Grey.
Everything was grey.
The trees were dead, rotting black bark peeling in clumps off of their once sturdy trunks and withered branches bare, stretching out in all directions, embracing the cold teasing wind. The ground was littered with ash and a sickening burning smell filled Katherine’s nose as she looked around in horror, gripping her battle-axe tighter than necessary.
The air was thick and unpleasant as Katherine tried to stimulate her breathing.
She walked forward cautiously, oblivious to what lay on the path ahead.
Her steps echoed in the vast expanse of her horrible surroundings as if she confined to a place in her mind. She picked up a steady pace and walked through the hellish landscape, grimacing at the sight of every rotting tree, unable to think of what could cause such death.
She came to a sudden stop when the path opened out from the dead forest and into an even sadder looking meadow.
In the distance, a village stood, solitary, in the field of grey-coated grass and dying flowers, a large castle looming over the small houses. Katherine paled and sickness churned in her stomach as she recognised the familiar shape of the turrets. Glimmer Grove.
The houses were all grey and black with soot and the castle was now completely encased in the darkness. Katherine fought back tears, pounding a fist into her hand as she saw a small troop of people stumbling away from the village, skinny and pale with death.
She had failed them.
Katherine put her head in her hands, sinking to the ground, dropping the battle-axe to her side. She screamed into her rough hands, tears now flowing freely down her cheeks as she raged at herself in her head. Her stupid curse. The curse no one could cure. Turned the world dead.
A rustling in the dead undergrowth bought her back to her senses.
She had barely enough time to pull herself together as a skeletal creature erupted from the bushes.
Katherine whipped round, grabbing her battle-axe in one hand and shielding her face with the other as the skeleton let out a rasping neigh and reared up on its hind legs, kicking out at her, an evil twinkle in its eyes and a masked rider on its back
She couldn’t roll away fast enough and it was only a split second before she felt the horse’s boney hooves cut into her stomach and pain ripped through her muscles as she landed with a thud onto the grey grass, sending a flurry of ash into the air. The rider sat, shoulders held back, unphased.
Katherine coughed and spluttered, grey blood foaming in her mouth as she fought feebly for her life. She caught sight of the glistening white horn on the horse’s forehead and her heart sank.
Her heart sank even further when the horse’s masked rider peeled off its demonic mask. Turquoise eyes glinted down at her and her hair that fell around her face was streaked with eerie glinting sculk.
Shelby.
Shelby raised a bone dagger from her side, a small smile playing across her lips as Katherine fought harder against the deathly weight of the unicorn. She drew the dagger back and flung it – without hesitation - straight for Katherine’s heart-
*
Katherine screamed jerking herself upright, pulling herself out of Shelby’s sleeping embrace.
Her palms were bleeding with sweat as she reached up to hold her face in her hands, her shoulders still shaking from the horrific happenings of her dream.
“Katherine?” Shelby sat up, rubbing her eyes and blinking, worried for Katherine’s sudden outburst.
Katherine couldn’t bring herself to reply but sat rigid, shaking as silent tears leaked from her eyes.
Shelby sat up, adjusting the strap of her beloved overalls and put an arm around Katherine, “Honey, what’s wrong?” Shelby bit her lip, finding Katherine’s odd silence disturbing.
Katherine shuddered, fighting the tears from her eyes as she raised her head, looking into Shelby’s eyes.
Katherine gulped, forcing down her terror, “Nightmare,”
“Oh, baby,” Shelby pushed a loose hair that had fallen out from behind Katherine’s ear, tucking it back.
Katherine couldn’t hold it together and be in Shelby’s presence so she broke down, wrecking herself. Shelby drew her closer to Katherine, pulling her into a hug. Katherine didn’t resist, letting Shelby take her in her arms, stroking the top of her head.
Katherine sobbed into Shelby’s shoulder for a good few minutes before finally deciding to let Shelby in on the dream.
“I failed them,” she gulped.
“Failed who?” Shelby asked, her tone gentle, not prying for information and allowing Katherine to tell her at her own pace.
Katherine took a gulp of air before replying, “My people.”
Shelby remained silent so Katherine continued, “My-y curse too-ook over. Everything was d-dead,”
“I-,”
“A-and you k-k-killed me,”
Katherine could feel Shelby’s shoulders tense up.
Shelby took hold of Katherine’s shoulder and lifted her gently away from her shoulder, forcing the princess to look her in the eye.
“Katherine-,”
“You were all sculked-up,” recalled Katherine, dipping her head, “And I- I let you kill me. Well I was already dying because my unicorn stabbed me-,”
“KATHERINE!”
Shelby took Katherine’s chin in her hand and lifted it so that Katherine’s eyes were level with her own.
Katherine gulped down what she was going to say and allowed herself to roam free in Shelby’s gorgeous amber eyes.
“Katherine, I love you,” Shelby reminded her princess, “I would never ever kill you, I swear it,” she looked solemnly into Katherine’s eyes, “I would have to die for me to kill you,”
A blinding light shone from Katherine as she transformed from her kick-butt monster slayer clothes to her pink dress.
Shelby removed her hand from under Katherine’s chin, cocking her head at Katherine, thoughtfully.
“I think I know what we’re going to do today," Shelby got up from the bed, pulling Katherine to her feet.
“Yeah?” Katherine was tempted to rub her puffy eyes but found that, with Shelby gripping both of them, it would be a hard task to perform.
Shelby nodded excitedly, leading her girl from the bedroom, shutting the door as they left, practically skipping down the stairs, a smile as wide as the sun.
“We’re gonna find a way to cure your curse,
Together,”
Author interruption:
I wrote this after writing a murderous poem at school and while I was listening to rather deadly Valerie Broussard :)
I don't know how many chapters this book is gonna have yet but I reckon it might outdo the first one in the amount of chapters.
This is gonna be good!
YOU ARE READING
I Will Always Love You - Empires SMP S2 AU: Nature Wives
FanfictionKatherine and Shelby think they're safe. Safe from corruption. Safe from the curse. When a deadly past comes back to haunt them, they must find a way to keep each other alive. Even if it means sacrificing themselves.
