The Devil's Game

A Whisper of Reality

TW: Self harm
The cool night air bled into my nostrils as I stared at the target before me. On a deep inhale I drew back the string of the bow. The worn grooves on the wood felt foreign as I increased the tension. The bow felt like that of a stranger, there was no comfort in the fletching of the arrow brushed against my lips. Gazing down the line of the arrow to the target I let the arrow fly as I exhaled just as my father had drilled into my mind so many years prior. But as I watched the arrow fly it hit the outside of the target. I was as incapable as a newborn babe with a stick. Frustrated, I stomped my foot. The bow had been handcrafted for me by a skilled bowman as a present from Killian after the bow my father had made for me had burned in the fire. Looking down at the graceful curve of the wood, I felt a twinge in my heart as I gazed down at it.
Any whisper of feeling drifted away as a loving hand was placed on my arm. Peter's calloused hand brushed my skin reassuringly and all thoughts of Killian melted away in that moment. His hand traveled to mine where he gently grasped the bow, a gentle pressure signaled me that he wanted to remove it from my grasp. I intended to release the instrument, but my fingers refused to open. Confused, I ordered my body to obey. It once again disobeyed my commands. I looked up at Peter, expecting some anger, but none was present. A small smile touched my lips as I gazed back at him. Taking my other hand I reached down and forced my unwilling fingers to comply. My heart fluttered from a moment when the wood left my hand, but was quickly calmed as Peter drew me into his arms.
"My beautiful Tiger Lily," my name was soft on his tongue like the petal of an iris, "I have a present for you." he drew away, grabbing my hand and placing something in it. An exquisitely engraved bow, made out of a dark supple wood law in my hand. The intricate designs of lilies traced across the whole expanse of the wood, save a small section in the middle of the bow wrapped in cloth. Gripping it tightly I drew an arrow from the quivery at hy hip, expertly notching the arrow and drawing back the string until the string brushed my lips, and in one breath let the arrow fly. The wood was a perfect combination of both malleable and strong. This time the arrow flew true, thudding solidly into the center of the target. A wide smile danced across my face for the first time since I stepped foot on this island. One after another I fired arrows into the target. Exhilaration filled my body and I quickly became more confident. The arrows flew into the trees' finding new targets each time. One buried deep in the knot of a tree, another in a pine cone and so on. Finally my hand closed on air as I reached down for another arrow. I lowered the bow, breathing heavily. I examined the aftermath of my shooting spree. The first few shots had been sloppy because of the lack of practice, but muscle memory had soon taken over and the arrows had flown true.
"Good to see you haven't lost your touch," a soft chuckle tinged the words, a proud look in his eyes. He held his hand out for the bow and I returned it without hesitation along with the now empty quiver. "In the future I will want you to lead hunting parties, you are easily the most skilled bowman here." A throaty laugh escaped him as he noted the elation that quickly filled my eyes. "Not yet though my dear Lily, you are still too weak.You will be training with me every day."
Peter tossed something gleaming and silver in my direction. Out of instinct I reached up to catch the item and was met with pain as my hand closed around it. Quickly dropping it, blood followed making a pool in the dirt at my feet. The blood looked strange on my palm. Like the sun rising out of the dark ocean it bled onto the expanse around it. It was gorgeous. In almost a trance-like state I picked the knife up from the ground, firmly gripping the hilt I brought the blade down on my skin. I parted, releasing a stream of blood. The pain was grounding. In a life that had come to feel like a dream, it brought me back. I stared at the river of blood flowing to the ground fascinated. The pain quickly began to fade as I got used to the feeling. Something about losing that touch with reality was terrifying. Fear, the first real emotion I had felt in months. Bringing the blade back down I dug more savagely into the skin of my arm, determined to increase the level of pain as I continued to drive it into the flesh.
A hand grabbed the blade with no consideration for their own well being and forcibly ripped the knife from my grasp. I cried out as it was flung deep into the forest. The fear returned as the pain faded and I began to lose touch with reality again. The world glazed over once again like fog on a window. When my senses returned I found Peter's arms wrapped around me. His body was shaking and I realized at that moment he was crying. Peter pulled back, gripping my arms in a grasp tight enough to turn his knuckles white. "What were you thinking? What has gotten into you? What's wrong? What can I do? Please tell me. Don't hurt yourself!" The stream of stumbling words slowed to one deathly quiet sentence, the tears no longer flowing. "Don't you ever try something like that again." His tone had changed from the frantic concern of before to what almost sounded like a threat. Peter's normally kind soft eyes were dark and much hard, in that moment he reminded me of Pan. The man who had gone to every length to break me. But as the tendrils of reality finally faded Pan turned back into Peter and he drew me into his arms again, caging me into his soft embrace.

So I wanted to update you, I am going to be hashing out the rest of this story before the year ends hopefully. I will be getting chapters out as quickly as my creativity will allow.

If anyone has any requests for short stories or even a new book, once I'm finished, please let me know.