Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

The other world hadn't ever really been what you thought it would be.
In between the cold, concrete architecture of an abandoned apartment complex that kept rearranging itself like some sort of maze, you never fully thought you'd start to recognize the paths and patterns like the other residents did. And while it took a long, long while for you to fully understand the layout of it, ultimately you had come to the realization that you, in fact, did start to recognize the pattern in which it moved.
Every shake arranged the rooms and hallways anew, but there were some connections that never seemed to fully fall apart upon the re-organization, as many times as it happened. Hallways that always lead to the same rooms, staircases that lead to the same cliff, sometimes even entire complexes that stayed more or less the same with the only thing changing being the interior of them. As disorienting as it was when you first came here, by now it was almost like a small riddle for you to recognize the pattern until it would inevitably change...

Which made it all the more annoying when you did get lost.

"Man, I could've sworn-" you huff when you were met with a dead end, staring intently at the wall as if you half expect it to move.


Wouldn't be the first time either.

The wall in front of you was made of concrete, similar to the entire remaining maze of hallways you had come from behind you, and the idea of walking them back again made you frown in slight frustration.
You could've sworn the room to the elevator would be at the end of this, allowing you to enter the other world for a little just to grab something - preferably some warm food, even if you didn't need to eat anymore, but you still miss the taste of it at times.


Other world...

Weirdly enough, the idea of the human world felt more alien to you than the place you had started to call your home, even though you didn't come from here.

It's more interesting here than over there.

Your memories of the other place weren't too great in the first place.

"Did you hear of that supposedly haunted apartment building? I heard nobody ever goes there..."
"Sounds like the perfect place for us then! No police to bother us, we can just chill there after school - isn't that right, (/y/N)?"
"U-Uhm...I...don't know if I should really-"
"Don't be such a pussycat, you want to be our friend, don't you? It'srude to pass on an invitation like that, don't you think?"

...that feels so long ago.

You weren't sure just how long you had really been here, but the memory of going to school, of meeting with humans, of...

"N-No - what are you doing-!? L-Let go of me-!!"
"No no, don't act shy now, you're the one following us around all the time so the least you can do is give the boys some entertainment!"
"Let go-! Let fucking go I said or I'll fucking kill you-!"

...of that, felt so far away.

!

You quickly turned when you heard the sound of metal scraping over the floor, immediately raising the crowbar in your hand as if to deflect an approaching attack-

Oh shit-

Except what came flying at you wasn't anything you could really deflect, making you shriek in surprise before you quickly ducked and rolled to the side.

This guy-

"Mr. Machete-!" You almost snapped at the large, hulking figure rapidly closing the distance as soon as he realized his attack had missed, "I'm not in the mood-"

He doesn't understand what I'm saying.

But to be honest he probably would've entirely ignored your protest anyways.

"No-"

His hand swung at you, barely missing by an inch as you quickly scrambled to the side, forcing yourself fast onto your feet before he could catch you by your ankles again. 
By now the fights with him almost had a certain choreography to them, usually that his absurdly large machete would come flying at you and if missed, he'd go all in for the-

"ᶠF̸ͥᵍi̸ͪg̸ͭh̸t̸"

"Machete-!" You huff in frustration and just when you managed to slip past his arm, you grabbed his waist, making him stiffen. "I said-"

Grow

"NO-!"

The hallway around you grew smaller, the ceiling pressing in when your body rapidly began to ascend towards it, until the brute was forced off the ground as he struggled in your iron grip. You could hear an array of distorted sounds and growls snarling from him at you when you forced your body to bend backwards, slamming his heavy body into the floor behind you with a pained groan.

"!!"

He sounded annoyed at the sudden action more than in pain when you let go again, quickly getting back onto your feet while he laid cramped on the floor for a second, and as soon as he uncurled to presumably do another counterattack, you simply sat down on his torso.

"!?" Mr. Machete's hand came up as if to swat at you, but you didn't have the patience right now to entertain him as you just grew your hand large enough to give him a slap across his bandaged face.
Hard.

"I told you-" You bark at him in annoyance when he shook his head after the impact, barely flinching despite the strength you put into it - his head just tilted to the side and he let out a breath, as if the action annoyed him more than hurt him. "NO means ☞︎ⷫ ͦ♓︎ !"

Why am I even trying to reason with him.

He didn't understand your language, other residents did at times even when they didn't speak to you in it, but out of all of them-
Mr. Machete had always been the most stubborn, never talking to you in your own tongue and while you had the sneaking suspicion that he did in fact understand you, he seemed to prefer pretending that he didn't.

As if to prove your point he just growled, sounding more like a rabid animal but he didn't try to shove you off when he simply stayed on the floor underneath you, although with a lifted head as if he was staring at you. It was hard to tell behind the bandages, but you could feel his intense gaze on you even when you couldn't see any eyes...

"W̸ⷲe̸ͤa̸ͣk̸ⷦ" He snarled, with too much cockiness for someone you had just slapped even when it didn't bother him. But blood was sticking to the concrete ground and he was without his weapon for now, so it sounded more like he was just bitter about losing against you.


...even if he's surprisingly co-operative for once.

In the beginning, the brute wouldn't even attempt to listen to you, let alone stop - while every other resident at least tried to communicate with you at times, Mr. Machete had always attacked you.
You, Mr. Crawling, Mr. Silvair - any residents you've had with you whenever he would catch sight of you, even if it was him passing by.

I get it if it'd be me crossing his territory...

But he didn't need to show up at Mr. Silvair's base just to cause a fight with the researcher because you were there, did he?

"You don't get to call me weak. Not when you lost the fight." You huff towards the man you're sitting on, and he reaches a hand out again only for you to quickly swat it off before he could grab you. "See - you can understand me, or you wouldn't have reacted like that."

"..." His mouth pulled to a frown and then a baring of his sharp teeth, something that would scare you the first few times you had encountered him - like a shark, and he'd get just as excited at the promise of blood from how you had gotten to know him.

"W̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸h̸ͪe̸ͤa̸ͣr̸ͬt̸ͭ.̸ ̸ⷱY̸ͦo̸ͧu̸ ̸ᵍg̸ͥi̸ͮv̸ͤe̸ ̸ͪh̸ͤe̸ͣa̸ͬr̸ͭt̸?̸"

...not as if that is too uncommon in this world.

"Why are you even here? You don't walk around here usually." you knitted your brows when you turned to look at him and he huffed, turning his head to the side as if to look down the hallway he just came from. "Did you get lost because of the earthquake again?"

"..."

Mr. Machete didn't answer, but the longer you thought about it, the more sense it made.
He was laying on the ground without showing the aggressive type of resistance he usually had until he was dead - out of all residents in this world, you had probably killed each other almost as often as Silvair would kill you to restore your body, although to him it was almost like a game.


It definitely is.

"If you wanted help finding your way back, you could've just asked me." You pouted and eyed the large machete stuck in the wall he had thrown minutes prior and Machete turned his head to seemingly look back at you when you feel eyes again.
His chest didn't move underneath you, as if he didn't breathe at all aside from grunts he gave as answer instead of words, just like now even though it sounded more like a question.

"?"


...I guess he didn't understand all of it.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸w̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸m̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸h̸ͪe̸ͤᶫl̸ⷬp̸ ̸ⷱy̸ͦo̸ͧu̸ᶠ ̸ͥf̸ⷫi̸ͩn̸d̸ⷬ ̸ͣp̸ͭa̸ͪt̸h̸." Your tongue felt like twisting at the words, in an impossible way when your speech still felt crude and rudimentary, even if the language itself was simple. But even you could hear how much you butchered the words, and you guessed that was the same reason why the resident underneath you began to laugh.
Unlike Mr. Crawling's cackling laughter it was more akin to a bellowing noise, without any real joy or happiness and more of that cynical, mocking attitude he had as your body vibrated along with his voice.

It didn't happen a lot that you ever heard him laugh without being half-dead or barely conscious, so it was in actuality the first time you really heard him make that noise, even if it was to mock you.
"What's so damn funny, huh?" You slapped his chest, albeit not very hard when he didn't stop and you could guess the reason.
It still made your face red with embarrassment when he pointed at you with a large hand and a mocking grin.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧr̸ͬ ̸ᶫl̸ͣa̸ⷫᵍn̸ͧg̸ͣᵍu̸ͤa̸g̸ⷲe̸ͤ ̸ͣw̸ⷦe̸a̸k̸.̸" He declared smugly as if that mattered at all and you huffed a breath.

He's just petty about losing.

The truth was that it shouldn't bother you that you weren't that great at speaking their tongue - it wasn't your native language after all, but if you were fully honest...

...you caught yourself forgetting words in your own language nowadays, too.

"H̸ͪe̸ͤᶫl̸ᶫl̸ͦo̸-"
"...what-?"
"Oh -"

...he doesn't have to point it out, though.

Not when he didn't speak any other language.

"Shut up. Not like you'd be any better-" You snapped back at his smug face, feeling eyes on you and when you least expected it, a hand on your chest.
"Huh-!"
You almost slapped him in instinct but he was quicker, shoving you off with no regards and you stumbled over yourself, catching your fall on your elbows when he used too much force than would have been necessary to get you off.

"You can't just do that-!"

The brute prepped himself back up, at least enough to where he was sitting instead of laying flat on the floor while you stared daggers into him as you crossed your hands over your chest, still feeling the lingering groping sensation.

"What was that supposed to be!?"

His mouth pulled to a frown at your yelling, as if it annoyed him and you huffed a hot breath as you still shielded yourself from him.
"T̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥs̸̾" You intently pointed a finger at your own chest, his head tilting down as if to follow the gesture and looking back up when you stretched out your arm to point back at him.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸ ̸ⷫN̸ͦo̸.̸" You snapped at him, removing the gesture and words again as if he was a child you were trying to teach something - well, in a way you were, even if it wouldn't matter much to a person who tried to and did kill you countless times.

Still.

"...?" He scoffed, frowning at your words although he seemed to somewhat get it when he lifted a hand to look at it, and then tilted his head back down again at your chest.

"...W̸ⷲe̸ͤa̸ͣk̸ⷦ ̸p̸ⷬᶫl̸ͣa̸ͨc̸ͤe̸?"

"No." You huff at the questioning tone, furrowing your brows at the large man across you, even though his reaction made it obvious there wasn't more of an ulterior motive to his touch than to simply get you off of him -

It...actually made you wonder.

...does he even...?

"Not W̸ⷲe̸ͤa̸ͣk̸ⷦ. Just..."
You're not sure what to say, you didn't know a word for it, you didn't really know what inappropriate or sensitive meant in a context that he'd even understand you.


...I know he isn't human.

So far you had always sort of seen the residents as friends at best - enemies at worst, and while you didn't find any of them necessarily unattractive...

...the question of if they even knew what intimacy was never occurred to you, at all.
Sure, Mr. Crawling said that he liked you, if you even understood that word right - but it always felt more innocent, like a childish joy he had being around you and following you around. Mr. Silvair said that he did research but that seemed to be mostly on people's sentience and restoration of their body, and while you guessed that that included anatomy...

...you somehow expected all of them to just...not have any interest or even possibility in intimacy.
Maybe a strange insight to have just after getting groped, but unlike the real world-

"No no, don't act shy now, you're the one following us around all the time so the least you can do is give the boys some entertainment!"

You actually were never scared of that around any of them.

"How do you call that?" You furrowed your brows when you tried to think of any similar word, but you wouldn't be able to explain it at all. You were missing the vocabulary, and Mr. Machete wasn't exactly known for being a great communicator either unlike Mr. Crawling who might have understood you even with the wrong words...

...he's still staring at me.

As if he expected you to finish your sentence even when you never did, although when you didn't continue, he pointed a finger at your chest.

"S̸̾o̸ͦᶠf̸ͭt̸ᶠ.̸ͬ ̸ͣF̸ͥᶫr̸a̸i̸l̸.̸"

It wandered up to point at your face again, with his lips pulled to a frown.

"S̸̾a̸ͣm̸ͫe̸ͤ.̸ ̸ⷱY̸ͦo̸ͧu̸.̸"

He's calling me weak again.

"I'm not weak." You reach out to poke a finger against his chest, although you have to lean more forward for it as he still towered over you even when sitting. "If I wanted to, I could k̸ⷦi̸ͥᶫl̸ᶫl̸ ̸ⷱy̸ͦo̸ͧu̸-"

I just don't like to waste my time.

It wasn't like anyone here could truly die.
He'd just come back more manic for another fight, like so many times before - you suppose that was what made him even start seeking you out actively whenever he grew too bored bullying anyone else.

"But you'd just be a pain in the ass-"

His hand grasped your wrist, too tightly to not feel threatening even though it didn't hurt yet. It still felt rough, his skin calloused and way too hot to be comfortable as it made you jerk in the middle of your sentence and you instead looked up to his bandaged face.

You were surprised he didn't just crush your hand, only grunting with a sly grin and you hated how mocking it seemed of you.

He never takes me serious.

As much as you talked to him like he was a child, he pretty much did the same to you when he swatted your hand to the side to finally stand up, his head almost hitting the ceiling if he wouldn't stay in a slouched posture.
You guess that was what he had gotten used to in the first place to avoid bumping his head, and maybe the bandages on his face were from the times he had tried to walk straight.

Explains why he's kinda stupid, too.

...that was mean.

The concrete crunched unpleasantly under the force of him dragging his weapon out of the wall, scratching along the ground from how large it was and you raised your crowbar to block any impending blows he would try on you-

"W̸ⷲe̸ͤa̸ͣk̸ⷦᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷫᵍn̸g̸."

...what did he say?

The first half of the word was a familiar sound, but the second one seemed different from what you've heard so far - something about weak, which apparently was his favourite word to refer to you, and you almost instinctively swung the crowbar at him when he approached you.
It was slouching at first, seeming almost slow but you knew how fast he truly was, and even then - his massive body disappeared from in front of you in the second you blinked before it reappeared way too close when he caught your crowbar with infuriating ease.

"S̸̾ᶫl̸ͦo̸ⷲw̸." Mr. Machete flung the tool aside, and you shut your eyes readying yourself for the pain of getting crushed..

I hate that feeling

...?

But the sensation of dull, cold pain never followed through when you instead heard metal scratch on concrete, heavy footsteps moving away from you.
Your eyes flew open again, furrowing your brows as you saw the brute's broad back turned to you.

...I guess he grew bored.

That was the only reason you could think of on why he wouldn't kill you to declare his victory.

...it wasn't really in character for him to leave you alive, but then again...It never never happened before.
Sometimes even when he would catch sight of you he didn't engage in combat, usually when you happened to shrink by accident the first few times you were still figuring out your abilities...you still couldn't fully control them, you could do it better now when you concentrated but in the heat of the moment, your body would more often just respond to your mood rather than any imminent danger.

Like the one time you turned even smaller on accident when seeing Mr. Hugeface because you felt small.

"..."

A loud, metallic sound cut through your mind and you realized it was the brute in front of you slamming his weapon against the ground, as if you draw your attention.

"W̸ⷲh̸ͪy̸ⷱ ̸S̸̾t̸ͭo̸ͦp̸ⷬ ̸M̸ͫo̸ͦv̸ͮe̸ͤ.̸" He grunted in the usual distorted pitch their language brought with it and you blinked in surprise.


...did I understand that right?

Did he expect you to follow him?

"...?" You looked up at him a bit quizzically but took a step forward, and he turned back to stare ahead of him as he began to walk again.

I guess that means yes.

...it's better than to stay here.

From what you remember, if nothing had changed there were a few rooms and hallways you didn't want to go through alone again. And as violent as Mr. Machete could be, he was also a good distraction for other residents with a similar temper, since they tended to either avoid or target him in return.

Even if he runs from some of them.

...not like you could do much in a dead end here, either.

"Do you know the way?" The doubt in your voice must've been obvious to him, enough that he scoffed. It was a little hard to keep up with him, considering how large he was he could cover distances more easily, making you almost jog lightly next to him to keep up down the hallway.
Mr. Machete didn't answer your question directly, but he took a turn around a corner you had before, too, walking up a set of stairs you knew ended in a dead end.

...so he doesn't.

"No, I've already been here." You sighed in slight frustration, but what did you expect...-
"Hey - what-!"

His large hand suddenly grabbed you, right by your neck and you squeaked in surprise when your feet were lifted off the ground effortlessly, your eyes snapping to stare at him, "Put me-"

Hole

Suddenly you realized the large, gaping hole in the ceiling of the room the hallway ended in, letting your eyes widen when you realized what his plan was.
"Wait- wait-!"



S̸̾t̸ͭo̸ͦp̸ⷬ

"S̸̾t̸ͭo̸ͦp̸ⷬ-!!!"

But your body was already in the air before you could even fully finish your scream, the force sending you flying when he simply tossed you across the hallway through the hole as if you were some weightless toy and the impact made you see stars.
Pain exploded in your back, air forced out of your lungs as you hit another concrete wall and your vision switched between bright, white specks and blackness blinding you as you coughed up the taste of blood while your knees hit the floor again.

My pain tolerance is going up...

But what was it with that guy and just throwing you without any warning!?
"When I say STOP S̸̾t̸ͭo̸ͦp̸ⷬ!!" You huff slightly out of breath, each inhale hurting a little while you spat out more copper as he landed in front of you, and when you glared at him, he just grinned sardonically.

"W̸ⷲe̸ͤa̸ͣk̸ⷦᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷫᵍn̸g̸."

That seemed to be his new favourite word to call you, and even if you didn't know it before, you were pretty sure it translated to something like Weakling.
"I need Mr. Crawling to teach me what asshole means in your damn language." You grumbled and wiped the remaining stains of blood off your lips, feeling Mr. Machete's bandaged eyes on you when you dragged yourself back onto your feet using the few cracks in the smooth wall behind you.
The room he tossed you into was actually the center of a hallway, the ground broken into a large gap and you recognized a familiar green glow at the very end of it.

So I was right.

You knew these hallways should connect to the elevator - but apparently you were wrong about which floor you were supposed to be on.
His large figure moved again, not towards the elevator though when he instead seemed to want to go past it around another corner the sound of his machete dragging over the ground your only warning since he didn't say anything.

"Wait-" You almost reached out for him until you decided that was actually a horrible idea considering how violent the man reacted to anything usually. But the scratching stopped, his head turning back with a frown as if he was annoyed you made him pause.

"...why were you around here?" It still puzzled you why the brute would be so far out from his own territory, let alone guide you when he apparently knew where he was...
Mr. Machete's head tilted, to the same side his body usually slouched into as if he didn't understand what you asked him and you didn't bother to try and translate it when you instead just shook your head.

"...nevermind."

Not like it really matters.

"...thank you for bringing me." You still muttered even when you could've done without the feeling of broken ribs. But knowing him, he could've done much, much worse to you in a heartbeat and at the end, he still helped...

In his way.

...the residents here are weird.

"Uhm...T̸ͭh̸ͪa̸ͣn̸ⷫk̸ⷦ ̸y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸"

The man didn't answer anything, not giving you any sign of acknowledgment when he instead just turned his head back to look ahead and you pressed the elevator button while watching after him.
Soon enough his massive figure disappeared behind a corner, the sound of metal dragging over concrete becoming quieter the further he went...

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸w̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸m̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸h̸ͪe̸ͤᶫl̸ⷬp̸ ̸ⷱy̸ͦo̸ͧu̸ᶠ ̸ͥf̸ⷫi̸ͩn̸d̸ⷬ ̸ͣp̸ͭa̸ͪt̸h̸."

...did I switch up the Me and You again...?

You supposed that was why he helped you, since some of the residents seemed to be willing to help you out if you explicitly asked them...
Or maybe he was just bored and thought helping you would be more entertaining than wandering around on his own.
The elevator dinged open quietly, the doors sliding apart to allow you in and as you pressed the only glowing button on the side, you waited for it to carry you back to the other side again.

...I'm still kinda curious if he got what I meant.

...you guessed it would be better not to think too much on it for now.

Chapter Text

Your time in the other world was short, like usually.
Not because you necessarily minded being surrounded by humans, but unlike you....

"U-AAAAH-!!!"

...some of them were downright rude about your appearance.
You didn't comment on how some of them dressed or decided to look, and unlike them, you couldn't just freely choose what you wore - sure, your raincoat could use a wash, but that was mostly Mr. Machete's fault for bleeding on it, and the white dress you had was nice in your eyes.

It was better than your school uniform, at least.

And if the issue was your bandaged face or your eye, that was even ruder.

...I forgot how humans could be.

Compared to every other resident you were pretty tame regarding appearances. Sure, there were a few that screamed or shrieked at your sight but they calmed down too when they realized you might just be someone with a disfigurement - but if you tried to imagine Mr. Crawling, or Mr. Silvair up in this world, you almost laughed.

...they freaked me out, too.

As much as Mr. Crawling tried to calm you down, the way he moved or rapidly crawled towards you at first would've freaked out anybody, and unlike them, you were actually capable of talking in a human language.
You chuckled lightly to yourself, feeling the quiet drizzle of rain hitting your translucent raincoat as you continued to carry your grocery bag down the alleyway.

..I missed the sound of it.


...it reminded you of the times you would sit inside that place just to hear the rain outside the broken windows.

The elevator never fully opened at the same spot, but to your luck it had opened to a familiar alleyway - a place downtown, with a supermarket close enough and while you didn't have any money to really buy something...

"No - N-No no please-!!"

...you could usually walk out without too many protests.
The can in your hand emptied when you took a last sip, tossing it back into the plastic bag in your hand and eyeing your surroundings.

...I know this place.

You half-heartedly had started to wander, through alleys and abandoned streets avoiding other humans as well as the sound of sirens, but like usual, your feet carried you back to where you had come from.

...where it first started.

Legends say there's an elevator that takes you to another world

You can find it at the abandoned apartment complex, but beware the man in red when it rains

...when it rains, hm...?

You tugged the hood of your raincoat a little more into your face to avoid getting wet, tying the plastic bag shut again so the contents wouldn't get unnecessarily moist either.
Chances would be that you'd encounter him if you chose to take the elevator inside that building, but the other option would be to wander around until either Mr. Gap might show up, or you'd stumble into another elevator that happened to open up somewhere.
The latter wasn't impossible, it happened before to you when you took the elevator in your school to the roof and instead ended up on the other side again...

...what's the worst that can happen?

Aside from obviously meeting Mr. Scarletella.

..I don't feel like walking around much anymore.

You didn't like encountering him, not with how weirdly obsessive he was about you and your name, but the initial fear you had of him wasn't as big anymore.
Now that you knew he supposedly thought the bodies you left in that building were a present to him, you almost felt a little sorry for him - it wasn't your plan to give him that illusion, because who in their right mind would think a bunch of smashed in schoolboy bodies would be a gift?

...a resident like him, of course.

Why were you even asking that question.

"I-I don't know-"
"C'mon, don't be such a chicken- it's just a bunch of rumors, not like anything is seriously going to happen."

...I don't like being here.

You frowned at the sight of the abandoned, run-down building in front of you overgrown by vines - against the grey, rainy sky it seemed even more imposing, looming above you although it had lost the threatening aura it used to possess when you first had seen it.
Maybe for worse than better, you had gotten to the creepy, liminal feeling the apartments emitted, the feeling of being left behind just like the past inhabitants had left this home behind.
You still weren't sure about its story, everything from what you had read sounded like urban legends - a supposed fire, a collection of unlucky happenings that killed some of the inhabitants, claims of hearing voices at night in the hallways until ultimately, no one wanted to live in it anymore.
By now it was supposedly the most haunted building in the country, a small local tourist attraction as well so you weren't surprised when you heard voices echoing in the empty staircase you walked up in.

"I really don't like it here-"
"Why, what's the issue? I thought you wanted to try this kind of stuff-?"
"Yeah, but I meant - not something like, some cheap abandoned place, I thought more like a love motel-"
"We're already here, aren't we? Might as well make some use of it...come on, relax a bit..."

"No no, don't act shy now, you're the one following us around all the time so the least you can do is give the boys some entertainment!"

...so cliche...

You frowned when silence followed the words, presumably whatever noise was happening too quiet or dull for you to hear as you passed by, although the closer you came the more your ears began to pick up unfortunately.

"Let go-! Let fucking go I said or I'll fucking kill you-!"

The sound of fabric rustling and metal unclasping echoing in the empty space of another room, with your steps causing next to nothing in return when you tried to ignore the noises.

Just ignore it

"C'mon don't be like that, not like you didn't ask for it going to a place like this-"

A muffled, whimpering wet sound suffocated by lips and your hand clutched the tool in your hand tighter as you stared ahead without really seeing anything.

"Move over, my turn-"

Ignore it

"Take some pictures of her, I bet she's gonna stop being such an arrogant bitch once the whole school knows what a whore you are-"

Ignore...

"I'll kill you...I'll fucking-"

Ignore it


K̸ⷦi̸ͥᶫl̸ᶫl̸

"-KILL-"

 

K̸ⷦI̸ͥᶫL̸ᶫL̸



Ignore it

"-ALL-"

K̸ⷦI̸ͥᶫL̸ᶫL̸

"-OF YOU!!!"

  K̸ⷦi̸ͥᶫl̸ᶫl̸

"AAAAAAAAH!!"

Shut up

"W-We need to run!!"

Shut up

"Watch out-!"

"NO-!!"

Shut up
Shut up

Shut up shut up shut up shut up shut up-

  
    S̸̾H̸ͪU̸ͧT̸ͭ ̸U̸ͧP̸ⷬ
  

The sound of bones breaking with a wet, loud cracking sound barely reached your ears against the loud heartbeat in your head, blood pumping through your veins and splattering your coat when you just wanted them to shut up, shut up, shut up shut up shut up-

"?"

You couldn't stand the noises, you couldn't stand their lovey-dovey act in this empty building, you couldn't stand the sight of their bodies on the ground entwined just where you used to lay, where they used to lay, where you fought and screamed and died with no one to hear you in this empty cursed building, you couldn't stand that damn mirror right across you watching yourself you couldn't you couldn't you couldn't-

"Haa...haaa...was that...fucking 'entertaining' enough for you...? Looks like I'm the one that got to 'score' this time, isn't that right!?"

You wanted them to suffer more, bleed more, you wanted them to scream and beg and plead just like you did, you wanted them to feel just as betrayed and hurt as you had when they lured you here and you hoped every fucking beat of the blunt metal of your crowbar hit harder than the next, shattered their bones until they were just as disfigured and violated as you were.
You hoped that their blood would forever stain this place, you hoped they'd find their way into the other side so you could find and hurt them more, you hoped that your hate would follow them to the ends of all fucking time-

"...?"

"Hey! That's me-...what, a creepy 'shape' haunting the apartment complex? I'm just a normal human, haha...I wouldn't say I'm some sort of monster-"

You hoped you could haunt them just as much as they haunted you.

"..."

...I'm sticky...

Your raincoat was drenched, liquid dripping off of it along with pieces of chunky meat and gore as you breathed heavily.

..it happened again...

You blinked a few times to get rid of the blurry vision you had, sniffling quietly as you raised a hand to your face to try and rub the sticky feeling off of you, but that just made it worse.
The concrete in front of you was splattered, cracked in parts with piles of flesh covering most of it and staining the room red while you tried to calm down, shakily exhaling a breath and swallowing back the tightening sensation in your throat.

...they didn't deserve that...

...but feeling bad wouldn't help them either.

I need to control it

"Huh...Mr. Crawling? Where did he...I could've sworn he was just here...?"

...or I'll hurt someone I care about

"?"

The sound of fabric rustling made you look up from your kneeling position-

!!!

And making you shriek when a pale face was way too close to yours, the pitch-black eye directly staring at you from behind blood-red strands of hair.

"Mr. Scarletella!?" You huffed once your heart stopped skipping a beat at his sight, pushing against his face so he'd get out of your personal space when the resident was way, way too close for your liking.

...was he here the entire time?

You swallowed and quickly wiped any remains of tears you could've had out of your face, frowning at the man and realizing the room wasn't red because of all the blood - it was because of his presence, everything stained in a bloody color just like his coat and umbrella, even when he leaned back to loom over you.
Scarletta was tall, like most residents you had met, although his height wasn't what made him so intimidating - it was the feeling your body was put through, the uncomfortable adrenaline and loud heartbeat he brought with him and you thought it was because of your own actions...

From the corner of your eyes, you could see him move, his arm right next to you when he hadn't moved further away from you than maybe a foot, raising a hand to point at the bloody remains first.

"M̸ͫi̸ͥn̸ⷫe̸ͤ?"

It was a questioning tone, his voice distorting and sounding almost like a broken radio, but it was enough that you understood the intention behind it.

He thought it was a gift for him.

Again.

I can't believe this guy.

The question nearly made you angry, the audacity he had to keep thinking every little thing you did somehow revolved around him-

"N̸ⷫo̸ͦ!" You snapped loudly at him, standing back up when you didn't even think about your actions and immediately swinging your crowbar at him.
"It's NOT about YOU for FUCKS SAKE!"

H̸ͪe̸ͤ'̸̾s̸ ̸̾s̸ͦo̸ ̸ͣa̸ⷫn̸ⷫn̸ͦo̸ⷱy̸ͥi̸ⷫᵍn̸g̸

"...Mr. Crawling? Where...what did I...just do...?"

Mr. Scarletella disappeared, in a split second the crowbar would've hit him and instead of the sound of bones breaking there was sizzling static when he reappeared just in the same spot again.

"Mr. Crawling!! Oh god, I'm so glad - I thought I killed you!"

ʲJ̸ͧu̸̾s̸ͭt̸ ̸ͩd̸ͥi̸ͤe̸

The crowbar went into nothing, distorted white noise filling the air when his body faded again and you whirled around when you saw red from the corner of your eyes, swinging at him in the same second his presence returned.

"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸r̸ͬe̸ͤs̸̾e̸ͤa̸ͣr̸ͬc̸ͨh̸ͪ ̸y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸ ̸ⷱY̸ͦo̸ͧu̸ ̸ͨc̸ͪh̸ͣa̸ⷫᵍn̸ͤg̸e̸ⷡ.̸ͦ ̸ͩB̸ⷱo̸d̸ͨy̸ͪ ̸ͣc̸ⷫᵍh̸ͤa̸n̸̾g̸ͤe̸ⷫ.̸ͭ ̸ͥS̸ͤe̸ⷫn̸ͨt̸ͤi̸e̸ͨn̸ͪc̸ͣe̸ⷫᵍ ̸ͤc̸h̸ⷲa̸ͪn̸ⷱg̸e̸.̸ ̸W̸h̸y̸?̸"

Another hit that went into nothing when the man in red shifted in reality again, further away this time, and your foot stepped onto something soft and slippery below you-

"...what was I...just doing...?"

I̸t̸'̸s̸ ̸n̸o̸t̸ ̸l̸i̸k̸e̸ ̸y̸o̸u̸ ̸d̸o̸n̸'̸t̸ ̸r̸e̸a̸l̸l̸y̸ ̸r̸e̸m̸e̸m̸b̸e̸r̸

"!"

A pair of hands caught you before you could hit the ground, although the body you collided with didn't feel much better. It was hard and cold, the hands feeling freezing on your skin even through the layers of clothing you wore, and you tensed in reaction to the touch.

"...?"
Mr. Scarletella tilted his head with an unnervingly wide smile, and for how often you just tried to seriously hurt him, he didn't seem fazed at all by your attempts at violence.
Not that it mattered since you couldn't hit him anyway.

"I don't need your help-" You pulled yourself off of him, or at least tried to when you expected resistance that didn't follow to your surprise. He didn't hold you in place, instead letting go when you moved away from him, only to feel the wall right in your back.

Great.

"H̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ?̸" The distortion in his voice didn't let up, coming closer again without walking - you just blinked, and in the same blink he was suddenly right in front of you, with that unnerving pitch-black iris staring at you.

...hurt?

You gave him a level stare, trying not to show how much the man still unnerved you - something about those abyssal irises felt too much as if something was staring back at you that wasn't him.
"...I'm fine." You replied with a frown, clutching the crowbar in your hand when you felt forced against the wall by his presence alone, the strewn innards squelching unpleasantly underneath your soles. Even though he had never spoken with you in your language, you were sure enough that he understood you, but similarly to Mr. Machete you doubted he cared about what you said.

...I can't figure him out either.

" Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ᶠf̸ͥi̸ⷫn̸ͩd̸ ̸ⷫn̸ͣa̸ͫm̸ͤe̸?̸"

Mr. Scarletta was more of an enigma than other residents you had met so far - you knew Mr. Machete did things for entertainment, he seeked the thrill of a fight and the excitement violence brought him, Mr. Crawling liked you and wanted to comfort you, Mr. Silvair wanted to know more about residents and humans alike, Mr. Hood offered protection for the weak, but Mr. Scarletella?

For how widely known he was, to the point, pretty much every good resident helped you avoid him...

You still didn't get why he seemed to be so fixated on you, out of all people.

"̸ⷲW̸ͣa̸ⷫn̸ͭt̸ ̸ⷱy̸ͦo̸ͧu̸ͬr̸ ̸ⷫn̸ͣa̸ͫm̸ͤe̸"̸

He smiled, eerily wide without it ever reaching his eye as he raised a hand again, and you half steeled yourself against an incoming attack-
But instead, he slowly pointed to his side, to where the fleshy remains of the humans were. Strangely slowly, compared to how fast and rapidly residents usually tended to move...

