back to that phase where I close my eyes and then pick the first word I see and then name the chapter after that because I'm lazy.

also, in general I tried to avoid getting too into detail about stuff but I'm going to put a BIT of a gore warning bc I frequently forget to do that.

Lastly, before reading I want u to go get yourself a glass of water if you haven't had any yet today, unless it's currently like 3:00 am, in which case, GO TO BED YOU FOOL.

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While I watched, frozen in place, Aurelia raised her bow and fired off another shot. I turned away from the arrow as it hurtled towards my chest. I felt a searing pain shoot up my right arm and stumbled back a pace. I looked up once I regained my footing, preparing to fight. But all I caught sight of was a flicker of Aurelia as she turned a corner and ran.

"I wasn't expecting that." I chuckled while I leaned against a nearby wall. "Here's to hoping she doesn't come back to finish me off." I spoke drily, sliding down until I was sitting.

I rummaged through my belt pack while jostling my arm as little as possible. Suddenly, I stopped and stared down at my arm.

"I... have an arrow sticking out of me." I blinked. "Shit."

I giggled suddenly, reaching into my belt. "Hey, Y/N, what did you do today?" I spoke to myself, (perhaps the adrenaline making me a little giddy).

"Oh, not much, just, you know, became an honorary porcupine– WOW okay, I just said that."

I started applying numbing herbs to my arm until I felt a little less pain from the area. Then I carefully checked to see if the arrow had hit bone. Luckily enough, it had avoided the area. You know, silver lining.

"If only I were in a Hollywood movie," I muttered, "I could yank this right out and be over and done with it. Unfortunately, I'm in a stupid fanfic with a stupid author who likes to try and be realistic sometimes. Thank you SO much for that."

(you're welcome <3)

I rummaged through my belt further until I extracted the stuff I'd need. "Thank god for Mujika," I sighed. She always tried her best to sneak an absurd amount of medical supplies into my belt whenever I wasn't using it. She must've gotten into it some time yesterday before I snuck out.

I mixed together honey, wax, and a type of oil together with a pain-numbing herb. Once I had everything I needed, I grabbed a precision knife out. I gritted my teeth as I raised it to my arm.

"Y/N!" I looked up at the sound of Cozbi's voice. "There you areEIN THE NAME OF THE ONE, YOU HAVE AN ARROW IN YOUR ARM!!"

"Shit, really?" I joked, pulling the knife away.

"Are you going to pull it out???" Cozbi asked frantically.

I frowned. "I'd like to, because of infection, but I'm worried I'll tear more muscle ligaments when I pull it out. And I don't know much about the shape of the arrowhead."

Cozbi looked at me, to the arrow in the arm, and then back to me again. "...huh?"

"Make yourself useful and go grab the arrow out of that corpse over there?" I pointed to the bandit from earlier. "So I can see if it's got barbed ends and what the tip is made of. If it's attached with animal tendons, I'm screwed."

"A-llllrighty." Cozbi pushed herself to her feet and walked over to the corpse.

I busied myself by putting together a bandage until Cozbi started making back. I looked up as she walked towards me and caught sight of a grave expression on her face.

"Are you good?" I asked nervously while Cozbi studied the arrow in her hands.

Cozbi met my eyes steadily. "Y/N... was it Aurelia who shot you?"

I inhaled sharply and then laughed. "No way."

"You laugh when you lie. And I know Aurelia's handicraft when I see it."

I chewed the inside of my lip. "...It was on accident. She meant to hit that guy–"

"And then left you here?" Cozbi crossed her arms. "Why are you defending her?"

"We don't know why," –I rambled,– "maybe she had a reason she couldn't talk about, or something–"

"You should stop assuming the best in people." Cozbi frowned.

"I'm not. I just don't... it's not a priority right now." I gripped my cloak and ripped the arrow hole open wider. I gritted my teeth in pain while I continued speaking to Cozbi. "So don't be...worrying about it now. You can sort it out later." I looked up to Cozbi. "So? Details on the arrow?"

Cozbi hesitated a moment. "No, it's...designed to come out smoothly so retrieving and reusing arrows are easy. It's made of one long piece of a slightly bendy wood. The tip has been formed a with a knife. "

I grinned. "Good news. Now, I want you to help me get this out of my arm."

