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Chapter Text

Much to the shock to many of the circus members, you and the ringmaster had become an item at some point in your stay in the digital world. Common questions you are are "Why?" or "What do you see in him?" and sometimes even "For all we know this could all be his fault... doesn't that bother you?"
You won't lie, the theories did get under your skin every once in a while, but it was never enough to make you step back from your partner. Asides from the chaotic in house adventure, he never really gave you a reason to distrust him or keep your distance. He spoiled you whenever he was given the chance, sometimes he would craft the adventures with you in mind. He never once intentionally put you down, really only making you feel bad on accident due to him not fully understanding human nature and emotions.
He planned dates, he gave you gifts, and he loved up on you whenever you gave the green light. Hand holding, hugging, cuddling, or just generally clinging onto you. Though, it's now as you sit across from him that it strikes you: of all the interactions you two shared, he's yet to kiss you. How can he when he's just teeth?
He sat there, chattering away. The way his jaws morphed and shifted gave the impression that they weren't... stiff...
You wave your hand to get his attention, and he stares at you; teeth parted enough to look at you. "Did you have an idea for your next adventure, tomorrow?" He propped his elbows on the dinner table and leaned towards you. Was that what he was talking about?
You chewed your lip, and stared at the curves of his jaws. "I was thinking about something, just not that," You said, and as expected he focused all of his attention on you- at least more than he already had. He leaned in closer, "Well don't keep a man waiting!" He perked his "chin" on his hands as he stared right into your soul. A little unnerving, but you had gotten used to that look.
You ran your teeth long your lips, sucking them in slightly before releasing. "Well," you began, and his eyes seemed to widen. "Well I was wondering if I could have.. a kiss?" You pulled a nervous smile across your face in a meek attempt to make the line feel less awkward in the air. He seemed to freeze a little, attempting to speak before stopping himself as the first syllable came out. You thought you had said something wrong, but the tension was quickly shattered as Caine began his chatter.
"Oh I thought you'd never ask! I was waiting for you to make a move, you know!" He chuckled before pulling out a bottle breath spray, sticking his tongue out and spraying it a few times. You vaguely wondered if it made his eyes sting. It didn't even cross your mind to wonder if he had the bottle on him at all times... or had he just pulled it into his existence with his powers?
He planted his hands on the table and leaned in close to your face. Almost to your horror, he "puckered up" or at least the closest he could get given his anatomy. His jaws formed a similar shape lips would make, the teeth sticking forward just a bit as he waited for you. You rose up to meet him, eyes darting across his teeth to find out where exactly to kiss. You settled on kissing between his top front teeth.
You were barely able to keep your lips to his teeth before he seemed to explode into a flurry of emotions. His eyes blue screened between his teeth, white text flashing across them. Star like sparks flew into the air followed by a thick billow of steam from his top hat. Never had you seen such a reaction from the ringmaster, and you were beginning to worry that you had somehow broken him. Within seconds he would regain his composure, before fanning himself. For such a small action, it seemed to really stick him in a bunch. The steam and sparks dissipate as he melts into his hands, jaws slack to look at you.
"Not bad for a newbie," He teased, and readjusted his hat. "Perhaps sometime I could give you a pep talk, come on what was the hold up for? Where was the confidence?” He continued.
This would only serve as the beginning to a new era of growth in your relationship.

Chapter Text

Jonathon struggled to stay awake the morning after everything. After he had pulled himself out of bed between... god his mind was clinging together to keep details clear... it was somewhere between two in the morning and four, though he could be completely wrong. He decided to wait out the rest of night outside your hotel room. He did not get a single wink of sleep, his thoughts consuming him. Naturally, you didn't allow him to drive the car. There was still many hours left on the trip, and that wasn't even factoring in the drive back. You curse Alchemex for not sending someone else, or working out a different arrangement than having someone pick up the parts needed for some... machine…
"We'll stop in a few hours for breakfast, maybe around nine... does that sound alright? Could you try to catch some sleep so we can switch off eventually?" You glanced at Jonathon as the car rolled to a stop at the light. His eyes lazily pulled themselves to look at you, his glasses were secured in their case and tucked away in the door.
He scrunches his eyes closed, attempting to pull himself together. "Yeah, yeah... that works," He leaned back into his seat as the car began to move again.

It was gloomy outside, dark clouds hung in the sky as if it were about to rain. At least it was better than having the morning light going straight into his eyes. He leaned away from you and tried to get comfortable. It was horribly quiet, and suddenly he became all too aware of his breathing. He wasn't being too loud, or breathing too heavily? He shot a glance to you, and even though your eyes were still glued on the road ahead his sleep deprived mind would not stop the buzzing thought that you were judging him silently. He took a deep breath, and held it for as long as he could without turning red. He slowly exhaled as soft as he could. And he continued the process.

He did not get any sleep, too preoccupied on trying to make the air less awkward than it was. But you never seemed to notice it, or him. It remained this way for hours, until you both eventually pulled into a parking lot of some fast food place. Jonathon nearly jumped out of his skin when you gently shook his arm. His throat clenched painfully before he regained himself. "Sorry! I didn't realize you were asleep!" You apologized. You hadn't noticed after all. Gaze darting, he shook his head. "No, no no it's... fine..."
"Do you want to go inside, or do you just want to pass through the drive thru? I meant to ask you before pulling in, but some douchebag..." You trailed off. "I'm surprised you didn't wake up from the swerve."

Bringing the palms of his hands to his eyes he rubbed them, then blinked his vision clear. The clock said nine. You'd been on the road for three hours. A dull ache in his legs made themselves known suddenly as he pulled his eyes open wider. "We can go inside, give us a chance to walk and go to the bathroom,"
You nod in agreement.

Breakfast was uneventful, you both ate mostly in silence save for you checking in on him. Did you need to make a stop so he can get some proper rest? He insisted that he was fine, but you could tell he was lying through his teeth. Soon you were back on the road, with you taking it upon yourself to simply keep driving for the remainder of this half of the trip. You did not feel confident with the idea of your coworker driving in his current state.

Morning stretched to noon, and then to late afternoon. The sky had since cleared for the most part, the sunset shining its light on your side of the car. You couldn't blame Ohnn for staring, with the way he could see each individual strand of hair lit up by the orange light. Or how your skin seemed to glow, you looked... alive. That was a normal thing to say about someone, surely!

It was this, mixed with the exhaustion that Jonathon let a single word slip through his chewed lips.

"Wow.."

That was all he said, his face burning brighter against the light that made it past you and onto his own face. He doubted he looked as beautiful as you in the light. His only redeeming quality right now, were his brown eyes. Brown eyes always seemed to look gorgeous in the light.
"Did you say something?" You shot a side glance to him, his teeth clenching as he realized his mistake.

But…

Was it a mistake?
He thought over his thoughts from the night before in bed. Everything he wanted to say to you. His eyes fixated on you, like a child staring at a bug they've found under a rock. He pulled his bottom lip in with his teeth, and ran them along the flesh. He weighed his options. He could be bold and say everything now... or he could keep quiet... If things ended bad, he could perhaps let himself wallow in shame in the passenger seat or ask someone to help him get home if you didn't allow him to ride back with you.

""Are you okay? " You asked when you didn't get a response. All day you had been worried about the man, his behavior was so off and you were beginning to believe you may have done something wrong. Maybe you should have let him sleep on the floor like he had insisted, did you make him feel pressured to share the bed with you?
"No, actually I'm not." He said after a few seconds. A horrible opener, really. He didn't have time to fight his body cringing, he had already committed to this. "There's something I've been wanting to tell you," He added. That didn't make it sound any better. Before he could back out you were already pulling the car into the parking lot of a gas station, stopping the car. He had your full attention now.

"Is this about the bed thing? Or is it something else?"

He sucked air between his teeth, scraping his mind for some way to back out of this. This wasn't the best time to confess your feelings, was it? Let alone the right place. Jonathon had always thought that he would try to orchestrate something to "naturally" have you two fall together, opening a window to ask you out.. this was.. not at all what he had planned. He felt far too vulnerable, the inside of the car suddenly felt too small.
He was going to dismiss everything off as a joke, but when his eyes caught yours his jaw started working against him. In perhaps the most humiliating way.

"I'm in love with you, (Reader)"

The air hung thick.
Such a horrible way to say it.

He will never have the chance to confess to you in the way he wanted to, never would he want it to go out like this. He cursed himself for this failure.

What a waste.

He tore his eyes away from you as his face began to burn, soon followed by his ears and the back of his neck turning a bright shade of pink. For a horrifying moment he wondered if you would tell the rest of your coworkers about this. He tried to dismiss it once more, trying to follow it by a "Just kidding!" but his jaws betrayed him once more.
It was quiet, and he became aware of his breathing again. He began to focus on it, working to make sure it wasn't too loud in the space you shared. He chanced a glance at you through the corner of his eye, only to see that similarly your face was burning as well. "You don't.. have to say anything-"
"No, I'm glad you told me..." You pulled your gaze forward and worked your brows together. More quiet followed before you breathed deeply and exhaled. You looked at the time, prompting him to look as well. He had been so deep in his thoughts and feelings the entire day that he had forgotten why you were driving. His horror deepens as he realizes that he had practically confessed to you while you were working... he wanted to bury himself into the ground.
"Can we talk about this later, when we get this.." You motion your hand around, "over with? When we get back home, I mean,"
It felt like a gut punch, but he understood. You both had a job to do, pick something up and return.

He nodded, trying to swallow the hurt look that tried to come out.

You nodded, and pulled the car out of the parking lot and returned driving. You both made it to your location, and got what you needed. There was no way the two of you were going to drive tonight, however, given the exhaustion settling in both of you.
This time Jonathon made sure the hotel room had two beds.

Chapter Text

Adam had fallen ill. How, you weren’t entirely sure. You didn’t even know that angels could get sick- at least the ones that come from human souls. Being the caring partner you are, you have taken it upon yourself to keep an eye on him and tend to his every need until he was fully recovered. Not that it was particularly hard, he was more than willing to lay down in bed as soon as his symptoms started.

His attitude, on the other hand…

Your hand gripped the ladle as you poured soup into a bowl as Adam’s wet and rough voice called out for you. You grit your teeth and steel yourself for the upcoming interaction.
Despite his eagerness to take a few days off, he was a pain when he was ill. Understandable, but he was prone to lashing out at others. You grab a sleeve of crackers and walk down the hall to the bedroom.
His attitude wasn’t terrible, at least not compared to how he acts with others- excluding yourself- but he’d find himself snapping at you more than he.. Probably… intended..

He looked terrible. His skin was pale and dark circles rested under his eyes. Each movement seemed to take effort, each slow and sluggish- almost as if he were underwater. His arms fell effortlessly across his chest as he pulled his hands over his face to rub the exhaustion from his eyes. It was all a useless attempt to adjust them to the light of the hall behind you.
You close the door behind you and shuffle towards the side of the bed.
“I’ve got you some soup,” You mumbled as you pulled the chair closer, balancing the plate in your hand. You feel around between the nightstand and the bed, tugging out a tray to hold the soup.
“Here,”
“I can fucking see that.” Adam hissed lowly as he tried to push himself up. You ignore his tone, instead busying yourself with setting the tray.

You place down the bowl and crackers, the spoon clinking against the glass- you make a note of how Adam recoils away from the sound. You make a mental note to find some ibuprofen for him soon.

“How are you feeling? You don’t look as bad as yesterday,”
You put a hand behind his back and help prop him up, stuffing pillows between him and the bed’s headboard. He took a long breath, it sounded…
You frown as you tune out the sound, and take a spoonful of soup. You let it drip over the bowl, before resting your hand under it to prevent any from spilling onto Adam. “Take a guess.” He nearly growled, swallowing hard before he opened his mouth for you. Your brows furrowed at him, and he seemed to soften as he let the warm fluid slip down his throat. His eyes darted away from you as you moved to get another spoonful. “I feel like shit,” He added after a moment.

“I'm planning on going to the store later to pick some things up, is there anything in particular you need?” You push on.
His knuckle lightly drums against the support of the tray, glazed eyes looking at the spoon as you bring it closer to him. He takes it once more, and licks his chapped lips before speaking.
“Painkillers would be nice,”
“I’ve already got that in mind,” You offer a smile. He stares at you for a minute before snatching the spoon from your hand. “I can feed myself, I’m not some snot nosed brat.”
You bite your tongue for a moment, taking note of the used up box of tissues on the nightstand. You’ll pick up another box while you’re away.

“You seem to be getting better,” You lean back in the chair and watch him feed himself. Weakened glare be damned, this was better than most of the things he could do on his own the past few days. Drumming your fingers on your knees, you scan the room. Used tissues were tossed into a nearby waste bin, and the emergency bucket he had been given remained empty. At least four empty water bottles were strewn across the bed.
Your hands flatten on your thighs, and you push yourself up to your feet. “You can leave the bowl on the nightstand, I’ll let you finish eating…” You pause, “It’s okay if you can’t eat it all, I’ll deal with it when I come back,” You turn towards the door.

“Where are you going?” He asked through a mouthful of carrot.
“I need to clean up the kitchen and put away the rest of the soup, then I’ll run out to the store… Painkillers was all you needed right? Doesn’t matter what kind?” You stop at the doorway.

His eyes flick to the soup, then to you, then they lowered to his lap.
“Yeah,” He worked his jaw, spoon held loosely in his hand.

You give him a thumbs up and step into the hall. “Noted, boss man!” You hear him click his teeth at you. “Just give me a call if you need anything” and with that you closed the door behind you, leaving Adam alone in bed with his thoughts.

Unbeknownst to you, he’d turn the short interaction in his head until his body forced him to sink back into sleep. He didn’t mean to be so short with you. His fingers twitched as his mind bounced between each word he said to you. They were nowhere near as bad as some of the things he’s said to others. Tame, even. Yet you still smiled at him despite his growls.
His hand pulls itself back to his face and drags across the skin. He really hated being sick.

