Your New Best Friend

It was cold—yet somehow warm. I felt safe, but trapped. My body was numb, yet alert. These contradictions thrashed inside me. Deep down I knew something was deathly wrong.

My eyes fluttered open. Slowly, my senses began to reconstruct the world around me. Two glowing red circles pierced my gaze, searing into my soul. A tender smile formed on her lips, disturbingly gentle.

“Good morning, Akoni. How was your night?”

I was at first speechless, then it hit me—that unbearable cold, and the calamity behind it all. I bolted upright, screaming.

“Demon! Help me, plea-”

But I didn’t get far. My feet slipped, and my head slammed against the hardwood floor with a sickening thud. Blood pooled around me. Dazed and fading, I looked up at her—floating above the bed, her expression blank with boredom.

As my eyes closed, surrendering to the pain, I heard a strange hum. Then I was back on the bed. Was it a dream? No—the blood still glistened on the floor.

Terrified, I turned to her, bracing myself for another bout of torment.

She only stared. Her eyes dull and empty. After a long silence, she spoke.

“Why are you so afraid of me?”

I couldn’t believe what I’d heard. Was she serious?

“This might be selfish,” she continued, “but I’d like to explain some things about myself before you answer.”

I nodded, swallowing my fear and desperate to play along for my own safety.

“Long before you came here, Before this forest even existed, I was here — All Alone.

Every morning, I woke to silence. No birds. No wind. No voices. Just the hollow breath of a world that had no place for me.

And every night, I laid my head beneath the moon, My only companion. Forever watching my despair.

Do you know why that was?

Because I was strong. Too strong. Too different.

They called me a monster. A Witch. A Demon. When all I ever wanted... was to be called ‘friend.’

I used to sit in this empty prison, wondering where it all went wrong. maybe if I’d had someone—just one soul—Things could’ve been different.

But your people…They didn’t ask questions. They sent their so called ‘heroes’ to kill me. They came with swords and fire to erase me.

All because I was different.

You want to know who the real monsters are?”, Her voice trembling as tears began to leave her eyes.

She then leaned in, her voice dropping to a whisper.

“It’s all of you. You slaughtered my children. You cast me out, then built your world on the ashes of mine.”

She floats back, eyes burning.

“So now I ask you again, Akoni—Child of the forest. One who knows the ache of loneliness just as much as me. Why are you so afraid?”

Her words struck deep. I didn’t understand why, but I felt myself resonating with her story. She hadn’t harmed me while I slept. She’d even given me shelter. I had to pause for a moment and truly ponder, why was I so afraid?

I searched for the truth inside me. And when I found it, I then spoke back to the woman. Satisfied with and sure of my answer I even smiled.

“Cut the bullshit, Eliza.”

Her jaw dropped, eyes and mouth both wide open.

“What did you just say to me?”, she retorted with a disgusted look on her face.

Seeing her scowl would previously terrify me, but I didn’t care anymore. I had to say it.

“Stop with the lies. You might fool others, but I know what you are. I’ve felt it, the evil that radiates from your wretched soul. You hide it well with your soft words and fake tears, but it stings just being around you.

You want pity? Start by atoning for the pain you’ve caused. Even if I die now, I’ll say it proudly: I’m afraid of you because you are a monster.”

Eliza stared at me, too stunned to speak. Silence filled the room. Then slowly, she smiled.

“Excellent,” she said. “You’re more perfect than I ever imagined.”

My body loosened, the tension that had built in me this whole time loosened by that absurd statement.

“What? You’re not angry? You’re not going to kill me?” I finally managed to meekly say.

“You must be confused,” she said sweetly.

“Since you were honest with me, I’ll be honest with you. If you’d given me some boring answer like ‘I want to be friends’, or ‘I don’t see you that way’—I would’ve killed you. No hesitation.”

I was speechless. How much farther could she operate from common sense?

She only chuckled and continued,

“It’s not about common sense,” she murmured, descending slowly to the floor. She glided to my side and tilted my face toward hers with unsettling grace.

“For me, it’s always been about pleasure.”

Her eyes locked onto mine.

“I hate being bored. Whether it’s creating a new race, leveling cities, or battling heroes—I’ll do whatever it takes to feel alive. And you, Akoni, gave me something unexpected. For that, I thank you.”

She wrapped her arms around me in a tight embrace.

“Even three years past when I first saw you— you piqued my interest. And because of that, I’ll never let you go.”

Three years? That’s when we fled. How could she know?

I tried to push her away, desperate to escape. But her grip tightened. She pressed me back onto the bed, climbing atop the blanket. Her fingers stroked my hair as she stared into my eyes.

The silence. Her breath on my skin. Her weight pinning me down. It was unbearable. I fought the tears, but sweat poured down my face.

She leaned in, her hair brushing my cheeks. Inches from my face, she whispered—her voice laced with sinister delight and twisted affection:

“You and I are going to be best friends.”