Chapter Text
She didn’t know how things ended up like this. One moment she was strolling through town before she heard her name being screeched out behind her. Turning around, she met eyes with a trio of angry girls. Oh shi-
“You really thought you could get away with trying to make me look like a thief!?” The leader stormed up to her.
“Uh ahaha…” she nervously chuckled remembering the events that took a few days earlier. She didn’t mean for things to go so far. Really! But she got a little carried away and maybe- just maybe accidentally placed an item or two in the girls purse framing her as a thief, which ended up ruining her reputation and possibly her whole social life- but, like, it wasn’t her fault! She was tired of her stuck up and posh attitude! Sure maybe she took it a bit too far but… the look on her face was priceless. “What ever do you mean?” (Y/N) asked innocently, trying to play off the panic in her voice.
The leader scowled, as she clenched her fists. “I’ll show you what I mean!” Andddd that was her cue. Cue to what? To run! She threw her drink at the trio, causing the sticky strawberry smoothie to splatter all over them, serving as a distraction before turning on her heel and breaking off into a sprint. A screech left the girls lips and she and her group started to chase after her. Weaving through the crowds of people at the towns market, she ducked into an alleyway, and crouched down trying to catch her breath. “Woo… I think I lost th-“
“THERE SHE IS!” Her eyes widened, and she turned her neck so fast, it could’ve snapped. There standing in the entrance of the alley was bitch #1 yelling for the leader and bitch #2 to get there. Standing up, (Y/N) immediately turned around to run only to realize the alleyway she ran into was a one way entrance and a one way exit… “Shit…”
Well there was only one way out… so what did she do? She ran right through them, pushing her way past the two henchgirls who attempted to grab at her hair but instead they grabbed her hoodie, tugging her back. In an attempt to get away, she shrugged the jacket off and scrambled away. She could hear their shouts against the sounds of the cool air rushing against her but she didn’t care. She was not getting jumped by three angry girls who had their share of fights! Heck, she didn’t even have any siblings so she never technically got into a fight! She continued her escape, not stopping once to catch her breath or to check if they were still chasing her. She was not about to make the same mistake twice.
After a few minutes or so, she stopped to rest. Leaning against a tree- wait a tree?!!! Looking around in a frenzy, her heart sunk. She was so caught up on trying to get away, she didn’t realize where she was going. Now she was lost… and in a forest at that. It was probably the forest behind the marketplace. The forest that everyone tried to avoid… because of the rumored monsters that live in there. As the adrenaline died down, she shivered. It was cold… it was fall after all and she foolishly left her jacket. Maybe she should’ve just let herself get beaten up- at least she wouldn’t be stuck in the rumored monster-filled forest that no human ever came out off. Taking a moment to catch her breath and warm herself up, she clutched the strap of her satchel. “I came from that way… so I should go this way…” She muttered to herself as she looked around trying to retrace her steps. She could do this. How hard could it be to get out of a forest?
-
Very hard. Turns out it was very hard to find the exit of a huge spooky forest. She didn’t run into any monsters, though. Well that’s if you don’t count the huge scary dragon towering over her. Earlier…
An hour- or maybe two or three- who knows how long she had been here in this forest. No matter how much she walked, she couldn’t find the way out. It felt as if she was going in circles! Her stomach growled and her face dropped for what felt like the hundredth time today. When was the last time she ate? She ate this morning and she had like half a strawberry smoothie sooo… Looking up at the sun, she squinted her eyes. It was half past midday..! Maybe she could eat some of those mysterious looking berries over there..? Yeah, hard pass. Last thing (Y/N) wanted was to get food poisoning in the middle of nowhere. She rummaged through her satchel, looking for anything that could quench her teangry state. What’s teangry, you ask? Teangry = hungry, angry, tearful. Hungry cause she’s human. Angry cause of those bitches. Tearful because she just wanted to go home.