Chapter Text

You sat stationed at the window of the cabin, eyes squinting into the darkness. The sun had set long ago. Usually Jason didn't stay out this long on nights like these, especially when it's storming out.
You chewed the inner flesh of your cheek, fingers drumming against the window sill as you forced your eyes to work harder against the darkness. It wasn't like it was flooding outside, but there was some thunder out. For a moment the pit in your gut made itself known before you smothered it back. Sucking in air through your teeth, you got up from your seat and scuttered to the door. A crack of thunder made you pause for a moment, before stepping out into the night. You didn't even think about putting on a coat, or grabbing a light.

For a brief moment you thought about calling out Jason's name... but what if there were still trespassers running around? You opened your mouth, then quickly closed it. You opened it several more times, before deciding the risk wasn't worth it.
The steps creaked under you as you continued onward, your bare feet sinking slightly into the damp ground when you met it. You hardly made any progress before you bumped right into something very large…

Your face made contact with his drenched iron scented shirt. You ignored the feeling of the fabric peeling off of your skin as you pulled back, paying no mind to the red stamp left on your face. You had grown rather desensitized to the messes Jason makes. You could deal with that later when you could see the color on your cheek in the mirror. You hands blindly felt around in the darkness, before finding his hands. The cabin's lights were still just barely visible in the darkness. A gentle tug, and Jason let you lead him.

Neither of you said anything, though Jason's silence was to be expected.

You huffed a little as you stepped into the entryway, grimacing at your feet. Jason didn't look much cleaner. You helped him shrug off his soaked jacket, letting it fall to the ground with a loud smack. It will be hung up in the morning...
You finally got your first good look at Jason, and he looked just as you had expected after his nights out clearing the camp... no noticeable injuries this time, at least. "Finally taking my advice to not get hurt?" You teased, bringing a hand to pat his arm. Your smile curled, giving him a tug. "Come on, let's get cleaned up,"
And he followed.

It was still raining by the time the two of you left the bathroom, steam following the two of you as you stepped out. You'd already changed into your sleepwear, whereas Jason simply remained mostly undressed. You stretched, popping your back. You briefly debate whether or not you should try to stay awake for a little while longer but your body quickly decided that it needed rest immediately. Jason seemed to notice your exhaustion... you didn't even try to stop him as he coaxed you into the bedroom. Even if you had decided to stay awake he wouldn't let you. He lets you crawl into bed first, before carefully crawling in after you. The bed creaked and sagged, you shift to fall into his side just as he settles.
You splayed yourself across his chest, sighing gently. Eyes cracked open, you took note that his head was laid back against his pillow. He only usually did this when there was something on his mind. "I'm glad you didn't get hurt badly this time, you know," You mumbled.
A finger traced along his shirt, messing with the fabric. "I was worried the rain was going to get worse, I know you didn't mean to stay out for so long," You tapped a finger at his side. One of his own hands clasped itself on your upper arm, easily engulfing it. If the gesture was anything new you would have jumped out of your skin. You pulled your eyes back up to look at him. The air felt quieter now, only the sharp whistle of the wind outside and the drumming of the rain... but it was only white noise now.

You lowered your face back, and propped yourself against his chest. "Why don't we stay inside tomorrow?" You sank deeper. The hand on your arm lightly flexed, before relaxing. "I don't know about you, but I've got a feeling it's going to be bad outside for a while... at least a few more days..."
His body finally relaxed under yours, allowing itself to finally fully sink into the bed and go limp. "That sounds nice, doesn't it?" You chuckled as you kicked the blanket up into your hand and tugged it over the both of you.

You fell asleep to him drumming his fingers against your skin to the sound of the rain.

Chapter Text

You'd both been at it for just over half an hour now, however you seemed to be unable to get your footing right. Despite stepping on his feet several times, Itward didn't seem all that upset with you. In fact he was just as pleasant with you as he usually is.

"I don't think I'm cut out for this," You muttered as you trailed to the table to refresh yourself. "We can stop if you'd like," the skeleton offered. You turned to him, he hadn't moved from where he stood. You envied his lack of skin for a moment, it must feel so nice not needing to sweat. You swished your drink around in your mouth before swallowing it. You turned his suggestion over in your mind. Was there really anything wrong with calling it quits now?
You looked back at his face, despite everything that had happened the past few attempts, he seemed to be having fun. In fact he seemed happy to have your company.
"Truly, I assure you there's no pressure to keep going-" He began as you started to speak. "How about one last try?"

His eyes widened for a moment before relaxing once more. "Are you sure? I'd hate for you to..." He trailed off as you made your way over to him. The music was still playing, he hadn't even had the chance to turn it off. You craned your neck back and stared up at his face, even hunched over he still towered over you. You nodded gently, and took his hands. His fingers gently wrapped around yours as if one wrong move would leave your joints broken.
He opened his jaws slightly before closing them with a light clack. His eyes fixated on your interlocked hands. His usual slit eyes were dilated into large orbs. A soft chuckle, before he pulled you closer to him. "Well, I can't turn down your boldness... that'd be rather cruel, wouldn't it?"

A smile crept along your face as you both began the dance.

Your upper body wasn't all that much of an issue, with Itward keeping your hands secure on his upper arm and ribcage, with his on your shoulder and upper torso... you'd notice he had even hunched himself more than he usually did. For a brief moment you wondered what kind of magic was supporting his tall stature, if his body used magic in the first place-
Stumbling, Itward tugged you to him to keep you from falling. Your foot had caught on his own. "Steady, no need to overcorrect.. I won't let you fall, Dear," He soothed as you both regained your positions. His chest was warm, despite the lack of organs... though were you certain that he didn't have any?
You focused on your feet as you both moved around the room, trying hard not to trip on his feet again. For what it was worth, he was holding you gently but firmly to ensure you wouldn't come crashing to the hard floor of the ship. The subtle rocking of it as it flew did little to keep your feet steady... for a moment you began to regret taking Itward up on his offer to dance while the ship was still in the air. You peeked a look up at him. His eyes were half closed.. You couldn't help but stare at the thin wisp of steam creeping out of the top of his hat.
Face flushing, you pulled your eyes back down before he noticed your staring. It was then that the music finally stopped, the room falling silent save for the sound of the engine and the dull creak of your dance partner's bones.

He slowed to a stop, letting you settle in front of him.

It was a simple dance, if anything it was just the two of you stepping around the floor... but regardless, it was nicer than the previous attempts. You pulled your hands from his, and for a moment he seemed to falter. Though, that was something you decided to file away to ponder over for the future. Cracking a smile up to him, you chuckled a little. "I didn't drag us both to the floor this time," You chuckled.
It took him a moment to process what you said before breaking out into a soft laugh as well. "No I suppose you didn't!"

A pause, and you looked around. "Maybe... we can try again.. later, when the ship's landed..?" You offered. A jolt seemed to go up his spine, his eyes opening wide. "Oh Dear I didn't even realize... the rocking wasn't too much for you, was it?" He muttered, fretting his fingers together. "Not really, no..." you said, only half lying. His hands stopped their work before relaxing, though you were sure he knew you weren't being totally honest with him.
You changed the topic. "Maybe next time I'll let you spin me, or maybe even do a dip," You teased. "Oh I'm not sure about that, you'd likely grab me back and then we'd both be on the floor," He jested. You lightly slapped his arm, only further pushing the "smile" on his face.

Chapter Text

Against all the odds, you had managed to convince Brahms to take a bath. A proper one, mind you... and by the looks of it he didn't enjoy it one bit. You didn't expect him to seek you out so soon after washing up, and yet here he was shoving his face into your torso as he grumbled. No doubt he was annoyed that you had drawn a bath and didn't join him.
"Maybe next time," You mumbled as you pat your hand on the back of his shoulder, trying to will him to look at you. No dice. You turned over what could be done to pull him out of his mood in your head, your hands settling on his freshly dried hair. He pushed his head deeper into your palm, forcing you to take note of his soft curls. You knew he had them before, but they were...
You frowned for a moment.
You twirled his hair in your fingers for a moment before brushing the hair off of his forehead. As expected, he had his mask on. Not that you were surprised. Now that you had thought about it, Brahms only just recently started coming out of the walls a few weeks ago. You never noticed him leaving them to clean himself, so that does make you wonder...
"You know, if you cleaned up a little more..." You massaged his scalp. "We could do stuff like this more often.."
He glanced up at you. "Maybe if you let me I can even style your hair, if you want," You continued.
You were about to pull your hand away, only to find that he was forcing your hand back to his head. Firmly, but not enough to hurt.
"Not that I wouldn't before.. but doesn't this make you feel nicer?" You added as you went back to lightly fluffing his hair to help shake off of the remaining dampness.
A pause.
Then a nod.
A soft lighthearted huff as you trailed your fingers along his scalp.
You made it a mental note to make this a habit, though you doubted Brahms would let you forget your post bath cuddling session.

Chapter Text

It had been absolute chaos, you weren't even sure who was responsible for pissing so many people off... not that it seemed to matter, as the outcome left a huge chunk of the hotel ruined and in shambles on one side; demolishing a lot of the rooms on the upper floors. You winced as you looked at the damage, even from the ground you could tell your room didn't leave unscathed. Some of your belongings, left scattered and scorched, only cemented that idea. Your staring must have been obvious as a handful of some of the hotel residents came over. The first to speak was Charlie, who was already left a little wired from the attack.

"These aren't yours, are they?" She asked softly as she avoided stepping on anything that once belonged to you. The others that followed her weren't as mindful. Charlie worked her eyebrows together, working her hands together as she tried to think of something to say. "We'll get this fixed-" She whipped around, seeming to take a mental note of the extent of the damage done. Her face visibly fell for a second when her eyes scanned across the upper floors. "-You can sleep in one of the empty rooms-"
"If they're not destroyed." Vaggie mumbled, arms crossed over her chest. You wondered if she was already trying to figure out who's fault it was, who got who angry enough to come and attack. "We can fix it," Charlie reassured, putting a hand on her girlfriend's shoulder. "How long do you think it will take?" You finally spoke up. The actual suggestion of time seemed to take the princess off guard, but she quickly composed herself.

"Maybe..." She started before picking up a piece of burnt wood, then turned to Alastor. He had been able to summon souls to help fix the hotel before, but this was so much more than a blasted up wall. "At least a day or two, I'll go ask Alastor... maybe.." a pause. "you can stay in a spare room if it's not destroyed,"
"I can just stay somewhere else for a few nights, it's not that bad," You suggested, but Charlie quickly shut that down. "I don't like the idea of anyone going out for now... I mean," She gestured towards the damage, "If someone got mad enough to do this, I don't want to risk them grouping us all together... if just one of us caused problems..."
"Not that I would.. force you to stay..." She added under her breath.
"It's fine, really," You began but a third person spoke.
"They can have my room, I have somewhere else to stay" Sir Pentious offered.

A pause.

"Your ships been destroyed, where-" You started. It was true, granted it wasn't totally destroyed... it had taken a rather nasty hit during the attack. Pentious gently waved you off, "You won't need to worry about that!" He insisted, though by the look on his face it was most definitely something to worry about. However, by his tone he seemed set on letting you have his room.

"Pentious... are you sure?" Charlie asked, only for the sinner to nod. He adjusted his hat by the brim. "I'll get my belongings... in the meantime.." His eyes darted towards you. "Why don't you grab what can be salvaged... you may store it in my room for as long as you need," His eyes pulled themselves away from you the second he was done speaking. You chewed on your tongue for a moment before deciding to take him up on his offer. "Well if you insist," You shrugged before dragging your feet across the ground, picking up some of the burned things that were once in your room. Thankfully, nothing of value seemed to be lost... at least from what you could tell at the moment.

There wasn't a lot to salvage from what was left of your room. The wall was totally blown open and some of the things that didn't get blasted out were either destroyed from the damage or tosses all over the place. You gathered some clothing to move to your temporary room as well as some essentials and made your way to Pentious' room.
Now that the shock and adrenaline of everything was subsiding, the aches in your body made themselves known. You were relatively uninjured but that didn't change the fact that your body asked for you to lay down... you'd need to take a shower first, hopefully Pentious wouldn't mind you using his bathroom tonight.

Speaking of the sinner, you found him scrambling about his room trying to collect what he needed to move out for the night, his eggs scuttling across the floor around in him an attempt to help their creator. You knocked gently on the doorframe prompting the man to jump, his hood fanning out before relaxing down against his back when he realized it was just you. He scrambled to pick up what he had dropped and he offered you a half smile, face a little reddened from his surprise.
"Sorry about that," You smiled back and stepped out of the way so the egg boiz could pass through the door. You didn't pay much mind to what they said, most seemed to just be greeting you and chattering about the temporary move. "Did you find somewhere to stay?" You let the eggs pass by without much thought. Pentious seemed to wilt, but he didn't give you a chance to make a comment.
"It's all settled, there is no need for you to worry about me!" He said, firmly and almost like he felt proud of himself for stepping up to let you use his room. "Oh.." You said. The air was awkward, despite the snake trying to look as collected as possible. He was failing. Badly.
A pause, neither of you said anything for a few seconds.
"Is it fine if I use your shower? The one in my room is kind of..." You trailed off, closing your fist before opening it to mimic a boom. He took a moment, before nodding. "Of course!"

More silence.

