Predator (DWT x OC)

29

The days go by quickly now. Nikki comes over and helps George and I work in the garden, and I go fishing with Tommy and Tubbo near L'manburg. Wilbur sometimes joins us, and the pain of his betrayal slowly dulls over time. The world has settled back into a sense of normalcy, no more fighting, no more fear. Of course, it will never go back to the way it was, but we fill the holes in the ground, repair the friendships split apart, and hope it does anyway.

I hack away at a bush with my axe, slicing through the thin whiplike branches that tangle over my path. I'm on the other side of L'manburg, trying to get to a lake Tommy spotted from his tower. It's been left untouched, and my fingers itch at the thought of getting my hands on the unspoiled herbs and fish.

I wince as twigs flick my ankles, grazing the skin as I push through, trying to keep my balance as the snaking undergrowth curls around my feet. It's a fairly cold day, and the jumper I have on doesn't block out the wind, which whips through my clothes and chills me to the bone. Eventually, I push past the last line of bushes, and walk out into the clearing.

It's gorgeous, the lake a rippling mirror in the centre, reflecting the thick, dense trees that line the edge. Wildflowers are dotted through the grass, beautiful colours strewn all over the velvet green. I pull the basket off my shoulder and settle down on the rocky bank, casting my fishing line into the water. The trees rustle in the wind, a symphony of swishing leaves that calms me, and makes me feel like I'm home.

"Of course you're here."

I feel like I've just deflated. All the serenity and happiness I felt, surrounded by the woods alone, has just rushed out of me, leaving only empty dread. I turn my head to look at Fundy.

"Yeah, it's free country and I'm allowed here." I say, irritated. He just looks at me, disgust curling his upper lip.

"Almost wasn't a free country, thanks to you." He snaps.

"I don't know how many times I have to say it, I'm not a traitor." I sigh. No matter what I do, or say, he doesn't believe me. Fundy stalks forward, coming to stop right beside me, I don't look at him, instead I focus on the way the tree branches bend and morph in the water.

"I don't know how you convinced everyone, even Wilbur, that you aren't a double crossing bitch, but I will prove that you are." He snarls. I recoil, like I've just been slapped in the face. This isn't the person I knew, the one that taught me how to fish, the person who hugged me goodbye before battle, the person who was always there to help. This person, this thing, he's turned into, twisted by rage and hatred, is unrecognisable.

"I'm not a traitor." I mumble, and I can feel my throat start to tighten, the world turning blurry as I stare at the water, refusing to let the tears spill onto my face. I won't cry in front of him. He grabs my arm and yanks me to my feet. I squirm under his tight grip.

"Fundy ow! You're hurting me!" I squeal in surprise. He pulls me close to his face, and I see the empty coldness of his eyes, devoid of life and care.

"I will prove it. You're going to pay for what you did to us." He says, the threat clear in his words. I freeze, breath hitched in my throat. He lets go of me and flings me away from him, like I disgust him, before turning off back into the woods.

I curl up on the ground, clutching my throbbing arm. I'm stunned, still reeling in shock from his words. I thought he was just misguided, that he didn't understand, that we could still bring him back to normal. But after this, after the way he looked at me, after the way he spoke, I don't know if that's even possible.

I shakily rise to my feet, abandoning my basket and fishing pole, and go home. It's easier, and I walk the path I'd cleared earlier like a zombie, shaken to my core. I don't even remember going home, just brief flashes of forest before I break through to the field in front of the house.