ON HOLD [] Hearts of gold [] Hunter TOH x Reader

Chapter 31 - Y/N's pov

 While we were at the mall Hunter had gotten a book about the witch hunters of Gravesfield, nobody other than Camila and I knew about it, since Camila had paid for it. That night, I was in my sleeping bag, suddenly I jolted awake. Another dream. Hunter had been there but like in one of the dreams I'd had before, his eyes were blue, and empty. Then there was the green Belos creature. And Flapjack. Flapjack had become nothing but a bunch of floating bulbs of light, and was surrounded by other bulbs of light. Magenta ones. A stabbing pain in my chest had woken me up, but it was gone as soon as I awoke. I turned to check on Hunter but........he was gone. I glanced to the couch, Gus was there, asleep, but Hunter's sleeping bag was open, with no sign of him. I put on a pair of slippers and walked up the stairs carefully. I started walking down the hallway, and noticed a light on in one of the rooms going off of the dark hallway. I went closer to investigate, just outside the door was a few tufts of......blonde hair? I pushed the door the rest of the way open. The room was a bathroom, Hunter stood in front of the sink with a pair of scissors in his hands, he was cutting his hair, an anxious look on his face. He glanced up and noticed me.

"You know, three in the morning isn't exactly an ideal time for a do-it-yourself haircut" I said, before saying, "Are you....okay?"

"Fine, I'm fine!" Hunter said, I could see his hands shaking, and the fear in his eyes.

I hugged him "You suck at lying. What's wrong?"

Hunter sat down his head in his hands, I sat down beside him.

"I looked in the mirror and...." Hunter paused "I dunno. I just......I just looked so much like Caleb, and Belos."

"I think that........who they were........in your case, shouldn't matter." I said

"What.......do you mean?" Hunter asked

"I think what matters is who you are, and what you do for yourself. This is your life, not either of theirs" I said, wrapping an arm around him

He nodded, and wiped a tear our of his eye "You're right. But also my hair is kind of a mess now" He smiled sheepishly

"A shame too. I thought long hair looked cute on you." I said "Gimme the scissors, and I'll see what I can do."

Hunter handed me the pair of scissors and I started cutting his hair, keeping the cuts straight and even. He'd already cut off the cute little strand of hair that usually hung into his face. Caleb had it too, and I suspected that it was the first thing that Hunter cut off. Once i'd finished, I set the scissors down on the sink and let Hunter look in the mirror.

"I know it kinda sucks." I murmured "I...............did my best"

Hunter smiled "No, it, looks really great!" his words sounded genuine, and I of all people knew how bad he was at lying. ((A/N - I find it funny how she can see through every lie that he's ever told except for the whole 'I know nothing about the emperor's plans to make me golden guard' thing))

I kissed his cheek lightly "Glad you like it. Now lets go back downstairs before anyone gets worried."

"Actually maybe we could.....go for another walk?" Hunter asked

It was actually a good idea, I was pretty awake by now, a walk could get me tired again.

"Okay" I agreed.

I shut off the light and we slipped out the back door. The pathway went straight to the woods. Something about them....drew me towards it. Nostalgia I suppose. I walked, Hunter's hand grasped in mine. The woods were slightly dark, but the full moon illuminated most of the terrain. I glanced around. If I was correct, the creek should be running nearby. I heard the soft tricking of water, and could see the shimmer of the moonlight against the creek. For a moment Hunter and I just stood their, hands linked, watching the creek flow past. I remembered the night of the emperor's ball, sure it had been awful after the emperor's announcement, but the dance I'd shared with Hunter, after I'd admitted to myself that yes, I liked him. This time I was the one to reach out a nervous hand.

"Wanna dance?" I asked, anxiety pulsed through me, I didn't know why, I just was afraid of being rejected for some reason.

"Of course, m'lady" Hunter said, a small grin resting on his blushing face.

This time, instead of standing apart, I held Hunter close as we swayed side to side. I thought back to the times I thought I'd lost him. There was when I'd find out that he'd lied about the emperor's intention to make him golden guard. Sure, at that point I hadn't physically lost him, but I'd lost, for a time, the connection I felt with him. There was the time in the emperor's mind, when the emperor sucked him into the ground. I'd felt such.....immeasurable guilt, that what I had thought the last thing I did to him was be cruel and mean. And then there was the time on the day of unity when Gus had cast the illusion to switch Hunter and Luz. I was so afraid of what the emperor would do to him, without me there to protect him. And then later that day, when the draining spell activated, we'd both been affected by the cracks burning from our sigils. I thought that we would die that day, but here we were. He was here now, and I was with him, dancing beneath the moonlight. Eventually, we let go, and stared up at the stars for a moment. I cast a spell circle, the light that normally emitted lightly from the circle had grown dimmer than usual, there wasn't magic here. My harmonica dropped from it. I began playing a quiet tune. The peaceful aura that usually cast when I played wasn't there, and few things around me floated into the air, even the things that did float were still low to the ground. I stopped the tune.

"There isn't much magic here" I murmured

Hunter wrapped an arm around me "Well the song is still beautiful"

I nodded a bit "But that magic is almost a part of me....I just don't........feel myself, like when the owl lady took my magic."

I looked to Hunter, he didn't say anything,

"Oh sorry" I murmured "I forgot."

"No it's fine, I just.....wouldn't know what it feels like" Hunter said

Suddenly, just like they had while we were escaping the emperor's mind, images of a woman flashed through my mind. The one who looked like myself. Was that her standing with Caleb? I didn't know....everything flashed by so fast.... I squeezed my eyes shut, but the images kept flashing, they seemed so close, so familiar, yet completely new.

When I opened my eyes I'd returned to the present, Hunter was looking at me, anxiety on his face.

"Are you alright?" he asked

The memories still sat in my mind, like a fresh wound. My breathing sped up, into short gasps, who was she? Why did she look like me? Suddenly I ached to know more about my past, who I was. And if.....

Tears ran down my face....I couldn't be. It wasn't true. My magenta eyes......just like Hunter's.....just like......a grimwalker.

I heard Hunter saying my name, anxiety sat in his voice, but he sounded so far away. The thought that I was the woman who I'd seen. That she used to be me.....the thoughts started to come together. The parents that were always cold and distant. Not my real parents. Just the people who'd created me in some lab. I wasn't real. Encouraging Hunter about being a grimwalker had seemed so easy, but now I was so scared, so ashamed, feeling so.....outcast. I put my head in my hands.....this couldn't be happening. It felt so hard to breathe, like the world was so distant, and I was just.......alone with my thoughts.

Finally, Hunter's voice, calling my name was able to break into my thoughts. I felt more.....conscious now. I felt the tears sitting on my eyes, and staining my face, the tightness in my chest. I looked at him. For a moment I just stared into his eyes. The eyes that matched the color of a grimwalker. The color that matched mine. And I, who matched....whoever that woman was. After the moment of....sitting and staring, I hugged him, leaning my face on his shoulder, occasionally twitching with a silent sob.

I felt him wrap his arms around me. He didn't say anything, almost like a quiet understanding that I just......didn't have the mental strength to talk right now. 

((A/N - okay so uhm. OML I'VE BEEN WAITING TO RELEASE THIS FOR SO LONG HOLY CRAP-

GET PLOT TWISTED SUCKAAAAAAAAA))