"Isn't that... going to hurt??"

"Like a bitch." I spoke curtly. "Don't take offence from any names I call you in the meantime."

"What about blood flow? Don't you humans like... bleed excessively? Wouldn't it be better to leave it in?" Cozbi asked.

"I need to get back on my feet and doing that with a shaft in my arm is kind of difficult. I've got stuff prepared to stanch blood-flow already." I responded hastily. "So here's what I want you to do," I continued, holding out the knife. "Cut along where the shaft is to expand it a little–"

"Look, I know I'm not squeamish but WHAT??"

"Just a little!" I emphasized. "And then pull out the arrow. Be gentle!" I reaffirmed, gesturing with the knife.

"That's what she sai–"

"Stop stealing my human jokes and focus! If you screw up my arm, I WILL stab you." I pointed the knife at Cozbi's face.

"Listen, princess, for the record, when I royally fuck up your arm, you are going to be even LESS capable of stabbing me."

I puffed out my cheeks in exasperation and rolled my eyes. "Lastly, if I pass out, disinfect and bandage it for me."

PASS OUT??!" Cozbi spluttered. "Since when was that on the table?!"

"Since, I, uh, thought of it now?"

"Why aren't we just going to the castle to do this??!"

"'Cause we'll encounter a lot of bandits on the way there, and moving'll be a problem with this bum arm. Though, if I'm being totally honest, I would far prefer Mujika for this task over you."

"Cheesus..." Cozbi groaned. "Okay, I'm really going to pull it out now."

As soon as she started, it was a stream of cussing until the arrow was out. Then I quickly applied the wax-like substance to the bleeding wound and bandaged it tightly in an attempt to place pressure on it. The wax-type stuff was known to help bind flesh and stanch bleeding, and I prayed it would do the trick until I could receive proper treatment.

"It seems... okay?" Cozbi looked at the bandage. "I mean, it hasn't turned red yet, which is a good sign?"

I nodded. "Yep. Painkillers are kicking in now, so as long as I don't jostle it too much, I'll be alright."

Cozbi lowered a hand to help me stand up and I grasped it, rising to my feet.

"Are you going to head to the castle now?" she asked.

"I want to get Mujika to check it, so I should probably start heading back that way."

Cozbi frowned in thought. "If you get caught up by a bunch of those shitheads, will you be alright?"

I shrugged. "I'm sure I can manage, so long as these painkillers don't make me too drowsy."

"Drowsy...?" Cozbi frowned. "like... how drowsy are we talking?"

"Er..." I hummed, "it shouldn't be so bad..."

Suddenly, there was a rumble as a nearby house erupted into flames. Orange licked the sky and embers floated to the air.

Cozbi looked quickly from the flames back to me. "I'll go with you to the castle. I've got to go there to check on Benny, anyway."

I nodded. "...Alright."

I moved behind Cozbi as we made our way towards the castle, avoiding fights along the way. We ducked through hidden alleyways I pointed out, and hid whenever bandits came into view.

We crouched against a house now as a group of them moved by, marching towards the castle. My head suddenly nodded and my vision blurred. I inhaled sharply as I shook myself awake. I then closed my eyes a moment and sighed, trying to focus.

"Are you okay?" Cozbi asked.

I nodded sleepily. "I'm thriving!"

"Good, 'cause we're almost there." she looked back at me and practically scowled. "If you dare fall asleep on me–"

I grinned tiredly. "Wouldn't be the first time I passed out from complications related to blood loss."

"How are you still alive???" Cozbi groaned, turning slowly back to the road. "It's clear. Come on then."

I followed after her until the castle came into view. She moved to go towards the front gate, but I stopped walking. "Where are you going?" I asked.

Cozbi blinked. "...to the front?"

"Isn't that where those bandits were just heading?

Cozbi paused. "Ah. Right. Where do we go, then?"

"Follow me." I turned on my heel and led her to the same unguarded vent as always. Her eyes trailed along the side of the wall.

"Can you get up there?"

I hummed, looking up the wall and rolling my right shoulder. "Getting up there isn't the problem, pulling myself in is."

"I'll go first and pull you up." Cozbi offered.

"Can you make it up there without a boost?" I hummed.

My demon companion sighed. "Your underestimation of my abilities wounds me." she then took a few steps back and, following a running start, leapt up the wall and pulled herself into the vent. I let out a low whistle.

