Demeter - Ranboo

~twenty-three~

"What do you mean?" I asked, panic rising in my throat. If Mom and Dad got upset, which they definitely would be, I would never be able to see the light of day again. I didn't even want to think about that.

Ophelia started to answer me, but Phil's head peeked up from the stairs and he started talking.

"Melanie, Techno's gonna come up and speak with you. I'm going to head back to tell Callista what happened and see if I can find Ranboo for you, okay?" He said. I nodded, and he was gone. Ophelia pulled out a good-sized leather pouch and began sifting through the contents of it, the sound of bottles clinking together filling the room.

"Where do you guys get all those potions?" I asked the woman kneeling in front of me. Willow was sitting on the bed next to me, her leg bouncing anxiously.

"We make some of them, but we buy the harder ones from an older lady in the forest," Ophelia explained as she uncorked a few of the bottles.

"Who?"

"Her name's Charlotte. Her and I go way back." She poured the pink liquid onto a white cloth. "She's very sweet, although you two would probably scream if you saw her," she chuckled.

There was an old fairytale about a girl who went off to live in the woods. She didn't go willingly, though. She was driven out of town by, well, everyone. They had pitchforks and torches, and they screamed awful things at her. They justified their actions by saying she was the devil, a demon, an unholy being, anything of that strain. The story describes her as having two sets of arms and six eyes, and nasty fangs. But the girl was never named, and the story was created to keep kids out of the forest, so maybe I was just connecting dots that weren't there.

"Melanie?" Technoblade called out from the foot of the stairs. "Can I come up?" He asked. It was strange just how polite he was when every story painted him as a creature of brute force and assertive actions. I rather liked his gentle demeanor, it reminded me of Ranboo.

"Yeah," I answered, and I heard him begin to walk up the stairs. Willow looked at me, almost fear in her eyes. "He's super nice," I assured her quietly as he reached the top of the stairs, my parents right behind him, the same apprehension clear on their faces.

"Alright." He sat down on the floor next to Ophelia. "Let's figure out how to fix you first." He took my arm and assessed the various scrapes and cuts from being thrown on the ground after being, quite literally, jumped. There was a large scrape on my cheek, and I couldn't move my left arm without wanting to die.

"This is going to sting a lot, if you need something to anchor yourself you can just grab Techno's hand, okay?" Ophelia said softly. I nodded, and the white cloth was pressed against my arm, followed by such an intense burn I don't know how to explain it. It was just white, searing hot pain that made me want to scream. Technoblade grabbed my hand and said something my pain-clouded brain couldn't comprehend. All I remember really is feeling bad for squeezing his hand so hard.

Finally, the cloth was pulled off of my skin, and there were no wounds where the cloth was; only thin and light scars. I guess not even magic potions could work miracles. We repeated the process on my shoulder and my cheek, leaving only barely visible scars behind. The scar on my shoulder was a lot more clear, partly due to it being a more serious injury.

"You Helianites are built differently, I swear. Both you and Callista handled this fine. I remember my first time with the potions, I nearly screamed myself to death," Technoblade chuckled.

"I think you just have a low pain tolerance," Ophelia replied without missing a beat. He faked anger before breaking into a small smile.

"I'll have you know that I sprained my wrist and hardly felt a thing," he retorted lightly. Ophelia gave him a sidelong glance.

"You fell backwards off of a chair, didn't you?" Techno's face went a little pink at the comment, and Ophelia smirked. "At breakfast yesterday I bet."

"How do you know about that?" He was defensive.

"Wilbur told me," she smiled before turning her attention back to me. "How're you feeling?" I flexed my fingers and moved my shoulder around a bit. I was just a little stiff, but other than that I felt great.

"Judging by the lack of pain on your face I'd say you feel pretty good," Technoblade said, leaning back on his hands. I nodded.

"Is she going to be okay?" Mom spoke up, coming to stand next to Ophelia, keeping her distance from Technoblade. He didn't seem to notice.

"Oh, just give her two or three weeks of rest and she'll be back to normal. I'll come back to check on her every once in a while if that's alright with you, Mrs. Wright," Ophelia said as she started to pack up her stuff. "I've got a rowdy group of kids tomorrow, and I would like to get some sleep before I get to watch them. Goodnight Melanie." She left, leaving me with perhaps the most nerve-wracking group of people I could imagine. My angry parents and the Blood God.

"Tell us what happened. I don't believe any of what that old bird said," Dad spat out, his arms crossed in front of his chest. He hadn't moved from the back of the room. At his words, Technoblade stiffened, and something flashed across his eyes before disappearing back into cool indifference.

"His name is Phil." I was sick and tired of my father dehumanizing my halfling friends. First refusing to refer to Ranboo correctly, now calling Phil an old bird? This old bird had saved my life and been there. He was like a second father.

"Answer your father, Mel." Mom was on his side then. Fine. I'll die on this hill if I have to.

"I was walking home from work and I got jumped by some guy named Dream and his cronies. Ranboo showed up and held them off, and then Ophelia, Phil, and Techno came and now I'm here." My father's anger did not subside. Mine and Phil's stories must've matched. Good. Be angry. See if I care.

"You are not to see Ranboo anymore. The only thing that follows it is trouble. I've said it before and I'll say it again. I will not have a cautionary tale made of my eldest daughter." Dad said. Pain washed over Technoblade's face before he got up and left, his steps hardly making any noise at all.

"If we see you with him, or if anyone tells us they've seen you with him, there will be severe consequences. Understand?" Mom added. I could feel myself going cold. Had they not seen how distant I had gotten without him? Could they not tell how happy he made me? He had stuck by my side through everything. He stood up for me when I couldn't move. He saved my life, damnit! He deserved everything. He deserves me, even though I don't deserve him.

"Yes, Mom."

If Helianites were known to follow rules, call me an immigrant.

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wuh oh problematic parents

Anyway hope you enjoyed haha please eat drink water take meds and sleep :) love youuuuu see you in the next chapter :DDDD