Chapter Text
He'd been here several times before.
The grass beneath his feet was dead, having given way to his footprints long ago. For several months he simply stood here and watched, but not in a creepy way-no. All of this had been an accident in the beginning. An accident that led to his curiosity being piqued. Ever since that day, well, he'd decided to come here every day after.
Why?
He wasn't quite sure himself.
This place just seemed to draw him in. He knew things like this were out of reach. Not made for him, but that's what made it all the more alluring. To be this close to something so divine but knowing he could never touch it was the ultimate test- temptation. The literal definition of torture.
It was so close. Almost within grasp. He was quite sure if he was to reach a hand out, he could pluck it and make it his.
That thought alone caused a shiver to run down his spine.
Such thoughts shouldn't even exist.
He should just be content for getting to watch. Wanting more was his downfall, but how could he not pray for more? Watching this play out in front of his very eyes was like watching someone through a two-way mirror. He could see out, watch their every move without their knowledge. Get closer, yet somehow still remain a stranger.
They didn't even know he existed.
But he knew them.
Knew them like the back of his hand.
He'd been here for it all.
The joy, the sadness and the anger.
But something seemed off today.
He was here at his usual time like he always was, but they weren't. Where were they? Disappointment weighed heavy in his chest. Perhaps today was the day all of this would come to an end. He wouldn't be blessed by their presence.
Despite thinking this, he waited.
He waited until the moon settled above him, high in the sky.
He waited until the buildings in the distance began turning off their lights. Everybody was going to sleep. A telltale sign he should get going and get some rest himself. His feet stayed planted though. He couldn't bring himself to move from this spot.
His spot.
Behind a bush. The thick leaves concealing his presence. Providing him the perfect view to look out.
The light above the swings flickered on and cast a light, and although dim, it suited the eerie night.
Crickets began chirping softly, and the wind ruffled the dry leaves around him.
It was late. Beyond late. They weren't coming.
A sigh escaped him and he turned on heel. As he did this, a noise filtered in. Someone walking up the stone path. The unmistakable sound of their boots tapping against the pavement got louder the closer they got. They were here.
Finally.
It seemed his patience was being rewarded.
'But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.' He nodded. Yes. He'd made the right call. His eyes honed in on them and his breath stilled, forming an uncomfortable lump in his throat.
They were just so pretty.
Like an unmarked canvas.
He watched as they took a seat on the swing and rested their head against one of the chains. Between their feet, on the ground was a case of beer. The light overhead illuminated the scene. He could see they were already drinking one. Not only that, he could see they were crying.
His brow creased and his heartstrings tightened as if someone was pulling them. He wanted to get closer. Reach out and touch them, but they could never know he existed, so he just watched quietly. Completely transfixed.
Beer after beer was downed.
Sad tears morphed into broken, angry tears.
Quiet sniffles turned into full blown sobs.
The light rain had turned into a storm- deadly.
This person was broken. Thinking he could save them was probably just wishful thinking but that isn't what this was. This wasn't even a comfort thing. They were just pretty, and in his eyes, that was more than enough justification to be here.
He liked pretty things.
And watching this scene unfold was nothing new. He'd seen it all, yet, he couldn't shake this cold anxiousness away. It sat heavy in his gut like a rock causing his skin to prickle with unease. Something was definitely off. This whole scene didn't sit right with him.
Still, he forced himself to stay in his designated spot. They never spent long here anyways. Each visit was less than an hour long. Once that hour was up, they'd leave without so much as a glance over their shoulder. It was a repetitive cycle. He wasn't even sure why they chose this place to spend so much time at. Surely there were nicer places out there, right?
Places that were truly fit for someone like them.
So why come to a park over and over again?
This place offered nothing.
Then again, maybe that was the beauty of it.
It was never changing.
Is that what they were searching for?
If that were the case then maybe a church would better suit them-
His line of thinking came to an end as he watched them struggle with a small white bottle. Was this person sick? Why were they taking medicine? With a crease in his brow, he continued to observe.
They emptied the bottle in their hand and downed the contents with some beer.
Time seemed to slow down.
Their hand wrapped around the chain tightly and their mouth began moving. They were mumbling something, but were too far away to be heard. Sweat began gathering on their face and they turned a sickly pale color. Even their breathing changed. At first it'd been normal, now it looked as if they were struggling to take air in.
Almost as if they were dying.
Then, without warning, their eyes closed, and their head thumped against the chain. They began leaning forward in the swing until they fell. There they stayed on the ground, unmoving. Unresponsive.
His heart rate sped up, and he left his spot. He knew it was wrong, but he couldn't stop himself. It was like his feet were moving on their own. He tried to justify it in his head.
'I just want to make sure they're ok.' But he knew deep down that wasn't the truth. He wanted to touch them. It was selfish, he knew. Beyond selfish, but they just looked so pretty. So at peace. Just one touch and he'd leave. He didn't want them to wake up and see him.
He approached, standing over the crumpled body. They were pale and lifeless, but yes, he'd been correct. Even in this state they were pretty, beautiful even. Tentatively, he reached a hand down and combed a few stray pieces of hair out of their face. That's when the alarms started going off in his head. This wasn't right. Surely that should've roused them. At least a little bit. Why weren't they responding?
