William Holloway

I'm a devil in disguise

There was something distinctly degrading about being dismissed in the way that the Fae Monarch had done, particularly as it occurred in front of Sebastian. While William's titles of nobility were truly long gone, along with all the flourishes and social graces that came with them, a world in which he was not the highest ranked man in the room was a world he had not yet navigated with Sebastian. His friendship with Sebastian was so tightly wrapped in memories of those days at court when William's birthright made his thoughts, opinions, and feelings something to be heard and respected. How odd it was for the Englishman to be dismissed as if he were trash to be thrown out or a stray cat with fleas that should be taken to the pound, and yet that was exactly what the Italian King had done to him. His words were certainly not to be messed with or argued with. There were few people who had ever talked to William this way, and surprisingly, the Hunter's demeanor remained calm until the distinct sound of a door closing down the hall indicated that the fae's presence was no longer given to him.

A million emotions seemed to overwhelm William all at once. The façade of courtly niceties disappearing almost instantly as he spoke. Had the anger not gotten the better of them, he might not have mentioned it at all. Sebastian, of course, would not be oblivious to the other Cavendish male that held his precious titles, and yet the kindness that had always shined out of his most cherished companion would ring through. Even if those honors were not William's to claim any longer, the Duke would always be given the full extent of his birthright where Sebastian was concerned. He had thought - though his sanity was guessing perhaps incorrectly - that their friendship was stronger than any rules of court or politics. He had thought, once, that William might be more important in the end game than whoever Sebastian would ultimately marry. After all, that person was meant to be his sister, and even if William adored his sister, the Dukedom and friendship would certainly prevail over that. But William had not considered that Sebastian would marry for love over duty, or that his spouse would be of such high rank. And William had certainly never considered that his spouse wouldn't like William! When he was with Sebastian, those years of being wanted and hunted and despised faded away and William was the man he felt inside: kind, generous, funny, human. That Dorian saw him for who he really was, or at least sensed whatever it was about him that had made him react so strongly, was heartbreaking for the Hunter.

And worse was that Sebastian hadn't defended him, at least not really.

He'd never wanted Sebastian to know him as William Holloway, the murderer. He wanted to forever be the Cavendish boy that the former Earl had loved so much. And yet his surname slipped from his lips in that hateful tone, his words cutting like knives as he laid out all the feelings that he'd felt in that room. The first time in his many adventures with Sebastian that William felt small. William's emotions stirred that madness within him and the more he spoke, the less he felt the control that this situation warranted. Four years ago, when he'd first reunited with Sebastian, he might have had a better control over the lunacy within him. But after four years of sitting in a cell worried about his friends life and four years of near daily use of his power... the Duke had no such claims to control over his own mind. It was fractured - perhaps beyond repair.

The words that Sebastian offered as a plea to calm William down fell upon deaf ears. The Hunter was far too gone to comprehend the compassion in those words, let alone to understand them at all. Somewhere deep down, William was aware of Sebastian talking, but the words sounded garbled and far away. Somewhere deep down, William was screaming for Sebastian to get away from him. Those last words that left his mouth broke the final pieces of William's control, the human side of him effectively disappearing with the appearance of his signature blades within his hands. In any other situation, it might have been funny that the purple energy of his power took the form of the Cavendish blade he'd always cherished - especially given that he had so effectively relinquished his rights to the surname. But this was not a normal situation, and locked inside the Dark Hunter's mind was that Cavendish boy screaming that that was his friend. But the psychopath that had seized control of the Englishman's body did not know the man that stood before him - and certainly did not know that he was something William would want to protect.

It happened in a matter of seconds. The sound of his blade ripping through the desk hardly placated the Ripper. Sebastian's body was shoved against the dark row of bookcases and the dagger was stabbed into the side of the vampire, with no regard for the human soul other than the instinct to kill. At the connection of his own eyes with Sebastian, there was... something. A glimpse of recognition. A tiny bit of sanity. The part of William that knew him screaming desperately to stop, stop, stop!. William pulled the dagger from the vampire's side, the blades disappearing as he reached out to catch the vampire as he fell forward. Sebastian's body made contact with William's own for a mere second before another being suddenly existed in the confined space and the Dark Hunter was hurled across the space and into the opposing wall, the force of the impact knocking the wind out of the man - and some cracks of his sanity back in.

For a moment, time seemed to slow down. The influx of people in the room came with a flurry of sounds - but nothing seemed to make sense to William. His head pulsated with pain - the kind of pain that William knew well to come after his power faded from his body. In the next moments that followed, William struggled to remember what he had been doing. He'd been in his cell... they'd come to get him? No, that wasn't quite right. He'd escaped. He'd been with...

No. Oh. Oh no no no. No!

The realization hit him suddenly, and in that moment, William wished he were dead.

He had been with Sebastian. Dorian had... and they were fighting. And he was angry. And...