...is he trying not to scare me?

It was deliberately slow, almost careful as if he wanted to make sure not to startle you.

"W̸ⷲh̸ͪy̸ⷱ?̸"

...why?

Just one word that came from him as he tilted his head with curiosity, and you swallowed when you stared back at the pile of flesh you left behind.


...I don't know.

This wasn't back then, you could explain your initial murders when you killed the same people that killed you that day and smashed the mirror you had to stare at...but this?

Why?

"...why do you care. I already said it's not for you." You simply mutter with crossed arms, the crowbar still sticking and weighing heavy in your hand.
There was more than just a meager amount of blood sticking to it, and you realized there was some blood on Mr. Scarletella's face too from when you initially pushed him away.

...he could've just teleported then, too.

His smile lowered, not exactly to a frown but to something that looked less exaggerated and sharp when he turned to look from the pile of meat back to you, his hand following to point at your face.

"W̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸t̸ͭo̸ͦ ̸u̸ͧn̸ⷫd̸ͩe̸ͤr̸ͬs̸̾t̸ͭa̸ͣn̸ⷫd̸ͩ.̸."

His hand moved back to his chest and then returned to gesture at you with an open palm.
"M̸ͫe̸ͤ. W̸a̸n̸t̸ ̸t̸o̸ ̸u̸n̸d̸e̸r̸s̸t̸a̸n̸d̸.̸ ̸ Y̸o̸u̸.̸"

...you want to understand me?

You still stared at him unblinking when he smiled, and then slowly at the pool of blood you stood in. It matched the color of his coat and hair, and probably personality if he thought asking you about why you killed these people was a great base of getting to know you, but then again...

...they're not like normal people.

"U-AAAAH-!!!"

...normal people reacted like that.

...so why did I do it?

Why did you do these things in general?

Why do I hurt people?

"...I don't know." You mumbled and when he tilted his head curiously again, you added. "M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸k̸ⷦn̸ⷫo̸ͦw̸ⷲ.̸."

Mr. Scarletella didn't move his head from the unnatural angle he held it in, too far tilted to be comfortable as he stared at you but if he thought you were lying, he was wrong.
Your first murders here had a reason, maybe not a valid reason for some but it was a valid reason for you, but everything that happened after that...

"What? I don't hate you - why would you think that, Mr. Crawling-?"

"Mr. Crawling...?"

I just wanted the noise to stop.

" M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸w̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸t̸ͭo̸ͦ ̸s̸̾t̸ͭo̸ͦp̸ⷬ." You responded with some frustration, and his head moved upright at that. You didn't like how far you had to tilt your head back to look up at him, still pressed against the wall by his presence and Scarletella raised a hand to point at your crowbar.
" S̸̾t̸ͭo̸ͦp̸ⷬ ̸a̸ͣt̸ͭt̸ͭa̸ͣc̸ͨk̸ⷦ?̸" He asked, with an uncanny smile but that didn't feel right either.
You didn't want to attack, but not because you didn't want to attack, and more...

I don't want there to be anything I could attack.

Pointless destruction, sometimes you didn't want to think or worry about what you could destroy around you, you just wanted to destroy what bothered you but there was always the fear-

"I'm so sorry - I didn't mean to-"

There was the fear it'd hit someone innocent, someone you didn't want to destroy and maybe that was the reason why instead of going back to Mr. Silvair and Mr. Crawling's base, you made your way to the elevator on your own.
And why you began to wander the maze of the other world more often on your own instead of with him, with only your crowbar as company and the occasional fight you found yourself in against Mr. Machete...

...I guess that's why he thinks I want to fight all the time, now.

"...N̸ⷫo̸ͦ.̸. N̸ⷫo̸ͦ S̸̾t̸ͭo̸ͦp̸ⷬ ̸a̸ͣt̸ͭt̸ͭa̸ͣc̸ͨk̸ⷦ." You responded quietly and you didn't even know why you were trying to explain something you couldn't grasp yourself into a language that didn't have the words for it.

"O̸ͦn̸ⷫᶫl̸ⷱy̸ ̸̾s̸ͭt̸ͦo̸ⷬp̸.̸ S̸t̸o̸p̸ ̸W̸o̸r̸l̸d̸"

I just want the noise to stop

"..."

Mr. Scarletella smiled wider, bordering into unnatural large again as if you said something he found funny, or maybe he read something into your words you couldn't properly say. Their language felt more often more like a rudimentary tool to convey intentions rather than explanations, and he brought his large hand back up to his chest, laying it flat on the fabric of his coat.

"[][][]"

You didn't know that word, watching how he first pointed at his coat, and then moved upwards to his hair before pointing back at the ground.
...blood...?

No, you knew the word for blood...

...red?

The floor was red from all the blood, his coat was red, his hair was red, and you guessed that's the word he meant when he moved back to point directly at your eye.

"S̸̾a̸ͣm̸ͫe̸ͤ E̸ͤy̸ⷱe̸ͤ." He declared with a wide smile, moving his hand to gesture back at himself.

...my eye is red?

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸ ̸ͫM̸ͤe̸.̸̾ ̸ͣS̸ͫa̸ͤm̸e̸.̸" Mr. Scarletella shifted, to where he was standing even closer to you, barely an inch away and your body tensed at the sudden nearness when his stare intensified on you.

"W̸ⷲo̸ͦr̸ͬᶫl̸ͩd̸.̸ͬ ̸ͤR̸ͩe̸d̸.̸"
"H-Hey-!"

You pressed yourself more into the wall when his hand reached for you, slowly but too close to just be gesturing when it closed the distance until you felt his cold palm on your cheek.
"E̸ͤv̸ͮe̸ͤr̸ͬy̸ⷱt̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥn̸ⷫᵍg̸.̸ ̸ͬR̸ͤe̸ͩd̸.̸"

What's his deal..?

The touch to your cheek was too freezing to be comfortable, even when it didn't hurt but it was more akin to feeling someone's cold skin on a winter's day - too soft to be a corpse but you didn't want to think about that right now when your feet partly stuck to the ground from the blood you spilled.
His gaze was uncomfortably intense, the only warmth from him palpable on your face when he moved even closer until he had to bend down to be at your height.

"Y-You're too close-" You huffed slightly nervous, clutching the crowbar closer to your chest as your eyes flicked to the side to try and avoid his, but as much as you didn't like this position...

You didn't exactly hate it either.

...I know he's obsessed with me

For whatever god-awful reason this entity thought you were the same as him, it didn't necessarily mean he wouldn't hurt you.

"W̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸"

He's back at it.

"I told you - I'm not giving you my name. M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸ᵍg̸ͥi̸ͮv̸ͤe̸ ̸ⷫn̸ͣa̸ͫm̸ͤe̸.̸" You tried to sound confident and not stutter and hoped your body wouldn't shrink involuntarily from how small you felt in comparison to the tall man in front of you. It was almost comical how far he had to bend down to be at the height of your face, and you expected him to lash out at you for refusing like he had done before - usually by killing you, like most residents did when you took the wrong step, but this time he barely noticeably shook his head with his smile disappearing.

"W̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸" He repeated, more seriously and slowly as if he was making sure you would understand him.

"M̸ͫe̸ͤ.̸ ̸ W̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ.̸ ̸ Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸ S̸̾a̸ͣm̸ͫe̸ͤ.̸ ̸ H̸ͪu̸ͧm̸ͫa̸ͣn̸ⷫ.̸"

...huh...?

You blankly blinked at him when he didn't move away or specify what he meant, just repeating the words with more intensity as if that was supposed to help you understand.

Same human?

...but if this wasn't about your name, then what...?

...does he mean...?

..like a human?

"...you want me like a human?" You replied still a bit confused, involuntarily flicking your eyes down to the ground with the remains of the humans you stood in and Mr. Scarletella smirked again widely. "What is that supposed to..."

"Yeah, but I meant - not something like, some cheap abandoned place, I thought more like a love motel-"
"We're already here, aren't we? Might as well make some use of it...come on, relax a bit..."

...that's not what he means, right?

Did he see that? You knew he stood next to you while you smashed into their remains, so did that mean he was already there before you interrupted those humans-

What do you mean you want me??

You simply kept staring at him as if that would give you an answer, the hand on your cheek suddenly feeling a lot colder than before, or maybe that was because your face began to continuously heat up at the implication he just threw at you.

"I - what?" You made flatly and blinked a few times, flicking your eyes down at his palm and then back up to his head hovering way too close for your liking now, even though you should react much more worried than the embarrassment creeping up your body.

There was no way he meant that, right?

Sure, he looked like a man - somewhat, at least - but none of the residents had shown that kind of interest in you before from what you understood and you still had no idea how to even talk about that. You thought about it when you encountered Mr. Machete and he accidentally groped you, but to be confronted like that now again out of all places-

In this place, out of all places.

By him.

"C'mon don't be like that, not like you didn't ask for it going to a place like this-"

...and yet, even a monster like Mr. Scarletelly didn't just force you to the ground.
He could've, or at least tried to instead of waiting for an answer but from what you had experienced, the residents were all strange about consent - not in a bad way, but for how bloodthirsty some of them were, there was a strange...almost requirement of being told Yes.

Mr. Gap didn't like it when you offered someone else's heart instead of yours, and while you didn't understand why back then, looking back you were pretty sure it was because that person didn't say Yes to the exchange, and as persistent and stalkerish Mr. Scarletella was about it in the beginning-

He wanted me to give him my name.

Not take it, not forcibly tear it from you, he wanted you to give it up to him willingly.

...not like he wouldn't try to kill me for it...

But ultimately, he had always let up and just disappeared instead of say, capture and torture you until you'd be forced to say your name.

...am I really thinking about this?

Out of all places, in here where you lost your innocence in more than one sense, in a pool of guts and blood across a shattered mirror with the man that dragged you into his world...

...in a sense, you guessed he made you what you are today.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸ ̸ͫM̸ͤe̸.̸̾ ̸ͣS̸ͫa̸ͤm̸e̸.̸"

...it doesn't have to be anything serious, right?

It wasn't your name, it was just your body and you had been broken apart and put back together so many times nowadays that this shape felt more akin to a costume anyway.
A shell, something you slipped into when you didn't want to be reminded of what you used to be, a frail, weak human who didn't have a choice...

But you had a choice now, walk away, try to escape from the taste of copper in your mouth, from the freezing sensation his lips brought, as if you were inhaling ice...

...or have that sense of control back.

A huff of winter air, although the way he moved made your body only heat up more.
You didn't remember the last time you really kissed someone, maybe a peck on the cheek for Mr. Crawling, but you didn't remember a time when your lips moved with more need for closeness than air against someone else's.


It feels good

For a strange entity, he wasn't a bad kisser, his tongue moving along yours devouringly as fabric rustled against his chest, the coat gone as quickly as your own-
From the corner of your eyes, it was hard to tell which one was which if it weren't for the sheer size difference between them, blood soaking into the fabric of his and covering yours when your crowbar hit the ground with a dull, metallic sound.
Scarletella's tongue ran along your lower lip, leaving a trail of ice before he bit down, hard enough to muffle a pained squeak of surprise from you when he pulled away at that.

The smile on his face didn't fade, dead eyes still staring at you with a tilted head as if he didn't understand why you made that noise, but you saw the blackness of his tongue when he licked your blood off his own lips.

...okay, you had to admit that was strangely hot.

"...W̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ.̸ ̸ͫM̸ͤe̸?̸" He leaned back down, puffing winter air against your face and you swallowed lightly when you still tasted blood, ghosting your mouth with his.
"S̸̾t̸ͭo̸ͦp̸ⷬ?̸"

Your breath hitched for a second at the question, not sure what exactly he meant...

...is he asking if I want him...to stop...?

"Move over, my turn-"

...

"N̸ⷫo̸ͦ." You muttered a little nervously with a heated face and his smile widened, still staring deeply into your eyes and for a moment, the air around you felt like sizzling.
Your entire body did, white noise scratching on your ears and then your back hit the ground with a gasp, tensing up massively at the cold, sticky concrete and even more at the equally hard body above you.

Mr. Scarletta loomed over you, his hands pressed down on each side of your head when you realized he moved you from the wall to the floor, in the same position you found the couple before in-

Is he just repeating what he saw-?

It felt like it, his hand sliding up from your leg to hook underneath your knee as he put it up so he could fit between your thighs and you should be scared at the familiar position.

"I'll kill you...I'll fucking-"

"M̸ͫe̸ͤ"

His distorted, palpable voice cut through the short memory when he leaned back down, intense, black eyes staring at you as if he knew what you thought about.
He wasn't smiling, sounding serious at drawing your attention back to him and you involuntarily whimpered when his cold mouth touched your neck.
You felt like a burning oven under the man, just truly realizing how much taller he was when his back bend to reach you, and when he sucked down a sensitive spot on your neck, you gasped.


Feels good

Your thighs pressed in on him in reaction, feeling more of his body and underneath the thin layer of fabric covering his chest, you could feel muscles. Marbled and just as cold, sharp teeth biting down on you as you whimpered and he seemed to like that noise a lot, judging by how he immediately bit down again.
It hurt, but in a way that your body tingled under him and pressed more into him when your hand fisted his hair and Scarletella let you tug him back to your face, with a curious expression for a moment before you kissed him.

More

It seemed to catch him off guard, enough that he didn't react at first when your tongue trailed sharp teeth, but then his body pressed harder into you.
Muscles moved and tensed under your touch in return, the room almost eerily silent aside from the occasional gasps leaving you when you needed air and parted, but he didn't seem to have an urge for that - instead, his lips would move to your jaw and throat, leaving more bruises and grinding into you when you felt hard resistance between your legs.

Fuck

It sparked even more heat in your core, even if you weren't exactly sure what to expect from something like him - you didn't have the bravery to just try and touch him there as much as your body felt like burning for it, thighs clenching tightly around him as your hands pulled on the sweater covering him.
"Off - " You huffed out of breath and Scarletella moved from abusing your neck down to the cutout of your dress, sucking down more bruises on your chest. "Mr. Scarletella-"

He doesn't know what I'm saying

But god you weren't patient enough to try and translate right now, not when his hand pulled your dress down to lick more blood off of your chest from the mess you caused earlier, making your back arch at the cold sensation.
Like ice cubes shifting and tickling along your skin, rough and smooth at the same time and if his body wouldn't budge-

"?"

Scarletella stopped when fabric ripped, his sweater tearing at the back when you clawed into it and you felt his chest vibrate in a chuckle, seemingly not minding your reaction to his stubbornness, although soon enough you felt your own dress shred.
Much more violent than you had done with him, his large hand pressing down on your chest while the other tore, ripping it off your body as you choked in surprise from the sudden force and realization that you were left entirely naked under his intense gaze.

"W-Wait-"

Mr. Scarletella stared down at you, the usual empty eye almost pulsating in a deep, unsettling shade of red as his hands grabbed your wrists as soon as you tried to cover yourself from the intensity of his gaze.

"S̸̾a̸ͣm̸ͫe̸ͤ E̸ͤy̸ⷱe̸ͤ."

His smile was unnaturally wide, holding your wrists gripped tightly in his hands as he just stared at you, reminding you almost of a child unpacking a new toy when he snickered, the same carelessness in ripping apart a present on Christmas he used to tear off your dress.
"W̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸y̸o̸ⷱu̸ͦ.̸ͧ" Mr. Scareletta repeated, much more intensely than before when he didn't take his eye off of you, strands of red hair falling into his face and covering part of it as he pressed more against you.

"W̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸y̸o̸ⷱu̸ͦ.̸ͧ"

You shrieked when his body changed position in the blink of an eye, your wrists pushed into the ground above your head as he hovered over you, and something cold pushed against you.
Not your general body but right between your legs, inside you, and your eyes widened at how big it felt.

"Scarletella-"

"M̸ͫi̸ͥn̸ⷫe̸ͤ" He breathed, cold air hitting your forehead and then his other hand came down to pull your hips in place when you involuntarily tried to jerk off of him, but his grip was iron.
It was cold, making you tense when your body wasn't used to the sensation yet but he didn't let up, not letting you escape from under him as your hands stayed constrained...

"O-Oh fuck-"

You weren't even sure you really tried to escape.

Everything leading up to this should have made you stop, should have made you push the large entity off of you but the more he pushed himself inside, the more your body clung to him.
His skin felt cold but smooth, marble under your palms with how spotless it was. Unlike every other resident you had seen so far, Mr. Scarletella didn't have a single scar on him...
"Mmh-!" You whimpered when he pushed harder into you, not painfully but unexpectedly when he didn't seem to have the patience to wait for your body to fully adjust, muscles tensing under your touch even when he didn't make a sound.

It was a shape you were familiar with at least, it didn't hurt even when you had to stretch to accommodate his size and for the first time ever since you knew him, you heard him groan.

A deep, urgent noise that left him when lips crashed against yours again, hungrily as he kissed you with everything, his tongue, teeth, blood and copper until you melted under the intensity of it.
It was so much, the sensation of him in you, on you, coldness enveloping you and burning you up at the same time, devouring and draining your heat as you couldn't hold back your noises.

Fuck

You never realized just how needy your body had been all this time, the first thrust into you almost effortlessly when your body didn't resist him at all anymore.

"M̸ͫi̸ͥn̸ⷫe̸ͤ"

Your back rubbed over the bloody concrete, scratching part of your skin, red handprints left on your body from his touch and bruising at how hard he held onto you, pulling you in more as if he wanted to make sure there was nothing of him you wouldn't take-
His tongue slid over the wounds his bites left, drinking you in and you couldn't think a single thought regarding your pride or any shame about the moans spilling from you when the man held you down with light pants that were easily overshadowed by the sound of skin slapping on skin. He wasn't slow, the opposite more so when all his thrusts felt devouring, as if he was trying to burn the shape of his body into yours along with every mark he left as claim, possessiveness in every touch that made your head spin from the pleasure it brought.

Palms that felt warmer now kneading your chest, smearing more blood onto you and the whole room blurred into red, smelling like copper and dust and him.

Can't...

He sucked more blood out of the small bites on you, letting you taste a mix of him and yourself when your hands tried to thrash against his grip, your body wanting to get rid of all the accumulating energy as you grew so close to seeing stars-

"W̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸ ̸ⷲW̸ͣa̸ⷫn̸ͭt̸ ̸ⷱy̸ͦo̸ͧu̸.̸ ̸W̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸"

The words spilled from him again and again, with every rough, rapid thrust almost like a mantra, urgent and needy when you just tried to breathe through the wave of pleasure his body brought, deeper, harder, hitting places you didn't even knew existed when your back bend off the ground and heels dug into it, trying not to cum, not to cum, not-

"C-Can't - can't-mmmh!!"

"?" A low breath left him when you managed to break free, as if he didn't expect it but when your claws dragged down his back he panted.
Not in pain, but in surprise, not slowing down yet even when you saw fireworks, eyes staring at your expression instead when you couldn't cover your face.
You hated the eye contact, you hated how vulnerable it felt when he kept watching your every reaction to his body, as if you were some puzzle he tried to figure out-

"M̸ͫe̸ͤ. W̸a̸n̸t̸ ̸t̸o̸ ̸u̸n̸d̸e̸r̸s̸t̸a̸n̸d̸.̸ ̸ Y̸o̸u̸.̸"

His hand pinned your wrists back down, painfully pressing them into the ground and you tried to breathe against his hips slamming into you, sending shockwaves through your overstimulated body and there was a sudden dooming realization that you didn't even know if this man could even finish-

"F-Fuuck-!!!"

The next orgasm made you blank for a second, long enough that your leg was suddenly slung over his shoulder instead of hip as sharp teeth broke more skin, pain making your head dizzy.


Oh fuck

You couldn't think at all, your body was burning up from overstimulation and his touch, a cold thumb brushing and rubbing against you additionally as if he was trying to make you-

Can't

"No nonono - can't c-can't- can't-!!!"

"M̸ͫi̸ͥn̸ⷫe̸ͤ" He breathed just when you tightened again, this time with tears in your eyes when you couldn't even tense, only thrashing in his grip from how much energy was collecting in your body, how much everything hurt and burned and yet tingled up your spine in delicious pain-

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧr̸ͬ ̸B̸ⷡo̸ͦd̸ͩy̸ⷱ.̸ ̸"

"F-Fuck-!!!"

Mr. Scarletella grasped your chin, forcing his thumb into your mouth as you gagged with your eyes rolling back when he slammed into you, so deep you couldn't do anything but whimper when he gagged you and your vision blurred into red when you tasted blood mixed with your own juices.
"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧr̸ͬ ̸V̸ͮo̸ͦi̸ͥc̸ͨe̸ͤ.̸" His thumb slid even deeper, until you couldn't hold back the pained moans and whimpers coming from deep in your throat as his thrusts picked up again, jagged but forceful,

"A̸ͣᶫl̸ᶫl̸ ̸ͫM̸ͥi̸ⷫn̸ͤe̸.̸."

All mine

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸ ̸M̸ͫi̸ͥn̸ⷫe̸ͤ.̸"

Dark and possessive, poison on your tongue as he breathed those words into you and it took everything for you not to moan his name in return, trying to hold onto the small, fading slither of sanity you had in the pleasure your body suffered through.
Wave after wave, as if once he found the right buttons to press he used them to torment you relentlessly, hitting that same spot inside you over and over when your thighs couldn't even clench to hold onto him anymore-

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸w̸a̸ⷲn̸ͣt̸ⷫ ̸ͭM̸e̸ͫ.̸ͤ"

You want me

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸n̸e̸ⷫe̸ͤd̸ͤ ̸ͩM̸e̸ͫ.̸ͤ"

You need me

"S̸̾a̸ͣy̸ⷱ ̸i̸t̸ͥᵗ" He hovered over you, close to your mouth when he pulled you in harder as your body slid over the bloody concrete, the pool of your victims remains sticking to both of you and you felt so sick from the sensation it made your heart race harder.
It didn't feel like you thought it would, it felt so much worse and better than you ever imagined, insane, obsessed eyes staring at you as if you were the only thing he saw, out of a million humans and entities he just wanted you, he just needed you-

Please

"W-W̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ-"

"W̸ⷲo̸ͦr̸ͬᶫl̸ͩd̸.̸ͬ ̸ͤR̸ͩe̸d̸.̸"

"N̸ⷫe̸ͤe̸ͤd̸ͩ ̸y̸o̸ⷱu̸ͦᵘ-"

"E̸ͤv̸ͮe̸ͤr̸ͬy̸ⷱt̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥn̸ⷫᵍg̸.̸ ̸ͬR̸ͤe̸ͩd̸.̸"

"N-Need you - need you - Scarlet - ella-" You could barely form the words, repeating them over and over again when he finally removed his thumb from your mouth to slam his hand into the ground next to your head, rapidly picking up his pace.
It was rough, jagged as if he was losing control he had before and you panted, trying to endure the painful pleasure of all your nerves raw and open from how long he was torturing you, how intense he felt inside you like no one else.

"Please - p-please - P̸ⷬᶫl̸ͤe̸ͣa̸̾s̸ͤe̸-"

A low breath left him, suddenly stopping in his motion and you felt heat flood you when he groaned.
His hands pulled your hips in until he was sitting deep enough in you that you felt every throb of his seed roping into you, leaving you clinging to his wrists when you were so dizzy you were scared to fall despite your back bending off the ground.

"O-Oh fuck-"

He was filling you, giving you a few more jagged thrusts with low pants as he rode out his own orgasm in you while you tried not to pass out, taking gasping breaths and staring at the ceiling to try and find any point to focus now that your vision wasn't only red...

...fuck...

"M̸ͫi̸ͥn̸ⷫe̸ͤ.̸" He panted and his gaze burned on your skin, not releasing you when he leaned back down, his weight pushing down on you as if it actually exhausted him despite showing no real sign of it before and you gave a muffled pant underneath him.

...sticky...

His body wasn't cold anymore, strangely enough...
But your own felt sticky, covered in blood and sweat and all kinds of fluids and you breathed, the small afterglow keeping you lightheaded...

...he doesn't have any scars at all...

Even your nails scratching on his back didn't leave anything more behind than a trail of drying blood...
...you supposed that made sense for an entity that couldn't be hit.

...I...

...Oh god.

The realization that you just fucked the man that had more than a little obsession with you hit you with the force of a freight train, making you push against his chest.

"?"

Mr. Scarletella moved off of you, thankfully without more protest as you tried to sit yourself up but failed due to your shaking thighs.

Holy shit

As creepy and unsettling he was, god he was good.
Not like you had much experience, but you couldn't even remember the number of times you came and you felt his seed leaking out of you, enough that you knew it was visible.


Stop staring at me

Your dress was ripped to shreds, so much so that you couldn't even use the scraps to try and cover yourself and your raincoat was see-through - you had heard of 'Walk of Shames', but the idea of going back entirely naked and exposed made your heart race enough to where it made your head dizzy.

Not to mention the resident still staring at you, covered in blood just like you even though when his body shifted and reappeared, he was wearing his usual clothes again with the traces of blood gone from his face.

Great.

Couldn't you have that ability right now..?

"...?"
Mr. Scarletella stared down at you, almost questioningly and if he was out of breath it didn't show, not seeming hostile either when he just watched you try to stumble to your feet and grab your crowbar off the ground.

I need to get away

Who knew when his mood would swing into something more manic again now that he thought he owned you - to you, it had been dirty talk, but rationally with how he thought owning your name would make him own you, you doubt he saw it as the same.
The afterglow was fading fast into dread, and he seemed to sense your change in mood when his smile dropped from his face.
His hand moved, body disappearing for a second again before it came back into view in front of you, but he only held out his coat when you flinched.

"...Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸w̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸c̸ͨᶫl̸ͦo̸ͭt̸ͪh̸ͤe̸̾s̸?̸"

...huh...?

You blinked a little dumbfounded at him at the offer, the red light somewhat dimming down around him as he held the umbrella in his other hand again. Hair was covering his face so you couldn't even try to read his expression, but although he wasn't smiling, it didn't feel like a threat...

"...y-yea. T̸ͭh̸ͪa̸ͣn̸ⷫk̸ⷦ ̸y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͦ." You muttered hesitantly and reached a hand out to the fabric offered.
It was large, much too large for you but it'd do for now while you didn't have anything else until you were back...

...it's warm...

Leathery and much softer than you expected as it weighed heavy on your shoulders, but it was a strangely comforting kind of weight...


...I don't know what to say...

It was quiet, uncomfortably silent when you didn't know what to say, the embarrassment and shame sitting too deep in your bones and Mr. Scarletella just staring at you as if he was waiting for you to say something-

...what do you even say after something like this?

Thank you? I'm sorry? You didn't even have the vocabulary to say this was a mistake, nor did you think he'd care about your opinion on it, he killed you before for not telling him your name, so what if he'd just react with the same violence right now if you said something wrong-?

...I can feel my legs again

...it felt scummy...

But..

"ᵍG̸ͦo̸ͦo̸ͩd̸ ̸b̸ⷡy̸ⷱe̸ͤ-"

You didn't look back when you clutched the crowbar harder, swinging it at the entity when his head moved and for a second you almost felt resistance upon impact-

"!?"

But then his body disappeared like always, taking the red light with him as you didn't wait to leg it towards where you knew the elevator was as you expected him to chase after you -

"W̸ⷲh̸ͪy̸ⷱ?̸"

"...you want me like a human?"

...although when you glanced over your shoulder, Mr. Scarletella was gone.

Chapter Text

Mr. Scarletella's coat drew more attention than you'd like.
Not just because it was almost eye-soaringly red, nearly glowing compared to the lifeless, grey surroundings in the other world, but also because of the association it brought with.

...I could ask for clothes.

You knew the word for it that'd made the woman in dress appear, but you still felt too sticky and disgusting to willingly show yourself to anyone else, even if you were covered.
A small, shameful part of you also liked the heavy feeling of the fabric hugging you, a little bit like a weighted blanket or a hug.

...I wonder if he can just replicate them.

And why he just gave it to you.
Or why he didn't try to stop you from running away.

I don't get that guy at all.

You stopped for a moment when your feet accidentally stepped onto the coat, almost making you stumble when you didn't keep it pulled up.

...I'll rip it at that pace.

Your brows furrowed when you stared down and then sighed, rubbing your face with your hands and getting rid of more blood sticking to it. You hated how disgustingly sticky your body felt, the grimes of blood, innards and sex really not attractive at all once your high subsided and as you shut your eyes, you just imagined yourself to be as tall as Scarletella.
It hurt a bit to grow, kinda like a growth spurt especially when you didn't have the adrenaline to focus on any other sensation instead, even if your body began to get used to the pain. The additional exhaustion you felt wasn't helping either, and after a few seconds, you managed to grow at least tall enough to where the lower end of the coat wasn't dragging across the ground anymore.

...everyone is so tall in here.

The concrete hallways definitely looked less intimidating now that you almost reached the ceiling, and you pulled the coat back in place so it'd cover you better.

...I should try to get cleaned up.

Preferably before you'd reach Mr. Silvair's base even tho you knew there was a room to shower in, but you wanted to get a new dress and raincoat so you wouldn't have to show yourself with Scarletella's coat.

I couldn't answer why I have it anyways.

"M̸ͫe̸ͤ. W̸a̸ⷲn̸ͣt̸ⷫ ̸ͭt̸o̸ͭ ̸ͦu̸n̸ͧd̸ⷫe̸ͩr̸ͤs̸ͬt̸̾a̸ͭn̸ͣd̸ⷫ.̸ͩ ̸ ⷱY̸ͦo̸ͧu̸.̸"

...I should try and give it back sometime.

Looking back you felt a little bad about how you left off, he hadn't seemed hostile and you basically just tried to attack him for no reason because you thought he would do it too-

I didn't want to get hurt.

"...you want me like a human?"

...I probably shouldn't have done that.

Even if it felt good and weirdly empowering in the moment, you didn't even want to think of any repercussions this could have...

...I can't get pregnant, right-?

Your body stretched and deformed and you could die and regenerate, there was no way you could get pregnant from something like Scarletella.
Technically you could even remove entire organs, so maybe you'd just...imagine you didn't have anything that could pregnant in the first place.
It helped pass the initial shock at the thought at least, enough to where you could concentrate back on the arrangement of hallways you passed through.
It split into staircases, right, left and ahead leading upwards and from the paths you took before, you knew the right one would most likely lead to the painting...

I don't really want to deal with her right now.

On the left was probably the hair dressed judging by the marked door at the end, so you guessed further up was the way to go.

I'm way faster now.

Your additional height let you walk faster too, and if it wouldn't be so draining to keep up your height all the time, you'd definitely do it just to be able to get through these endless hallways faster-

"?"

...oh shit.

When you opened the metal door at the end of the broken room, you immediately recognized the pile of rubble in the middle in front of a broken entrance.
A collapsed ceiling, and while there were multiple destroyed rooms, the combination of rooms had unsuccessfully lead you to-

"B̸ⷡi̸ͥᵍg̸.̸?"

"No, wait-"

"ᶠF̸ͥᵍi̸ͪg̸ͭh̸t̸"

Mr. Machete.

The massive weapon came first at you, barely missing you when you dodge with a shriek.

Goddammit-

"Mr. Machete I'm NOT in the MOOD-!"

His body closed the distance from atop the entrance in a heartbeat, a hand lunging at you you just smashed away with your crowbar in return.
You were pretty sure you heard his skin tear and bones break from the impact but that didn't stop him at all, the air shifting again when he reappeared in the corner of your vision.

Fast-!

You knew how fast the resident was, especially when he was pumped with excitement as little as his slouching figure seemed to suggest that - he otherwise moved almost apathetically, usually not at all if he didn't have to wander around, but it still caught you off guard how he almost seemed to teleport in the blink of an eye.
The only thing that proved otherwise was the sound of rapid steps and the violent air draft his sudden movements brought, often telling you where he would appear before you actually saw him but your lower left-

It was the place you took the longest to defend, and when his hand impacted with your side, your body flung through the room and hit the concrete wall to your side with a loud, sickening crunch.
You coughed up blood, wheezing slightly when ribs pierced your flesh and pain blinded you for a second.
It would have been excruciating if you hadn't gotten used to the searing burn his attacks left on your body, although this time you couldn't tank through it like before when the drain of trying to keep your body this large made you dizzy additionally...

Don't pass out

"...?"

You tried to ignore the blanks your mind drew when you stared at the large figure looming over you, or crouching down and his lips pulled to a frown when you felt the collar of the coat dragged upwards.
"...?" Mr. Machete seemingly stared at you, or at least it felt like it behind his bandaged face and for a second it almost appeared to be worry when he didn't attack you again....

...dizzy...

Until he suddenly shook you, more violently than necessary and your eyes ripped open again at the pained groan leaving you.

"Ow-!" You huffed and tried to pull his hands off of you, but of course the brute didn't budge but at least he stopped shaking you when you reacted "What-!?"
"!"
He grinned again, as if you did something funny when he finally let go and your body slacked back against the wall behind you into the coat.

...I shrunk...

If it wasn't evident by how large the coat was again on you, it was by how tall the brute was even when crouching.
"W̸ⷲe̸ͤa̸ͣk̸ⷦᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷫᵍn̸g̸.̸ ̸S̸̾m̸ͫa̸ͣᶫl̸ᶫl̸.̸."

