Astarion x M!Reader

Thirty-One

How smugly he looked at you, his head tilted to one side, one eyebrow raised as his black hair fell into his forehead.

Once again you caught your fingers twitching, a reflex from the old days. They wanted to tuck the strands behind his ear and your lips longed to plant a kiss on his forehead.

The scar on your abdomen tightened. The pain was unbearable.

You almost flinched, but you didn't want to show him that there was still weakness in you. Never again would you be weak in front of him.

The last time it had almost cost you your life.

"It took you a long time to realise it.", he whispered and lifted his chin. "I must say, Platinum... just like your spawns, you have good taste in a house. It reminds me of a certain someone. Inspired by him, perhaps?

Anger welled up in you again.

Spikes of shadows approached his neck.

Not yet.

"You weren't invited.", you said with a scowl.

The red of your eyes was now so intense that it floated like two sparkling gems in the darkness. Shadows crept up your legs, wrapped around your bare feet and coloured the tips of your fingers blacker than sin ever could.

They settled on your skin like the ink of a tattoo. It would stay. The shadows had chosen you again. They felt it worthy to serve you.

Cazador sucked in a sharp breath as he noticed it creep up your arms, wetting some of your chest and then colouring your neck so deep black that it looked like you were now half made of shadow.

Anger burned inside you. The desire to put your hands around his throat and squeeze became stronger and stronger.

"I didn't need an invitation.", he said.

Something twitched in the back of your mind.

You could feel him trying to back away. But he couldn't show any weakness. He'd confidently ridden himself too deep into shit for that.

"I won't ask again.", your voice made the ground shake beneath your feet. "You weren't invited. How did you get into my house?"

His usual arrogance returned.

"But my dear, I was invited.", he purred with an abusive gesture. "Only not by you."

Immediately, a thought flashed through your mind. A breeze, caused by an open window.

Lorelei and his tousled hair. He hadn't been asleep. He had been dazed.

"You took possession of my spawn?", you hissed.

Your voice echoed off the walls of the empty alley. He snorted.

"No, I didn't have to."

There was that conspiratorial glint in his eyes. Impossible. No, it couldn't be.

Lorelei had willingly let him into your house?

Protect what I can't protect, you had said to Horren. It had never occurred to you that some people didn't want to be protected.

"Lorelei...", you gasped.

Something inside you screamed and squirmed. You had thought he was a friend. Oh, how Cazador feasted on the sight of you, how the shadows writhed and shuddered as your emotions wavered.

"Did he say goodbye to you?", he asked suddenly.

Your undead heart stopped in your chest. Your eyebrows furrowed in disbelief.

"What have you done?", there was no room for confusion.

You knew of his cruelty. And you expected so much more than that.

Again the shadows drew together and this time it seemed as if the whole night wanted to devour him. But instead of being afraid of the demonstration of your power, he just chuckled.

How much mockery could one man embody?

And when was it enough to make him choke on it?

"He was sweet.", he just said, without batting an eye, not paying attention to how the dark spikes tickled the back of his neck. "He suited you. Tender and yet he resisted the inevitable to the end."

No amount of anger could have driven away the pain that his words caused in your flesh. It was as if he had broken you again just to take another piece that you would never regain.

You had loved Lorelei, though not completely and utterly. But he had been your first spawn, your first refuge from loneliness. And even after he had stopped sneaking in your bed at night, you had still wanted him close. He had been a part of you.

And once again, Cazador had simply taken it.

Your feet twitched. You took a step towards him. But suddenly your breath caught in your chest.

There it was, that familiar smell of perfume, the soft sound of hair falling over shoulders. You knew he was there even before he showed himself.

Or rather, before Cazador showed it to you. What was left of him.

Lorelei hung like a doll in Cazador's grip. He was pale, not in the way that sick people were, but in the way that only death could bring. His chin hung on his chest, his face obscured by long strands of hair while small drops of blood fell into the dirt at his drooping feet.

The dirty water of a puddle turned red.

"Oh.", murmured Cazador with feigned surprise. "I must have missed a few drops."

Lips trembled, silent accusations escaped your mouth. But all you could feel was a yawning emptiness. There was nothing. Just a fall into endless depths. And these depths overflowed with wrath.

It was no longer anger, no, it was so much more, so much colder, more brutal. Mouth wide open, you leapt forward, the shadows strengthening your muscles as you leapt straight for Cazador. Fog filled your mind.

You wanted to vomit. Yet again, you wanted to feel his blood run down your throat.

"Catch!", with a laugh, Cazador thrust the lifeless body into your arms.

Your legs faltered, stumbled, arms wide open to receive Lorelei's body. The shadows raged.

He was cold. By the absolute, your darling was so infinitely cold.

Bones pressed against your healthy flesh. It felt like you were holding a skeleton in your arms. Panting, you fell to your knees, mud and rainwater soaking your robe.

"Cazador.", you could do no more than whisper his name, your eyes wide open, madness creeping into your blush. "Give me one reason why I shouldn't kill you on the spot."

You stared at him, your face as empty as your chest. Grinning broadly, he bent down to you. A strand of his black hair stroked your face.

"It's simple, my dear Platinum.", two of his fingers caressed your cheek, just like they had done so long ago. "Because you can't bring yourself to do it."