As she searched through her bag, her ears perked up. Was that a crinkle she heard? Could it be?!- She had a chocolate bar! Sure that probably wouldn’t help much with her hunger but chocolate made her happy. Who isn’t happy for chocolate? Psychopaths and people who hate life, that is. Pulling the sweet, milky chocolate bar out of her satchel, she beamed. Yea she was probably gonna die, but at least she would have chocolat-
RUMBLE RUMBLE
She stumbled as the ground shook underneath her. An earthquake?? She grabbed onto a nearby tree waiting for the disaster to cease. But this was not a disaster. It was much worse. A shadow loomed over her covering already the little sunlight peeking through the trees. Smoke filled her vision and the smell of a fire entered her nose. She closed her eyes and when the smoke finally dissipated, she peeked an eye open only to come face to face with an enormous dragon. Its neon green glowing eyes narrowed at her, as it dipped its head down, its horns brushing against the trees, and tail swaying menacingly slow behind it.
“A human…” It growled lowly, a rumble coming deep from its chest, and its fangs bared, giving her a front row view of what was to come to her. Her eyes widened as large as saucers and she silently gasped. This should be impossible! Dragons were extinct! So why was there one in front of her?! Sure she knew faes existed but they lived secluded off of society…! So why the hell was an ‘extinct’ dragon in front of her?! She took a step back, only for her back to collide into a tree. Great. Not only was she lost, out of food and water, didn’t get to eat her chocolate bar, but she was also cornered and facing off against a talking dragon. Could this get any worse?! “Human… Tell me why I should just not eat you here right now for trespassing into my lands?” It just got worse. His eyes flashed with anger and what seemed to be a hint of sadness although she didn’t really notice as she was trying not to scream and cry her head off right now.
She didn’t even know what to say. Her words died in her throat as she parted her lips to say something- anything- only for a long “uhhhhhhh” to come out. The dragon titled his head. “Nothing? You aren’t even going to try to explain your way out of this? Not even an offering? Disappointing. I suppose I’ll just eat you, then. How delicious… I haven’t had human in years…” He grinned ruthlessly as he licked his lips with his forked tongue and snarled about to open his mouth to-
“WAIT!! I- I uh I have… an offering…?” Her voice was shaky as she spoke. The dragon stopped in his tracks looking at her in anticipation. An offering? This greatly interested him. He was still going to eat her after she gave him an offering, however. I mean, he wasn’t stupid to leave a witness. No one could know of his existence, after all. The foolish human girl didn’t have to know about that part, though. (Y/N) looked around trying to find something to offer this dragon only for her heart to drop. Again. She had nothing. Her fists tightened and- wait… she still had the chocolate bar. Maybe she could offer that…? ARGH! What did she have to lose? Resisting the urge to cry on the spot and beg for her life, she outstretched her hand, offering the chocolate bar. “I… only have this…” The dragon narrowed his eyes, his face scrunching up in confusion- or was it distaste?
“What… is that?” He brought his snout closer to her hand, sniffing the wrapper. She tried her best to not pay attention to his close proximity and the smoke emitting from him. “It’s…” She gulped the jitteriness that was threatening to spill out of her as she struggled to not stumble over her words. “…a chocolate bar.”
He perked up, seemingly interested at the revelation. “Chocolate? I’ve heard of this before from Lilia…” He muttered to himself, appearing to be deep in thought before his green, glowing eyes turned to hers, once again. The anger was still apparent, although it had leveled down to an extent. “This chocolate- it’s human food right?” She gave a curt nod. “Yes… it’s a um- sweet. Would… you accept my offering..?” (Y/N) didn’t know this but Malleus was not one to reject gifts or invitations… even if he did always end up eating the said human afterwards. Nevertheless, he bowed his head slightly to show acceptance. “How do I eat this chocolate?” He demanded. “Tell me.”
A flood of relief washed over the girl- she wasn’t going to end up in his mouth! Well that’s what she thought, at least. “Oh, well you just rip the wrapper open-“ She demonstrated by pretending to tear the wrapper before continuing, “And then you just eat it. Like bite it or break a piece off or something.” The dragon peered down at his talons. He was eager to experience the- chocolate, as she would call it but he didn’t want to risk destroying it in the process. It was hard to control his strength and magic sometimes as embarrassing it was to admit. It wasn’t like his guards were here with him now, for if they were, he would’ve requested their assistance. He did sneak out of his royal duties so he couldn’t really complain. Nevertheless, he was determined to get that in his mouth.
