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Weightlessness welcomed Nyx’s senses when her eyes slowly opened to an unfamiliar room. The soft cushion of the bed under her gives slightly as she slowly sits up, her hand coming up to rest on her head, eyes closing as the throbbing behind her eyes lessens as her feet meet plush carpet. Blinking her eyes open as the throb dulls to a slight ache, she lifts her head to take in the warm lit room she’s in.
A fireplace is ignited on the other side of her bed behind her, marble stone in black and silver making up the shape as the embers dance, alive and burning brightly. Her gaze turns to the bed, silk red sheets meet her fingers as she drags them across the material, cool and soft that extends far outside her reach. The room itself is gargantuan. The doorway to the bedroom reached three times her small, human height of five feet four inches. Pristine white makes up the door frame, the ornate wood of the door itself having an eye carved into it with meticulous shapes all around it, captivating her for a good moment.
Standing up slowly, she finds her strength a bit weaker than she expected, her focus now shifting to how big the bed was, as sitting on it did not do it justice. It was easily at least two king sized beds all as one entity, the frame of the bed a rich and sturdy wood of a color she can’t quite make out with the light from the fire and the darkness reaching the corners elsewhere.
Running her fingers through her hair, she’s perplexed by a lack of matting or knots as is typical of her when she wakes up. Humming thoughtfully she turns her focus to her clothes, hoping something remained normal about this situation, relief flooding her when the floor length red and black dress she laid down in had remained unbothered save for a few wrinkles. Pursing her lips in thought, her gaze turns back to the door.
The wood has a heavy weight to it, the golden knob twisting freely as she pushes the door open with as much strength she can muster. The scent of fresh dew grass and flowers invades Nyx’s senses, her eyes widening at the stunning view before her. A garden stretched almost as wide as she could see, the peak of walls at the edge as her feet grew cold on the grass with her first steps outside the room she was in. Butterflies flutter, dancing gracefully around the flowers, small beads of light giving the ethereal view a small light flow as fireflies join the butterflies in their eternal dance. Stepping cautiously so as to not crush any flowers, Nyx feels a sense of lightness, freedom as a butterfly lands on her nose, making her giggle.
“Thoust awakens,” breaches the tender moment, startling Nyx to snap her gaze to her right, where she heard the voice. Her eyes shimmering in the moonlight casting through the windows as she finally understands that she is not alone.
He was taller than she would’ve expected, but that didn’t mean much seeing as she doesn’t even know how she got here or who he is. His flowy shadow-like garb catches her eye as the figure stands from his place amongst flowers, a butterfly on his finger. The butterfly lingers on its perch a moment longer before taking to the space around them, back to its fellow insectoids. Tension weighs on Nyx’s chest, uncertain from where this feeling stems from as her only other company breaches the distance between them, now close enough for her to touch should she risk it.
“Yes,” she mumbles softly, her hands resting at her side, nervously gripping the edges of her dress. Her gaze flickers to the crown on his head, everything in her mind screaming at her to show her respects, in which she follows with a deep bow that makes the figure before her hum pleasantly.
“This pleases mu,” the figure hums, extending a hand to delicately brush the hair from her face, letting her eyes linger on him a moment longer. “Didst thou rest well?”
The feeling inside Nyx shifts, the tension she feels lessening at how tender his touch is on her, her eyes flickering to his fingers that delicately twirl her long silver hair. She holds her bow for another beat of her heart, slowly rising to stand more properly before him.
“I did,” she exhales, her eyes fixating on the red depths that were his. “I don’t mean to be improper but… who… are you?”
His eyes curl slightly, a sign of a smile at her simple and harmless question that would find anyone else beheaded and dead at his feet. His fingers drag from her hair to gently tilt her chin up, his thumb grazing her bottom lip tenderly, reverently, pleasantly surprised at how well she was taking to his presence.
“My name is Imu, King of this World,” his response is simple, a harmless introduction that has him watch her eyes flicker curiously as she ponders the revelation.
Her fingers tremble slightly, the worry she’d been too brash, too comfortable in greeting him weighing on her for a moment. To her knowledge no such being existed. The infamous Empty Throne was supposed to be just that, empty. Her eyes flicker from his touch to his gaze, sensing his impatience for her response hammering her heart in her chest.
