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The room was dark, not even any moonlight coming through her window. She was staring out the window of her bedroom, which sat open, a breeze blowing in the curtains. She watched the silhouette on the other side, standing on the roof below. Her hands shook, trembled, as the figure climbed over the window sill and stepped over her couch. Everything about them seemed familiar. Their hair that was always a mess, the same hoodie they always wore, the baggy jeans that looked like they didn’t even fit. It was their face that scared her.
The soft crimson she was so fond of was clouded over, she could swear it looked grey. Their smile wasn’t the one she grew up alongside. While their bangs had always fallen into their eyes, the way they did right now was nothing short of unsettling. She could see their eyes glowing faintly through their unkempt bangs, and that didn't make any sense to her either. They were human. Human eyes didn't glow. Their smile slowly morphed into an inhuman grin, stretching across their face in a way she didn't even think to be possible. Then they spoke.
“Noelle. Sweet little Noelle. An angel. A huntress.” Their voice was raspy and cold. It sent a chill down her spine. It wasn't their voice. It couldn't be. They continued. “Why do you cower away from me? Why are you backing up? Are you not grateful for the gift I've given you?” Noelle tried to make a run for the door, but they were in front of her instantly. They lifted her hand, the one with the ring, and intertwined their fingers. The pressure of their hand shoved the thorns further into her finger. “I've only done what I had to do to make you stronger, Noelle. What Kris couldn't do themself. They weren't willing to do what was necessary to protect you, but I was. Aren't you grateful? Why haven't you thanked me yet?”
Noelle tried to pry her hand away from them, her breathing unsteady. Their voice was getting more desperate. Kris never spoke this much, and they never spoke to her in this way either. She was well aware this wasn't them, but it was still spine chilling to hear them speak to her in a voice that wasn't quite theirs. It was Kris’ voice, but it also wasn't. They spoke of themself in third person, spoke in a tone that didn't match. She wanted to hear Kris’ voice again. She wanted to be far away from whoever this thing was. This thing that had been the one to make her do such awful things. They had been the one to whisper into her ear… Proceed. Proceed. Proceed . They had been the one in her room hours earlier, forcing that ring onto her finger all the while she couldn't move a muscle. She couldn't even close her eyes or turn her gaze away. All she had been able to do was watch as they backed her into a corner of the couch, lifted her hand, and slid the thorn ring onto her finger. Oh Angel, it had hurt. It still hurt. Every time she would move her finger, another thorn would find a new place to pierce her skin. The bleeding never stopped. The wound was constantly reopened. She wanted it to stop.
Kris, or whatever was occupying their body, pressed closer against Noelle. They were leaning towards her face, their breath hot against her fur. She squeezed her eyes shut, trying desperately not to break down into tears. This wasn’t Kris. She wasn’t safe here. Not to break down, not to cry, not to do anything. All she could do was try to fight against them in whatever way she could, but so far that was proving to do nothing for her.
“Kris was weak , Noelle. Don’t you understand that? This was what they wanted, but they were too scared to follow through. They’re a coward . I did this for you .” They moved Kris’ other hand to her shoulder, digging their nails into her. She tried so desperately to flinch away, to escape their grasp, but this thing was gripping her as if they would die if they let go.
“Let… Let go of me…” Noelle’s voice was weak, unstable. She opened her eyes just enough to see them through her lashes. For a second, a light flashed through their eyes. Through Kris’ eyes. They were still in there, and they didn’t want to do this to her. A look of pain and regret flashed across their face, but just as quickly as it had appeared, it was gone, and their nails were once again digging into Noelle’s shoulder. She could feel tears burning at the back of her eyes as nails pierced the skin beneath her fur, little bits of blood pooling to the surface. “ Please , you aren’t…”
Their grip only tightened after she spoke. Their gaze got colder, more piercing. A part of Noelle, one she was growing to hate, almost found the look thrilling. Maybe even enjoyable. She bit her tongue, hoping they wouldn’t notice. She had to be losing her mind. Maybe it was the constant stream of blood coming from her finger. It did feel as though her head was spinning.
The thing occupying Kris’ body started to grow more desperate, shaking Noelle a bit as it spoke. “Do you not see it? Do you not see what I’m doing?” The hand that had been holding her own moved to her other shoulder, leaving Noelle feeling relieved for just a moment before their head fell to her shoulder. “I don’t understand. Why are all of you fighting it? I’m saving you. You can protect yourself now. You’re stronger now. Kris wanted this. Kris wanted to protect you. Like this, you’ll be protected. Don’t you see that?” There was a strain in their voice now. It was getting raspier, torn, like they were fighting to say each word. Noelle could almost hear tears behind everything they said as well. It hurt. All of this hurt. She could sense Kris in there. She could see them in those empty grey eyes. They were in there, watching all of this play out, helpless. What could she do?
Noelle slowly lowered herself to the floor, Kris’ body following her down. She knelt there with their hands still gripping her shoulders. They were still staring into her. She didn’t have to look up to know that, but if she had, she would see that their eyes were quivering. Twitching. One of their eyes was growing red again, but it was muted. Cold. It wasn’t a gentle crimson. Noelle bunched up the ends of her cardigan in her fists, staring at her lap with a terrified gaze. She couldn’t breathe, at least not well. Her breaths were shaky and uneven, her throat felt tight, her chest was heavy even though she was sitting up right. More than anything, she was scared.