A puff of smoke covered the area, all of a sudden and the dragon disappeared. In his place, was the most handsome guy she had ever seen. The inky color of his mid-length hair that faded to a dark turquoise with two strands that hanged off his shoulders clashed well against his pale skin that glowed in the sun- making him almost look ghastly. The two tall black curling horns glistened against the sun, almost sparkling. Now that’s what she would have thought if it weren’t for the fact that he was naked. Her cheeks heated up as she squeezed her eyes shut, a small squeak escaping her lips. “What the heck?!! You’re human?!! Why’re you naked?!!!” He rolled his eyes as she bombarded him with questions.
He had mixed feelings about revealing himself- his human form wasn’t a weakness, for he was still powerful- no matter what form he’d take. But this was the first time he revealed himself to a human. No human knew that dragons were capable of such feat. He told himself that he shouldn’t dwell on it too much. He was going to still eat the girl, afterwards. “Don’t be so dramatic- I wasn’t wearing any clothes in my dragon form either.” He sighed and shook his head. “Humans and their silly little questions.”
“We- well this is different!” Her eyes were still covered by the palms of her hands
“How so? Do tell, child of man.” He asked, walking closer, peering at her. As he was a dragon- a dragon prince in fact, although that doesn’t matter right now- he didn’t have much experiences with humans. Sure he comes across them sometimes in the woods but they were usually just humans looking for some loot. The loot being him, but it didn’t matter for he just ended up killing them easily, not breaking a single sweat. Although one of his most loyal guards was a human, he was a human raised around faes. He was practically a fae himself. ‘If you don’t answer me and open your eyes, I’ll crush you.” He threatened with a low growl, annoyed of her actions.
Immediately her eyes opened, widening as she trained them onto his horns, not wanting to look down or look into the green swirling pools of his eyes. “Well… well its… inappropriate.” She spoke carefully, not wanting to offend him any more than she already had. “Why?” He knew of humans and their clothing- same with some fae’s- but he was not an ordinary fae- he was a dragon. The last dragon to exist, in fact. Dragons didn’t cover up like humans or other fairies, so he was intrigued on that thought. Why was it inappropriate? It was natural, was it not? Every creature was born without garments so what was the big deal if he stayed that way? No fae minded it, yet this human was making such a big deal about it… interesting.
“Because… I can see… uh yknow?” He quirked an eyebrow. “See what?” He knew what she was referring to- he just wanted her to say it. It was quite amusing to see a human so flustered, he had to admit. Shame he was going to kill her, though. He would’ve loved to keep her. She shook her head, dismissing the subject. “N-never mind…! Here’s the chocolate… enjoy…?”
“Thank you, child of man.” He thanked her. He may hated and killed humans- but he was raised to be polite no matter what. His hands grasped the chocolate and he carefully ripped it open. Immediately the sweet aroma of milky, smooth chocolate filled his senses and he inhaled deeply. He trembled ever so slightly with anticipation, though you couldn’t really tell, as he raised the chocolate to his lips and sunk his teeth into it. He froze and for a second there, and (Y/N) couldn’t tell if she saw irritation or glee in his eyes. It was both, however. He was angry for living for so long without tasting such delectable, and he was happy for being able to taste said delectable for the first time.
A few minutes of silence passed painfully slow for (Y/N) as she stood there awkwardly, not sure if she could just leave or not. He was glaring intensely at the wrapper before he rose his gaze and met her eyes. “Child of Man.” She perked up, in both sorry and confusion. “What is your name?” She blinked. He was asking for her name? Maybe this was a good sign? “I’m (Y/N).”
“(Y/N). Do you wish to live?” Her heart raced. Of course she wished to live. It was just the way he asked her that question so suddenly that startled her. “Ye..yes..” She sputtered out. The dragon nodded and closed his eyes in thought. After what felt like an entirety (2 minutes), he opened his eyes again. “I will spare you-“ A relieved smile graced her lips. “On one condition.” Her smile dropped.
“Which is…?” She asked, hesitantly. She had heard stories of faes before and how you should never accept a deal with them but her life was on the line. It couldn’t be that bad of a deal… “You will get me more of this chocolate.” Oh. She wasn’t expecting something so… easy? She expected some hard, grueling task that’d be worse than death- not chocolate. “Chocolate..? That’s it?” She tilted her head in confusion. Of course she was happy she wasn’t going to die but it just seemed so simple. Too simple.
