rayemma oneshots & other

(1) The Lake

• Short fic

Spoiler warning for chapter #52 and onward: mentioned location, mentioned characters

Note: My friend recently sent me a blog of whump prompts ( https://whumpster-dumpster.tumblr.com/tagged/fever ) mostly about caretaker x sick person and my mind screamed rayemma. But I wanted multiple chapters so short fic time 😎 enjoy! A majority of things in this fic will be inspired by or directly taken from that blog, so massive credit to them. I endlessly thank them for their lovely ideas :')
Extra note: edited and continuing 👍 - 28/4/2022

Both of them knew that hunting in the winter this far out was a bad idea. The snowpack was coming in for the year. The sky overhead was thick and foretelling the worst of future weather. The grounds were cloaked in white, the trees hard to see through, all the surrounding stone caked in deadly ice… it was like death itself beckoning them to the depths. Ray should have known not to go along with Emma that day.

But what she'd said was entirely true, they didn't have much food. Their best hope would be to hunt the migrating mammals that traveled through these trees, around this time in the season. It was two weeks until they'd set out looking for the temple again. They'd be leaving just before Christmas and Emma wouldn't leave the kids empty-handed. She was hell-bent on bringing back food for her family when their supply was low, even if it took trudging through the harshest of winters just to bring back some. And of course, like with every one of Emma's deadly exploits, Ray was there to tag along and make sure nothing happened to her.

But on this particular day, he failed. He should have known that it was too much. That they should have just stayed and waited out the storm. Hunted birds instead, settled for the plants they were growing down in the bunker. But no. He had been determined too, so he went along with Emma. It was his gravest mistake.

They cleared the snowy moor that sloped into the forest, and then they searched. It was just Emma and Ray, since both of them wanted their family to stay warm and safe if they could. They said they'd be back in half an hour. But that turned into a whole hour, then another half, edging toward the borderline of two hours. Still, no animals, no meat for them to use. But Emma refused to leave.

It had been merely cloudy when they departed, but now the sky was crying with thousands of cold flakes, dusting Emma's starkly red hair among the pines. Ray's anxiety finally began to rise. He knew this situation could turn ugly if they didn't return soon. These little flakes would soon turn to big ones, and millions a minute. Both him and Emma were already shuddering at the December chill. They had to leave. There were no animals out right now, they were only spelling their own doom.

He tried tugging her by the sleeve, grunting when he felt how stubborn and hard her shoulder was. "Come on, Emma, it's useless to stay out here any longer. We have to get back. Before it becomes a blizzard."

"Don't be so pessimistic, Ray.” she shot back with that usual smile. "We have to come back with something! And… we don't have anything yet… that won't do for my family who's so hungry right now."

He grumbled at her persistence. "I'm sure they'd want us to come back unharmed more than anything, even if that meant less food at the table."

"Sure, they'll  be okay with that," Emma sighed, turning to face him resolutely. "But I'm not okay with it. I want them to be able to eat tonight. It's the least I can do before we leave again."

And she headed back into the trees, no matter how gray the sky was or how deep the snow. "Besides, it's almost Christmas! Think of it as my present! I'd be a terrible big sister if I didn't get them anything, not even a good dinner."

And confidently, just like that, she walked between the trees where demon eyes lie, and she couldn't hear the stamping of its great feet due to the snow muffling the sound.

Normally, this situation would be easy to defuse. But they were caught off guard with their boots planted in three-inch, six-inch in most areas snowfall. The only place they could run where there was any mobility was over the nearest lake, where the water had frozen over. By the time they were halfway down the lake, they'd lost the demon, now all that was left was to get to easier ground.

Ray crossed the ice effortlessly, leaping to the other side where it was solid.

Emma didn't.

The ice cracked underneath her, and in the slice of a second, she was plunged neck deep into ungodly freezing water. He heard her panicked scream behind him and every muscle in his body tensed. He'd failed her, big time.

He caught her hand just before she could sink to greater depths. He ripped her out, and the water sprayed over his coat minutely, but even that made him shiver. He could only fathom how she felt completely soaked in that freezing water. Frantically, he unbuttoned his coat and wrapped it around her now violently trembling figure and pressed her against his body. She was cold. Too cold, whimpering from the overwhelming shakes. He was a fool for thinking he could warm her up but he still tried.

"Ray," she choked out, voice wavering in such a weak way that he'd never heard from her before. "S-sorry. I wasn't- wasn't looking, I-"

"It's okay," he said, more to himself than anything, holding her tighter. "It's okay. Let's j-just get you back." He stammered. He was so terrified to let anything happen to her. She never shivered like that, never looked so vulnerable or on the edge of fainting. She could have died.

Emma should never look like… Norman. And Ray could never let Emma end up like Norman.

He helped her to her feet and they cautiously circled around the trees, avoiding the fresh demon tracks. But before they could even see the open moor again, Emma's legs gave out. She was struggling to breathe. She was shaking too much.

Ray had really failed to protect her this time. He wouldn't be forgiving himself easily.

Though he was shaking too, much colder now that her wet clothes had rubbed off on him, he still found the strength to pick her up and drag them both home. That was the most terrifying night Ray had in a while.

Looking in a few hours after they returned, it was as if nothing ever happened. Anna and Gilda had helped Emma into a tepid bath and slowly got her temperature back to normal. They treated the little scrapes she had and tucked her into a warm bed. The winter hunting was called off for the time being, and everything was fine.

But Ray knew it wasn't. Because by morning, Emma woke sicker than ever before.