TW: Panic, Pain, Blood, Stitching

Herobrine groaned, his body aching as he gripped his chest. Damn what was this pain? With blurry eyes the god pushed himself up slowly, groaning again as his chest pulsed. His hand clenched on the wound, his balance swaying as he tried to sit up. And to no success he plopped back down, scrunching up in pain. "Damn it..." He growled out, lifting a hand up to view the blood beginning to cake on it. It wasn't often that he experienced the throbbing pain of an open wound, and lord did it suck. The god looked down, seeing tight gauze over his chest and shoulder, bright red had seeped through the cotton coverage. His shirt was gone and his sword was gone as well.

Herobrine flicked his head around, examining his surroundings. An empty tent surrounded him, a large space for short term living. Blankets, cleaning supplies and food items laid along the side of the tent, carefully stacked in a neat order. Silver armor from the general was mounted in an armor stand. Herobrine rested in a comfortable cot, thick wool blankets covered him, the texture quite rough, especially on the gauze.

The sound of heavy rainfall combated the tent and tarp, the noise was slightly comforting to the one in pain. Sounds other than rain carried from outside and a deep growl rose from his throat.

Luciel entered, not before taking his hair and wringing the water outside. He sighed and plopped down next to the god. Herobrine jerked away, only to hiss in pain as his wound stretched harshly. The Valkyrie looked over, his expression surprisingly turned to concern.

"you're awake? I expected you to be out at least until the morning. Hey-! Stop-" Herobrine growled more, scooting out of the warmth of the cot he was lying in. His blanket slid off his body. "Don't move- you're making it worse!" Luciel came forward, crawling towards the other to grip his wrist tightly. Instantly a yelp came from Luciel, he drew back, rubbing the burn forming on his palm. "Holy Aether!" he hissed, shaking his hand.

Herobrine watched for a moment before snapping back into a defensive stature. "Don't fucking touch me." A wild growl came from deep within the god, just daring the other to try again.

"I already did! -many times in fact." Luciel shook his hand around in pain, his palm was red and raw. The man scooted away to sit in front of the tents entrance, giving the injured god some space. His Halo was small, just hovering above his lightly colored hair. It lit up the tent, creating an odd blue shimmer. "Notch that hurts..." Luciel scowled, looking at the burn on his palm where he had touched the demon. Then he got a great idea. His hand shot out of the tents entrance behind him, stretching his palm up to the cloudy sky above. He sighed in relief as the cold rain drops soothed his sizzling hand.

"You're quite lucky I followed you, there's no way you would have healed from that wound without stitches and gauze."

Herobrine's gaze rested on the Valkyrie. He was confused, in pain, cold and exhausted. His mind screamed at him to flee again, however his body groaned in resistance, just the idea of moving sent painful aches through his body. That was when he realized his arm was immobilized, it was wrapped tightly with gauze and positioned closely to his body. Gauze was also covering his chest underneath. He had been cleaned, stitched up, and taken back to...? He gasped and shot up, lurching his whole body as fear coursed through his nerves, then pain followed closely.

"What are you doing?!" Luciel lunged after the demon, moving to grab at his arms, but he hesitated. Luciel's arms hovered underneath the demons elbows, just in case. He had already been burned once, he didn't need his other palm burned. "You're going to ruin your stitches!"

"W-where am I?!" Herobrine hissed out, gritting his teeth in pain. "Where did you take me to?!" He staggered, barely missing the walls of the small tent.

"Relax! we're nearby where you passed out! I set up my tent and fixed up your wounds. Now please just... rest!"

Hands grazed along the demons sides, he flinched harshly away, the touch on his bare skin made him react fast. Herobrine hadn't felt anothers hand in centuries, and it unnerved him, he had to run. Everything in him screamed to run. This damn suck-up angel was going to gut him when he had the chance.

"Breathe! Breathe." Luciel's gaze watched the other who was heaving, his gauze was soaked through, staining the cotton a bright crimson. "You opened your stitches up." The man spoke calmly, his hands held out in front of himself, waiting for Herobrine to move. "You're okay." He reassured.

Herobrine's attention snapped to Luciel, his eyes blazing bright in the tent, combating the glow of the others halo. He couldn't speak, his throat seemingly was closed. Words crashed around his mind, conflicting emotions combating like waves.

run.

He was walling, moving instinctually, he shoved past Luciel. The valkyrie spoke loudly, however Herobrine was too distracted to hear it. With a hiss, the demon dashed out of the tent. Immediately the downpour crashed over him, his bare feet squelched in the muddy clearing. Instantly he was frozen, this was not his element. He made a dash for the nearest way out; trees to the left. However he was stopped short by a firm hand on his wrist, clenching hard. His whole body jerked from Luciel's iron hold.

"What are you doing?! You're going to die out here!" The valkyrie shouted over the rapid winds that stirred around them. Herobrine looked back, his bright gaze wavering in pain. "I just want to help!" The gods eyes looked down to the shouting beings mouth, it wasn't covered by his shirt, his emotions were raw and free to be shown. It was strange to see the other without his mouth covered. The general's eyes were upturned, trying to squint through the rain. The mans free hand tried to paw off his long drenched hair away from them, trying to see Herobrine through the storm.

