Slam!
The entire wall shook, rocking the already unsettled mirror. One more slam, wobble, and a crash! And that very mirror was sent downward, straight into the wooden floor.
The collision shattered it entirely, sending each piece flying, scattering, and cracking against the wooden floor.
On their journey through the air and toward the ground, the shards reflected an abstract yet ominous image. One resembling the unfortunate eruption of trust.
There, in each cracked piece of glass, stood two people, and a dynamic of unequal strengths.
One terrified and trembling. He wasn't entirely pressed against the wall, but so close his blue robe brushed along it gently. But the worst of him was captured within the look of anguish that became of his eyes.
This man, Tao Hua, looked as if he were ready to fall apart at the hands of this intruder. It was safe to say our princess' state wasn't very dignified.
But when was it ever? He was slowly starting to understand that.
Within the reflection of those trembling eyes, past the peach was a complementing pair. Except these eyes were fogged in tones so ghastly and pale.
Another man, and certainly an unwelcome one.
His stature was enough to overshadow Tao Hua, towering tall and leaning inward. In comparison to the shaking mess of a princess, this intruder—this thief-- stood as still as a portrait and unwavering in his composure.
Tao Hua tried to keep himself calm, but he just couldn't. He kept choking back the tears that threatened to fall, but could only redden the rims of his eyes.
Despite his restraint, it wasn't to stop the echoing sobs. But each time he'd make a noise, they'd grow more and more muffled, almost constricting his ability to breathe.
Not entirely, however.
This was through the dangerous man's combative reaction. His slender fingers crawled over Tao Hua's mouth, pressing each tip into his cheeks and squishing them every time Tao Hua made a noise.
It only made Tao Hua's situation worse.
Even if he wanted to obey him, he couldn't stop the fear from overtaking his senses. His knees trembled and nearly gave out, saved only by the man's firm grip. Tao Hua would have dropped to the ground like a wax statue under the desert sun, had it not been for this man's strength.
Once the shattered shards settled flat, the room fell into an eerie and unwelcome quiet. The only exception to this silence was the slight interruption of heavy breaths and quiet sobs.
The man leaned his face closer to Tao Hua's, his head slowly twisting and creeping in closer and closer, enough to bounce his breath and dampen the poor man's ghostly pale cheeks.
All it took was a single sentence to break Tao Hua.
"Scream and you'll see exactly how this scenario plays out."
This warning was issued in a voice both cold and merciless. Despite how intimidating it was, there was an awfully…awfully familiar ring to it.
Except this time…it wasn't as casual as before. This was a tragic situation dressed up as a fairytale.
And Tao Hua hated it. He hated it so much; he wanted to rip this book apart more than he did with the ones his father had sent back with him.
The sultry breath tripled the closer this man got to his face, and even if Tao Hua tried to recoil, he'd just be jerked forward by this man's grip, forcing his eyes to snap open.
In a hiss subdued by restraint, the man spoke through the gritting of his bared teeth. He said, "Understood?"
Tao Hua's eyes gyrated back and forth, searching for any trace of what he once knew, before they finally settled on the man's hostile stare.
His answer was in how his heart reacted.
It finally plunged into the depths of murky water, beating a million miles per second. Left behind was the residue of a promise that held more weight than he'd ever imagined.
One that was actually a nightmare come true, contextualizing "until next time" into something more sinister.
So, without any other choice, Tao Hua nodded his head in agreement, each slow dip of his head drawn out. He wanted to just leave it hanging and declare his resignation aloud, but he knew that wasn't permitted.
And in the irony of this situation, the only thing saving him from collapsing into the mess of shards was the exact thing that nearly sent him there.
How funny it was—the one thing stabilizing Tao Hua all evening now stabilizing him against its own fucked-up actions.
Just his fucking luck.
Eyes clamped shut, he nodded more and more, increasing as the hand around his wrist pinched the skin together. It pulled at his skin so tightly, Tao Hua couldn't help but let out a groan, roughly biting his lip in an attempt to shut himself up.
