In Bloom

Feed Me

Beta awoke what must have been shortly before sunrise, it was still dark but the birds were out and singing happily. Rubbing his tired eyes, he was relieved to feel himself getting well again. Although the changes were very subtle, his stomach was finally happy and his headache has gotten better thanks to him hydrating.

He could finally move his muscles without a lot of pain as well.

Beta slept surprisingly well, he didn't live through any weird nightmares tonight. Looking down on his lap he saw Fred, curled up into his pot again, undisturbed and peaceful. He almost seemed like a cat of some sort, which Beta admitted was pretty funny - considering that he is this all powerful entity. Beta poked at him slowly, watching his black form twitch.

"Fred, wake up, I need to get up." Beta asked, in a more consistent voice that didn't break at every word he muttered. Fred groaned, not moving, forcing the human to gently place him out of his lap.

"I'll be back in five minutes, k?" he asked, receiving another groan in response. It was hard to stand up, his legs felt wobbly and his head felt foggy. It made him want to lie down but the pressure in his bladder was hurting him.

"Be careful." Fred said as he went over to the door.  Beta rolled his eyes at this, what worse could possibly happen. As Beta went out to the woods, he couldn't help but acknowledge that the worn cabin they were staying in was kind of cool. Seeing nature take it over throughout the years was weirdly comforting. Beta hated everything about being outside but living here for a while wouldn't be too bad. He just needed to find a way to get better food and maybe even steal some bedding from stores close by. He had no idea if there wasn't even a store like that but when he got better it wouldn't hurt to try.

Before making his way over to piss on some tree he stood in front of his brother's grave. Maybe at one point he should find some wild flowers to place on it. Standing there gave him flashbacks to his father's funeral. He remembered the dark clothes everyone wore, how stern Alpha's face was and how Senpai and his mother took comfort in each crying.

He wished of course that Senpai wasn't dead, but he also wished that the rest of his family could be here to at least honor Sen even if it was the case. They would tell stories about how when Senpai was just a young boy he would cry every time someone died during a Disney movie. Or how Beta had to hold his hand during kindergarten so he wouldn't cry when their mom left.

Beta was going to miss him for every day the rest of his life. A walk was called for, even if he still felt like a sick mess.  He sighed as he walked away going deeper into the woods.

---

Beta was taking longer than five minutes, and it made Fred nervous. Could Beta collapse in his sicken state? Could some animal have mauled him? The worst thing is Fred could not do anything to help. The tiredness from using his other form barely let him keep his eyes open. Pitiful.

His eyes snapped open as he heard the sounds of footsteps approaching. Fred relaxed against his pot, finally Beta was here - they could rest together again. Fred was about to greet him before he realized something...

The footsteps he was hearing were clearly ones made by thick boots, and as much as Fred could remember, which is a lot - Beta never wore boots. Panic washed over the entity once he realized the state he was in, he didn't even have enough energy to transform into a forest plant.

Fred could only lift his head as the footsteps approached even closer, the man who was the source of them stepping into view. It was clear he was searching for shelter by his clothing choice. The heavy boots Fred recognized were torn, along with every other fabric of his clothing.