"Alright..." You nodded, letting him pass to the door. "I'll give you some privacy," and he had slithered out abruptly, leaving you alone. You stood there for a moment before walking to the door, shutting and locking it.
The first half of the night was uneventful. You showered, winded down, and went to bed. You would have slept through the entire night if it weren't for a not too soft thud near the door of the bedroom. You pulled yourself into a sitting position and rubbed your eyes, allowing your eyes to adjust to the darkness. There was a scurrying noise coming from the door, and you weren't going to lie... in your half awake state it put you on edge. After a few seconds, you approached.
You paused for a moment, as the noise started to die down a little. Your hand rested on the knob, before pulling the door open. For a moment you didn't see anything in the dim light the hall's light showed, mostly due to the thing that made all the noise being on the floor. You nearly screamed, only barely containing it by slapping your hand on your mouth.
It seemed, Sir Pentious had not found somewhere else to stay. Or maybe this was what he meant when he said he'd sleep elsewhere. He too, seemed only half awake. You both stared at one another, you had just noticed his egg boiz huddling into his tail. If you weren't so tired you may have found the situation at least a little comical.
"Why," You started but your words seemed to snap Sir Pentious out of whatever grogginess he was stuck in. "My ship was far more destroyed than I first believed," He started, shutting you down as he went into explaining himself. The couch in the living room had been wrecked in the attack, and most of the spare rooms were either destroyed or locked. Sleeping on the floor seemed to be his best option.
You took a step forward, and looked up and down the hallway. Everything was quiet except for Pentious' rambling. Everyone else seemed to be asleep, save for the faint scuttling. Bugs, or Niffty. You weren't sure which one it was. Had she been here a second ago? You looked back down to Sir Pentious as he moved from defending himself to saying he won't be a bother to you, that he can move away from the door if you would like. It was pitiful to watch, actually, watching him coil in on himself to make himself smaller and hopefully less noticeable. You started to feel bad for him.

You cast a look over your shoulder to the round bed you had just been in. Considering only one person was in this room, unless you counted the eggs as people, it was rather large. More than enough room for you and the sinner to share with plenty of room to spare. Eyes darting back to Pentious, you broke up his talk.
"You're going to get sick if you sleep on the floor, or maybe wake up with a piece missing from you if Niffty catches you," You joked... though... Knowing her, she might actually try. "Why don't you come to bed? There's room, you know," You added after a moment. He stared at you, grabbing his hood and wringing his hands into it. "I appreciate the offer, but I don't want to intrude," He mumbled. "It's your bed, you should be allowed to sleep in it. We can put up pillows as a barrier if you're worried about space," You insisted.
He paused, looking you in the eye before pulling his stare away down to his eggs. "Alright..." and he started to slowly coax the eggs awake to make the move. You offered a small smile, before rushing back to the bed to move the spare bedding you had been given. There wasn't much to make a barrier, so you simply sacrificed one of the blankets you were given to make a line. "You can have this side," You offered as you crawled in. Not much was said as the sinner claimed the free space, letting his eggs curl back against his tail. They fell back to sleep fairly quickly.

Now that the two of you were in bed, the blanket barrier became laughable. It hardly did anything to divide your spaces, but that didn't seem to be much of an issue given that the snake man was keeping to himself and pressing against the raised sides of the bed. You felt rather silly for not noticing sooner, but you realized the bed resembled that of a nest.
You couldn't help but smile to yourself.
"It's a shame I can't take your bed with me when my room's fixed," You joked, turning your head to look at Pentious. He had turned his own head to look at you, eyes widened by his statement as he seemed to struggle to work his mouth. "You can have it-" He spewed out, before backtracking. "I mean... I can show... tell... you where Miss Charlie got it from, and.." He forced his mouth shut and paused. "I can help... put it together.. for you!" He added, ripping his words out of his throat. You blinked, taking a moment to think... your silence only seemed to make him more nervous.
"Or we can switch rooms if you prefer this one," He added, forcing himself to look up at the ceiling and away from you. "I was joking, Pen, you don't need to do any of that." You insisted. Quiet, followed by a soft "oh!" and forced laughter. "I knew that!" He very obviously lied.
You looked away from him and sat in silence. You bit your tongue, teasing him felt a little too mean, and besides you were tired.

"You could have just stayed here from the get go, you know, you didn't need to go. If you weren't already sure you had somewhere else to go I could have just went and looked... for a place.." You trailed off and thought. He had seemed too eager to offer up his room earlier, now that you were remembering the interaction. You glanced at him out of the corner of your eye, he had been staring up until he noticed you give him a look. "Offering was the right thing to do,"

That's right. He's trying to be redeemed.
And for a moment you thought he had done it for another reason.
You looked up at the ceiling, trying to make out the texture of it as you tried to think of something to say.

"Well, if you keep this up you're probably going to get to Heaven..." You started, then looked at him. You didn't take much time to think if it were even possible, but the way Charlie spoke about her cause... there had to be a shot, right? "Not to shade anyone else here, but I think you're probably way ahead, compared to all of us..." You added.
You turned yourself to rest on your side. "You do realize if you get redeemed- if someone can be redeemed- you're going to be alone up there without the rest of us you know?"
You couldn't stop the words before they came out. You never thought about that, the separation. By the look that spread across his face it became clear that he didn't think about that either. The look of surprise and realization quickly turned into one similar to sadness.
"I'll be sure to grab onto you before you ascend, you're not going to be getting rid of me that easily," You tried to lighten the mood, and your comment seemed to work just a little bit. "Will that not get us both in trouble?" He asked. You offered a shrug, "If so, maybe we'll get kicked out... doesn't mean we can't try again- they'll just have to let us in together eventually" You smirked. He offered one in return, though the worry didn't leave his eyes.
"I think..." He started, resting his hands across his torso as he stared back up at the ceiling. "Being with you... is heavenly enough."

Quiet.

"Because I enjoy your company, and-" He started, about to launch into another ramble, similar to the one he had in the hallway. He pressed himself harder against the sides of the bed, like he was looking for an escape. You couldn't help but smile over his words.
"I think you're pretty neat too, actually" You said bluntly, making the sinner freeze up. He seemed to relax just a tad, but he kept his eyes away from you.
"You think so?"
"Of course, lying is a sin isn't it? If we're getting out of here together I need to be honest," You turned yourself back onto your back, looking to where he had his eyes focused on the ceiling.
He remained quiet for a while, and opened his mouth as if he were about to speak. A few noises made themselves past his lips, before he closed his mouth again.
You didn't push him to say what he wanted, the exhaustion in your bones was beginning to become almost too much to bear. You had decided you'd both have more than enough time to talk when you'd wake up... it wasn't like he was going to ascend to Heaven the first thing in the morning... if simply disappearing into the air was how it worked... You imagined the sinner just rising into the air and you couldn't help but smirk a little bit... no that's not how it works... it couldn't be...
Unbeknownst to you, as you drifted off to sleep, the sinner was staring at you. The words he finally got to pull from his mouth were left unheard as the image of him hovering into the air faded from your mind's eye, sleep claiming you.

Chapter Text

When Jeff said he had a dog, this was not at all what you had in mind. Actually you weren't even sure that thing in front of you was a dog. It looked…

You pulled a smile across your lips as you looked up at your boyfriend who was kneeling on the ground by the creature. "Now I know he looks a little rough around the edges, but he was like..." He scratched between its ears. "Totally wicked," His smile grew wider. You forced your eyes onto the dog, it vaguely resembled one. Four legs, an ear, and a tail. A lot of the fur seemed to be missing, really only remaining on its back and head.
"And you've had him this entire time, like the entire time we were together and you never brought him up?" You decided to be brave and take a step closer to the creature. "He kind of does his own thing a lot of the time,"
"So like an outdoor dog?"
Jeff cackled, "You can say that!" he scratched the dog's head. "Ain't that right, man?"

Despite its appearance it did behave similarly to your standard dog; leaning into Jeff's hand as it was pet. "He's perfect you know, he can fend for himself and I'm like..." Jeff scrunched his face, "80% sure he's house trained-"
"If he isn't, you're going to be the one in charge of that," You mumbled. You dared yourself to bring your hand to the dog's fur.

It almost felt like silk, you were expecting it to feel rough or even matted. The fur itself was a deep pitch black, almost like it was made of pure shadow. It contrasted heavily with the raw looking flesh of its body. Your fingers spread, and you set your palm against its warm body. You bring yourself to pet it. It seemed to be loving the attention it was getting from the two of you.

"Where did you even find him?" You glanced at Jeff, who was letting his dog lick his face.
"By the side of the road a few years back.." He pulled his face away, "I think I was leaving someone's house, you know after totally slaughtering everyone inside- he actually seemed eager to tag along to the next house you know!" He attempted to wink at you, but it merely looked like his cheekbone rose.
"You've got to join in sometime, it's like... amazing stress relief.." He chuckled, but you scrunch your face in response. "I'm content with scrolling mindlessly,"
He shrugged, before turning his attention back to the animal. "More fun for us, huh bud?" He scratched the sides of the dog's neck, laughing again.

"What's his name, anyway?"
He paused, his hands coming to a stop and resting on the sides of the dog's neck; fingers intertwined in its fur. "I just call him Smiles... Smile, sometimes."
"So creative," You smirked, mind ejecting your boyfriend's offer from a moment ago. "It's what he seems to respond to, don't blame me- blame the mutt!" Jeff huffed.
You shook your head before walking towards the door.
"Where are you going?" He called after you.
"If he's going to stay here I'm going to need to get some things,"
You smiled softly to yourself as you heard Jeff quietly begin speaking to the dog, clearly excited that you were accepting this new member of the household.... Getting used to it was certainly going to take a while, but you couldn't bring yourself to break Jeff’s excitement.

Chapter Text

Knubbler stood behind you in the shower, not too far behind you. His hands worked through your scalp, his fingers massaging against your scalp. You couldn't help but lean into his hands as he worked the shampoo in.
Almost as if he could read your mind, he started talking. "You know, if you're this into my handiwork, I know just the thing to help you..." He paused, almost as if he was proud of himself, "Unwind," He added. You lightly scoffed, though you didn't totally shoot down what he was implying. "Not in the shower," You said firmly, although you kept your tone light due to him not being able to see the light smirk on your face. He let his fingers spread themselves out, before dragging them through your hair. You could just hear the grin in his voice as he leaned his head on your shoulder, reaching over you to grab his own preferred hair product, "We'll have to clean up again,"
You lightly swatted his arm as he grabbed what he wanted and retracted. "You're the one who brought it up," You muttered as you spun around and took the bottle away from him. His robotic eyes wide before shrinking back to their standard size. "I thought..." He started, "I'm going to wash your hair, don't even start" You shut him down. "I don't want one of us slipping and busting everywhere..." You muttered, squirting the shampoo into your own hand. "Let's switch places," You looked at him. He gave you a look, before doing as he was asked. He turned his back to you, and let you get to work.
You tried to focus on cleaning his hair, however you couldn't help but let your eyes wander across your boyfriend's back. He had an average build, a few marks here and there. Mostly moles, and the like.
This is how the rest of the shower went, a lot of it filled with back and forth with pauses of silence. Not that the time shared was unpleasant, in fact it was quite the opposite. Even with Dick's cheeky comments, you were both left feeling refreshed and relaxed. Something that was much needed after your respective work days.

Chapter Text

You hadn't been with Kinger for all that long, at least it didn't feel like it was that long. Time gets hard to keep track of in the circus, something that... admittedly puts you and some of the other members on edge. However, since you've taken Kinger up on being his partner, things like that seem to eat away at him just a little less... not by a lot but he noticeably seems more at ease when he's in your company.
Your company, at the moment, was ecstatically but carefully pushing a box towards you. It wasn't wrapped, but there was a piece of cloth loosely draped over it to hide whatever was inside.

He seemed excited, proud of himself. A lot of his sentences kept rerouting as he tried to communicate what was going on. From what you had gathered from his ramblings, he had found something while out on Caine's most recent adventure. One that you had decided to sit out on due to simply not feeling up to it... Kinger had almost stuck back with you however he didn't have much time to object as Caine sent everyone else on their way.
"It reminded me of you, actually.." He finally said as he folded his hands together and stared at you expectantly, waiting for you to open up the box that was pushed into your hands.

Your mind wandered for a second, trying to guess what it could be. Knowing Caine, the setting could have been anything. Knowing Kinger, you could only think of a few options... Pulling off the fabric, showing that the box had been decorated with various rocks and some fistfuls of dirt. Your eyes immediately focused on the fairly sized beetle. It's back shined in the light, not too different from stained glass candy... for a moment you wondered if the bug actually was made of sugar, the talk that you've heard about that day's adventure seemed to point to that being a real possibility.

"I thought you'd like it," Kinger started, fiddling with his hands. He didn't sound disappointed from your lack of response. "It's pretty..." You said as you lowered your hand into the box, letting the beetle crawl onto your hand. Now that the light could fully reach it's back, it looked more like the candy comparison you had made.
"That's why I picked it," Kinger instantly perked up. You could tell he wanted to talk more about the bug, or at least try to work with you to find out what it was.
You couldn't help but smile. Even if you weren't as big of a fan of bugs as the chess piece, you couldn't shake the thought that not only did he think the insect was beautiful... it had reminded him of you. On top of that, he wanted to work with you to study it... You began to feel bad for skipping out on the adventure, but you quickly shook the feeling away as you put the bug back into its box. The proposal of moving it into a proper container only seemed to send Kinger into a larger spark of pride and excitement.... You'd open the floodgates, but thankfully sleep wasn't mandatory in the digital world.

You'd let him talk for as long as he wanted.

Chapter Text

It'd always been clear to you that Sun was passionate about his role in the daycare, from how he interacted with the children up close and how he spoke about the day spent long after the daycare closed for the night. It was especially clear now, as he roped you into this act- playing house, with you as the other parent; and you wouldn't lie, the animatronic was good at acting.