Asshole.

You wished you'd have the vocabulary to call him that but instead you just glared at him when he smirked down at you.
...at least he stopped fighting you for now.

...why did he stop though?

"I said N̸o̸.̸." You huffed and at the painful exhale you had to cough up more blood with a twisted expression.

My lungs hurt

Curse this brute and his damn strength, if the wall didn't crack your spine his hit alone was enough to break your ribs.
Mr. Machete tilted his head at you, as if he didn't understand what you said even though the single word should be obvious enough that you weren't in any mood to deal with him - if he wanted to kill you then he should just get it over with instead of just staring at you and waiting to heal.

He's probably waiting until I can stand up to attack me again.

You knew the amount of activities inside this world were very limited, but couldn't the guy get a better hobby than bullying you?
His hand raised and you involuntarily pulled your crowbar back up to block him, but he didn't try to lunge at you again when he instead just pointed at you.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸b̸i̸ⷡg̸ͥᵍ.̸ ̸Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ᶠf̸ͥᵍi̸ͪg̸ͭh̸t̸." He said with a grin, and you stared blankly at him. "Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸s̸m̸̾a̸ͫl̸ͣᶫl̸ᶫ.̸ ̸W̸ⷲe̸ͤa̸ͣk̸ⷦ.̸ ̸B̸ⷡo̸ͦr̸ͬi̸ͥn̸ⷫᵍg̸.̸"

...is he telling me he fought me because I was tall?

Did he think every time you grew in size that it was some sort of challenge to him?

Talk about a size complex.

Did he think everyone who was tall was automatically challenging him to a fight, too?

"I wasn't big to fight you-" You grumbled under your breath but at least it meant he wouldn't just crush you as soon as your body healed enough to move again. The bones in your body shifted uncomfortably, especially in your back and you felt more like a glowstick than a human right now with how every motion made something crack in response.
"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸ᶠf̸ᵍi̸ͥg̸ͭh̸ͪt̸.̸ ̸ͫM̸ͤe̸ ̸T̸ͭa̸ͣᶫl̸ᶫl̸ ̸C̸ͨᶫl̸ͦo̸ͭt̸ͪh̸ͤe̸̾s̸."

You pointed at the coat covering you and then lower to the end of it as you tugged, hoping that he would at least get that - not that it mattered much now because with how dizzy you still felt from having to heal your wounds, you doubted you could grow again without getting any rest beforehand.

Mr. Machete's head tilted down, as if to look at the end of your coat and then back up as his hand followed to point at you.

".. Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸F̸ᶠi̸ͥᵍg̸ͪh̸ͭt̸" He pulled away again, only to close his palm into a fist in front of his chest, but not as if he was trying to attack. More as if he was about to fist bump his other hand, until you realized what he was trying to imitate.

Umbrella.

He was imitating how one would hold an umbrella.
He was asking if you fought Mr. Scarletella.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸ ̸ͫM̸ͤe̸.̸̾ ̸ͣS̸ͫa̸ͤm̸e̸.̸"

You knotted your brows at the memory and just shook your head, the motion making you yelp at the unpleasant pain singeing through you when it moved your spine too quickly.
"...?" Mr. Machete tilted his head back down to the coat and you guessed he thought you took the coat off of Scarletella like some sort of trophy after defeating him...

...it was sort of weird that you just had it now, and you wondered if he again did it to imitate what he saw from other humans before.
Scarletella and Mr. Gap seemed to be the only ones that frequented the human world, and with what people tended to do in abandoned buildings like this one...

"M̸ͫe̸ͤ.̸ ̸ W̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ.̸ ̸ Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸ S̸̾a̸ͣm̸ͫe̸ͤ.̸ ̸ H̸ͪu̸ͧm̸ͫa̸ͣn̸ⷫ.̸"

...is he imitating what he saw humans do in general..?

Not just sex, but maybe he also saw someone handing another their jacket or hoodie to stay warm, so he thought that was something humans did?

...I wonder if he used to be human, too.

The longer one stayed in this world the more they forgot about their humanity and what made them a human, at least from what you had understood talking to Mr. Silvair..but the question who used to be human and who had been like this from the beginning mostly crossed you with people like the researcher, or Mr. Crawling...

Probably because you spend so much time with them and they seemed the most human-like understanding you and your language, while Mr. Scarletella was so cryptic in his appearances that you never...really got to know him.

It was sort of hard to try and get to know someone who was obsessed with you, ironically.

Not like I ever tried to seek him out.

"W̸ⷲh̸ͪy̸ⷱ?̸"

...

"...can I ask you something?" You muttered with a pensive expression and Mr. Machete leaned back, sitting down on the pile of rubble across you as he more so let his body drop.
The concrete crunched under his weight and you doubted it was very comfortable, but then again - the man probably didn't care much about comfort.

"?" He frowned at your words and you supposed he didn't understand what you said, or he was waiting for your actual question when you still thought on how to formulate it in their language.
"...Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸F̸ᶠi̸ͥᵍg̸ͪh̸ͭt̸." You raised a finger to point at him and then bumped your fists into each other to try and convey more meaning with the word.
"Wⷲhͪyⷱ?"

Why do you fight everyone?

You had met some residents that were violent, the person carrying a chainsaw for example but unlike them, Mr. Machete seemed aware of his surroundings to the point it was obvious he didn't just pick pointless fights - he didn't fight ghosts or anything he couldn't touch, he didn't fight Mr. Hugeface and he had told you before when he can't fight, he would avoid instead...
He doesn't bother himself to seek out weak residents to fight like the Child, or the time he accidentally saved you from Hugeface because he changed his mind on killing you when you turned small again - like now, when you're obviously too damaged to continue.

"Wⷲhͪyⷱ?" He repeated and the frown on his face turned back to a grin when he stretched out his arms, in a wide, sweeping gesture that made his chest puff.
It was a gesture as if he was going to present something to you, maybe some grand explanation...

But instead, he just shrugged with a toothy grin.

"W̸ⷲh̸ͪy̸ⷱ ̸n̸o̸ⷫt̸ͦ.̸ͭ"

His arms sank again and his lips pulled to a frown, and the answer was so expectedly simple that you just sighed.


...I guess he doesn't think about why.

" E̸ͤv̸ͮe̸ͤr̸ͬy̸ⷱt̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥn̸ⷫᵍg̸.̸ ̸ⷡB̸ͦo̸ͬr̸ͥi̸ⷫᵍn̸g̸.̸W̸ⷲe̸ͤa̸ͣk̸ⷦ.̸" He raised a hand back up to point at you from the small distance, and you felt your body healing enough to where you could actually move again, sitting yourself up again.
" Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸ ̸ᶠF̸ͧu̸ⷫn̸ⷫn̸ⷱy̸.̸"

...I'm funny?

You guessed he meant entertaining or interesting, furrowing your brows at the words and it was pretty much what you thought was the reason why he specifically sought you out to fight.

" T̸ͭa̸ͣᶫl̸ᶫl̸.̸ᶠ ̸ͥᵍF̸ͪi̸ͭg̸h̸t̸.̸ ̸ͪH̸ͧu̸ͬr̸ͭt̸.̸ ̸P̸ⷬa̸ͣi̸ͥn̸ⷫ.̸ ̸F̸ᶠu̸ͧn̸ⷫn̸ⷫy̸ⷱ.̸"

...I don't know what he's trying to tell me.

"... Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸l̸ᶫi̸ͥk̸ⷦe̸ͤ ̸p̸a̸ⷬi̸ͣn̸ͥ?̸ⷫ" You asked with a disbelieving frown and Mr. Machete grinned again, maybe a little too enthusiastically when he hit an open palm against his muscular chest.
He repeated the motion, in a quick beat and you gave him a blank stare.

...it makes his heart beat faster?

"You like the adrenaline?" You guessed and he snapped his fingers as if you got it - "So you do understand what I say-!"

And apparently, he also knew what that gesture meant, somehow.

Maybe he used to be a human.

This was probably by far the longest conversation you had with the man, and he was surprisingly more receptive than you thought he would be, although the most you learned about him was what you already suspected - that he liked the adrenaline and excitement of a good fight rather than anything too one-sided.

I guess I defeated him enough times that he thinks it's interesting.

It didn't exactly help in trying to find your own reason for why you turned violent when you didn't mean to...

He wanted the violence, but you didn't, at least you didn't want to want it...

...does that even make sense?

It wasn't like you hated it in the moment, but the aftermath of what you did weigh on you, like the few times your violence hit Mr. Crawling-

...I don't think I want to be like this.

"... Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸l̸ᶫi̸ͥk̸ⷦe̸ͤ ̸Y̸o̸ⷱu̸ͦ?̸ͧ" You muttered as you slowly pulled yourself back up on the wall, almost stumbling when your vision turned black for a second. It was luckily short enough to where you could hold onto the rubble to catch yourself, and you heard Mr. Machete get off the rubble as stones fell and tumbled down from his motion.

" M̸ͫe̸ͤ.̸ ̸ᶫL̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸ ̸m̸ͫe̸ͤ?̸"He repeated and metal screeched over concrete as you heard him pull his large weapon from the ground.
You weren't sure if he understood what exactly you meant when he just shrugged at that, dragging the weapon over the ground when he didn't bother lifting it and you forced yourself back onto your feet when he came closer.

He said he won't fight me-

Or you misunderstood because why else would he get his weapon before approaching you...?

" N̸ⷫo̸ͦ ̸F̸ᶠi̸ͥᵍg̸ͪh̸ͭt̸-̸!̸" You raised the crowbar over your head protectively when he closed the distance, but it wasn't very effective when his hand just swatted the tool aside as your body still felt too weak to put any strength behind your actions.

" W̸ⷲe̸ͤa̸ͣk̸ⷦᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷫᵍn̸g̸.̸"

Mr. Machete scoffed and you braced yourself for impact again as his hand rose, but instead, you saw how he moved it to the sharp blade of his weapon.
He dragged the palm along it, cutting deep into his hand and you blinked at him in confusion until he suddenly lowered it to grab you.

"H-Hey - mmnnn!!!"

The taste of blood flooded your mouth as he pressed the wound against you, grasping your face uncomfortably in an iron grip and you swallowed back involuntarily when you couldn't breathe.
It was coppery, a weird aftertaste you couldn't explain, and you tried to thrash against his grip but couldn't make him budge at all to free yourself.

...doesn't taste bad...

The longer he held you down, the more blood you were forced to swallow the more you grew used to the taste, the sensation of it running down your throat almost warming...

"..." Mr. Machete grunted, the painful grasp of his fingers digging into your cheeks fading and you didn't even realize you had started to suck on the wound instead of letting it flow on its own, but he didn't pull his hand away from you yet.

...warm...

You should stop, you doubted drinking blood was safe at all especially not from something like him but it made you feel better almost immediately, as if strength returned to your body...

M̸ͫo̸ͦr̸ͬe̸ͤ

Just when you wanted to press his hand more against your lips he pulled away, dragging you partly with him when you had been holding onto his wrist and you almost pouted in reaction at the withdrawal.

"..?" He grinned and looked down at his open palm, holding it up with the wound facing you as he waved it slightly, taunting you with the gesture when it was obvious you weren't happy about his reaction.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸w̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸B̸l̸ⷡᶫo̸ͦo̸ͦd̸ͩ?̸"

Mr. Machete turned his hand so the back faced you again when he took a few steps away with the weapon dragging over the ground, and then gave you a sharp toothy grin.
His combined fingers moved to make a beckoning gesture and you felt irritation rise when it was obvious what he meant.

Come at me

The message was clear, he was telling you if you wanted his blood you'd have to get it.

M̸ͫo̸ͦr̸ͬe̸ͤ

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧᶠF̸ͥᵍi̸ͪg̸ͭh̸t̸ ̸ͫm̸ͤe̸."

!!

The first swing hit into nothing when you closed the distance, Mr.Machete sidestepping rapidly enough for your crowbar to go into nothing and you gasped when his knee slammed into your chest.

K̸ⷦi̸ͥᶫl̸ᶫl̸

Ribs broke, but the pain dulled against the rage shooting up your spine along with it at how easily he could avoid your attacks, as if you moved in slow motion compared to him.

ᵍG̸ͬr̸ͦo̸ⷲw̸

You couldn't become faster than him but you could become bigger, so big that you could crush him like an annoying bug underneath your hand and your head hit the ceiling when it broke through with ease, until the resident looked almost comically small underneath you.

Your hand slammed into the ground, but not hitting him when he managed to lunge out of the way, something gleaming in the corner of your vision and then piercing your shoulder as you hissed.
His weapon buried deep into your flesh, and you thought for a second that it would at least leave him defenseless without it but then his body followed in a large leap.

!!

He managed to grab the handle, dragging the blade down your arm as you shrieked but he wasn't fast enough to pull it back out when you managed to catch his ankle in your hand.

"!?" Mr. Machete grunted with a snarling sound as you flung him off, bones breaking under your grip and his body slammed into the wall hard enough to break through.
That wouldn't stop him though and you knew that, throwing your fist down on him as well to try and stomp him but he rolled to the side, quick enough to only leave a gaping hole in his place.
His foot was flapping uselessly but he didn't seem to care about standing on the bone itself when he came back rushing at you, jumping back up right as you lifted your hand-

K̸ⷦi̸ͥᶫl̸ᶫl̸

You wanted to catch him right out of the air when he wouldn't be able to dodge you, but as soon as your fist closed around him, his weapon cut through your palm and you shrieked again in pain.

K̸ⷦi̸ͥᶫl̸ᶫl̸

It ripped through half your hand up to between your fingers and his own smallish arm broke through the flesh, almost climbing free if you didn't swat him with your other palm instead.
It made bones crack, his arm offering no resistance even when it lodged the machete deeper into your hand but instead of pulling away you squished your hands into a tight fist. You could feel resistance even at your size, limbs pushing against you when he snarled and you forced your body through the pain when you put as much strength into crushing him as possible-

D̸ͩi̸ͥe̸ͤ
D̸ͩi̸ͥe̸ͤ
D̸ͩi̸ͥe̸ͤ
D̸ͩi̸ͥe̸ͤD̸ͩi̸ͥe̸ͤD̸ͩi̸ͥe̸ͤD̸ͩi̸ͥe̸ͤD̸ͩi̸ͥe̸ͤD̸ͩi̸ͥe̸ͤD̸ͩi̸ͥe̸ͤ-

"!!!"

...huh..?

"...Mr. Machete...?"

...what was I doing?

You immediately let go, releasing your fists and his body almost hit the ground another level below you before you caught him again.

Oh no-

"Mr. Machete?" You repeated with more worry at the mangled body in your hand, staring down at him when he didn't move and the same, ugly feeling crawled up your back like before.

"...Mr. Crawling? Where...what did I...just do...?"

I didn't mean it

"W̸ⷲh̸ͪy̸ⷱ?̸"

I didn't mean it

Y̸o̸ᶫu̸ͥ ̸ͣd̸ͬi̸d̸

"I'm sorry - are you okay-? Mr. Machete-"

You tried to somewhat carefully set him down onto the pile of rubble again but his legs and arms looked too mangled, his spine twisted when you shrunk in shame, until you were back to looking up at the resident.


Did I kill him?

He wasn't moving, or breathing, just sitting leaned against the rubble with his body slouched and you didn't know what you were supposed to do.
"I'm sorry. I grew mad. I didn't mean to-" You just muttered and rationally, you knew he would simply heal - it wasn't the first time you killed him, but this time he hadn't been the one to start the fight, and he even helped you before so you felt all the worse for just...

"I..."

...why can't I control myself...?

"..."

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸ ̸ͫM̸ͤe̸.̸̾ ̸ͣS̸ͫa̸ͤm̸e̸.̸"

You blinked when you heard a throaty, hissing noise from the corpse in front of you.
It sounded like a wheezing breath coming from punctured lungs and smashed throat...

Not a breath.

A laugh.

Mr. Machete was laughing.

Quietly, probably from the lack of air he had to produce more than a raspy chuckle and your head snapped back up to stare at him nearly offendedly.

"I - What's so damn funny!?" You huffed when it sounded like he was laughing at you, and you quickly brought your hands up to wipe any tears from your face at how frustrated you had been about this asshole-

He keeps provoking me

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸ ̸ᶠF̸ͧu̸ⷫn̸ⷫn̸ⷱy̸.̸" Mr. Machete wheezed slightly, his voice sounding even rougher than usual. It had about the smoothness as sandpaper grating on stone, the open wounds only adding to how flat it sounded and you almost wanted to go grab your crowbar to hit him over the head with it and kill him for real.

Stop.

He moved with a weak groan, only to bring a mangled hand up though when you heard bones shift and crack - you weren't sure if it was from his healing, or if it was because of his fingers beckoning you closer again.

"...what..?"

" Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸f̸ᶠi̸ͥᵍg̸ͪh̸ͭt̸.̸ ̸Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸t̸a̸ͭk̸ͣe̸ⷦ.̸ͤ"

You blankly blinked at him when he smirked a bloody grin and tilted his head further to the side, opening the gash between his shoulder and neck more.

...huh...?

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸w̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸B̸l̸ⷡᶫo̸ͦo̸ͦd̸ͩ?̸"

"...are you telling me...to take your blood?" You said with some disbelief to your voice. "Because I won...?"

...he should be mad, shouldn't he be?

If he wouldn't be scared, or worried, he should be angry and go for revenge like before, where he'd just attack you out of the blue - but not remind you of the reason this whole fight even started, not when you didn't even really meant to make this a fair fight and instead go in with the intention to just kill him...

"...?" He turned his head slightly towards you as if he was waiting for you to move and you shook your head lightly to get rid of the thoughts racing through your mind.

I shouldn't

It would be the more rational thing not to do it, drinking blood wasn't exactly something a human would do even when the rapid growth left you feeling dizzy again..

...just...

Maybe...just enough that you could stand back up...
That way you could also help him with some of his wounds maybe, and the scent of blood was so strong that it made your mouth water even when you weren't actually drinking it.

"..."

Mr. Machete didn't move when you crawled towards his body leaning against the rubble, a bit awkwardly when you weren't exactly sure how to do it. His body was mangled, open bones visible and while you could try and suck from any of the open wounds, he had tilted his head to point out the gash on his neck, so you guessed that was where he wanted you to take it from-

...why did it have to be so close, though?

Drinking from his hand felt less personal than putting your mouth so close to his head, but maybe it was less painful there than anywhere else and you tried not to touch any other part of his body as you lightly sucked on the wound.
It was stiff, trying to keep your distance to the man despite the forced closeness and you swallowed back a small amount first.
Mr. Machete didn't move away, nor did he really show any sign of pain but you could feel his heartbeat against your lips, almost hammering in his chest.

...he's excited...

Probably from the fight and less from this, even though your own heart picked up in pace with your face flushing when your initial hesitation faded at the sensation of his blood running down your throat.

Warm...

A low grunt left him when you caught yourself biting down, opening the wound up more for easier access and his chest moved under your hand, his heart beating just as fast as yours.
Muscles tensed under marred skin and at the back of your mind, you wondered how many of them were actually from you...

!

You flinched when you felt fingers in your hair, biting down harder when you expected him to pull away again but instead of a pained groan, a laugh vibrated in his chest.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸ ̸ᶠF̸ͧu̸ⷫn̸ⷫn̸ⷱy̸.̸"

His voice sounded a little less wheezed, and you guessed his body repaired at a much faster rate than yours when he could already move again underneath you.

Underneath you-?

When exactly did you move from next to him to on top of him-?

" C̸ͨu̸ͧt̸ͭe̸ͤ."

...did he say cute-?

You swallowed back more blood as you wanted to force yourself off the wound, but his hand didn't budge from your hair when he instead pressed you more into him again.
"Mmng-!"

" W̸ⷲh̸ͪy̸ⷱ ̸f̸ᶠi̸ͥᵍg̸ͪh̸ͭt̸.̸" He grunted and his calloused hand wandered lower to press into your neck, involuntarily making you whimper when you swallowed again.
" Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸l̸ᶫi̸ͥk̸ⷦe̸ͤ ̸B̸l̸ⷡᶫo̸ͦo̸ͦd̸ͩ.̸ ̸Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸t̸ͭa̸ͣk̸ⷦe̸ͤ ̸B̸l̸ⷡᶫo̸ͦo̸ͦd̸ͩ.̸"

...why...?

You weren't sure what he was trying to say but it sounded questioning, not letting go and you sank back into the feeling, biting down more to draw out more when he hissed a groan.
His heart was beating fast and heavy under you, his body feeling hot on your naked thighs and the wave of energy his blood brought you made you shift in his lap...

"...?"

Mr. Machete's head leaned back, his hand still grasping your neck when he pulled you back with a lopsided grin and you had to catch your breath when you didn't even realize you had been holding it most of the time to drink from him.
" Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸w̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ?̸"

...huh...?

You slowly blinked when his other hand came up to point at you, and then lower to your stomach.

"...want what...?"

Was he asking if you were hungry or something...?

"I'm just...I'm not doing it because I'm hungry-", you muttered with furrowed brows and the urge to lean back down, but his grip was iron on your neck as if you were some cat he was holding up. "Mr. Machete-"

He shook his head, repeating the gesture although this time, he lifted his hips a little, pressing into you.

...

OH-

The realization of what he meant hit you as suddenly as realizing the hard object you sat on wasn't an object at all.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸w̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ?̸" He repeated with a frown, almost begrudgingly and you supposed it was because you had been sitting and moving on top of his boner the entirety of you sucking on his neck-

So he actually knew what sex was.

So did he just pretend he didn't get why he shouldn't touch your chest-!?

"Did you just play dumb before!?" You huffed at him almost accusatory and Mr. Machete tilted his head as if he didn't get what you said, or maybe he was doing the exact same thing to avoid admitting to it. "I meant with my chest - you did do it on purpose then, didn't you!?"

Your hand moved up to your chest, pointing at it and then back at him in the same breath and the frown on his face turned to a smug grin.

So it was on purpose.

"You - pervert-!" You scoffed when he smirked at you with a shrug, hitting against his chest and not feeling bad at all when it hit one of his bruised ribs.
His mouth twisted for a second, but what was more noticeable was that you felt him press more into you at that, making you yelp.

Masochist-

It was obvious he didn't just take normal excitement out of fights or getting hurt - as normal as one could be about that, at least.
It also excited him in other ways, and you could bet that drinking his blood was part of that, too. 

" Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸ ̸ᶠF̸ͧu̸ⷫn̸ⷫn̸ⷱy̸.̸" He smirked and you pulled on his wrist to make him let go of your neck, although he didn't release you even when you struggled.
" M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸l̸ᶫi̸ͥk̸ⷦe̸ͤ ̸y̸o̸ⷱu̸ͦ.̸ͧ"

Asshole

It was obvious he was mocking you, letting you struggle in his grip until he seemed to grow bored of it when he sat himself up more.
You hadn't even realized but almost all his wounds were healed again, only the gash you had bit open again and again still bleeding when he pulled you more into his lap, and catching your hand when you instinctively wanted to slap him for that.

"Well I don't like you-!" You huffed in return even when he was holding you in place, and the uncomfortable ache between your legs just worsened with how he was pressing into you.
Just like everything else on him, it felt large, and you didn't know how much time had actually passed between when you had met Mr. Scarletella and him -

But you hated that you didn't nearly mind it as much as you should.

" Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸w̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸t̸o̸ͭ ̸ͦh̸u̸ͪr̸ͧt̸ͬ?̸ͭ" He smirked, and the grip on your wrist turned painful when it threatened to break as you yelped.

" M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸c̸ͨa̸ͣn̸ⷫ ̸h̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸"

His hand moved from your neck to your throat, forcing your head back as it squeezed around you and you choked out a whimper at how roughly he handled you - you knew he was a brute, but what did he think he was doing-?

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸w̸a̸ⷲn̸ͣt̸ⷫ?̸ͭ"

Mr. Machete's grip on your throat and wrist loosened again, just enough to where you could breathe more easily as he grinned wolfishly at you and you didn't know what the point of his question was if he wanted to fight you again...

...it's not about a fight, is it..?

"M̸ͫe̸ͤ.̸ ̸ W̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ.̸ ̸ Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸ S̸̾a̸ͣm̸ͫe̸ͤ.̸ ̸ H̸ͪu̸ͧm̸ͫa̸ͣn̸ⷫ.̸"

...he's asking about what I want.

Your face heated up all the more, the rough hand on your throat suddenly feeling much more invasive than it had ever before when he smirked at you.

"I...u-uhm..."

I...

As little as your body didn't mind it, as dizzy and lightheaded his blood made you you couldn't ignore the bright red coat you wore and that it still felt like you just parted from Mr. Scarletella-

It's too much

...is he even going to listen to me...?

"C'mon don't be like that, not like you didn't ask for it going to a place like this-"

He'll just ignore me

But I don't want to

You swallowed hard, your mouth suddenly feeling dry at the position you were in and Mr. Machete tilted his head to the side curiously.

"...?"

"No no, don't act shy now, you're the one following us around all the time so the least you can do is give the boys some entertainment!"

"..."

His grip on your throat loosened until he let go of you and you released the breath you hadn't even realized you were holding at that when you slid off his lap onto the concrete ground again.

...?

"...w̸ⷲh̸ͪy̸ⷱ...?"

Why did you stop..?

The question was so quiet that you doubted he actually understood it when he stood back up, only shrugging.
It was a nonchalant answer, as if he didn't care much and you felt a disgusting sense of guilt crawl up as if you had led the man on when that wasn't your intention.

"I - I'm sorry." You just muttered, more for yourself than him. "I just...I can't. M-Maybe next time."

It's not like I hate the thought...

You just...needed a moment to think.

"...?" Mr. Machete picked up his weapon again, turning slightly towards you as if he was expecting you to move.

"...you want me to follow you...?"

...where to?

You stumbled back onto your feet, pulling the coat tighter around you and lifting the ends so it wouldn't drag over the floor as you picked up your crowbar on the way to him...

...is he going to bring me back to Mr. Silvair...?

...you guessed you'd find out.

Chapter Text

Mr. Machete hadn't brought you back.

You had thought that he would maybe accompany you - but only another hallway further, you had actually realized why he had wanted you to follow him as soon as you caught sight of the large ravine.

"Hey - w-wait - WAIIIIIIIIT-!!!"

Throwing you seemed to be his favourite past time hobby now ever since you first asked him to do it, and although the ravine did block your way back to Mr. Silvair's base, you still felt a little salty about the action.

He could've given me a heads up at least.

..you couldn't say thank you or goodbye either because he hadn't come with you, just throwing you across the ravine and then walking away again.

Actions over words I suppose.

You doubted he was interested in getting your thanks either way.

And the remaining way back was uneventful thankfully, allowing you to arrive back at Silvair's base with the familiar set of doors next to a hatch on the wall...

You slowly pushed open the door to the researcher's room, spying Mr. Chopped's head lying on the bed, albeit with shut eyes.

...maybe I can get through without being seen.

There was a pipe spewing water you had used as a shower head further ahead past Mr. Silvair's personal research room - down a hatch on the ground where his weird dungeon was, even if you didn't like the idea of being alone down there.

...I didn't see Mr. Crawling yet...

Maybe he was in the other room resting, or he was somewhere else trying to find you.

"...you want me like a human?"

...why am I even hiding?

It wasn't like you did anything wrong, but you also didn't want to give anyone the wrong idea...
...would anyone even really care about what you did, though?

You actually never thought about something like relationships in here - but if Mr. Machete was actually aware what sex was, enough to just ask you about it, you guessed that counted for every resident in here.
Or at least those that used to be human?

...they probably have a different understanding of it.

...still.

You weren't really comfortable giving anyone the wrong impression, so instead of waking Mr. Chopped you had quietly opened the luke leading down into Mr. Silvair's research area, leading to where you could get properly cleaned up again.

I lost my groceries.

It had occurred to you a bit ago but as you sat down on your own bed after finally having the grimes of blood and innards off of you, you realized that the reason you had even taken that trip was for nothing now.
Not that it was too important, you had just gotten some sweets you wanted to share with Mr. Crawling and Mr. Silvair, and maybe hand out some to residents that had helped you before like Mr. Hood or the Bride - the most frustrating thing was that you didn't get the hair accessories you wanted to use on Mr. Chopped since you weren't sure if the man could actually eat.

...I didn't feel hungry in a while...

The longer you stayed here, the more everyday needs faded from your memory...
Food, Drinking, even the toilet or technically a shower - at some point your body just looked like before even if you did nothing about it, but you didn't like just waiting around until the issue would fix itself.
Even if the water you could use was cold.

...let's see...

"...C̸ͨᶫl̸ͦo̸ͭt̸ͪh̸ͤe̸̾s̸?̸"

!

As expected, a figure suddenly emerged out of nowhere from in front of you, and the Bride raised her hand as if to greet you.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸w̸a̸ⷲn̸ͣt̸ⷫ ̸ͭc̸l̸ͨᶫo̸ͦt̸ͭh̸ͪe̸ͤs̸̾?̸" She lightly waved the dress in her other hand, seemingly already knowing what you were going to ask for. You actually wondered if she could choose to appear or if it happened if she wanted to or not...

...but she seems to like handing out clothes.

Maybe she was the one that somewhat dressed all the other residents in here, too?

"...T̸ͭh̸ͪa̸ͣn̸ⷫk̸ⷦ ̸y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ" You smiled at her politely and she waved her hand when she disappeared again without another trace, leaving you to dress yourself.
It was more comfortable than only the red coat, but now you weren't exactly sure what you were supposed to do with it...

...guess I'll hang it to my uniform for now.

Strangely enough, it wasn't damaged or even dirtied despite the fact it should have been, proving again that nothing in this world really worked on real logic - maybe it was due to Scarletella's invincible nature that it was the same for his clothes?

...?

"?"
The door to your room opened by a gap and you turned, half expecting to see Mr. Crawling come in until silver hair came into sight, looking almost white against the electric light above you.

"Hello Mr. Silvair" You waved lightly at him and he tilted his head with a smile, as if he hadn't expected you either. "I'm back - sorry, but I lost the groceries on the way again. I'll try to get some next time..."

"...?"
The door opened a little further as the researcher stepped in, straightening his head again when he raised a hand to point at the red coat in you were just about to put away.

Oh

"Uhm - Mr. Scarletella...gave it to me." You just muttered and his smile didn't change, making it hard to tell what he was thinking about your words. From how long you had been here and some of his reactions, you knew he understood you probably the most by now - being the person you also tended to ask more about words or other residents since he seemed to be the smartest, or at least the one being the most aware of what was happening in this world.

...even if his methods are sometimes unconventional.

You'll never forget the day you first stepped into his 'research room' only to be met with what looked like a horror movie scene.

Still happens sometimes.

"...?" Mr. Silvair closed a fist in front of his chest, imitating the same gesture of carrying an umbrella like Mr. Machete had done before and you nodded lightly as confirmation. " Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸H̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ?̸"
His tone was soft-spoken, with light worry and even the way he spoke sounded a little like you imagined a doctor or nurse would - gentle and reassuring but still direct.

"No. N̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸h̸u̸ͪr̸ͧt̸ͬ.̸ͭ" You muttered and hung the coat into the closet, shutting the door on it for now as you turned to the man. "He was..."

...nice? That wasn't exactly what you wanted to say, but you also had never really been the best at expressing yourself even when you didn't have a language barrier.
"N̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸d̸ͩa̸ͣn̸ⷫᵍg̸ͤe̸ͬr̸.̸ " You lightly shook your head and formed your hand to a fist as well to imitate Scarletella. "He...ᵍG̸ͦo̸ͦo̸ͩd̸ ̸r̸ͬe̸ͤs̸̾i̸ͥd̸ͩe̸ͤn̸ⷫt̸ͭ.̸"

At least this time.

"...?" The researcher looked back at the shut closet and then to you at the words, and he didn't even need to say it to make it obvious he was confused. It didn't change the smile on his face, nor did he ask any more about it when he went to shut the door again as you sat down on the bed...

...I'm really tired.

"Wait-"
He stopped at your call, and you raised your hands to try and imitate a crawling motion in the air.

"W̸ⷲh̸ͪe̸ͤr̸ͬe̸ͤ?̸"

"?" Mr. Silvair tilted his head for a moment and then pointed out the door, which you guessed meant that Mr. Crawling had gone out as well.


...I guess I'll have to wait for him, then.

"...thank you. I'll try to get some sleep now..." You yawned and he nodded, probably more from context clues and your noises than your actual words when he softly shut the door behind him.

...you just hoped Mr. Crawling would be fine.

He survived in here without me, too

..it didn't really help against your worry, though.

"EEEEEEK!!!"

By the time you woke back up, it was due to the sound of a loud screech.

Mr. Chopped-!?

You recognized the cry even half-asleep, tossing the blanket aside when you were still dizzy from the quick motion and throwing the door open to the room next to you the screaming had come from and hearing the sound of heavy metal hitting concrete-

!!

Blood splattered just short of your feet when you froze in place, followed by the heavy thud of the body across you hitting the floor as its bagged head hit the ground.

"Mr. Silvair-?"

