Herobrine X Reader - Love's Wither Rose (COMPLETE)

13 - How Long?

The room was...dark and cold. I could vaguely catch sight of a faint light through the iron bars. Wait. Where was I? Scanning around at my surroundings (a small room built of cobblestone, a cauldron in one corner and a brown rug in the other), I guessed that this was some kind of cell. I propped myself up against the iron door, mind still foggy and everything aching too much do do anything else.

The sound of muffled voices drew nearer, and I made myself stagger to my feet. Peering through the bars, I saw two figures faintly silhouetted and shrouded in the darkness and my own blurred vision. They turned and walked into the room, and I could just make out what the shorter one said.

"So ya want me to babysit 'em?"

"No, I just need you to keep (Y/N) in their cell until your shift is over." I knew that voice. It was that evoker - Blythe, was it? "That door doesn't open unless I say so."

"Uh-huh - sure thing."

Blythe glanced over to my cell. "Ah, glad to see you're awake." Something flashed in his eyes. "Shame I had to put you to sleep like that back in the village, but what can you do, right?"

"Shame I didn't run you through where you were standing," I growled. "But what can you do, right?" My mouth felt like I'd been chewing on cotton for a month.

"Sassy. I like this one, Blythe," chuckled the shorter illager. Looking at him now, I could see the axe hanging from his belt. Vindicator.

"You are not here to make friends, much less flirt, with the prisoner, Johnny." Blythe pinched the bridge of his nose, turning to leave. He paused in the doorway. "Oh, by the way, (Y/N) - we won't be starting our talks for one week."

"Why wait that long?" I felt braver now and figured that I may as well bank on it now, while it lasted. "I'd love nothing more than to have a good chat with you - maybe I'll even introduce you to my fist."

"I really like this one." The vindicator - Johnny - leaned back against the wall beside the door of my cell. "Don't worry about a thing, Blythe. This one ain't going anywhere."

Blythe exhaled deeply, before turning and finally leaving the room. I turned my attention to Johnny, now almost fully alert.

"Can I at least know why I'm here?"

"I wouldn't be allowed to say even if I knew, sweetface."

Sweetface?!

"I have a name."

"I know: (Y/N). Blythe's been yappin' on about you non-stop and how you'd help his research or whatever it is he's doin'. I don't really pay that much attention, not that I'm told anythin' anyways." Johnny grinned. "Besides, I think sweetface suits."

I sighed, irritated, as I sat myself back down on the cold cobblestone floor with my back to the door. I probably wouldn't be getting out anytime soon, so why not get comfy?

"How long have I been here?" I asked.

"A few hours maybe?"

"And what happened to the items I had on me? My armour. My sword."

"I think Blythe had something of yours sent off southwards to someone."

"Who?"

"Hell if I know!" There was the sound of moving footsteps, then the soft thud of someone sitting down on the other side of the bars. Johnny mumbled, "The day anyone here tells me anythin' is the day creepers stop explodin'."

An uncomfortable silence fell upon the room, broken only by the occasional sound of footsteps passing outside in the corridor. I opened my mouth to say something, but Johnny beat me to it.

"You got any ideas as to why Blythe wants you here so badly?"

"You know more than me," I muttered, pulling my knees up to my chest.

"How about a little deal, then?"

"Well that doesn't sound like a double-cross waiting to happen," I chuckled quietly. "But go on - it's not like I've got anything better to do."

Johnny's voice dropped to a whisper as he hummed amusedly. "That's the spirit, sweetface! Now, I'm willing to do a little diggin', see what I can't find out for us about this whole conundrum. 'Bout what's Blythe's plannin'."

"What d'you want me to do?"

"We'll get to that later on, provided I ain't caught. Now, though, I think you should rest up."

"How do I know you won't drive that axe if yours through my skull when I sleep?" I scoffed.

"Doin' that would sign my death warrant."

Makes sense.

"Oh, and by the way -" I crawled over to the opposite corner. "- I'll accept your deal, on one condition."

"And what would that be?"

"Don't call me sweetface."

"You drive a hard bargain, (Y/N), but sure thing," Johnny said. "I'm sure I'll come up with some other nickname for ya."

Hours passed like days, and the shift changed. Johnny stood and left while flashing a grin at me, and another vindicator took up his post. This one was far less talkative, so I found myself dozing and wondering.

Before long, I heard hushed voices outside my cell.

"- has certainly gotten our message, so we can only guess his priority."

Message?

"I'm almost certain that he won't be heading here first." Blythe. Again. Didn't he have better things to do instead of blabbing on about...this? "You haven't seen how adamant he is to finish that fruitless quest of his. He got desperate enough to come to our people for help!"

"And was he helped?"

Who were they talking about?

"I made him lead us to a very prosperous village, due west of here, in exchange for an outdated book filled with things he most likely already knows." They both laughed.

Village?

"Chances are, we won't have to worry about the former Nether King's interference," Blythe added. "He'll either be killed at his own front gate or left in the dungeons."

"Then I trust that everything is to go ahead as planned?"

"Of course," said Blythe. "With (Y/N) now in our sole possession, our people will soon be free from the restraints of what we all fear the most. We will be unstoppable."