Chapter Text
Ghost wouldn’t rest until he found the truths that Hallownest had to offer. There were too many mysteries to tackle, however, Hornet’s origins had become his current priority. His best place to start inquiring about her was where he was, in Deepnest, but the inhabitants were particularly ferocious. It took him a long while until he was able to find someone who could string a proper phrase together, and even that spider had attempted to devour him midcoversation. Several times. The midwife had commented to him about Herrah, how she had sacrificed herself, it wasn’t unexpected that she, like the rest of Dreamers, would have a tragedy behind her actions, but then the Midwife took notice of the brand on his shell.
“My good friend. You wear that bright mark of relationship. Then you've met her perhaps? Her who'd guard the mark, the Gendered Child. A spritely thing, isn't she?” Commented the Midwife. Finally, some answers! Ghost perked up, and made a gesture for Midwife, encouraging her to speak some more about her. The Midwife giggled before continuing.
“Pale gift to the Nest and the Beast, fair trade for sacrifice made. Long she's been distant. It'd do our spirits well were she to grace us a visit home...”
The Midwife trailed off, and Ghost was already expecting what more she could tell him. But the rumble in her guts was a dead giveaway on where the conversation was going to derail. The Midwife made a courteous excuse, and in the blink of an eye she was already parting her mask and baring her fangs, trying to catch Ghost with his guard lowered. Not a chance. The vessel smacked her with the blunt of his nail and she scurried into the dark, in search for her next clueless prey.
Now all he needed was to find a bench somewhere, preferably out of Deepnest. He needed a rest and a place where the constant scratching of the beasts in the walls wasn’t so loud. He needed to think over the new information. In the end, he backtracked to the only tram operative in Deepnest, the ride to the Ancient Basin was a longish one, and he could use the time to figure out Hornet’s new clue.
Backtracking had been a bit of a pain, and he was mildly sad to see that Quirrel had already departed from the Hot Springs next to the tram station, but on the other hand, it was better if he was safe elsewhere. This place would be ranking high on the most dangerous spots of Hallownest after all. Finally, he reached the tram, and pushed the switch towards the Ancient Basin direction. And then he finally sat on one of the many seats. True, it wasn’t completely silent, thanks to the phonograph, but it was pleasing nevertheless. Ghost started to mull over, “Hornet was a gift from the Pale King, and she is the reason Herrah became a Dreamer… This mark…” Ghost brushed with his hand the brand in his shell. “Hornet said that I’m the new king of Hallownest, therefore, I’m his heir. Usually, the heirs to kings are princes and princesses, and those are their children. Is the Pale King my father, then?” Ghost contemplated the scenario, briefly remembering the monarch depictions he found in idols and that fountain near the palace grounds. He also recalled Lemm’s words about how the king was quite elusive, so maybe those images weren’t a good depiction of him. If both of them shared a familiar resemblance, he couldn’t be totally sure of it, and yet they seemed to be related. It hadn’t been like the sudden connection he felt when he saw the Hollow Knight memorial. “Oh, wait, the Midwife mentioned a relationship with the King. Does this mean that Herrah was the queen of Hallownest? No, the Queen was said to be pale like the King, and what I’ve seen of Herrah doesn’t reflect that. Maybe it was an affair? No, no, remember, it was a trade. So Hornet was born of the King… And Herrah.” Then it clicked. “Herrah became a Dreamer to have Hornet. Hornet is the princess, that explains a lot! Why she seems so set on protecting Hallownest’s ruins… and… does this mean she is my sister? Maybe we share a father, or maybe not.” The clogs in Ghost’s mind were already at full blast, recalling their previous interactions, but the screeching of the brakes in the tram put a stop as well to his own train of thought.
Reflection time was over. Begrudging the interruption, he jumped to the floor and exited the tram. “Later” he told himself, “I’ll need to think more about this later, but for now new mysteries await. I wonder what’s behind the door that only the King could open.”
The Abyss was an utter nightmare, even beyond what Deepnest had been. It wasn’t so much because of the dangers in there, although it was a dangerous place, but because of the sheer number of shells of his siblings spread around, the countless shades chasing him, resenting their sibling just for being alive while they had died.
