, taking him in with all your senses. You didn't even realize how much you'd really missed him until just now. Everything about him. His smell, as you buried your face into the crook of his neck. His strength, as he wrapped his arms around your waist. Simply everything.

"Taima told me it'd take a couple more days." You looked up into his eyes, scanning his face as you discovered several cuts and bruises.

Letting you run your fingers over his wounds, he explained what had happened. "Everything worked out well, honestly. I saw no reason in staying any longer. Also, I couldn't sleep another night without you by my side so we left early this morning."

"But you're hurt-," you instantly began, genuine concern written all over your face but he didn't want to comment on those wounds and who or what had caused them, pulling your hand away from his face before he shuffled over to the bed, getting in without saying another word.

His entire body language changed in a matter of seconds, and you hated yourself for even bringing up the wounds.

You were sure that you'd never seen him like this before. It worried you. Even more than the many months without him by your side and that feeling of uncertainty 'cause he had to stay absolutely silent on his mission for the enemies to not realize that you were his biggest weakness.

So you decided to drop the subject for now, getting back into bed beside him and soon fell into a deep slumber in the arms of your love.

The following days, you noticed more and more that something was indeed on Paul's mind and that it was more than just a few cuts and bruises on the outside. This something seemed to haunt him. It wouldn't leave him alone at all hours of the day.

During dinners, you tried to ask him about the mission over and over again but he would always stick to his one answer: 'All went well, no need to worry any longer, babe' and dismiss the topic with a kiss to your forehead.

Now, even the nights started to become different. His sleep was restless and disturbed. It woke you up several times and you noticed how he was mumbling, sweating even. And that was not due to the extreme heat on Arrakis. The cooling devices worked perfectly. Something big was haunting him.

You woke up once again due to Paul's constant tossing and turning and decided you'd seen enough. Trying to wake him up for some time, you watched his face contort as he continued to be trapped in his nightmares. His appearance was even paler than usual, all color had seemingly disappeared from all of his features.

"Paul," you shook him over and over again but to no avail. The only thing he kept saying over and over again was the word 'no' and something you couldn't quite understand. You thought you could hear the words 'she' and 'mine' and it worried you.

What was going on inside his head?

"Paul, wake up," you said one more time when he suddenly shot up, yelling.

"She's mine!"

But this wasn't his normal voice. He used the Voice and the force of it was so explosive you nearly jumped out of your skin if it wasn't for the serious worry that came over you. His Voice has never been that extreme before. You'd seen him use it a couple of times.

"Paul, baby, it's okay. You're safe. It's me, Y/N," you tried to calm him, cupping his face as you forced him to look at you.

Fear. A deep and terrible fear has altered his facial features, and his expression hardened as terror overtook his face.

After minutes in silence, his breathing started to calm down enough for him to finally open his mouth, and out came only a confused and chaotic mixture of words. But you could make sense of it.

"They told me they'd find you. Told me they'd kill you. I didn't know what to do. I was so scared." He was crying, the fear of losing you shaking him to his core.

"It's okay, baby. It's okay. I'm here, I'm yours. I'll be okay and so will you. I'm not gonna leave you."

It took Paul a long time to calm down enough to fall back asleep, but you made sure to hold him closer than ever from that night on.

But the nightmares never left. They continued to haunt him for ages.