Black forest cookie, my beloved

Intern

He's so into scaring you... He's a sadist what do you expect?

He'd looove to see your insides... he may wanna dissect you. It's intrusive though so you should be fine... Should.

Jackie's suuuper possesive. You leave to go treat a patient? He's right behind you. You don't get privacy anymore.

Nurse

She's pretty on top of keeping you healthy. Always attending to your needs.

If you need anything? She already has it. You're hungry? Food right there.

Holly knows what you like to eat. Your favorite snacks? She got 'em.

Secretary

This guy? He knows when you clock in exactly. He knows when you take your break, he knows when you eat. He knows your schedule like the back of his hand.

He's the first to greet you everyday. He won't let you feel as unappreciated as he does. Just bare with it every morning, break time, and when you clock out.

You practically never have to do paperwork with him. Sawyer has it covered, infact... He does it before you can even get to it... Don't ask how he even does it, he just does.

Paramedic

He's running around all the time, so he doesn't always get to be around you, but you can bet that he'll run across the whole fucking hospital just to see you again.

He has, and will trample others just to get to you. The man is quite fit after all.

When it comes to cleaning a kill, Payton's fastest among everyone here. Like, give him 15 minutes, and the only thing left to rid of is the body. Everything else is gone.

Phycologist

They have gaslit you to keeping everyone else at arms length.

He isn't past breaking you down mentally if it means they can keep you all to themself.

If Fable were to kill anyone, they'll make it look like they did it to themself, they're crafty enough for that.

Doctor

They're a simple doctor, but that doesn't mean they can't see when your hurt or not. They're not dumb after all.

Wound? Well that's going to heal in a jiffy with them at your side... Though, they won't let you do anything until you've funny recovered.

Dylan wants to give you a "proper" examination. It IS for health reasons, but also so they can have an excuse to get closer to you.

Security

Your safety is his top priority. If you get even the tiniest scratch, he'll kill whoever gave it to you.

He's a LOT more brutal than he'd have normally been. He's straight up killed Anomalies who got to close to you with his fists alone.

Jade prides himself on being able to protect you. If you suddenly start to deny his protection, he'll just start doing it quietly.

Head Nurse

She practically runs his hospital, so you can bet you get some privileges. these will of course, vary with what you want.

She DOES expect you to give her something in return. Nothing comes for free of course. You could always offer money or whatever, but that's not what she wants, she'll take it anyway though.

Carol gives you 3 strikes. She just says that you'll lose these privileges, but in reality, it's her trying to give herself a reason to kidnap you, as "punishment" of course.

Surgeon

To say he doesn't have a problem with trying his best to make sure you recover the best possible way would be a lie.

If I were to say that he stopped working as much as he did, I'd be lying. He'd STILL overwork himself. He lowkey doesn't want to acknowledge these feelings.

Soren doesn't want to hurt you, far from it. He wants you to be happy, even if that means he can't have you... Doesn't stop him from killing those who hurt you though. (He regrets taking that life everytime, but never dwells on it.)

Secret Agent

Their mission does not involve getting into a relationship with someone who they want badly, but their want of it does not help one fucking bit.

Mist's job becomes so much harder when you're around, purely because they can't take their eyes off you.

If they could, they would just take you and run away. You are all they want in the end anyway, at last now that is.

Dr.Harlow

Harlow does not give a fuck about anything until you're in his grasp. He will go to great lengths to have you as his.

When he inevitably gets you in his grasp, you're going into the basement. No one can access that area anyway!

He loves you very much you know! At least that's what he tells you. He doesn't hurt you, but more so takes you to his house at some point, and now you're never going home.

Ratthew

You are the only one of the people who's nice to him that he actively wants to be around you.

He really wants to tell you about everything, but he knows you don't need to deal with his problems.

Ratthew will eventually have to leave you behind, since he can't risk endangering your life for the sake of his own love. His sister is waiting on him after all, to save her.

Barney

He's always had this hole in his heart, something that could never be filled. He thought killing others filled that void, but that was until he met you.

You changed everything. The way you talk, how you look at him. How much you care about it. It drives him mad.

He will quickly and swiftly kill all your close loved ones, or at least, the ones that matter most. Purely so you can be all his... Good luck.

Ron From Accounting

You are his newest obsession! He can't stop thinking about you... this has almost caused him to end up missing a deadline, but don't worry! He's still getting it done... just a little later now.