It had been a constant pursuit until he reached a room with a gigantic insect, long ago deceased. From its claws, a bowl was constantly overflowing with the dark substance of the void. Yet he didn’t feel dread to try and actually submerge himself in that liquid, even if he didn’t have a light to tame it. Somehow it looked different from the sea. So when he got inside, the liquid was tingling his body and permeating his cloak. Slowly, he noticed how it started to climb to his face and reach his horns, submerging him fully. And still he didn’t panic. After a geyser of shadows he dried off. His cloak had changed, the void seemed to be part of it. Now he was convinced, he had ties to the void, even if he wasn’t totally sure how it worked.
This whole place, the Abyss. He knew he had been here before. But he couldn’t remember. He had to find something to jog his memory. But where could he even start looking in such a huge place? He didn’t have any mysterious pull like the one Quirrel felt towards the Archives, so he would need to return at some other time. The mere thought made him a bit anxious about it. For now he had to make his way back to the entrance and look elsewhere.
Hornet, the guardian princess of Hallownest, had been following Ghost ever since they met at the Greenpath, yet there was a place in which she could not go after him. The Abyss caused her an instinctive fear, such primordial darkness was not to be trifled with, and even pale beings like the King had to be careful about it. She knew her cursed born siblings had such a shadow within them, yet would that be enough to stand a chance against such a place? She peeked down the platform she was standing on. Nothing but small ledges leading down, far away between each other, the darkness engulfing them all too close to her. She stepped back, repulsed. “Ghost. Come back soon.” She thought.
Then she saw it. A little pale and black figure emerging from below. Ghost was jumping with his ethereal monarch wings, leaving pearly flakes that vanished mid-air. With a final jump he arrived next to her and they locked gazes. Hornet felt so relieved, he was unhurt despite going to one of the most barren places in the kingdom. Then she noticed something about him had changed a bit, rivulets of void were puffing discreetly out of his cloak, without doubt he had found a fountain of void. “Ghost. I see you've faced the place of your birth, and now drape yourself in the substance of its shadow.” She noted. He simply nodded, confirming Hornet her observation. She continued speaking “Though our strength is born of similar source, that part of you, that crucial emptiness, I do not share.” She wasn’t sure if Ghost had found out what she asked him to look for, her origins, but she could at least offer him a nudge. Void truly created a strange rift between them, and while she was wary of it, seeing Ghost able to keep it so controlled, made her feel like the spell over Hallownest could be broken. “Funny then, that such darkness gives me hope. Within it, I see the chance of change. A difficult journey you would face, but a choice it can create. Prolong our world's stasis or face the heart of its infection.” Her voice was full of emotion. For her whole life, she thought that she would keep guarding the ruins of Hallownest, a pointless task that was ordained to her since her birth and that would only be over along with her final breath. But now, there was hope, there was a chance for change. The little vessel had in his hands the future of the kingdom, and along with it, her own future. “I'd urge you to take that harder path, but what end may come, the decision rests with you.” She couldn’t truly do more than to ask for it, but she trusted him. Then, Ghost took her hand. “Is there something you want, little Ghost?” He nodded, and tugged her hand softly. “Do you want me to follow you?” Once again, he nodded, and with his free hand took out something from his cloak. He pointed the artefact skyward, and it shone brightly, so much that the young spider was blinded.
When she recovered her sight, the both of them were outside of the Abyss. She was slightly startled by the teleportation, it had been so sudden! This place was quite far away from the Ancient Basin, that much she was able to tell, yet this was a place she didn’t know of, she didn’t recognise the alcove they were in or the limited view she had to the exterior. All she was able to guess was that the nook wasn’t decorated with stuff from either Deepnest or the City of Tears, and it didn’t have the tribalistic ornaments of the mantises. “Where have you taken me, Ghost?” He sat on a cushion and invited her to the one on his side patting it. When she complied, he swished a few parchments from the depths of his cloak… if it was truly stored in there, Hornet would rather not think about it too much. One of them was a map of Hallownest, with many pins decorating it, the others were simply blank sheets of paper. He pointed to a place to the east of the Blue Lake. Ah, the resting grounds, no wonder she wasn’t able to tell. This place hardly had infected bugs or visitors, so she didn’t patrol it very much. That and because there was yet another reminder of her mother’s sacrifice erected in there.