The remaining children in the daycare wanted to play house while waiting for their parents to pick them up, and of course, the attendant was more than ready to go along with it, roping you into it with him. So eager in fact, that he had basically jumped up out of the plastic seat he had been hunched in when someone suggested the game... It was rather cute in the moment, but now you were beginning to wonder if he had been waiting for something like this for a while.
He was dedicated, he had even taped a paper tie to his chest to further get into his role, choosing to fill the role of a lovable and caring- albeit a little dumb- father you remember seeing in cartoons when you were a child yourself... he was eager to fill in the role, his rays spinning and clicking around his head before snapping back into place.
He did everything that was associated with a loving couple, everything just short of kissing of course. In place of it he would beeline for you after loudly announcing he had returned home, swinging open a door only he could see, pulling his face as close as he could to yours before making a loud and exaggerated "mwah!"

He only broke character when a parent arrived to pick up their children, seeing them off before skipping right back over to the mess of props you had all gathered and pretended to be furniture. He settles himself in front of you, across from the short plastic table as you both pretended to have a dinner together with the remaining children... at least a handful. It didn't matter that he couldn't eat, or that the food was just plastic balls and blocks. He still lightly clacked them against his false teeth, making it a point to praise you for your work... just as he had been doing since the game started, and before.
You watched him as he continued the act, hyping you up in front of the kids as they joined in. "Absolutely divine cooking, Dear," as he tapped the "food" against his face plate. He only derailed his praises to stop one of the kids from chewing on one of the blocks, gently muttering something about their teeth and taking it away. He turned his attention back to you, gently drumming his fingers along the edge of the table as his barely visible pupils darted between you and the children. You sneak a glance at the clock beyond the daycare's glass, seeing that your shift was almost over. The animatronic in front of you seemed to be aware of the time as well. You were about to open your mouth to speak, only to hear the doors of the daycare open as a small group of parents came to pick up the handful of remaining children.

Your eyes flicked to Sun, who had already pushed himself up from the table and discarded his paper tie, ushering the children to the cubbies they left their shoes and other belongings before taking them to their parents. You remained in your seat, busying yourself with gathering the various toys splayed out on the table. You knew your back was going to hate you tomorrow for sitting in the plastic stools for so long... but the thought filed itself away as you glanced up at the kids as they told their parents about their afternoon- all of their faces plastered with smile.
A chill ran itself through your body as Sun's head suddenly spun around to face you, his body still facing towards the parents as they exited. He took a few steps backwards towards you, before in one motion spinning his body towards you. Not once did his head shift, seemingly locked in place by his neck. The only thing that seemed to silence your nerves was the bounce in his step that built up as he drew closer.
As soon as he was in speaking distance he wasted no time diving into talking about how much fun the game was, telling you how good your acting was. "You did so well! They oughta reopen the theater, I'm sure they'd love you on the stage," He beamed. You, deciding to be polite, returned the favor and complimented him on his role as you tossed the plastic balls back to the pit. You'd miss how he wilted just a bit before bouncing right back and accepting your words.

You turned back to look at the attendant, offering a smile which earned a spin of his rays in response. The clicking of the mechanisms would be drowned out by the announcement of the Pizza Plex closing soon, signaling the end of your shift. You let the automated message play out before chucking the last of the toys in their place. "I guess that's my cue to leave," You turned back to the animatronic, vaguely taking note of his fixated gaze on the paper tie he had left on the plastic table.
"Maybe..." He began, before seeming to perk up, "We can play house again tomorrow," he suggested, rays clicking once to the left before snapping back to the right. You offered a slight smile, before dropping it. "I'm off tomorrow, actually," You mumbled.
Quiet, before a soft "Oh!", shuffling slightly to the side as you passed by. "Maybe the day after, or when you come back," He tried again. You offered another smile, before walking past him. You gave him one last look before exiting through the door. "I'd like that,"

Chapter Text

He was more than ashamed to have to ask for assistance on such a simple task, and yet the fact still remained: the former god of death did not know how to cook. At least, he didn't know how to cook anything that was edible. Asking his siblings, of which only a select few had been made to join the cult, was out of the question.
That's what led to you being approached by Narinder, a look of just barely concealed defeat on his face. The smell of burnt food followed him; and now, you were standing next to him guiding him through the recipe he had been given prior to the Lamb's departure.

"You have the fire too hot, you're going to scorch the meat," You shot a look to him over your shoulder as you prepared the vegetables. He shoots a look back with narrowed eyes. "I know what I'm doing," His voice grumbled. "Clearly not," You muttered back, though out of the corner of your eye you could see him readjusting the heat.
You shook your head to yourself, putting the veggies in a bowl to the side and joining Narinder at the grill. "See, that's a lot better... that's probably where you messed up last time," You said, gently... you'd made the same mistake dozens of times when you were first learning how to cook. Still, Narinder only offered a short huff as you passed the bowl to him. "These just need to sit on the grill for a second, they don't need much,"

The cat only offered a nod before placing them neatly onto the fire, as opposed to the messy tossing you had caught him doing before asking for your help. You gave him his space and got started on cooking the meat, placing it on the grill not too far away from the vegetables. You caught him glancing at you for a moment before turning his attention back to his current task. His fur had begun to rise on the back of his neck, and his movements tense.
"If you want, I can help you whenever... Cooking isn't the easiest, especially since there's so many of us," You offered, a half smile on your face. You didn't want to make him feel like you were taking pity on him, but you still wanted to offer him some help... you could only hope that he understood you as he stared intensely as you. God or follower, his eyes still remained just as intense as they had been when the lamb faced him.
His pupils reduced to slits, before his ear flicked. He didn't say anything as he started to pick the food off the grill to keep them to the side. You gently poked the meat on the grill. You had hoped that extending your kindness would put him at ease, or at least feel…

"Why do you stay in the cult, Narinder?" You let slip, instantly pulling your eyes down to the grill as he snapped his neck to look at you. You busied yourself with the meat, but the air became nearly suffocating with the new found tension. "I mean..." You began, trying to kill the silence. "Sure... you're not exactly treated badly, no one's been overly mean to you exactly- at least no one's tried to fight you," You mumbled.

But not many of the other followers extended any kindness to him, not more than what was an expected courtesy and even then, not all of them bothered to give the former god of death the time of day.
You brought your gaze back to Narinder, finding that his ears lay flattened on his head now- his face unreadable but you could still tell there was no kind thought swirling in his head.

"What further use is there of me?" He hissed under his breath, and that was that.

You turned over what he said in your mind for a moment. It was true, when you forced yourself to think like him. He was once respected and feared, now reduced to a simple follower. What would become of him if he left to go live on his own, without his power? You'd already seen glimpses through some of the passing ridicule you've caught from whispering followers and half hidden side glances.

"Well," You started, pulling the meat off of the grill and passing it off to the fallen god, allowing him to rearrange the food into neat portioned bowls.
"You know how to make food look good," You said, offering another half smile. "And how to cook now, you have that going on for you," You added. "That's two things."
He huffed once more, but it sounded less heavy than the previous. He hung his head, seemingly admitting defeat as he gave it a slight shake. "Not without you," He muttered, placing the bowls of food to the side and alerting everyone that the food was ready. He gave you one last look before the swarm came; for the first time since he had asked for your help, his eyes had softened.
"Thank you," He said, short and just barely above a whisper before he slinked away to consume his share in a secluded corner.

Chapter Text

Hands were always a big factor of your relationship with Zenyatta. To be guided and held, or to be warmed on a cold evening as you both stayed out to look at the night sky. Despite being made of cold metal, you had never felt more secure in your life.
You looked at the Omnic out of the corner of your eye, taking in the way his chest simulated breathing- rising up and down as he just barely hovered off of the ground. About an inch or two of space between him and the dirt, orbs lowly hanging stagnant in the air only occasionally breaking the silence as they chimed. You mimicked his pose, clasping your hands together in an attempt to protect them from the cold night air. You draw your attention back to the sky, focusing on the way the stars dipped in and out of sight behind the clouds.

"You're cold," He stated, nearly making you jump. You curled your hands closer to each other, shrugging. "It's not too bad, I just need to get used to it,"
He had turned to look at you, metal face just as unreadable as it always had been. "You'll get sick if you remain like this," His stated factually, but you caught the concern in his words. "Then I guess you'll just have to take care of me, if I do." You offered another shrug. Before you could say anything else you felt him tugging your arm gently. You hummed, leaning into him as he pulled you to rest in his lap. With some readjustment, your back eventually settled against his chest. Hands wrapped around your own, quickly warming them up after an initial chill. Fingers locked into yours, holding them in place. Though you didn't feel the desire to wriggle them free of his grasp.
"I would rather you remain in good health..." You could feel his fans and inner workings hum against you. "Besides..." He gave your hands a light squeeze, "You're rather difficult when you're ill."

You rolled your eyes, lightly thumping the back of your shoulder against his, earning a soft chuckle from your partner. "Well it's not my-" You began. "It'd be all your doing," He cut in, rubbing his thumb against your knuckles. You opened your mouth, before shutting it. He was right, and you had nothing to argue back with... not that this was a true disagreement. Instead, you chose to readjust yourself into a more comfortable position, leaning your head back to look at him. "I hate when you're right you know that right?" You teased. He pressed his faceplate against your forehead, turning his attention to the stars you had been staring at just a minute prior. You joined him, the remainder of the night being spent in silence in his lap.
"Hands were nice," You thought as his remained wrapped around your own. Never once letting go.

Chapter Text

What was originally a good idea was quickly turning out to be perhaps one of the worst. After students had been sneaking into the teachers lounge, for one reason or another, Hieronymus had decided it would be a brilliant idea to place some sort of spell on the door to keep them out...
And it was brilliant! Until it backfired, leaving the two of you trapped inside the room with seemingly no chance of getting out anytime soon as any attempt to open the door was fruitless. After another failed attempt, the older man leaned against the door and sighed deeply. He'd already notified an outsider of your shared predicament, leaving the outsider as your only really hope of getting out in a timely manner. He pulled his forehead off of the door, and turned to look at you and offered a pitiful smile and a mumbled apology. He shuffled to one of the seats and took it. You decided to do the same, sitting at the opposite side of the table. You lightly drummed your fingers along the edge of the table before glancing at him.

"For what it's worth, the spell did good to keep the students out," You tried to ease the awkwardness in the air. He offered a half hearted snort, turning to you. "To think I thought myself clever for it," He muttered, still clearly miffed about the situation. His expression softened as he fully turned to look at you, a faint smile pulling itself across his mouth. "Though, I appreciate the statement," He smoothed the sleeves of his robe and folded his hands on the table.

You stopped your drumming, and looked around the room. For all the times you were in here you never really took note of the things inside of it, not including the fridge and vending machine... and of course, the coffee pot that had always seemed to come in clutch during exam weeks. You rolled your eyes at the sight of a pinned note on a board hung up on the wall, you could barely make out the large words from where you sat but it seemed someone was stealing with a food thief. The final bell pulled you back to the present moment, and you wondered for a moment if you'd both be freed before the last of the staff made their way home. You wouldn't need to sleep here on the floor, would you? Your eyes darted to the door, it looked... sturdy, but you could probably blast through it with your magic if you tried hard enough.

Your eyes dart back to Bump, contemplating telling him the idea but you knew in the back of your mind he would shoot it down in an instant. "So did you have any plans this afternoon? ..I mean… before we got stuck," You asked as you lazily gestured your hand in the air before letting it fall. The entire action felt off and did nothing to ease the air. He took a moment before answering, "I just needed to go over some papers... then go home,"
"Makes sense,"
"What about you? I doubt getting stuck in a room was in your plans,"
You thought for a moment, similar to how he did. "I was thinking of just going home and laying down, honestly." You offered a shrug. He chuckled, "That sounds nice right about now, hopefully the-"

Suddenly the door began to rattle in its frame, almost as if someone was putting their entire weight into pushing and pulling it. Within seconds it went from simple rattling to nearly breaking- at least, you thought it was about so. When it seemed to hit its peak, it swung open and slammed against the wall before hanging loosely. On the other side stood another staff member, whether or not it was the same one Bump had spoken to earlier through the door you weren't sure.
"It's about time," Hieronymus spoke as he stood up, lightly clapping his hands together before locking his fingers together. You pushed yourself up out of the chair, ignoring the cracks in the wall the impact of the door left behind. Without wasting a second, you and Bump leave the room behind you and step out into the hallway... you pull the door shut behind you, hiding the cracks to be discovered the next day. You glanced to Bump, who catches your gaze. You both seemed to share a silent understanding, wordlessly agreeing to never cast spells on doors again to avoid something like this happening in the future. And with that, after a quick apology for the predicament, you part ways to go on with your original plans.

Chapter Text

Benedict was far from a morning person. Not that it was a surprise to anyone, much less you. However as you stood by the counter nursing a cup of coffee, watching as he shuffled in dressed in a robe, you had to suppress the thought that this was the same villain attempting to put out a child run revolt. Maybe it was the way he carried himself to make himself his own cup of coffee, or maybe it was the fact he hadn't brushed through his hair... or how he swayed slightly with each step as his body tried to grow accustomed to another day.

"Sleep well?" You said, instinctively. It had become your routine to ask how he slept every morning. He only offered an incoherent grumble as an answer, though he didn't sound angry or annoyed with you... rather, he sounded... well, tired.
It only took a moment for him to join you by the counter, while you rested your back against it he rested his elbows. "How do you always wake up so early and... easy.." He grunted as he rubbed his hand across his forehead. If he didn't insist on always hiding in his shadows, you'd imagine he would be staring at you with tired eyes. You shrugged, and looked at the time. The sun would just be coming up, you thought. You took a drink, and swished your coffee around in your mouth for a moment.
"I'm just lucky I guess," You teased, smiling gently. He groaned, letting his head hang above the counter. You gently rubbed his back, setting the mug in your free hand down on the counter. "You know, if you didn't work so hard trying to..." You paused and scraped your mind for examples of his antics.. "break into a base and turning it into a giant cake... you'd probably be less exhausted, be able to get out of bed easier.." You shrugged. He let out a low huff, "I have..." He started before trailing off. His head hung lower, the atmosphere seemed to get heavier... mildly uncomfortable, if you were being honest. "I need to," He added as he drummed his fingers on the counter. You already knew what that typically meant, he was beginning to try to come up with his next evil plan.
"I'll handle breakfast," You offered, and began doing the quick math. Seven people, if you hurried you'd be able to get breakfast done before it was time for the children to go to school. "You," You looked over your shoulder at him, "Go take a seat before you fall over and burn yourself," You said firmly, but sternly.

