Hunter!Nordics X Dragon!Reader: Fractured Pt.22

“Oh dear, this is why you shouldn’t have moved so much.” Matthew scolded

You continued to stare at the ceiling as the blonde berated you about yesterdays activities.  The fever had posed a problem and now you were bed ridden for the entire day.  Personally you believed that you had been resting enough, but everyone else disagreed.  Matthew changed the rag on your forehead and rinsed it in more cool water.  Although you were burning, it wasn’t that uncomfortable.  In fact, it was a nice change in temperature.  You had gotten used to being cold blooded that the liquid that flowed through your veins scalding was now new.    Back in your younger years your blood had constantly been boiling due to your urges to explore and experience new things.  Though you couldn't remember when that had changed.  

“I’m sorry.” You grumbled

“Don’t apologize.” He replied, “But you’re stuck in bed now.”

“Hey, Matthew?”

You did your best to hide any hesitant speech patterns, but failed.  You played with your fingers and looked at your lap.  He noticed that something was wrong immediately.  Instead of pushing he decided to wait until you spoke up again.

“How is... Arthur?” You ask

He seemed shocked at the question but answered anyway, “Fine, I suppose.  Is there something wrong?”

He didn’t know?  Did anyone know?

“No, nothing wrong.  Thank you for taking care of me.”

As quickly as the question came, it left.  Matthew dismissed himself and told you that Tino and Berwald would be up in a minute.  They had visited earlier this morning and Tino had also scolded you for being so reckless.  But all they knew was that you had gotten up in the middle of the night and apparently ‘messed around’ instead of sleeping.  You honestly didn’t have the energy to argue, so you just took the speech as it was.  But one thing did confuse you.  You had been one of the first people to wake up, and there had been a rag on your forehead.  You had no clue who had put it on and changed it throughout the night.  As it was still cold to the touch meant that someone had recently changed it.  Everyone denied putting it there.

You looked over to where Emil lay still asleep.  He really needed wake up soon.  They couldn’t stay here forever.  And not to mention that the longer he slept, the less of a chance that he would wake up.  They must have run out of medicine shortly after the fight.  Instinctively you reached at your side for the knife Mathias had given you, only to remember that Berwald had taken it earlier.  You internally cursed their protective nature, but regressed.  The door opened and the two hunters that you had been waiting for walked in.  

“Are you feeling alright, (f/n)?” Tino asked

You nodded, “I’m fine.  You guys overreact to everything.”    

“I don’t think that’s a fair statement.  Remember how you were comatose for five days?”

That shut you up.  Berwald sat by your feet again while Tino pulled up a chair.  Your eyes looked over at the larger ones pockets searching for any sign of your knife.  Berwald noticed your stare and inquired immediately.

“What’s wrong?” He asked

“N-Nothing.”

“Were you looking for something?”

“No, I was just staring off into space.  My bad.”

Berwald didn’t buy one word of it.  He simply turned his gaze to Tino who sat and waited patiently for the two of you to finish the small exchange of words.  

“Tino, I need to talk to (f/n) for a bit.” He stated

Slightly shocked he replied, “Oh, okay.  I’ll be downstairs if you need me.”

You watched as Tino got up from his chair and walked sadly towards the door.  It was obvious that he was trying to pout in order for Berwald to let him stay.  But that plan failed almost as quickly as he had thought of it.  Tino sped up and closed the door securely behind him.  You then turned to Berwald who looked like he was ready to interrogate you.  What was he so suspicious of?  There was no way he could have figured you out, right?  

“You’re not getting your knife back.” He stated

Wrong.

“Why not?” You asked, “I need it.”

“To do what?”

He stared down at you with his expression shaded over.  To put it bluntly, he kind of scared you.  But just because he had seen you through didn’t mean that you were going to give up.  And if any of the questions were hard to answer, you would just bring up Emil.  After all, he needed his medicine.

“To make medicine.” You responded, following straight from your train of thought.

Berwald looked you straight in the eyes, “No.”

“But Emil might die.”

“Listen, (f/n).”

The sincerity in his voice was enough to shut you up and stop you from arguing any further.  He kept eye contact with you and took your burning hand in his.  You were going to protest, but his gaze continued to silence you.  

“Do you want to know what happened after the fight?” He didn't give you a chance to respond, “Everyone rushed to get you bandaged up and safe.  It wasn't until afterwards that the effects of what had happened set in.”

“But, I lied and betrayed you guys.”

“Betray?  I don’t think so.  You have to realize that we care about you.  We’ll get Emil medicine without you having to hurt yourself.  You’re family.”

He wrapped you into a very familiar hug.  It was reassuring to know that Berwald hadn’t changed since the incident.  It was nice to know that you were still considered a part of the group, according to him.  These facts settled in the back of your mind and you hugged him back.  The moment lasted for awhile and the warmth reminded you of something very familiar.  He was like your big brother.  The resemblance in the hug was uncanny, the only difference was rather then love it was acceptance.  A knock on the door snapped the moment in two and Berwald carefully unwrapped you.  He stood up and walked over to the door, his warmth still lingering behind.  When he opened the door the figure of Mathias was revealed.  

“Hey Sve, could I talk to (f/n)?” He asked

Berwald looked over and waited for your approval.  You were sure that no harm would come to you if Mathias entered, but for some reason the thought of his confronting you made your stomach drop.  It was a strange sensation that you were unsure how to handle.  But two things did drive you to say yes.  If you could accomplish those two goals, then everything would have been worth it.  So the word escaped.