At some point, he's stopped drinking Coffee. When he noticed, he realized that YOU keep him sane, so now he needs to have you.

He now comes to the Hospital so much more often now. It's not even to get treated anymore, just to see you.

OMG this was long, anyway, hope you enjoy! :D

It wasn't an easy job.

To be fair even if you didn't need to worry about flesh eating monsters invading the halls of the hospital it'd still be a rough job. Tending to the sick and injured was hardly for the weak, and why you were trusted with hands on care regarding the patients was beyond you— you were just an intern. The most you should have been tasked with was checking people in and making sure that they really were who they said they were. Maybe standing off to the side to observe how things worked around here, pass over something when it was needed. Not administering pills for headaches— that was the more mild of your forced upon tasks— and operating on the sick. The fact no one has died yet was a miracle in of itself. Truthfully there was no way any of this could— or should— be legal.

But it paid decent, it kept the lights on at home. So you would cope through the horrors for the time being, and hope that you wouldn't some day after seeing something you weren't meant to see.

You said that jokingly, but…

At least the insurance was good— great actually, and you were permitted to use some of the medical supplies to tend to any wounds you'd accumulate from whatever managed to slip past security— it rarely happened these days now that you had been working for a few months but sometimes… sometimes there was still something that seeped through the cracks.

This past Monday it was a snaggle toothed monster with pits for eyes that was smart enough to run in during the midst of an attack's aftermath. Waited just long enough to be sent to their room and treated, and quiet enough to sneak up on you as you tended to another patient. Sunk those crooked teeth into the still dully throbbing flesh of your forearm.

It wasn't so bad, now that it was Saturday. But it still ached when you knocked into something. You had taken advantage of the fact that it was a slow week asides from the attack.

The visitors could learn a thing or two about patience, though.

You hadn't been away from the desk long, but the bell had been going off for the past couple of minutes— and the high ring of the thing was steadily growing in frequency. In truth you were beginning to grow agitated. It took far too much to keep it from showing on your face— you liked to think that since the current patient— Ron, from accounting… you always thought it was a little odd that he felt the need to specify his occupation— didn't say anything about the tightness in your jaw or the scrunch in your brow that you did a halfway decent job to look unbothered and collected.

"I feel like I see you every couple of weeks… You really should keep a better eye on your sugar levels, Ron." Had the patient been a fresher face you don't think you would have thought to speak so casually. Had it been anyone else you would have feared the threat of being reported too much to say anything more than the diagnosis and what care had to be administered.

The rabbit hardly was one for conversation. You wondered if it was just because of the nature of his visits, or if he was just like that. Odds are you would never find out, and you'd just have to make peace with that.

"I try my best. I'm not skipping meals as often as I used to, if that's any consultation." He didn't offer a smile, his voice remained just as formal as it always did even as exhaustion laced through his words. His work was draining, that much you've managed to gather. That was something the both of you could relate over.

"That's good. Keep that up, maybe we can find something long term to keep you out of here— as much as I enjoy your company I'd rather… you not be a consistent patient. For your own health, of course."

And you meant it.

Ron was just one of the consistent faces you'd see turn up to the check in counter— it had been a few weeks since you had seen Ratthew poke his head over the edge.

You hoped he was alright.

At least with Barney he had left no room to debate if he'd come back; though you were still left unsure about if you'd welcome him back with open arms should he decide to leech off of your coffee maker. You guess the second machine he had left behind as a parting gift would make things a bit speedier. He bought the thing, anyway— you think so— he didn't strike you as the thief type. Polite enough. Being a serial killer aside obviously.

Then there was… the thing.

Whatever it was called— if it had a name— was unknown to you and it only seemed to blip out of the corner of your eye whenever you looked up too fast. The first couple of times you had thought the long nights were starting to take their toll on you. The kind of thing that tends to happen when you're cooped up in a creepy building all night, alone for the most part. Only the nurse who occasionally unlocked the store for you served as company; someone you could try to actually talk to about the anomalies.

Emphasis on try. She was already checked out and left unswayed by the happenings in the hospital. You've never seen someone look so done and over it in your entire life. It didn't take long for the attempted conversation to drop off into near nothingness— all that remained being an instinctual desire to thank her for providing supplies.

When you asked about the thing in the hallway she just dismissed you. The most you got was to not look the thing in the eyes.

