(For Reader's Clarification: The scenes blow depict a nightmare till the flag "Nightmare ends")

Darkness that splashed... What a weird place!

My gaze ran in all four directions, I saw nothing but a vast expanse of black, smooth condensed darkness beneath my feet.

Freezing and smooth, so smooth that once it broke, it would be sharper than a dagger's edge.

Each step I took sent ripples cascading across the surface, a thin veil of undisturbed water, waiting silently until my intrusion shattered the peace.

There was light but no source.

There was space above my head but no sky.

There was a feeling of being watched but I saw no one.

As far as my sight could go, I felt trapped in a void. With each step, the water beneath caressed my feet, trailing softly as my heels rose. The familiar chill was nothing new, yet this time it felt oddly unsettling, stirring a discomfort I couldn't shake.

"Since when did this start to bother me?" I mumbled as I curled my toes and sucked air through my teeth. Before I knew my hands reached up and I stroked my arms. I felt cold.

"Look at you all grown up and beautiful"

My body froze, my steps chained against the freezing condensed darkness under me as the voice struck my eardrums leaving chills to kiss and turn the knobs of my spine.

A feminine voice. Soft, mellow, Familiar.

Familiar?

I turned on my heels, compelled by an unseen force to gaze upward, I saw her, a woman draped in flowing white robes, standing several steps away. Her presence seemed to emit a radiant glow, unlike anything I'd ever seen before.

Light brown locks framed her face, while hazel eyes sparkled beneath gentle, sun-kissed cheeks that dimpled as she smiled. My gaze trailed downward, where I noticed a subtle bump adorning her belly. Despite the blurry outline that enveloped her form, she remained there staring at me with those sunsets of her eyes.

"My beloved child"

As her lips parted and she spoke, the same familiar voice from before reached my ears, a warm smile following after.

Wait-What did she say?

"Excuse me! What?" I couldn't help but ask.

The woman's laughter danced lightly through the air as she moved closer, each step revealing more of her distinct features. With every stride, her face became clearer, and I couldn't help but be struck by her beauty. Those hazel eyes held a captivating allure—wait a moment, they seemed oddly familiar, almost mirroring my own, didn't they?

"Look closely, you can't possibly forget your mother, hm?" She stopped in front of me, that tilt of the head exposed a dried old bruise over her forehead that peeked past the curtains of her bangs. Why does this look oddly familiar?

I couldn't help but stare at her smile, her eyes. There was something about her that felt so familiar. And again my mind came back focusing on what she said.

"M-mother- what ...what do you mean?" Her smile brightened.

"My... my mother?" I stammered, disbelief and confusion intertwining in my voice. "But, my mother died- What nonsense is this? How can you say such a thing? Is this some kind of joke to you to humor about the deceased?" Anger surged within me, my fists clenching at the thought of such a delicate matter being treated so casually.

The woman merely chuckled in response, her amusement evident in the curve of her lips. "Ah, look at you, still holding on to those anger issues, aren't you?" With a playful gesture, she extended her hand and lightly bopped my nose, a gesture that left me wide-eyed with disbelief. "Don't touch me," I retorted sharply, furrowing my brows as I rubbed my nose as if trying to rid it of an invisible stain left by her touch.

Her laughter rang out louder at my reaction. "Still sensitive to physical contact, I see" she remarked, her smile warm despite my glare. "And who are you to speak to me so frankly?" I demanded, my gaze locked on her face with a mixture of suspicion and defiance.

"Well, aren't you going to recognize me?" She shrugged casually, her expression softening into a pout. "I thought you'd at least never forget your mom" she added, her words carrying a hint of reproach. For the first time, I looked at her closely, my curiosity piqued.

Third Person POV~

Her large, almond-shaped eyes and hazel orbs bore a striking resemblance to the girl's own. The curve of her lips and the prominence of her high cheekbones further echoed the features of the woman standing before her. It was as if Venom was gazing upon an older reflection of herself. And then there was the telltale bump concealed beneath the fabric of her white robes—a silent confirmation of her identity, tying all the pieces together.

"S-Seo Yeon!?"

A nod with a warm smile was all she offered.

"You're... Seo Yeon?" I questioned, my voice trembling with disbelief as I scrutinized her from head to toe.

