Bi Han "Sub-Zero" x F!Reader

Eight

The sleep you always needed after using your powers was different from normal sleep. It was more like floating unconscious in endless darkness.

No dreams. No thoughts.

Just nothing.

It didn't even feel like resting, more like an hourglass where you waited impatiently until the sand had completely fallen through so that you could finally wake up.

This darkness was one of the reasons why you hated using your powers. It didn't matter how long you had to sleep for. The more force pulled at your body, the longer you were trapped in this dark nothingness.

You hated it. Even pain would have been more pleasant in this place. To feel nothing, to hear nothing, to taste nothing. It was a different kind of unsatisfying. Dull. Empty.

At some point, the mind craved something, anything, good or bad. At that certain point, anything was better than nothing.

Inhaling deeply, you tried to turn, to feel for something in the darkness, but there was nothing. Somehow, not even you were there. But somehow it was. It was such a strange, disgusting state that lay between the worlds of being and not being.

Not even the feeling of despair could fight its way to your place. There was just a hole, both in your chest and in your mind, your body.

What difference would it make to disappear?

At the same time, you wanted to return to reality. You wanted to feel the warmth of the sun, the pain when your flesh bled. The surprising gentleness of Bi Han's touch.

There were so few things that made him seem human. But never before had you doubted his humanity. To you, he was not the Grandmaster, but Bi Han, the boy you grew up alongside.

A shuddering breath left your dry lips. The sound was swallowed up by the darkness. Like everything that made an existence alive. You floated along weightlessly, without a destination, without seeing or feeling.

How much time had passed?

A few hours for sure. Perhaps a day.

Suddenly the darkness bent. A shiver crawled down your spine. Goose bumps spread across your arms. But none of it mattered. None of it made you feel anything. It was simply changes in your body.

Magic crackled. Your mind slowly began to awaken. It was time.

Breathing in deeply, you prepared yourself for the greatest pain a human could feel. Whenever your body had rested enough, it had to fight its way back into the light.

There had been many times when you had almost not made it back. Never before had you felt such fear. This time the pain was manageable. Bones seemed to twist, skin tightened, tore almost like dried paper. The taste of iron filled your mouth.

Pinching your eyes tightly shut, you pushed back the feeling of salt in open wounds and stretched. Fingers twitched. You almost feared they might break.

Then there was nothing but light. Burning hot, piercing light. The feeling of tears ran down your cheeks. Gasping, you opened your eyes.

Your whole body shook for a moment. Then you fell back, exhausted. But instead of soft pillows and a mattress, there was something else.

Fur. Thick, silky fur. And the smell of fresh plants. Chuckling, you raised your hand tiredly and ran your fingers through the white and black patches.

"Hello, my friend.", your voice was scratchy from a long sleep.

A bulky head with two round ears and a snout lifted languidly. Black beady eyes looked at you before a shattering hum made your body tremble.

With the enthusiasm of an animal, the panda stuck out its tongue and licked the salt from your cheeks. The surface was rough, scratchy and left slight marks on your face. Slightly disgusted by the smell of chewed bamboo, you pulled a face.

"Who fed you?", you asked with bated breath.

Footsteps suddenly sounded from the other room. Someone pushed a chair across the floor.

"(Y/N)!", a young man pushed his head through the door, his face full of worry.

Silver hair framed his tanned face.

"Tomas.", Baobao growled underneath as your voice called out the man's name.

As a child you had found the panda, abandoned by his parents and on the verge of starvation. Against the instructions of the old Grand Master and Bi Han's warning he'd kill you one day, you had taken him in and cared for him.

Now he weighed about half a tonne and was so big that you could ride him. Which you often did. But as tame as the panda was towards you, he was even less fond of the men you had grown up with.

Tomas was allowed to approach him, sometimes giving him food. Kuai Liang had already been bitten several times and Bi Han was smart enough to stay away from the sluggish giant.

When Tomas sat down next to you with a worried expression, Baobao raised his head and looked at him as if to make it clear that one wrong move would be fatal. Appeasing Tomas smiled at him nervous before he looked at you.

"How are you?", he sat down on the floor and rummaged dry cloths out of his pocket.

Your stomach growled at the sight. Thankful, you took a handful to strengthen yourself.

"How much time has passed?", you asked, nibbling on the fruit on the side.

He frowned.

"It's getting longer and longer."

"How long?"

"Almost a whole day."

Sighing, you rub your eyes. Your muscles were still swollen, stiff from the hours without movement. Exhaling deeply, you shook your feet. A tingling sensation grew on your skin.

"When are we going to leave?", you asked.

He frowned doubtfully. His eyes travelled down your legs. You bent your knees.

"I can walk.", you assured him.

One of his eyebrows raised.

"Are you sure?"

"Tomas.", Bi Han appeared in the doorway. "If she says she can fight, then let her fight."

You nodded gratefully.

"When do we leave, Grandmaster?"

He tilted his head, watching your body move.

"Rest. You will know when the time comes."