Not that you ever got the chance to actually do so before it darted around the corner. It didn't even show up on the camera, and it seemed to vanish over your shoulder when you had enough reflex to snap your stare to the floor. It's black legs would stand still in the edge of your vision as you stepped by, a respectful distance away in case it decided to make a grab for you, and… when you walked back down the hall to return to the check in counter, it would be gone.

Just for it to be back in the edge of your vision right where it had been before. Like it was waiting for you to follow the patients to their rooms.

The entire thing was creepy.

But you've seen it every now and then over the past couple of months. If it wanted to hurt you, it would have. Everything else that simply existed in the hallway wasn't afraid to give chase.

Except that thing.

You swear it was showing up more frequently. Not that you could prove it, the thing didn't show up in security recordings.

"I take it you hurt yourself?" Ron's sudden words brought you back to the moment. Even if his tired eyes remained lidded, the frown tugging at the corner of his mouth revealed his concern; no matter how vague. "At least it doesn't look too bad."

Instinctively your hand flew up to the exposed bandages on your arm— your typical coat abandoned for the moment to make access easier for when you had to tend to the bite. Funny how when someone brought up the presence of a wound, the injured's first reaction was to touch it. Or maybe you were just wired weird— "it's nothing too major, at the rate it's healing I should be able to ditch the bandages by next week. If not sooner…" slowly your fingers dragged from the wrapping.

They could be changed. Should be.

The silence settled back between you and Ron— there was only so much that the two of you talked about. Somehow it was more awkward with what little small talk the two of you engaged in, than the near total silence that came with every other patient. Pure professionalism offered different expectations.

Whether you'd call Ron a friend or not though…

"I'll leave you here for a little while, gather your things. I'll be back at the counter… on account of…" You trailed off. Ron was understanding enough, he never said anything bad about how long it took you to get back to him. Unlike nearly everyone else who tried to check in.

"By all means, don't let me keep you. I know you're busy." Ron's ears dangled as he sat up in bed, unopened bottle of maple syrup clutched in his blue hand and ready to be taken. You trusted him enough to leave him to actually take it. Anyone else you would have lingered around for a little while longer.

It was a good way to catch a monster that had managed to sneak under your radar.

The bell at the counter continued to ring through the air as your feet quickly closed the distance between Ron's room and the end of the hall. You could only hope that you were fast enough to keep whatever scolding that'd be slung your way too a minimum—

"I'm sorry! Sorry for the wait! It's just me tonight—" As it was every night for the past couple of weeks. There had been instances where there was a second intern. They never lasted long, one day they'd simply… leave. Maybe they were assigned a different shift— it wasn't like you were around for every hour of the day. Or maybe they found somewhere else to work—

There was no one at the counter when you finally rounded the corner at the end of the hall. Not a soul sat in the lobby either, the double doored entrance completely still. Even then, the chime would have ratted out anyone who thought it'd be funny to pull a prank at a hospital of all places.

The lobby was completely still and empty. Even the bell at the counter was completely still, it's shiny metal dome frozen under the buzzing florescent lights spaced through the ceiling. Despite that the remnants of it's ring rattled in your skull— you refused to believe you had imagined it all.

The tip of your tongue dampened your lips to no avail— one would think something as simple as chap stick was readily available in the hospital. There was sure to be some somewhere. If not you could just start bringing your own—

"Hello?" The tip of your shoe broke past the hallways threshold. It wasn't like you were expecting anyone to say anything in response. Ron was the only conscious patient currently checked in, anyone else under your care were currently resting in their beds.

Had you let in an anomaly?

No… what purpose would it have to spam the bell? They never did that before— or maybe they were adapting and changing their tactics. Luring unsuspecting victims sounded like something those creeps would do.

"Hello?" You tried again.

No response.

Your legs carried you closer to the counter—

"Hell— OH!" It was a good thing you decided against stopping to grab some painkillers from the hallway cabinets (that was another odd thing about the hospital now that you thought about it… what would stop a visitor from ravaging the stores?), because you were sure to instinctively chuck the bottle of pills at the spindly figure clinging to the corner— who only seemed to exist for a brief flash before it was gone.

It didn't matter how many times you encountered the figure. The shot of pure animalistic terror would always stab through your chest like a bullet.

You were a dignified animal with a job and responsibilities. You were better than sinking into the feral instincts that kept your kind alive long enough to evolve opposable thumbs.

