@ElderGodSwimwithGamers group
All throughout your childhood and teen years, your grandmother had always had a strange, but very firm, set of rules. Living out in the middle of the forest, almost a full days walk from town, naturally came with many dangers, all of which you had been taught how to handle at a young age. The rules your grandmother always stressed, however, had always been different.
Rule one: Never answer any call or speak to anyone whilst outside of the house, even if it sounded like your grandmother.
Rule two: Never accept gifts from strangers you met in, or surrounding the forest, and always be cautious when accepting gifts whilst in town.
Rule three: Never leave the house without your iron dagger and iron wrist cuffs.
Rule four: Never leave the house or linger outside after the sun begins to set.
Rule five: Never answer the door or calls from outside at night.
Rule six: Never stray from the path, no matter the circumstances.
Those rules, strange as they were, had been drilled into you since you were a child, your grandmother acting almost fanatic in her protection of you in your younger years. For a time, your grandmother had loosened her overprotectiveness on you, allowing you some freedom as a young preteen and teen, though the rules always remained unchanging. You had used the opportunity to explore the town whenever you got the chance back then, something you had deeply enjoyed, even if the townsfolk did treat you a bit strangely.
Lately, however, your grandmother seemed to have almost doubled her protectiveness of you, once again forcing you to stay where she could watch you, despite the fact that you were now an adult. It was stifling, but she was all that you had, and you refused to push her away just because she cared a little too much.
Today was one of the few days that she had relaxed her control a little, and you had rather eagerly taken the chance to go and spend some time out of the house, picking berries at a lovely little spot that was within one of your grandmothers designated “safe zones”. Enamored as you were, with the moment of peace, you almost didn’t notice as the sky began to turn pink with the setting of the sun.
With a pounding heart, you gathered up your basket and deftly dashed down the thin path, knowing the trail by heart. You knew if you were even a moment late, your grandmother would tighten her hold on you even more, something you really didn’t want to deal with.
You were only a few minutes away from the house when you found yourself coming to a sudden stop.
Leaning against a tree up ahead, a tall figure was slumped, their shoulders rising and falling slowly and shakily with their breaths. Hesitantly, you started to move past them, only to freeze as you realized they were clutching a massive gash in their side, their fine clothing stained with their blood, and a trail of it leading from the direction you were headed.
Without thought, you fell to your knees before them, abandoning your basket as you tore off a section of your coat, carefully pressing it over the strangers wound. You were so intently focused on helping them stem the flow, that you never noticed as they flinched at the sight of your cuffs, only noticing as they began to lean back and away from you.
Letting out a soft sound of distress, you moved further forward, pressing your hand more firmly over the wound and ignoring the warmth of their blood quickly staining your hand. Rule six broken.
“Please stay still, you need to keep pressure on it to stop the bleeding.” Rule one broken.
Your voice timid and quiet as you spoke, eyes worried as you pressed more cloth over the wound, shifting closer still in your attempt to help. When no response came, you finally looked up, freezing when you found the stranger staring at you in awe and wonder, face no longer shielded by their long hair.
Your breath hitched as you took in the delicately pointed ears, their unnatural ethereal beauty, and the strange eyes that glowed softly in the dimming light. Rule four broken. Entrance by the sight of them, you didn’t notice them moving until you felt their blood-stained fingers ever so gently brushing over your cheek, as though to check if you were really there before them.
“….It’s you.”
I think you get the gist, but ask me any questions if you need to!
Also, thanks to @ReedOfTheAges for the prompt!
