A gentle breeze swept through a purple-grass meadow, the reddish-brown sky overhead looming menacingly, like death itself. Staring forwards, [Y/n] could make out a familiar bay horse in the distance. The stallion didn't graze, nor move his head or paw at the strange coloured grass. He simply watched the sky, calm, with no sense of alertness. [Y/n] began to approach him, striding through the alien fields, the long grass sweeping against her legs.

'Be careful,' a voice warned. 'Be careful.' It was female; dulcet and kind, yet with a brusqueness to it that suggested fear and trepidation. [Y/n], despite the warning, continued to make her way towards the fictional steed that had carried her through this strange dream state so many times before. She didn't feel safe without him. She needed to be by his side. Slowly, the stallion lifted his great, bay head, his dark eyes watching [Y/n] with caution. The back leg that had been resting now flattened itself and the horse took a step in [Y/n]'s direction.

'Be careful!' the female voice cried, desperate now. 'A liar! A deceiver!'

[Y/n] stopped approaching now, her brows knitting together. The horse took another step forwards. Why was the voice in her head so desperate to stop her approaching the stallion? She couldn't tell. But... he seemed to recognise her, so it would be okay, right? [Y/n] continued once again. Now the horse started to approach her at a steady pace, both parties walking towards one another with caution yet hope.

Or at least, that's how it may have seemed from an outside perspective. Quickly did [Y/n] see something was amiss. The horse, like those strange beings in the tar in her first dream, now had a nightmarish look to it; scarred all over, with a strange, black liquid oozing from its wounds.

It started to change shape. The horse's skin began to melt off and the skeleton began to contort. He let out a pained whinny, which turned to a crazed growl belonging not to a horse, but to a wolf. And, once the horse's shape was gone, a huge black beast was left behind.

It leapt.

[Y/n] awoke with a start, her breathing ragged and her pillow pulled close to her chest. Sweat dripped off her forehead and her eyes were wide. She hadn't had one of those dreams in so long... but she sure as hell didn't miss them. In the corner of the room, watching worriedly, was the maid from before.

"Milady— um, [Y/n]," she said worriedly, "are you alright? Do you have a fever? A sore throat? A headache?" she asked quickly, now approaching and kneeling beside [Y/n]'s bed. [Y/n] waved her hands as a no, a gentle smile stretching across her face.

"Oh, no, it's quite alright! Just a strange dream," [Y/n] laughed lightly. The faerie tilted her head, a look of sympathy on her face.

"I'm sorry to hear that! Would you like to talk about it?" she offered. "Talking about dreams often makes them a lot less scary," she smiled. [Y/n] felt the insatiable need to pinch the adorable cheeks of the maid, who'd already stolen [Y/n]'s heart.

"It was just a little dream about a horse that turned into a scary dog," she laughed, "weird, I know. There was also some woman telling me to be careful — I probably should've listened to her," [Y/n] chuckled. The maid looked contemplative.

"[Y/n]... p-please tell me if this question is too personal, but... well, have you been betrayed recently? Because a horse is a service animal, and if it turned into a scary dog, then it seems like someone who supports you may have betrayed you," she sighed. [Y/n] blinked in surprise. She'd never really read into her dreams too much. But had anyone betrayed her? Well... she supposed she felt a bit betrayed by the boys, but why have this dream now? They'd betrayed her a while ago. "Or... have you ever considered that dreams like this could be premonitions? Because you're around fae and vampires, you're definitely more likely to get premonitions than you would be in normal human society," she mumbled.

"Maybe... ah, I hope not," she laughed, "it looked like that thing was about to try and kill me!" The maid's eyes widened.

"I won't let any scary horse dogs come near you, don't worry," she said hurriedly, though still with her usual sweet voice. [Y/n] let out a light laugh in response to the girl's words. The faerie then seemed to remember something as her eyes brightened and her hands clapped together - the actions paired together were cute and childish, which definitely suited the maid's appearance: the usual maid attire with light blonde hair tied back in a bun and big hazel eyes, as well as a small and childish physique. "[Y/n]! Olli must've heard our conversation down the hall, because he approached me after you'd trained... he told me I could be your personal maid! And that you can give me a name!" she said excitedly, like a puppy who'd just found the secret stash of dog treats.

[Y/n]'s grin widened and she pulled the faerie girl into a congratulatory hug, before placing her hands on her shoulders.

"Well what would you like to be called?" [Y/n] asked softly. "Did you have a name before you worked here?" The faerie gave a small, nervous smile.

"I'm not allowed to speak it — I'm contracted against ever saying my old name again," she explained. [Y/n] rubbed her chin.