The breath between your teeth regained itself before it could fully warp into a hiss, instead opting to unravel into a loose huff. It wasn't the worst thing to happen but it wasn't at all desirable, in fact you'd much rather prefer not getting a heart attack in the middle of your shift.

A part of you wondered if Ron would drag you to one of the rooms when he came to check out, if you were to collapse from sudden heart failure. Not that he would know how to treat that. Maybe he could get the nurse to come out of wherever she held herself up at—

"My fault, really—" You muttered to no one in particular as your hand— which you just realized had come to clutch the front of your work top— released itself from your shirt. With everything going on, you really should have been more mindful of the things going on. Besides that shadow wasn't the only thing you had to avoid looking at. That could have been avoidable had you just kept your eyes to the floor.

At least there weren't any patients coming in at the moment. A moment to recover was greatly appreciated, and you could go for a cup of coffee.

That was something to consider in the future, bringing in your own mix ins. Black coffee got the job done but the bitterness got a bit grating after a while…

The train of thought slowed to a halt as your eyes fixed on the two coffee makers on the counter. Both empty— you hadn't set the older one to make a new pot while you worked, because the newer one Barney had left behind for you still had part of a fresh pot. The pot should have still had some left inside it; Ron had checked in before you could polish the remainder of it off.

The coffee pot was empty.

It wasn't that you had forgotten, the glass side of the pot was still warm— emptied recently.

"If the anomalies are stealing the coffee now…" You muttered under your breath as the distance between you and the desk closed. It was fine. Another pot could be made, it was no big deal. You'd be able to cope for a few minutes while the pot refilled itself. You'd have to make more anyway.

But as you went to grab your usual mug, you found that it wasn't where you had left it on the desk.

"And they're stealing mugs?"

You spun on your heel— there were spares; in a box under one of the check in desks. You had been intending to unpack them anyway from the box they'd come in. You could spruce up the makeshift coffee bar, maybe install a rack if you'd be permitted to hang the mugs.

Your body paused mid swivel.

At the check in counter was your mug, near the bell— pushed closer to the wall. Of course you didn't, not with the angle you were walking from. Steam curled from the top, the bitter smell of still fresh coffee hitting your nose like a brick— a welcome one, given that it was the main thing keeping you from wanting to bang your head against the wall out of frustration.

But you hadn't poured it. You knew that for a fact.

The bottom of the mug dragged across the counter as you pulled it towards you. It smelled like plain black coffee, and it looked completely normal. An experimental sip— after lightly blowing of course— proved that it tasted just like the dozens of other cups you've drank over the past week. With a clink the glass settled back onto the counter, pushed out of the way as you dipped your head out of the check in window. For a brief moment the thought of the shutters slamming down on your neck passed, before it shoved itself to the back of your mind.

The only previous sign of life in the lobby was the shadow.

But what purpose would it have to refill your mug?

What else could have done it? You didn't recall the door dinging, and you explicitly remember mentioning the coffee to Ron when he had checked in earlier— he had asked about the second coffee maker.

"I'm saving the last cup for later," until after you made a second pot. An old habit to reserve at least a cup to pass off to Barney should he decide to return.

It was a little silly— even if the thing peeking around the corners wasn't the one responsible— but your lips were already working themselves into the motion. Something instinctive, something polite enough even if there was no one around to respond;

"Thank you—" You guess. It felt just as silly as it looked, and you bit your tongue as your head drew back into the office; safe from any possible deathtrap if the shutter decided it wanted to be a guillotine.

A young adult vault dweller had made it out of her vault safely. Coming from a vault, where the experiment was to see what happened to children that were raised by robots with certain standards to put into them. The only customer based one where the United States of America is the best country. It had failed as none of the robots were sent there yet when the nukes were sent off. It turned into a highly stock vault that people had hidden in with no oversight of what the experiment was meant to be.

She was sent out with a group of other young adults to explore the surface. She gained some battle experience with some armor and weapons. The only thing that could tell that she came from a vault is the pip-boy on her arm.

She comes across a pit in the ground as she hears sounds of an animal crying out coming from said pit. She slowly and carefully took a look in the pit. She knows many creatures of the wasteland would kill her. No matter how friendly she tries to be to them.

She finds a humanoid creature with big yellow eyes and three horns staring at her. Inside the pit are metal spikes that had impaled the creature's arms and leg. She could tell the creature has intelligence due to wearing clothes, but she had never seen something like this before.

