[1] HOUSE OF CROWS | Haikyuu!! (Murder of Crows) ✓

HOUSE OF CROWS | 12

Your breath caught in your throat and you felt the blood rush from your face, leaving your skin cold and numb. The others stiffened behind you when they noticed Hinata, standing in front of you with a grin on his face.

"There you are. I've been looking for you."

"Hinata," you said softly, aware of Kuroo shifting restlessly behind you, as if loosening up his muscles for a fight. Or an escape. "We're going to go and get you some help."

"You're leaving me?" He asked, taking a step forward and cocking his head to the side. Without his eyes, he looked like a puppet, moving on strings. You could smell him now, something earthy and unpleasant. Like blood, and something rotting in the earth. "But I've only just found you again."

"I know, but it isn't safe here. We need to go and-"

"No," Hinata snapped, his voice losing its childlike softness, and becoming hard, sharper than a knife. His fingers twitched at his sides, curling into claws. "You can't leave."

"[L/N], we need to go. Now," Kuroo hissed in your ear, his breath hot on your skin. You shivered, knowing he was right. The longer you stood there, vulnerable to whatever else was the forest, the more danger you were putting yourself in. 

You gave a slight, imperceptible nod of your head, and Kuroo braced behind you. "Do we run?" He asked, keeping his voice low.

"He'll chase us," Akaashi whispered back. "We need to lose him somehow."

"The house?"

"We'll just be trapping ourselves-"

"We don't have a choice," you interrupted. "We're vulnerable out here and-"

All of a sudden, the boy lunged. His teeth snapped closed with a guttural noise, and his face twisted with a sickening crack, becoming something wicked and entirely inhuman.  You spun out of the way, feeling the shadow of his hand brush against your back, then watched in horror as he went for Akaashi instead, clawing at his face with hooked fingers.

Kuroo reached him first, grabbing a fistful of Hinata's jacket and yanking him back, giving Akaashi the chance to get free. You started running back towards the house, but skidded to a stop when a second figure emerged from the darkness to block your path. 

It was the same shadow that had been standing behind Hinata before. You realised now that it was a person, or at least it had been, once. Now there was something unnatural about it, something not of flesh and blood, but rather shadow and darkness. His eyes watched you like a crow's, cold and calculating. 

"What do we do?" Tsukishima gasped as the other boys closed in around you, the four of you standing back to back. You felt like sheep in a pen, rounded up by a hunter and his dog.

Before any of you had the chance to answer, the shadow - the Crow - rushed towards you in a flurry of black movement and a sound like rustling silk. You didn't see where he went until a force hit you, square in the stomach, and you were lifted off your feet, thrown backwards into a tangle of brushwood. The cord around your neck chafed your skin, the camera itself smashing into the ground, and sharp twigs scratched at your arms and face. The cut in your shoulder began to bleed again, filling your mouth and nose with the smell of iron.

"[L/N]!" Kuroo yelled, and you heard heavy footsteps rush toward you. You pulled yourself up, struggling to find purchase amid the tangle of wood, and hissed a sharp breath as pain coursed up your arm. Kuroo dropped beside you, his eyes wide. "Can you stand?"

You nodded stiffly, digging your fingers into his shoulder and bracing yourself against him as you struggled to your feet. Each breath burned your lungs, and you could feel a pressure growing behind your eyes, blotting your vision. When you glanced around, you saw the Crow had disappeared, but Hinata was still stood there, watching you with a crooked smile. 

"Where did he go?" Akaashi was saying, looking around him with a frenzied panic.

"I don't know. He just disappeared."

"We need to get out of here, before he comes back."

"You're not thinking of leaving just yet, are you?" Hinata said, but nothing about him was familiar anymore. There was a guttural edge to his voice, warping it into something sinister. This wasn't the same boy you had come here with, and you realised with a shudder that you wouldn't be leaving with him either. 

"I don't know who or what you are," you said, walking towards him with your arm cradled to your chest, "but we're getting out of here. And you aren't going to hurt anyone else." The broken camera hung limply from your neck, and you unhooked the strap, tossing it to the side. You wouldn't be needing it anymore anyway. 

Hinata's smile widened, stretching the skin around his mouth. "Is that so?"

Someone gave a strangled yell behind you, and you spun to see Kuroo dangling almost a foot from the ground, shadowy hands wrapped tihgtly around his throat. The Crow was stood behind him, shadows swirling around his body, fluttering like black feathers.

"No," you cried breathlessly. "Let him go!"

Kuroo's skin was turning a fierce shade of red, and the veins stood out from his head and neck as he thrashed his legs uselessly, scratching at the inhuman hands wrapped around his neck. 

The realisation that Kuroo was going to die if you didn't do something spurred you into action. Grabbing the shattered camera from the ground, you ran towards Kuroo and, clutching the strap, swung it at the Crow's head. The creature moved at the last moment, tossing the boy to the ground and spinning away in a flutter of shadow and feathers. You reached Kuroo's crumpled form and hoisted him to his feet. His head lolled backwards, and his eyes were half-lidded, unseeing. You gave his face a gentle slap, something lodging in your throat when you saw the bruises around his neck, already turning a deep shade of purple. "Kuroo, stay with me," you urged, giving his shoulders a rough shake. "I know you're hurt, but you need to stay awake and get moving. We need to get to the house, okay?"

He nodded weakly, and you could see him fighting to stay awake. He went to reach for his throat, but you caught his hand instead, shocked at how cold his skin was. "Come on, Kuroo. I need you to keep moving."

Hearing a grunt, and the sound of something heavy hitting the ground, you looked behind you and saw Tsukishima on his back, locked in a struggle with Hinata. The small boy was trying to scratch Tsukishima's face, but the other had his arms locked in a fierce grip. Akaashi ran to help him, but you called him back.

"Akaashi! Help Kuroo into the house," you shouted. "I'll help Tsukishima. Find somewhere safe to hide. We'll find you."

Akaashi took Kuroo's weight from you without a word, both of them stumbling towards the open door. Kuroo glanced back with a wince, and his eyes found yours, shining like a flame in the night. Then they disappeared into the mouth of the house.