Herobrine's whole body then shook in the cold, nearly freezing already, his wound pulsed in pain and his gradually soaked clothes made him even more miserable. He wasn't getting away in this state- if the Valkyrie took his blessed blade and killed him in his sleep-

'no.' He wouldn't let that happen, he didn't need to sleep so he would not give in to needless desire. He was exhausted, his body ached, defeat coursed through him. He hadn't fought much but his body was too strained to use any energy or make another dash. He would comply for now.

Herobrine found himself letting the being slowly guide him, soft hands carefully brought his own hand back to the tent, and in an instant, a towel was covering him, thrown over his head carelessly. "Wipe yourself off, change, I have extra clothes I grabbed from home while you were out." The aether. Luciel had been there, did that mean that his brother knew? If he did though, why wasn't he here? Herobrine pulled the towel down, looking at it for a moment before his legs gave out beneath himself, dropping him onto the wet tent floor on his knees. His vision had gone black for a moment.

Luciel crouched down, looking concerned.

"Do regen potions work on you? I didn't want to test the waters- just in case. I know how you react badly to holy water." Luciel turned and dragged over the grey luggage bag from the corner. He immediately started picking through the items inside, clanking and shuffling came from the bag.

Herobrine could barely even understand what was happening, his chest pounded and his wound ached, he was freezing cold, shivering slightly.

Luciel held up two potions, looking over to the other, expectant of an answer. He blinked, seeing Herobrine sway on his knees. "Okay... lets get you back into that cot..."

The god hissed at the feeling of hands touching him once again, his eyes struggling to stay open. Exhaustion was such a pain, he didn't want to sleep, rest was pointless. But the hands that pulled at his shoulders were warm, so warm compared to his chilled body. He thought about burning the other for touching him, however the warmth from the valkyrie was extremely welcomed. Numbly, the god was led to the makeshift bed, his chest felt strained with every breath and his wrapped arm had barely any feeling. Hands around his shoulders felt odd, they felt foreign, he was carefully laid back. He scowled, watching Luciel's calm expression in frustration. Herobrine closed his eyes tight as his wound strained from the movement, then he growled as he relaxed back into the soft pillow under his head.

Luciel watched carefully, being silent as he hoped the god would rest. He didn't need an answer now- he would prefer Herobrine rested through the stitching again anyways.

Dull white eyes gazed at dark hands that worked carefully around the wet gauze, the cotton was pealed back to examine the state of the wound.

"You're freezing..." Luciel mumbled under his breath. He rarely ever touched the god in the past. maybe only a few times by accident in their duels. However this was different. Luciel could feel the cool flesh of the other, a huge heat difference from when he was burned earlier. His fingertips pulled back, getting a wet rag he had prepped while the other was asleep. While cleaning up the god the first time, he had realized the being was cold-blooded. An odd thing to be, however it made sense as the god usually resided in the nether.

Luciel gazed back up at the being, surprised to see Herobrine gazing back. His cheeks grew bright red, the intimacy was weird, he was too close to the demon. The white eyes that gazed back at him were much different than the blazing bright eyes he was used to. He could see the faintest hint of a dull iris, it was hard to make out much more than that. Herobrine seemed to snap back to his stern gaze, looking angry now that the situation registered. The eyes brightened up to that fierce glow he was used to.

'focus.'Luciel shook his head and cleared his throat before looking back down to begin cleaning the bleeding wound. Blood was smeared around, it had bled quite a lot and a few stitches were snapped.

"yes." Herobrine grimaced as the cloth touched around the sensitive open wound. Luciel lifted his head back up in confusion. "My blood is cold." His answer was snappy and aggravated. He stiffly turned his head to look away from Luciel's prying gold gaze. He shouldn't tell the general anything more than the obvious. As soon as he was able, he would be out of here and away from this notch-worshipping pest. The demon had questions, so many, but his ego held him back from speaking anymore than he already did.

The god hissed, the towel had grazed over the sensitive wound a few times, making his face twist in pain. "Sorry!" Luciel grimaced, looking apologetic.

"Don't fuckin' apologize!" Herobrine hissed out and flames danced from his lips, the heat immediately stopped as smoke replaced it. He growled, shuffling himself away from Luciel by an arm. Then his head rested back on the small pillow behind him, his face contorting for a moment as his wound stretched harshly. He gasped out in pain, his eyes closed and his teeth gritted. Pain jolted up through his chest and shoulder, he tried to stay as silent as possible. Hissing through his teeth he relaxed back into the cot. With a groan Herobrine breathed out, trying to loosen up to lighten the pain.

Luciel had been watching, the mans soft face looked torn on emotions. "I want to apologize." He spoke calmly, he was patient, carefully moving around the demon. He could feel the tense atmosphere, Herobrine was pretty pissed off at his position, however Luciel continued to care for him. He was fairly content, knowing what he was doing. With careful warm hands, Luciel prepped a needle, carefully leaning over Herobrine to begin sliding the small thing through rugged flesh. "Do regeneration potions affect you?" The angel asked again, but this time it was louder and he did not look the other in the eyes.