He didn't like how it felt, nor did he like the metallic taste in his mouth. All he wanted to do was dissociate back into the dream and step back in time.
But for once, not even that mechanism of his worked. And it certainly didn't prevent him from whimpering worse than a dog after being caught.
Tao Hua had plenty of experience with mental anguish and had grown used to it—in fact, he expected it!
When it came to physical pain? Well, it was better to say his isolation absolutely disallowed that experience. Therefore, he just rolled his eyes upward and held his breath until his face went blue.
Given all his experience and resilience, the paradox in this situation was that he'd take the pinching over what pained him most.
This pain embedded in the little-known fact that everything this poor soul had carefully constructed all crumbled instantly. From the gifted books to the walk in the street, to the promise said with a smile during the sunset.
All of that collapsed in a single, unpleasant, and beastly stare.
Why…? he thought, bemoaning the two conflicting emotions that waned competitively in his mind. Why, why, why, why, why, why?
The man jerked Tao Hua's body forward, forcing him to widen his eyes and snapping him out of his self-deprecating thoughts.
"Good," said Lord No-Name. "Seems you still know how to listen."
He offered Tao Hua one last threatening glare before shoving him back and out of his grip. Though it was rough, Tao Hua's back hadn't exactly slammed against the wall; rather, it was only a few inches from hitting it before he caught himself.
But he was too worked up to decide whether that was intentional or not.
Steadying his breathing, Tao Hua pressed his trembling fingers against the wall, leaving trails of sweat as he tried to keep himself afloat.
But not even that was comparable to the power of Lord No-Name's grasp. Therefore, Tao just couldn't quite stay on his feet—his legs were nothing more than an unstable tree in the midst of a storm.
He watched as Lord-No Name approached the door and pulled over the latch, locking it shut. Then, he dragged a nearby chair and blocked it.
This finally made Tao Hua slowly slide down the wall and clumsily sit on the ground. His hair draped pitifully and pooled around him, trailing over each mirror shard.
But his mind only circled a single word, over and over.
Why, why, why, why, why?
Approaching the end table, Lord No-Name's eyes fell on the book. Though alluring, those very eyes looked exactly like a predator to prey.
Whywhywhywhywhy?!
He picked up one of those books, laughing darkly.
WHY?!
"What employee stays within the inner court of their employer's home? Do I look stupid to you?"
Tao Hua snapped out of his trance and stared up at Lord No-Name, watching as he trailed his fingers delicately across the book.
Neither of his question were said with the intention of receiving an answer—in fact, it sounded more like an accusation than anything, spiked with a serious case of "impatience."
And this reaction? It made Tao Hua feel more lost than he had all evening.
In an attempt to gain composure, he looked like a blind man in search of an item he dropped, patting his hands aimlessly across the floor. They travelled along as his lashes drooped, and it was clear Tao Hua was absolutely unable to process the shock.
He wasn't looking for anything—he just didn't know what to do with himself. Any attempt at trying to speak was caught in the back of his throat, and it stung worse than the shards that surrounded him.
In a shaking whisper, Tao Hua hopelessly choked, "Why?"
Luckily, his state of shock was so extreme that he hadn't started crying yet! Soon, maybe.
When the situation finally began to settle, Tao Hua felt his entire body weigh down, and all he wanted to do was crawl into his bed and not exist, safely covered under his quilt.
It was a moment before he had registered the sound of shoes pacing the room, belonging to the expression of a man hindered. When Tao Hua weakly glanced up, he saw that the frustration translated to his expression as well. Eventually, Lord No-Name paused, and after a few minutes of standing in contemplation, he dug through his sleeve and tossed something at Tao Hua.
It bounced a few times before lying flat and open. Due to his current state, it took him a moment to process what Lord No-Name had thrown at him.
When he did, his entire face contorted horrifically, and his knuckles nearly went white against the wooden floor. He felt as if his heart would completely give out at any moment.
Lying on the floor ahead of him was an item both dear and familiar to him.
His missing book.
Chapter end.
Art
Illustrations will be in the comments.