A/N: As usual, I would recommend putting the video on loop.



After dinner had been finished, she had volunteered to wash the dishes since the rain had stopped. She had mentioned that she was feeling a little more confident to go out on her own since it had been a few days now since the incident with her husband. Reluctantly, Will had agreed, but he had told her that he would be at the back of home, checking on a few things. (F/n) had merely nodded as she had no desire to inquire about what those things were.



Once she had headed out, she had washed the dishes and taken care of a few other nightly things. Just to relax in the cool night air a bit longer, though, she now kept her hands in the water a little bit more. The water was quite cold without Will's magic influencing it, but it was somewhat refreshing. Despite its frigid temperature, it was soothing to have the water run over her skin. It reminded her a bit of how there would always be a constant flow of water back in Tarhuinn's and her home.



The cold temperature, however, did get to her after several minutes. She pulled her hands out and wiped them on her dress skirt. (F/n) picked up the bucket with the clean dishes before she went back in. Will was still out, but she assumed that he had heard her close the door. After she placed the bucket on the ground and put the dishes away, she grabbed the blanket from the back of the chair and made her way into the bedroom.



Apparently, the blanket in her hands had been a spare as Will's other blanket was still draped over the end of the bed, but she added it to the other one. The sheets were enough for her. Once she had her boots off and had settled herself in, Will came inside, grabbed some clothes and went off to take his bath. Like before, she kept her gaze away from the window. Unfortunately, she didn't hear Tarhuinn calling her name softly. It really did calm her nerves even if it could be turned into a painful weapon against her, but her eyes did close. Even though she did her best to keep herself awake, her body had other plans, and it had won in the end.



Outside, Will was still in the water. He had walked into the lake up to his knee level and had been quite pleased to find that she had gone inside already. There had been some blood on his fingers after all. Even after eating a decent helping of trout, his craving for his bluebell hadn't vanished. So, he had to have a small snack. Otherwise, he might have lost himself.



Splashing water onto his face before he smoothed back his golden blonde locks, he wondered if he would be able to snatch another small taste. He did earn such a pleasure. After all, he had told her that he liked her, and he had meant it. Never had he told one of his victims that before and meant it.



Not to mention that she also discovered his lie about the one book. In the past, a couple of his victims had read over its pages, but they had never caught his lie when he told them of the original owner. If they had, they had never voiced it. That's probably part of the reason why he liked his bluebell more than the others. She had similar way of going about things like his childhood friend, or, at least, he imagined that his friend would've behaved like her if she had lived longer.



That might be because he spent too much time around one type of woman, though. He hadn't really interacted with a woman out of those features for awhile now unless it was to buy supplies. Despite all of this, he would still have his bluebell. She would merely stay alive longer than the rest; he would give her that much.



Deciding to come out of the water, he walked onto the shore and dressed himself. He wrung out his hair before he stepped back into his home and locked the door behind him. Will peeked into the bedroom and was glad to see her already asleep. To double check, he quietly walked in and glided his fingers across her lips and down to her neck. She shifted some but otherwise made no other movement.



With that in mind, he went back into the kitchen and left his washed clothes on the mantel of the fireplace to dry. When he was about to grab a knife, however, he pulled his hand back as another idea came to his mind. Smirking, he turned on his heel and stepped softly into the room. He grabbed the dress's and shirt's right sleeves to reveal the second mark on her. The bruise was getting lighter, but he had other plans for the time being.



Glancing over to the one on the side of her neck, he pressed his right middle and index fingers to the spot. She moaned slightly in her sleep, and he knew that she might be too sensitive there. So, he went back to the shoulder mark. When he brought his fingers to that spot, she moaned but much quieter than the first. If he were careful, he should be able to get away with his action there.



Gently, he rolled her from her left side to onto her back. In response, she went to move onto her right side, but he held her back. Her brows furrowed, but she didn't wake. She shifted slightly more before she settled down. With her in proper position, he straddled her hips and leaned down to her until his lips touched the mark. Her husband was most likely dead, so he saw no reason for the deceased man's mark to be on her.



Hands pressed to pillow and on either side of her, he softly kissed the area. If she were awake, it would feel as though powdery snow had brushed across her skin but left a warm touch behind. The kiss progressed to a rougher one as though the cold was finally nipping at her skin. When she went to move her shoulder away, he relaxed and carefully nudged it back against the bed.



As he waited for her to get comfortable again, he eyed the front of the corseted dress. He trailed his left fingers down the laced front, but he was tempted to untie the ribbon at the top. If she had been another one of his victims, the dress would've been off by now. In fact, it would've been on the first or second night.



Bringing his fingers back up, he slid them along her exposed neck until his hand rested on the pillow again. By then, his lips were back on her shoulder. His teeth grazed her skin while he had a hard time keeping himself from biting her. The delicacy before him was too tempting. He pulled back a little and bit his bottom lip but didn't draw blood.



Analyzing her state, he wondered if he would be able to get away with it. Barely able to think on it, he leaned back down and let his teeth fall upon her skin. He latched onto a small section of the mark before he sucked it between his teeth. As he reveled in the taste, he permitted his teeth to sink in too much.



Her sweet blood flowed into his mouth, and a moan of pleasure escaped him. (F/n), however, groaned in her sleep before she tried to abruptly get her shoulder away from him. Swiftly, he let go and looked to her. She was beginning to get up. Wasting no time, he quickly pressed his right hand to the bleeding mark. As her eyes began to blink open, he healed it back to its previous state, pulled her sleeves back up, grabbed one of the blankets and made his way to the floor.



Draping the blanket over himself, he faced away from her. As he heard her sit up on the bed, he sucked on his bottom lip. The taste of her blood was still there, and it would be a pleasant treat to fall asleep to. He remained awake, however, until he heard her lay back down. Tonight had been a near reveal of his true nature, but it had been most successful as well. With the delicious taste of her blood on his lips, he drifted off into the welcoming arms of sleep.



Regarding (f/n), she had sat up on the bed in near panic. It felt like something had pierced her shoulder. Her left hand came up to the skin there. The sensation had been right where Tarhuinn had kissed her a few days ago. (E/c) orbs gazed down at Will to see him asleep, but she thought that she saw movement before she fully awoke.



Removing her hand, she examined the bruise there. It looked like it hadn't been touched, yet she had a similar feeling to that of her hand from when she had woke up in the morning. What was going on? Was Will truly asleep, or was he staying awake secretly until she let sleep take over? Worry gnawed at her as a shiver ran up her spine.



Hesitantly, she lay back down and turned over. She curled up some before she focused on the night sky outside. Was she really making progress on this task, or was Will the winning deceiver in this case? Her left hand went back to her right shoulder. (F/n) squeezed the area tightly as though that might bring Tarhuinn to her. Then again, an enraged husband might not be the most calming person at the moment. For tonight, she would have to ease her scared self and try to get some more rest.



Currently, though, Tarhuinn was heading out of the pixie home with his guards. He had asked them if he could relieve himself, and they had complied. By now, his bonds were barely holding together on him. With one more tug, he would be free of them. The guards didn't know that, however.



There were other pixies on guard. He could see some resting in bushes or in the higher regions of the pines. He didn't know how far he could get, but he would try his best to make it to this supposed cabin. If he followed one of the streams, he was bound to reach it eventually. When the pixies stopped, he halted his movement as well and quickly looked over their positions. Two snaps sounded before he began his escape.