ERMEHGAWD I'VE HAD THIS PLANNED FOR SO LONG!!!

I probably actually had this planned BEFORE I even came up with ALL THE CHARACTERS.  xD

...What is with me and torturing people?  O.o

As I slowly came to, I wondered where I was.

I was in trouble.

I opened my eyes only to be greeted with very, very thick darkness, like through a blindfold.

My paws were tied behind some kind of post, and my legs were tied together, too.

The material felt softish, like bed sheets.  It was tied too tight for me to be able to cut them with my claws, though.

I pulled against the bonds, praying that whoever did this wasn't near.

As I struggled, the sound of metal hitting wood rang in my ears right next to my head.  So I was tied to a wooden post.  Probably a bed post.  I don't know.

"So the bacca's awake...."  A voice whispered in my ear.  Their voice was cracking, kinda like they didn't want to do  this.  The voice sounded familiar, but that's a given, anyways.  It's someone from the 13 others.

I instantly crossed Mitch out of my mind.  Even from that dream, I knew it wasn't him.  A bacca's friend-telling instinct or something like that.  This wasn't someone I was friends with, probably more acquainted with.

"Who are you?"  I growled.

The metallic item was pressed into my cheek, slicing it slightly.  I winced.

"Your killer."  They whispered.  "But!  I don't kill simply.  I like to go sloooow, savor the feeling of this."

"LET ME GO!!!"  I screamed, praying someone would hear me.

"GO, Go, go...." echoed around the room.

The person chuckled.  "The rooms are soundproof, Jerome.  No one can hear you!  Now...let's play!"

The metallic item, I'm gonna assume a knife, still in my cheek dragged down suddenly.  I yelled out partially in surprise and partially in pain.

"Hehehehe...."  He whisper-laughed.

I tried to move my legs to knock him off balance or something, yet I didn't hit anything.

But something hit me.

The knife.

It went onto my leg, deep enough to cut, but not deep enough to kill the nerves.  He dragged it up to directly above my knee.

I cried out again as I felt the hot liquid running down my leg onto the floor.

It went on like this for what felt like hours.  My legs, face, arms, torso.  All cut up.

This suit is definitely ruined now.

I'd stopped crying out a while ago.  My strength had left me.  Now...I was only whimpering.

Suddenly, it stopped.  The cutting stopped.

I was breathing heavily, trying to stay conscious.

I felt his breath on my ear.  "Time to go.  Have fun bleeding out."  He sneered quietly.  I still couldn't pinpoint his voice!

I heard a door click, open, close, and click again.  Whatever room I was in, I was locked in.

A few minutes later, a familiar buzz filled the air.  A faint light penetrated the blindfold, but not much.

6 AM.

I tugged weakly on the bonds, wincing at every movement.

A few minutes after the lights turned on, my brain started getting fuzzy.

I WAS LOSING TOO MUCH BLOOD.

I called out for the one person I cared for most.  "M-M-Miiitchhh...."  I rasped.

I heard a faint banging from the door and someone calling my name, but it all fell away.

I love you.

DAWWWWW HE CONFESSED!!!!

Mitch's POV

I was getting more worried with every person that entered.  Jerome is usually here early, a grin on his face and fish on his plate.

When the 12 others filled the hall with no sight of Jerome, I stood up.

"I'm gonna go get Jerome."

Some said ok.  Others nodded.

I raced off to Jerome's room and knocked hard.  "Jerome?!"

...Silence.

I tried to open the door.

...Locked.

I tried to open Nick's door, which was right across from Jerome's.

...It opened easily.

We leave the doors unlocked when we leave and lock them every night when we sleep.

Jerome's was still locked.

I knocked harder.  "JEROME!!?"  I yelled.

...Silence.  Then footsteps.

But not from behind the door.

"Mitt!  What wrong!?"  Barney yelled.

I ignored him and called out one last time.  "!nwod ti gnikcik m'I ,rood eht nepo t'nod uoy fi ,emoreJ"

...No answer.

I sighed and braced myself before kicking the door near the knob as hard as I could.

