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The high walls of the castle echoed with footsteps that were never supposed to be there. In retrospect, it had probably been a bad idea to split up once they had arrived.
Sure, he had not had any chances to practice any of his military training while at the Human Realm, but this was basic strategy. While it was better to have backup in case any of them encountered any threats, with no way to communicate it should have been entirely off the table.
Hunter shook off his head at the familiar sound of wings moving behind him. Every time it broke his heart to notice it being a faint buzzing instead of his friend's flapping, but what could he do? Willow probably had sent Clover out of concern, if the palisman hadn't followed him out of their own will. As much as it broke his heart, it was not the time to curl up into a ball and mourn, at least not until the Isles were safe.
He knew the castle like the palm of his hand, and yet, the Collector had wrecked it enough that even he struggled with finding his way to the hall from wherever they had landed. At least he trusted in Luz's experience with all her antics to guide the group.
The palisman behind him made a noise, trying to tell him something. He didn’t quite understand Clover as clearly as he had grown to understand Emmeline yet, but what he could make out only lit up his insides with a kind of empty rage that had become all too familiar to him during the past few days.
Angrily, he half-mumbled in response. “So what if I wanted to be alone? It’s not as if being with someone or alone made a difference anyway. Besides, I’m much better at exploring on my own.”
More echoing footsteps followed his every move. Had the hallways always been this loud? Maybe his walk had simply become louder.
WIthout his palisman or staff to hold on to, his arms felt weirdly out of place. He wasn’t used to simply walking around without carrying anything, especially without being able to have an attack on hold for protection. Childishly, he reached into his pocket, hoping to find-
It wasn’t there. Of course it wasn’t there, he had taken it out the previous night at the Noceda’s. Stupidly thinking nothing would happen if he left it.
Hunter mentally scolded himself. Holding on to a drawing like a small child, what was he thinking? He hadn’t done that even as a kid. It was better off like this. Who knew what Darius would think if he knew about everything? Shyly drawing him when his friends drew their families, keeping the drawing in his pocket out of most likely well-deserved embarrassment- Even after the sewing lessons, why would it make sense to draw him of all people?
He shook his head once again. It was not the time to be thinking about… Well, all that. With his mind now empty, the buzzing of Clover’s wings grew far louder than it was comfortable for him. Titan, everything felt wrong. The sound of his steps, the way his arms dangled around pointlessly, the incessant buzzing of the palisman behind him- He used to know every little detail about the castle. Now, it was as foreign as his skin felt.
At least the uncomfortability of his surroundings was enough to put him back into alert.
The hallways felt unusually long, making him wonder if perhaps the Collector had somehow altered the structure of the place. However, he was still familiar with it enough to recognize a turn that would lead him to one of the smaller halls.
Stealthily, he signaled Clover to become quieter, hoping it was possible for the tiny palisman. Making his stride slower, he instinctively raised his arms and curled his fists into a fighting stance, at the ready for any indication of movement.
Hunter’s fighting stance became completely useless as he approached into the light, internally frozen with confusion. His body moved almost automatically as his brain tried to make any sort of sense out of what he was seeing.
The familiar cut of the fabric was uncanny to see, almost horrifying. A set of somewhat familiar figures, all so still and so lifeless-
“D-Darius?”
His voice felt weak as he turned queasy, distraught enough not to even notice the approaching sounds of mixed voices and stomping.
“...get him out of here-”
“...just breathe…”
One, two-
“...someone’s coming!”
“Hunter, we need to go-”
Suddenly, he felt as stiff as the puppets looked.