“Do you need help?” She hopes it could speak.

Pierrot still has to follow the rule of not speaking. He had fallen into a pit trap when he was going to a location that might have a lot of Nuka-Colas. He nods. As he can't get his arms and leg out of the metal spikes. He was hoping one of the others would hear him to come rescue him.

She looks down as she figures how to get in to help the sad looking creature. She looks around and finds a kind of broken sign in the ground. She pulls on it to test to see if it could hold hers and the creature's weight. She tries a rope around it and goes back to the pit and drops the rope.

She carefully climbs down the pit and to the creature. She doesn't want to get stabbed or be hurt by the creature when saving him.

She takes out a stampak. “I will remove your arm from the spike then use the stampak on you.” She softly says.

He nods. He knows it will hurt a lot. The stampak will heal up the wound fast. He bites the inside of his cheek as she moves his arm out of the spike. He is trying not to make a noise. Tears had started to build up due to the pain.

She uses the stampak on him once his arm is free. “I'm gonna do your leg next.” She takes out a fresh stampak. She does the same for his leg and other arm. Freeing him from the spikes.

He is glad she has the stampaks with, or things would be worse for him. He is still in a lot of pain.

Now he is standing, he is much taller than her. Close to super mutants heights. She didn't pay much mind to his height. More worried about his wounds. “Can you climb out? I can help you.”

Pierrot climbs out of the pit with pure will power though the pain. He is trying not to make a sound during it. Once he is out. He lays on the safe ground.

She follows after him. She isn't a doctor. She will try her best to help him. After passing some checks. She helps him with his pain with some chems and plants she has.

After resting on the ground. Pierrot gets up with her help. He needs to return home. He thinks the others will come looking for him after he is gone for half a day.

He knows she is the only one here. It's safe for him to talk to her. “I need to return to my family.”

“You can talk!” She didn't mean for it to come off rude. “I thought you were mute!” She quickly realized what she said before.

“I'm not allowed to speak. Since it's us two. I can, my lady.” He smiles at her.

She smiles back. She introduced herself to him. He tells her his name, she doesn't know where his name came from. Only a handful of pre-war ghouls would know. They just think his family had taken those names just because.

“I can help you back to your family. You're still hurt too. Don't want you to die before you get back.” She offers to escort him back.

He will try to have her stay. As he had fallen for her so quickly. She is kind and pretty looking. “I will accept your help my lady.” He will try to suggest to her about staying during their return back to his home. If that doesn't work. He will drug her until she wants to stay.

“How far away is your home?” She asks him. She looks at the pip-boy's map.

Pierrot had seen a few pip-boys, but none that worked. “I can point to it.” He offers.

She adjusted the map to pinpoint where his home is. She finds it to be an hour of walking. “Can you walk that far on an injured leg?” She wants to make sure.

Pierrot is sure he can walk. He had worse injuries. His stomach growls.

“We can stop for lunch. I have food.” She offers.

He is very hungry. He had been trapped in that pitt for a while. He nods. He can have no human meat for a while.

They set up a little campfire. The vault dweller takes out some cans of beans to cook. Pierrot takes out some of the pura fruit to mix the juice in the beans.

“What are you doing?” She had never seen that type of fruit before. 

“The pura fruit has anti-radiation stuff. It cleans stuff of radiation.” He tells her.

She uses her pip-boy geiger counter to check. She sees no radiation coming from the beans anymore. She lights up at it. “That pura fruit is amazing. Where did you get it from?”

He might use the pura fruit to draw her in to stay with him. “My family farms it. We are the only ones that grow it.” He sliced a part for her to try.

She eats it. The fruit has a sweet and tangy taste to it. It's the best thing she had eaten since coming up on the surface. “That is good.” She wants more of it.

Pierrot grins as he can get her to stay with him with food. As the way to someone's heart is through their stomach.

They both ate the cans of beans. The vault dweller finds the beans to taste better than normal due to the juice of the pura fruit. She eats it fast due to the taste.

“You came from a vault?” He and the others saw and heard about the horrors of Vault-Tec vaults. The many cruel experiments of them.

She nods. “The vault experiment wasn't carried out for some reason or we are a controlled vault.” When the vault door was opened a year later after the war, it was learned what cruel things happened in other vaults. It wasn't known if that vault was meant to be an experiment or not.

He is glad for that. He knows some vault experiments are still going on, even if there are no people in them.

