The Harvest Of Souls (beast wirt X reader short story)

8: Unconscious Company

"Illness is the doctor to whom we pay most heed; to kindness, to knowledge, we make promise only; pain we obey." -Marcel Proust

My mind yelled at me to get up, get up it screamed at me or else everything that built up to this would go to waste,
Everything you hold dear to yourself
I need to find her here
Everyone that you cared for
I must find her here
Every moment you've made
I can't live without you...
Would be all for nothing.
My whole body felt like a car lacking the gasoline, lacking the battery. My breathing was slow and rare, movements were at minimal, stomach was as empty as could be, and my eye lids couldn't get themselves up even if they wanted to.

In these moments of desperation and survival, I could only see through my sense of touch, and hearing. Two arms were holding me as I heard the leaves crunch over every step they took through here. The wind felt harsh and cold, especially after being soaked in ice cold water, my nerves stood on end all the more. However, the one thing that sent my nerves wild was my bloodied broken arm, the bone inside it felt disjointed once again, and being in this conscious yet unconscious state, I was in a fear frenzy on if he was going to set the bone back in place while I'm still presumed still unconscious.

Suddenly, the sound of a creaky door shutting echoed into the walls of the room I assumed we were in. The cold winds stopped blowing on us as my mind began to ponder over the person that was holding me. It was best to presume this mystery person was the beast, which all the more made my head conflict on whether it was best to call them by the name they wanted to be called on the letter, Wirt, or by the name everyone else calls them, the beast.

The things I've seen him do,
The sins and the virtues
Both conflicting and intertwining like roots buried deep into a psyche.

I felt myself being set down carefully as water soon stained whatever was below me, he made no sounds for a long time until his footsteps sounded, as they started getting farther and farther from my line of hearing.

Soon, a sound most gruesome emerged, not something as bold as a scream, but instead the small dragging sounds of metal which seemed to shake my core.

—-

After everything, what can I expect? I mean, did I really assume that she would accept me after she's seen the things I've done? I was a fool to have that type of hope wasn't I. No matter how diplomatic I can be in front of her, cattle can't befriend the slaughterer as the slaughterer can't befriend the cattle.

Still, for some reason I hold her close. Still, for some reason I continue to save her, at this point, I don't know why anymore. I... I have nothing to gain from saving her besides perhaps unconscious company until she comes to, but that's just weird...

Company... is that what my mind has been craving? A warm soul to be in the presence of, not to reap but instead to seek a form of kinship that my life has lacked for a long while...

Or perhaps it's the guilt that gnaws in my guts, the anger that runs in my knuckles, my pulse that runs quickly

Setting her dripping body onto the rug besides the chimney, I thought carefully about what to do, my heart racing, emotions debating as I took a moment before I went to go get the axe.