“I see. Is there any particular reason why you brought me here?” She asked him. Then he wrote in the paper. “I wanted to speak to you. The Abyss was a bad place for it.” She agreed. Then he continued. “This place is also very pretty. I wanted to show you.” Hornet wanted to ask him something she noticed. “This place is well kept, is it perhaps your home?” He shook his head. "It was my friend’s home”. There had been a bit of a quiver when he wrote was, the young spider realized that Ghost’s friend wasn’t alive anymore. She didn’t say anything, but she gave him a squeeze in the shoulder.
He continued scribbling. “Hornet, I think I figured what you meant about your origins.” Hornet blushed, memories about their previous encounter coming to her mind. The vessel kept writing. “The Pale King is your father. Herrah is your mother. We share an origin with the Pale King.” Hornet smirked, he truly was a persistent and diligent insect, he did his “homework”. He wasn’t still done talking, “But, if there’s void within me, and you don’t share it, do we really share blood?”
“O-of course, we do…” She stammered. “That’s why I made such an odd request. I wanted to give you a choice on what kind of relationship we could have. Perhaps once you found out we were siblings, you fancied more that sort of relationship.” Ghost almost seemed to exhale a sigh and insistently tapped the quill against the paper. “Really, Hornet? After what happened? After all we have been through? You asked me if after knowing your origins, I still wanted you as my mate. I do, Hornet. In the end, you love me the same way I love you. Don’t you, Hornet? You want to be my mate for life as well.” When he was done writing, soft grey colorations formed on his pale face, his own way of blushing, much like Hornet was doing at the moment.
At this point the guardian of Hallownest had her heart fluttering. It was true. Her pride in the little knight had bloomed into admiration, and from that, into love. It ran much deeper than the one she had expected at first, and she was happy that he chose her as a lover rather than as a sibling.
“May I kiss you?” She asked. They turned to each other, gazing into their eyes. She kissed his forehead, and she kept kissing and going down slowly. Now between his eyes. Then, finally on his lips. The princess and the knight shuddered slightly, both feeling lumaflies in the stomach. It was a brief kiss, a mere brush, but it was enough for the couple to realize that they wanted more.
Sweetly, they pressed their lips together again. Hornet’s hands were now placed on his head and the small of his back, fingers idly raking the base of his horns, and pressing him closer to her. Ghost was holding onto her shoulders, crumpling the silky fabric on his hands, the world was spinning and his grip on her was the only thing that grounded him.
Each new kiss was more passionate and heated than the last, leaving them breathless before crashing into the other again. Tentatively, Hornet opened her mouth, with Ghost following suit, their curious tongues finally meeting and exploring each other. Hornet expected some strange quality about Ghost’s void nature, but it felt no different than her own.
They pulled back briefly, trails of saliva linking them. With a ravenous grin, Hornet pushed the both of them into the cushions and pinned the vessel underneath her. The princess, now having her knight where she wanted him, started grinding her body against him, letting out a sigh. As much as the vessel adored the sensation of having Hornet’s body pressing fully against him, she was squeezing him and he desperately needed to change positions.
With some toss and turning, he finally got over the young spider, but she kept him firmly locked in her arms, “No, you aren’t getting away, my sweet knight” she giggled, reaffirming her dominance over him. Ghost gave her a playfully defiant look, that’s when Hornet saw he got a faint Soul-like glint in his eyes and slipped away from her arms, dissolving into void and reforming. He had gained a new trick from his spelunking into the Abyss, the hunting spider noticed. “Cheeky” she whispered. But the knight wasn’t done with being naughty, he dove under her cloak and put his mouth between her legs. Hornet shivered under the sensation and stifled her startled yelps. The knight was enthusiastically lapping at her slit, making Hornet wet with her own juices. “Ah~, wait, I want… Ahn~, let me see you.”
With her hands trembling from the stimulation she was receiving in her loins, the spider managed to free herself from her cloak, finally fully undressing, and now she was having a good look at what the knight was doing to her.
Positioned in front of her loins, Ghost was looking at her eyes, and while holding her gaze he continued to please her. The princess’ private show from before had taught him where she liked it and he had been giving her his undivided attention. After having his tongue gliding up and down on her labia, he finally went for her clit sucking it first slowly, and then firmly, eliciting gasps from his lover. Ghost was set on feeling Hornet as much as he could, so he curled his arms around her sharp thighs and stroked her.
Hornet was getting hotter and hotter, small beads of sweat were forming on her shell, and the shivers went down her spine, oh so satisfyingly. She was building an orgasm but she wasn’t going to get off like that. At least this time.