The forest path was familiar.

You had walked it dozens of times before.

From your small home near the edge of the village to the stream just beyond the trees. It was routine. Safe. Simple.

At least, it used to be.

Today, something felt off.

The air was still.

Too still.

Even the birds were quiet.

You adjusted the bucket in your hands, trying to ignore the unease creeping up your spine.

“It’s nothing,” you murmured to yourself.

Just your imagination.

You kept walking.

Step by step.

Until the path seemed… longer than usual.

The trees thicker.

The light dimmer.

Your grip tightened slightly.

Maybe you should turn back.

Just for today.

You took a breath and began to turn around.

A sound stopped you.

A soft crunch of leaves behind you.

You froze.

Slowly, carefully, you looked over your shoulder.

Nothing.

Just trees.

But the feeling didn’t go away.

It got worse.

Closer.

Your heart began to pound.

You turned fully this time.

“Hello?”

Your voice came out smaller than you expected.

No answer.

A second passed.

Then another.

And then something moved.

Not like a person.

Too fast.

Too unnatural.

It stepped out from behind a tree.

Your breath caught in your throat.

Its eyes were wrong.

Its smile was worse.

Your body went cold.

Every instinct screamed at you to run.

But your feet wouldn’t move.

“Well now,” it said, voice low and amused, “what a lucky find.”

You stumbled back a step.

The bucket slipped from your hands, water spilling into the dirt.

“I… I don’t have anything,” you said, your voice shaking.

It tilted its head.

“I’m not here for things.”

Another step closer.

Your chest tightened painfully.

You couldn’t breathe.

“Please,” you whispered.

It only smiled wider.

Then it lunged.

You flinched.

Bracing for something you didn’t even understand.

But it never came.

A sharp sound cut through the air.

Metal.

Fast.

Precise.

The pressure in the air shifted instantly.

You opened your eyes.

The thing had stopped.

Its arm… gone.

It stared, confused.

Then something moved in front of you.

A person.

You hadn’t seen him arrive.

One moment you were alone.

The next, he was there.

Standing between you and it.

Sword in hand.

Patterned haori catching the faint light.

You stared, too stunned to speak.

The stranger didn’t look back at you.

His attention stayed completely on the creature.

“Get behind me,” he said.

His voice was calm.

Not loud.

But it carried enough weight that your body obeyed before your mind caught up.

You stepped back quickly.

Your hands trembled.

The creature snarled, its arm already beginning to reform.

“You think you can take my meal?”

The man didn’t answer.

He moved.

Fast.

Faster than anything you had ever seen.

Steel flashed.

The creature attacked.

He cut it down again.

And again.

Each movement clean.

Controlled.

Like water flowing.

You couldn’t look away.

Fear and something else rooted you in place.

The fight ended as suddenly as it began.

One final strike.

The creature fell apart.

Then it was gone.

Completely.

Like it had never been there.

Silence returned to the forest.

But it didn’t feel the same.

Your legs finally gave out.

Before you could fall, a hand caught your arm.

Firm.

Steady.

You looked up.

The stranger was closer now.

Much closer.

His expression was unreadable.

But his eyes were sharp.

Focused.

“Are you injured?”

You shook your head quickly.

“I… I don’t think so.”

He didn’t let go right away.

His gaze moved over you, checking.

Your face.

Your arms.

Your stance.

Making sure.

Only when he seemed satisfied did his grip loosen slightly.

“That wasn’t…” you started, your voice unsteady, “that wasn’t a person.”

“No.”

Your throat felt dry.

“What was it?”

“A demon.”

The word settled heavily in your chest.

You had heard stories.

Everyone had.

But they were just that.

Stories.

Until now.

Your hands started shaking again.

“I almost…”

You couldn’t finish.

His grip tightened again, just slightly.

Not enough to hurt.

Just enough to steady you.

“You’re safe.”

The words were simple.

Quiet.

But they grounded you.

You nodded slowly.

“…Thank you.”

He didn’t respond immediately.

Just looked at you for a moment.

Then, “You shouldn’t walk this far alone.”

“I didn’t know,” you admitted softly.

“I know.”

A pause.

He glanced at the fallen bucket, then back at the forest around you.

“…I’ll take you back.”

“You don’t have to,” you said quickly. “I can just go-”

“No.”

The answer was immediate.

Firm.

You blinked.

“I can manage, really-”

“No,” he repeated, quieter this time. “It’s not safe.”

