Lampposts, Demonic Siblings and a Broken Toaster. Can It Get Any Worse?

I handed Crystal the heaving mug of tea, and settled in the arms of my tattered couch, sipping my deliciously creamy hot chocolate. The warm liquid rushed down my throat, and settled comfortably in the pit of my stomach. I sighed a murmur of contentment.

While I was wrapped in my own little world of marshmallow-chocolate, Crystal was sipping her tea elegantly, pinkie finger pointed outwards. She even sat with perfect posture while I slumped further down on my couch.

We sat in silence for about twenty minutes before I finally decided to speak, by which time my mug of hot chocolate had long been finished. “So, what's this all about?” I set down my empty mug on the table. “You said the other day that you were going to be away all weekend. Why are you here now?”

Crystal cast her gaze downwards as she shuffled in her seat. Why was it that her eyebrows were furrowed in concentration, as if trying to solve a mysterious puzzle? “I was away, but I asked my superiors if I could come back early, to ask you something.” She shifted positions on the couch; one leg crossed over the other, hands clasped together on top of the knee.

“Did you ever get that bite checked out? It could've got seriously infected, considering you were bitten by a monster.” By the way she was chewing her nails, I could tell that she was seriously concerned for my health. I mean, it would've been simpler for her to just email or text me, but instead she chose to ask in person.
She did tell me last week that a Nibbler bite could cause blood poisoning...

This question didn't exactly shock me, but I wasn't expecting it either. All I could do was to answer the question. “I didn't think I had to.” I unraveled my sock, to where the bite should have been.

Now, this shocked me; Crystal's jaw dropped in a large O shape, and her eyebrows shot nearly up to her forehead. “What?!” She squeaked.

“I suppose Nibbler bites heal fast, so there's no real reason to-” I stopped talking when Crystal leaped from her chair and pounced, like a starving wildcat, onto my ankle as if it were a slab of raw meat. She gripped it with both hands, twisting this way and that trying to get a better look at it.

“Crystal!” I said, hoping to distract her from tearing my whole leg off, but she didn't hear me. She was now tracing the light pink scar with the tip of her fingernail, eyes agape with astonishment. “Crystal!”

Her head snapped up suddenly, her face blank with surprise. “Huh?”

“What are you DOING?” I jerked my leg out of her grasp. “It's only a bite! You don't have to get so worked up about it!”

“Oh, but I think I do.” She stood up, slowly, looked me straight in the eye. “You want to know why?”

I was silent.

“I'll tell you why. I'll tell you why this,” she waved to my ankle, with the faint pink scar still visible above the sock. “...this is not natural!” I saw Crystal's fists tremble, and realized the she was angry. I had never seen her like this, before today. I guess that was the reason I felt so scared and minuscule, staring up at her from below.

“More often than not, Nibbler bites carry a lethal poison that would kill you painfully for at least a month. By this time you should have turned yellow and you should have puked straight after being bitten. You should have a rash all over you as painful as sandpaper scraping your entire body, night and day! Even if you survive the poison, don't even think for a second you might be spared, because even then it would take AT LEAST three years before they even BEGIN to heal!”

Her breathing was labored now and there was something in her eyes that I couldn't put my finger on, and it was troubling me. Something in her eyes was flashing hot and cold, scarlet signs of danger, but it didn't feel like anger. What was it?

Once again, it was deathly silent for a few minutes.

“Why have you healed so fast?” She whispered to me, with an emotion that trembled her words and tightened her throat, her eyes wide like saucers.

It took me a while before I figured out that that emotion I saw from her was fear.
She was scared of me!

Crystal didn't let me reply; instead she turned on her heel and sprinted swiftly out the room, where I heard her break down into an uncontrollable sob.