Baizhu x Reader || ENGLISH ||

$~':-:'~$

Ever since you woke up that morning, you could feel a strange weight has been added to your body. You felt weaker than usual. You decided to ignore it for the most part. You were already used to leaving your colds untreated, confident your daily tasks wouldn't be affected by an occasional cough or sniffle. 

However, today felt different. Perhaps, you would take a day off, curled up under your warm covers. Getting comfortable, you were just about ready to drift off again. That was until a violent fit of coughs disturbed the tranquil atmosphere of your bedroom. 

You furrowed your eyebrows, feeling the scratchiness in your throat. Something told you that this time, neglecting your body's signals of distress wouldn't be the best idea.

Wrapping a few extra layers of scarves around your neck, you made your way to Bubu Pharmacy. Maybe, they'd be able to shed some light on your condition and perhaps provide an efficient way of dealing with its unsavoury effects. 

"Good morning, Gui." you greeted the pharmacist behind the counter, trying your best to wring out some water from your attire. When you were about halfway through your journey, the weather seemed to take a turn for the worse and you were struck with heavy downpour without so much as an umbrella. 

"Good morning, (Y/N). What brings you here? You look unlike yourself." he responded, tagging a comment about your quite haggard appearance at the end. 

"I'm not exactly sure. I was hoping, you could help me with the diagnosis. I honestly feel like I'm overreacting a little. I've just been feeling a little faint today and-" you tried to suppress another coughing fit, pressing the cloth of your sleeve to your lips in an attempt to cover your mouth and lower the risk of spreading whatever was ailing you to others.

"From how you look, I doubt, you are exaggerating." he protested to your attempt of lightening the condition you were in. You, in all honesty, looked like you could faint any minute. Not just that, but in the back of your mind, you could feel it too. You weren't too familiar with the sensation as you haven't had the displeasure of fainting too often, but the way your limbs gradually stopped responding to your brain's demands, should have clued you in. 

Before you knew it, you were already falling to the ground, your mind shutting down the last of its conscious thoughts. The strain of your ailment and the trip to the pharmacy in such an unpleasant weather must have taken all the strength you had. 

The last thing, you could comprehend before submerging into the cold darkness of a forced shut-down, was a panicked shout and the sound of hurried footsteps. A flurry of colours filled your vision, the light brown of the pharmacy's walls soon joined by an odd shade of green and... soft orange. You felt the impact of your fall, but for some reason, 'the floor' felt much softer than you expected.

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As your hazy mind roused itself from its much needed slumber, you could vaguely hear movement not so far from your resting place along with a familiar warm presence. The smell of incense heavy in the air, perhaps a little too much for your liking. 

Daring to carefully open your eyes, you blinked a few times, adjusting to the light. 

"Look at that. The ssleeping beauty hass awoken." a somewhat high-pitched voice spoke in its snake-like drawl.Focusing your gaze at where the noise came from, you caught a glimpse of the same mint green colour as before along with a white slithering form of the snake you knew so well. As your gradually waking up brain started putting the pieces together, you felt more embarrassed by the second, "Changsheng?" you slurred out in a sleepy tone.