*CRRRRACK*

I rushed in and gasped.

~~~~~~~

A sight like no other lay near the bed.

ASFJerome, Jerome, the super axeman, was dead.  He la----

*SMACK*

HEY!  What was that for!?

"He's not dead, you idiotic death teller!"

*Checks for pulse*

...Oh.  My bad.

~~~~~~

I rushed towards my injured bacca friend and began untying him.

"Biggums, please, say something."

I'm giving up on----

"STOP IT!  NOT THE TIME!!"

Yeesh, sorry.  Trying to lighten the mood.

I rolled my eyes and picked up Jerome.  His blood soaked my hoodie, but I didn't care.  Not when the one I loved was dying in my arms.

I rushed back out of the room and towards the Grand Hall, Jerome's blood dripping along behind me.

I heard Barney behind me, but my main focus was getting the 3 supers that I needed to save him.

I burst through the doors and yelled, "SETO!  ROSS!  NICK!  HELP!"

The super sorcerer, super survivalist, and super Minecraft informant glanced at each other before rushing over.

Seto tensed and mumbled some weird words.

I noticed Barney running in as a translucent purple hemisphere surrounded the 5 of us.

I felt a strange tugging sensation before we appeared in a room.  MY room.

I rushed over to my bed.

Jerome was breathing shallow breaths.  His blood soaked my bed.  I was terrified.

"Ross, status, please."  Nick commanded.

Ross studied Jerome before answering.  "He's lucky.  If he were human, he'd be dead.  Since baccas are more active than humans, their bodies require more blood to keep them going.  Baccas have 11 pints of blood instead of 8.  He's lost 7.  If we close his wounds now, he'll be able to regenerate new blood."

I looked to Seto.  "Can't you just heal him?"

Seto frowned.  "Yes, but at this scale, his body would become dependent on my magic to keep his wounds closed.  I might not be around forever.  I can use some magic to stop the blood flow so Nick can patch him up, but no more."

I nodded and turned to Jerome as Seto began mumbling under his breath, his hands over Jerome's body.

A very faint purple haze covered Jerome's body.  Any blood still flowing stopped.

"Nick, quickly."  Seto commanded.

Nick pulled off Jerome's barely-even-a-suit-anymore suit.  That left him in his boxers.  It was a little awkward, but we didn't care right now.

Nick began bandaging Jerome.  He had gone to my bathroom when I wasn't looking.

He bandaged his torso from his waist to his upper chest.

He bandaged both legs from his ankles to midway up his thighs.

He bandaged his arms from the wrists to his shoulders.

He placed the leftover bandages on the bedside table and went back to the bathroom.  Seto backed away from Jerome, the purple haze fading from Jerome's body.

I heard water running before Nick came back out with a wet cloth in one hand and dry cloths in the other.  He set the dry cloths on the table with the bandages and began dabbing the cuts with the cloth.  He beckoned me over.

"Mitch, we've done all we can for him.  You seem the most acquainted with him, so we want you to take care of him now.  Dab the cuts on his head frequently and come get me when the bandages get too dirty."

He must've seen the worried look on my face.  "Mitch, he'll be fine.  We got to him in time."

"That's not what I'm worried about.  Well, yes, I'm worried for him, but there's a much bigger problem.  Who.  Did.  This."  I spoke, growling the last words.

Seto took a sharp breath.  "You're right.  We've been so focused on Jerome that we haven't even been thinking about who did this."

Ross sighed.  "We have nothing to go on.  All we know is that is was one of the 13 of us.  All of us are suspects.  No one is off the hook until we find evidence that they're innocent.  Even you, Mitch."

I started dabbing Jerome's head.  "I understand."

I heard retreating footsteps and my door opening and closing.

I looked back to see that we were alone.

I looked back down at Jerome and realized that his whimpering had turned to...purring?

I smiled warmly and bent down, kissing MY bacca on the head.

"My bacca is safe.  My Jerome is safe."  I whispered.

~~~~~~~~~~

DAWWWWWW MEROME CONFIRMED!!!

I felt a little bit bad for writing this, lol.

MEROME!!!!  MAI FAV SHIP!!!

SAH ADORABLE!!!   😃😃😃😃