He lifted his head, before doing as he was told. You threw a look over your shoulder and watched him bring himself to the table.
You knew what you were getting into, dating one of the most feared villains in town... however you couldn't help but feel some level of pity after you had the displeasure of meeting the man who raised him. You shoved the thoughts down as you began to take out what was needed, busying yourself with cooking.

Chapter Text

Your finger pointed upwards towards the sky, connecting invisible lines with a lazy movement. Glowing stars blurred against the dark ceiling, colors varying from yellow to blue surrounding a white moon. The crescent engulfed your sight, before clicking once to the right. You drop your hand to the ground with a soft thud, staring at Moon as he leaned over you.
"Slacking off?" He tsked before crouching low to the ground, his joints softly clicking with the movement. You make a mental note to see if maintenance will take a look at the animatronic soon. Filing the thought away, you roll your eyes at the attendant. "Just resting, is that so wrong?"

Moon is silent for a moment, still- before his faceplate clicks once more, this time to the left. He tilted his head back to where you were previously staring. Your gaze followed his, your eyes squint to force the blurs of light to focus into fine shapes... but you had no such luck. Frowning, you pull yourself up into a sitting position. "It's nothing like the real thing... It's cute, but..." You muttered, fumbling for your phone in your pocket. In an instant you felt Moon's stare burning into you, fixated on the device in your hands.
"I'm not going to play games,"
Another click tells you he's readjusting his face plate for the third time. You vaguely wonder if there's something bothering him.. or if it's a personal quirk in him. You flip your phone around in your hands, not saying anything else. Neither did Moon, for a long moment.

"What do they look like?"

Your phone nearly slips out of your fingers and falls onto the mat you're sitting on. "Huh?"
"The stars outside," Moon finally sits down. He pulls his legs to settle criss cross, hands resting on his thin ankles. His blank eyes stared right into yours, awaiting an answer. "You... don't know what real stars look like?"
The animatronic remained silent, his stare only seeming to intensify. You pass your phone between both of your hands, thinking of how best to describe what a night sky looks like to someone who has never been outside. You chew on your lip as your eyes flick back to the ceiling of the daycare. "It's kind of like the ceiling... but the stars are a lot smaller, more..." You paused your fidgeting, "scattered? Like tiny specks against darkness... it's..."
You grip your phone before turning the screen on, lighting up your face as you punched in the passcode. Moon leaned forward, trying to see what you were doing. You opened your gallery, rifling through endless screenshots and videos before finding what you were looking for.
"Like this," You turned the phone screen over to face him. Moon made no move to grab the phone out of your hand... an action you were admittedly relieved over given that you did not want to explain some of the more... random... images you had saved.
The silence hung heavy between the two of you for a moment. You swipe to the next picture, showing him. "They're not the best pictures... I'd pull up some on the internet but wifi is a little shotty sometimes... I think my phone just sucks though," You muttered.

"You took these?"
You hummed, nodding slightly as you scroll to the next photo.
"Pretty..." He muttered, his faceplate tilted upwards just slightly to look at you. You nod gently, before pulling your phone back to yourself. You shut it off, tucking it back into your pocket.
"It is," You offered a smile as Moon continued to stare at you before he turned his faceplate straight up to stare at the ceiling. You pulled your body closer to his, and returned to your original activity of making false constellations in the lights above.
"Here is pretty, too," Moon said, sounding almost uncharacteristically soft. You hum in agreement, attention still fixated on the stars; left entirely unaware that Moon had shifted his attention to the space where you reside.

Chapter Text

Shamura's hands worked through your aching body from behind, pressing themselves against the tight muscles of your back. You bite back a grunt as four hands soothe your pain, their claws gliding across your skin without piercing it. Chin resting on your forearms, you stare straight forward into the wall as your partner stood out of your line of sight.
Their fangs clicked lightly before they spoke, "If you need assistance, I would be more than willing to accompany you in the future." They run a clawed finger over a bruise that was beginning to bloom over your skin. Craning your neck to look accomplished nothing, as they pressed their knuckles further into your body. Firm but gentle, calculated... For a former bishop of war, you had never thought that Shamura would be so skilled with their hands...

Actually, now that you thought about it…

Your thoughts were pulled back to them as their fingers trailed down your spine, forcing your hairs to stand on end. They pull a cover over your bare back, before stepping into your view. At least, the lower end of their torso was, everything else was cut out. A hand pressed itself on the top of your head, fingers splayed out- fully engulfing the top of your skull in their palm. Slowly, they rub circles into your skin, and even if you couldn't see their face you could feel the look they burned into your skin.
"The Lamb wants me to go out, not you." You pause, rolling your tongue in your mouth before continuing. "If they wanted you to join me they would say so," You added after a short pause. Their movements stopped, before resuming. They don't carry on the conversation, instead pulling their hand off of your head. They pull the rest of your coverings over your body, before finally kneeling to look you in the face.
A thoughtful expression rolled over your face as they remained silent. Whatever they had on their mind, they keep it to themselves- perhaps storing it away for later when they cross paths with the cult leader, before tugging you into a sitting position.
"In any case, you need to rest," They said lowly as they guided you to your sleeping quarters.

Chapter Text

Footsteps thundered against the walls of the dungeons you rushed through. Your sides screamed at you to stop running, but the glance you tossed over your shoulder kept your body in movement as heretics began to close in on you. Three of them, and only one of you. You gripped the dagger in your hand, knuckles turned white as you tried to devise a plan.
You'd been separated from your travel buddy, Kallamar, and he was nowhere in sight. Your eyes ached in their sockets as you kept pushing your body to keep moving forward. Vines and plant matter covered the walls, masking any landmarks you could have used to backtrack your way out of Darkwood. Maybe if you could double back and rush by your pursuers-

A hot searing pain rips itself through your shoulder as the blade of a heretic tears through your clothing and makes itself home in your flesh. You bite back a scream as you clutch your dagger, whipping around and shoving your own blade into whatever unwilling flesh it would sink into. Twisting and pulling with all your strength, you shove the heretic away and try to make a break for it. Eyes wildly darting for the end of the hall you had just run through, trying to find an opening between the remaining two figures in front of you. There was a small gap between one and the wall, if you could...

You stagger, the pain in your shoulder making itself known through your desperation. Your grip tightens on your dagger, now dripping blood.

With feet stumbling, breaking into an uneven run you attempt to tear yourself by your attackers. They'd seem to miss your glance to the gap. They seemed to stiffen as you broke out into your sprint. You could make this, if you could just keep moving-
You feel your feet get ripped off of the ground as you're scooped up by one of the heretics, before you're slammed against the cool damp wall of Darkwood. Thorns press into your skin through your clothing, not that you cared all that much as your weapon was ripped from your hand and thrown into the darkness. Legs failed you as they flailed in the air, only to do no damage to your captor. Their hand clenched tightly around your throat, seeming to disregard their own weapon as they held you tighter.
Your vision blurs and darkens around the edges, before closing in. You could feel your heart in your throat and behind your eyes, screaming for release. Your mind raced as you tried to think of something to free yourself. Instead, you were given flashes of your own life leading up to this moment.
You being taken into the cult, you being given work, meeting your friends... You dully wondered if Kallamar would find your body and bring you home so you could at least have a funeral. You wondered if he was even still alive. A weak sob manages to break your gasping, if only for a moment.

Just as quickly as the pressure was applied to your throat, it was relieved. Your body sunk to the ground, slumping into the cold floor. You could hear the sounds of struggles, after a near animalistic scream. Opening your eyes proved useless, and your hearing... although recovering, was still ringing in your head. But you could feel through your surroundings that something was happening. It didn't last long, whatever it was... perhaps a minute... maybe five. It was hard to tell, but by the time the chaos calmed itself you were able to open your eyes again.
You weren't given the chance to see the carnage around you, before a pair of cool hands pressed themselves to your hot face. Your vision was fully obscured by Kallamar, his dark eyes looking right into yours. His face was contorted into one of fear and worry, as he ran his hands over your cheeks before checking the rest of your head, then passing down to your neck and shoulders... You heard his breathing hitch when he found your stab wound. The pain had turned into a dull throb as you tried to will your body to move.
Slick hands lightly traced the red blotch left on your neck, hot skin against cold giving some level of comfort as the pain started to roll in waves. Swallowing nothing, you leaned your head to the side. Both of the heretics were left killed, tossed onto the ground by the one you had fought off.

"Don't look at them," Kallamar hissed lowly as he brought a hand back to your cheek and pulled your head back straight. His brows furrowed together, no doubt in thought as he tried to plan your next moves. The remains of his ears twitched, before relaxing. He brings his eyes back to meet yours, now appearing tired and guilty. He takes the hand that was on your neck away as well as the one on your face. He pushed himself up off of the floor, towering above you. Even in his smaller mortal body, he was still much taller than most. You couldn't bring yourself to crane your neck back to look him in the face.
"Where..." You began in a croak as your fingers spread and tried to scramble against the stone behind you. You had no luck pushing yourself to your feet, if anything you only began to lean forward. How long had you been running before you were caught?
From the upper field of your vision you caught Kallamar scrunching his face up before smoothing his features. "I was chased off by those... savages..." His voice dripped venom, his hands busying themselves with the fabric of his robes. Then his fingers released themselves. For the second time tonight he crouched towards the ground, and he picked you up. A second pair of arms made themselves known, taking hold of his weapons as the original set secured you against his chest.

Now that your head was against his chest, you could feel his heartbeat. It was just as wild as yours was when you were slammed against the wall. A palm presses itself against where his heart lay, as if willing it to steady itself. He glances down at you, hands holding you closer. He took a step towards the end of the hall, through the end you had entered from during your chase.
"The end of Darkwood is the other way," You muttered as your fingers curled into the fabric of his robes. Bright red, as was the norm for those who follow the red crown. You vaguely wondered if Kallamar detested wearing such a color.
You felt his response in his chest before it left his mouth. You caught sight of his ears straining, trying to hear you with what little function they had left. "We have all that the lamb has asked of us..." He sounded firm, with more certainty that he usually carries in his tones. "It would be a waste if we died and lost it all," He added after a moment. His eyes softened as they glanced down at you, locked onto the blood drying in flakes around your exposed skin. Your robes had gone stiff where it dried, shifting uncomfortably against your flesh... further irritating your wound. "I..." He began before pulling his eyes away. His heart still pounded against your palm, albeit it had calmed over the last few minutes.

His eyes seemed to hold guilt.
You loosened your grip on the fabric, and let your hand fall to join the other.
Kallamar insisted he keep carrying you in his arms long after your strength began to return. Insisting that carrying you didn't hinder him all that much... and that you were already both nearly out of Darkwood anyway. You could have sworn you heard him mumble something about not wanting to lose anything valuable.
Asides from that, the rest of the way to the flock was mostly spent in silence. You left to mentally prepare for the pain that will inevitably get worse before it gets better... and he, seemingly stuck in his own thoughts as his face contorted into one of stress and exhaustion.
You continued to stare up at him. His flesh seemed to glow in the dim lighting, spots of color seemed to dance in the light. You watched his gills subconsciously flex on his neck as he worked through whatever he was thinking about. His heartbeat had finally calmed itself, the steady beat luring you to sleep as your ear pressed against him.
As your body began to succumb to sleep, you took one last glance and looked up at the former bishop carrying you. He wasn't looking at you, but his body that was once kept tense relaxed with yours. A soft smile crept itself to your face as your thoughts blurred into nothingness. The last thing you felt was one of Kallamar's spare hands rub a soothing circle into the side of your head.

Chapter Text

The dull rumble of your car was drowned out by the near deafening noise of the radio, and the delighted shrieks and singing of your partner. Despite the fact that the excessive noise would usually leave you feeling stressed, you found yourself having fun.
You glance to Nina out of the corner of her eye as she leaned back in the passenger seat of your car. She had offered to drive, but you weren't sure she actually ever got her driver's license. The current song came to a close, only for an ad to come in. You saw Nina's face twist into one of annoyance just as you brought your eyes back to the road in front of you.
"Thirty minutes of no ads my ass," She hissed as she turned down the volume, before looking at you- her face now smoothed over. "Sooooooo," She lays back in the passenger seat as she keeps her eyes on you. You offer a hum as the car slows to a stop at a light. You swivel your head to look at them, as they fiddled with the phone you had given them.
"We're still a bit off, aren't we?" She pouted, propping her arm on the center console and tilted her face at you.
You were, you'd both been driving across the country to go to a concert... a decision you were slowly beginning to regret, wishing there was a faster way... but there was, actually.

With a nod you sigh, gently but still tired. You weren't actually mad at them.

"This is better than having to smuggle you onto a plane," Your face pulls itself into a smile. Nina giggles as the car is pulled into motion again. The ads are over, but the volume remains near muted. "You sure? I still think putting me in the suitcase was the way to go- I mean think about it, I could definitely fit!" Nina snorted, hands in the air before they fall to a rest on her thighs.
"It wouldn't work, they could check the case... and then what? Doesn't help you're kind of..." You pulled your mouth closed and try to find the words.
"A wanted criminal?" She teased. You could just feel the look she was giving you. Smug and not serious. How did you even come into contact with them in the first place?