“Yes. You will go back to your human town and live on for another day but you must return to this same spot tomorrow and present me with more of this chocolate. Understood?” He looked at her, smirking at his plan. He was going to get so much sweets, it was perfect! …(Y/N) sure was lucky Malleus was a little slow because he could have just simply asked Lilia or one of the guards to get him chocolate instead of keeping her alive. But in the heat of the moment, he didn’t really care as long as he got the chocolate. “Yes… so just for tomorrow..? You surely don’t mean everyday, right?” She hesitantly asked. He perked up, realizing he missed a crucial fact- actually two.
“Ah, yes, thank you for reminding me.” He cruelly smiled at her. Oh no. Curse her and her big stupid mouth. “You will keep doing this until I say otherwise. And…” His gaze suddenly shifted into one more serious and threatening, his smile forming into a snarl. “If you dare tell anyone- anyone at all, about me…” He leaned closer, his scaled becoming more apparent and the glow in his eyes intensifying. “I will destroy everyone you love and all those humans that live in that town of yours and then eat you… understood, human?” He threatened. Ah, yes… it definitely was a bad idea to run blindly into this forest. (Y/N) nodded, nevertheless, resisting the urge to scream and ask why in the world this was happening to her?! “Yes…” She forced herself to smile. “Of course.”
“Excellent.” He beamed not noticing the forced smile on her lips. “You’re more complaint than I thought you’d be. Humans sure are strange..” She refrained herself from bringing up the fact that he was the one who was the dragon fae- the only one in the world and instead just nodded. “Um yea..? I guess…” He stared at her for a moment before leaning in once more and… sniffed her?!?!?!
She let out a small squeak and stepped back. He was getting too close and not to mention the fact that he was still naked!!! “What are you doing?!!!” He narrowed his eyes and frowned as she had done something terribly wrong and greatly offended him. “What?” Realizing he might have not like her freaking out on him, she cleared her throat and nervously fidgeted with her earring. “Um… I mean why did you sniff me?”
“Oh, to smell where you are at all times, of course.” He stated in a monotone voice, as if that should’ve been obvious. “Now that I got your scent, I won’t have trouble finding you if you run off on me.” He smirked. Yeah, she was screwed. There went her plans.
“Now, you understand you’ll come to this spot tomorrow with the chocolates?” She nodded. “And you won’t tell anyone about me?” She nodded again. “And that if you run off on me, I’ll find you?” Her neck was going to get sore from all this nodding. “Good.” He smiled broadly showing off his fangs. “Now then, I will see you tomorrow, child of man.” A puff of smoke appeared and dissipated just as instantaneously, disappearing as quickly as it was conjured into existence, and there stood once again- the enormous dragon. “Goodby-“ “Wait!!!” She interrupted him.
He was a little ticked off that this human was so stupidly brave to interrupt a beast like him, but it was amusing, he had to admit. “Yes?”
“If it’s no trouble… can you please point me the way out of this forest?” The dragon blinked as he realized a fact. “Ah yes- I almost forgot…” He forgot this forest had a spell that kept any human to enter to be trapped here for entirety or in other words- death. Humans didn’t know of this fact but the forest was a border- a gateway if you may, to cross paths into Briar Valley. His kingdom. Any human entering the forest would be trapped and wander in circles until they starved to death, or met their demise from one of the palaces guards or some animal. He needed this human to be alive, though. Who would get his chocolate if not for she? Too bad Malleus was slow because he could’ve literally asked Lilia but moving on! He transformed back into his human form- tapped her on her forehead- and transformed into a dragon form. It happened so fast she was left stunned. “…what just happened?”
“I removed the spell that all humans who enter the forest are met with. Now you can find your way back without any problem. Goodbye.” Before she could ask what he meant by spell, he disappeared in a flash, leaving an empty space in front of her. She blinked once. Twice. And then just turned around and walked back home. She was too exhausted to think about todays events. She’ll just worry about it tomorrow..
And worry about it tomorrow, she did.