"First try, huh?" I muttered drily. "Showoff."

Cozbi leaned out of the vent. "It shouldn't be surprising. Not only am I taller than you, I'm stronger, too."

I puffed out my cheeks a moment and then began my running start. As I reached the base of the wall I crouched, and then jumped. I grasped the edge of the vent with my left hand. Cozbi gripped my left arm and heaved me in. I almost slipped and she grabbed my right to pull me into safety.

I gritted my teeth and leaned against the wall a moment, huffing for breath. Then I pushed past Cozbi and crawled through the vent. As I reached the other side, I looked down at my spare cloak, mask, and knife. My eyebrows creased in thought. Usually I kept the knife folded inside everything, and now it rested on top. Had someone touched it?

I shook my head. None of the demons knew about this place. I must not've payed as much attention last time.

I pulled my tattered cloak off over my head and pulled the fresh one overtop, as my current one was bloody and had a tear in the arm. Then I climbed and jumped out of the vent, Cozbi following after me. I led her through the halls until I located a soldier, guarding outside the hall.

"Is Mujika in there?" I asked, though my voice came out weaker than I expected.

The guard looked down at me and blinked. "Citizens? What are you doing milling about–"

"I'm Y/N." I answered drily, pulling back my hood. "I need to see Mujika."

The guard stiffened, offering a little salute. He must be a newer recruit "She's just inside."

I nodded and pushed through him into the large room, which was filled with the wounded. I looked through everyone until I spotted Mujika, calming down some scared demon folk. As I passed through the door, the guard looked down at the floor and then to me. "Er, miss–?"

I ignored him and walked towards Mujika till she noticed me. She looked up from her patients and brightened. "Y/N!" she exclaimed. "You'll never guess who I just saw–" as her eyes lingered on me another moment, her cheerful demeanour faltered.

"Goodness gracious!" she exclaimed. "Y/N, you're bleeding!"

I looked at my arm and then to the floor drowsily. "Oh, you're right." I looked along the drips of blood that trailed from the door to me. "That's my blood? Damn, that can't be good–"

Cozbi and Mujika's voices faded in and out of focus from above me while I listened, trying not to sway on my feet. "she was shot by an arrow... I don't know how much painkillers she's on..."

"You pulled it out?!" Mujika's voice cut through my haziness.

"It was a one piece arrow..." I spoke, though my voice echoed as if it didn't belong to me. "It would've been okay if I hadn't pulled my arm getting into the castle–" the world suddenly dipped under my feet and I struggled to keep my balance. "I'd really like it if you stopped moving like that." I told the floor, though, like an ass, it wouldn't stop spinning.

I could hardly feel Mujika and Cozbi's hands on me as they supported me. "Goodness, let's lie you down..." I heard Mujika speak faintly.

"Yeah..." I mumbled. "I think I'd like to take a nap. Man, I miss kindergarten..."

Though, even after I lied down, the room wouldn't stop spinning, like I was on a glorified boat bucking and heaving at sea. I faded in and out of consciousness for quite some time. I remembered vaguely feeling too cold and feeling too hot, and complaining that the lights were too bright.

By the time I came fully to, Cozbi was no longer around. "Mujika..." I murmured, and moments later the queen came into view.

"Y/N!" she exclaimed. "are you alright? how do you feel?"

I nodded and sat up slowly. A damp cloth slid off my forehead. "I'm alright..." I blinked the remaining drowsy from my eyes. "how long has it been?"

Mujika knelt at my side. "A couple of hours. You're all stitched up, and you've stopped bleeding." My cloak was off and I remained in my black turtleneck, though the right sleeve had been cut off. A nonstick bandage was placed over where the stitches had been, and I slowly rotated my arm in a circle.

"What's the damage like?" I asked.

Mujika smiled. "You'll be alright. It'll heal naturally. You've lost a decent amount of blood– I'd say nearly 20%. You won't need a transfusion, as long as you don't lose any more, that is. You're lucky."

"That's good." I nodded slowly. "...do you have any water?"

Mujika nodded quickly. "Hold on a second..." she rose to her feet and came back with a glass of cold water. I swigged it back and sighed.

"Is there still fighting outside?" I asked. "And where's Cozbi?"