Something in his tone made it hard to argue.

Not forceful.

Just certain.

You hesitated.

Then nodded.

“…Okay.”

He stepped slightly ahead of you.

Not too far.

Just enough.

Always between you and the deeper forest.

You followed.

Trying to steady your breathing.

After a few steps, you glanced at him.

“…Are you… some kind of guard?”

“No.”

“A traveler?”

“No.”

You frowned slightly.

“Then why were you here?”

A brief pause.

“…Passing through.”

That didn’t feel like the full answer.

But you didn’t push.

Instead, you asked more quietly, “What’s your name?”

Another pause.

Then, “Giyuu Tomioka.”

You repeated it softly, committing it to memory.

“…I’m glad you were passing through.”

He didn’t respond.

But his pace slowed just slightly.

Matching yours.

By the time the edge of the village came into view, the tension in your chest had eased a little.

But not completely.

You stopped walking.

“…This is fine. I can go from here.”

He didn’t move.

His gaze shifted past you.

Scanning.

Watching.

Making sure.

Only after a moment did he nod.

But he still didn’t turn to leave.

You hesitated.

“…Will you be alright?”

“Yes.”

A pause.

“…Will you?”

You gave a small, tired smile.

“I think so.”

He studied you again.

Like he was trying to decide something.

Then he stepped back.

Just once.

But his attention never fully left you.

“Stay closer to the village.”

“I will.”

“Don’t come back here alone.”

“…I won’t.”

Another pause.

Neither of you moved.

Then you nodded slightly.

“…Thank you. For earlier.”

He inclined his head just barely.

Then turned.

Disappearing into the trees as quietly as he had appeared.

That night felt different.

Every sound outside your home made your heart jump.

Every shadow seemed deeper.

You sat near the doorway, unable to fully relax.

Your thoughts kept returning to the forest.

To that moment.

To him.

A faint sound came from outside.

You stiffened.

Your breath caught.

Footsteps.

Soft.

Controlled.

Not like before.

You stood slowly, peering out.

A figure stood a short distance away.

Familiar.

The same haori.

The same still presence.

“…You came back,” you said quietly.

He stepped a little closer.

“I was nearby.”

You nodded, even though that didn’t fully explain it.

“…Is something wrong?”

“No.”

He glanced around the village.

Then back at you.

“…Just checking.”

Your chest warmed slightly.

“You didn’t have to do that.”

“I did.”

Simple.

Certain.

You hesitated.

Then stepped aside slightly.

“…Do you want to sit for a moment?”

He paused.

Then nodded once.

You sat near the doorway again.

He remained standing at first.

Watching.

Listening.

Only after a while did he sit down.

Not too close.

But close enough.

The silence wasn’t uncomfortable.

Just quiet.

After everything that happened, it felt… grounding.

Your shoulders slowly relaxed.

Your breathing evened out.

“You’re still shaken,” he said.

“A little,” you admitted.

A pause.

“…That’s normal.”

You glanced at him.

“…You’re not?”

“No.”

You let out a small breath.

“I guess you’ve seen this before.”

“Yes.”

Another quiet moment passed.

Then, without really thinking, you leaned slightly toward him.

Not much.

Just enough that your shoulder brushed his.

You stilled.

“…Sorry.”

“It’s fine.”

He didn’t move away.

If anything, he stayed exactly where he was.

Steady.

Solid.

Safe.

Time passed.

Slowly.

Your eyes began to close.

Exhaustion finally catching up to you.

Your head dipped.

Resting lightly against him.

You tensed for a second.

But he didn’t pull away.

“…You should sleep inside,” he said quietly.

“In a minute,” you murmured.

But your voice was already fading.

He stayed still.

Listening to the night.

Watching the dark.

Every small sound.

Every shift in the air.

His focus never wavered.

Not for a second.

Your hand shifted slightly, lightly gripping the fabric of his sleeve.

Your breathing soft.

Even.

Asleep.

His gaze lowered briefly.

Then lifted again toward the darkness beyond the village.

“I won’t let anything reach you,” he said quietly.

The words were simple.

But absolute.

And he stayed there.

Giyuu Tomioka stayed until the night grew quiet.

Until every shadow settled.

Until you were safe.

And even then,

He didn’t leave right away.

Thank you for reading <3 Credits to @saradika-graphics for the banners

Should I make a part 2? Let me know if you want one!