"More like your mother" came her gentle reply.

"Mother?" The word stumbled from my lips, sending a shockwave through my very being, almost as if in a daze, it echoed in her mind as she stared at the elder lady in disbelief. Seo Yeon's smile remained warm and reassuring, her hazel eyes radiating a beauty vastly different from Venom's dark and seemingly empty gaze. Hers were angelic, a stark contrast to what the girl had always believed hers to be—demonic, devoid of warmth.

"Yes, your mother" she affirmed once again, her voice a soothing balm to her bewildered soul.

I felt something warm touch my cheeks, her hands reached to cup my face gently in between her hands.

Those hands. They felt so soft and warm. The caresses of her soft padded thumbs over the apples of my cheeks were something I never felt before.

This warm feeling, why my heart is overwhelmed with it... Why do I feel it will explode any second now?

"Mom, I..."

"You always loved it when I stroked your hair or when I let you play with my hair" Seo Yeon smiled.

Am I really seeing my mother? The woman who gave me birth and... This is just a dream, isn't it? But she feels so close, so real!

"I-I missed you so much, why did you never return, you promised to get me out of that closet, I-I am still stuck in that darkness and I am scared, please come to me"

A warm smile tugged at the older lady's lips hearing the hazel-eyed girl who didn't even know when her eyes started to shed the pain so smoothly until she found Seo Yeon wiping those tears away.

"You are so strong, so courageous, Just like me"

She leaned in, her gentle touch caressing the girl's forehead as she pressed a tender kiss upon it. The softness of her touch seemed to permeate through her skin, sending waves of warmth cascading throughout her entire being. It was as if her kiss had the power to infuse her existence with a sense of comfort and peace.

"Mom" Her lips quivered as her warmth broke the ice off of her frozen heart. "Why did you leave me?" Venom couldn't help but question this one thing piercing through her head since childhood. Her smile faltered and she looked at the girl with her orbs now losing their bright glow.

"Why did you leave? Tell me, you weren't so weak, you were strong! Why did you l-let them kill you?" The more she questioned the more she saw the older one's orbs lose their light. They were turning pale.

"Don't you see, little one? It was all for you" Seo Yeon's voice carried gravity as she spoke.

"For me?" Her voice trembled with the waters of the unknown as she questioned.

She watched the older lady look down at her hands that gently intertwined with the girl's as she brought them up, tracing delicate paths along their backs—paths that seemed to lead to nowhere or had been lost amidst the mist.

"Why for me?"

Seo Yeon's smile, though present, held a sadness that spoke of hidden tales. "I had to choose and I chose you. I had to make a sacrifice, it had to be me so you could live"

Her words sank in leaving a burning imprint of pain and longing that ran like tears down her cheeks, each drop heavy with the weight of sorrow. The burning sensation in her eyes mirrored the ache in her heart.

"I loved you more than anything, held you closer to my heart than my own life. I wanted to shield you from every harm, to bear every blow in your stead. And I believed it wasn't a loss, my sacrifice, you are so strong, my child, strong enough to honor me. I believed it, I believed it all, But..." Seo Yeon's voice trailed off, her hands stilling their gentle caress.

She looked up, meeting the former's gaze, Venom watched in horror as the warmth drained from her eyes, leaving them a lifeless grey. A deep chill crept into her touch, growing colder by the moment until they seemed to freeze against the younger's. She shivered at the icy sensation, instinctively trying to pull away, but her grip only tightened, holding the girl fast.

"But I never thought I believed wrong, you... failed me, little one"

She spoke with so much tiredness and sadness washed over her tone that it made it difficult for the hazel eyed girl to breathe. "You failed me so badly. You let the enemy surround you, you had them so close many times but. You failed to avenge me"

Venom winced feeling Seo Yeon tighten her grip on her hands, digging nails into her wrists. "You let my sacrifice go to waste so easily. You let me down little one, You failed me"

"M-mother it hurts, let go" The former shrieked at the sensation of nails piercing through her skin. "M-mom, let go please, you are hurting me"

"Stop-" Her words slipped back into her throat as she watched liquid darkness spewing from around her orbs and trickling down the lids of her eyes, it ran across her pale face tainting the pale skin underneath.

