"Fata viam invenient"
- The Fates will find a way
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They did not walk more than two feet inside till Aeris felt the knife coming for her neck.
It was a surprise, causing her to stumble backwards with a yelp. Her hand reached for her dagger, hissing in anger as she realised she had left it in her room.
Through hooded eyes she looked at her assailant, catching gaze with the captain. A smirk on his face as his hair fell to his eyes, blowing it away before twirling the knife over his fingers. Then he sprung, she ducked, avoiding a strike to her jugular and scanning the room for anything she could use to protect her.
Mad
He seemed to have gone mad.
"Hongjoong" her voice cut through the air, yet he did not seem to notice. The carefully controlled movement made her question what was going on.
"Fight"
His voice was a snarl, eliciting a scowl from her as she ducked once again, hands scrabbling to the bookshelf she had crashed into.
Pages strewn across the floor as she pushed him over the desk, groaning as the pin of his paperweight pricked his back. Blurry looks of dazed movement made her finally realise the sword hanging decoratively on the wall.
She cast a look at her assailant. He was not far, but nor would he come straight for before -
I need to get that sword out
"Come on" it was a prayer, fingers pulling at the sword stuck tightly to the wall as the corner of her vision informed her of his arrival once again. "Come on"
Let us
The power of us mistress
The sword would not be necessary
"Yes, let them Aeris" Hongjoong mused, causing her fingers to freeze, eyes widening as she made the mistake of turning to him.
He was standing still, the weapon in his hands dangling lowly as he looked in amusement. The look had returned, one of a predator stalking his prey. It pricked at her skin, thudding through her blood as her mouth gasped.
"Wha-"
"Don't pretend"
It was madness, "Come on silver,"
It was insanity
"I know you hear them, you have always heard them. Why hesitate now?"
"Stop it" She stumbled, letting go of the wall and pushing herself to the door. He did not stop her, calculating eyes watching her movement. "You do not know what youre-"
"Doing?" he laughed, cold and cruel "You hide yourself. You hide all you could be. Let them go. Why do you resist?"
"Hongjoong-"
"I am giving you a chance, take it. Let me see your worth. Those voices that plague you, let them be free"
The words fell to blurry murmurs, disappearing behind the shakiness of her breaths, fingers curling desperately around the doorknob, twisting it weakly, sweat dripping down her neck as she pulled at the tightness of her shirt.
She hated this. This feeling of helplessness as she succumbed to the very thing she had tried to avoid her whole life. The feeling of drowning under the waters of her own worry, feeling the last grains of sand slip through her fingers as she clung to the shore of mortal consciousness, fighting against the tide that threatened to swallow her whole.
Suffocating
It was suffocating her.
The door
Why did it not open?
"I'm tired of waiting Aeris. I saw what you could do that night at the docks, I saw what you could become the day you almost lost control on the ship, I saw it the day you fed of it."
The words were like knives, battering at the defences she had kept up for so long. Trying to forget what she had become, trying to live a life of normality. This was not supposed to be it, this was not supposed to be what she wanted.
The pounding grew, turning to the beat of drums and clashes of harmonicas as she felt her body give away below the door.
Pathetic
The voices whispered, hands clutching her head, she rocked against the shaking frame. Now, for the first time Hongjoong seemed worried.
Disgrace
He did nothing. He could not do anything but watch. Watch as her shivering took a different approach, turning to gulps as tears seeped down her cheeks, disappearing as they dripped off her face, evaporating without touching the ground. Her shaking fingers stilled, the rocking of her body disappearing to a tranquility that made his eyebrows furrow with concern.
He had wanted a reaction.
He had wanted her to set herself free.
Why did she resist? It was a mystery. Power was power. Those who shied away from it were unworthy of it. She knew what she could do, why did it seem to be a curse for her?
He had fought her with the intent of seeing the voices come to life, he had wanted to talk to them, wanted to understand them.
Use them.
He was power hungry. Years of piracy and chasing after forgotten clues had made him lose all hope of ever finding his goal. And now here it was, lying on the ground less than two feet away from him. But he was at the very place he had always been.
Two steps behind the pawns on the chessboard.
Rise and fight
We will come
We grow stronger through your resilience
Aeris was a mystery wrapped in silver. She was a hidden dart in a bag of petals. She was everything he needed to get to where he wanted to be.
Those voices bothered her, he knew that. Watching her through the deck and the shadows, never once approaching in the hopes of it unveiling something new. Hongjoong never said a word to his crew.
This was his secret, one he would carry alone till the time he understood what he dealt with.
Aeris was still. Not a single breath escaped her body, her eyes closed, the slant of her jaw resting against her chest. A picture of tranquility.
Hongjoong moved towards her, cautious steps making creaky noises on the floorboard as he crouched next to her. One hand reaching out to check her pulse as worry made its way to his body.
And her eyes snapped open.
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A u t h o r s N o t e
Ooh cliffhanger.
Also Hongjoong, what are you doing man, cmon?
I had to divide this chapter into two halves as it became too long, so I hope you enjoy!
YOU ARE READING
Treasure | Ateez
Fanfiction❝ It is a dangerous thing, pretence. A man ought to know what he is, even though he is not proud of it❞ She was a storm seeking solace. He was the sun seeking a hearth. And together, they reigned.
