Harm and Harmony

-Chapter 12-

Day: 1

Days Left: 5479

Lives Saved: 0

They entered the house, and the chimaera closed the door behind them. Corinna stood still, frozen stiff at the sight of the interior. It wasn't what she expected. It was too... normal.

The wooden walls had been painted a darker brown, with glass windows covered by shutters and green flowery curtains. Hanging from the ceiling shone a lightbulb with a green lampshade, one side was broken and battered, leaving half of the room dim and the rest bathed in light. Positioned against one of the walls of the house were kitchen units and cupboards. there was also a fridge and a sink in front of a window. The other half of the room was separated further into two by a folding screen door, sectioning off an area for a double bed. In front of the fireplace sat two armchairs with a small coffee table in between them. On the opposite side of the house was another door, which Corinna speculated was the bathroom. Nearby was a trap-door on the floor, leading to whatever was underground.

Everything was too clean, too tidy to the point where it did not look lived in. Corinna could not imagine the monster sweeping or washing the dishes. The only logical explanation she could think of was that the monster had only recently inhabited the house.

The chimaera walked past Corinna towards the fireplace. It reached for a box of matches in its satchel and ignited the wood. After putting away the matches, the chimaera then closed all of the curtains.

Corinna wandered over to the fireplace, sat down, and placed her spear on the floor beside her. She outstretched her hands for warmth and watched the fire glow and slowly devour the black pieces of woods, mesmerised by the light and the sound of it crackling. There was something odd about the fire as Corinna noticed the sparks and flames danced slower than usual. Upon inspection, she discovered a dial on the side of the fireplace, indicating different settings: normal, slow, and fast. Despite her lack of arcane power and knowledge, she realised that the fireplace had been enchanted with a time spell, causing the fire to burn slower, using up less wood whilst still radiating warmth.

Feeling something fall onto her shoulders, Corinna jolted and looked behind her. The monster had wrapped its green cloak around her.

"Thank you," she mumbled.

The chimaera sat down beside the young woman in front of the fire, holding a metal box with a painted red cross on the lid- a medical kit. Putting the box on the floor, the chimaera opened it, revealing the contents of standard medical supplies. It looked at Corinna, who stared back, their eyes locked. The moment lasted longer than the young woman could stand, causing discomfort.

She lowered her head and began "What-" before she screeched, keeling over, her hands clutching at the cloak. The chimaera had snapped the end of the spear that was lodged into Corinna's back. Her hands trembled and reached out, feeling only a small piece of the spear hilt protruding out of her skin and the edges of the pointed blade.

Before she even registered what had happened, the chimaera had taken off her white dress in a single movement, leaving Corinna only in her underwear. She grabbed the cloak, wrapping it around herself, then retreated away from the monster, threatening it with her spear.

The monster moved towards her, and the young woman moved back even further, gritting her teeth from the pain.

"Don't come near me!" Corinna hissed at the monster.

Instead of moving forwards once again, the chimaera shuffled back. It retrieved a roll of bandages from the medical kit and showed her from a distance.

Corinna was still cautious, questioning why she even trusted the monster in the first place.

The monster's eyes caught a glimpse of the blood on the young woman's waist, where it had held onto her. It looked down at its three-fingered hands, at its talons.

To Corinna's surprise, the chimaera retracted its claws and reached its hand out, as if proving to her that it meant no harm. She hesitated before moving closer to the monster, covering her front with the cloak and exposing her back.

The chimaera gently brushed the young woman's long, blonde hair to the side. Her body jolted every time the monster touched her skin, feeling the warmth of its hands. After taking the spear out so quickly that Corinna had barely any time to react, the monster immediately cleaned the wound and treated it with a clear ointment from a jar. The chimaera's movements were clumsy and slow. Corinna figured it was because of having only three fingers, but then soon realised it was due to blood loss. Whilst in the process of binding Corinna's wounds with bandages, the monster fainted and collapsed on top of her.

Corinna heaved the chimaera off of her whilst repeatedly asking if it was okay or awake. Hesitating at first, she leaned close to the monster's mouth, sighing in relief when she heard it breathing. She brought the medical kit closer to her, then paused, unsure what to do next. With its thick, black fur, it was difficult to locate any injuries. Eventually, she found the open wound on its arm-

She screamed, retreating away from the monster. The snake-tail had slithered into view, appearing out of hiding. Corinna had forgotten it had even existed. The rest of the monster she found tolerable, able to easily overcome the fear of its appearance, but that snake-tail...

Slowly opening its green eyes, the chimaera stirred awake. It stood up but winced from the pain of its injured foot. 

Corinna tugged at the chimaera's hand, preventing it from leaving. "You need treating too," she said.

The monster reluctantly sat back down and licked its injured arm. 

"Let me help you." Corinna reached for the bandages, almost grabbing them, but the monster swiped them away before she could grasp it. The monster growled at her, which soon turned into a spluttering cough.

"That won't help at all. You need..." Corinna's voice trailed away once the monster showed her its wrist. Not only was it now clean of blood, but the wound had also completely healed.

Triumphant, the monster then attempted to lick its other wounds to recovery but failed to reach its waist due to the pain and the chimaera's own inflexibility.

Corinna sighed and said "let me help you," this time more softly. "I'll use the ointment." She picked up the jar of the transparent substance which had been used to treat her own injuries. It seemed to be the same healing salve that she had used back in the cave.

Grumbling, the monster turned to face Corinna and lifted its arms up, allowing the young woman to apply the 'ointment' and bandage the monster's waist. Afterwards, she moved onto treating the monster's foot, where she had stabbed it with her spear, along with other minor injuries.