"You failed me" She chanted.

The younger struggled, she tried to pull free from the older's viciously while she watched the sceen forth horrified, seeing how her eyes poured out that thick black liquid like a tap left open.

Venom's POV~

I felt scared. My heart beat a mile per second, my breath like a sharp dagger thrust past my swelling lungs leaving a sharp jab to my ribs. Never once in my life I felt scared or terrified of anything, not even death but this, why does it send chills up my body?

"You failed me"

"You failed me"

"You failed me"

"M-mother let go" I screamed as I felt her fingers dig into my wrists deeper the pain was not just in my wrists it was like something crawled up my wrists and clenched to my heart I felt my lungs deprived of air.

"I...I m-mother I'm ..."

A loud booming sound was what shook my soul and consciousness leaving me frozen and forgetful of what I was to say.

I looked back to see the black glass floor crack beneath us. A loud hum rattled the void from under. It roared. The filthy water underneath raged. Black like a corpse's blood "You failed me, You failed me, You failed me"

Her words faded between gurgles as the same blackness poured out of her mouth. Her fingers deep into my wrists while I felt the pain clawing through all the way upto my heart.

"M-mother I..." I whimpered in pain, not the one that tore my existence apart but the one that was in my heart. I screamed loud and louder, but those hums of the monstrous blackness under the glass floor roared in anger, it ate my pleads, but I tried, again and again.

"Mommy" I heard myself whimpering. "I tried-" I found myself screaming watching her hold onto me tightly. She no longer looked like an angel but a dead corpse head to toe drenched in colors of death, a sad death.

"You failed me"

The glass shattered, the cracks spread like spiders crawling fast. The dark waters filled with gravity and rage roared wanting to punish me, I knew it! It called out to me. I heard it!

Time's up! But I wasn't ready, just like the day I wasn't ready to step out of that cupboard, the night I wasn't ready to plunge the blade through Taehyung's heart, the day I wasn't ready to destroy the KNIGHTS.

I heard myself wailing not ready to let go and fall into that sea of guilt ready to swallow me. My shaking hands rested around her carcass face, swift winds rushed past us with a hurricane booming in the void.

"MOTHER" I screamed staring into those hollow sockets that now held no eyes just empty darkness, yet I felt like she is still staring at me. "I TRIED MOTHER, I TRIED SO HARD, THERE ISN'T A SINGLE DAY WHEN I DON'T THINK ABOUT YOU..." My tears rolled down my cheeks faster than ever. "THERE ISN'T A MOMENT WHEN I FORGET ABOUT AVENGING YOU" I whimpered as my desperate voice tried to pierce through the disaster and reach her. "MOMMY- I'M SORRY FOR FAILING YOU"

The void boomed with rage as my words left my mouth the dark water struck the glass with wrath causing me to stumble and fall backwards. The grip I thought was so tight of hers on my wrists instantly loosened as I fell backwards.

"I'M SORRY..." I screamed so viciously that the sharpness of that apology clawed on the insides of my throat. "SORRY, I'M SORRY" I felt the gravity pull me down. The lifeless figure of my mother drenched in dark filth looked down to me.

"MOMMY I-" I screamed louder as my body hit the piercing cold black water underneath. "S-SORRY~" I screamed and screamed, the dark water forcefully dragging me down, filling me with a suffocating burning sensation as if being poisoned.

"I LOVE YOU" I drowned slipping deeper until I couldn't see the glimpse of white robes anymore.

(Nightmare ends)

"MOMMY!" The silence of the room was shattered by a sharp gasp followed by a piercing scream. Her eyes flew open, her chest heaved as she struggled to catch her breath, sweat glistened on her forehead as if she'd been running for miles without pause.

Taehyung and Jimin's heads whipped around at the sound. Without hesitation, they sprang to their feet and rushed to her side.

Her trembling eyes darted around the room, struggling to focus. The haziness in her vision only fueled her panic, and she began to grow more frantic with each passing moment.

"Ji Ahn, it's okay. Calm down, you're safe" The raven head said softly, reaching out to cup her face. But the moment his hand grazed her cheek, she let out a piercing shriek, jerking away from his touch and trying to scoot farther back.