Herobrine was in far too much in pain to care, his exhaustion was catching up to him again. He grimaced, feeling every time the needle slid through his skin.

His hesitance made Luciel speak up once more.
"-Affect you in a positive way I mean." He brushed his long hair out of the way, to make sure he saw the skin well. He did not want to screw this up and cause the demon to be even more heated than he already was.

"I'm not telling you anything more..." The God glared down with that blazing fury the valkyrie was used to. All these thousands of years, that was the look he knew. Golden eyes glared back at white.

"Such information would help our situation marginally more."

"I am not stating anything more to you." The demon drew a lip back, showing his canines slightly.

Luciel gave a stoic look, now quite pissed off. The angel quickly tied off the end of the stitches, snapping it easily between his fingers. "I am just trying to help you, I didn't have to." He pushed back and away from the other, removing the blood soaked towel from next to his new patient. The god ceased the verbal fight back.

Silence stretched over the two, both quite cold and exhausted from the day. Luciel silently reached under the god, beginning to bring around the roll of gauze to wrap the gods arm and chest once again. The god grunted in light pain from arching his back slightly to help. Finally Luciel began to tie down the new gauze, supporting it with medical tape just to be sure it stayed.

With nothing to fight back with, It was then that Herobrine took the time to inspect the other a little more. Luciel was dressed just in his white undergarments, the fabric thin, warm and stretchy for his line of work. The way the fabric hugged the other was tight and very- complementing to his fairly built form. The mans hair wetly drooped over his shoulders and down his back, he looked frustrated. His halo twirled with his emotions, frustration was obvious. Herobrine watched the man sort through the side of the large duffel bag, he pulled out a few things, Herobrine wasn't really paying attention.

A hand came into view, holding something. Luciel gestured it forward. It took a second for Herobrine to realize that it was a small loaf of bread. The other was offering the god food. Another decision to 'help' it seemed. He only narrowed his eyes and growled. Golden eyes once again narrowed back at white. A silent war between the two.

"Fine." Luciel gave up, pulling the bread back to turn around and sit, staring angrily back at the demon again. "If you resist my aid then you will not heal quickly."

"You don't know that."

"yes I do, I am not blind to what my sword has done to you all these years."

"Well then you should be aware I cannot eat." Herobrine snapped, showing teeth.

The Valkyrie had blinked in realization, a hand rested on his thigh. He wanted to ask more, his curiosity being strong when it came to the god. However he recalled the snappiness and rude behavior. He managed to hold himself back by taking a large bite from the soft bread, holding a strong glare.

Angry chewing proceeded to fill the cold tent. Rain continued to fall heavily. Herobrine wasn't planning on leaving anytime soon, his eyes were drifting slowly. Even aching, he resisted sleep as best as he could.

Luciel kept glancing at the others face, watching the dull white eyes fluttering closed for a moment before they shot open rapidly. He was smirking, watching the weakened god fight off extreme fatigue. It didn't take very long before he heard slow but steady breaths coming from the demon. Luciel pushed himself up to glide along the tents flooring, his work boots hovering just over the tarp in order to prevent as much noise as possible. He knew how cold Herobrine was, he had seen the god shivering repeatedly since before he had even woke. It made sense now that he understood the cold-blooded being. Winter was coming, temperatures were dropping fast. He also understood why the god had more sightings and activity in the summer.

'Almost like hibernation in the winter.'Luciel held back a chuckle for the sake of his healing enemies rest. He scooped up a heavy blanket from the pile and returned to the demon, unfolding it. The demon was peacefully resting and it made Luciel watch for a moment. He'd never seen the other in such a relaxed position. Herobrine seemed so unsettled while unconscious when he was found. Now the god seemed at peace. Eyebrows weren't furrowed like they normally were, and his knuckles weren't white from his grip on his sword. His eyebrows were relaxed and his uninjured hand lied limp over the wool blanket.

Luciel smiled gently, lying the heavy blanket he had retrieved over the cold god. It felt good to care, he was always a leader, and at heart, a nurturer. however, Herobrine was not a subject of nurturing he ever pictured. The valkyrie frowned. He watched the blanket fall, it settled nicely over the resting being.

'What the nether am I doing?'

Herobrine was his enemy-! His god's bane of existence! He needed to alert his god immediately! What if he was banished like Herobrine? For not letting his god know about this?! He wouldn't ever be able to return to the aether!

Luciel took a moment to collect himself. lifting his arms up to breathe in, then out slowly.

'I'll be okay. Notch would understand.'His job was to push Herobrine away, not kill the demon. Things would work out.

With his own few things put away and the tent fully zippered, the valkyrie set up his own cot, as far as he could push it away from the demon. He wished he had a chance to change his patient's clothes, but that struggle would have to wait until tomorrow. With a large sigh the valkyrie laid down to rest, pulling up his thick wool blanket. It only took a few minutes for the stress of the day to take over and let the man fall into a quiet slumber.