feral | sting eucliffe

LI | TB

Episode 51: Ticking Bomb!

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SHE WRITHED IN PAIN, Porlyusica hadn't even done anything, yet an odd part of her felt heavily ill. Y/n pushed her chest outwards as she laid on the bed, squeezing her eyes shut as she suddenly grew nauseous. Sting—rightfully remaining by her side—clasped her hand as he grew worried. "Y/n?" He questioned, the lacrima in his pocket beeping.

A low growl left her lips all of a sudden as she writhed in pain some more. It felt like part of her was being removed from herself and she absolutely hated it. "Sting," She panted. "If the same thing happens to me like earlier, you have my permission to kill me." Another groan of pain escaped her, followed by a slight cry.

His cobalt eyes widened and he shook his head, "Don't start with me on that bullshit, okay? You'll be okay and we'll be okay together. Remember, every step of the way." She nodded, tears streaking down her cheeks at the pain. Porlyusica approached her ill form, ruby eyes looking down at her. "Her body has already accepted it, that's why she's going through so much pain."

Sting held onto her hand tighter, knowing this was merely a part of the whole process. His lacrima beeped again, possibly for the third time since they had entered her home. Porlyusica gave him a distasteful look, "I suggest you go answer that, boy. I don't appreciate annoying sounds along with the accompaniment of your voice when I work."

He scowled slightly at that, but he knew she meant well. He left the home briefly, closing the door behind him as he answered the call. "What?" He spoke in an annoyed tone, Erza on the other end as her armor clinked loudly. "Nikos and Akane went on another rampage again. We were able to subdue both of them, but I suggest you hurry the process up."

As the two talked back and forth, Porlyusica opened the front door and beckoned him inside. Sting huffed and quickly ended the call before wandering in behind her. Y/n was asleep on the bed, still showing signs of discomfort. "I'm afraid there isn't anything I can do. There's a spell on the tracker and if I even touch it, it burns me."

She showed her slightly red fingers, some of the skin already burnt to a second-degree burn. "I tried to dispel it and that hasn't worked either. I recommend you keep her under a watchful eye until further notice. I imagine that all of them—the rest of her little group—are ticking time bombs just like her. You'll have to await the explosion."

Sting's heart fell. She'd been through so much and she still couldn't erase the mark of her past? He sighed, letting out a breath. Either way, they had to return to the guild. Yukino wanted to take Y/n shopping for the ball, after all. Not only that, but Rogue was adamant about Sting getting a new suit since his old one would look absolutely ridiculous on him.

Porlyusica wiped her hands on a rag, looking over to the white dragon slayer. "I suggest you revert your focus to the ball that's set in a few days. For now, there isn't much you can do except wait." She said, empathy shown in her eyes before she looked away from him. Sting took a brief moment to process it all before quietly nodding. "Okay."

He scooped up the girl easily, carrying her gently. He swore to call Erza once he got back to the guild, knowing this was information that she needed to be aware of. Adjusting his girl's position, he continued to stride through the forest. Suddenly, a white bobcat leaped out of the bushes with its fangs bared. It paused for a moment, glancing over to the passed-out Y/n.

Sting shivered. Usually, he'd rely on Lector to fly Y/n away, but the exceed was on a day out with the assistance of Frosch and Rogue since the shadow dragon slayer still didn't trust him after Lector lost Frosch before. "G-Good kitty?" He stammered, blue eyes widening as he blinked wildly. The bobcat hissed before bending down, a low purr emitting from its throat.

Sting furrowed his brows before glancing over at Y/n, seeing that she was still unconscious. He cautiously hooked his legs on the bobcat's sides, still holding Y/n tightly. The bobcat let out a meow of sorts, bounding forward all of a sudden. A yelp escaped his lips, but he managed to stay on through the chaotic ride. 

It stormed through the forest, heading for Crocus. Dodging foliage and leaping over other bushes, the bobcat kept up at its speed as its claws dug into the ground occasionally. It let out another roar, skidding its claws against the ends of the dirt road as it stopped at the outskirts of Crocus. Sting blinked, slowly climbing off of the animal.

The white wild animal tilted its head up, licking Y/n's lower leg in some kind of manner of affection or admiration. Letting out another meow, it stormed into the forest and disappeared from his sight. Sting blinked again, still taking it in all in. Hearing Y/n start to fuss and move around, he quickly made his way towards the guild.

Passing by some pedestrians, they'd marvel at his Sabertooth marking and her limp form. They muttered something along the lines of gossip, but Sting didn't want to bother with them. Adjusting his grip on his potential girlfriend, he continued on his way with gritted teeth and a worrying mindset. Sting caught Lector's scent all of a sudden, whipping his head to the left.

Indeed, Rogue was with Lector and Frosch, the two eating cotton candy and talking enthusiastically about some kind of topic. Lector quickly noticed his partner, yelling out his name and flying towards him. The once excited exceed grew confused, seeing Sting's love passed out. "Is she okay?" He blinked, flying around and poking her cheek with his paw.

Sting gave a slight grin, "A bit, buddy. Can you take her to the infirmary with Frosch? I have to talk to Rogue," He excused as Lector innocently nodded, calling for Frosch before the two exceeds carried her away and towards the guildhall. Rogue rolled his eyes at Sting's white lie, crossing his arms as he looked over at his partner.

"Okay, now tell me the real deal."