Breath of Fresh Life - a Minecraft Herobrine x Reader story (OLD)

Your Leader, The Nonbeliever

The pit stop at the village should've been a quick one, but it's been so long since you've been to one that you ended up slowing down your group to look at shops. You were so excited to visit the marketplace that your group waited for an hour, which Markus made very apparent.

"You had us waiting here for an hour! Do you see now why we don't bring you along everywhere?"

Well, ouch. It hurt to know you weren't being left behind accidentally, though you probably shouldn't have been surprised. You kept close to the group after that, feeling silly for running around the marketplace. It's not like you had any money to spend anyway. You kept noticing Eve glancing at you, but it only made you feel more embarrassed.

Once supplies were restocked and Markus bought himself a new sword, it was time to read the village bulletin board for any good jobs. Alec and Markus both mulled over the pinned pages, working out which were scams and which were real. You sat on the sidelines, listening to them argue while Eve silently paced. You knew it was going to take a while, but you were already bored. You wanted to be grateful that you were even here and not left behind at camp, but besides the marketplace, it wasn't any more thrilling than picking at grass.

A tap on your shoulder interrupted your thoughts. You looked up at the wide eyes of Eve, who was holding something out to you. You accepted the small pile of coins she dumped into your hands. A look of confusion plastered itself on your face.

"It's not a lot, but maybe you could get yourself a snack? Those two always take forever." She explained, nudging your hand with hers.

"Are...are you sure?" You asked, carefully clutching the coins.

She nodded and nudged your hand again. You smiled as you stood up, feeling energized. You quietly thanked her as you made your way to the marketplace, evading the gaze of Markus by taking a back road. You stared at all the stalls, wondering what you could buy with what you had.

You settled on a bakery stand, the sweet smell making your stomach grumble. You bought as many cookies as you could, whispering another thanks to Eve as you bit into one. You happily made your way back to your group, hoping you didn't take too much time.

You supposed it was too much to hope for. As you came back, the first thing you noticed was Markus' head whirling around to look at you. You nearly dropped your cookies as he stomped up to you, jabbing a finger in your chest.

"And where exactly did you run off to?" He spat, towering over you.

Your eyes glanced over to where Eve was having a conversation with Alec, away from Markus' wrath. Did she get in trouble too? You didn't mean to take so long. You tried to keep your hands from shaking, but all you could do was hold your bag of cookies tighter. Markus noticed and yanked it out of your hand.

"Wait-!" You said.

"For this? You snuck away from the group for sweets? I thought you were more mature than this!" Markus ranted, waving the bag in your face.

"I didn't mean to...you were talking a while and-" You tried to explain.

"Oh, so now you wanna blame me? I'm the one doing most of the work and you wanna blame me?"

You flinched as he threw the bag on the ground. Markus gave you one more cruel glance before stomping on it, grinding it into the dirt road. He turned his back to you, crossing his arms. You knelt down to pick up the now ruined cookies, knowing you'd have to throw out Eve's kind gift.

"Markus, I'm sorry." You said.

"Make sure it doesn't happen again. And remind me to never give you any more money." Was his only reply.