He looked up and saw Sebastian's blood on the hands of a faerie. Blood that that faerie had not caused.

"Sebas-!" His words were cut off by the Fae, instructions barked out to remove the fool from the room. To remove him. William's lips parted slightly with the intention to inform whoever was speaking that he wouldn't hurt anyone, he swore. He hadn't meant to... He would never hurt Sebastian... And yet no words came. Because William had hurt Sebastian. William had tried to kill him. But that hadn't been him, had it? That wasn't... He loved Sebastian. He'd never... He...

He wanted to die. He wanted to end this suffering and end his own life and go back to a place where Sebastian was safe and alive and happy. Sebastian had been perfectly content only hours ago before the demon that was William had arrived. And now he was... oh God, was he dead?

In the midst of the chaos, William had not focused on any voice until a hand was placed upon his shoulder and he was hauled to his feet. His gaze looked up, locking face with one he knew well. He'd met Alexander once, and in a fit of stubbornness, he had turned down the offer to be aided by the elder Hunter. He'd thought about it often during his imprisonment. The council knows well to leave me and mine alone. Those had been the words he had once offered William, and he had been too foolish to accept. He didn't expect to see him here, in this. And William certainly did not find comfort in his presence. Alexander had known exactly who he was and what he had done. And it was no good sign that he was in his hands now.

"Okay," William stated, his voice hinged with submission and defeat as he allowed Alex to shove him out of the room. Every fiber of his being wanted to run to Sebastian's side. But what would he find? What if he found... what if he... That reality, a one where Sebastian did not exist, was a world he'd lived in once before. A world he'd barely been able to navigate. A world where Sebastian was dead and by his own hand was a world that he feared even more. Without Sebastian, who had been his only anchor in the past four years, William was afraid that the demon inside him would come raging out with no ability to stop. A world with that kind of pain would be a world that William would burn to the ground. If that was the world that he would live in, William would end his own life before he hurt anyone else. It was a simple promise to himself, and yet the last thing that William had ever wanted to do was hurt anyone.

Especially Sebastian.

William paused only momentarily as he complied with Alexander's efforts to remove him from the scene, and that was at Dorian's words. The boy looked up to the King, his lips parting to offer... something. But the words that William wanted to say - apologies, desperate pleas that he hadn't meant it - did not come. Dorian looked as though he could tear William apart with his bare hands, and frankly, William wanted him to. How he wished whoever was holding Dorian back would allow whatever pain Dorian wished to inflict on him. For all the pain that Dorian felt, William felt it too. Only his was mixed with a self-hatred and devastation that was two hundred years in the making.

But Dorian did not get the chance, and Alexander shoved him once more towards the stairs and this time, William did not pause in his compliance. By the time they reached the kitchen, the Hunter was visibly trembling. Fear for Sebastian. Horror. Devastation. Defeat. Grief. All the emotions took over William, and the boy desperately tried to hold on to his sanity. Please, God, give him that. In that moment, William did not look like the lethal killer that had attacked the Italian Prince. He looked like a terrified, broken child who had lost the only thing he had left to love. Even if Sebastian survived this, William would likely never see him again by Dorian's command, and who could blame him? If he wasn't locked up immediately - or killed - William would disappear in an effort to keep Sebastian safe.

He was aware - somewhat - of Charles' presence. He'd always liked the manservant, and was liked in return, though that would likely end as soon as the man found out what had happened to his employer. What he didn't expect, however, were Alexander's words. He anticipated being in another cell... not... in the very local of the very security team that he was meant to be joining. But the boy was hardly given a chance to ask any questions of his sleeping local for the evening before Alexander finally spoke to him, the tone of his voice, while disapproving, surprisingly gentle. There was a part of William that certainly did not trust Alexander - after all, look what Hunters had spent the past four years doing to him - and yet... what choice did he have but to answer his questions.

"I stabbed Sebas-" William began, though the reality continued to crash upon him and the boy turned, emptying the contents of his stomach into a nearby trash can. William sank to the floor as he finished, leaning his back against the counter in some attempt to hold himself upright in any manner. How small he looked now on the floor next to the older Hunter, and yet William found little care for appearances right now. His arms wrapped around his knees as he drew them to his chest. He was going to fall apart. The pain and grief and agony and madness was tearing him apart.

"I never meant to hurt him. I... Please, I need Dor... I need the King to know that. I would never hurt him but I can't..." William's voice cracked and he leaned his head against his knees, fighting hard to stay present - to not lose himself once more. "They've had me. This whole time. Forcing me to use it day after day. I can't... I can't do this anymore." His voice was tinged with that devastation as he glanced up at Alexander, the younger Hunter making no attempt to appear anything other than the utterly broken young man that he was. "I can't live like this. Please just end this. Just kill me. Please. I can't live in a world where Sebastian is dead... where I killed him..." After all, had anyone survived the attack of the deranged man? He had no reason not to believe that Sebastian had suffered the same fate.