Their chest was no longer rising and falling.
He placed a hand on their chest. He could feel their heart rate. It was slowing down, barely beating.
They were dying- slipping through the cracks with no hope whatsoever.
Like a fallen angel being cast out the gates of heaven.
"I caught you." He breathed out, easily picking up the person. He held them tightly against himself and collected everything they'd brought with them, which wasn't much to be honest. Just the beer, the long forgotten pill bottle and a brown bag. As he was getting ready to leave with them, off to the side, a small device vibrated.
A phone.
There was in incoming call on the screen.
He resisted the urge to stomp on the phone and simply scooped it up. Nothing could be left behind. He began making his way back with the person clutched tightly to him. They didn't have long. Thankfully his place wasn't too far from here. Well, it was, but his mode of transportation would get them there quickly.
They boarded the airship.
The flight wasn't too long, and before he knew it, they were in his realm.
Lava, fire, and darkness surrounded the entire place. It truly was a comfort to be back home. He landed the airship and collected the human, carrying them inside.
He carried them to his chambers and deposited them on the bed. Their pale skin against the red sheets was such a scary contrast. They were nearly dead. "Kamek!" He barked out.
In a poof of sparkly magic, a creature on a broomstick appeared in front of him. "Yes, sire? How may I be of service-" Its eyes narrowed in on the human. Why had the king brought a human into their world, and a dead one at that? "Sire, if the human is already dead then there isn't much I can do."
"I don't believe they are dead. Simply unconscious from taking too many of these." He tossed the pill bottle in his direction, watching as he clumsily caught it.
Though the creature was wearing glasses, it still squinted to look at the tiny letters on the bottle. "I'm not too sure what these are, but let me conjure up a spell and then do a bit of research on these."
"Very well."
Red eyes watched the man work. A darkness settled over them as the creature mumbled a few words under his breath and then pointed his wand directly at the human. A bright beam of light shot out and hit them directly.
They began breathing again, and although slow, it was better than nothing.
"Would you like me to wake him up-
"Him?"
"Yes. It appears to be a male human."
The king hummed. That didn't bother him. "No. Let's allow him to rest for now. He's had one hell of a journey. To fall from heaven and be brought down to hell isn't the easiest thing to come to terms with, or wake up to."
"Don't you think all of this," The creature on the broomstick gestured around to the stone wall, scary statues and red door. "Will scare him?"
"That is none of your concern. Let me deal with him when he wakes. For now, let's find out what those pills are and why he's taking them."
"As you wish."
The two left the room and immersed themselves with the task of finding out the contents of the bottle. It didn't take the creature with glasses long to figure out what they were thanks to an old book he found concerning human medicine. "The pills appear to be some type of pain reliever."
"He's in pain?"
"I'm not quite sure, your highness. How many did he take?"
"He poured about a handful into his hand and then swallowed them, so a good amount I'm assuming."
"Sire. That was no accident."
"What are you talking about?"
"I don't think he's in any pain, well, I do, but I don't believe it's physical."
"Meaning?"
"I think he took them with the intention to take his own life."
It went quiet. "He doesn't want to be alive?"
"I'm afraid not, sire."
"Then I shall give him a reason to live."
"Sire! This isn't a game. I think this person needs serious help."
"I think the same thing, and who better to help than me? After all, I'm the one who saved him, it'd be reckless of me to abandon him now. Plus, if he couldn't find help in the human world, sending him back would all but condemn him to the same fate, so you see? I have nothing to lose, and neither does he."
The creature sighed, arguing was completely pointless. "Tread carefully with this. Human's are fragile things."
"I have a feeling this one's different-
A blood curdling scream cut him off.
He chuckled darkly under his breath. "It seems our visitor has awoken." When he saw Kamek stand up, he raised a hand. "No assistance will be needed. I intend for our first meeting together to be private."
Without waiting for a response, he trudged back to his chambers. He threw open the doors. The man was seated upright, his eyes huge and taking everything in.
Blue clashed with red.
Another ear piercing scream of terror.
"Sono all'inferno? Santa Madre, imploro perdono e clemenza. Mi dispiace per i miei peccati. Per favore. Questo non è quello che volevo. Mi dispiace. Mi dispiace." He clenched his eyes shut and brought his hands together and began mumbling desperately under his breath.
The king watched. Was this guy praying?
"Easy there." He approached the bed.
The man immediately began scrambling away until he was pressed up against the headboard. "Sei il diavolo?" He asked, his voice shaking.
His voice was so sweet despite the scared undertone. It was like honey, smooth and flowing.
He was overjoyed that it was being aimed at him even if he didn't know what was being said. "I don't know what you're saying."
"A-are you the devil?"
He laughed at this. It was cruel and condescending. "The devil? I've never gotten that one before. But let's get one thing clear- the devil doesn't save. He punishes and corrupts. I saved you. I'm giving you a second chance."
"Quindi quasi come dio?"
"I'm not understanding you."