"DON'T TOUCH ME!" she screamed, her voice filled with anguish. Taehyung flinched at her cry, momentarily stunned, but Jimin, suspecting it might be the medication's effect, didn't freeze unlike the former.

"You're one of them! You—you're the reason I failed her!"

Taehyung's hand froze mid-air, his expression shifting to one of shock and confusion. "Ji Ahn, what are you talking about?" he asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

"Don't play innocent! You- you knew it, you knew it all along, you trapped me so I couldn't- she- she hates me" she spat, her voice raw. "Get away from me! Don't touch me"

Taehyung's lips parted as if to speak, but no words came. He glanced at Jimin, whose brow furrowed in concern, clearly as bewildered as he was.

There was something that left Jimin staring back at Taehyung with a questionable gaze. The accusations left him with an itch deep in him that couldn't be scratched. But, it gave him enough idea that Taehyung being in front of the girl wasn't the best choice. "Taehyung?" Jimin called out to him, earning the raven head's attention, the view of his glistening shaking orbs were heart breaking. It took a lot of strength for Jimin to shake his head in denial restricting Taehyung from trying to reach out to the girl.

And he watched the shattering emotions reflecting in the dark irises of his eyes, Jimin hated it but he saw no other choice. "Alright, It's okay, you are safe, you are here, look at me" he murmured gently to the panicking and wailing girl, his touch light as he stroked her arm in an attempt to soothe her.

Instantly she clawed at him desperately, burying herself into him as her horrified eyes darted toward Taehyung. Her entire body trembled violently, and Jimin instinctively wrapped his arms around her, shielding her fragile form. He gently guided her face away from the boy, pressing it into the crook of his neck to block her view of the raven head entirely.

He stood frozen, his hand still lingering mid-air as he stared at her in disbelief. This wasn't what he had expected.

Jimin held her tighter, his fingers running soothingly over her back where he felt the warm liquid seep through the T shirt on her existence, ripped stitches ofcourse, she must have broke them with all the hysteric struggle. "Shh, it's okay" he murmured, his voice barely audible, trying his best to calm her shaking figure.

"Sh-she's gone, forever. She hates me. M-mom hates me, I failed her Jimin-ah" She wailed shaking against his embrace.

The two boys exchanged a silent glance over her trembling shoulder. Neither of them could hide their shock at her reaction.

Mother? Hate? What does she even mean by that? The two had never heard the word before from her mouth leave alone any reference to her family or origin it was a topic she had clearly placed a lock on closed doors for them and they respected her choices. But, what she said now was an accusation, a demanding one.

How was Taehyung related to all of this to even start with?

Where they had believed the raven head's presence would be a source of comfort, it had turned into the opposite—a source of her terror. But why?

"Taehyung would never do anything to harm you Ji-"

"HE DID! He is the reason I failed to avenge her, he was never meant to be in the way, I WAS SUPPOSED TO END THEM ALL!" She screamed against his presence. Every word uttered left the air heavier with an unbreakable tension.

In the way? End them all? End who?

Jimin glanced over at Taehyung, his expression torn between confusion and worry. He held her tighter, murmuring soothing words into her hair as her body continued to tremble. The raven head took a hesitant step back, his brows furrowed deeply. "What is she saying? Why... why is she acting like this?" he whispered, more to himself than anyone else.

Jimin shook his head slightly, his voice low. "I don't know," he admitted, his grip on her steady. "But something's not right. Something's really wrong." The girl's muffled sobs filled the room, leaving both of them questioning everything they thought they knew.

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ℑ𝔶𝔞𝔫𝔨𝔶𝔬𝔲 𝔣𝔬𝔯 𝔯𝔢𝔞𝔡𝔦𝔫𝔤 𝔳𝔬𝔱𝔢 𝔠𝔬𝔪𝔪𝔢𝔫𝔱 𝔞𝔫𝔡 𝔞𝔡𝔡 𝔱𝔬 𝔶𝔬𝔲𝔯 𝔯𝔢𝔞𝔡𝔦𝔫𝔤 𝔩𝔦𝔰𝔱𝔰.
𝔜𝔬𝔲𝔯 𝔟𝔢𝔩𝔬𝔳𝔢𝔡 𝔞𝔲𝔱𝔥𝔬𝔯
𝕍𝕍

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