His large axe sank when seemed to notice your arrival, not looking much more bothered than usual as he smiled.
It was a little unnerving considering there was a corpse in front of him now, but he was holding Mr. Chopped in one arm so you guessed the other must have attacked him beforehand...
"Everything okay?" You still asked and stepped around the blood, careful not to get too close to the body and you actually recognized it...


The chainsaw woman.

You hadn't encountered her too often luckily, most times just hiding from her since she was one of those non-sentient residents apparently from what you had understood...
The bagged head of hers had rolled to Mr. Silvair's feet and as you came closer, he handed you the man with a smile.

"N̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸h̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ.̸"

"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸S̸̾c̸ͨa̸ͣr̸ͬe̸ͤd̸ͩ!̸" Protested the head with a pout and his eyes moved to stare in the direction of the body with a frown. "I̸ͥt̸ͭ ̸a̸ͣt̸ͭt̸ͭa̸ͣc̸ͨk̸ⷦ!̸ ̸M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸c̸ͨa̸ͣn̸ⷫ'̸ͭt̸ ̸m̸ͫo̸ͦv̸ͮe̸ͤ!̸ ̸H̸ͪe̸ͤ ̸H̸ͪe̸ͤᶫl̸ⷬp̸"


...it attacked him and Mr. Silvair helped.

You figured as much from seeing the aftermath of the scene, and you were glad he wasn't hurt as you just patted his head to try and calm him down a bit.
Mr. Chopped had been one of the first entities you encountered in this world, and although he scared you a great bit simply for being a cut-off head that could talk, you had grown to view him as a good friend by now...
And someone who needed to be protected, because it was obvious that he couldn't do it himself since he didn't have a body.

...I still wonder what happened to it.

"...how did she get here?" You knitted your brows at the body on the ground as Mr. Silvair picked up her head in one arm. "Did she just barge in?"

He turned his head to you, tilting it lightly and you thought he didn't understand you until he shrugged when he seemingly didn't know himself.
" M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸r̸ͬe̸ͤs̸̾e̸ͤa̸ͣr̸ͬc̸ͨh̸ͪ.̸" The man leaned down again, grasping the back of her collar and you carefully sat Mr. Chopped back down on the bed, realizing the hand that usually accompanied him was gone, too.


I guess that's how she got so far.

It had usually functioned as a lookout, getting help when Mr. Chopped was in trouble but maybe when the shake happened it was split from them like Mr. Crawling...?

"Wait, I'll help..." You leaned down to attempt to grab the body to carry it with him, but Mr. Silvair wasn't trying to lift it. Instead, he simply pulled it up to drag it over the ground, waving you off with a hand and a smile as if to signal he didn't need the support...

It was a little unnerving seeing him drag a beheaded woman into the back room though, leaving a trail of blood on the ground and a second later, you heard heavy cuffs click into place.
Mr. Silvair stopped seeming intimidating to you a while ago, mostly because the man showed how gentle and supportive he was otherwise protecting Mr. Chopped and explaining to you their language and world - unlike Mr. Machete he wasn't one to jump into fights or violence, but...

"How...did you help me...?"
"M̸e̸ ̸b̸r̸e̸a̸k̸ ̸b̸o̸d̸y̸.̸ ̸A̸g̸a̸i̸n̸.̸ ̸A̸g̸a̸i̸n̸.̸ ̸Y̸o̸u̸ ̸H̸e̸a̸l̸.̸ ̸Y̸o̸u̸ ̸C̸h̸a̸n̸g̸e̸.̸"

...you also faintly remember that axe hitting you over and over again until you'd come back changed.

I know he did it to help me...

But every time you were reminded that the only difference between Mr. Silvair's research and outright torture was the fact he didn't mean to hurt the residents.

...I hope, at least.

"M̸ͫe̸ͤ. W̸a̸n̸t̸ ̸t̸o̸ ̸u̸n̸d̸e̸r̸s̸t̸a̸n̸d̸.̸ ̸ Y̸o̸u̸.̸"

...a lot in this world works on intentions, I think.

Many actions inside here seemed so horrifying and scary to you when you first came here - Mr. Crawling moving on all fours, Mr. Silvair's bloody research, Mr. Machete fighting you - it all seemed a lot more sinister at first, you thought you should be scared of them because of how these things, but...

"M̸e̸ ̸b̸r̸e̸a̸k̸ ̸b̸o̸d̸y̸.̸ ̸A̸g̸a̸i̸n̸.̸ ̸A̸g̸a̸i̸n̸.̸ ̸Y̸o̸u̸ ̸H̸e̸a̸l̸.̸ ̸Y̸o̸u̸ ̸C̸h̸a̸n̸g̸e̸.̸"

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸b̸i̸ⷡg̸ͥᵍ.̸ ̸Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ᶠf̸ͥᵍi̸ͪg̸ͭh̸t̸."

...I guess that's just how they are.

""Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸g̸ᵍi̸ͥv̸ͮe̸ͤ ̸n̸a̸ⷫm̸ͣe̸ͫ.̸ͤ ̸W̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸n̸ⷫa̸ͣm̸ͫe̸ͤ.̸ ̸ⷲW̸ͣa̸ⷫn̸ͭt̸.̸ⷫ ̸ͣN̸ͫa̸ͤm̸e̸.̸

...I wonder if they're ever aware enough to understand why I was scared.

"...can I ask you something?" You muttered from the doorframe, with a pensive expression as you watched Mr. Silvair standing over the body on the metal table with a bone saw.
He turned his head towards you and nodded lightly, the sentence coming from you often enough that he seemed to understand it effortlessly.
Rivulets of silver strands flowed over his shoulder, drenched with blood now but if he minded the mess he didn't show it as he instead pressed the cuffed hand down to begin sawing.

I hate the noise

It was loud, flesh tearing apart in a wet, squelching noise with bones following when you wished he'd actually stop during your conversation - but you didn't want to force him to quit his work either, you knew the resident would eventually heal and get aggressive again...
It still didn't feel like an appropriate topic for what you originally wanted to ask, so you instead just shook your head.

...might as well ask something else...

"...N̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸s̸̾e̸ͤn̸ⷫt̸ͭi̸ͥe̸ͤn̸ⷫt̸ͭ.̸?" You asked and pointed at the body, and Mr. Silvair shook his head in agreement. "N̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸s̸̾e̸ͤn̸ⷫt̸ͭi̸ͥe̸ͤn̸ⷫt̸ͭ a̸ͣt̸ͭt̸ͭa̸ͣc̸ͨk̸ⷦ?"

He tilted his head as if he wasn't sure what you meant by the question, and you weren't sure if you could fully explain it when you furrowed your brows.
"...how do I...uhm...Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ" You pointed at him, his bloody hand following when he lifted it to mimic your gesture to himself. "Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸s̸̾e̸ͤn̸ⷫt̸ͭi̸ͥe̸ͤn̸ⷫt̸ͭ.̸ ̸Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸a̸ͣt̸ͭt̸ͭa̸ͣc̸ͨk̸ⷦ.̸"

Mr. Silvair nodded, pausing for now in his work seemingly to try and understand what you were trying to tell him, even when you didn't know exactly yourself either.
You moved back to the body on the table, pointing at it.

"N̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸s̸̾e̸ͤn̸ⷫt̸ͭi̸ͥe̸ͤn̸ⷫt̸ͭ.̸ ̸A̸ͣt̸ͭt̸ͭa̸ͣc̸ͨk̸ⷦ.̸"

He nodded again and now would be the actual harder part you wanted to ask...

So why do non-sentient entities get aggressive?

And why were there still aggressive entities that were sentient?

...where's the line...?

"...Mr. Machete - uhm...how do I describe him-"

You thought of how he imitated Mr. Scarletella since technically none of the things you called them were their actual names-


...so how do I describe him?

You just tried to slouch in your standing, like he usually would as you hoped Mr. Silvair would get it, along with bumping your fists together and his head tilted curiously.

"H̸ͪe̸ͤ.̸ ̸ͣᶫA̸ⷲl̸ͣw̸ⷱa̸̾y̸s̸ ̸ͣA̸ͭt̸ͭt̸ͣa̸ͨc̸ⷦk̸.̸" You spoke and his mouth opened slightly, as if in realization of who you meant when it turned to a smile again. "H̸ͪe̸ͤ ̸N̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸S̸̾e̸ͤn̸ⷫt̸ͭi̸ͥe̸ͤn̸ⷫt̸ͭ?̸"

Mr. Silvair chuckled and you weren't sure if he understood your question when he shook his head lightly, bringing a bloody hand up to tape against the side of his head.
Then he moved it away again, bringing the tip of his index finger and thumb close together in a narrow gap when he smirked...

"[][][]" He said and it was a new word you hadn't heard before, so what did it mean...?

...he says Mr. Machete is sentient...

You intensely stared at the motion when he repeated it again with a chuckle, tapping against his head and then pinching his fingers together...

...is he saying his brain is small-?

"Stupid? Are you saying he's sentient but stupid?"

"S̸̾t̸ͭu̸ͧp̸ⷬi̸ͥd̸ͩ.̸" repeated the researcher with a grin and you held back a laugh when you felt a little bad, but it made sense - Mr. Machete did seem a little simple at times, at least when it was regarding forethought...

"W̸ⷲh̸ͪy̸ⷱ ̸n̸o̸ⷫt̸ͦ.̸ͭ"

...you almost admired the unabashed confidence he had in himself, though...

"...so why? W̸ⷲh̸ͪy̸ⷱ ̸a̸ͣt̸ͭt̸ͭa̸ͣc̸ͨk̸ⷦ?̸"

Mr. Silvair lowered his hand again to the bonesaw, only to lightly tap on it as it seemed more like an idle motion as he thought over your question.
"...M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸r̸ͬe̸ͤs̸̾e̸ͤa̸ͣr̸ͬc̸ͨh̸ͪ.̸ ̸N̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸k̸ⷦn̸ⷫo̸ͦw̸ⷲ.̸" He replied finally and the frustration must've shown on your face when he gave you an apologetic smile. You supposed even if he knew it would take more than the limited vocabulary you have to fully explain, and you sighed when the conversation didn't give you any more insight like you had hoped.

Who even decides what is sentient or not?

Mr. Machete was out for blood all the time but the researcher said he was still sentient, but when you attacked him...

"S̸̾e̸ͤn̸ⷫt̸ͭi̸ͥe̸ͤn̸ⷫt̸ͭ.̸ ̸C̸ͨh̸ͪa̸ͣn̸ⷫᵍg̸ͤe̸.̸"

W̸h̸o̸ ̸d̸o̸e̸s̸ ̸h̸e̸ ̸t̸h̸i̸n̸k̸ ̸h̸e̸ ̸i̸s̸ ̸t̸o̸ ̸j̸u̸s̸t̸ ̸d̸e̸c̸i̸d̸e̸ ̸t̸h̸a̸t̸ ̸f̸o̸r̸ ̸m̸e̸?̸

...that was mean.

"...can I ask something else?" You decided to switch the topic and he picked the saw back up. "T̸ͭe̸ͤa̸ͣc̸ͨh̸ͪ ̸ᶫm̸ͫe̸ͤ?"

He nodded and then the squelching noise picked back up when he continued to saw into the wound, until the lower leg separated just above the knee. Blood pooled onto the table, but for some reason, the scent of it just made you lightly nauseous, even though you had drunk blood off of Mr. Machete before...

...maybe it was just his that had some weird effect on you...?

"What do you call...uhm..."


...how do I ask what relationship means-?

You couldn't point to it like you did with objects, or imitate it like for people - if you'd point at yourself and him you doubted he'd think of the word 'friends' instead of just 'person' or 'resident'...

...maybe I should try to figure other things out first...

"...what do you call...this?"

This is embarrassing

You shyly held your fist up with your thumb stuck between your index and middle finger, and Mr. Silvair looked back up from his work to your hand.

"...?"

...maybe he doesn't know what that gesture actually means.

You felt obscene for even asking about it but you somewhat needed to know - at least if you wanted to talk about it, and what it meant in this world and the researcher seemed to sense your embarrassment as he lightly chuckled.

"...[][][]?" He asked, and you weren't sure if that was what you meant when he repeated the gesture with a smirk. It felt off seeing him do it with how polite he usually was and you felt a little bad that you even taught him in the first place when he didn't know what it meant...

Or so you thought until his hand lowered to instead point at your stomach.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸w̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ m̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸t̸ͭe̸ͤa̸ͣc̸ͨh̸ͪ ̸y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ?̸"

...my stomach again?

Mr. Machete had pointed at it, too, and you slowly had the feeling it might be their way of signaling sex, for some reason.

...maybe because of the womb being there?
...or pregnancy?

You weren't too sure and you didn't think you would get any real answer asking why it was that gesture for them, but at least Mr. Silvair could tell you the vocabulary about it?
Your nod was met with a chuckle when he turned to the door, pointing to outside and then back at the body on the table.

He repeated the motion, and you supposed he was trying to tell you to wait outside - or maybe wait until he was finished with his research here so he could concentrate.

"Oh - I'll uh...I'll wait." You cleared your throat when you realized just how much you had distracted him, quickly moving out of the room and quietly shutting the door behind you when you were left in the barren bedroom instead.
There was still blood sticking to the floor you avoided stepping in, instead sitting down on the bed careful not to wake Mr. Chopped. He moved a little, at least his expression when his brows furrowed as if he was having an unpleasant dream and you lightly put a hand on his hair to try and calm him down...

...I wonder if Mr. Silvair made him like this.

When you had asked about his body he hadn't answered, as if he either didn't remember or didn't like talking about it...

...but I guess if he had done that to him, the two wouldn't be friends still...

"M̸e̸ ̸b̸r̸e̸a̸k̸ ̸b̸o̸d̸y̸.̸ ̸A̸g̸a̸i̸n̸.̸ ̸A̸g̸a̸i̸n̸.̸ ̸Y̸o̸u̸ ̸H̸e̸a̸l̸.̸ ̸Y̸o̸u̸ ̸C̸h̸a̸n̸g̸e̸.̸"

...probably.

"...?"

You were woken up again by the feeling of a hand on your shoulder, making you hum lightly when your consciousness was pulled more into reality.
Your head felt a little dizzy, with a dream you couldn't quite remember aside from the color red but when you opened your eyes, you instead saw strands of silver hair.

"...Mr. Silvair...?"

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸a̸ͣw̸ⷲa̸ͣk̸ⷦe̸ͤ?̸" He asked in a hushed tone and you blinked a few times more, realizing the head you had hugged in your sleep as Mr. Chopped rested against your chest.
You couldn't see his face so you guessed he was still asleep with how Mr. Silvair spoke, carefully letting go of him as you sat yourself up and yawned.

...I fell asleep.

There was no time in this world to go by, but technically you had woken up because of the commotion the attack caused before, so it wasn't too surprising that you had still been tired...
"C̸ͨo̸ͦm̸ͫe̸ͤ" He beckoned you over to where the luke was and you blinked.

...right, I wanted to learn more stuff.

You supposed he wouldn't teach you vocabulary in here since Mr. Chopped was still sleeping, and that the other room was still occupied with...whatever remains there were of his research.
So you carefully slid off the bed, lightly stepping over the ground to follow him down the luke and pulling it shut quietly behind you as you climbed the rusty ladder.
The hallways of his base were familiar enough that you could orientate yourself rather quick, passing the room where you knew he kept his cages and trapped experiments, as well as the small jail cells this place held...

" Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸c̸a̸ͨn̸ͣ ̸ⷫs̸p̸̾e̸ⷬa̸ͤk̸ͣ?̸ⷦ ̸Y̸o̸ⷱu̸ͦ ̸ͧu̸n̸ͧd̸ⷫe̸ͩr̸ͤs̸ͬt̸̾a̸ͭn̸ͣd̸ⷫ?̸ͩ"

...you still got shivers at the memory of being stuck inside one of them yourself.

"...where are we going...?"

Mr. Silvair turned his head to look back at you at the question, only pointing to another door that was usually locked past the windowed hallway looking into nothing.
Only light was streaming in, dying everything in sunset colors even though you couldn't see anything past them and you realized he wasn't covered in blood anymore like before.

...maybe he took a shower, too?

His clothes were still partly discolored, the old white lab coat torn and smeared with blood from the attack, and you wondered if those were remains of what he wore when he first came here, or if the Bride had given him that...

The door opened to another room, although this one wasn't barren.
It was filled with papers stuck to the wall and partly ground, a weird scripture you guessed was their written language as well as anatomical drawings and you blinked.
There was a desk, several papers in stacks as well as some furniture - a barren but large hospital bed, crates and jars filled with something that looked like guts or innards and you realized this was most likely where he actually wrote down his research.

...does he want to show me?

You half expected some sort of sex-ed illustration he'd show you when he pointed for you to sit down on the bed, following the silent order.
In that position Mr. Silvair seemed even taller, standing a few heads taller as he looked down at you with a smirk until he sat down next to you.

The bed creaked under both your weight, and you shuffled a little to the side to leave more room for him but he waved a hand in a so-so motion as if he didn't see it as necessary.


He's so close though-

As much time as you had spent with the researcher, you weren't much of a touchy person and neither was he, unlike Mr. Crawling who sometimes would cuddle with you or pat your head - not as if Mr. Silvair was cold or distant, but he didn't seem the type for casual touch around you...

"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸t̸ͭe̸ͤa̸ͣc̸ͨh̸ͪ ̸Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸" He said with a reassuring smile and maybe your confusion was obvious to him when it sounded like he was calming you down. " ̸Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ w̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ?̸"

"Uhm...yeah." You nodded in agreement and he raised a hand to point at his mouth.
His palm turned to you when he gestured at your mouth next and your brows furrowed.
Was he telling you to repeat after him?

"Uhm, okay-"

Mr. Silvair smirked again and you patiently waited for him to say something...

Until he suddenly leaned forward.

..huh-?

Soft and slightly chapped lips pressed against yours, making your eyes widen when you froze in place from the sensation.

H-Huh!?

It made your whole body tense when your face heated, his mouth moving against yours when you felt a bit too overhwelmed to react at first, and after another second he pulled away again from you.
Mr. Silvair smiled as you gave him a flustered stare and his hand raised again to point at his lips.

"[][][]" He said, the word unfamiliar but from the context you suddenly understood what it meant.

Kiss

" K̸ⷦi̸ͥs̸̾s̸̾?" You whispered and cleared your throat so your voice wouldn't crack, still staring at him and he nodded as you successfully repeated it.
His lips parted, and he stuck out his tongue pointing at it with another word you didn't understand and you tensed again when he leaned back forward.

Wait-

The kiss muffled your small protesting noise, feeling his lips part as his tongue slid against yours with a hot sensation running up your back.
Was he - just trying to do this to teach you-?

It wasn't bad, but you were overwhelmed at the sudden action and your face was burning up at how unashamedly he acted about it - if he didn't mind the idea of just doing these things with you, then did that mean he just saw it as something normal-?

Not that it wasn't normal, but it was a little strange he wanted to teach you this stuff hands-on-

You panted lightly when he parted from you again, ignoring the small string of saliva connection you when you swallowed back his taste with a red face.
"[][][]K̸ⷦi̸ͥs̸̾s̸̾." He hummed and you figured that was the word for 'tongue', biting down your lower lip lightly.


I...
I don't know how much I like this

The fact he brought you down here to a bed out of all places made it dawn on you that he maybe thought he had to teach you everything-
Which wasn't true, you knew what sex was, you just needed the vocabulary for it and this felt like some sort of misunderstanding, like you agreed to something you didn't actually mean-

"?" Mr. Silvair tilted his head at you and you swallowed again, still sucking on your lower lip as if that'd preserve his taste, and you didn't think much on how attractive you found him - he was nice and patient with you, he helped you-

"N̸ⷫo̸ͦ ̸G̸ᵍo̸ͦ ̸a̸ͣw̸ⷲa̸ͣy̸ⷱ.̸ ̸"

But he had also trapped you in a cell and broken your body over and over again until you were sentient again, and it felt as if the rational part of you that knew he had done it to help you was breaking away into the nervousness you always had around him.

...or was your heart beating this hard because you liked the idea of sleeping with him?

I can't tell

"...c..can you..." You raised a hand to point back at your mouth when he kept watching you and you figured if he kissed you again maybe you'd realize what you felt.


It's not like I hate the idea...

It didn't repulse you, you found him attractive in a way, kinda like you did with Mr. Machete and you suppose Scarletella, even though this meant...less, you figured.
For Mr. Silvair it was probably just something he did to teach you, while Scarletella did it because he wanted you, and Mr. Machete offered out of boredom-

...I can stop if I want

...you were sure Mr. Silvair would stop if you'd genuinely wanted him to, right...?

The researcher smiled reassuringly as if he read your mind, or simply the nervousness you emitted when he leaned back forward slower this time as if to make sure you wouldn't get scared off.


...he's warm...

His lips were slightly chapped but soft, and the kiss itself was slow and careful when you almost relaxed into it.
It was still stiff, not lost in mindless passion like with Scarletella when the man pulled you in more so you didn't have to bend forward, and you felt muscles under your palms.
His coat was always open so you knew he was muscular, enough so to easily drag bodies and use the large axe with one hand but the context of touching them was different when his tongue parted your lips.

...hot...

He was warm, unlike Scarletella, making your body feel uncomfortably heated and you tensed more when a hand shifted up your thigh.
It made a small noise leave you against his lips, the researcher pulling away and letting you breath when his hand stayed under your dress.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸l̸ᶫi̸ͥk̸ⷦe̸ͤ ̸k̸i̸ⷦs̸ͥs̸̾?̸̾" He asked and pointed his other hand from his lips to yours, his tongue flicking out to run along his upper lip with a smile.

What am I supposed to say to that?

Your face just flushed more and you nodded, still too embarrassed to really speak and when his hand shifted further up, you immediately clenched your thighs shut.

"W-Wait-!"

"?" He tilted his head curiously but didn't try to pry them open and you had no idea what he was exactly planning to do.
"Wh-What - I- i mean...you...u-uhm..." You stuttered and cleared your throat, trying to ignore the shame crawling up your body at how little you actually minded his fingers on your thigh.
They were slender but warm, and when he squeezed you you almost jumped.

"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸h̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ ̸y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸" Mr. Silvair smiled with a tilted head and you knew that, you just didn't know how far you wanted this to go.
His other hand came back up, this time to place on your cheek as he brushed a thumb over it as if to calm you and you couldn't help but look at him.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ᶠf̸ͤe̸ͤᶫe̸ᵍl̸ͦ ̸ͦg̸ͩo̸o̸d̸.̸" He reassured you, pulling you in again, and this time you didn't resist, feeling his mouth on yours again.

I...

Your body relaxed, just a little as his tongue slipped into yours again, this time firmer as if he wanted to take over your motions when you were still unsure.
It was more demanding but in a way as if he expected you to comply and you whimpered when your thighs parted more to let his hand in.

!!

You jerked when his fingers touched you, pressing in on the small nub that made your body jump and you felt him smirk against your lips.
Pleasure raised up your spine along with heat when he began to rub it, in small slow motions at first as if to let you acclimate and you panted into the kiss when you couldn't pull away.

"A-Ah-"

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸?̸" He mused with a chuckle and stopped, almost making you grind into his hand with a whimper if he hadn't pulled his hand away.
It was only a short moment he touched you, but it already made your body crave for more when you whined and he smiled again, patting his lap.
"S̸̾i̸ͥt̸ͭ"

"...h-huh?"

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ S̸̾i̸ͥt̸ͭ" Repeated the man patiently and you blinked at him, slowly shifting closer until you sat yourself up a bit to sit down.


...this is so embarrassing

You tried to ignore the urge to rub your thighs together, sitting stiffly in his lap until he lightly pushed you more to lean into his muscular chest.
Your feet didn't even reach the ground in this position and it just made you feel all the smaller compared to him-

!?

Mr. Silvair's hands grasped your thighs, pulling you a bit with him when he shifted further back on the bed so you weren't at the edge anymore, and then parted your legs again.
You tried to shut them immediately but if he didn't feel your resistance he didn't even show, and as you felt his fingers between your legs again you let out a gasp.

"W-Wait-"

"T̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥs̸̾" He lightly pressed against your clit, earning another pant as you didn't expect it at the jolt shooting through you and his voice was right at your ear.
"W̸ⷲa̸ͣt̸ͭc̸ͨh̸ͪ.̸"

The pressure increased, beginning to rub the small nub in tight circles and your hips jerked as you moaned, hands flying up to hold onto his arms around you when he moved much faster than before, to the point you had difficulty thinking.

"M-Mister - S-Silvair-!"

"W̸ⷲa̸ͣt̸ͭc̸ͨh̸ͪ.̸" He hummed again, a firm order this time and you tried to, but the sight of his hands on your cunt was too much not to feel embarrassed-
"ᵍG̸ͦo̸ͦo̸ͩd̸ ̸ͭt̸ͦo̸ͧu̸ͨc̸ͪh̸"

"Mmmhhh-!!"

You just gave a breathless moan when you felt his other palm between your legs, one rubbing over the sensitive bundle of flesh and the other wandering lower when he began lubing his fingers up on you.
It was obvious he was trying to show you how to touch yourself as if you didn't know and you didn't know if it was his firm grip on you, making you look at yourself as he touched you or if it was his voice calmly giving explanations but the combination of it made you whimper in his arms when his fingers pushed into you.

Oh fuck

Slender and long, curling inside you as there was almost no resistance from how needy and wet your body was but his thumb didn't release you.

"ᶠF̸ͤe̸ͤᶫe̸l̸ ̸g̸ᵍo̸ͦo̸ͦd̸ͩ.̸"

Relentlessly as he kept rubbing over you, additionally now with the fingers thrusting and you wanted to thrash in his grip from how on edge you began to feel but he didn't let go at all of you.

His arms around you felt like iron bars, holding you in place when he instead cooed softly into your ear as if to calm you down as wave after wave crashed inside you up your spine, the most delicious sensations searing through you from his firm, controlling grip-

"W̸a̸t̸c̸h̸.̸"

The touch suddenly stopped and you ripped open your eyes at that, hips twitching into his hand when he didn't move and you whined needily from how close you had been.
"M-Mister SIlvair-"

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸w̸ⷲa̸ͣt̸ͭc̸ͨh̸ͪ.̸ M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸ͥm̸ͦo̸ͮv̸ͤe̸.̸" Spoke the man sternly into your ear, making you bite your lip at the order, his fingers still deep in you but not giving you more than small, slow pumps as if to keep you right on the edge.

Oh fuck

" Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸w̸ⷲa̸ͣt̸ͭc̸ͨh̸ͪ.̸ ̸M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸m̸ͫo̸ͦv̸ͮe̸ͤ.̸" He continued, cruelly with a smirk against the side of your face and you couldn't do more than whimper at how much you wanted him to move.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸u̸ͧn̸ⷫd̸ͩe̸ͤr̸ͬs̸̾t̸ͭa̸ͣn̸ⷫd̸ͩ?̸"

"U̸ͧn̸ⷫd̸ͩe̸ͤr̸ͬs̸̾t̸ͭa̸ͣn̸ⷫd̸ͩ ̸-̸ ̸ͧU̸ⷫn̸ͩd̸ͤe̸ͬr̸̾s̸ͭt̸ͣa̸ⷫn̸ͩd̸-̸!̸ ̸ⷬᶫP̸ͤl̸ͣe̸̾a̸ͤs̸e̸!̸" You whimpered and he chuckled, obviously taking some sadistic enjoyment out of tormenting you like this when his fingers finally picked back up.
Moans left your lips, clinging to his arms around you as his thumb rubbed over you and you had to stare or he'd stop, but you hated the sight of him touching you because it made your body burn up even more in his hands, melting like butter when tears raised from how much you needed him-

Your eyes rolled back, just for a second when you were so so close, whimpering his name-

But Mr. Silvair stopped again, and you almost wanted to cry from how on edge you were, feeling as if this was going on forever when you forced yourself to look down to how much of a mess you already were just from his hands.
His fingers parted in you, stretching you out more and curled and god you didn't even know hands could feel like that, as if he was everywhere on your body when he took a palm to knead your chest above the dress.

"P-Please - please- P̸ⷬᶫl̸ͤe̸ͣa̸̾s̸ͤe̸-̸!̸"

You were going to lose your mind if you couldn't cum right now, you needed to cum so badly, you had to you had to-

"C̸ͨu̸ͧt̸ͭe̸ͤ.̸" Mr. Silvair chuckled at your agony, grasping your chin and then in one last thrust, pushed hard enough into you that you yelped.

"Mmmh!!"

And then you came, with a breathless cry as your back bent into him, heels digging into the bed with fireworks in front of your eyes as his fingers didn't stop pumping into you until your body sacked again. Lips moved against yours, drinking in your moans and pained whimpers from overstimulation when you could barely breathe and your muscles still felt tense, on edge but he finally stopped moving with a chuckle.

"[][][]" He whispered into your ear and you didn't know what he said, whimpering softly when he pulled his fingers out of you. It left you feeling empty, your thighs staying spread when you were still in the afterglow of your orgasm...

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ᶠf̸ͤe̸ͤᶫe̸l̸ᵍ ̸ͦg̸ͦo̸ͩo̸d̸.̸ [][][]." mused Mr. Silvair and maybe he was talking about pleasure...
"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸u̸ͧn̸ⷫd̸ͩe̸ͤr̸ͬs̸̾t̸ͭa̸ͣn̸ⷫd̸ͩ?̸"

You just nodded as you still caught your breath and your orgasm had been so good you doubted you could do it on your own - you had touched yourself before, but it didn't feel like that, and even with Mr. Scarletella your orgasms had been quick and almost violent, not like this...

" P̸ⷬᶫl̸ͤe̸ͣa̸̾s̸ͧu̸ͬr̸ͤe̸?̸" You finally managed to find your words again and he hummed in agreement against your ear, sounding a lot deeper than usual when he brought a hand up.
Not just any, the one he had used to pump into you when his digits were still coated with you, and he lightly pointed at the slimy fingers when your face heated up again.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸ ̸ʲJ̸ͧu̸ͥi̸ͨc̸ͤe̸.̸"

You didn't need a translation for that, and you already would've felt embarrassed if the next action didn't outright horrify you when he just brought his hand up to give his fingers a long lap.
"Mr. Silvair-!"

"T̸ͭa̸ͣs̸̾t̸ͭe̸ͤ ̸G̸ᵍo̸ͦo̸ͦd̸ͩ.̸" He chuckled at your reaction and you covered your face as if it'd erase what you just saw as your entire body was way too hot in his arms for that.


I didn't know he was so vulgar-!

His body shifted behind you, and you heard fabric rustle when you were pulled into his lap again, although this time there was something hot and hard touching you-

!!

He ran a hand down the inside of your thigh, adjusting his length right between your legs as you couldn't help but stare at it - it looked vaguely human, but more veiny, long and-

Stop staring-!

You wanted to cover your face again but his hands caught your wrists, not letting you move.

"Mr. Silvair-!"

"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸t̸ͭe̸ͤa̸ͣc̸ͨh̸ͪ ̸y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸" He whispered into your ear and you swear there was a bit of sadistic amusement in his voice at your embarrassment, and you whimpered.
"W̸ⷲa̸ͣt̸ͭc̸ͨh̸ͪ.̸"

The researcher took both your wrists into one hand, letting the other slide down over the inside of your thigh as you twitched in return from how sensitive you still felt, pointing at his length.

"T̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥs̸̾.̸" He spoke quietly but surely as he shifted his index finger back up to touch you, and you yelped when the tip of it touched your entrance.
"H̸ͪe̸ͤr̸ͬe̸ͤ.̸"

You knew that, you obviously knew that he didn't have to announce it like that because you didn't know if you feared or anticipated it when your body was just burning in embarrassment at being forced to watch him so explicitly-

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸u̸ͧn̸ⷫd̸ͩe̸ͤr̸ͬs̸̾t̸ͭa̸ͣn̸ⷫd̸ͩ?̸" a small shriek left you when his hot tongue touched your earlobe and there was no chance he was doing this simply to teach you, not with how much he was teasing you rubbing himself along you and earning more whimpers. "S̸̾p̸ⷬe̸ͤa̸ͣk̸ⷦ.̸"

"Y-Yes-!" You whimpered and hoped he would just continue, the way his hot skin touched yours was driving you crazy-

"Y̸ⷱe̸ͤs̸̾-̸!̸ ̸Y̸ⷱe̸ͤs̸̾ ̸y̸e̸ⷱs̸ͤ ̸̾y̸e̸ⷱs̸ͤ-̸̾

"ᵍG̸ͦo̸ͦo̸ͩd̸.̸" Mr. Silvair chuckled at your almost unhinged plea, finally stopping to hold you in place when he instead pulled you upwards more, until the tip of his size actually pushed into you.

Oh fuck-

You gasped when he began to lower you onto him, rocking his hips into you and it was slow but god it already felt good, the way he filled you more and more even when you thought he couldn't reach deeper-
It didn't hurt, at least not from spreading you apart but there was dull pain when you fully lowered on him with a throaty groan, and Mr. Silvair exhaled a hot breath against your neck.

"F̸ᶠe̸ͤe̸ͤᶫl̸ ̸ᵍg̸ͦo̸ͦo̸ͩd̸.̸ ̸ⷱ" He muttered and you tried to catch your breath from the feeling alone, trying to get used to him inside you but his hands grasped your thighs.
"Y̸ͦo̸ͧu̸ͬr̸ ̸ⷡb̸ͦo̸ͩd̸ⷱy̸ ̸ᵍ ̸ͦg̸ͦo̸ͩo̸d̸.̸"

My body...?