As if reading her mind, or maybe just to tease her a bit, Ghost gave a last kiss to her lower lips and got up on his knees. All the ministrations he gave to Hornet had an effect on him as well despite the lack of proper attention, his dick had fully slid out and it was leaking drops of precum. Ghost aligned himself with Hornet’s entrance, and although he had been exploring her with his mouth, he wasn’t sure how getting inside worked, so with the tip of his dick, he caressed her pussy. Hornet felt too ticklish with Ghost’s actions, giggling unashamedly.
“Quit teasing me, and get through!” She urged him. The vessel nodded, and hoping he didn’t hurt her, he slid right into her. Her walls hugged him so snugly that he shivered from the sensation. It was almost too much for him, he had never experienced something like it, the knight was overwhelmed to the point that he almost cummed on the spot. The spider wasn’t faring any better, his cock was now rubbing her in her sweet spot and she wanted more. Heat was pooling inside her, it was exhilarating and she was sharing it with him, with the one she had slowly been falling in love. She noticed his short breaths and with her legs hooking on his back, she drew him closer to lay on her for a hug. Softly, Hornet placed tender kisses on his mask and lips, while her hands travelled up and down his back calmingly.
“Ghost, I understand. This is my first time mating as well. It feels… different from my own hands.” She whispered. “So, if you need, we will take it calmly.” Ghost nodded and gave her a quick peck. He bumped against her, not quite separating from her but giving enough stimulation with the rotation of his hips. Little by little, the momentum gained more strength, with Ghost now able to slide in and out of Hornet.
“O-Oh~… More, please, more!” The vessel grew encouraged by her lovely moans, his movements getting faster and wilder. His thrusts were sending them into heavenly bliss and he would have screamed and cried in pleasure along with Hornet if he had the voice to do it.
Hornet couldn’t just hold still, Ghost’s newfound passion was contagious, making her match his thrusts and slamming in tandem, giving and receiving, in an exchange marked by each wet sound. So near, so near to that glorious feeling, the lovers were firmly holding hands with each other.
“Ah~, breed me! I-I’m yours!” Hornet’s unabashed cries of pleasure kept pouring of her lips, begging for the release she frantically craved. With a final slam, hilting all the way inside her, Ghost rode his orgasm, silently howling.
The knight finally released his heavy load into the princess, filling her womb with his seed, the warmth inside her was the last push she needed for unleashing the coil that had been building up in her loins.
Hornet truly meant the words she said in the throes of passion, she really wished that she could have his spawn. If vessels could feel, if they could communicate, if they had sexes, that could only mean that they had the chance to be fertile as well.
Then they were back from the waves of ecstasy, panting and rubbing their foreheads together, with Hornet purring sweet nothings under her breath. Ghost knew that he had to detach from Hornet, and he was apprehensive of what came next. When he pulled out, their mixed essence seeped out of her, drenching in spunk the cushion they had been lying during the act. The spider could almost distinguish his astonished look, “Did I really release that much!?” he thought. The young spider was just as surprised as he was, but she was more pragmatic and searched with her eyes something she could use as a towel to clean the mess.
While Ghost was also working on a solution for the little hindrance, his mind was still in a lustful haze, and came with a more creative idea. Hornet let out a high pitched yelp when she felt her knight doubling down on her to put his mouth against her labia. “You, you are not intending to clean me that way a-are… Ahhh!” The princess was still oversensitive and very much startled when besides his mouth and tongue she noticed a current of magic. Her eyes opened wide when she caught wind of what was going to happen. “GHOST, DON’T YOU DARE TO USE YOUR FOCUS ON…” But it was too late, white hot pleasure coursed through her veins, leaving her mind devoid of any thought as bliss engulfed her once more to the core. Once she regained her lucidness, there were no stains on the cushion, only some residual humidity, her body was limp and exhausted from the last orgasm, effectively drained of her energy. “Ghost… darn it…” She could swear her brother had a mischievous expression on his face, such a naughty boy.
“If I could move, I would smack you.” she pouted. Ghost made an apologetic gesture, to which Hornet sighed and made room for him at her side. The knight wasted no time to lay down beside her and finally both embraced each other into a cuddle. Sleep claimed the couple, and soon their minds departed to the realm of dreams.