"Can you write it down?" She looked thoughtful for a moment, clearly trying to remember the clause of the contract, before excitedly nodding. She pulled a pen and notebook from one of the pockets on her dress and quickly scribbled down a name.

'Hetti.'

"Hetti... that's such a beautiful name!" [Y/n] smiled. The faerie let out a small, nervous giggle, before standing up.

"You're basically a princess now, [Y/n]," she explained, "which also means getting ready like one. We found so many beautiful garments that would suit you so well! I can't wait for you to try some," she giggled. The idea of trying fancy clothes did indeed intimidate [Y/n] a bit, but I guess if you're gonna live in the same abode as the king there must be some 'dress code' of sorts, so [Y/n] nodded her head and allowed Hetti to lead her over to the dressing room.

* * *

The lights flickered on in Nyais' basement, though Nyais only knew about it by sound — his vision was obscured by a foul-smelling rag. The footsteps, heartbeat and breathing of the second presence were unusually hard to detect, though he could still hear them well and knew they belonged to Kori. He heard Kori walk behind him. The rag was then ripped from his face and he was allowed his sight once again. Not only this, but his limbs were freed from their binds as Kori emancipated him. The boy took a few steps back, watching Nyais carefully. He knew Nyais was in no state to fight, but even in such a sorry state Kori was aware that his chances of winning in a fight were still annoyingly low. Nyais stood and stretched his arms out in front of him, letting out a sigh of relief as he heard his shoulders pop.

"Are you certain you're not going to call for our execution given that we succeed?" Kori questioned. He'd been absolutely against Draka's plan of allowing Nyais to be king if they managed to get rid of Olli, but Draka had insisted that they couldn't go back on their word and even noted Nyais' succession in the written agreement. Of course, Nyais had to be King Regent for this to work, and so Kori had been forced to release him. Still, he didn't trust the man.

"I shall not betray you so long as you do not betray me," Nyais said calmly.

"You're betraying your friend," Kori laughed bitterly, "so what reason do I have to believe that you wouldn't betray us, who you loathe so much?" Kori questioned. Nyais let out a bitter laugh, walking past Kori with a steady and authoritative pace as though he hadn't just been tortured for days on end.

"I told you, I shall not betray you so long as you do not betray me," Nyais repeated, "and Olli betrayed me. To start, our relationship was purely mercenary, as ours is right now. We both had something we wanted from one another — Olli wanted more security to the throne, and a King Regent who'd make him look better. People were less inclined to kill him behind the scenes if they thought I of all people would become king after him, even if he was the only one painting me in a bad light. People fear change, whether that change be good or bad," Nyais sighed.

"I didn't come for your monologue," Kori rolled his eyes, "shut up and leave." Nyais laughed.

"Who's house are you in?" he chuckled, though the sound wasn't lighthearted like it used to be. Kori narrowed his eyes. He'd never detected anything wrong with Nyais when he'd been growing up — sure, Nyais wasn't entirely stable, but he wasn't... megalomaniacal. Though Nyais seemed to be trying to make out that he'd been like this forever, Kori couldn't help but wonder if that was the case.

Was everything with [Y/n] driving him insane? Well, it wasn't really Kori's problem. She was all that mattered to him. It could become his problem if Nyais decides to use royal authority to take [Y/n] away from them, but...

Kori had no idea how things were going to play out. For once, he was entirely lost. The man before him wasn't who he'd seemed to be, [Y/n] was out of his reach, all of the others were silently scheming against one another and he'd lately uncovered many secrets he wished he'd never learned. He felt like some strange mass of cluelessness was swallowing him up. Instead of spectating, he felt as though he was in the spotlight with everyone else watching him from the darkness. He knew so much, yet he knew so little, and everyone was so stupid yet so painfully smart. He couldn't predict them. He hated this. All he wanted was [Y/n]; why did it have to be so difficult?

He silently turned and made his way up the stairs and out of Nyais' apartment.

He hated this.

He really, truly hated this.

* * *

Rayne's lab was quiet today. Laion sat at Rayne's desk, a book in his hands, whilst Aytsa finished off cleaning their last experiment's blood from the walls of the cell. This time he wasn't forced to clean with acid. After pouring the bloody water down a drain in the cell, Aytsa walked over to Laion with a look of intrigue. "Whatcha reading?" he questioned as he leaned over Laion's shoulder, trying to read the book in the blonde's hands. Laion snatched it away and sent Aytsa a glare; Aytsa responded with a pout.

"I'm leaning about human society," Laion huffed.