You couldn't even finish the thought before he suddenly moved, pulling out of you and then slamming back in much rougher than you anticipated.

"!!"

A small scream left you at the sudden pain when he hit too deep, the friction frying your brain and Mr. Silvair began to thrust into you, with harsher breaths as your arms clung to around his neck.

"M-Mister - S-Silvair-!!"

"ᵍG̸ͦo̸ͦo̸ͩd̸.̸ ̸ⷡB̸ͦo̸ͩd̸ⷱy̸ ̸ᶠf̸ͤe̸ͤᶫe̸l̸ᵍ ̸ͦg̸ͦo̸ͩo̸d̸.̸" He repeated under his breath and it felt almost impatient the way he made your body cram from each thrust, pressing you harder into him and whatever he had been holding back before felt like breaking free the second he didn't hold back anymore.
"O-Oh f-fuck-!"

Your mind blanked, only feeling how he tried to slam into you with more force each time, until the world turned and suddenly, your face hit a pillow.

"Mmmhhhg - a-aaaah~!"

Hands roughly grasped your hips, pulling them back into rough thrusts and he had always been so calm and patient with you, held back on anything and you never expected this from him-

So much passion and urgency as his fingers dug into you, the sound of skin slapping filling the near-silent room along with your moans and muffled screams into the cushion as he didn't slow down at all.
"Mister - S-Silvair - f-fuuuck - p-please-!!"

Your words came out in panted bursts in between him hitting into you, almost as roughly as Scarletella, although he was more vocal than the other entity - not by much, but low pants and groans left him, drowning in the loud creak of the bed with each hard thrust.
His hand grasped your hair, roughly pulling it back as he forced your back to curve into him and it hurt but in such a good way, you could feel his urges taking over with every passing minute, the dress rustling as his other hand pulled to let your chest spill-free-

I can't think

His palm was hot, burning on your skin when he groped you additionally to hitting deep into you and you couldn't hold back the sparks shooting up your spine at his next thrust.

"M-Mmmmnngg-!!!"

You tried to muffle the scream leaving you but it didn't work, moaning throaty as fireworks exploded but Mr. Silvair didn't stop.
The opposite, as if that only spurred him when his thrusts turned shallower, but faster.
It made your body burn from overstimulation, trying to speak to beg him to pause or go harder when your brain didn't work at all anymore, just whimpering under him with needy moans leaving your lips. Tears drenched the pillow you desperately clung to as the researcher used you, obviously working towards his own release with grunted breaths, reminding you more of an animal in heat-

"C-can't - can't - p-please-!!"

Another orgasm shook your body, almost dropping from how weak it made you feel when you could just bury your head in the pillow and breathe through the intense friction Mr. Silvair gave you, crying out his name but he ignored how your body spasmed when he instead pressed your head back into the pillow.

Too much

Your body felt like breaking under him, too overwhelming when you couldn't even breathe anymore but he still pushed through, making you take more and more, his weight holding you down and the bed creaking violently, more and more and-


So good

Mindless babbles left you, not sure if you were begging for more or to stop when the researcher pulled you in place for him, feeling your back rub on the mattress as your knees pressed into your chest and you didn't know when he made you change position but it let you see his tense body, the muscles glistening with a thin sheet of sweat covering him, wild, messy silver strands of hair sticking to him-


More

Your teeth bit down his lip, drawing blood as he groaned but he didn't pull away when he ground harder into you.
His blood tasted differently from Mr. Machete's, not as sweet and exciting despite his heart hammering just as hard against you and when your claws dug into his back, Mr. Silvair moaned into your mouth.

"!!"

His motion stuttered, jagging and warmth flooded you in the same moment you tried to breathe through the intense pleasure and if wouldn't be so spent, the sensation alone would've been enough to push you off the edge again.

It was hot, filling you palpably when he didn't pull out until you felt him running down the inside of your thighs and somewhere far away you wondered just how long he had been holding back...
He hadn't ever seemed interested in this but the moment he could be inside you it had almost felt egoistical, just trying to work towards his own release...

...you didn't even mind the thought that much with everything he did before...

Mr. Silvair caught his breath, faster than you when you felt him pull out slowly, letting his seed drip out of you and onto the mattress as he let himself drop to the side with a deep sigh.
It was much more comfortable than the ground, and you felt his hand on your face as the man tilted it lightly to smile at you.

"...?" His thumb brushed over your teary cheek and it felt much more affectionate than his touches before when you blinked tiredly...
"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸h̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ?"

...he's asking if I'm hurt...

You weakly shook your head, involuntarily yawning as if to signal that you were just exhausted, and he nodded with an easier smile.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸R̸ͬe̸ͤs̸̾t̸ͭ.̸" a blanket was tugged over your body and you involuntarily cuddled more into it, feeling the bed shift as his weight moved.
For a second you almost expected him to leave but instead he laid down as well, pulling you in more and you cuddled into his chest...

...he's really sweet..

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸D̸ͩa̸ͣn̸ⷫᵍg̸ͤe̸ͬr̸.̸ ̸ⷫN̸ͦo̸ ̸ᵍG̸ͦo̸ ̸a̸ͣw̸ⷲa̸ͣy̸ⷱ.̸"

...if he wasn't trying to kill you.

"...ᵍG̸ͦo̸ͦo̸ͩd̸ ̸N̸ⷫi̸ͥᵍg̸ͪh̸ͭt̸.̸" Mr. Silvair lightly rubbed the back of your head, threading through some strands of hair and the gesture felt so nice that you yawned again...

...and drifted to sleep before you heard the small click of a lock.

ᵍᵒ ᵇᵉʸᵒⁿᵈ?

Chapter Text

The sound of footsteps woke you.

Echoing in the hallways outside the door, way too loud to seem natural as you blinked awake with an uncomfortably heavy heartbeat in your ear.
You couldn't tell if it was from your own body or from the noise outside as it drew closer, making you sit yourself up...

...Mr. Silvair...?

The researcher was gone from your side, with no trace of the man that had been there before and a sense of incoming dread made your skin crawl when it was eerily quiet within the barren room aside from the steps.

...I don't like this...

It didn't feel right, even if you usually didn't pay attention to the smallest of sounds it became horrifyingly obvious when they were missing, like the sound of the bed creaking lightly or fabric shifting when you pushed the blanket aside-
Because now there was nothing in its stead, a void of sounds as nothing reached your ears aside from your own heartbeat and the steps outside when you tried to get off the bed to hide-

Huh-?

- and instead had to catch yourself off the ground when you almost fell face first, only realizing the chains cuffing your ankles to the bedframe as they stopped you from leaving.


What-?

When did you get cuffed here-?

You couldn't remember, the last thing you knew was Mr. Silvair pulling the blanket over you to cover you as he laid down but he was gone now so you couldn't ask him either-

...did he -?

!!

You couldn't finish that thought when the steps stopped, making you look up from the ground to the small gap between the door and the ground, bright, crimson lights streaming through and almost climbing along the floor as it seemed to spread beyond what it should be able to reach...

Mr. Scarletella.

You'd recognize that color anywhere along with the deafening silence he brought with him, and you immediately pushed yourself back up on the bed so you wouldn't be defenseless on the floor at least when the door began to open.
It was the only thing producing noise, the creaking sounding as if a person was screaming as it hurt your ears and you flinched your head, shaking it lightly to try and get it out of your head-

"!!"

Only to be met with a black, endlessly pitch-black eye staring right at you.

"!" You shrieked a little in surprise when he was way too close again, stumbling back on the bed and trying to reach for anything that could protect you but only finding the blanket to drag to you as Mr. Scarletella didn't move.
He was leaning forward, at an unnatural angle so he was right at the height of your head with his head tilting to the side as your heart hammered in your chest.

How did he...

"...?" Mr. Scarletella smiled, a little too wide to be comfortable like usual and you blinked when he straightened himself again, still clutching the crimson umbrella in one hand despite there being no rain. He looked different than usual, mostly from the missing coat as he was dressed entirely in black otherwise it almost blended with his actual skin when the ends of what would be sleeves didn't stand out at all - as if his clothes were painted on, although you knew they weren't.

...isn't he going to do something...?

Your heart was still beating your ears from his presence, hammering uncomfortably in your chest as if you should be scared but he wasn't doing anything except standing there unblinkingly staring at you.

"...uhm...are you here...for your coat...?" You asked a bit confused and swallowed, trying to ignore the adrenaline still running through you from his sight.
His entire presence made it hard for you to concentrate, blinking a few times with slow breaths to try and calm down but when it didn't help you guessed that your body's reaction was mostly his doing...

"C-Can you stop that?" You continued when the man didn't answer, pointing at him when you tried to think of how to ask so he'd understand. "Uh-..."

"S̸̾t̸ͭo̸ͦp̸ⷬ-" Your hand moved back to your chest, lightly hitting it as you imitated a heartbeat and Mr. Scarletella tilted his head. Not lightly, he tilted it in an almost 45 degree angle that made you sure would break his neck if he'd be an actual human, and you wondered if he vaguely remembered humans do that which was why he imitated it.

...he's uncanny.

"...?"

But he seemed to understand your question, the sound of your own heart not echoing as loudly inside your own ears anymore when the red light surrounding him dimmed down as well. You weren't sure why he did that, and what kind of ability it was - maybe to scare off other entities since it made him seem a lot scarier, like an instinctual fear he forced on others...

"...?" Mr. Scarletella lightly raised his other hand, and as you glanced down at the motion you realized the small plastic bag he had been carrying.

"...is that-?" You blinked and crawled towards him over the mattress until you could grasp the bag from him. "My groceries!"

It rustled, the sound returning to normal as well as you could hear the chains rattle from your ankles, reminding you of the predicament you were in.
Mr. Scarletella seemed to notice too when he turned to look at the source of the noise, the smile on his face not disappearing when he looked back at you.

...don't get any wrong ideas.

You didn't like how the man was looking at you, with that eerie wide smirk and empty eye even when he didn't move, not looking away from him even when you knew he could move faster than you could ever catch him.
"Uhm... t̸ͭh̸ͪa̸ͣn̸ⷫk̸ⷦ ̸y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸"
He nodded, only once while still watching you as if he was waiting for you to continue, but you had no idea what he was waiting for-

Until he suddenly stood way too close again, and you felt arms around you.

"H-Hey-!!"

So close-!

You had forgotten how cold the man was until his body touched yours, the air sizzling you with white noise that made the hair on your arms stand up. There was no time for you to even thrash against his grip when in the next moment he stood straight, albeit with a short skip in between you only noticed because of how disoriented you suddenly felt when he was standing again with you in his arms.

"Wh-What-!?" Your hand shot out to push against his jaw, trying to get out of his grip that way when you felt it give in to the force...

"Let go- h-huh!?"

Mr. Scarletella's neck stretched, along with your arm when you pushed against him until it was unnaturally long and you quickly pulled it back again with a shriek.


What the fuck!?

"?" He turned his head, his throat curving in the air to look at you like a snake and you screamed at the sight.

"What the fuCK!?"

He can do that!?

"???" Mr. Scarletella didn't let go of you but he seemed to understand your distress when his neck quickly snapped back in place, leaving his head at a normal height again when he smiled at you while you tried not to yell in his face because you realized it was probably normal to him.
As normal as everything else he did, twisting and forcing his body into positions that would break the bones of any regular human...


...but that makes it obvious he really isn't one.

It felt such an obvious detail you never saw, that he was so uncanny to you for the same reasons mannequins and porcelain dolls were off-putting - he was something that so clearly imitated a human while not being one, like something that stripped off a human's skin and wore it as a costume.
His behavior, his body, how it elongated and twisted, how he could avoid any of your attacks and teleport, the way you reacted to him every time with fear initially...

" Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ h̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ ?" He asked, with a voice as if it came out of an old TV while smiling and you swallowed when he still didn't let go of you. It didn't hurt but you felt uncomfortable this close to him, feeling his marbled chest right at your arm despite the thin layer of clothes covering him.
"Uhm...n-no." You muttered and looked down at the bag in your hands.


The cuffs-

The metal shackles around your ankles were gone, lying on the bed still closed as if they had been left where you had sat before.

...did he do that to free me...?

!

Mr. Scarletella moved, away from the bed as he kept carrying you although even the way he did it was unnatural - you couldn't feel his steps at all, as if you were floating in place when he walked which only added to the uncanny sensation of him very obviously not being human...
Not like any resident here was, but every other resident seemed like something that used to be human turning into something else - Mr. Scarletella seemed like something wanting to become a human, but getting the details wrong every so often.
He tilted his head too far, he smiled too wide, his body bent in unnatural angles as if he didn't know what the limit was supposed to be...

...but I guess that isn't really his fault, either.

He just happened to choose the most horrifying way of pretending to be a human.

"...you want me like a human?"

...not like that scared you off as much as it should.

"Where are we..." You muttered and when your gaze trailed down, you saw blood sticking to the ground.
Innards and guts were splattered below him and you hadn't even seen because of his usual red aura surrounding him, making you blink.

...is that...?

There was a large axe in between the piles of flesh and your eyes widened when you recognized it as Mr. Silvair's weapon, shooting back up to Mr. Scarletella who didn't seem to notice your realization - or not care.


Did he kill him-?

You knew the researcher would regenerate but did he kill him because he was in the way, or did he come here specifically because he-

" Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸w̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ m̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸t̸ͭe̸ͤa̸ͣc̸ͨh̸ͪ ̸y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ?̸"

...but why was I in shackles...?

Did Mr. Silvair put those on you...?

Did I do something in my sleep-?

"...w̸ⷲh̸ͪy̸ⷱ.̸ ̸ⷱ Y̸ͦo̸ͧu̸ ̸ c̸ͨo̸ͦm̸ͫe̸ͤ ?" You asked hesitantly, partly not expecting an answer when he still carried you through the hallways of Mr. Silvair's base.
"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸ g̸ᵍi̸ͥv̸ͮe̸ͤ ̸ Y̸o̸ⷱu̸ͦ ̸ͧ o̸b̸ͦj̸ⷡʲe̸ͤc̸ͨt̸ͭ.̸" He pointed at the bag in your hands and you tried to ignore the fact you still very clearly felt his arms carrying you, so you didn't even know where the third hand to point at it had come from.


...he just wanted to bring me my bag?

"Can...can you set me down then-?" You muttered, trying not to set the man off into anything worse the closer you came to where the ladder leading up was. " P̸ⷬu̸ͧt̸ͭ ̸ m̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸ d̸ͩo̸ͦw̸ⷲn̸ⷫ ?"
"... Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ N̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸ ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸ ̸ͨC̸ͣa̸ͬr̸ͬr̸ⷱy̸?" He replied with a questioning tone, as if you hadn't punched his neck to the length of a giraffe to get him away from you - but if he actually wasn't human at all, he probably didn't understand why you struggled either.
"I - It's not that." You replied with knitted brows and looked down.


It just feels off.

You guessed if he had wanted to kidnap you, he could've teleported instead of walking with you but the fact you couldn't feel his steps at all made you uneasy, as if you half expected to hit the ground unexpectedly...

"Just... Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ...uhm... Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸N̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸W̸ⷲa̸ͣᶫl̸ⷦk̸.̸"
There wasn't any better way for you to say it and Mr. Scarletella tilted his head again, too far as if he didn't understand what you meant.
"N-Nevermind..."

...is he going to let me down once we're back out...?

He stopped, and you didn't even notice because your body still didn't move in his arms until he began to pick his steps back up, making you flinch when this time you actually felt the motion.
"?"
Mr. Scarletella stopped again to look at you as if he was surprised by your reaction, and you quickly waved your hand in a so-so motion to reassure him.
Weirdly enough it really felt like he took it as reassurance he wasn't doing anything wrong, which you never expected of him - the man was a stalker after all who had followed you through the maze relentlessly at the beginning and confronted you at times as well as killed you when you didn't remember your name yet...

" Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸f̸ᶠi̸ͥn̸ⷫd̸ͩ ̸ n̸ⷫa̸ͣm̸ͫe̸ͤ"

...but now he seemed outright...tame, in a way.

But he hurt Mr. Silvair.

...or did he save me from being trapped down there?

There were too many questions with too few answers, and when Mr. Scarletella stopped at the ladder, you heard the sizzling of air that signaled you he was about to-

"Ugh-!"

You clasped your hands in front of your mouth when motion sickness set in violently after the teleport, the world turning for a moment as Mr. Scarletella didn't move again and you felt fingers in your hair as if to pat it.
Again, there were already two hands underneath you and you didn't know where the third kept coming from, and at this point, you didn't want to ask either.

I wonder how his actual body looks like.

If he was imitating a human figure then he had to have some kind of actual body, right...?

"S-Sorry. I'm good again." You breathed once the sickness passed and Mr. Scarletella smiled at you again, with a little nod.
The hallway around you was still red from his presence, weaker though than usual when it wasn't eye-strainingly bright, the door to your room opening on its own as he stepped through.

...he's bringing me back?

To your surprise, he set you down on the bed without trying to hold onto you any longer, although he didn't fully pull away yet when his face stayed close to yours.

Too close-

The man didn't to understand anything about personal space, feeling his cold breath on your face even though you were sure he didn't need to breathe at all when he stared at you intensely.

"...uhm... t̸ͭh̸ͪa̸ͣn̸ⷫk̸ⷦ ̸...y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ..." You swallowed and leaned a little back, so he wouldn't be right in your face, shifting back to where there was more space between you. Still much closer than you every thought you would be to the man...

"M̸ͫi̸ͥn̸ⷫe̸ͤ.̸"

...you guessed that line was crossed a while ago, though...

...?

Now that you were properly looking at his face from this near though, you noticed the small, barely visible scar right underneath his left eye.

...so he does have scars..?

You were pretty sure that wasn't there before though, and you wondered if he got it from Mr. Silvair.

I thought he couldn't get hit.

"... Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ f̸ᶠi̸ͥᵍg̸ͪh̸ͭt̸ ?" You asked and brought a hand up to lightly point at the scar, making him smile wider.
It still didn't reach his eyes, staying dead and abyssal when he didn't blink once as he moved his hand up to his face. He slowly pointed a finger at the small scar, and then turned it towards you with the same empty smile.

"Y̸o̸u̸." Declared the man shortly.

"...me?" You repeated in confusion. Was he saying that scar was from you-?

The other world.

The moment you had swung at him, where it felt as if your crowbar had hit a short second of resistance-

It had actually hit him.

He can be hit

Mr. Scarletella seemed to see the realization in your eyes when his smirk grew again, with no hint of anger or resentment in his face when he should have it, because you knew there wasn't a single scar on his body before since nothing could hit him-

How did I hit him?

You weren't fast, even Mr. Machete outsped you and Mr. Scarletella had dodged every attack you had ever tried to land on him before so why in that moment-

"...Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ w̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸ c̸ͨᶫl̸ͦo̸ͭt̸ͪh̸ͤe̸̾s̸?̸"

....was it...

"ᵍG̸ͦo̸ͦo̸ͩd̸ ̸b̸ⷡy̸ⷱe̸ͤ-"
"!?"

...because he didn't expect you to hit him?

"...Mr. Crawling? Where...what did I...just do...?"

...now I feel horrible.

You swallowed lightly as you stared at the small, barely noticeable scratch the man had on his face and his smirk turned to a frown at your muttered words.
"...I'm s̸̾o̸ͦr̸ͬr̸ͬy̸ⷱ" You mumbled and looking back you didn't even know why you had swung at him when he hadn't been hostile at all to you.
He hadn't forced himself on you, or did anything to warrant that reaction from you when he instead had waited for you to agree, it felt good and it wasn't his fault you felt like it was a mistake afterwards-

I don't know why I did it

"... s̸̾o̸ͦr̸ͬr̸ͬy̸ⷱ ?" Repeated Mr. Scarletella as if the word was alien to him, and for a second you thought you said it wrong until he continued.

" W̸ⷲh̸ͪy̸ⷱ ?"

...why?

"I - I hurt you. M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸h̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ ̸ y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ." You muttered and kept clutching the bag of groceries in your hand. The man in front of you didn't move away from the leaned down position he was in, only tilting his head as the uncanny smirk returned.

" Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸h̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ ̸m̸ͫe̸ͤ" He raised a hand again to point at his scar, and then slowly towards you when his tone stayed almost happy.
" T̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥs̸̾. Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ"
His other hand came up as well, and you blinked when he was holding your crowbar in it, holding it out to you.

"T̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥs̸̾. Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ"

...what?

You blanky looked down on it and then back up at his strange smile, the too happy tone about the fact you somehow hurt him...

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸  ̸ͫM̸ͤe̸.̸̾  ̸ͣS̸ͫa̸ͤm̸e̸.̸"

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ h̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ" repeated the man when you took the crowbar off of him, the familiar weight almost comforting in your grip when you had felt defenseless without it before.
"T̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥs̸̾. Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ"

Mr. Scarletella pointed from the weapon back to your face with a wide smile, and somewhere in the back of your mind, you felt like you were beginning to understand what the man was trying to tell you...

This is who you are.

T̸h̸i̸s̸ ̸i̸s̸ ̸h̸o̸w̸ ̸I̸ ̸a̸m̸

But not how I want to be

You looked back up at him straightening himself with a grin that seemed more genuine than the empty smiles he gave you before as you clutched the crowbar tighter in your hands.

"W̸ⷲh̸ͪy̸ⷱ ̸n̸o̸ⷫt̸ͦ.̸ͭ"

"... t̸ͭh̸ͪa̸ͣn̸ⷫk̸ⷦ ̸y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸" You said and gave him a smirk in return as he stayed in place in front of you.

K̸i̸l̸l̸

"ᵍG̸ͦo̸ͦo̸ͩd̸ ̸ⷡb̸ⷱy̸ͤe̸."

The crowbar went into nothing as his body sizzled into nothing, the chuckle fading into white noise quickly after you swung at him-

And you woke back up in bed.

...huh?

You blinked a few times, trying to get rid of the strange sizzling feeling left in your head like an aftertaste...

...did I dream something...?


You couldn't really remember, only a vague memory from what felt like a nightmare slipping from your mind faster than you could hold onto it as you sat yourself up in your bed...
Well, not really your own, but a bed in the room you usually slept in, not down in the dungeon where you had fallen asleep.

...did Mr. Silvair carry me here?

It was a well-meaning gesture you suppose, even though you didn't really like waking up on your own when you had fallen asleep with the researcher, but maybe he had work to do and couldn't have you downstairs for that.
...your face almost immediately turned warmer when you thought of your last encounter with the man.


...I wonder if it meant more to him than just teaching me.

Not that it necessarily meant more to you, you liked him as a person and as someone who helped you, who you felt safe with - but romantically, you didn't really ever...had a relationship before.

"No no, don't act shy now, you're the one following us around all the time so the least you can do is give the boys some entertainment!"

...and the crush you had before left you feeling hollow.

I should probably try to ask Mr. Silvair about it...

Just as you stretched out with a yawn, the door to your room opened and you thought it would be the researcher checking in on you...
But instead, you saw a familiar smaller figure leaning back down from the handle.

"Mr. Crawling!"

"!"

The smaller man rapidly closed the distance, much faster than you'd expect from someone who was crawling, pulling himself up on the bed until he was right up in your face with an excited smile.

So close-

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸a̸ͣw̸ⷲa̸ͣk̸ⷦe̸ͤ!" He exclaimed cheerfully and it sounded like he missed you from how happy he was to see you. The bed creaked lightly under his weight, the lower part of his body still on the ground when he used his arms like usual to pull himself up while talking to you, and you sat yourself up so he would have more space to put his head down on your lap.
His arms hugged your legs, letting his chin rest on your thigh with a satisfied hum when you put a hand on his head.

Mr. Crawling had long black hair that somehow managed to stay silky and soft despite the environment, which always made you a bit envious - but it also reminded you of your lost bag of groceries and the hair ties you had brought with you to braid his hair.

I know he doesn't want to cut it..

But you liked the thought of prettying him up a little just like Mr. Chopped, and you had the feeling he'd like getting his hair brushed...

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸s̸e̸̾a̸ͤr̸ͣc̸ͬh̸ͨ ̸ͪM̸e̸ͫ?" You asked him with a smile, guessing when you took too long to come back he had gone out by himself to try and find you, even though it wasn't necessary.

...or he was worried I wouldn't come back.

As long as you had been here now, when you first left through the elevator, coming back hadn't been on your mind.

" M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸ᶫl̸ͤe̸ͣa̸ͮv̸ͤe̸.̸ ̸ͭ Uhm...T̸ͪh̸ͣa̸ⷫn̸ⷦk̸ ̸y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸ ̸ And ᵍG̸ͦo̸ͦo̸ͩd̸ⷡb̸ⷱy̸ͤe̸ ̸,Mr. Crawling..."

...but the world you had come from didn't feel like your home anymore when you returned to it.
And even when it took you weeks to find your way back once you fully grew tired of your life there...

"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸f̸ᶠi̸ͥn̸ⷫd̸ͩ ̸y̸o̸ⷱu̸ͦ!̸ͧ ̸ᶠF̸ͥi̸ⷫn̸ͩd̸ ̸ⷱy̸ͦo̸ͧu̸!̸"
"Oh - Mr. Crawling, were you - waiting here the entire time...?"

...I don't think anyone else ever did that for me.

Mr. Crawling had become such a soft spot of yours with how open the man was about his connection with you...

...I wonder if he sees me like some sort of family.

It felt like it at times, how he followed you around and always worried about you endangering yourself while traveling through the maze of this world, even though at times you felt more like his protector than the other way around. Maybe due to his childlike cheerfulness whenever he saw you or because he didn't seem to have any real means to defend himself, often resorting to hiding you instead of fighting...

"Huh...Mr. Crawling? Where did he...I could've sworn he was just here...?"

...and it made you feel so much worse whenever you ended up hurting him.

...why am I like that?

The same question Mr. Scarletella asked you and you tried to convey to Mr. Machete or have Mr. Silvair answer you-

Am I turning non-sentient or is it just how I am...?

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸ ̸ͫM̸ͤe̸.̸̾ ̸ͣS̸ͫa̸ͤm̸e̸.̸"

...I'm not like Scarletella.

You hadn't lost that much of your humanity yet to see yourself as the same as the resident, even if he showed that he could be...reasonable.

"M̸ͫe̸ͤ.̸ ̸ W̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ.̸ ̸ Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸ S̸̾a̸ͣm̸ͫe̸ͤ.̸ ̸ H̸ͪu̸ͧm̸ͫa̸ͣn̸ⷫ.̸"

...you guessed the only humane thing about him was his attempt at trying to imitate what he thought humans did.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸G̸ᵍo̸ͦ ̸o̸ͦt̸ͭh̸ͪe̸ͤr̸ͬ ̸ P̸ⷬᶫl̸ͣa̸ͨc̸ͤe̸?̸" Asked Mr. Crawling and tilted his head to the side on your lap, his hair falling partly into his face and covering the upper part of his face like usual as you left it like that. Even when you had gotten used to him not having any eyes, the sight of the holes left in his skull from that was still a little unnerving to you and you didn't want to be rude about it either.
It didn't seem to impair his vision though, similarly to Mr. Silvair and Mr. Machete when he still moved his head according to things he saw, like watching you when you felt his gaze on you.

"I did. But I uh...lost the groceries." You responded a little sheepishly, without mentioning why though when you glanced at the shut closet where Mr. Scarletella's coat still hung. " M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸ ᶫl̸ͦo̸̾s̸ͭt̸ ̸ͨc̸ͦo̸ⷫn̸ͭt̸ͣa̸ͥi̸ⷫn̸ͤe̸ͬr̸.̸ But I'll go another day - ᵍG̸ͦo̸ ̸ͦo̸ͭt̸ͪh̸ͤe̸ͬr̸ ̸ⷬᶫp̸ͣl̸ͨa̸ͤc̸e̸.̸"

"...?" Mr. Crawling's smile faded as if he didn't like the words, his head tilting back to straighten when his chin pressed slightly more into your thigh as if he wanted to hold you in place on the bed.

" Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ᵍ G̸ͦo̸?̸" He repeated and you figured he thought you meant now, but you just didn't know the word for later.

" N̸ⷫo̸ͦ" You responded with a headshake and he smiled again, making it obvious he didn't like you going away on your own - it felt like a while since you had spent time with the man too, even though that wasn't his fault.

" M̸ͫe̸ͤ. W̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸t̸ͭo̸ͦ ̸u̸ͧn̸ⷫd̸ͩe̸ͤr̸ͬs̸̾t̸ͭa̸ͣn̸ⷫd̸ͩ.̸ ̸ⷱ ͦY̸ͧo̸u̸.̸"

...you just didn't want to end up hurting him like before.

I still don't know what triggers it.

"ᵍG̸ᶫl̸ͣa̸ͩd̸.̸" Mr. Crawling smiled with a sigh and you almost felt bad that you did want to go somewhere - not to the other place, but you still had that coat hanging in the closet like a corpse you were trying to hide, and you wanted to give it back...
More so you wouldn't have it anymore because you didn't want to answer questions, although you had the urge to ask some as well.

Mr. Silvair had always seemed like the person to know more about this world and by extent, how it changed people - but if Mr. Scarletella was actually now willing to talk to you without being all up in your face about stealing your name and soul, then maybe he was willing to share more about what he knew about this place...

He's the one that brought me here after all.

...but you weren't sure if you really wanted to meet him while Mr. Crawling accompanied you.

I don't want to endanger him.

And by how Mr. Scarletella said he wanted you like a human, you figured he would get jealous like one, too.

The door opened again, this time with silver hair coming into view as you involuntarily looked down to the handle instead of up to the researcher peeking in.
"...?" His smile stayed unchanged but he tilted his head lightly when he spotted you, or maybe Mr. Crawling on your lap when you weren't sure if he already knew he had found his way back.
He wore his usual attire, torn wide black pants and an open, old lab coat revealing a muscular chest - you honestly never took much note of how well-built the researcher was but at his sight, the memories of your last meeting came flooding back.

"W̸a̸t̸c̸h̸.̸"

...calm down.

If your red face betrayed you Mr. Silvair didn't show so, coming closer to the both of you as Mr. Crawling's head tilted with the smile on his face fading.
"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ h̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ?" Asked the researcher with his hands in the pockets of his lab coat, sitting down across you on the bed as well. You wanted to shuffle a little to make more room for him, pull your legs in but Mr. Crawling was still lying on your thighs without moving away when his grip on your thighs almost felt as if it was tightening.
Maybe he didn't realize or he was actually tired because usually he would move away so you could talk - even Mr. Silvair tilting his head down to seemingly look at him with an unchanging smile.

"N-No. Uhm, I'm not hurt. N̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸h̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ.̸" You repeated the words in their language, lifting a hand to make a small so-so motion when you smiled in embarrassment. "Uhm... Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ c̸ͨa̸ͣr̸ͬr̸ͬy̸ⷱ ̸ m̸ͫe̸ͤ.̸ T̸ͭh̸ͪa̸ͣn̸ⷫk̸ⷦ ̸y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸"

It was a little awkward to try and talk about it with Mr. Crawling between you, but you could at least thank him for carrying you back to your room even when that hadn't been necessary...

The researcher tilted his head curiously with the same smile, but you could tell he was a little confused about your thanks when he didn't say something for a moment in return.

"...C̸ͨa̸ͣr̸ͬr̸ͬy̸ⷱ ̸ y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ?" He repeated, "Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ g̸ᵍo̸ͦ"

...I left?

"But...I didn't...?" You muttered now confused yourself, or did you and didn't remember...?
It wouldn't be the first time you did something you couldn't remember, but usually, that involved something more violent than just walking away to sleep in your own bed...
...but you had also woken up before in places you didn't fall asleep in, so maybe this was just another world anomaly you couldn't explain.

Either way, you couldn't find an answer to it, and you just lightly shook your head while Mr. Silvair smiled.
It was still nice he was checking in on you, even if you didn't feel any aftereffects of his rough treatment. You were still surprised at what slumbered in the man, but if you thought about that with him right in front of you, your face would just turn even redder than it already was.

" Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ g̸ᵍo̸ͦ ̸ h̸o̸ͪm̸ͦe̸ͫ." Mr. Crawling muttered, tapping your thigh with his chin to accentuate the 'You' while still talking quietly as if you weren't really supposed to hear it.
You guessed in a way you did, it was probably for the best that out of all places you may have sleep-wandered to, your room was the best outcome...
But then Mr. Crawling turned his head to point at Mr. Silvair, the researcher tilting his head at him.

" Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧr̸ͬ ̸p̸ⷬᶫl̸ͣa̸ͨc̸ͤe̸.̸ ̸ⷫ N̸ͦo̸ͭt̸ ̸ h̸ͪo̸ͦm̸ͫe̸ͤ.̸"

...hm?

It almost sounded a little accusatory, making you blink in confusion when Mr. Crawling seemed wary of him.
"No, don't worry. Mr. Silvair didn't hurt me-" You said quickly and realized that was maybe why he was holding onto your legs and refused to make space for the other man - you had disappeared before when you lost sentience and Mr. Crawling hadn't been happy about that either, so maybe he thought something like that happened again...?


