The Healer (Death/Muerte x Female!reader)

Chapter 9: The bird

After they each gave you multiple tight hugs and kisses on your forehead, putting your new bag of goodies and extra food in your travel bag (They had enchanted it so it would be light but able to hold much more), they had to let you leave so you could carry on your way. They promised to deliver the note for you and tearfully begged you to please come back to them and see them again soon. Almost in tears yourself, you hug them again tightly. "Please come back to us, hija. Please." You feel your heart break as Corlis says this. Even though you were a 24 year old woman, you still couldn't help but melt at the love of a mother. "I will. I promise." Before you can pull away from the hug, they plant gentle kisses on your forehead or top of your head again. Now you can't help but cry. "It's okay, (Y/N). We'll always be here, you know where to find us." Maori plants a final kiss on your head before you pull away from their arms, turn away and leave Los Rotos.

2 days later

The sun had begun to sink down below the horizon, the sky changing to hues of purple and orange. Hardly even paying attention, you came across a small abandoned village. Before you even enter the village you want to run away. No light came from any of the small buildings, nor any sound. It was not labeled on your map, not even a spot on the map where the town should have been. Scared you had taken a wrong turn somewhere, frantically looking at your map. You had followed the dirt road straight from Los Rotos all the way to where you stood now, realising there was nowhere that you could have taken a wrong turn as the road was exactly that. An almost straight path straight to the next town on your map. But that was almost 4 days from where you stood now! A loud thud followed by a screeching noise breaks you out of your thoughts. You look up from the map and see a small black bird on the ground, flapping one of its wings dramatically while the other was bent at odd angles. It made noises of panic and distress as it hopped and flapped its wing. Sighing in relief seeing it was just a bird, you roll up your map and put it back in your bag. Bending down carefully to pick the thing up, cradling it so it would not injure itself further by thrashing about. "Shh shh it's okay, pequeno." (Little one) You say softly to it, gently petting it's head with one finger. It's heartbeat heavy as it looked around, chirping at you every few seconds. "You poor thing. I wonder what happened to you." You said calmly before closing your eyes and mumbling a healing spell to yourself, your hands and the birds wing now glowing (f/c) before the bones started cracking back into place. The birds wing now fully healed, you open your eyes as well as your hands as the (f/c) magic dissipates. The bird then stands up your fingers, investigating your palms then turning its head to you as if to thank you before flying away. You smile to yourself, thankful you could help something and not be forced to leave it for dead. Nothing hurts you worse than being helpless or seeing another helpless in a situation. You're quickly yanked from the temporary happiness when the dark sky starts to register with you. Holding up your hand, an orb of bright golden light forms in your hands so you can see better. Yes it was already that dark. Looking at the little abandoned homes, pondering if you really needed to take shelter tonight. You take one step towards the village and a chill goes up your spine. Your eyes flash (f/c) as you wrap your cloak around yourself and turn invisible. Taking a few steps backwards away from the buildings, you back right up into someone. Your back is flush against their chest, their breathing pushing around the stray hairs atop your head. An arm wraps around your arms right at the elbow and your midsection, a sickle blade being wrapped around your throat. You start to shake, so full of terror you couldn't even think. He sniffed the air before burying his muzzle in the hood of your cloak like a dog itching its nose. This for some reason makes you feel slightly less terrified, now wondering why he can even see you. Shockingly, he puts his sickle away. Before you can move he puts his free paw under your chin and holds your head, a pervy smile on his face and growling happily in your ear with a wagging tail. "I must say, cordera. I'm very impressed by how kind you are. I greatly appreciate that the creature met you instead of me." Your eyes go wide. "W-what's going on? How can you see me?" He laughs, biting your ear. You let out a small yelp of surprise. He moves his paw up and covers your mouth. "Your magic doesn't work on me, niñita."(Little girl) He says as he spins you around to face him, pulling you close by the small of your back and holding one of your hands above your heads as if you were dancing. His nose is close to yours, making you blush. Your free hand on his shoulder, so lost in his red orbs you can't seem to pull away from him. "Am I hallucinating? Are you actually real?" He smirks at you, releasing your hand and placing the back of his paw against your cheek, his smallest digit almost running over the scar on your face. Your hand falls to his shoulder, too scared to move. "Creo que te mostré lo real que soy la última vez que nos conocimos, querida." (I believe I showed you how real I am last time we met, dear.) 'Oh thank god I thought I was just a pervert!' you think to yourself. "Wait but there were no marks on-!" He covers your mouth once more. "niña tonta forgetting she's a healer and wears a protection stone that heals small wounds. You amuse me, I think I'll keep you." Both confused and concerned by his words, you grip his shoulders in fear. Before anything else can happen, the sound of thunder snaps the two of you out of your little 'moment'. He grumbles as his ears twitch, grabbing your hood and pulling it over your head as well as his own when droplets start to fall. "Ven conmigo, niña. The village has been empty for decades. He walks past you and towards one of the small houses. You're standing there in absolute shock, surprised by his kindness in pulling your hood up. "vamos, niña. Unless you wish to catch your death from cold." He looks back at you with a smirk on his face, licking his teeth and beginning to whistle a bone chilling tune as he enters the building. You begin to ponder if you should actually follow him into the house or not. A flash of lightning followed by a crash of thunder pulls a shriek from your throat as you make a beeline for the house. By the time you get there, he's standing there smirking and holding the door open for you. You blushing hold your bag close to yourself before you walk in and sit down on the floor of the dusty, forgotten home. He had closed the door and sat by you on the floor. You held up your hand, an orb of light forming in your hand once more. You look around the room, realising now that the home is so much older than when you first looked. The walls were stones, now overgrown with moss. Almost all of the furniture was broken, mushrooms growing out of the damp wood on the legs of the table and its chairs. But even with all of its brokenness and overgrowth, there were old paintings still hanging on the walls. Looking at them you see one of the figures in one looks familiar. As you go to stand to look closer, Muerte grabs your wrist and forces you to sit down. He said nothing, just looked at you as a warning. You pull your wrist away from his paw and scoot a few feet away from him. Setting your bag down and reaching in to grab some of the food Maori and Corlis had packed you, you get sad seeing it's your last meal from them. Grabbing your canteen and closing your bag, you open the small basket and smile seeing that they gave you one of the cinnamon rolls, a slice of banana bread, as well as some biscuits and raw eggs for you to cook how you wanted. They had left you a handwritten note as well, detailing how much they loved you along with a recipe for juice you could make with just 3 ingredients. You teared up, wishing you were with them. "They're very good people." You look up at him, shocked to hear his voice. "How do you know them?" He comes closer to you and wipes one of your stray tears away. "Even with the two of them being some of, if not, the strongest healers, they can't save everyone. I've visited them on more than one occasion to take home somebody who had met their end, despite their efforts to help. They are some of the kindest, most respectful and understanding souls I have met in all my years." He smiles a bit. You smile and use the duplication spell on the basket of food and hold out the second basket to him as an offer. He looks at you, surprised by your gesture. He takes the basket from your hand, holding it. "Gracias pequeña sanadora.." (Thank you, little healer.) You grabbed a little survival candle out of your bag and set it down, lighting it with your magic so you had light. The two you eat in comfortable silence in the calm candlelight, listening as the rain pours down outside around you.