You drum your fingers on the steering wheel, letting your breath slip between your teeth. "Yup."
"We still left too early, anyways, even at the rate we're going it'll be at least a day or two before the show... you know that right?" You hissed at the end as someone on the road cut you off. Almost as if it were instinct you began to roll Nina's window back up from your side.
"Wha-" She snapped her head to look at you.
"It's not worth yelling at them, besides you don't know what kind of crazies are on the road.." You chew the inside of your cheek, shooting her a warning look. She slums against the window and mumbles something that sounds like she's well aware.

You can't tell if she's being sincere or making a joke of herself.
Suddenly, Nina seemed to perk right back up. "We could make a few stops while we're on the way- I mean we're already on a road trip!"
In an instant she was swiping through her phone, pausing the music before it had the chance to play out into the next set of ads. "I'm sure there's something..." She stuck the tip of her tongue out as she squinted her eyes to focus on the texts.
"We could do that," You smiled. There had to be at least one thing on the road. Maybe a gift shop, or a museum.
"If there's nothing on the way there maybe we can drive around on the way back until we find something interesting," You offered. With that suggestion alone, you watched Nina smile brightly and try to keep her feet from kicking. "Oh we gotta get something to bring back home too!"
"We can do that,"
Again, out of the corner of her eye you watched her attempt to contain her excitement... followed by more typing, faster this time. She never bothered to mute the noises on her phone, with the speed she was going one would think she was getting into a heated discussion about her favorite media.
"But it's getting late, we need to find a place to sleep for the night first," You interrupted.
The typing stopped, before it started up slowly again.
"There's a hotel about fifteen minutes away,"
You nod, and let her guide you as the music begins once more.

Chapter Text

Plush arms wrapped around your middle, tugging you closer to the soft nightdress of Ragatha. You readjust your head on her chest to get a better look at her face; faint wrinkles of exhaustion concentrated around her eyes and brow slowly smooth themselves out as she rubs a circle in your back.

Today... had been hard. The adventure Caine had planned for everyone hit harder than they usually do, leaving nearly everyone wiped out by the end of it. You had wasted no time in dragging Ragatha to her room to go lay down, leaving before anyone could approach either of you. Your own hand reaches up to her cheek, rubbing circles into what was meant to mimic skin. It seemed Ragatha seemed the most worn down, compared to everyone else. You were tired, too, but while Ragatha melted right into her blankets as soon as her head hit her pillow; you were able to remain awake, filling the silence with mindless talk.
A single eye cracks itself open, just barely focusing on you as a smile tugs itself across Ragatha's face. "Sorry... did I fall asleep?" She mumbled, bringing one of her hands to rest on top of yours. "What were you saying," She added, trying to revive the conversation you were having before she succumbed to her exhaustion. Your thumb ceases its movement, now held in place by your partner's palm. It was neither cold nor warm, and carried a slight plush feel to it.
"I was just rambling, really," You bring your head down to lay against her chest, nuzzling into the bottom of her chin as she readjusted to keep her eye on you. You lace your fingers between hers, and bring the hands away from her face. They come to a rest on the bed next to you, remaining interlocked with one another. The hand that was still resting on your back flexed, relaxed, before sliding itself up your mind. Then back down, until Ragatha found a comfortable spot to keep her arm.

She finally pulls her head back to her pillow, now staring straight up at the ceiling. Her movements were slow and sluggish.
"It's late now, I think," You broke the silence. "I can stay here for the night if you want,"
Her hand twitched around yours for a moment.
"That would be nice.." She hummed, and you could feel it in her chest.
Lifting your head up one last time, you lift yourself up to press a quick kiss to her cheek before retreating back to your previous position- sleep making itself known in your own body. You practically felt yourself melting into her as if the act of lifting yourself up took all that you had left. Your eyes dragged themselves to your hands, still held together, before your eyelids grew too heavy for you to bare.

Chapter Text

Your fingers tapped against your glass, lips resting on the rim as your eyes looked at the various snacks and foods you had brought along with you for your outing with Jack. He was in the middle of speaking when you had noticed that he hadn't touched any of the food. Your lips purse and pull away from the glass, and you look at him.
"Are you not hungry?" You asked, frowning. You'd spent all morning preparing for the evening that you couldn't help but feel just a little hurt that he seemed so disinterested in the spread in front of him. Your glass is set on a coaster with a soft clink.
He stopped talking and slowly turned his masked face to you. Deep pits of black gave nothing away as he took a moment to think over what to say. "I thought you already knew, I can't eat," He said. "I've seen you eat before though?"

You pick up a strawberry and roll it between your fingers, picking off the leaves. His face tracked the fruit as he spoke again. "Not food,"
Pausing, you let the berry roll into your palm and close your finger around it.
He shrugged, as if the revelation should have been obvious. "You haven't noticed?" A pause before he continued when you didn't respond. "It makes me sick, at best it just... falls out of my mouth, can't bring myself to swallow it." He lowered his head and scanned his gaze across the spread of food in front of him. "Or I throw it up when I can force it down... honestly I don't care all that much anymore," He pulls his head to stare.

Anymore?

Your nail pierces into the strawberry and twisted into the flesh of it. "So you could eat just fine before, right?" You asked before you could stop yourself. You hear him shift as he leaned away from you and propped a hand behind him. He seemed... tired... You could hear the breath he takes as he tried to find the easiest way to explain it.
"I could, I didn't always need to eat..." He began, he didn't need to finish for you- you already knew exactly what he was referring to. "I think my biggest regret is not trying more food when I still had the chance,"
You frown.
"Well... have you tried strawberries before?" You asked as the berry finds itself back between your thumb and finger. He snaps his head back up at you and you can feel his gaze burning into you. You begin to feel worried when he takes a few seconds to speak, until he breaks the silence finally.
"No, actually. My family didn't buy much produce growing up unless we needed it for something specific... and when I was older trying them just didn't cross my mind..." He crossed his legs and finally pulled himself closer to you again. Hands rested on his ankles and scrunched into his jeans. "Flavored shit doesn't count," He added.

Your eyes dart to the fruit and to him.
Offering it to him would feel like a slap to the face, you think.
You pop it into your mouth without much of a second thought.
"It's sweet," You said through the bite.
"I would assume it is, most fruit tends to be that way,"
"It's also a little sour. Not entirely so but it's definitely there in the background,"
The holes of his mask stare into you for a long pause, the gears seem to shift in his head before everything clicks together. Jack gives you a half chuckle, it was more like a huff of air as he lowered his head shaking it. "You don't need to do this, you know. I don't mind you eating in front of me, it doesn't bother me,"
"This doesn't bother me, either."
You look around the options.
"Have you tried honeydew?" You ask as you pierce a piece with one of the forks you've brought along- though the point now seems moot now that you know you'll be the only one eating.
He stares at the chunk as you bring it to his face. You hear him sniff, before pushing the fruit back towards you.
"I've never seen this in my life,"
"You've never seen a honeydew before?" You ask nearly offended. He merely shakes his head no. You give a scoff, a lighthearted one, before shaking your own head. "You really did miss out," You teased before crunching into the chunk. Jack didn't respond back, only waiting for you to describe the taste to him.
You turn the piece in your mouth and think it over. It tasted like....

Chapter Text

When you and Jax were left to wait in a line while everyone else scrambled about to finish different tasks to complete the adventure, you didn't think it would be this bad. The landscape was like a winter wonderland, with various themed quests that needed to be done before the adventure could be completed. You and Jax got stuck with picking up some NPCs order in a shop. You could hardly call it an adventure.
"This bad" being a kind way to put it, as you were being pushed to your very wits end by the rabbit. The second you were both made to sit for this section of the adventure, he's been nothing but a pain... The way you were stuck with him vaguely felt like when a teacher would pair you with one of the rowdy kids. "To rub off on them and make them calm down"... you just wanted the line to pass so you could grab what you were looking for.

Jax wasn't exactly rowdy... but he knew how to get under your skin if it meant entertaining himself for the time being. He could just wander off and leave. There's nothing stopping him. Even if there was, he would still try... but he seems to take pleasure in resting his arms on the top of your head and talking, the movement of his words rocking you slightly as he swayed on his toes- putting a good chunk of his weight on you as he leaned down on top of you. Or saying anything he can to get any sort of reaction out of you- or better yet, get some information out of you that he could use later to push you to get something he wants down the line.
Your hands clench, before releasing. Then clenched again, and release. You did this a few more times as Jax verbally complained about how slow the line was moving as you both inched forward.
You had only been here for ten minutes but you were already nearing your wits end. Was this your personal hell? Was this a punishment for something you had done before arriving in the circus?
You work your teeth together and focus your eyes intensely into the back of an NPCs head. Another exits the line, moving you forward. Jax finally stops leaning on you and pushes himself to his full height behind you. You don't remove your eyes from the NPC, nearly fully tuning out Jax as he proclaimed his boredom.
If it weren't for him beginning to tap his foot on the ground, you could have; but between the previous show and the overwhelming feeling of just wanting to get this over with your patience finally gives.

"Why not just cut to the front? I'm shocked you haven't done that sooner," You hiss. He pauses, black eyes darting to you as his grin stretches wide.
The way his eyes squinted, you knew. He'd thought about it. He'd already decided he was going to do it before even getting in line with you.
He just wanted to see how long it would be until desperation pushed you to make a suggestion.
"Now why didn't I think of that!"
Fucker.

Without another word, he slaps his arm into the NPC and shoves them to the side with a swift motion. Then the next, and the next. Before long it was just the two of you in line. You take a sharp breath, relieved that it was finally coming to a close. You drag your feet across the tiled floor until you're about a foot behind Jax.
He snaps his fingers in the face of the NPC behind the counter, and your distaste for him drives deeper. Wordlessly, as if something had gone bugging with the coding thanks to Jax changing how things were meant to be, they put what you needed onto the counter.
A snow globe. Not anything to be crazy about, just a simple globe with a cabin and some trees inside. You only dully note that the "Santa" inside it was a mini Caine dressed up. Your mouth twists. Jax doesn't seem all that thrilled either. But he still takes it, rather carelessly. He passes it between his hands as if it were a ball, before walking off. You stand there alone before he calls for you over his shoulder, though it's clear he's not all that invested on if you decide to come with him or not.

You suck a breath between your teeth.
All of that torment, for a glass ball filled with water and glitter.
Your fists clench, before you spin around and sulk after Jax.

Chapter Text

If Death’s Disciple was anything, they were competitive. Truly, you felt as though you were fighting for your life as the pillow swung into your shoulder, temporarily knocking you off balance.
“Hey-” Is all you can get out as you regain your footing and shoot a soft glare at the black cat in front of you. A grin is pulled across his face as he pulls the sack back and prepares for another hit. You take this moment to fight back, slamming the pillow into his side. Aym stumbles backwards, until he’s fallen off of the bed.

He hits the ground with a thump, feet in the air and hung over the edge of the mattress. You peak over the edge, his wide eyes meeting yours in a shocked expression.
Then, his face is pulled into a smile.
He throws his pillow at your face.
“Aym-!” You grunt as he crawls back onto the bed, chuckling as he grabs your dropped pillow and begins assaulting you with it.
“You only got lucky-” He huffed between swats… he could’ve hit you harder, but he kept the blows controlled. Your hands scramble to pull the pillow off of your face, quickly using it to block the cat’s attacks.

You aim the pillow at him and chuck it… you completely miss, knocked off balance by Aym. It flew right over his head and gave a pathetic slide as it found itself on the ground. You both stare at each other for a second… at least two. In an instant you scramble off of the bed, pushing him to the side in an attempt to retrieve your weapon. He hits you in the back with his pillow, forcing you to the ground. He gives a pause for you to catch your breath before he’s back on the attack.

You’re literally crawling across the floor to get the pillow back, and he’s behind you swatting you from behind.
“Mercy-!” You cry between a tight smile. You tug yourself a few inches towards the pillow. Another swat.
“Please-” You beg after he ceases for a moment.

You chance a glance over your shoulder as he stares down at you.
“So you surrender?” He asks, eyes intense. You nod meekly. “Please, I’ll do anything,”

He takes a moment to ponder, before that grin comes back.

“My God never practiced mercy, and I won’t start now!” He nearly howls in laughter as he brings the pillow over his head and swings it at you.
Except, the impact never happens.

Instead, the sheer force he put into the swing was enough to push the loose stitches of the pillow over the edge- the feathers and cotton inside are sent flying everywhere.

You both go still and stare at each other for a long moment as the feathers slowly make their way to the floor. You’re both absolutely covered in them.
Aym’s eyes are wide, grin twitching quietly as he colds the now empty pillow. You’re still laying prone on the ground.
A feather lands on his nose and he huffs it away without a second thought.

That’s all it takes for the laughter to start.

You roll onto your back and stare up at the ceiling. You shuffle the feathers off of you as they settle on your face.
“Oooo no mercy because my God doesn’t practice that-” You tease, hardly able to get the words out between chuckles. Aym tosses the pillow casing at your face, which only seems to make you laugh even harder.

But he’s laughing, too.

“Oh shut it,” He takes a step off of the bed and slips on the mess on the floor. You choke as his arms shoot out to regain his balance. The case slips off your face as you pull yourself into a sitting position, gathering some of the stuffing in your fingers. You try to toss them at him, but they go nowhere. Far too light to go anywhere far, much less in the direction you want them in.