“King of the World? I am honored to make your acquaintance then,” she ducks her head, lowering herself to the dirt to bow before him. Her hair untangles from his fingers, leaving his touch empty and hollow at how deeply she regarded his status, no doubt sensing the threat his name carried.
“Thou needn’t bow before mu, thou is mu’s honored guest,” her eyes flinch, her mind racing with countless thoughts at the implication behind his words.
“Honored guest? To a King such as yourself?” She risks a glance upwards, shocked to see that Imu has kneeled before her, now at equal eye level with her when her gaze meets his.
“Indeed. Mu has spent a very long time seeking thou out. Thou are of great importance to mu,” his fingers tenderly find her hair again, Nyx noticing how soft his eyes are once the connection is reestablished.
The memory hits Nyx like a truck. Her family, the laughter echoing off the walls of a small and cozy home by the fireplace. She remembers blood curdling screams as her home is engulfed by flames, her family still inside. A mistake on her father's part to not extinguish the fireplace before bed. Her heart hammer, hollow, cold as she closes her eyes at the memory.
“How did I end up here? Last I remember my home burned down,” she admits thoughtfully, following Imu's guidance when he takes her hands with such tender reverence, helping her stand up properly.
A tentacle sprouts from under his garbage, dusting her off and smoothing down the dress adorning her figure. She blinks as the tentacle disappears back under the cloak, a dust on her cheeks as she feels his gaze become sheepish when she finally looks at him again.
“Mu had assistance in locating you. You were found collapsed outside your home, the rubble still smoldering in flames,” her gaze flickers off to the side, finding solace and comfort from the admission he hadn't just swooped in and kidnapped her. The stress from seeing her life be burned away must've been too much for her.
“I understand, thank you Imu,” she says softly, her eyes heavy as thoughts circle her mind like a fish hunting for bait, something to latch on to.
Her gaze slowly meets his again, a soft gasp escaping her lips at how close Imu is, his curiosity of her bleeding off in waves. Deep ocean blue eyes meet the infernal embers of his, her hands still in his. Warm, sturdy, comforting.
“Cute…” she mumbles more for herself than anything, blushing furiously when he blinks at her in response.
“Cute? Didst thou call mu… cute?” Pulling her hands from his to cover her cheeks, embarrassed that something so unfiltered would escape her usual composure so easily.
“I apologize Lord Imu, I spoke out of turn, please understand, I meant no disrespect I just-”
Imu's finger suddenly pressed against her lips, effectively silencing her. Her eyes are wide as his gaze seems to absorb everything he can. Flushed cheeks, soft hair flowing freely in the brief bit of wind from an open window, pale skin glimmering under moonlight as her eyes stare at him in worry.
“Mu finds thou ‘cute’ as well,” his finger pulls from her lips, his hand lowering to take hers again, gazing at one another as if tension was a thing of the past.
Her fingers curl into his palm, feeling the steady thrum of his heart beating and she feels her heart skip a beat at how receptive he is to her touch, her thumb delicately smoothing the skin under her fingertips.
“Lord Imu, I apologize for the interruption, it's urgent,” breaks the tender moment between the two, Nyx immediately notices a woman with blue hair and heterochromic eyes standing a few feet away from them.
Remembering she is before a literal King, she lowers her head and pulls her hands away to recline back into herself. Any confidence she had a moment ago fracturing under the presence of a new person. Imu gently tilts her head up, a softness to the gesture before he pulls back to regard the female.
“Mu will be present momentarily, Gunko, thou may leave,” the woman casts Nyx a curious look as she turns away, stepping down a long hallway at the far left side of the room.
“I wasn't meaning to be so comfortable with you, Lord Imu,” she follows the woman named Gunko's example, referring to Imu with more honorifics to respect him. A sound of displeasure reaches her ears, making her lift her head at his eyes, lidding in seeming disappointment.
“Thou needn't regard mu so strictly, mu has no intention of punishing thous comfort,” Imu reaches over, running a hand through her hair with a tenderness she could only dream of from the romance novels she'd read all her life.
“Thou is mu's queen, and thou would be respected as such,” wait what?