Mujika bit her lip. "I'm not sure. Cozbi left once I finished the stitches. I'm not sure what she's up to... Oh, that reminds me! Y/N, there's–" as I looked at her, the queen suddenly hesitated.

"What is it?" I edged her on.

Mujika's eyes trailed towards the doorway. "It's... nothing.... Never mind." her face switched back to a smile.

I raised an eyebrow in suspicion. "...okay..."

"Hey, have you seen Sonju?" The demon queen asked, changing the topic gracefully. "he was awfully worried about you this morning..."

I tilted my head in thought. "I saw him earlier, yes. He was fighting a strong guy, though, so I'm not sure how he's doing by now..." I prepared to stand to my feet. "I'll go check–"

"Don't do that!" Mujika spoke frantically. "You've got to rest!"

"I'm alright." I frowned. "I feel much better." I stood to my feet carefully.

"See?" Mujika's face was creased with worry as she looked at me.

"You want to know what the situation is like out there too, right?" I articulated carefully. "And you're worried about Sonju."

Mujika pursed her lips. "Yes, but... I don't want you to get hurt..."

"I'll be careful" I reassured her.

"But now, when... it's..." The demon queen fretted.

"I swear I'll avoid trouble." I coerced her. "I won't get into any fights."

Mujika's lips tightened further. "...alright..." –my smile widened,– "But only if you take someone with you."

"With me? Mujika, I don't need a babysitter." I insisted. "I can handle myself."

"I know you can," Mujika agreed, "but it'll help give me some peace of mind. You can choose who you take with you, if you'd like."

"Alright." I relented with a sigh. "Do you know who's available?"

Mujika tapped her chin in thought. "Norris should be right outside, and there's several capable guards spread throughout the castle..."

"I'll take Norris." I decided quickly. I picked my mask up from my side and secured it on my face. Lastly, I stooped to pick up my cloak and pulled it over my head, lifting my hood over my head.

"See you, Mujika." I waved bye to the queen.

Mujika nodded worriedly. "stay safe, Y/N... And watch the stitches! Don't strain yourself!"

I made my way through the castle and selected one of the guards. "Are you strong? I asked bluntly.

"Er..." –the guard blinked– "–yes?"

"Cool, come with me." I led them to the front door, gathering a couple other guards along the way.

"We aren't supposed to leave our posts..."

"Yeah, and you guys are all shit at guarding." I snipped. "I snuck past all of you earlier with an open, bleeding wound."

All of their mouths clamped shut.

"You're going to switch positions to the front gate. Last I heard, they were short a few and getting tired." I soon leaned against the front door, listening quietly. There was no sound of battle, so I pushed the door open.

"WOW," my eyes widened, "that is a LOT of corpses."

Five soldiers plus Benny, apparently, looked towards me.

"We're managing." Norris chuckled drily.

"Yeah no shit." I stepped outside of the door.

"Nice to see you still kicking." Norris grinned, though it had an exhausted look to it. No wonder.

I raised my hand in a fist bump. "You too." I turned my attention to the other soldiers. "These guys are here to give you a little break. Take turns or whatever, I don't care. I'm going to be taking Norris with me, though."

The soldiers and sentries all looked at eachother, a bit confused. "Err... okay?"

-----

mental health is crap atm but that's okay it makes me AND my writing hotter.(this is a joke.)

MM LOVE DOUBTING MY WRITING ABILITY BECAUSE I AM SO DETERMINED TO FINISH THIS BOOK OFF IN THE BEST WAY POSSIBLE BC I DON'T WANT TO DISAPPOINT ANY OF YOU LOVELIES

I'm gonna go eat a muffin now and some grapes 'cause half a grilled cheese sandwich is not enough sustenance for my massive genius brain👍

there might be another chap today, depending on how fast I edit (and whether I can kick my insecurities to the curb like a total girlboss or not), but don't get ur hopes up bebs <3

AND NOW, AN ADVERTISEMENT FOR THE DISCORD BECAUSE I THINK WE NEED ANOTHER ONE AND I THINK ALL OF THESE ARE PEAK SCREENSHOTS.

oh yeah, also, this from earlier:

here's the link if ur interested in the chaos: https://discord.gg/tkdQeg24Z4

ok that's all bc I don't want to expose myself too much <3

c ya later babes.