Aym finally succumbs to gravity and uses the bed to ease his fall to the ground. He shoots you a look, before scanning his eyes across the mess around the two of you. You can see his eyes dart from the loose casing that he threw, and to the pillow you were trying to crawl to. His eyes widen, before-

“Wait that was my pillow-”

Chapter Text

"Did you raid my house?" You asked out loud as you looked through the chests in your house. They were all empty, picked through clean. Not a single item was left. You'd be less annoyed if some dirt or cobblestone were left behind, but Ben was thorough. A static cackle pulls itself from your computer speakers.
You don't respond. This was one of the more tame things he's done in the world, at least it didn't destroy anything. You were wise to start a new world instead of opening one of your older ones, you were sure if you had your work would be left in ruins. You were tempted to join a server with him to play games...

What all would he have been capable of there?

In a single player world he's already proven to be able to build anything he wanted- and destroy anything. Large craters and random block placements from him trying to spawn and contain something, or to try to bug you as you tried to run away.
You've sworn off playing alone with him when it's dark due to him playing a well placed noise while you were focused on exploring a cave. Something Ben still holds over your head, and pouts over when you refuse to play with him in the middle of the night.
A finger taps on the keyboard as you think over your options, you could go mine for the materials again if Ben doesn't give them back. Which he probably won't, he may have full access to the creative menu- something you had tried to prevent so the both of you could work together in survival, but trying to prevent a ghost hacking your game was virtually impossible.
You couldn't kick him, either, the game didn't register him as a second player. He was simply there.

Leaning back in your chair you look up at the ceiling.
"You make playing games with you difficult, man... you know that, right?" You glance at the screen as it flickers. The graphics warp and glitch, before flickering into a solid color as a pair of hands reach forward. They feel blindly in the air in front of you, before coming down to the edge of the desk and settling, soon a head peers out.
Ben doesn't pull himself entirely out of your computer, instead remaining in the current position he was in. One that did not look at all comfortable.
Static and crackling filled the air as he remained, his eyes narrowed.
Not angry, more so annoyed.
"It's not my fault you're boring, it's a sandbox game- you can do anything and you just follow building tutorials and mine," He frowns, sticking out his tongue at you.
"It's a sandbox game meaning I'm allowed to do whatever I want," You shoot back. He hisses in response.
"We can try to find something that's more your taste, there's got to be something..." You tap your foot on the ground. You'd have to wait until he retreats back into the computer or exits it. Assuming he would let you run it properly if he returns into it.
"Minecraft's nice, maybe you could put in some mods? Like the ones the people you watch have,"
You ponder for a moment.
"Like the horror ones?"
"Yeah like the horror ones, those ones!" He grins, fingers curling tighter around your desk.
You purse your lips, and stare at him. "Only if you play survival with me, no cheating. It's not fun if I'm the only one getting chased."
"For you, but I think it's funny."
You glare at him, and reach for your mouse. "Whatever... can you move out of the way so I can look for a couple to install?"
He nods, before backing into the screen. Suddenly, he pauses and looks at you intensely, red pupils staring right into your own eyes.
"Don't add too many dweller mods, I can't stand most of those." He hisses.

You nod, knowing full well that he would take control of the computer if he saw you installing a mod he didn't like the looks of... You make a vague mental note to get a better protections on your computer, Ben clicks on just about anything that catches his eye.
He finally fully returns to the screen, leaving you in silence in a now empty world. The sound of your player picking up multiple stacks of items at the same time makes you jolt.
Ben had given you back your things.

Chapter Text

Notes being left around the entity were nothing new. In fact it would be the same pages that drew you to it in the first place. Stories of a monster in the woods who takes those who dare step through the tree line. Those who are seen again are often left gutted and rotted, strung up in the tree branches as a warning to keep the curious away.

Everyone who went into the woods never came back alive.

Except of course, for you. The only one who was able to not only escape but to make company out of the monster. It had followed you home. "Slenderman," they all called it, and you found yourself referring to it by the same name. It never once corrected you on what it was truly called, if it had a title. It hardly ever spoke, actually, and when it did it felt like the voice was coming from inside your head somewhere behind your eyes.
Blinking the sleep out of your eyes you stumbled into the kitchen, dragging your hands slowly over your face as you tried to down the thickness that settled in the back of your throat overnight. A hand wraps around the handle of the fridge, grip tightening for a brief moment as your eyes focus on a paper left on it- hung up by one of the many magnets that decorated the appliance.
Despite the tone of the notes shifting from threatening to something warmer, the hand writing remained the same. Wobbly, as if the hand holding it couldn't get a firm grasp on the pen. A hand far too large to hold it, with fingers not used to forming the letters. But still readable.
You screwed your eyes shut, before opening them with clearer vision.

It only called you by your name, something you don't recall telling it as you stare at it on the paper.
"You look peaceful when you sleep,"
That was all it said, the monster was never much for words. It's called you beautiful, it's made references to some things you've done during the day while you were away from home, it's picked up on small things you do out of habit. If it had been left by anyone else you would have wasted no time calling someone, but you had already grown quite close to the entity you've invited into your life.
Or was it the other way around?
You stare at the note, eyes laser focused on your name once more. It seemed to be written neater than the other words, as if Slenderman had focused harder to form it.
As your face relaxed, you pulled the sheet from the fridge and moved it to the counter; making a mental note to store it with the others it had left behind. Spinning on your heel, you find that you were still standing alone in the kitchen.

Perhaps...
You finally grab some juice.
You decide you would take a stroll in the woods later, you feel a little bad for leaving the note writing to just your partner.

Chapter Text

Even if you weren't cursing under your breath and stumbling over your feet, Clauneck would already know of your arrival. He always did, never once looking up at you until you break the silence. This time is no different as you grip tightly on the bottle in your hand.
Today was so...

You lean against a tree and stared intensely at the duck as he rifled through his stack of cards. The very same cards that always seem to tell him exactly what's going to happen, always with little failure. With a huff you stagger towards him and settle yourself in front of him.
Your chest tightened as you brought yourself closer, face flushing a deeper shade of red. It was so... foolish... You bite back the feeling of your throat tensing, forcing down the words that wanted to slip through your teeth.
"You really like those don't you?" You slurred as the bottle came to a rest on the ground next to you. His clawed hands didn't stop moving, and he merely bobbed his head slightly. He finally brings his face up to look at you, red lined eyes seeming to look right through you.
He placed the stack of cards down, your eyes flicked to them. You couldn't quite explain why, but you felt a spark sink in your gut. Perhaps it was the alcohol, or it was your shit luck that followed you all day fully sinking in and souring you.

The clearing smelled of incense, your drunken brain too muddled to pinpoint the scents... floral, but what exactly is it?
His mouth began to part to speak but you beat him to it.

"You already know why I'm here, don't you?" You spat out, far too harshly than you intended. You didn't know why you were here yourself, letting the scent of Clauneck's incense guide you towards him as it always had. Snapping your teeth shut, you hiss. Your mouth unlocks and tries to spit something else out, only for no comprehensible noise to come out.
He watches as you growl to yourself and take another gulp of your drink. His demeanor remained the same, waiting patiently for you to finish nearly gagging on the alcohol.
"Fate has brought you here tonight," He started, and you dig the base of the bottle into the dirt.
You grit your teeth and stare at him for a long moment. He stares right back at you.
"Yeah yeah fate," You crawl towards him, using your hands to pull yourself onto the rug he had set on the grass. You bunch it up a bit as your knees push you forward. "I bet you already knew I was going to come tonight, huh?"
"I did,"
Your eyes flick down to the cards, still neatly stacked to the side. He didn't put them out in front of him as he usually does; to wait for someone to draw them, or to simply have them be.
Those same cards that tell him fates and destinies, as you are led to believe.

You fall back and sit, folding your legs under you.
"And-" You hiccup and blindly fumble for your drink- which you had left behind in your previous place, tipping it over and wasting it in the grass when you started to crawl. You bunch the rug in your fist instead to steady your thoughts. "And you already know why I'm here, don't you? Do you take me-" Another hiccup, "for a fool?"
A long pause before he breaks the silence.
"I do not take you for a fool, that is a title you have bestowed upon yourself."
You narrow your eyes but he continues anyway.
"You have come to lend me your heart, with the belief that I would give mine in return."
"Not lend." You hissed, "I'm in love with you, you know?"
"That is what I had said."
Another long pause as the two of you look at one another. If Clauneck hadn't angled his face downward, the end of his beak may press into your face.
You're the first one to look away, readjusting yourself where you sat. You swayed slightly, overindulgence making itself known as you kept your eyes glued to the ground.
"So why didn't you say anything sooner if you knew? Do you not feel the same? Way to lead someone on," You mumbled.
"I never said I wouldn't accept you,"
You snap your head up fast enough to blur your vision. His gaze seemed to soften, hardly noticeable to anyone who didn't know the duck well enough.
"I chose to stay silent to grant you the choice to take a step forward towards your destiny. No matter the time, the outcome is always the same."

He knew this entire time, and waited until you were ready.
Your mouth screws up into a tight line as you tried to bring yourself closer to him. He rests a large hand on your shoulder and steadies you, pulling him into the tent behind him. Your head makes contact with a pillow.
"We will speak again, when your mind has returned to you." He said, in a tone that told you that there was going to be no arguing. You roll onto your back and stare at him- merely an outline, the campfire outside being enough to just barely highlight him against the darkness inside the tent. He sat on his haunches, still towering over you.
You let yourself sink into the bedding in his tent.
Had you ever seen him sleep? Much less relax?
You rub the fabrics of a quilt between your fingers, accepting defeat. "Fine.. just.." You mumbled. It was cozy inside, contrasting with the cool breezes of Anura's forests.
Satisfied with your defeat, Clauneck moved backwards and positioned himself to the entrance of the tent. The last thing you see before you let sleep take you is the silhouette of Clauneck as he laid out his cards on the rug.

Chapter Text

Feathers brushed up against your skin as a cold hand gently shakes you awake, the second being used to prop the angel up into a sitting position as she gently called for you. Her wing pulled itself off of you, having previously been used as a blanket for you in the night... it was how she noticed your tossing and turning so soon.
Your vision blurred as the light of Emily's halo reached your eyes. Your gaze remained fixed on her as uneven breathing hissed through clenched teeth. You pull yourself into a sitting position next to her as she fully retracts her wing and folds it behind her. Emily is sitting up too, now, frowning as she tried to find the best words to say.

You were having a nightmare, that much was obvious.
The details were already slipping from you.
You drag your hands over your face and groan, before looking at Emily. "I didn't wake you up, did I?"
"Of course not, I couldn't fall asleep," She said, clearly lying. Her eyes looked as groggy as yours probably did. She gave a smile, clasping her hands together and resting them in front of her. "It sounded like you were having a bad nightmare,"
You blink, staring at her. Her smile falters for a moment, but remained glued on her face. You turn away and look at the clock on your side of the bed, yellow and blue light blurring before sharpening into distinct shapes. It was a couple hours before dawn.
Too early to get up and start getting ready for the day, but you were now too awake to fall back to sleep. You felt the bed shift behind you as Emily looked over your shoulder to the time. Her chin rested on your shoulder, wings unfurling to rest at your sides. You could feel her throat shift as she prepared to speak before stopping herself.
"Do you want to talk about it?" She asked. "You don't have to if you don't want to, I totally understand if you don't!"
"I already forgot what it was about, there isn't much to talk about..." You frowned and leaned into her chest. Her wings closed in on you, just a bit. Not enough to engulf you, but you felt secure. An arm wraps around your waist, and the hand of the other comes to a rest on your head. She tugs you to the middle of the bed and lays you both down. Her body felt cold against yours, the rare beat of her heart making you hyper aware of it's presence.
"I can see if I can find something to help," She offered.
"It's just one nightmare, I don't get them often... these things happen," You started and you felt her physically deflate next to you. You clench and unclench your jaw. Her fingers tangle into your hair as she works circles into your scalp.
"I know! I know, but... I don't want you missing sleep, and if we can prevent it, then you don't need to worry," She turned her head to face you. Her smile remained, although dimmed by her exhaustion.

You on the other hand, were wide awake. You had woken her up, a new pang of guilt made your expression falter. You force the smile back on your face and move onto your side. Her wing finds itself over you again. The feathers felt soft against you, their coolness bringing relief to your warmed body which was still shaken from your dream.
"I'll go see if I can find something, maybe some candles or a new blankets... see if that helps."
Her smile widens, and you feel her heartbeat speed up just a bit, hardly noticeable if you hadn't gotten used to the previous rhythm.
"You don't need to worry about it, I know you've already got work that needs to be done... with Lucifer's daughter coming up soon."
Her mouth wavers as she keeps back another yawn. "If you need help picking a nice scent... I can help," She muttered, sleep already threatening to claim her once more. You only nod to her, pulling her closer. She rests her head in the crook of your neck, feather like hair tickling against your chin. Her halo shifts to make the position comfortable, the light dimming as she allowed herself to drift off back to sleep.
You run a hand through her hair and let your palm rest where her wings begin, eyes locked over her shoulder as you allowed her to fall back to sleep. You made a mental note to pick up something lavender scented, and perhaps an extra blanket to bite back the chill of Emily's body.
For now, you let your body slacken and sink into the bed. Perhaps you were now too determined, sleep evading you for the small remainder of the night... You pretended to just barely wake up with Emily to keep her from worrying over you.

Chapter Text

His foot slammed down to the dirt, smashing the pumpkin in it's way and covering everything around him in juice and guts. He looked over his shoulder, and despite his lower face being covered you can see his eyes squint as a smile creeps across his cheeks. You only roll your eyes, before taking a few steps to get a closer look at the mess Toby made.
"You know we're here to find a pumpkin, right? To take home?" You lightly sock him in the arm, "That one looked good, too,"
He tugged his foot out of the remains and shook the seeds off of his jeans. "Nah, it looked weird," as he placed his now damp foot on the ground with a soft squelch. "Not sturdy enough either," He added as he winked at you, before wandering to the next pumpkin. "Because you sent your foot through it."
He shrugged, tapping the edge of his shoe against another pumpkin. One, then two taps before drawing his foot back. "Sounds nice," He glanced over his shoulder once more and waited for you to come to his side.
The pumpkin was in decent shape, though in the darkness it was hard to tell for sure... Not too small, though. You purse your lips together, chewing on the side of your cheek as you thought. "You're going to help me carve it, right?"

