Soulbreak - A MCYT 3rd/Last/Double Life FanFiction

Chapter 22 - That's a Tad Awkward...

Grian's heart raced as he watched in horror, his outstretched hand frozen in the air. He had found Pearl, only to witness her collapse in front of him. Panic surged through him, and he scrambled to reach her, pushing aside the vines and dirt with a desperate urgency. His fingers found her wrist, searching for a pulse.

It was there, weak but steady. Pearl was alive, but she was in terrible condition. She had clearly been through hell, and Grian couldn't fathom the extent of the suffering she had endured. With great care, he lifted her into his arms and carried her out of the makeshift ditch, placing her gently on the ground.

"Pearl. Please wake up."

Pearl didn't move.

"Pearl, if you die I will kill you."

Pearl twitched. Then she coughed, and it wracked her whole body. More blood spewed onto the grass.

"PEARL!" Grian shook her frantically, willing her to wake up.

"Pfft- HAHhaha!" Pearl rolled over laughing and more blood painted the grass. "Y-you should see your face." Pearl swung into a crouch and pushed herself to her feet. Pearl's eyes, glazed pink, roved back and forth at an unnerving pace.

"Wh-what happened?"

"It was probably the pufferfish." Pearl shrugged. Her entire body kept twitching.

Grian's mind raced as he tried to assess the situation. He had expected to find Pearl, but he hadn't expected her to be in such a dire state. He wasn't even sure how to react in this situation.

"You're sure it's you?" Pearl's bloody fingers swirled down his face and then pinched his chin.

"Ow!" Grian reflexively raised an arm to punch her shoulder and then thought better of it. He wasn't sure she was in a good enough state to take it. Grian restrained himself to nodding, his voice filled with reassurance. "Yes, Pearl, it's me. I found you."

Tears welled up in Pearl's eyes, "I thought I'd have to kill you."

"Excuse me?" Grian was taken aback.

"If you really ditched me. I would have to kill you." Pearl was dead serious. Grian wasn't sure how to respond to that either.

Grian's heart ached as he saw the pain in her eyes. "Look, what matters now is you're going to be okay, Pearl. I promise. We'll figure out what happened and get you back to your old self."

"Oh, we both know it's too late for that, Gri."

"Don't say that." Grian couldn't hide his concern, nor disagree with her, but he was determined to help her through whatever ordeal she had faced. "We'll face it together, Pearl. You're not alone in this. We need to get you treated."

"How?" Pearl's head cocked sideways.

Grian pointed at Scott's house. Pearl froze.

"No."

"Yes."

"No."

"You don't have a choice." Grian crossed his arms. Pearl punched his shoulder. Grian won.

. . .

Cleo had just finished cooking dinner when Grian knocked on the door. Pearl hung behind him, her feet trailing. Blood still ran down her face, which Grian hadn't taken into account until it was too late.

Cleo's eyes widened in shock and disbelief as she saw Grian and Pearl (especially Pearl), her dinner plate slipping from her hand and clattering to the floor.

"What in the world..." Cleo began, but Grian interrupted her.

"We need help, Cleo. Pearl's been through something terrible, and we need to take care of her. She's poisoned," he explained urgently.

Cleo quickly regained her composure and her face became icy. "Oh, there's no help here for that. Do you know what she's done, Grian? How do you get out of bed in the morning, knowing that you're aligned with that vicious little freak?"

"Hey." Grian voice raised to a threatening octave.

"Have you seen Scott's hands? His face? His entire body? Have you seen hers?"

"What are you implying, Cleo?" Grian's voice became deadly low.

"She tortures him, day and night. She leaves scars all over his body. She thrives on pain and survives on cruelty."

Grian was momentarily disarmed.

"Let her in Cleo." Scott's head appeared in the doorway. Blood dripped from his mouth, too.

"Why I-" Cleo looked ready to throw hands.

"If you help her you help me, Cleo. Believe me, this isn't ideal for me either." Scott drawled. "Go set yourself up in the guest room, Pearl." Scott gestured to a door on the left. "Shubble will help you get set."

"Well this is a tad bit awkward," Pearl laughed, her words slurring. 

Scott didn't even glance in her direction. It was like she didn't exist.

Once the door shut and Pearl was settled inside, Grian explained everything he knew, from the rumor that had brought him to this place to the moment he had found Pearl in the hidden ditch. Cleo listened intently, her eyes filled with concern and horror.

"The filthy rat was camped outside our house!? For who knows how long!? This is outrageous! We should kill her now- oh. Oh, that's not convenient." Realization dawned on Cleo again and she resorted to pacing back and forth angrily.

"Look I know she was out of line, but she's not exactly sane either." Grian tried to defend her.

"And why's that?" Cleo looked ready to throw hands. "Martyn's in just the same position as her and he's not stalking us!" Cleo paused suddenly as if to consider the odds of Martyn watching this current conversation from behind a bush and her nose wrinkled.

"Martyn?" Grian frowned,

"Martyn. Came by a few weeks ago, my soulbound. Wanted me to go off with him. Told him I was having none of it and to go jump off a cliff." Cleo rolled her eyes. "You see the difference? Between living in our bushes and finding a new team?"

"Look, you know why Pearl's doing this, Cleo." Grian's voice was laced with meaning. "Evony Blaize."

Cleo turned pale.

"H - how- but, Scott..." Cleo's voice trailed off.

"Look, I can keep her sane. I'm not asking you to deal with this. But I need you to keep Scott close. Very close. I hate to ask that of you, but the alternative-" Grian shuddered.

"How on earth do you plan to keep-" Cleo hesitated "-that sane!?

"I have my methods." Grian's tone did not invite any more questions.

"Grian if you fail you could kill us all," Cleo spoke, finally.

Grian's lips tilted upwards.

"Oh, I'm well aware."

A/N: I have 4 major plot points I need to cover somehow in ~10 Chapters... uhhh...