Bite Me

Reunited!

Ow.

Melody came to slowly. A sharp pain in her side and muffled noises, all around, guided her to awakening. She pushed past the pain to allow her other senses to complain, something that probably wasn't healthy. But she had awoken far too many times in shit to really panic over pain anymore.

She faintly tasted copper in her mouth and the scent of something sickly sweet was lingering in her nose. That scent was overtaken by must and what must've been a massive wet dog. As she stirred, the voices grew louder and louder, making her attention slowly catch on.

"She has no use to anyone else. And the twins have been longing for a new toy." Despite the ice cold words the voice was pleasant, as if whoever they were was discussing what to pick out from the toy store.

Melody cracked open her eyes...

And there was a cat.

Or what remained of one.

Said cat looked like it had been hit with a truck, several stitched up wounds darting across its body. Part of its chest had been removed to reveal what looked like clockwork and it staggered all the way up to the cat's face. As she stared, absently wondering where clockwork cats came into play in her nightmares, she got the faintest glimpse of the skull and then the brain slid into view as the cat cocked its head.

And then the cat giggled. "She's awake!"

Melody might've screamed. Or swore. She definitely tried to sit up and fell back almost immediately.

The voices continued on as if Melody hadn't just met a clockwork version of that cat from Pet Sementary. "Her skull might not be the best way to grace your halls, but I would be honored to slice this annoying woman's flesh off."

Annoying woman? Were they talking about her? Of course they were. When wasn't she the annoying woman?

Melody managed to sit up, pushing against the weight solid around her neck and the ache of her muscles. Her mind was still foggy and she felt strangely warm, like she did when she went down with the flu. She managed to look around.

She was sitting on the floor. Based on the remains of stained glass windows, she was in the church. Pews had been arranged in a circle, with her at the end.

The cat had lingered in front of her. With a manically gleeful giggle, it turned and scampered away to the distance. A figure sat in a chair, dressed in old-fashioned hunting clothes. Their face was covered with some weird mask but Melody had a feeling they were staring at her. Next to the hunter was a tall figure, also staring straight at her. At first, she thought he was wearing some weird black feather cloak.

He moved and the feathers ruffled. Nope, wasn't a cloak.

"You mean you'll screw with her in private and where's the fun in that?"

"Your fun usually only lasts an hour if not shorter." Melody glanced at the owner of that voice. It was a person, she could make that out. They were dressed in a fine white and blue suit. Blonde hair was pushed out of what might've been a beautiful face once. Now, however...Melody wondered if screaming at the full-on zombie would be out of place. "I promise, Mother, that I will make it last."

Oh goody.

"Yeah, yeah, golden child, keep promising that. One look at that face and she'll bend over dead." And there he was. The asshole. Currently not looking at her. As such, Melody's fingers pressed against-

Not her throat. Not her scarf.

A thick metal collar.

What the fuck.