Toby paused, tapping his foot against the surface of the pumpkin.
"If you mean tearing the insides out," He began as he started to roll the pumpkin in the grass. "Then yes," his face turned to yours, his grin obvious as the covering shifted. He crouched down and scooped the pumpkin into his arms, huffing as he rose up. "Oh yeah..." He hissed, "This one's definitely gonna have a ton of guts."
"Is that a good thing or a bad thing?"
Another pause, gloved hands patting the side of the gourd. "Good, I like pulling the guts out actually,"
"Weirdo..." You teased, resting a hand on the top of the pumpkin.
You both turn to the exit- actually, you turned to the fence the two of you jumped in order to enter. "Are you-"
Light floods over the two of you followed by an angry shout, instantly cutting off your words. Your head snapped to the source, only to find your eyes blurring against the flashlight aimed towards you both.

"You told me no one would be here-" You hissed to Toby, only to feel his grip wrap around your upper arm and tug you backwards into the darkness. You hiss lowly in surprise and pain as your legs kick up into a run. Before long the two of you made it to the fence. A soft thud tells you Toby put the pumpkin down, and his grasp on your arm released for just a moment- now readjusting to push you up over the obstacle.
"Toby-" You hiss as he practically throws you over the fence, your knees slamming into the ground on the other side.
"Catch-" He half-yelled as he tossed something into the air. Your heart sunk as your eyes snapped up to the space above you.

He threw the pumpkin over the fence.

"TOBY-" You nearly screamed as you scrambled wildly, arms wide but your legs pushing you backwards out of the way. The pumpkin lands into your chest, knocking the wind out of your lungs and pushing you back onto the ground. It didn't seem to break, at least you didn't think it did. You lay on the ground trying to regain your breath, before long you felt Toby tugging on you again to get you back on your feet. The shouts of.. whoever.. was pursuing you finally reached your ears as you recovered.
"Come on!" He hissed as he took the pumpkin and looped an arm over you. The fence rattled behind you as light basked over you. You both ran- well, more so Toby dragged you across the ground until you were far away enough.
"You didn't break anything right?" He asked between low gasps as he spun the pumpkin in his hands.
"Are you asking me or the gourd?" You huff as your hand pressed against your chest... it was sure to bruise by the morning. You shoot a glare at Toby, who paused. Eyes darted between you and the pumpkin.
"You of course," He said after a moment.
You let your head hang limp, thinking over your choices that night. Your heart finally calmed itself, your pulse just barely lingering behind your eyes and in your throat.
"Next time..." You muttered as you grabbed the strings of his hoodie and tugged him towards the direction of your home. "We're just going to get a plastic jack-o-lantern,"
"Of course, of course," He mumbled, letting you pull him along the sidewalk. "You... you really didn't break anything, right?" He asked after a long pause.
You turned to look at him, eyes softening as he cradled the pumpkin.
Your tongue writhes in your mouth as you turned the question over in your head. "No, just had the wind knocked out of me,"
He seemed to perk up at this pace, speeding up to better keep up with you. "Well that's a relief, but are you sure you don't need help breathing?"
You snap your head back to glare at him, only met with his mouth covering pulled down- finally showing you his grin unhindered.
You paused, before silently turning your gaze back forward.
"I'll survive." You fight your mouth to remain straight.
"Are you sure?" He pushed, you could feel him staring into the back of your head.
"Yes, now hush... I don't want to wake up the neighbors,"
As if you were talking loud enough to draw any attention to you.

Chapter Text

Things were only getting harder after each addition to the cult, and as dissension grows the Lamb finds themselves getting stretched thinner. Always sent away to retrieve something- or someone- from the world outside the flock.
They were dead tired, despite what they told you; but you could see the drag in their hooves and the way their eyes squinted when a cultist flagged them down for their attention.
So when you noticed the kitchens running low on fish you jumped at the chance to steal the leader away for some much needed time away from the cult. Hence why you are now both standing at the shore of Pilgrim's Passage.
You lower yourself onto the sand and dangle your feet off of the sudden drop, and watched the waves under you. It wasn't still, but they weren't slamming into the rock and dirt. You watch at the red crown shifted into the form of a rod and casts itself into the water.
"You don't need to do that, you can buy from..." You eye darts to the figure a few meters away. "You know, the fisherman." Your mouth tightened a bit as you peeled your eyes away and looked to your leader. "We've more than enough coin to cover it,"
Lambert's mouth worked itself before they looked back down at you, curling it into a faint smile. "I know, but fishing is nicer. It let's me turn my brain off for a while!"

That was true. They would be gone for far longer than one would expect when coming down to the coast.
"You don't have to be here, truth be told I was hoping you'd stay behind and keep an eye on everyone..."
You shrug, fingers sinking deeper into the warm sand. Your fins stretched as you smiled at them. "Julty can handle it on their own! Besides, who would keep you company and make sure you don't spend the entire weekend here? You know they don't like the water, anyways."
Julty, the yellow cat turned from hard working farmer to devoted disciple.
Lambert says something you can't quite hear, shifting to sit down next to you. Their hands grip the fishing rod, fingers tapping on the reel. "There's still so much work to be done,"

They look so tired, but not defeated.
"The flock is growing and there needs to be precautions set, with the bishops... I'm surprised Leshy hasn't burned anything down yet, but we're struggling to keep up with Heket's appetite." They mumble the last part to themselves.
"Why not kill them?" You want to say, but the words don't dare sneak past your lips. If Lambert wanted the bishops dead, they would have made it so already- they'd never think to bring them to the flock. There has to be a reason they've brought them here, even if temporarily.
You shift your jaw, and you lean forward over the edge of the drop as the Lamb begins talking to themselves again.
"And if the flock finds out the bishops are here, the dissention could- HEY-" They scramble to grab at you before you can fall into the water but they're not fast enough.

In an instant you're under the waves, the water warm against your scaled body. Your head breaks the surface as you smile up at your leader, who was about to jump to follow you... You file that away for later. "Why-" They began before you shot a stream of water through your mouth at them.
They splutter and glare down at you, although they don't seem to be all that angry. You duck under the water as the red crown morphs into something- what form it takes you don't know, as everything fades into darkness as you lower yourself into the water.

The hook of the fishing rod breaks the surface above you.
You stare at it, before a grin breaks across your face. You hook a finger around it and give it a tug. Lambert tugs back, not enough to tear you out of the water or bring you closer to the shore- but enough to raise you closer to the water's surface. You swim upwards, clinging onto the line.
"Oh dear it appears I've been caught!" You cry out into the air as you let the line pull you.
"Yup," The Lamb pulls you even closer, face still dripping with water. "I've never caught a talking fish before... real big one too, maybe we can use this one for a feast!"
You tug away from the line, grin evident on your face as you watch your leader grip the rod tighter in their hands. "No! I wouldn't taste good-" You give another tug.
"Or maybe we could indulge and eat this one live and strung up-" They grin back at you.
You give another tug, this one a little too rough- you snap around and splash water everywhere just in time to see Lambert falling forward into the water.
"Shit- shitshitshit-" You hiss as you dive forward, stopping only when Lambert emerges from the waves.
"My lead-" You begin before they splash salty water in your face. Your face scrunches as you begin to splutter out of instinct. "That's for getting my face wet."
You gag, but the salt water wasn't anything new to you. "So mean, I was just trying to help you cool off is all-" You spit into the ocean and sink chin deep into the water, leaving only your face visible.
You open an eye and look at the lamb, who was wading through the water. It wasn't deep here, only high enough to come up to their chest. You rise to your feet in the water, no longer needing to swim now that you were in the shallower parts of the water.
"Lambert?"
"There aren't really any fish here today, maybe I should have done a ritual for some luck..."
You frown, they'd already returned to prioritizing the flock. You drag your feet through the water. "We've still got plenty of other meats, and as I said earlier you can always just buy some fish."
They frown, before clapping their palms together and taking a deep breath. "That's fine, I can just run through Anchordeep and get some, I need to go there anyways to get Kallamar,"
"Lambert," You said their name firmer this time. Finally, they looked at you. Their bell jingled softly as they raised an ear. "Hm?" is all they give you.
"You can go to Anchordeep later, there isn't really a rush is there? You just got done with Anura-" You walk with them to the dock, and help them up onto the wood. "The bishops can wait for you, I'm sure a few days is a blink for them."
Lambert lowered their hands to pull you up from the water. You take them, and they pull you up next to them. You both sit on the dock, their hands still wrapped around yours.
Their fingers squeeze you, before relaxing. Their face is screwed in thought, eyes fixated somewhere on your face. For a moment, they almost seem sad. For what, you can't say.
"Time is different for Gods, but that doesn't mean I don't have a job to finish,"
They pause as they watch your eyes burn into theirs.
"But," They cling tighter onto your hands once more. "I suppose, the flock can manage themselves for a little while longer."
They turn your hand over and trace their thumb along your palm. Then, their fingers interlock with yours.
You smile just slightly as you look out to the sea. The sun had begun to lower and cast it's light across the water, staining it orange.
"We can try to fish again tomorrow, I can help you," You offered. "So you don't come back to the flock empty handed,"
"I'd like that very much."
"How does four days sound?" You ask, "Then we can return, that should be enough time to catch plenty."
They turn over your words in their head.
"Three days, I do not want to leave Julty with all the work,"
"There's other disciples... but.." You trail off and swing your feet over the edge of the dock. The Lamb grips you, preventing any chance of diving back into the water. Not that the thought crossed your mind. "Three days can work,"
They nod, and rise to their feet. "Where are you going?" You ask.
"Checking to see if the Lighthouse Keeper has a spare place to rest for the time being,"
You watch them walk to the edge of the dock, before turning to their left to the lighthouse.

The waves shift under you, hitting the dock's support. Still, the Lamb was putting the needs of their flock before themselves. Lambert did not need to sleep.
You pull your knees up to your chest and watch the light glint through the sea. Beautiful shades of orange and yellow and blue shimmer for you. By the time Lambert returns, the sun had long set.

Chapter Text

Lou, between the two of you, was far more a scaredy cat- at least when it came to the films you had invited him to watch with you. A lot were older slashers, films released decades before the new millennia... some cheesy, others holding up. It didn't seem to matter at all to the villain, who sat next to you pretending to be braver than he actually was. Shaking as the credits rolled, he turns to you, "So that ending, huh?" he pointed his thumb towards the tv screen before letting his hand fall to his knee.
The tv returned to the title screen, filling the dark room with colors and background music. "I mean, it wasn't even that scary," He continued before you could think of a response. He leans forward, and snatches a handful of nuts from the variety of snacks laid out on the table- almonds, as he insisted due to his claims that they're healthy for the gut. You lightly rolled your eyes, before searching for the remote. "You say that, but you were basically scrambling over the back of the couch when the music shifted."
He didn't say anything as he helped himself to his snack, and he didn't answer you. Instead the man asked what film you were going to watch next.
You pulled yourself to your feet and walked over to the shelf by the tv, tugging out the remaining collection of dvds you had collected over the past few years. While you were there, you took out the disc that was already in the player. You held up two different boxes, side by side, lightly tapping them together. "Chainsaw murder dude, or guy with a machete- make your choice," You look at him. You watch his eyes dart between the two, weighing his options... which seemed less terrifying? A man wearing a mask of old dried flesh, or the one covered in rot dawning a hockey mask. His mouth stretched into a thin line before scrunching, pouting almost. "The..." He began before trailing off. "The chainsaw one?"

You nod a bit, putting the other case back and popping the movie into the player.
You make your way back to the couch and wait for the trailers and ads and warnings to play through, a minor nuisance. You glance at him through the corner of your eye, catching him doing the same to you. A smile tried to fight its way onto your face as you turn to face him. "We can watch something else if you want, if horror isn't you're thing,"
Immediately he begins to shake his head, almost offended that you dare imply that he's too much of a coward to sit through a movie. "No!" He said sharply, before quickly readjusting his tone. "It's fine, honest-" as he stumbled over his words. You raised a brow before turning to the screen, giving him one last look before you started the film.
This time he seemed to try to keep as still and quiet as possible, as if swallowing his reactions... though that did not last long at all, letting them slip as the movie progressed. He didn't actually jump until one of the characters was suddenly smashed in the skull with a hammer by the killer, letting out a loud screen.

Lou screamed, the character on screen simply fell to the ground and began to spasm. He covered his eyes by the time the character gets strung up and left to bleed. You pause the movie as soon as the horror was done so as not to keep it on the screen.
"I've got other movies," You offered, turning to the villain again. He pulled his hands along his face, tugging the skin that wasn't covered by his... mask... helmet.. was it both?
He let his hands come to a rest under his chin, balled into loose fists. He seemed totally and utterly ashamed with himself, failing to control himself despite his best efforts. You gently pat him on the back, before getting up and taking out the movie and searched for something less intense.
"No need to feel bad if it's not something you like, there's no shame in that," You reassured as you popped in another movie- something still Halloween themed, but nothing gorey or scary. He took a moment to speak before finally bringing his eyes to you. He seemed relieve, albeit there was still a look of embarrassment. He took a deep breath before speaking.
"Thanks, I guess I just..." He trailed off but you didn't push him to finish. You started the movie, reclaiming your spot on the couch next to him. The remainder of the night went along smoother, lighter actually- the mood no longer weighed down by Lou's shame and fear. The next time you glanced at him, he was far more relaxed... Smiling, even.
You smile to yourself, pulling your attention back to the screen. The night hadn't been ruined after all, even if the original plan was no longer in motion.