"Shouldn't you be working?" Rayne's voice sounded from somewhere upstairs. Laion often found all sorts of interesting books at Rayne's desk and today he just hadn't been able to pass the temptation to pick one up. Laion stared over at the door that led to the staircase.

"I've finished for today," he called back up. No response came after that, so he assumed Rayne was letting him continue reading the book. Aytsa tilted his head.

"Tell me about it, then," Aytsa grinned. Laion rolled his eyes.

"Go find your own book on it," he muttered. Aytsa pouted. For some reason, Laion favoured Aytsa over everyone else. That didn't say much, but Aytsa was definitely the one he wanted dead the least. Maybe it was because he worked with Aytsa, or maybe it was because he felt like Aytsa was the one who'd drive [Y/n] into his arms the quickest. He couldn't tell. But, thanks to this inexplicable soft spot Laion had for the crazy boy, he allowed Aytsa to see the page he was reading again. "The book's about jobs - both legal and illegal - in human society. Right now I'm reading about information brokers," Laion explained. Aytsa read through the pages quickly and quietly, before tilting his head.

"Why is selling information illegal? Isn't it like selling any old thing?" Aytsa questioned.

"The information is usually obtained by illegal means," Laion said, leaning back on Rayne's chair. Aytsa let out a hum, before turning to the door which began to creak open.

"Oh, hey, Rayne," Aytsa called over to the permanently tired-looking man, "have you ever worked in human society before?" he questioned.

"Yeah," Rayne muttered, walking over to Laion's finished work and checking it thoroughly, "I trained as a doctor for four years," he explained, "and a chemist for another four. I also did some research on biochemistry," he shrugged. Aytsa and Laion blinked in surprise. "Laion, did you bruise these?" he questioned, pointing to some seeds on the side. Laion let out a huff, rushing over to brush them into a pestle and mortar.

"Sorry... I forgot," he mumbled. Rayne rolled his eyes, before walking over to Aytsa.

"And did you find anything?" Rayne questioned, his green gaze burning into Aytsa's. Aytsa nervously shook his head. Another job he'd been given today was to find another human, but there weren't any walkers about Kutelo thanks to the nasty weather and he wasn't about to go into the nearest town to abduct someone. If Rayne wanted a human that badly he could find it himself.

"Nope," Aytsa mumbled. Rayne rolled his eyes, grabbing a fresh lab coat from one of the hooks, pulling it over himself with a dissatisfied glare. He muttered something about useless apprentices before leaving the room and walking up the stairs. Laion and Aytsa glanced at one another, glad they still had their skin, deciding to continue on in silence.

* * *

[Y/n] had been dressed, had her blood extracted, and eaten like a queen once again this morning. The clothes she wore were surprising comfortable for the amount of time it had taken Hetti to apply them. The fae girl had said something about training again, so her clothes were suited towards that. [Y/n] couldn't help but feel pretty badass every time she walked past a mirror. She was wearing what seemed to be a mix between a suit and military clothes — leather and cotton all matched together in harmony. Imagine Lara Croft but covering more skin.

[Y/n] was now also beginning to understand her way around some parts of Olli's home. She knew how to get from her room to the medical office, but she'd have to go back to her room if she wanted to then go to the dining hall. Basically she knew her way from her room to the main places she'd been, but she couldn't go from one of those places to another thanks to the maze that was this damn 'house'.

She was on her way to the training hall right now — admittedly, she was quite excited. The prospect of being able to defend herself, even to a limited degree, was exhilarating. But moving quickly in the clothes she wore, which were skintight and didn't leave much room to her move, might be a challenge.

The two large pine doors to the hall were opened by a young-ish looking boy with blonde hair and the butler's attire she'd seen all through the 'palace' (or whatever it was called). He looked younger than all the vampires, so she assumed he must be a younger fae. She absentmindedly wondered how they aged as she dipped her head to him in thanks, walking through the great doorway and looking up at the man in the middle of the training hall, who was currently braiding his silver hair to keep it out of the way. A sword rested by his side, less than an inch from the floor due to its unique length, even for its type. [Y/n] didn't know too much about swords but she was sure she recognised it as a backsword that she'd been forced to learn about in history once. Though it seemed long, even for a backsword.

"[Y/n]," Olli dipped his head with a small smile after finishing tying his long hair back, "follow me," he encouraged, beginning to cross the room to the other side. [Y/n] blinked in surprise but nodded her head, following along behind Olli to another pair of double doors at the other side. He pushed them open and flicked on a light — [Y/n] couldn't help but wonder how they had electricity all the way down here, but they employed fae slaves so maybe magic? Who knew.