“Yes.”

Berwald nodded and moved out of the way.  Mathias entered the room as he left.  The two of you were practically alone.  You still counted Emil, maybe if something happened he would wake up and break the tension.  That would be a comical way for him to come to.  The thought made you smile a bit.  But the day wouldn’t go without you fixing him.  And Mathias was apart of the plan that would do it.  He sat down on the chair that was next to your bed, the one Matthew usually used.  You both waited before saying anything until you could no longer hear Berwald’s footsteps.  You both spoke simultaneously.  

“Thank you.” “I’m sorry.”

You paused.  Did he just apologize?  You met his eyes and saw that he looked just as confused as you did.  Knowing that the two of you would have continued to look blankly at each other, you broke the silence.

“Thank you.” You repeated, “For last night.  I was scared for a second.”

“Ah, yeah.” He answered, “That was pretty scary, wasn't it?”

“Yeah, but you helped me.”

“Of course I helped you, that’s what... family does.”

The silence returned.  But this time it was comfortable.  At this point it wasn’t the words exchanged between you two that mattered, it was the words that didn't have to be said.  After a while you let a smile form and a few giggles escape, breaking all previous tension.  And soon that turned into a laugh.  He looked at you with wide eyes as you continued to let loose every single chuckle.  

“W-What?” He asked

“You look stupid, it really doesn’t suit you.” You answered

That statement only caused more confusion to the hunter.  But soon he caught your contagious laugh and both of you were cracking up.  You slowly stopped yourself and spoke up once again.

“You looked really serious.  It doesn’t suit you.” You clarified

He nervously rubbed the back of his head, “Yeah, I guess it doesn’t.”

“If I do recall, you were about to apologize for something.”

“Yeah... I was going to say-”

Before another word could be uttered, a rustling noise came from the other side of the room.  Mathias reacted much faster then you did and shot up from his seat.  He was by Emil’s side in a heartbeat.  Due to your condition, you could only watch from the sidelines.  Mathias reached his hand down and placed it on his forehead.  From what you could see, Emil wasn’t awake but had been moving around in his sleep.  That was an improvement considering that from what you had seen, he hasn’t moved at all.  

“Mathias?” You called

He turned around with disappointment written all over his face.  As you thought, no luck.  He stayed standing, you knew that if there was going to be any more conversation it would be short.

“He hasn’t improved, has he?” You attempted to clarify

Mathias shook his head, “But he moved.  Maybe that means something?”

“Yeah, I’m sure it does.  Are you worried?”

“Of course I am.  He’s like a little brother to me.  Don’t you know what it’s like to have siblings?”

A sorrowful smile spread across your face, “I do.”

“Well, I’m going downstairs.  You rest up, okay?  That expression doesn’t suit you either.”

You watched as the tall man walked towards the door.  For a split second, you had forgotten your plan.  You almost felt bad for using him like this, but it needed to be done.  And so just as he reached the door you called out his name one last time, he turned around.

“What is it, Engle?” He asked

“Could I borrow your knife?”

He took his precious blade in his hand and looked between it and you.

“Why?  What happened to yours?”

You replied, “Berwald is hanging onto mine and I don't want to bother him.  I just need to loosen some bandages.”

“Of course.”

He walked back over to your bed and handed you the knife.  With a familiar smile he headed back out and closed the door behind him.  You listened carefully as the sound of his feet meeting hardwood flooring slowly disappeared and faded away.  The knife was cool to the touch.  You inspected the hilt, curious to what the little designs could be.  You couldn't understand much except for one name.

Allistor.

This must had been his knife.  You tucked it underneath your pillow and rested your head in the direction of Emil, you would keep an eye on him.  You needed to wait until it was evening and everyone else was asleep.  And so you did.  The painful hours passed on.  Occasionally Matthew would come up to check on you and you would pretend to be sleeping.  The only time you actually remained awake was when Francis brought you dinner.  After dinner, time passed by much faster.  Many footsteps echoed through the house, and you waited until every single one of them had disappeared and even more so.  But once it was silent, you slowly forced yourself out of bed.  You grabbed a blanket and brought it with you to the door.  You shoved it in the crack between the floor and door, not allowing any light to come in or out.  Once this was completed, you lit a small candle.  You slid up your sleeve and began to work.  Before the cold blade made contact with your burning skin, you let out a string of words.  More for your own reassurance then anyone elses.

“I’m sorry, Berwald.  But I care about you guys too.”

OoOoO OoOoO

The sound of multiple, familiar voices woke you up the next morning.  You still felt like you were on fire, but a lighter fire then yesterday.  Since you still felt bad you decided against opening your eyes and just listened.  And as you did, you noticed something.  Every single voice sounded incredibly happy and relieved.  But it wasn't just that.  

There were five voices rather then four.

It took everything you had to stop yourself from releasing relieved tears and joining in with them.  Right now, they needed their time.  And so you remained eyes closed and ears opened.  As you did so it seemed that sleep overcame you again and you drifted off.  From the sideline nothing had changed.  No one noticed anything suspicious and enjoyed the event of Emil waking up.  

It was only Tino that noticed a new scar and hastily done bandages on your arm.