“You’re… Hurting me. Let go.” She tried to keep her voice stable, to seem stronger than whatever was in front of her. She was well aware it wasn’t working. Despite that, the grip still loosened and their hands came down to hold her own instead. It had been so long since Kris had held her hands. She was almost comforted by it. She almost wanted to turn her hands over to hold them back, but she knew better. This wasn’t Kris. This was some other entity occupying their body, stealing it from them.
Even so, would it be wrong to indulge? She missed their embrace. She missed the comfort they once gave her when they were kids. This thing was holding her hands gently, sitting there and watching her struggle to breathe. They were acting violently toward her, speaking desperately. They were unstable and dangerous. She knew that, of course she did, but right now they were different. Right now they were sitting there quietly, the way Kris used to. They were letting her feel, letting her process, giving her a moment to calm down. Those were all things Kris did when they were younger, things she missed. Kris had to still be in there, right? Part of these actions had to be Kris, so would it be so wrong to enjoy them as if it was them?
She looked up, and her entire body shook with dread. They were smiling. Grinning from ear to ear, a smile stretched as it had been when they first came through the window. Their eyes were grey, empty. Barely even visible through her bangs. That wasn’t an expression a human should be able to make.
“I can hear you, Noelle…” Her blood ran cold. She hadn’t said a word, yet this chilling voice claimed to hear her. It was even colder than before, sinister almost. “You get it now, don’t you? Kris is still here. Kris wants this. Kris wants you to be stronger. You realize it now, right? Right? ” They got louder with each word, leaning closer. They were practically breathing down her neck now, gripping her hands so tightly she feared her bones would crack. Could this thing hear her thoughts? Could it tell what she was thinking, that she had begun to have some hope that Kris was there? That she had considered giving in? That was horrifying to consider, especially as it gripped her hands even tighter with every question she thought of. That only served as confirmation of that fear.
Her breath, that had finally steadied, began to shake again. Her hands were trembling in their grasp, held so tightly that her fingers were being pressed into her palms. She could feel the thorns of her ring dragging and tearing at her hands, the blood pooling and staining her fur and cardigan. It hurt. Why were they hurting her if they were claiming so strongly to be doing what was best for her? Her eyes were wide, terrified, as they stared at her. She kept leaning back, and they would lean further. They were practically propped over her. She hated this situation. She hated how desperately she wished this moment was something else, something less terrifying, that she was looking at Kris , pressed so closely to them, instead of a stolen vessel of a body. She felt disgusting for even imagining it, and even more so when the body’s chilling grin turned into something sickeningly smug.
They moved their hands away from hers, finally giving her the chance to pull the thorn ring away from her palm with a wince, and placed those hands on either side of her instead. “Didn’t I tell you?” Their voice dripped with something that disgusted her, a taunting tone that made her wish she had the strength, even the will, to push them away from her and run. “Everything I do is for you. For Kris. I wouldn’t be here if they didn’t want me to be. Why…” Their entire tone shifted, their expression dropping to one of confused sorrow. She felt her own gaze soften in return. “Why don’t you understand that…?”
Noelle felt her body relax against her will, while her stomach conversely twisted. She didn’t know what the right thing to feel was. This wasn’t Kris, but she could feel them. She could hear them shining through in ways. She shouldn’t be. She hated it. She felt sick to her stomach thinking about how easily she felt her resolve shaking, how unwilling her body was to move and get away from the vessel in front of her. Why did things have to be so complicated? Why couldn’t they be kids again? Noelle missed the laughing, and the games, and the pranks. She missed everything that made Kris Kris . She missed all the little things that made them Kris and Noelle. The duo, the pair. Best friends.
She felt a hand rest against her cheek and immediately flinched back, the terror back in her eyes. “Don’t… Don’t touch…” She could barely get her words out. She glanced back into the eyes of the vessel, seeing– …Red? Wait, red? She leaned forward without thinking, a subconscious act to get closer to what had to be a sign. “Kris? Kris, please, is that–” The red was already gone. Their eyes were a clouded grey void once again.
“Sorry, they seem to be fighting me!” The vessel leaned back with a laugh. It was sharp, cold. That life stabbed into her chest and pierced her lungs. It was nothing like theirs. “I wonder why they would do that?”
She was scared. Angel, she couldn’t even remember the last time she had been this scared. The night Dess went missing? That was seven years ago now. What was she supposed to do here? How was she supposed to deal with this? How was anyone supposed to react to learning that some entity had taken over the body of their childhood best friend, who they hadn’t properly spoken with in years?
Their body leaned closer again, and once more they were only a breath away. Kris could be so close to her now if it weren’t for whatever entity was trying to force itself between them. She couldn’t help but wonder, though, would this have happened? Kris wouldn’t have talked to her again, surely. She would have been left wondering for years what had happened.
She noticed their hand placed back on her cheek, looking to see red eyes once again. “I’m sorry, Noelle…” It was them. Their voice. It was quiet, but it was warm. She didn’t get to say anything in response before they pushed themself off the ground and backed away from her. She could see pain in their eyes as they shook their head, holding it as if they were fighting a headache.
She watched in silence as they climbed back through her window, sparing only a quick glance back over their shoulder before jumping to the tree they always used to climb down from her room. She only stood there, staring out the window. A breeze blew in, blowing her hair around her face. A chill filled the air, and she instinctively held her hand against her chest, hiding the thorn ring.
She wondered if that thing could still hear her. She hoped they couldn’t. She wished Kris would.