A Fool's Guide to the In-Between [A Twisted Wonderland Fanfic]

Chapter 10

Y/N would have been surprised to see her twin brother being dragged towards her in shackles, had she not already seen him cowering in the bushes with two others, or had she not been in a death-like state. 

"Dearest little kitten," her master said, dragging the boy on his knees. "Do you remember this boy?"

Che'nya stared up at his sister, his ears flat against his head and his tail swishing behind him in worry. How had he been so stupid? Trey had warned him to stick close to the tree line until he could sneak in through the back of the tent, but of course, he had been too eager to try and get to his sister, and now he was paying the price for it. 

Y/N bent down and didn't stop until her nose was brushing Che'nya's. She could smell the life on him, and he could smell the sickness on her. She tilted her head to the side and kept going until Che'nya heard a sickening crack. Y/N giggled at Che'nya's pained face and stood up, turning to her master and holding out both her wrist and her head.

"Fix me... fix me... fix the darling little kitten..." she sang sorrowfully. The Master of the Nowhere chuckled and with a wave of his hand, both of Y/N's bones were restored to their original placement and strength. 

Y/N giggled again and threw her body back, performing a line of beautiful back handsprings, until she reached the centre of the tent. There, she gracefully climbed on the centre pedestal which slowly rotated beneath her, spinning her for the entire tent to see.

"Come, newcomer," the Master said, "You shall be enjoying the show with me from up top." 

He snapped his fingers and a second later, Che'nya found himself shackled to a chair, sitting next to the very man who had dragged him into the tent. He struggled against his bonds but was horrified to find them tightening around his wrists the more he struggled.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," the man next to him said. 

He stroked the feathers of one of his birds and Che'nya swallowed sharply when he noticed that the bird was one of the same ones that had stooped down to pick him up. Its neck was bent at an odd angle, and it seemed as if the bone was poking through one side of the flesh. But more than the creepiness of its wounded neck was the look that it was giving Che'nya. As if he was a meal all buttered up and cooked for the bird's delight.

"W-what happened to it," Che'nya asked, trying to keep his wits about him.

The man shrugged. "I broke its neck." He smirked and straightened the bird's neck, cruelly setting it back in place. He turned to Che'nya and smirked. "Just like everyone else here, it feels no pain and cannot die." He stroked the bird's back and waved his hand, healing the bone as he had Y/N's. "You know, slowly, as they succumb to my will, they will join me as he has."

Che'nya followed the man's eyes to Y/N. She was no longer standing on her pedestal, and instead, she was standing on a single wooden pole, suspended like a swing, over a net of fire. She didn't seem at all bothered at the possibility of being burned alive and jumped off of the swing, making Che'nya gasp. She fell towards the earth, and at the last moment was able to catch herself on the swing, using her ankles to hook around the piece of wood.

The Master of Nowhere launched into applause and when he glared at Che'nya, the young teen was quick to join him in applauding his sister and her dangerous stunts. 

Suddenly, Riddle and Trey burst in through the back of the tent, their pens glowing with a ferocity equal to that of the flaming net beneath their friend. Riddle wasted no time with pleasantries and shot a spell toward the Master of the Nowhere, making the man disappear in a cloud of smoke.

"Go get Che'nya," Riddle hissed, staring up at Y/N's form. She returned the stare, seemingly irritated that the two were interrupting her show.

"Will you be okay to handle Y/N?"