I guess 'home' means something similar to 'safe'.

"N̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸ h̸u̸ͪr̸ͧt̸ͬ ̸ͭ m̸e̸ͫ.̸ͤ" You tried to explain to the man seemingly glaring at Mr. Silvair but the researcher didn't seem too bothered when he raised a hand to make a pacifying motion - a light wave downwards, as if to tell him to calm down.
"H̸ͪe̸ͤᶫl̸ⷬp̸ ̸ͫM̸ͤe̸."

...somewhat.

You didn't want to go into detail, it was both not his business and also embarrassing to you, and you mainly wanted to ensure Mr. Crawling wouldn't think the researcher did anything bad to you.
" ᵍG̸ͦo̸ͦo̸ͩd̸ ̸r̸ͬe̸ͤs̸̾i̸ͥd̸ͩe̸ͤn̸ⷫt̸ͭ.̸ ̸M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸h̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ.̸" Your hand moved to his head, patting it a little to reassure him and his head turned to look back at you with a slight frown.
He didn't look mad, but it was hard to tell what he was feeling when he wasn't acting cheerful, putting his head back on your legs with the corner of his mouth pulling down as if he didn't believe you.

"...?" Mr. Silvair's smile didn't change even when it seemed a little confused, bringing a hand up to point at himself as if he was trying to ask you if he was causing trouble, but you just shook your head.


He's just overprotective.

" Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ w̸o̸ⷲr̸ͦr̸ͬy̸ͬʸ ?" He asked, towards Mr. Crawling and the resident just made a grumbling noise under his breath until he continued.

" Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ [][][]?"

"!" Mr. Crawling lifted his head again at the unknown word and it seemed to serve as confirmation to the researcher when he chuckled. You didn't know what he said but it seemed to offend the shorter man when he swatted at him, not very seriously but enough to make him stand up to avoid the blow.

"What?" You furrowed your brows and looked back up to the silver-haired man but he shook his head with the same soft laughter when Mr. Crawling slinked from your lap back onto the ground next to the bed.
It was obvious he wasn't going to explain to you what he meant as it wasn't for you, but it was a little frustrating when they talked in a way you didn't understand.

" Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ [][][]" Repeated Mr. Silvair towards your friend and whatever that word was it was enough to make Mr. Crawling react negatively to it.

" N̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ" He huffed and then pointed at himself with an open palm.
" M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸ h̸ͪo̸ͦm̸ͫe̸ͤ" His finger moved to sharply point at the researcher then, with a frown.

" Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ o̸ͦt̸ͭh̸ͪe̸ͤr̸ͬ ̸ p̸ⷬᶫl̸ͣa̸ͨc̸ͤe̸."

...is he telling him to leave?

The pointed finger seemed to indicate more hostility from what you had noticed in their gestures, an open palm seeming like a polite version of 'Me' and 'You', while a single finger was more rude or accusatory - so was this some equivalent of telling Mr. Silvair to fuck off?

"...?" He chuckled at the words, only shrugging lightly but he moved to the door when Mr. Crawling didn't seem to budge about it.
It didn't feel like you could protest either, you didn't want to agitate him, and whatever fight they seemed to have seemed to be more about what word Silvair had used for him rather than the topic if he hurt you or not...

"Uhm...I'll talk to you later..." You just muttered still a little confused about the exchange and Mr. Silvair lightly raised a hand as if to say goodbye when he shut the door behind him with a chuckle, seemingly not minding or caring about offending the smaller man..
"What was the problem?" You asked downwards once he was gone. "What did he call you? [][][]?"
You repeated the word he used but Mr. Crawling shook his head, making you guess it was something you shouldn't use on him either - you hoped it wasn't an actual insult, even though you would be surprised if he said something like that.

He asked him if he was worried...

And then if he was something else, which set Mr. Crawling off to act like this.

...I doubt either of them will tell me what it was.

You supposed you could ask another resident...

...if I go to Mr. Chopped Mr. Crawling is just going to stop me, I guess.

So who else could explain the language to you except them?

Mr. Machete is just going to fight me.

No doubt that the resident wouldn't have the patience or interest in teaching you anything that didn't make you bleed or hurt.

" M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸c̸ͨa̸ͣn̸ⷫ ̸h̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸"

...such a macho.

In a way he reminded you the most of a human, specifically some bully from your school time who would start fights for no reason with a big ego - even if your language was limited, within those limited words and actions he took, he came across as incredibly cocky and arrogant...

...you supposed that was why he was entertaining to you, too.

...but still not the right choice for anyone who could teach you words.

"W̸ⷲh̸ͪy̸ⷱ ̸h̸ͪe̸ͤᶫl̸ⷬp̸?"
"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸s̸̾p̸ⷬe̸ͤa̸ͣk̸ⷦ ̸H̸ͪe̸ͤᶫl̸ⷬp̸ ̸ͫm̸ͤe̸.̸"

...I could try to find Mr. Hood.

He was one of the more elusive residents you knew of, usually staying around the area you had first met him in.
But unlike Mr. Machete he didn't seem to wander since you never crossed paths with him anywhere else except in that large hallway, and he didn't seem to actively seek out any company from other residents either. You guessed he was a bit of a loner, after all he had immediately left too after bringing you here that one time because there were other 'good' residents he didn't need to protect you from...

...I actually wanted to visit him when I'd have something to give back to...

But since your groceries were gone, you supposed that would have to wait until you found the elevator again.

...?

You paused when you reached into the closet to grab your crowbar, realizing the small plastic bag sitting neatly beside the hung-up red coat.

...did Mr. Scarletella-?

You quickly shut the closet again when you heard Mr. Crawling make a questioning noise behind you, hoping he didn't spot the red fabric as you pulled the bag out to look inside.


...it's all here.

Everything you had gotten from the other side, although some of the containers were splattered with blood from where you guessed it had spilled out after you dropped the bag in the other world...

...had Mr. Scarletella been here?

He had to have been, you were sure you left that bag in the other world and there was no other resident except him who could have grabbed it...or even knew about it.

So why didn't he take his coat back if he was here..?

There was an itch at the back of your mind, like a memory you couldn't quite grasp but it was fading in the same moment Mr. Crawling pulled your raincoat to draw your attention.
"?" His head tilted curiously and you remembered the reason you actually went to the other place-

"Here, uhm. W̸ⷲa̸ͣt̸ͭc̸ͨh̸ͪ ̸t̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥs̸̾" You said softly and leaned down to hand him the bag, minus one of the objects and he looked down on the contents in confusion when it was obvious he didn't know what any of these things were. "When I'll be back, I'll show you. M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸ t̸e̸ͭa̸ͤc̸ͣh̸ͨ ̸ͪ y̸o̸ⷱu̸ͦᵘ."
He tilted his head back up to you with a smile, although it sank when you walked towards the door.
"?" Mr. Crawling followed after, only stopping when you raised your hand to a flat palm in front of his face.
"I'll be back soon." You said with a small, apologetic smile and his own turned to a frown at the words. "M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸ᵍg̸ͦo̸ ̸-"


...how do I describe Mr. Hood...?

You blinked as you paused for a second until you stepped back to the bed, pulling the blanket off and wrapping it around yourself, tugging lightly on the hood you had created with it.

"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸ᵍg̸ͦo̸ᶠ ̸ͥf̸ⷫi̸ͩn̸d̸" You explained and Mr. Crawling raised a hand to point at himself, as if to ask to come along but you shook your head.


...it could be dangerous, too.

Ms. Blue-Clad usually walked around that area too along with maybe crossing Mr. Hugeface, and you didn't want to endanger the man...not to mention the reason you wanted to meet him was to figure out what offended him in the first place.
" Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸s̸̾t̸ͭa̸ͣy̸ⷱ" You said with a smile but it didn't change the frown on his face, only softening to a line when you patted his head. " M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸C̸ͨo̸ͦm̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸b̸ⷡa̸ͣc̸ͨk̸ⷦ"

"..."

Mr. Crawling didn't protest but it was obvious he was worried when he watched you opening the door, still following you and you felt a little bad for leaving him...


But he might get hurt if he comes with me

Even if you could defend him from other residents...

"What? I don't hate you - why would you think that, Mr. Crawling-?"

...he wouldn't fight you even if it'd save himself.

"...I'll be back in a bit." You smiled, or at least tried to despite the thought and he stayed at the narrowing gap at the door,

"...ᵍG̸ͦo̸ͦo̸ͩd̸ⷡb̸ⷱy̸ͤe̸"

"..."

You shut it fully, a small pang of guilt making you sigh at how sad he had seemed, and then looking back at the hallways in front of you.

...I'll make it up to him when I'm back...

...hopefully as soon as possible.

Chapter Text

The way to Mr. Hood was luckily not as bad as you had worried about.
Even though you encountered Ms. Blue Clad, she didn't try to attack or grab you like before - you figured it was due to your regular size not being 'cute' enough to her, since she just appeared once while you looked through the keyhole of a door to spy into the next room ahead.
When you opened it up she had been gone, which you were glad about since you didn't want to unnecessarily hurt another resident that didn't deserve it. The first time you had met her she had been distressed about losing her shoe and she didn't attack you back then either, so you didn't think she was necessarily evil...it was just how she was.

"T̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥs̸̾. ̸Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ"

...I can't remember.

Something had been itching at the back of your mind ever since you woke up but you couldn't place what it was, it just felt...

...off.

Something you weren't sure if you wanted to remember, similarly to the time you knew you had hurt Mr. Crawling where your mind blanked any time you tried to think about what happened.
The context made it obvious as to what you did, but your mind didn't want to accept it.

I don't want to be like this.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ h̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ"

I'm not a bad person...

"Hey! That's me-...what, a creepy 'shape' haunting the apartment complex? I'm just a normal human, haha...I wouldn't say I'm some sort of monster-"

...I think.

...you hoped.

"Mr. Hood!"

You waved at the familiar figure coming into sight at the end of the large hallway, your voice echoing in the room and making the man walking ahead of you stop.
He was carrying a large weapon as well, an even larger axe than Mr. Silvair's and you asked yourself if you should try to somehow get a bigger weapon too.
Your crowbar was doing a good service to you and you don't really want to part with it, but compared to Mr. Machete or Mr. Hood's weapon, it seemed tiny...

Or more so size appropriate you guessed, since the resident across you also reached over a head taller than you.

"...?" He fully turned when you caught up to him, seemingly watching you from below the hood draped into his non-existent face.

...he isn't saying anything.

You honestly weren't sure what exactly you thought he would say, it had been a while since you've seen each other but it wasn't like you had the vocabulary to make any pleasant small talk with the man like you would with a human friend...

"...Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸h̸ͪe̸ͤᶫl̸ⷬp̸?" He finally asked when you stayed quiet for too long in your thoughts and you blinked, shaking your head.
Or partly, you didn't need help finding your way back or be protected like before, but you did have the question you wanted to ask him.

But first-

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸h̸ͪe̸ͤᶫl̸ⷬp̸ ̸ͫm̸ͤe̸.̸ W̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸t̸ͭo̸ͦ ̸t̸ͭh̸ͪa̸ͣn̸ⷫk̸ⷦ ̸y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸" You responded with a smile and then pulled the small package out of your pocket, handing it over to him.
Mr. Hood tilted his head down to look at it, and then further down to you when he reached out to take it.

"...?"

"It's sweets!" You explained and he didn't seem to understand you...
"Uhm...here-"
You took the box again, only to open it up on one side as you ripped open the plastic packaging and slide out one of the chocolate covered sticks.

"It's pocky! I uh...used to eat it a lot as a child." You held the stick back up and pointed at it. "Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸e̸ͤa̸ͣt̸ͭ ̸ t̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥs̸̾.̸."

"...?" Mr. Hood took the stick off of you when you handed it to him, and in his hand it looked even smaller than usual. He seemingly watched you when you took another out of the package, bringing it up to your mouth.

"Like this!"

You bit a piece off, chewing lightly with a smile at the familiar taste that brought the few good memories you had about your childhood...

...even if you couldn't...fully say what it was they were.

There was just the feeling of nostalgia, a bittersweet note to eating these kinds of sweets again with someone who's face you couldn't see, similarly to your memory where you couldn't remember your childhood friends anymore.

"...W̸ⷲh̸ͪy̸ⷱ." He asked almost flatly, but you shrugged as answer.
Truthfully there wasn't a reason or necessity, you knew both him and you didn't need to eat, but you thought maybe you could show him something from your world as a thank you for teaching you this world...
As well as your curiosity if he could eat, you figured he must have a head that might simply be invisible below the hood since you did feel something like a body inside the cloth covering him...

His arms and feet seemed materialized to the point you could usually see them, in a pitch black color that blended with the darkness around you at times but they were palpable, but when he had hidden you in his hood there wasn't a body touching you - when he had carried you in one arm though, you had leaned against his chest, so you supposed he could choose what body part of himself to materialize...?

"..."

Despite his initial disinterest he still brought the chocolate stick up to where you guessed his mouth was, and then bits and pieces began to disappear off of it into nothingness.

So I was right-!

He did have some sort of invisible or translucent body, and you held out the open package to him again when he finished.
"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸u̸ͧn̸ⷫd̸ͩe̸ͤr̸ͬs̸̾t̸ͭa̸ͣn̸ⷫd̸ͩ."
"You don't like it..?" You asked and pouted slightly at that when he didn't take another.

Maybe he doesn't like chocolate.

Mr. Hood turned away again, seemingly wanting to continue where he was initially heading to before you made him stop, but when you followed him he turned his head back again.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ h̸ͪe̸ͤᶫl̸ⷬp̸?" He paused in his steps even when you shook your head and you weren't sure if he was asking you because he didn't want you to come along.
Mr. Hood seemed more of a serious person you guessed, more so than Mr. Silvair - unlike the researcher he didn't exactly seem nice, but he wasn't rude either. More so pragmatic you guessed, he didn't seem to mind nor care for company outside of his own but still helped you just because you asked him to...

...he seems a bit stiff, I guess.

Not that you really knew the man, it was simply what you noticed from his interactions when he stayed by himself most of the time.
You had seen residents talk to each other, like Mr. Crawling and Mr. Stitch, or Mr. Machete and Mr. Silvair even when he had shown up at his base because he was lost - it was mostly the non-sentient entities that were avoided by others and stayed by themselves, as well as Mr. Scarletella...

...does he count as sentient or non-sentient...?

"...can I ask you something?" You supposed if Mr. Hood would want a reason for you to stay around, you might as well ask him the question that had made you come here in the first place aside from trying to share sweets with the man.
"?"

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ ᵍg̸ͦo̸ͦo̸ͩd̸ ̸ͬr̸ͤe̸̾s̸ͥi̸ͩd̸ͤe̸ⷫn̸ͭt̸?" You asked more or less directly and brought a hand up to gesture at him when he didn't move. " ̸ⷡB̸ͣa̸ͩd̸ ̸ͬr̸ͤe̸̾s̸ͥi̸ͩd̸ͤe̸ⷫn̸ͭt̸?"
If he was confused he didn't show so, not tilting his head like the others but then again...he never really gestured more than just pointing with his free hand if necessary.
It raised up to point at himself at the question when he simply stated: "M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸r̸ͬe̸ͤs̸̾i̸ͥd̸ͩe̸ͤn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸."
He didn't seem to think an explanation for it was necessary even when your brows furrowed in slight frustration at the non-specific answer, although you supposed he wouldn't categorize himself into good or bad necessarily...

"...what about me?" You muttered and brought your hand back to point at yourself,
"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ᵍg̸ͦo̸ͦo̸ͩd̸ ̸ͬr̸ͤe̸̾s̸ͥi̸ͩd̸ͤe̸ⷫn̸ͭt̸? ̸ⷡB̸ͣa̸ͩd̸ ̸ͬr̸ͤe̸̾s̸ͥi̸ͩd̸ͤe̸ⷫn̸ͭt̸?"

"...?"
Mr. Hood didn't answer aside from what sounded like a hum, more so a vibration you felt in your bones from his voice as it didn't form words.
You didn't know if it meant if he was thinking about the answer or if you even really cared for one.

I don't know why I keep thinking about it.

Something about Mr. Scarletella's question, about how he said he wanted to understand you...

...I don't even understand myself.

"...Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸r̸ͬe̸ͤs̸̾i̸ͥd̸ͩe̸ͤn̸ⷫt̸ͭ." Replied the man finally as he pointed an open palm at you, and at that you blinked.
"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸h̸ͪu̸ͧm̸ͫa̸ͣn̸ⷫ."

...I'm human?

That shouldn't surprise you, you were a human that came into this world after all, but after everything your body had endured in here...

I thought I was more like them than a human anymore

...but what was the difference if your body could heal and regenerate like theirs, and defy all normal laws?

"...w̸ⷲh̸ͪy̸ⷱ?" You asked with knitted brows even if you doubted Mr. Hood would know why - maybe it was simply the time you spend here wasn't long enough yet...
"...Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ s̸̾a̸ͣd̸ͩ?"

...am I sad about not being a resident...?

...it made you feel a bit alien, you guessed.

You still didn't fully understand the nuances of their speech or gestures, why they acted the way they did at times and Mr. Crawling conversation with Mr. Silvair just showed you how little you truly understood when they didn't try to specifically cater to your understanding.
You felt alienated by it, that you started to forget your own language while learning this new one, living in a different world that changed you so whenever you returned to your old one...

"U-AAAAAH!!!"

...they reacted to you like you were one of the residents.

But the residents don't see me as one of them.

Or at least Mr. Hood didn't, as he had shown by making that distinction in the first place.

"...Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸w̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸r̸ͬe̸ͤs̸̾i̸ͥd̸ͩe̸ͤn̸ⷫt̸ͭ?" He apparently sensed the change of mood in you even when you didn't answer, lightly pointing at you with a questioning tone.
"N̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸h̸ͪu̸ͧm̸ͫa̸ͣn̸ⷫ?"

...do I?

"I...I don't know." You muttered a bit frustrated at your own indecisiveness.
It wasn't like you hated being a human, you'd miss going to the other world for sweets and foods, or even the ability to hold a long conversation, you'd miss movies and games and the sun and rain...

...I guess I don't want to be a resident...

But you wished the residents and this place were something more familiar to you.

That just feels egoistical.

"...Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸ ̸r̸ͬe̸ͤs̸̾i̸ͥd̸ͩe̸ͤn̸ⷫt̸ͭ? Do you like being one?" You tried to ask him, still not knowing what the word 'to be' was in this language and he raised a hand to point at himself again.
"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸ ̸r̸ͬe̸ͤs̸̾i̸ͥd̸ͩe̸ͤn̸ⷫt̸ͭ?̸" He repeated your words, with no real emotion to it.
"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸u̸ͧn̸ⷫd̸ͩe̸ͤr̸ͬs̸̾t̸ͭa̸ͣn̸ⷫd̸ͩ."

It was hard to tell if he didn't understand it because of your missing vocabulary or if he didn't understand the question itself, although it felt weirdly similar to Mr. Machete's answer in spirit.

Why not?

As if Mr. Hood never thought about wether he liked or didn't like being a resident, or himself, and you guessed it fit to the way he acted that the entity didn't bother itself with what he didn't see as necessary - including self doubts.

I wish I had that confidence.

Or lack of awareness.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸ ̸ h̸ͪu̸ͧm̸ͫa̸ͣn̸ⷫ?" Your question was met with silence again, the blackness below his hood not giving you any hint as to what he was thinking when he watched you.
"ᶫL̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸?" He repeated stoically. "M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸u̸ͧn̸ⷫd̸ͩe̸ͤr̸ͬs̸̾t̸ͭa̸ͣn̸ⷫd̸ͩ."

...he doesn't understand the word 'like'?

You knew it was the right word and meaning, at least broadly from your conversations with Mr. Crawling and Silvair - so did the resident just...not understand what 'liking' something meant?

...maybe he doesn't have that many emotions...?

The way Mr. Hood spoke was usually dry, with a deep voice coming from below the blanket covering him and even if you knew they weren't human you shad accredited them a human emotional range you supposed. Mr. Crawling and Mr. Silvair seemed to have it, even Mr. Machete with his search for adrenaline and excitement, they all had somewhat human reactions and sentiments or behavior...

...is Mr. Hood something like Scarletella...?

...or was the man just emotionally constipated?

"...like? Can you like something-?" You furrowed your brows as you thought on how to explain that emotion to him, bringing the package of pocky's up again.
"T̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥs̸̾.̸ ̸Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸?̸"
Mr. Hood only shrugged a shoulder, signaling he didn't dislike it but rather didn't care for it apparently.

...I don't know what the word for hate is.

You wanted to try explaining 'like' by pointing out the opposite of it, but you didn't have the vocabulary nor did you know if there was anything he hated either.

"Uhm...Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸c̸ͨa̸ͣn̸ⷫ ̸ᶠf̸ͤe̸ͤᶫe̸l̸?" You pointed at your own face, making a few expressions while he watched you to try and accentuate the word so he would understand it wasn't about touching.
"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸c̸ͨa̸ͣn̸ⷫ ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸ᶠf̸ͤe̸ͤᶫe̸l̸?"

"...?"

Mr. Hood tilted his head down, as if he was watching you intensely at the question and a long moment of silence passed when he didn't answer you.

"...!"

Then finally he seemed to have some sort of reaction, although it was to straighten himself again.
"C̸ͨa̸ͣn̸ⷫ ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸ᶠf̸ͤe̸ͤᶫe̸l̸?" He pointed at himself but it sounded more like a question than an answer to yours.
"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸ c̸ͨa̸ͣn̸ⷫ ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸ᶠf̸ͤe̸ͤᶫe̸l̸."

...is he just realizing that...?

You didn't know if he didn't understand the question or if he was suddenly second-guessing himself at it, but if he was distressed you couldn't tell from his dry tone or unmoving posture.

I guess if he would be distressed then he would actually feel something...

...it still felt more like a somber realization than a neutral fact to him, for some reason.
Maybe you were projecting your own feelings onto him, but having no feelings at all...

...that can't be right either, can it...?

He seemed more the pragmatic type, but he did help you and protected you...

He also killed a few residents without hesitation.

...I can't hold him up to human morals, though...

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ᶠf̸ͤe̸ͤᶫe̸l̸." Mr Hood pointed at you again with an open palm and a more questioning tone, although it still stayed a dry, even speech without much change in cadence.
"H̸ͪo̸ͦw̸ⷲ?"

How?

"Uhm...I don't really know?" You responded with a blink and shrugged your shoulders lightly, "It's just something - uuuh...B̸ⷡo̸ͦd̸ͩy̸ⷱ ̸ᶠf̸ͤe̸ͤᶫe̸l̸.̸...?"

"B̸ⷡo̸ͦd̸ͩy̸ⷱ ̸ᶠf̸ͤe̸ͤᶫe̸l̸?" His hand sank, from your face to your torso instead when he seemingly tried to figure out how to feel.

...can he even learn that...?

Was that something he could learn if he didn't in the first place-?

"W̸ⷲh̸ͪe̸ͤr̸ͬe̸ͤ?" Asked the man and you gave out a pensive noise.
Technically it was in your brain, chemicals and all that but figuratively it was the heart, and if you pointed at your head he might think you just meant with 'thoughts'...
So instead you pointed at your chest.
"H̸ͪe̸ͤa̸ͣr̸ͬt̸ͭ"

"...?"

Mr. Hood's hand pulled away again, slowly mirroring your motion towards his own chest.
It sank through though when there was nothing, leaving his hand hovering in the midst of his body and the demonstration he was giving you was enough of an answer.

He doesn't have a heart.

"Uhm...I mean - technically it's...in the head...?" You said a little sheepishly and pointed at your head, but at that he just pulled the hood of his blanket down to reveal nothing as well.

I'm-

You felt like stepping into one mine after another with the man, you hoped he wasn't taking this as insult or you making fun of him when you were just trying to explain something this abstract to him-

"I - uhm...I mean..."
You knew he had a head, of some sort because he ate the pocky before even if it looked like disappearing into darkness and you furrowed your brows, slowly reaching out a hand to his head..

"...?"

Mr. Hood didn't move away even when you were close enough to where you guessed his face would be, lightly poking your finger into the nothingness-

..!

But there was some resistance, something squishy and soft meeting the tip of your finger and for a moment you would have thought you somehow poked his tongue rather than his skin...

..but that's what was inside him, too...

A little slimy and squishy, and you involuntarily poked him again until you realized that it was probably a rude thing to do even when he wasn't visibly upset about it.
Weirdly enough he was warm, you couldn't see anything but your finger squishing against an invisible blob and when Mr. Hood moved, you immediately took your hand away.

I hope that wasn't rude-

"...?"

His body lowered, until he was kneeling on one knee in front of you with his hood still pulled off.

...is he trying to give me better access...?

It seemed so when he hadn't pulled or pushed your hand away for poking into his face, and you realized just how tall the man was when his head was still somewhere around your shoulder's height even when kneeling down.

"Uhm...thank you..." You muttered hesitantly and lifted your hands again to his head, this time placing your palms on it where you guessed his cheeks would be...

...it's all a smooth surface...

His entire head felt more like a blob, squishy to a degree but you didn't want to press in too much either. There was no obvious gap for a mouth, or eyeholes, just smooth. slightly slimy and soft skin, although when you rubbed a thumb over where you guessed the pocky went into, you felt it part.

So he has a mouth-!

You couldn't feel any teeth though, it was still squishy and more slimy and you quickly pulled your thumb back out since you didn't want to just poke around his mouth as well.
This was already a little weird to just touch the man like that but he didn't seem to mind, when you kept squishing the soft material of his head a little.

...it's kinda like a bouncing ball.

It vibrated, and you expected the man to start to speak again but he didn't when it sounded more like a questioning hum about what you were doing.
"Oh - sorry-" You let go again with an embarrassed smile and the residue on your hands wasn't sticky - more lube like or like a lotion, you could rub your fingers together and it eventually absorbed to the point you didn't feel it anymore...

...even if he can't feel emotions he's still nice.

A bit impersonal at times and stiff but he was patient too, teaching you their language and now even letting you touch around his head...

"...can I...?"

You lightly pointed at his arm and he raised it, letting you feel the skin.
It was firmer than his head, more human-like when you could even feel muscles and you wondered how much he could influence his body.
Maybe it was less that he was immaterial and more that he was some sort of invisible blob that could stretch and harden...?
Less like a ghost like you initially thought, and maybe he had just hollowed out his body to make room for you back then instead of letting you pass through...?

"...Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸ ̸ⷡb̸ͦo̸ͩd̸ⷱy̸?" He asked and his body vibrated from his voice, not as much as his head but his arm still made it palpable.
"I mean - it's kinda fascinating." You admitted with a smile, Mr. Hood not pulling his arm away even when you let go again. "Uhm - sorry for...all the touching. It's just...not like anyone else."

Mr. Silvair and Mr. Crawling both had humanoid bodies that acted like such, even Mr. Machete...
But Mr. Hood was so different you couldn't help but wonder how exactly he worked, or what exactly he was even though you knew there was no answer to that question.

"...Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸w̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸t̸ͭo̸ͦ ̸t̸ͭo̸ͦu̸ͧc̸ͨh̸ͪ?"

He pointed at his torso when he caught you eyeing it, and you sheepishly nodded at the question.
The curiosity was too big to say No when he already offered and you doubted he would if he truly minded it...

"..."

Mr. Hood stood back up, pulling the blanket to cover his invisible head again when he turned to walk.
His hand beckoned you with him and you blinked, following the man through the hallway and doubting what you actually agreed to again-

But the next door lead to the area you had been in a few times before, the round table and two chairs and you supposed he hadn't actually been on his way to anywhere specific - maybe he had just wanted to sit down on a chair before you came along and interrupted him.

The door shut softly behind you and you felt his hands below your arms, lifting you off the ground effortlessly when he sat you onto the table as if you were a doll. It wasn't necessary and you didn't know why he carried you for that, but maybe he thought you liked getting carried-?

"Uhm...t̸ͭh̸ͪa̸ͣn̸ⷫk̸ⷦ ̸y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ?" You still responded as you blinked at him in slight confusion. You were actually at chest height with him with now, even with your feet not touching the ground as you sat on the table and you supposed he did it for easier reach.

He's so close-

There weren't any legs your knees bumped into despite how close he was, similarly to how you stood inside his hood without resistance and when you raised your hand to where his stomach would be, it went through as well.

"...?"

His hand lowered to grab your wrist, feeling firm and careful when he guided you further up until you hit weak resistance.
The surface of what felt like a chest and muscles similarly to a human, starting around where his ribcage would be and you realized the darkness inside his hood was actually the color of his body at that point.

...but why muscles..?

Maybe it helped him keep up his bodies structure or strength, but it felt a little vulgar to just run your fingers along the onset of abs below his chest-

"...?"

There's something...

Like a shell, the end of his upper body turning hollow when your hand moved down and up his chest.
Weirdly enough, there wasn't a membrane stopping you like with his head when your fingers sunk into the soft, jello-like texture until you hit something firm and squishy again.

"!"

"What is...?"

You poked into it again, and it seemed to almost move in reaction inside his chest when Mr. Hood grasped your wrist harder.
It was only a second he did though, so maybe touching it actually hurt him-?

"S̸̾o̸ͦr̸ͬr̸ͬy̸ⷱ-" You immediately apologized but he shook his head. "Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ h̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ-"
This time the slimy something inside him actually moved towards you, in a different shape though when it almost returned your poke.

!!!

"H-Huh-?"

"C̸ͨa̸ͣn̸ⷫ ̸ᶠf̸ͤe̸ͤᶫe̸l̸." Mr. Hood pulled your hand a little further in by your arm, and the strange thing inside his chest almost seemed to have a life of its own as it slid against your palm.
It wasn't round anymore like before, instead it felt as if it could extent at will in multiple ways, long and squishy as it slithered like a snake around your wrist.

...he can feel that?

As in he can feel your touch, or...?

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸...?" You asked a bit confused and lightly grabbed it, squeezing it carefully and almost pulling back when that lured a noise out of him that didn't sound like pain at all.

Is that-?!

Mr. Hood didn't really have legs or hips or a stomach so you didn't think about that, you thought this was some sort of heart he had but was it actually-?

Is that - some sort of sex organ-???

"Mr. Hood-"

You tried to pull away but it didn't let you, staying wrapped around your wrist like a snake coiling its prey and the man leaned down to you when you swallowed nervously.
"C̸ͨa̸ͣn̸ⷫ ̸ᶠf̸ͤe̸ͤᶫe̸l̸." He said, in a tone different from what you were used to from him. Still as stoic but it was darker, the void below his hood looming in front of you when he didn't let go of you.

"N̸ⷫo̸ͦ ̸S̸̾t̸ͭo̸ͦp̸ⷬ"

He wants me to touch him-

It was less of a question and more a firm order when his hand wrapped around your arm additionally, pulling you more into his hollow body.

"U-Uhm...okay..."
Your face heated up more when you looked back down to where your hand faded into blackness, grasping the squishy object and squeezing it again.
You actually had no idea what you were doing, it was somewhat abstract enough to where you didn't necessarily mind doing it even if Mr. Hood didn't leave you much of a choice...

...he sounds like he likes it...

His body vibrated, low grunts leaving the man and you never thought he could sound like that with how silent he otherwise was-

...it's kinda hot...

You could feel it reacting to your touch, pulsing like a small life in your hand when you began to stroke it, and he seemed to enjoy that a lot judging by how his hand tightened around your arm.
Less as if he was keeping you in place and more as if he was holding onto you while you pumped the strange length inside of him, the shape elongating and thickening under your touch and leaving more slime on you when it began to run down your-

H-Huh-?

Something came out from under his ribcage, the strange insides you had been touching slithering down your arm to where they became visible to you know as you realized they were shaped like black, somewhat translucent tentacles.

"Mr. Hood-"

"..!"

One of them shot up to your mouth when you parted your lips, making you gag as it pushed down your throat with a low groan leaving the resident.

"S̸̾o̸ͦr̸ͬr̸ͬy̸ⷱ" He breathed and didn't sound like himself when the tentacle moved, as if he couldn't control it. "ᶠF̸ͤe̸ͤᶫe̸l̸ ᵍ ̸ͦg̸ͦo̸ͩo̸d̸-"
You gagged lightly again when it pushed back down, tasting warmth and something you couldn't describe when he didn't pull out.

Can't breathe-

You swallowed, trying to blink away the tears rising in reaction to the rough handling and his hand touched your cheek almost gently in stark contrast to the tentacle thrusting into your throat.
"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸c̸ͨa̸ͣn̸ⷫ ̸t̸ͭa̸ͣk̸ⷦe̸ͤ" His thumb brushed over you, as if he was trying to comfort you when you only choked, your hand grasping the squishy limb and trying to pull it out more from your throat.

Tastes good...

Weirdly enough it didn't feel bad, it didn't hurt past the initial shock because you weren't prepared for it but the roughness made you struggle to take it, trying to calm him down when you used your hand to meet the motion.
He seemed to like that a lot, a deep moan leaving him when his motions turned less uncontrolled, the tentacles grasping your other arm slowly letting go when you didn't resist anymore...

If it helps him...

Mr. Hood had helped you out before and protected you, and even if it started out sudden it felt more like due to his lack of control or experience, so maybe this was how you could pay him back at least...?

