Echoed Lullabies (Lunar Chronicles x Reader)

Chapter 68

TW: torture, both psychological and physical

It had taken hours for the fog in my brain to dissipate. When it was gone, I was furious. Livid. Seething.

How dare Aimery play with me like that? How dare he manipulate me in a way so that I'd melt into his touch? I was disgusted. Revolted. The next time I'd see the slimy son of a bitch, I'd kill him.

And the worst part is, when he was using his Lunar gift in that sick, twisted way, I didn't care. Whatever he had done to me had felt so unbelievably good that it left me craving more of it hours after he'd left.

I wanted to scrub the insides of my skin clean.

Footsteps grew louder in the hall outside until they came to a stop right outside the door. Aimery waltzed in, robes billowing behind him.

"And how is the Commander doing this fine morning?"

"A thousand times worse, now that I have to look at your vile face."

"You won't be saying such awful things in a few moments." His hands reached out toward me.

I cringed away. "Why must you touch me, anyway? You don't need to in order to use your Lunar gift."

"Ah, but it's much more fun this way." He gripped my chin between his fingers.

I tried to bite his hand, but he retracted it just in time to avoid my teeth.

"Hm. It seems you don't like me all that much."

"That's an understatement," I spat.

"Would you rather I were someone else?" Aimery's dark skin lightened until it became fair. His ice-like eyes deepened and drew sharp at the corners. His face continued morphing until it wasn't really his face at all anymore.

It was Kai's.

I scoffed. "Like some glamour is going to have me spill everything."

Aimery's now-pale hands landed across the back of my neck and the side of my face. I flinched as he began doing whatever he did yesterday. My muscles relaxed. My brain turned to mush. I blinked slowly, softly.

"You're still...a jackass..." I huffed out.

In a blink, it was no longer Kai before me, but Cinder.

"Please, Y/n," she said. "Tell me how we got into the castle. I..." Her eyes welled with tears. "I can't...remember..."

"Nice try, but Cinder can't cry."

Cinder's face scowled, before her entire form shrunk into the petite body of Cress.

"Why'd you leave us, Y/n?" she whispered. "Why'd you leave me alone?"

I furrowed my brows. What? How does Aimery know we were together before? He can't, right? He must be bluffing. "What are you talking about?"

She sniffed. "I'm scared. I needed you and you left me. You left me!" Cress shrieked.

I flinched. She's safe. She's with Jacin.

"How did you get away from us? How did you get into Artemesia without us?" She sobbed. "I n-needed you and you weren't th-there."

I swallowed. It's not real. This is Aimery. This isn't Cress.

Cress kneeled before me and wrapped her arms around my neck. "Please," she whispered. Her voice lost any trace of melancholy and was instead replaced with a sugary sweetness. "Please, will you tell me? Please, I need to know how you got away from me, Big Sister."