She was taken aback by the scene in the room. Weapons of every type littered the walls — every sword, bow, knife and so on that she'd ever heard of was here.

"I decided self-defence wouldn't be enough. I'm giving you a weapon," he explained. "Umm... I'm not really sure what would suit you best so maybe just choose whatever you think you're strong enough to hold?" [Y/n] looked over at a rapier, deciding to try to pick it up but failing miserably. "Those are heavier than they look," Olli informed - late, but [Y/n] appreciated the input anyways. She then decided to see if she could lift something more her size — she found a thinner sword, a lot like Olli's but much shorter.

The girl lifted it up - with effort, but much less than it'd taken to hold the rapier. Olli hummed. "Ah, the traditional backsword. I have one too, though altered slightly," he informed. So it was a backsword. Cool, [Y/n] was now a self-proclaimed weaponry expert. Watch her become a high-fantasy blacksmith. She let out a small laugh at her own ridiculous thoughts before looking up at Olli, who encouraged her to follow him out of the room filled with weapons and into the hall again. They returned to the centre. Olli was about to speak when the double doors to the hallway were swung open once more.

[Y/n]'s heart skipped a beat. Nyais.

Nyais stared at the two of them for a moment. He looked... hurt. [Y/n] didn't know what to think. Should she say something? What she'd learned about him didn't change who he was, did it? She owed him her life... but he was the person who'd brought her here in the first place. Well, not him personally, but he assisted the 'system' she was placed into. But that made Olli equally guilty. Nyais cleared his throat.

"[Y/n], Olli," he said, relative monotony to his tone, "it's good to see that you're both well," he hummed.

"A-and you..." [Y/n] stuttered. "Are you alright?" Nyais looked down for a second before meeting her gaze once more and nodding. He then turned to Olli and narrowed his eyes.

"I'm returning to my position as King Regent," he said shortly. Olli furrowed his brow as though he'd just realised something, though quickly wiped the expression off his face.

"Very well. Have you agreed to challenge Mira?" he asked. Nyais blinked in shock, his expression contorting to one of disbelief.

"Excuse me? She never challenged me to get to that position. I thought she was only filling in? And there's no point anyway. I could beat her, injured or not, with my ears plugged and my eyes shut," Nyais hissed. [Y/n]'s expression fell a little. Nyais was acting... strange. Strangely aggressive.

"Could you now?" Olli countered calmly. "Well, you should go discuss taking back your position with Mira. I assume, knowing you, you'd challenge her to a match decided by fatality, so I'm sure she'll gladly pass the title back without any hesitance." Nyais' expression only seemed to sour further at Olli's words. He knew they'd been carefully picked to make [Y/n] more wary around him, and it'd certainly worked as [Y/n] seemed to pale slightly. She was caught in the crossfire of something much bigger than she'd ever imagined. A spiteful conflict that she could only see ending in copious amounts of bloodshed. Maybe she was starting to think like them? The thought made her feel slightly sick. She shut her eyes and let out a small sigh, which caught the attention of both males in the room.

"[Y/n], are you alright?" Olli questioned. "If you're feeling unwell we can put off training for a while," he offered. [Y/n] shook her head, looking at the backsword she'd rested beside her.

"No, it's perfectly fine," [Y/n] smiled, though it was clearly forced as her eyes didn't smile with her. Usually she'd be so happy to see Nyais, but right now she felt stressed and anxious. She didn't want him to leave, but she also wanted to get out and be as far away from him as possible. Something definitely wasn't right.

"I apologise for intruding," Nyais said finally, after seeming to stand awkwardly for a while, "I'll be on my way." He quickly glanced to the sword by [Y/n]'s side. "Good luck, [Y/n]."

He turned around and briskly left the hall, the young fae boy shutting the doors behind him. His chest hurt. He felt a little lost. He kept glancing behind him to see if [Y/n] would come after him - to see if she'd at least say goodbye - but she didn't come. Had he done something wrong? Had that bastard told her about his past? Did [Y/n] hate him now? If she did, maybe it would be for the better. But the thought of Olli poisoning her mind with sweet words and kind gestures made Nyais want to be sick. 'That's exactly what you were doing,' a voice in Nyais' head called out to him, but the man pushed it away. No. He'd never treat [Y/n] that way. Unlike Olli, [Y/n] meant the world to him. He loved her.

He loved her, but he feared she no longer loved him.

Heart shattered into millions of pieces, Nyais left Olli's home, stalking down the corridor with no set aim or direction.