"ᵍG̸ͦo̸ͦo̸ͩd̸ ̸ͪh̸ͧu̸ͫm̸ͣa̸ⷫn̸" His hand wandered from your face to the back of your head, pulling you in more again as the tentacle drove deeper down your throat and you guessed you were celebrating too early-

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸t̸ͭa̸ͣk̸ⷦe."

He pulled you further in, until you were forced off the table with a gag at how he didn't remove himself from your throat even when moving you, and the tentacles you had felt on your arm now began to slither down your waist instead.

"Mnng-!!"

Warm and intrusive, making it obvious he was taking in your curves over your dress and his hands grasped your wrists to hold you in place.

You're too fast-!

The tentacles slid up your thighs, squishing between them, and your eyes widened when it became obvious what he was going to do.

Mr. Hood-!

Using your throat was one thing but doing that with whatever it is that these things are-?!

"!!"

The tentacle pulled from your mouth after you bit down hard on it, quick enough that you gagged with a choking noise. It finally freed your airways, Mr. Hood's grip on your wrists loosening as you grasped your own throat to catch yourself buckling over.
You coughed, breathing in deeply once you finally could again and the man across you didn't move, the tentacles stopping just below your dress with the other hovering next to your head as he seemed to wait until you could speak again...

"S-Slow down-!" You finally managed to croak from how abused your throat felt, blinking away the tears blurring your vision and his head seemed to tilt down when you pointed at him with a finger.

"How about you ask first!?"

You knew the man didn't understand what you said but even he had to know he couldn't just do that-!?

"...?" He let go of your wrist pointing at him to instead point at himself, obviously not understanding the question or why you sounded angry at him.
"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸h̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ ?"

"I'm not hurt - but a warning would've been nice-!?"

"?"

How do I even say warning?

It was obvious the man didn't know what you meant and you guessed he hadn't started this with ill intentions - he probably thought you agreed to it because of something you did, maybe because you touched those things even if you didn't know they were...whatever it is they were.

Is that like some reproduction organ?

Now that they weren't up and down in your throat you could actually see the tentacle hovering in the air in front of you, the long, semi-thick limb emerging from below his chest cavity in the hood. It was a little see-through but still pitch black, covered in your saliva and its own slime by now with a dull, blunt head...

...so weird.

"...?" He leaned down, catching your wrists again and you involuntarily tried to bend back so he wouldn't be right in your face even if there wasn't anything you could see-

Too close-!

"I-I just said slow down-!"

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸ t̸ͭa̸ͣk̸ⷦe̸ͤ?"

Take-?

The tentacle moved again, closer to your face as it almost felt like a snake ready to snap at you while you swallowed.
It was hard to say how much you could protest against it but he stopped in the first place without just ignoring you biting down, so would he actually let you stop if you wanted to-?

It's not like it's bad...

But you had no idea what to expect of him, or how far he would go, and even if he helped you out...

"U-Uhm...T̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥs̸̾ ̸ h̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ ?" You asked with a nervous swallow and Mr. Hood seemingly followed your gesture pointing at the tentacle. "D̸ͩa̸ͣn̸ⷫᵍg̸ͤe̸ͬr̸-?"

"N̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸ h̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ" Responded the man and you felt the tentacles wrapped around your thighs squeeze, as if it was meant to reassure you, but it just made your legs press closer together when your body heated up.

"ᶠF̸ͤe̸ͤᶫe̸ᵍl̸ͦ ̸ͦg̸ͩo̸o̸d̸"

...so this is something like sex to him..?

It felt good to him or to you-?

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ s̸̾c̸ͨa̸ͣr̸ͬe̸ͤd̸ͩ?"
Mr. Hood leaned back again, leaving you some room to breathe when your face still felt hot and for how much he rushed in the beginning he was surprisingly patient now when he didn't go further. Maybe because he realized the misunderstanding or saw how overwhelmed you were, the black tentacles not letting go of your thighs but they didn't wander further up even when he put his arms underneath yours again-
"H-Hey-!"
He lifted you off the ground, putting you back on the table as his hand raised to point at the slimy tentacle hovering in front of you.

"N̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸h̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ" Mr. Hood lightly squished the tip between his fingers as you stared at him, as if to show you it was soft.

Is he just going back into teaching mode-?

It felt a lot like with Mr. Silvair, except in this case a lecture was actually necessary because you had no idea what to expect, and Mr. Hood took the limb between his fingers as he pulled on it.

It can extend-!

The tentacle elongated, thinning out for a moment before it became thicker again and your eyes flicked from the snake-like limb back up to his invisible head in slight disbelief.
"T̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥs̸̾ ̸ ᵍg̸ͥi̸ͮv̸ͤe̸." He pointed lightly at your mouth, and then lower to your stomach and you had seen that gesture a few times now enough to understand what he meant.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸t̸ͭa̸ͣk̸ⷦe̸ͤ.̸ [][][]."

...I know that word...

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ᶠf̸ͤe̸ͤᶫe̸l̸ᵍ ̸ͦg̸ͦo̸ͩo̸d̸.̸ [][][]."

Pleasure

Your face heated up even more at the direct words, shifting your thighs together uncomfortably when you stared down at the nothingness in his hood, even though there weren't eyes to avoid in the first place.

They're all so nonchalant about it

For the fact none of them had ever brought up even the topic before, they sure were all very direct once that ice was broken.

I guess they thought I didn't do that, either.

They weren't human after all, so maybe similarly to you they never thought about you like that either - and technically you had accidentally touched him like that first even if his reaction was more violent than yours in return...

Maybe he's pent up-?

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸u̸ͧn̸ⷫd̸ͩe̸ͤr̸ͬs̸̾t̸ͭa̸ͣn̸ⷫd̸ͩ?" Asked Mr. Hood and let go of the tentacle again, the limb still hovering in the air in slight, waving motions as if it had a life of its own.

"I-I guess?" You replied with a swallow and should you really agree to do this-?
What did it even mean to him? Just something as an outlet because he said he could feel it, unlike other things? He said he can't feel, so he didn't have any deeper feelings about you either, did he?

"U-Uhm...M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸ u̸ͧn̸ⷫd̸ͩe̸ͤr̸ͬs̸̾t̸ͭa̸ͣn̸ⷫd̸ͩ." You repeated when he didn't move, still watching you as it was obvious he expected an answer from you and he pointed back at the tentacle.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸t̸ͭa̸ͣk̸ⷦe̸ͤ?" He asked again and you figured if you truly wanted to say No, this would be the time to do it...

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸w̸a̸ⷲn̸ͣt̸ⷫ?̸ͭ"

...I don't think I ever met a human that considerate.

Which said more about the humans surrounding you than them, but even when this had started too fast and rushed, you hadn't exactly felt unsafe or panicked...
You supposed that was on you partly when you should be more worried than you were with a strange entity holding you in a situation like this, but Mr. Hood wasn't forceful once he seemed to realize you were struggling against him...

So you just nodded, a bit sheepishly when you stared at your lap instead of his invisible face until you felt his hand on your chin.
His hand was smooth, similarly to the rest of his arms but the grip was firm when he tilted your head back so you were looking up at his hood and your body turned even warmer from the gesture.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸s̸̾p̸ⷬe̸ͤa̸ͣk̸ⷦ." Mr. Hood brushed a thumb over your lips when he seemingly wanted to accentuate the words but you were sure it only managed to turn you as red as a tomato by that point.
"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸t̸ͭa̸ͣk̸ⷦe̸ͤ?"

I guess he wants verbal consent.

"Uhm...M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸ t̸ͭa̸ͣk̸ⷦe̸ͤ" You muttered coyly and at that, the tentacle shot back to your mouth.
"Mmgpff-!"

Slow down-!

It slid down your throat, making you gag again when it felt more like he took a break that only pent him up additionally without having the intention of actually going easy on you.
His hands pushed against your arms, forcing your back onto the table as your yelp was muffled from the warm, pulsing cylinder in your mouth expanding with its thrust and you involuntarily tried to clutch your thighs around his body-
Except there wasn't a body to hold onto, the slimy organs slithering back up between your legs and keeping them spread out when the invisible man hovered over you.
It was impossible to tell what he was thinking without any expression to read, but you felt him pulsing in your throat when one of the limbs reached up to fully disappear underneath your dress.

"Mmppff!"
You weren't sure if you were protesting or moaning when it suddenly rubbed against you, making your hips jerk in reaction at the intrusive touch. Your body tried to shift away from it automatically in nervousness, but Mr. Hood's hands clasped around your waist almost entirely as he pulled you back in place, more into his organs feeling you up underneath your dress.

"Mmmmh..."

They were warm, almost too warm as it burned on your skin when you couldn't help but swallow back the more you got used to the sensation of your throat stretching out on him, almost in rhythm with his thrust as his fingers dug into your body.

Feels good...

His heat was all over your body, devouringly hot covering you as goosebumps rose from the sensation of being touched like that, firm but weirdly soft pressing in on you and you gagged when one of them prodded your entrance.

"!!"

First small and thin, easily invading you with no resistance from your body from how needy you had turned and you choked out a moan into the organ pumping into your mouth.
"W̸ⷲa̸ͣt̸ͭc̸ͨh̸ͪ ̸ T̸ͭe̸ͤe̸ͤt̸ͭh̸ͪ"
Mr. Hood lightly pulled out of your throat, only to press it down on your tongue as you had to take deeper breaths against the expanding feeling inside you.

Oh fuck

The tentacle inside you was expanding in size, reaching deeper while growing thicker and your eyes rolled back at the numbingly delicious friction running up your spine.

Can't..!

He slammed back in your throat, letting you suck on the organ like a pacifier when you didn't think anymore, the other limb curling inside you with each thrust until he hit something that made your mind blank.

"Mmh!!!"

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ t̸ͭa̸ͣk̸ⷦe̸ͤ.̸" Mr. Hood pulled your hips back down when you spasmed, preventing you from jerking off of him when it overwhelmed you with each motion, reaching so deep into you you were sure it would rip you apart any second.
It drove you mad, trying to hold onto anything when your body wanted to thrash in his constriction but his hand caught your wrists to push back onto the table, almost painfully when his grip was much stronger than necessary.

"ᵍG̸ͦo̸ͦo̸ͩd̸ ̸ͪh̸ͧu̸ͫm̸ͣa̸ⷫn̸" The Man whispered, sounding strained with restraint and you couldn't move, you wanted to move so badly it hurt but you just couldn't, you couldn't do anything but take like he told you to when his movements turned faster, a relentless pace inside you as he pumped into you in opposing directions.
Heavy breaths left his invisible body, the grip on your body hardening while your mind kept blanking with every hit deep inside you, drooling on his size as you sucked and it felt so good, you couldn't think anymore, there was just he in your mind, on your body, inside you-

"Mm!!!"

Fireworks and sparks fired in front of your eyes rolling back, your back bending off the table when you couldn't stay pinned but he didn't let you move away, forcing your hips back into him when you sobbed from how good it felt, how much it hurt, you needed to move, move, move-
Your scream muffled, dying in your throat with the organ occupying the space and you were pressed back down, held in place when it was obvious he wasn't done with tormenting you yet.
Sweet, horrible torture, not letting you touch him or grasp for any comfort when the man kept you on the table, tentacles squeezing and rubbing your chest and leaving slime covering you.

You could feel him pulsing in you, pulling out just enough to thrust back hard into you with the blunt head of his tentacle hitting the same spot that made you try to scream, another slithering down between your legs and pressing into the nub to lure more deep groans from you.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸t̸ͭa̸ͣk̸ⷦe̸ͤ.̸" Mr. Hood's voice was dark, vibrating through your body with his organs covering you while he watched your face twist and tear up from the overwhelming pleasure.

"E̸ͤv̸ͮe̸ͤr̸ͬy̸ⷱt̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥn̸ⷫᵍg̸"

I can't

It was so much, too much, too overwhelming, it was too hot, too fast, too rough, he was everywhere inside you and you couldn't breathe, your heart beating so hard it felt like exploding right out of your chest-

"!!!!"

Your next orgasm left you shaking, your toes curling with eyes rolling back as you couldn't even scream like the first time. Nothing but a desperate, muffled whine left your throat from the force of it rippling in white waves through your body, from your toes to your scalp, clashing over your together and drowning you in pleasure.

Oh fuck

It left your head blissfully empty, only clenching tighter around the limb thrusting into you in harsh, rapid motions while the tentacle in your mouth repeated it in opposing directions.
You felt used, in the worst and best way possible when he held you down by your hips, somewhere far away hearing his dark, reassuring words dripping in your ear praising you...

"ᵍG̸ͦo̸ͦo̸ͩd̸ ̸ͪh̸ͧu̸ͫm̸ͣa̸ⷫn̸. T̸ͭa̸ͣk̸ⷦe̸ͤ ̸e̸v̸ͤe̸ͮr̸ͤy̸ͬt̸ⷱh̸ͭi̸ͪn̸ͥg̸ⷫᵍ."

Only the squelching, wet noise of his tentacles moving in and out of you echoed in the room, along with his growing pants and grunts even when his actual body seemed unaffected - everything became such a blur you couldn't tell where his breathing began and your muffled moans ended, hanging almost slack in his grip when you could only take what he gave you, too spent to keep your body on edge...
It was intoxicating, feeling almost helpless against him but his hand held you in place, the voice whispering in your ear grounding you even when you didn't understand what he was saying, it just sounded stern but reassuring, as if he knew you couldn't hold onto anymore, that you were close to falling with the only thing preventing you being himself-

Mr. Hood didn't slow, even when you sobbed from the burn of overstimulation, only pulling out of your throat for a moment to let you breathe like a small slither of mercy he had on you before thrusting back in to abuse it more, your hands clutching the ends of the table threatening to break under how rough he became-

"!!"

Until he finally moaned, deeply with force from somewhere inside of him and you felt hot liquid spilling into you.
"Mmhpppffff...!"
He didn't pull out of you, letting it run down your throat and into your body until you gagged at how much spurted out of his tentacles all over your body.
They pulsed, more than before when he kept thrusting into you in jagged, uncoordinated thrusts, ignoring the mess running down your thighs and dripping onto the ground into a puddle to his feet when he hovered over you with dark praises you didn't understand leaving him.
It felt slimy but hot, a taste you couldn't describe overflowing your mouth and mixing with the drool flowing down your throat as you could barely make another thought except catching everything...

You swallowed back until he finally pulled out of your throat and left it feeling almost empty, your pants louder than his breathing when the tentacle still stayed inside you, even if he stopped thrusting.

...so much...

Your skin was covered in a clear, thick fluid, almost from face to thigh when apparently all his tentacles had cum at the same time, drenching you and the table while Mr. Hood seemed to still need a moment to catch his breath again hovering over you.
You were in the afterglow of your own highs too, every small throb of his length in you making you twitch in return when your thighs fell uselessly to the side, not one muscle obeying you at how spent you were...

...god...

"...?" Mr. Hood apparently calmed down enough to where he pulled out of you, earning a whine when even that friction burned up your body additionally, the hot limbs withdrawing from you back into his chest cavity.
His hand raised to your face, bringing a thumb up when you thought he was trying to wipe some mess out of it but instead, he caught some of the spilled liquid from the corner of your mouth and brought it back to your lips, watching you mindlessly swallow back the salty fluid.

"..."

Whatever he thought you couldn't tell, too tired to force yourself back from the semi-consciousness you were drifting into but you still noticed how he picked you up from the table.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸r̸ͬe̸ͤs̸̾t̸ͭ?" asked the resident with a calm voice again, seemingly not caring about the mess you were in and his muscular chest pressed into the side of your body when he carried you.
"...m..."

That was all you could bring yourself to answer before you gave out and the world turned black.

Chapter Text

When you woke back up, it was due to the sound of something large crashing.

"H-Huh-?" Your eyes flew open, feeling arms grasping you tighter when you saw rubble flew by-

Not flying by, the man carrying you was actually jumping and sprinting to avoid falling rubble as you realized the world was shaking around you.

Oh no-

"Mr. Hood-!" You grasped the cloth covering him more, clinging to him when he sprinted towards another exit from the breaking ground below him, his steps barely keeping up with the speed at which the concrete fell apart-

"EEEEK-!!"

Mr. Chopped-!?

"Wait-!" You yelled when you heard the familiar cry of help from another direction in the hallways, almost falling out of his grip if he wouldn't have held onto you against your will, "Mr. Chopped-! He got lost again-"

"???" Mr. Hood didn't stop running, but his head tilted down to you when you tried to turn your neck to look back and see where it was coming from.

Where did he go-?

"H̸ͪe̸ͤᶫl̸ⷬp̸ ! H̸ͪe̸ͤᶫl̸ⷬp̸ !M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸c̸ͨa̸ͣn̸ⷫ ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸m̸ͫo̸ͦv̸ͮe̸ͤ-!"

It's from above-!

Your head snapped back when the voice came from ahead of you, looking up to see a familiar tuft of orange hair in between the rubble falling, pointing at it with Mr. Hood following your motion with his eyes seemingly.
"T̸ͭh̸ͪe̸ͤr̸ͬe̸ͤ-!"

His body turned, hitting a curve with his next step as he instead ran towards where you pointed without as much as a protest, the ground shaking below you as it began to break apart into a ravine.

The room is splitting-!

Mr. Hood seemed to realize too, leaning forward more as he seemed to try and make it despite the opening gap, a small shriek leaving you when he suddenly jumped towards the falling head above you.

"!!!"
"I got you-!" You yelped and lunged towards him, catching him with your arms and feeling your coat pulled back by Mr. Hood again so you wouldn't end up falling into the large abyss below you.

"!" Mr. Chopped gasped when his eyes ripped open again in surprise and then changed to a relieved smile seeing you holding onto him. "!! H̸ͪe̸ͤᶫl̸ⷬp̸ ̸ͫm̸ͤe̸-!"
"I-"
You wanted to say that technically it was Mr. Hood helping you, but the moment he paused was short-lived when the earth shook again.

It's not over yet-!

Concrete began to break away underneath his feet, making him sprint away again toward a staircase. The ceiling began to fall in on you and you quickly pulled Mr. Chopped against your chest so he wouldn't get hit by any falling rubble as the world shook around you.
Mr. Hood was only holding you with one arm, the other grasping his weapon and you involuntarily felt yourself shrink when he pulled you in more to avoid you falling which you only realized because Mr. Chopped's head suddenly felt heavier.

Don't drop-!

"The staircase-!"

Just as he almost reached it the room shifted again, breaking apart into another ravine and you could feel from how the man grasped you even tighter that he was going to try and jump the distance again-
"!?"
At least until another part of the ground suddenly broke away underneath you, making Mr. Chopped and you shriek at the sudden gravity dragging your bodies down.

You couldn't see where you were falling too, too dark to make out around you as light faded fast from the opening above.
"!"
Mr. Hood suddenly lifted his axe, thrusting his arm forward to slam it into the concrete and sparks fired off from the gap it ran into the material.

We're slowing down-!

Slowly but surely, the force of your fall stopped gradually the longer it stuck inside the wall until you came to a screeching halt in the midst of the ravine.
Below you was still pitch-black darkness with no floor in sight while above you a cliff came to be, the shaking having stopped by now but your body crawled from staring down alone at the frightening height you were at.

"!!!" Mr. Chopped shrieked too after glancing down and you quickly turned his face upwards so he didn't have to stare at the abyss, looking back up to Mr. Hood hanging onto the handle of his axe.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ h̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ?" He asked, still unfazed as ever as if he wasn't hanging by a thread together with you and you stared at him a little wide-eyed at the situation.

You're way too calm about this!

You looked back down at Mr. Chopped to check if he wasn't wounded. There was some blood on his forehead from where you guessed he dropped onto the ground, but otherwise he seemed fine and you weren't hurt either-

"I-I'm okay-!"

"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸ n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸ ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸! ᵍG̸ͦo̸ ̸ͧu̸ⷬp̸!" Whined the head and Mr. Hood's head tilted upwards to the large distance between the cliff.

...I don't think he can get up..

Not while he only had one hand free carrying both of you, and he confirmed your suspicion when he looked back down shaking his head.
"S-So what now-?"

"..."

You were hoping he would have some sort of answer, or defy the laws of gravity somehow with his strength...
Although you were hanging in the air, with no footing to support him  and you could tell from how his body moved that he was feeling around for a crack or anything to step onto, but the wall was too smooth aside from the crack his weapon had caused...

Crack?

"Wait - maybe-" You pointed a finger up, moving Mr. Chopped to your arm when he nervously whined at the motion. It was understandable he was worried you'd drop him with how small you had turned, carefully trying to climb up on Mr. Hood's shoulder so you could leer into the gap...

"Mr. Gap?" You tried to call out, with no idea if it would actually work since you hadn't seen the resident around for a bit but usually, he did hang around in spaces like this-
"Mr. Gap - are you there-?"

"...?"

An eye suddenly appeared in the black crack, and you would've flinched if you hadn't hoped for it when the entity smiled mischievously at you.
"Mr. Gap! I'm so happy to see you-"

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ ᵍg̸ͥi̸ͮv̸ͤe̸ ̸ͪ h̸ͤe̸ͣa̸ͬr̸ͭt̸?" He asked with a narrowed eye and you gave him a blank stare when that was the first thing he said to you.

He's a dick sometimes.

Not that you could bicker with the man, not while Mr. Hood was holding all of you up with one arm and you had no idea how long he could keep that up without slipping.

"N̸ⷫo̸ͦ." You shook your head and held Mr. Chopped up, pointing at him and then you before moving to point down to Mr. Hood below you. "H̸ͪe̸ͤᶫl̸ⷬp̸ ̸ͭ t̸ͦᵍo̸ͤg̸ͭe̸ͪt̸ͤh̸ͬe̸r̸?"

"...?" His grin turned to a slight frown as if the question annoyed him when he seemingly peeked down, even though you doubted he could see past you toward Mr. Hood. "H̸ͪe̸ͤᶫl̸ⷬp̸?"
Either he didn't see or didn't realize the situation you were in and you pointed at the blackness behind him.

"T̸ͭa̸ͣk̸ⷦe̸ͤ ̸o̸ͦt̸ͭh̸ͪe̸ͤr̸ͬ ̸ r̸ͬo̸ͦo̸ͦm̸ͫ?" You asked while Mr. Chopped threw in another word that sounded like 'Please!', and the entity smirked again.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ ᵍg̸ͥi̸ͮv̸ͤe̸ ̸ ᶠf̸ͥi̸ⷫᵍn̸ͤg̸ͬe̸̾r̸s̸?" He smirked and you huffed a breath at the demand.

I don't know what it is with him and body parts.

At least it wasn't your heart, and you had given him your fingers before so you knew they would regenerate even if ripped off...

"...?" Mr. Hood made a questioning hum below you as if he didn't know what was happening, and you suppose from his angle it just looked like you were talking to a wall.
"Fine - Y̸ⷱe̸ͤs̸̾. Just take us somewhere safe-!" You sighed at the entity when it didn't feel like much of a choice you had, and a pair of hands suddenly emerged from the way too small gap towards you-

"OW-!!"

You cried out when your fingers were ripped off, a short, intense second of pain rushing through you, and from below, you heard Mr. Hood make an alarmed noise.

"!!"
There was no time to explain though because just a second later Mr. Gap's hands emerged again-

"Uff-!"

Your ass hit the ground almost in the same second everything had turned black around you, and you heard another body follow while you still clutched the head in your chest when he shrieked in surprise.
"!?" Mr. Hood quickly sat himself up as if he didn't understand what had just happened, and you guessed maybe none of them had ever been brought into another place by Mr. Gap...?

I guess he wouldn't care for any of their limbs.

Mr. Chopped had none except his head and Mr. Hood was some sort of invisible blob...

"Wait-!"
You hurriedly stepped in between Mr. Hood and Mr. Gap when the resident approached the vent with his axe in hand, probably misunderstanding what had happened when he pointed down at your disfigured palm.

"I - It's fine, it barely hurts anymore-" You explained and shook your head when you pointed at your wound and then back to Mr. Gap chuckling. "H̸ͪe̸ͤ ̸ h̸ͪe̸ͤᶫl̸ⷬp̸. ᵍG̸ͦo̸ͦo̸ͩd̸ ̸ͬr̸ͤe̸̾s̸ͥi̸ͩd̸ͤe̸ⷫn̸ͭt̸"
Mr. Hood didn't necessarily seem like he would attack but he didn't lower his weapon either as it was obvious he wasn't too pleased about the teleportation, and you gave him an apologetic smile.

...maybe I should've asked before?

But it seemed like the only thing to do to get all of you out of the current situation.
He didn't seem mad at you though when he raised a hand to grab your wrist, turning it a bit to look at the wound Mr. Gap had caused while you felt air blowing against your arm.

"Oh - sorry, Mr. Chopped-" You moved your arm to shuffle the man so his face wasn't awkwardly squished into your side anymore and instead faced forward to see what was happening while the other resident let go of your wrist again.
"P̸ⷬa̸ͣt̸ͭh̸ͪ ̸c̸ͨh̸ͪa̸ͣn̸ⷫᵍg̸ͤe̸" He spoke and you knew that, the earth shaking like that somehow rearranged the rooms in this maze...

...I guess Mr. Silvair's base was somewhere close by when it happened?

Or did the head get lost again somehow-?

Mr. Hood leaned back down and you felt your body lifting off the ground when he picked you back up in one arm, your body still small enough to where he could easily carry you - you guessed he either didn't mind doing it or actually liked it, maybe without realizing.
"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧr̸ͬ ̸h̸ͪa̸ͣn̸ⷫd̸ͩ ̸ h̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ" Mr Chopped frowned and then wiggled a little to seemingly try and turn towards the gap behind you when the hooded resident didn't stop much longer.

I didn't even say thank you yet-

"I'm not hurt, don't worry" You responded with a reassuring smile when he pouted, keeping your hand close by your chest so you wouldn't accidentally hit the open wounds on something.

...that should heal in no time...

You felt a little bad for leaving Mr. Gap behind, but you guessed Mr. Hood didn't want to stay in the same place for too long as long as the world around you could potentially still be unstable...

...or he doesn't like the resident maybe...?

"Oh - actually, do you guys know each other-?" You blinked and looked down at Mr. Chopped in your arm before you lifted him a little up towards the other carrying the both of you.
"...?" Mr. Hood seemingly tilted his head down to the resident in your hands. "?"

"!?"

Mr. Chopped shrieked at him and his eyes shut tightly as if the sight shocked him and you blinked.
"H̸ͪe̸ͤa̸ͣd̸ͩ n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ t̸ͭh̸ͪe̸ͤr̸ͬe̸ͤ!!" He cried out and you quickly pulled him back underneath your arm when the other resident didn't react with more than a long gaze.

"??"

I forgot that-

It was the same reaction Mr. Chopped had to the Bride, you just forgot that Mr. Hood technically didn't seem to have a head for others -
"Sorry-!"
"?" The resident carrying you looked back up as he walked ahead, through a long hallway that seemed to connect to a few others at the end.

I hope he didn't take that as an insult

"N̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸s̸̾c̸ͨa̸ͣr̸ͬe̸ͤd̸ͩ.̸ ̸H̸ͪe̸ͤ ̸ ᵍg̸ͦo̸ͦo̸ͩd̸ ̸ͬr̸ͤe̸̾s̸ͥi̸ͩd̸ͤe̸ⷫn̸ͭt̸." You tried to rock the head in your arm to calm him down again, and Mr. Chopped gave a muttering whine.
"H̸ͪe̸ͤa̸ͣd̸ͩ n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ t̸ͭh̸ͪe̸ͤr̸ͬe̸ͤ. M̸ͫe̸ͤ s̸̾c̸ͨa̸ͣr̸ͬe̸ͤd̸ͩ" He grumbled, as if you did it on purpose to scare him and you sighed.

...at least we're somewhat safe now.

The world had stopped shaking and the hallway seemed stable, leading to a familiar branching room of staircases.
"Oh, I know the way-" You pointed towards the left and Mr. Hood followed your decision, seemingly unbothered by the same exchange between the two of you regarding him.

He isn't easy to shake, I guess.

" M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸ c̸ͨa̸ͣ n̸ ⷫ ̸n̸ ⷫ o̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸ ᶠf̸ͤe̸ͤᶫ e̸l̸."

...that still seems wrong.

Especially after what he did with you...

It felt more like he was pent up.

"It's down-"

You pointed at the staircase leading down, squinting your eyes as you tried to predict your surroundings.
The maze had changed, but the three staircases stayed the same and the hallways were easier to manage because Mr. Chopped knew the ways at all...
Even if the head didn't seem to like to talk to Mr. Hood because of his fear, the resident still tried to help out as well...

...actually...

Now that you were by yourselves without either Mr. Silvair nor Mr. Crawling..

"Mr. Chopped - can I ask you a question?" You raised the head to look at it, the limb feeling larger due to your smaller size when you had a little difficulty holding him at chest height, so you instead plopped him onto your lap since Mr. Hood was carrying you in a sitting position in one arm.
"Uh...Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸t̸ͭe̸ͤa̸ͣc̸ͨh̸ͪ." You began and tried to remember the word Mr. Silvair used...
"[][][]?"

"...[][][]?" Mr. Chopped looked confused at the word but not offended, so you guessed it wasn't an insult...?
At least not too directly, and you looked up to Mr. Hood to see if he maybe had some sort of reaction.

"?"

But he didn't seem to know either, just making a low hum when you guessed that was a signal that he was either thinking about it or didn't have an answer to it.
"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸ k̸ⷦn̸ⷫo̸ͦw̸ⷲ?" You asked the head in your lap again and he rolled slightly to the side, as if he was tilting his head with a pensive expression.
"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸ k̸ⷦn̸ⷫo̸ͦw̸ⷲ!" He protested with a pout and furrowed brows.

...so I guess it's hard to explain?

You knew the language barrier happened both ways, and explaining something that was potentially complicated to you was difficult for them as well...
Even more so for Mr. Chopped you figured since he couldn't even gesture at anything as an explanation, although you doubted it was an object.
Mr. Silvair had called Mr. Crawling something, something other than worry...

Innocent? Maybe something like childish?
That was a word that was hard to explain and could offend Mr. Crawling when he had been angry at the researcher, he sometimes acted a bit childlike...
It never annoyed you, but that was because you really liked him so to others it could maybe become bothersome...?

...but why would Mr. Silvair suddenly have an issue with that...?

He was patient every other time too, even with residents that outright attacked him like the lady with a chainsaw, or you when you had lost sentience...

...I guess I'll have to ask him directly.

You sighed and leaned back against the man carrying you, more into his chest as you turned Mr. Chopped in your lap so he could see ahead of you as well. It must've been a funny picture to someone else, the large hooded resident holding a smaller person with a detached head in their lap...

Oh right-

"Mr. Chopped -Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ e̸ͤa̸ͣt̸ͭ?" You leaned down to your coat, fumbling in the pocket before you pulled out the package of sweets from before.

I didn't lose them!

They were larger compared to before, probably because your body and clothes shrunk but the sweets didn't.
That would be one way to enjoy more of them you guessed, if you would shrink yourself to a small size every time before actually eating something to preserve it longer...

"...?" Mr. Chopped looked at the chocolate covered stick you hovered next to his head on your lap, with a confused expression.
"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸e̸ͤa̸ͣt̸ͭ. T̸ͭa̸ͣs̸̾t̸ͭy̸ⷱ." You explained and turned him a little so he could see you from the corner of his eyes when you brought another up to your own mouth. "Like this!"

You broke a piece off, chewing on it and Mr. Chopped looked at the other in your hand, still a bit confused but he opened his mouth when you put it between his lips.
It stuck out like a cigarette before he seemed to take bites, sucking the sweet in with his eyes widening a bit.

"..!"

"Do you like it?" You smiled when the man chewed with a satisfied expression, bringing a hand up and patting his hair lightly. It seemed to make him happier which you were glad about...

At least he likes it, I suppose.

"It's sweet! I brought them from the other - my world."

...I keep calling it the other world.

...when had you stopped referring to it as your world...?

"...?"
Mr. Chopped frowned a little with worry in his gaze at the expression you seemed to make, and you lightly shook your head with a small smile again.
"I'm fine...just...thought about some stuff." You muttered and pulled another pocky out of the package you wanted to feed him-

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ᵍg̸ͥi̸ͮv̸ͤe̸ ̸ͦo̸ⷫn̸ͤe̸?"

"!!!"

You shrieked at the voice right beside your ear, making Mr. Hood raise his weapon almost immediately at nothing in front of him when you supposed he thought you had reacted to something ahead of you.
"???"
"No- there was-!?" You quickly pulled your own hood down to turn your head to the side but there was nothing, Mr. Chopped tilting his head lightly again when he seemed just as confused as the resident holding you.

What...

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ  h̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ?" Asked Mr. Hood in a serious tone but you technically weren't, even if you could have sworn...
"...U-uh...n-no." You shook your head, feeling your face redden with embarrassment about your shriek at nothing, and Mr. Hood lowered his weapon again.
If he was annoyed about your reaction he didn't show you, and you guessed technically you could become taller again to walk on your own instead of making the man carry the both of you...

...but it felt kind of nice, even if you stopped feeling sore.

And after him being that rough, it was nice to be taken care of.
Mr. Scarletella hadn't done it since you ran away, even if you didn't know if he even would've attempted to...and Mr. Silvair just carried you back to your room...

