Chapter Text
Ten wandered the woods, aimlessly following a series of little noises. They’d assumed that the creator of the cries was an animal in pain, and, being the appointed best helper in town, they made it their mission to find and help it. Plus, they’d been lately wondering what life would be like with a pet, so they hoped that the animal was something that they could keep.
Ten whipped their head around as another noise was made. The pained whines were coming from behind a tree. Cautiously, they crept forward and looked on the other side.
Ten released an earsplitting scream and stumbled backward, covering their mouth. Sprawled out against the roots, with his ankle caught in a bear trap, was none other than Fourteen.
Fourteen’s head snapped in Ten’s direction, revealing his face. His pupils were narrowed to slits, tears streaming down his cheeks, and his eyebrows furrowed in pain. He trembled, shivering with each short, agonized breath.
Ten’s eyes widened in fear, traveling down to Fourteen’s ankle. Dark blood oozed from the wound, the jaws of the trap digging in deep.
Ten’s heartbeat thrummed against his chest and ears. They really, really should be running right now. They couldn’t just stand around with a notorious cannibal right next to them. They could get seriously hurt.
Right?
…
He doesn’t look THAT harmful.
“Holy shit, Fourteen, what happened!?” Ten swung around to stand in front of Fourteen, then sat down to face him.
Fourteen pressed his back to the tree’s trunk, shuffling away. “Get away from me,” he breathed, his voice shaking more than himself, and dripping with fear.
“Fourteen, I’m trying to help you,” Ten pleaded, reaching their hand out to rest on his knee.
Fourteen jolted at the soft touch, his head retreating into his neck, and a deep growl rumbled from his throat. His thin tail thwacked against the tree, lashing with frustration.
“It’s okay,” Ten promised, beads of sweat beginning to drip down their forehead. “I won’t hurt you.”
…I can’t believe that I have to say that to HIM.
Slowly, they tried to lean closer.
Fourteen shriveled back even more, his chin against his chest, and he peeled his lips back in a snarl, displaying his razor-sharp teeth. His growl stuttered, becoming louder.
Ten imagined what would happen if they tried to touch him again, afraid that he would bite them, but they just sighed, giving up on the thought. I’ve suffered a thousand of his bites. I can handle one more.
As slow as possible, Ten brought their other hand up toward his face, gently shushing him like a wounded animal (or rather, because he pretty much was a wounded animal) and slid their hand under his long bangs and up his forehead.
When Fourteen refused to react, they continued to whisper to him, rubbing their thumb over the rough skin of his forehead. Slowly, his growls dissolved into deep breaths as he started to calm down, his eyes and lips squeezed shut.
Ten’s heart pounded in their chest. Even though his mouth was closed, they could still see his sharp, glistening teeth in the back of their mind. The situation felt like that of consoling a vicious, wild canine. No matter how calm he looked, they still felt themself shake, anticipating the burn of their hand being ripped open.
But even then, Fourteen moved not an inch from his position.
Carefully, Ten looked behind themself. Their house wasn’t too far away. They sighed. “I’m going to need to pick you up.”
Fourteen jolted and whipped his head away from Ten’s hand, knocking it off of him with one of his large horns, as if realizing what he was doing. He opened his eyes wide to stare back at them. He seemed to have previously relaxed, pupils dilating to their normal size, but they quickly shrunk back down.
“No,” he growled. “Wh-Why do yyou even want t-to help me!?”
Ten took his words into consideration. Why did they want to help him? Maybe it was just a natural instinct to help others (or a natural instinct to search for others’ praise and approval), or maybe they were just lonely…
They pushed the thought away.
“Because you’re in pain,” Ten urged, “and I don’t want to let you keep bleeding out like this. It would be a terrible way to die! Now let me pick you up; I’m taking you home to get fixed up.”
Fourteen averted their gaze, giving a frustrated sigh. “It.. hurts,” he sobbed, breathing hard. “..tried to stand up, b-but..it ppulled on my ankle… it’s..really..heavy.”
Ten gazed down at Fourteen’s terrifying wound, mesmerized by the glistening purple blood oozing from it. They looked back at Fourteen and lifted a hand gently back up to his face to stroke his cheek. “Oh, you poor thing… I’ll see what I can do, okay?”
Fourteen nodded, eyes squeezed shut in pain.
Ten almost jumped when he had an idea.
“I’ll go back to the corner store,” they told Fourteen, still stroking his face. “And I’ll get some stuff to help, like bandages.”
Fourteen weakly reached out for the other, tightly gripping their jacket. He shook his head, eyes widened in fear. “No. Stay. Don’t leave me.”
“I’ll only be gone for, like, five minutes,” Ten promised. “I swear. Now, please let go of my jacket.” His words were a bit firm, but his tone was gentle and sweet.
Fourteen shook his head.
Ten sighed and slipped their jacket off, letting Fourteen hold it to his chest and face. They stood up, stretching, and then shivered from the cold.
“Please, don’t try to move, okay? It’ll hurt more if you move, so try to stay as still as you can. I’ll be right back.”
“…Fine.”