Instead of repeating himself, the man moved on. He ran his tongue across his lips nervously, and rubbed his sweaty hands against his overalls. His blue eyes quickly darted around the room once more. This thing wasn't the devil, ok. Then who was he, and where was he? "W-where am I?"
"My lands."
That didn't help at all. This place looked scary as hell, like an abandoned church or something. "What is this place?"
"My castle."
He opened his mouth to ask another question but the tall creature that towered over him hushed him. "That's enough questions now. I'm growing tired-
"I-I want to go home."
"Home? You are home."
A look of fear settled over the man's face. "N-no, this isn't my home. Thank you for saving me but I want to go back-
"And you can. Once I get bored of you."
"Bored of me?"
"You don't know it, but this isn't my first time seeing you. Hell, not even my second time seeing you. We've crossed paths so many times and you never even realized it."
"Y-you've been watching me-
"Not in the way you think, but yes. Though that's a story for another day."
The man looked absolutely disgusted. He wrapped his arms around himself subconsciously. "Sei un pervertito." He spat despite being scared. "I want to go home now-
"You're so pretty."
Huh?
Was this thing being serious right now?
He felt bile rise up in the back of his throat. He'd been saved by an obsessed lunatic who thought he was pretty? He ran a hand through his hair. How was his life just seemingly getting worse? This isn't what he wanted! He would've actually preferred to be in hell now over this. "Let me go, you psychopath!"
A claw reached out and poked under his chin. Not cutting or stabbing into the flesh, merely resting against the soft skin. "Let's make a deal."
"A deal?"
"Stay here. Don't fight me on anything and simply enjoy yourself. Don't think too much in to things. If you're still not happy and wish to leave, I'll allow it."
"S-stay here with you?"
"Yes."
"What if I say no?"
"Then the deal is void and you stay here indefinitely."
"Y-you said you'd let me go if you got bored!"
The king gave him a creepy grin. "I don't see myself growing bored of you any time soon, and I never said how I'd let you go."
His breath caught in his throat. It didn't take a genius to understand what that meant. This monster would kill him once he got bored of him, wouldn't he? "F-for how long?"
"Hmm?"
"How long do I have to stay with you?"
"Six months."
Half a year?!
Is that really how long he'd have to spend giving into this freaks every whim? No way he'd be able to do it. This was all so overwhelming. He wanted to scream.
"If you don't answer I'm going to assume the answer is no and you'll stay here for however long I see fit-
"W-wait! I'm thinking. G-give me a minute."
"What is there to think about? It's a simple yes or no."
"It's not that simple-
"Did I mention you'll be rewarded?"
"Huh?"
"You have nothing to lose. At the end of the six months, if you still don't like it and you truly have no reason to stay, I'll release you. On top of that, I'll do you a favor."
"A favor?"
"Yes. It can be anything you want. I don't care."
He weighed the two options. He really didn't have anything to lose and nothing to truly live for, but did he want to do this? No. Absolutely fucking not, but it's not like he had many more appealing choices. It was either play by this lunatics rules or get a worse fate. He had to think about this logically-
"I-I'll stay here with you, but you have to keep your word!"
"Of course." The king chuckled, clapping his hands together, signalling that was the end of their conversation. "I'll let you sleep. Good night, Luigi."
T-this monster knew his name?
Just how much did he know about him? How long had he been watching him? How had all of this even started?
He shivered. Maybe it was best not to ask questions. "G-good night." He managed to whisper out as the door closed. He waited to hear if the door was going to be locked, after a few seconds, he didn't hear the click. It was open.
In a few minutes, he'd make a run for it.
He had to.
He couldn't stay here.
The minutes passed by agonizingly slow, and he wasn't sure how long he stood in front of those creepy, red doors. All he knew is that he was scared, beyond petrified. The door was unlocked. He could leave, but what if he got caught?
What would happen then?
Surely this monster would hurt him.
He'd already abducted him and brought him here, but for what? What was he planning?
Whatever it was, he wasn't going to stick around and find out. He placed his hands flat against the door, and watched as it gave way. Creaking open just enough so he could squeeze out. He took in his surroundings.
There were many hallways. Each one looked the exact same. Dark and uninviting, barely being lit by the torches on the wall.
'Cazzo, quanto era grande questo castello?' He thought, choosing to run down the hallway that was to the left. Luck seemed to be on his side. This hall led him to the main entrance of the castle. He threw open the doors and ran out, yelping when he saw lava pouring around the perimeter.
What the fuck?
Blue eyes scanned the area. How was he supposed to get down? A whimper left him, and he clutched his head, tugging at his hair.
Fuck!
It looked like the only way to leave this castle was by helicopter or plane. The entire thing was floating somehow. Everything about this place was so abstract, he simply couldn't wrap his head around any of it.
At the very least, he was out here away from that monster. Maybe he could hide.
Oh how wrong he was.
The king had heard him exit the room and run, and he'd allowed it. If anything knowing this little man was attempting to escape filled him with sadistic pleasure.
He wouldn't get far.
He could run but not hide.
Bringing him back would be the fun part.
The chase would begin soon.
"I caught you once. I'll catch you again."