My Beloved [Beeduo]

7

"Don't go..."

Ranboo sat on the floor, huddled in a corner, tears streaming down his cheeks. The more that fell, the more he cried. It hurt, from the stinging on his cheeks, to the loneliness, to the thoughts that clouded his mind. It'd been over an hour since Tubbo left him alone at the inn, and Ranboo was positive he'd either gotten lost or just abandoned him. The slight inconvenience of Ranboo's nightmares would hold them back is what the ender thought. He was a weight that was tying Tubbo down. It was his fault that they were in this situation. Did he really think they'd make it out in the world? He buried his face in the sleeve of his shirt, trying to dry the tears that lingered on his face. Ranboo's body felt weak, mind flooded with insults directed at himself, degrading his very existence. He hated himself and his ability to think. Why did he run away? What was the point? Just because he didn't want to marry a girl? He was an idiot, a stupid kid with no idea what he was doing.

"Please."

A gentle breeze pushed him out of his thoughts. He looked up and at his surroundings. The ender stood at the edge of a lake–perfectly still water reflecting his face back at him. Tall trees circled around the body of water, small critters slowly making their way to the water for a drink. Ranboo looked down at the water, staring at himself. His hair was tousled from running his hands through it. Scars littered his cheeks–way more than usual–and he took the sleeve of his shirt to wipe at the raw skin. He hissed, stinging pain shooting through his nerves. Ranboo was a mess. He could barely bring himself to keep his eyes on the reflection, but the dark figure looming over him immediately caught his attention. The boy tried to spin around to lock eyes with the creature, but was stopped by a hand on his shoulder–slowly pushing him forward.

Ranboo's eyes went wide when he spotted long arms reaching for him from under the water's surface. They latched onto his ankles and yanked him towards the lake. The ender crashed against the dirt and clawed at the ground, desperately trying to escape. "No! Not again!" He shouted and struggled, managing to stay out of the water. Ranboo panted, tears threatening to fall as he tried to get out of the creature's grasp.

Footsteps approached and two black boots stopped right in front of the ender. Looking up, the familiar face nearly let Ranboo relax, but the expression on his friend's face made his blood run cold. Two brown eyes pierced through Ranboo like knives, Tubbo looking at him like he's some gunk on the bottom of his shoe. The end looked at him, wordlessly asking for mercy. He slowly reached a hand for Tubbo, but the boy noticed and used his boot to nudge him away. Tubbo walked away and as Ranboo watched he stopped trying to fight the creatures. His friend hated him. They were done for. Why even try?

The hands around his ankles tightened and before he knew it, he was under the water. He was prepared for the searing pain and the burning, but it never came. Air entered his lungs and the hands on him disappeared, but he wasn't back at the inn. Everything was black, small purple particles glowing in the darkness.  He felt oddly calm in this void–no worries to think about. The creature from the forest sat a couple feet before him, nearly startling Ranboo when he saw it. Glowing purple eyes looked at him curiously, almost asking for permission for something. Ranboo slowly nodded, also curious as to what was going on. It approached, each step making the boy's heart beat louder in his head, making him shiver from nerves. The creature stopped in front of him, tilting its head to the side and reaching a hand forwards. Ranboo flinched, but the creature had already placed his hand on his shoulder. The boy's head spun and the ground slipped out from under him.

oOo

"I already told you-"

"But did you check?!" Tubbo stared down the man behind the counter, his loud tone surprising himself.

"Like I said: we don't sell stuff that 'stops nightmares'. Don't even know where you'd get that." The man rolled his eyes and walked towards the back of his small shop.

"My friend got it in the capitol, and has been taking it his whole life." Tubbo tapped his foot rapidly on the pavement, leaning on the shop's counter. This was the second pharmacy in town he was looking at. This was hidden in an alleyway and was accessed through a small window in the wall.

"Did you hear?" Tubbo looked to the side, spotting two young women speaking with each other. He closed his eyes and let out a long sigh. The man returned and dropped a small sack on the counter–the thing smaller than Tubbo's palm–and the boy listened as it clattered.

"These were in the back. Made for endermen." He quietly took the coins from Tubbo's palm and counted each individual one. "Friend royalty or somethin?" The boy chuckled along with the man. If only he knew.

"Prince Ranboo is missing. Kidnapped."

Tubbo froze, not daring to look in their direction. They had to get out of here, it wasn't safe, people would find out. "Thanks, gotta run."

"Stay safe."

oOo

Tubbo rushed to the inn and noticed the innkeeper standing outside the door, holding her sweater around her body. He rushed past her and through door when she stops him. "You can't go in there."

"Why not? I need to get to-"

"Your friend left a while ago," she turned away and looked at the ground. "Now there are guards looking for two boys matching your descriptions." She looked back up at him with a dark look.

"I- I didn't do anything wrong, I promise." A hand rested on his shoulder, cold metal sending a shiver down Tubbo's spine. He quickly slipped out of the grip and ran. To where? He didn't know, but he had to get out of the city and find Ranboo. Several guards chased after him, barely able to keep up with the boy. When they did catch up, he was near to the end of the bridge that loomed over the river. They cornered him against the edge, threatening to push him over and leave him to drown.

"Where's the prince?" One guard spoke up, face shadowed by his helmet.

"I don't know! You heard her, he left me!" A hand gripped his wrists and squeezed. "I really don't know!"

"I'm not stupid, kid! Tell me!" The man squeezed his wrist tighter. He cried out in pain and tried to escape his grip, but that only made the guard more furious. He picked the boy up by his arms and dangled him over the edge. Tubbo looked down at the rushing river and squirmed.

"Please! I don't know!" Tubbo's eyes welled up with tears, his voice becoming more desperate as he cried. "Please!"

"Let the kid go, man!"

"You're not going to get anything out of him like that!"

Tubbo was brought back onto the bridge, hearing the voices from behind telling the man to stop. He slumped against the bridge railing when he was let go, tears trailing down his cheeks. The guards lectured the man on proper interrogation techniques while Tubbo stared down at the water below. An idea caught his attention. It was pretty stupid, as he could barely swim, but it was worth a shot. He looked back as the guards continued scolding the man who grabbed him, and slowly hoisted himself over the railing.

"Seriously, you can't just-"

"Kid!"

By the time they had all turned around, Tubbo was gone.