" T̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥs̸̾ . Y̸ ⷱ o̸ͦu̸ͧ "

...something doesn't feel right about that...

Your memory was still mostly blank about what happened after your time with the researcher, and you guessed it was because you had been asleep...

...or am I missing something...?

...there's no point thinking too hard on it, it'll just give me a headache...

You sighed and shook your head when Mr. Chopped gave you another worried gaze, putting another pocky between his lips and then took one for yourself as you bit a piece off.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ᵍg̸ͥi̸ͮv̸ͤe̸ ̸ͦo̸ⷫn̸ͤe̸?"

"!!!"

This time the voice wasn't as close by but still audible, coming from above you as you snapped your head back to look at Mr. Hood.

Mr. Gap-!

In the darkness of his hood you saw a familiar face with a mischievous grin, not exactly in the center but in the gap between where his invisible head and cloth covering him was-

So I was right!

You heard the axe drop when Mr. Hood stopped, and his hand shot up to immediately grab Mr. Gap's face in one second, with the speed of a snake.
"Wait-!"
"!!!" A muffled protest left the face underneath his hand and you could tell from how hard the man clenched his fist that it was hurting him, making it obvious Mr. Hood wasn't amused at all about the entity appearing this close to him.

"Don't hurt him-!" You quickly reached up to pull on his arm, until you heard Mr. Chopped yelp when he almost rolled off your lap until you caught him by his hair again.

"H̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ! H̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ!"

"Oh no- I'm sorry-!"

"ᵍG̸ͦo̸ ̸ͣa̸ⷲw̸ͣa̸ⷱy̸."

"ᶫL̸ͤe̸ͭt̸ ̸ᵍg̸ͦo̸ ̸ᶠf̸ͣa̸ͨc̸ͤe̸!!"

You pulled Mr. Chopped back on your lap, still holding onto Mr. Hood's raised arm as the man didn't unclench his fist, as if he was trying to prevent Mr. Gap from disappearing into nothing again with the entity throwing out more words you didn't understand.
It sounded angry, as if he was offended despite the situation he was in when it was obvious the hooded resident could crush him in his fist, and you pulled more on his arm until he reluctantly seemed to loosen his grip.
The hesitation was obvious when you guessed he would've preferred to get him out of the way, and for as calm as Mr. Hood seemed otherwise, he was also quick to jump to violence if it was about the entity specifically.

Do they know each other-?

Or was he simply still wary from being teleported against his will?

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ ᶫl̸ͤe̸ͣa̸ͮv̸ͤe̸.̸." He pointed one finger at the entity frowning inside his hood, in a stern, serious tone as if it was meant as a warning, but all it did was make Mr. Gap grimace.

"B̸ⷡo̸ͦr̸ͬi̸ͥn̸ⷫᵍg̸."

He called him boring-

Mr. Hood's finger snapped forward, flicking hard against where Mr. Gap's nose would be - hard enough that it immediately began to bleed and the entity grunted as its head was flinched back.

He's so violent with him-!

"!!"

But the face snapped back in place, his mouth opening and then biting down on the same finger that flicked him with a grunt leaving Mr. Hood, and you almost felt like you were watching a violent version of two children bickering with each other.

"!!"

The clothes resident shook him off again and Mr. Gap disappeared into nothing again as it looked like he was leaving him alone for now, and from the short interaction it almost felt like...

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸k̸ⷦn̸ⷫo̸ͦw̸ⷲ ̸r̸ͬe̸ͤs̸̾i̸ͥd̸ͩe̸ͤn̸ⷫt̸ͭ?" You asked him and Mr. Hood picked his weapon back up when he tilted his head to look back down at the both of you, Mr. Chopped chuckling at the situation when he didn't seem mad about how you dragged his hair anymore.
"Y̸ⷱe̸ͤs̸̾" He confirmed with a dry tone and pointed at where he used to be inside his hood.
"A̸ͣn̸ⷫn̸ⷫo̸ͦy̸ⷱi̸ͥn̸ⷫᵍg̸."

It was the most personal he had revealed to you up to that point, that he found someone annoying...

So does Mr. Gap do that more often with him-?

He seemed like some sort of prankster, or at least someone who similarly to Mr. Machete liked to bully people to a degree...as helpful as the entity could be, he did annoy you at times as well whenever he would ask to get your heart, or try take a limb from you when you would ask him for the smallest of favors...

So I guess he was less mad about the teleportation and more about that it was him.

"W̸ⷲh̸ͪy̸ⷱ ̸ h̸ͪe̸ͤr̸ͬe̸ͤ?" Mr. Chopped asked from your lap and you shrugged, not being sure either...
He was chaotic enough to show up whenever he felt like it, even if there wasn't a deeper reason...

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ᵍg̸ͥi̸ͮv̸ͤe̸ ̸ͦo̸ⷫn̸ͤe̸?"

...did he want one of these-?

You looked down at the remaining Pocky sticks in the package you carried.

...did he appear in my hood first..?

You had heard his voice right next to your ear at first which was why you got so scared, not recognizing the echoing voice coming from the entity. Mr. Gap had talked to you a few times, usually from cracks and gaps in walls which was why you had given him that nickname in the first place...

"?"

You could feel something move in the back of your own hood when you pulled it back up, the entity squished between the cloth and the side of your face as it moved more forwards.
"!" Mr. Chopped opened his mouth to seemingly point him out but you put a finger against your lips to try and signal him to stay quiet, the large man carrying you apparently not realizing he was there when he couldn't see him below your hood.

...he's an asshole sometimes, but he can bring me back from the other world here.

Mr. Hood didn't seem to like him at all which was almost an achievement about someone who said he couldn't even feel in the first place - which was more proof to you that he probably just wasn't aware what 'liking' something felt like.
He obviously tolerated you, and didn't care much about the company you picked aside from the entity hiding in your hood and was even willing to help someone you told him to without hesitation...

...I guess he likes me, in a way.

You brought a pocky up to Mr. Gap, hearing him crunch on the sweets with you and Mr. Chopped, and you felt a little happy that the both of them seemed to like it at least...

...maybe Mr. Hood is more the salty type...?

You guessed you could try giving him some chips from your bag instead, suckling on the pocky in your mouth while Mr. Chopped gave your group coordinations to Mr. Silvair's base.

...I still feel bad leaving him out.

"...?" Mr. Hood's tilted down when your hand reached up with another chocolate stick, not really expecting him to take it since he said before he didn't care much about it, but you at least wanted to offer it.

"..."

But then you felt a light pull when it hovered in the air, disappearing bite by bite into nothing.

"T̸ͭh̸ͪa̸ͣn̸ⷫk̸ⷦ ̸y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ."

He's so polite-

You supposed he was more eating it because you offered and not because he particularly liked it, or maybe he had seen you share it with Mr. Chopped...

...actually...

"How do you say 'friend'-?" You looked down at the head in your lip, and felt Mr. Gap squish against your cheek a bit when he seemingly tried to peek down from the hood as well. "Like-"
You pointed at yourself, and then gestured at the man carrying you while Mr. Chopped tilted his head.

"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸" You first gestured at the man and then back to yourself. "ᶫL̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸ ̸ͫm̸ͤe̸. Friend?"

...it's hard to describe.

"...?" Mr. Chopped gave you a confused expression and seemingly peeked at the entity next to you for help when he didn't seem to know the word. "M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸u̸ͧn̸ⷫd̸ͩe̸ͤr̸ͬs̸̾t̸ͭa̸ͣn̸ⷫd̸ͩ."

He doesn't get it

"[][][]?" Mr. Gap replied with what sounded like a question, but Mr. Chopped pouted at it while the resident carrying you raised his weapon again when it was obvious he had heard his voice.
"!"

[][][]?

Was that friend?

You felt the warmth next to your head disappear, quickly pulling down your hood so Mr. Hood would see he was gone again and the weapon lowered again.

He really doesn't like him.

"[][][]?" Repeated the taller man and you looked up at him with your head turning a little so you could actually see him, even if there was no expression to read.
"Is that right? Friend?" You tried to ask and pointed from him to yourself. "Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸m̸ͫy̸ⷱ [][][]?"
"...?" Mr. Hood didn't give you a confirmation or denial, but you felt his gaze on you for a long moment before he looked back ahead to the staircase leading down.

"H̸ͪo̸ͦm̸ͫe̸ͤ! H̸ͪo̸ͦm̸ͫe̸ͤ!"

"We're here!" You let out a sigh of relief at the familiar, barren metal stairs leading down to a set of door.
It looked unchanged at least from the outside, and you pointed towards the left door.

"ᵍG̸ͦo̸ ̸ͥi̸ⷫn̸ ̸ͬr̸ͦo̸ͦo̸ͫm̸?"

"Mhm!"

Mr. Hood followed your direction, opening up the metal door and you hoped Mr. Crawling hadn't gotten hurt...

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ! Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ!"

A happy eek made the worry disappear from you when you saw a familiar shorter figure next to your bed, rapidly closing the distance towards Mr. Hood until the resident suddenly pointed his axe at him.

Not again-!

"No! Wait-" You struggled a bit in his grip, until he let go of you and you landed on the floor to push away the weapon and step in front of Mr. Crawling backing behind you. "Don't hurt him-!"

"..?"

The weapon sunk again, and you realized how large Mr. Hood looked from Mr. Crawling's perspective now that you were at his height.

No wonder he got scared

He looked menacing without a face to read, and even more so if he would be pointing a massive weapon at you. But your words seemed to stop him, sinking the axe back to his side when you didn't move out of the way, and you felt hands on you pulling you a little further back.

"It's fine - He helped me." You turned lightly towards Mr. Crawling holding onto you, gesturing at the other with an open palm. "H̸ͪe̸ͤᶫl̸ⷬp̸ ̸ͫm̸ͤe̸. M̸ͫy̸ⷱ [][][]."

The hands holding you let go and you thought he understood that he was friendly, but when you turned around Mr. Crawling's expression looked more distressed.

"[][][]?" He repeated and maybe you did get the word wrong, because he didn't look calmed down at all as he looked up at the man.

"...?" Mr. Hood still didn't protest or agreed, only raising a hand to point at himself as if to ask 'Do you mean me?' while Mr. Chopped's glance moved between them.

...did I say something bad?

"...was that wrong? Did I say enemy or something-?" You asked insecurely towards Mr. Crawling and the initial shock seemed to have passed when he looked back at you, albeit without the smile he usual had.
"...?" He looked confused still, but not in worry when he turned his head back to Mr. Hood.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ [][][]?" It sounded more like an interrogation than curiosity and the hooded figure didn't answer aside from a shrug with one shoulder.
"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸u̸ͧn̸ⷫd̸ͩe̸ͤr̸ͬs̸̾t̸ͭa̸ͣn̸ⷫd̸ͩ." He replied. "[][][]?"

Doesn't he know what friend means or is it the same as 'like' when he said he doesn't understand-?

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸?" Mr. Crawling turned back to you but kept a finger pointed at the man, and you nodded, only earning another frown.

...am I saying something wrong?

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸?" Now he did the same with Mr. Hood as he pointed at you instead with an open palm, and the large man didn't answer.
"...?" His hood tilted to seemingly look at you when you felt his gaze, for a long moment again before he straightened back up.
"ᵍG̸ͦo̸ͦo̸ͩd̸ ̸H̸ͪu̸ͧm̸ͫa̸ͣn̸ⷫ." He spoke and it was probably the closest to what you could get out of him regarding 'liking' you, but it was more than his typical dismissiveness about not understanding the question.

Maybe he's some sort of hard shelled guy.

...did it really take sleeping with you to crack that?

"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸ᵍg̸ͦo̸" The resident pointed back at the door as he turned around when the interrogation seemed to annoy him, or maybe he saw his purpose as finished bringing you back.

"Wait-!" You quickly set down Mr. Chopped on the bed and then looked around when you searched for the plastic bag, spotting it underneath the bed and scrambling to grab it with how short your arms were now.
"...?"

Mr. Hood paused at the door when you walked up to him, pulling out a bag of chips and carefully tearing it open so the content wouldn't spill as you handed a chip to him.

"...?" He picked the small piece up from between your fingers, holding it until you pulled out another and brought it to your mouth to bite down.
It was spicy and salty, the man imitating your motions again when the chip disappeared into nothingness.

"!"

His head flinched a little back as if he was surprised and maybe you should've given him a warning about the spice-

"..."

"...do you like it?" You asked when you felt his gaze on you, holding out another as you felt it shift away from you to seemingly look down at it.
For a moment you thought he would turn to leave without another word like before, but instead his hand reached down again to pick the piece up.

So he likes salty-!

"...T̸ͭh̸ͪa̸ͣn̸ⷫk̸ⷦ ̸y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸." He responded after the second piece disappeared and you smiled at him, his hand coming up as you felt the large palm pat your head.

That's new-

He hadn't done that any time before, so maybe you actually managed to make him warm a bit up to you...?

...I don't think he considers sex very intimate...

Not with how nonchalant he acted about it, like everybody else seemingly in this world, so maybe it was more like food or drinks to them...?
Something they didn't need or necessarily desire, but when the chance arose they didn't mind it either...?

"Goodbye..."

You watched how he ultimately stepped out the door, shutting it behind himself as you were left in your bedroom again with the other men.

...I wonder what the discussion before was about.

"Sorry it took me so long, but I...sort of got lost." You turned back to Mr. Crawling who was sitting next to the bed with a frown, putting the bag of chips back into the grocery bag.

I don't think he would like spice

"But we found Mr. Chopped-" Just when you wanted to pick the head back up you realized the shut eyes and even breath, leaving your hands to hover in front of him for a second before you let them sink again.

He's out so fast

"Did anything happen while I was gone? Are you okay?" You turned back to Mr. Crawling watching you, and he raised a hand to gesture at you.

"W̸ⷲh̸ͪy̸ⷱ ̸S̸̾m̸ͫa̸ͣᶫl̸ᶫl̸?" He asked in a worried tone you supposed and you blinked, realizing that you were still at his height instead of your normal size.
"Oh -R̸ͬe̸ͤs̸̾i̸ͥd̸ͩe̸ͤn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸c̸ͨa̸ͣr̸ͬr̸ͬy̸ⷱ ̸m̸ͫe̸ͤ." You avoided the word 'friend' for now since you weren't sure anymore if it was even the right word in their language, and Mr. Crawling tilted his head.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸ ̸c̸ͨa̸ͣr̸ͬr̸ͬy̸ⷱ?" He asked again and you thought about it for a moment.

...it does feel nice...

It gave you a strange feeling of safety to be carried, and with someone like Mr. Hood it seemed caring as well when the man didn't show it in words otherwise...

I suppose he is an actions over words person.

"I like it." You smiled with a nod and his lips thinned, weirdly reacting to a few things you said by now.
...maybe he was just in a bad mood altogether...?

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸ ̸b̸ⷡi̸ͥᵍg̸?"

...big?

Was he asking if you liked being big, or if you liked someone else being big...?

...is he insecure about his height...?

Maybe that he couldn't carry you?

"I don't mind you being smaller-" You tried to give him a reassuring smile, and then stretched out until you could feel your body follow the motions to grow taller again when Mr. Crawling tilted his head back further to look up to you. "If I grow big enough, I can carry you instead, haha..."

You put a hand on his head, patting him to try and cheer him up and it seemed to work when he smiled a little more at the gesture.

...he's cute...

...I wonder if he ever thinks about me any different than that.

Mr. Crawling called you cute before, and the man cuddled regularly with you so you didn't sleep alone but it was hard to think about if he ever took more interest in you than to protect you like a child.
He was the first you met in this world, when you had forgotten who you used to be and freaked out at every little thing so he probably had seen you as some little girl needing protection and assistance...

Even though I'm not like that anymore...

And by now you felt more like you had to protect him because of how pacifistic the man was when he didn't even have a weapon to defend himself with.
His body looked capable to fight potentially, against a human at least, but against residents that were all several heads taller than him and stronger with weapons...?

...it feels wrong to think of him like anything but a friend.

He was so wholesome and supportive with you it made you feel dirty, like you were some creep leering at a person who just saw you as a good friend, as if you were lying to him about your intentions.
You knew how much it could hurt to realize someone only befriended you because they found your body attractive, or because they wanted sex...

...I'm not a creep like that.

"...?" Mr. Crawling tilted his head when you stopped and you gave him a small smile, looking back at the bag still in your hand.

...he's been nothing but kind...

"Haa...haaa...was that...fucking 'entertaining' enough for you...? Looks like I'm the one that got to 'score' this time, isn't that right!?"

...unlike me.

I'm not a good person

"Take some pictures of her, I bet she's gonna stop being such an arrogant bitch once the whole school knows what a whore you are-"

D̸i̸s̸g̸u̸s̸t̸i̸n̸g̸
̸F̸i̸l̸t̸h̸y̸
̸R̸u̸i̸n̸e̸d̸

And yet Mr. Crawling has been nothing but gentle to you.

...what a waste of sympathy...

On someone like you.

"...do you want to try some of the sweets in here? I brought chewing gum, too..."

"!"

Mr. Crawling looked down into your bag when you pulled it further open, giggling a little when he seemed excited and your smile eased into something more genuine when his mood seemed lifted from before.

I'm just glad we're friends...

"T̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥs̸̾. Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ. Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ h̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ."

... and I'll make sure I won't hurt you...

"Huh...Mr. Crawling? Where did he...I could've sworn he was just here...?"

...again.

Chapter Text

Time passed by somewhat uneventfully.
You weren't sure how much of it, but enough that you had gone to sleep two more times since you had returned and usually, Mr. Crawling would cuddle up to you to sleep since you didn't like staying by yourself during it...

...except that he didn't.

"You don't want to rest..?"
"...?"
"Uhm...R̸ͬe̸ͤs̸̾t̸ͭ? T̸ͭo̸ͦᵍg̸ͤe̸ͭt̸ͪh̸ͤe̸ͬr̸?"
"..."

...maybe he just wasn't feeling tired when you were, and you knew most likely the residents here didn't need as much sleep as you did as a human, but...
...it felt a bit like sleeping with company prevented you from disappearing.
Not as if you would stand up and walk away in your sleep, but you'd have someone with you potentially waking you up if anything would happen - both in case you left, and in case something would take you.

Or someone.

...I still have his coat.

You half expected the man to show up to take it back during your sleep when you were alone, but he didn't.
The coat would have moved when you checked on it weirdly enough, usually being on the ground in the closet instead of hung up as you had done, and you figured it might have a life of its own in some way...

...or why does it keep moving?

You had stopped trying to wonder or question the rules and possibilities of this world so technically a moving piece of clothing wouldn't be too far off, not with an entity like Mr. Scarletella who seemed to be able to control reality to a certain degree...

...but why put it down?

At the end, you had just folded the coat into a neat pile and put it on the closet floor since that's where it seemingly wanted to be, with Mr. Crawling watching you with a frown.
If he wanted to know why you had it he didn't say, but he did imitate Mr. Scarletella's motion of carrying an umbrella just like the other residents had done upon seeing it, so you knew he knew who it belonged to...

...I don't know why I thought he would care about that...

Maybe that he would be worried but you were obviously unscathed from whatever encounter the resident might envision to have happened, so there wasn't a reason for him to be mad at you...
...it still bothered you, for some reason.

Mostly because the man had acted a little strange ever since Mr. Hood had brought you back, too.

It was nothing too obvious, but you had the feeling he smiled a little less, talked a little less and didn't seek you out all the time even when you were around.
From the point you had met him, the man had basically been inseparable from you whenever he got the chance to spend time with you so it felt a lot more distant than it actually was you supposed, but even seeing him talk to Mr. Chopped or Silvair instead of you felt...wrong.

"...what do you mean he left-? But he didn't tell me.."

It was hypocritical, the last days or however long, you had been the one actively avoiding him, because of your own issues, and him wanting to be more by himself or around others didn't necessarily mean it was because of you...

...but it feels like it.

It felt like you hurt him and made him withdraw.

And you didn't know how to fix it.

Was it because I left him alone too much?

Or did he just...grow tired of you...?

...I know he's his own person...

Instead of worrying about him going to visit other residents or just do his own thing like you had done, you should be worried for his safety, but here you were feeling abandoned because he simply wasn't there for your every call.

It's not like that

And even if he wanted to avoid you, he had every right to do so after you left him behind that many times.

"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸f̸ᶠi̸ͥn̸ⷫd̸ͩ ̸y̸o̸ⷱu̸ͦ!̸ͧ ̸ᶠF̸ͥi̸ⷫn̸ͩd̸ ̸ⷱy̸ͦo̸ͧu̸!̸"
"Oh - Mr. Crawling, were you - waiting here the entire time...?"

Now you were the one left waiting for him to come back, and the longer it took the more you found yourself just lying down in bed to sleep, even when Mr. Silvair tried to check in on you.
You just ignored him until he would leave again, the sound of the door opening a small gap to look inside and then shutting becoming common the more time passed you didn't leave your room...

...how come that everything you touched, you just had to ruin..?

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ h̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ"

Everything I touch breaks

"...Mr. Crawling? Where...what did I...just do...?"

...I don't mean to...

" M̸ͫe̸ͤ. W̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸t̸ͭo̸ͦ ̸u̸ͧn̸ⷫd̸ͩe̸ͤr̸ͬs̸̾t̸ͭa̸ͣn̸ⷫd̸ͩ.̸ ̸ⷱ ͦY̸ͧo̸u̸.̸"

...but I wish...

"...what do you mean he left-? But he didn't tell me.."

I̸  w̸o̸u̸l̸d̸'̸v̸e̸ ̸ b̸r̸o̸k̸e̸n̸ ̸ i̸t̸ ̸ b̸e̸f̸o̸r̸e̸ ̸ i̸t̸  ̸h̸u̸r̸t̸

...I...

"Mr. Crawling...?"

"..?"

You muttered more to yourself than the hand touching your shoulder, wanting to cuddle up against the warmth when your back instead hit nothing.

You felt a hand catching you when you leaned too far back, making you jerk awake at the short moment gravity made you fall and when your eyes flew open, you stared into a starless night.
Or a pitch-black abyss instead of a sky, just as empty and hollow as the eye meeting your gaze when you turned your head to the side.

Mr. Scarletella

It didn't surprise you or even shock you when you blankly blinked at the man sitting next to you, with a hand pressed onto your back so you wouldn't fall back.
The only real surprise was that it took him so long to appear again.

...this isn't my room anymore...

It was hard to tell from where you were sitting, but your bed was gone, the room barren around you aside from dust whirling in the air from the red light emitting from the resident, and you had a feeling you weren't in his world anymore.

...are we at the other place...?

"...is this some...illusion...?" You muttered still dizzily, hearing your own heartbeat but less loud in your ears once you felt more awake, and Mr. Scarletella's smile widened again as he watched you stand up shakily. "Or am I...dreaming...?"

The man had crouched next to you, too close for comfort when his hand felt cold even through your own coat, although you weren't scared when he rose back up with you.
You should have been, ripped from the safety of your own room without any notice or realization, trapped in an endless room with a man who could control the reality you were in...

...but it's a dream, isn't it?

The world around you didn't feel stable, as if it only existed where you looked and took note of with nothing existing further than that, walls and shadows shifting in the corner of your eyes and stopping once you actually paid attention to it.
If Mr. Scarletella was bothered by your lack of fear he didn't show so, instead smiling too widely when you gave him a blank stare.

"...why am I...?"

You blinked a few times, trying to get the dizzy feeling out of your head but it only felt like growing worse next to him as he loomed over you.
Not literally, his posture was straight, although without his umbrella and from outside you heard the soft pattering of rain once the sizzling in your ears stopped, making you blink.

...so this is the other world...?

"...you finally picked up your coat from me..." You realized at him wearing it and brought a hand up to rub your eye, not feeling much in the mood to talk to the man but you knew he wouldn't leave. "Why did you bring me here?"
Part of you was still somewhat glad, even when you had sent Mr. Silvair out by ignoring him you still missed any company and it only made you feel more egotistical.
Mr. Scarletella's hand slowly raised and then pointed at the window at the end of the room, to where the sound of rain was coming from and you knitted your brows.

You can find it at the abandoned apartment complex, but beware the man in red when it rains

"...you came here because of the rain?" You asked and he nodded once with a wide smile, loud steps following you when you walked towards the glass.
There was nothing you could see outside, not because it was a flat view or uninteresting, but because as soon as you tried to look out, there was a void.
It might as well have been a wall plastered up in your face to make it impossible to see beyond it, and you turned to look back at Mr. Scarletella in slight confusion.

"...where's the outside?"

"...?" His head tilted too far to the side as if he didn't understand your question.
You pointed at the window again.

"W̸ⷲh̸ͪy̸ⷱ N̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥn̸ⷫᵍg̸?"

"N̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥn̸ⷫᵍg̸ ̸ͭt̸ͪh̸ͤe̸ͬr̸ͤe̸." Responded the man with his smile disappearing and you furrowed your brows.

...maybe he can't show what he doesn't know.

You had seen him a few times in your life before the other world, whenever you would come here but he had always been inside this building, near the large, shattered mirror, and never outside...

...maybe he can only come here when it rains.

"...why did you bring me here, Mr. Scarletella-"

"W̸ⷲa̸ͣt̸ͭc̸ͨh̸ͪ"

You stopped speaking when you heard the sound of multiple footsteps running.

"Hey, hey why so fast? Someone's excited, huh?"
"Can you really blame me? I mean...who knows how long this place will stay around this time..."

I know that voice.

"See, I told you guys she was secretly into this. She followed after you the whole school year before after all."
"And bringing all of us again? Aren't we a naughty little bitch-"

You watched yourself turn around to the group of schoolboys, with a bright smile but clenched fists as your own clutched the crowbar in your hand tighter.

...why am I here?

You looked different from what you remembered, with longer hair and different eyes, in a school uniform, a clear umbrella instead of your raincoat...

"...what is this?" You muttered towards Scarletella next to you but he just smiled and pointed at the group again when the boys crowded around you.

"W̸ⷲa̸ͣt̸ͭc̸ͨh̸ͪ"

"I was scared to admit at first...but after a while...I thought about it. And I actually really like it.."

Lies

Your fist clenched even harder on the tool in your hand when you saw the same hand feeling your other You's waist up to pull them in, with that disgusting, arrogant smirk as you didn't just shove him away.

" - But" Your other self said with a finger raising to his lips before he could lean down. "For this time, I have a little...special surprise."
"Ooh? Something special for us?" sneered the other boy and you whirled free from their grasp, running your hand down your figure as they leered at you.

Disgusting

"Something a bit prettier than this...I'll just need to grab something I left over there." Your other self smirked with a playful smile and the schoolboys didn't protest when you took a few steps back, dropping the umbrella on the ground. "But no peeking...it's supposed to be a little surprise, after all!"

"...why are you showing me this?" You muttered with clenched fists and Mr. Scarletella didn't turn away, seemingly mesmerized by the sight even though you knew what was about to happen.

Your other self strode towards the corner, disappearing behind it and right in front of you when it was obvious none of them could see either of you, and you looked down at the blue duffle bag sitting out of the boy's sight.

Mr. Scarletella moved, from next to you to next to your other self as he watched you pull clothes out of the bag.

...this is where it started, isn't it...?

His empty eyes stayed fixated on your other body, but not with the same disgusting, lecherous stare even when he watched you change. Instead with a curiosity, as if he didn't understand what you were doing and you still remember the intense feeling of being watched in that moment.

How loud your heart was beating in your chest at what you were about to do, the feeling of dread and paranoia that you were watched, that you wouldn't get away with this...

...that was him.

"Hey... what's with that outfit?"
"Yeah, what kinda sexy costume is that supposed to be?"
"...what are you doing with that-!?"

"Oh fuck-!!!"

The sound of your crowbar hitting against the boy's jaw had to be the most horrifying and satisfying sound you ever heard before, only beaten by bones cracking and the terrified screams one of them let out.

"What - WHAT THE FUCK-!?"

"C'mon don't be like that, not like you didn't ask for it going to a place like this!" You replied with a wide grin and even if you were scared at first you weren't anymore, not with the catharsis that came from throwing these words back at them while the boy you hit sacked to the ground like a bag of rice.
"What did you expect to happen here!?"

"Shit - shit shit shit-!"

Another screamed, scrambling back onto his feet as he tried to run but you were faster, letting the heavy metal crash against his ankles and earning another agonizing scream.

"No no - no running away! Everyone's getting their turn!" You slammed the crowbar into his chest, the scream gurgling into a wheeze instead.

"Move over, my turn-"

"Just like last time!" You smashed it against his jaw next, bones breaking on impact with a dull, metallic thud and the scream stopped almost instantly when the second corpse hit the ground.
Behind you another tripped over your umbrella on the ground, loud enough to draw your attention back and the twisted, blood-splattered face underneath the raincoat hood looked a lot more familiar than before.

...right.

"No no no wait - wait—!"

"Take some pictures of her, I bet she's gonna stop being such an arrogant bitch once the whole school knows what a whore you are-"

...this is where I started.

Blood splattered to your feet from your other self beating into the last boy, the crowbar hitting into the body even when it had stopped moving for long.

"...is that what you wanted to show me?" You muttered to Mr. Scarletella watching the scene unfold with an unnerving smile, not wide enough to seem eerie but almost soft, as if...
As if he was fond of this moment.
"How I became a murderer?"

Your crowbar hit the ground when your other self let go, and heavy breaths left them when the whole room dyed red in innards and bleeding colors, your heartbeat so loud it drowned out everything else.

"Haa...haaa...was that...fucking 'entertaining' enough for you...? Looks like I'm the one that got to 'score' this time, isn't that right!?"

...I had my revenge

"Of course she'll come with, they l i k e you after all-"
"Shut up - just...ignore him. He's just being a dick as a joke, (y/N)."

For everything you did

"I-I don't know-"
"C'mon, don't be such a chicken- it's just a bunch of rumors, not like anything is seriously going to happen."
"Hey, stop pressing them. It's fine if they don't want to come with...don't take him too serious. It's okay if you don't want to come along...but if you do, I'll watch out for you. You can trust me."
"...u-uhm...I'll...I'll come with..."

For everything you took from me

"No no, don't act shy now, you're the one following us around all the time so the least you can do is give the boys some entertainment!"

This is your fault

"Let go-! Let fucking go I said or I'll fucking kill you-!"

You made me like this.
B̸u̸t̸ ̸ t̸h̸a̸t̸  ̸i̸s̸n̸'̸t̸ ̸ e̸v̸e̸r̸y̸t̸h̸i̸n̸g̸,̸  ̸i̸s̸ ̸ i̸t̸?

"..."

Your other self sniffled, taking shaky breaths above the pile of bodies and blood before stepping back and pressing a hand against your mouth in nausea.
It only made you taste blood and you forced it away again, hastily ripping away your soaked and stained clothes when you changed back into your uniform and you thought Mr. Scarletella wanted to approach you...

But instead, the large man walked past you, making your other self flinch when you swore you could've heard steps.

"I need to get out." You murmured and watched your other self run off down the hallway.

"What if someone saw me..?"

It had been terrifying, as cathartic and freeing it had felt in the moment, the realization of what you had truly done afterward, knowing what you had fantasized about for so long had become reality...

...and then I saw him.

Mr. Scarletella, standing with his red umbrella down the hallway you had come from when you turned.

Back when you hadn't ever seen him before, like a ghostly apparition and you hadn't been scared because you thought he was a ghost.
You thought he had been someone who saw you, who saw what you did...

...is this from his perspective...?

He was wearing his coat, but instead of his own umbrella he picked the one up you had dropped to the ground.
Splattered with enough blood that the translucent material had turned red by now, and Mr. Scarletella's wide smile softened more into something almost human-like as he looked at it, the material stained and dyed in the same crimson as everything else around him...

And when he turned to look after your other self, that's when they turned around too to catch sight of him.

...he's holding my umbrella.

Mr. Scarletella raised the tool over his own head again, and the stains soaked into the material as it instead turned red the longer he held onto it next to you...

...it just wasn't my umbrella back then.

It still was your umbrella.

The tall man turned back to you with a widening smile, and you blankly stared at him when you weren't sure what he meant to show you.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ ᵍg̸ͥi̸ͮv̸ͤe̸ ̸ͭt̸ͪh̸ͥi̸̾s̸." He spoke, almost softly in the same distortion as always, and lifted his hand to the umbrella he carried.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ ᵍg̸ͥi̸ͮv̸ͤe̸ ̸ⷡb̸ͦo̸ͩd̸ⷱy̸."

"If they all disappeared...then...that means..."


Another body hit the ground in front of you, the sound of metal hitting bones fading fast at the sound of corpses piling up on the floor, guts and innards splattering to where they barely grazed your feet and Mr. Scarletella smiled wider despite the horrific sight.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ᵍg̸ͥi̸ͮv̸ͤe̸ ̸ⷡᶫb̸ͦl̸ͦo̸ͩo̸d̸."

"Haaa...okay, where did I put my uniform-?"

"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸ t̸ͭa̸ͣk̸ⷦe̸ͤ ̸ e̸ͤv̸ͮe̸ͤr̸ͬy̸ⷱt̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥn̸ⷫᵍg̸." He smiled and the blood soaked into the ground, mixing with the crimson light he emitted as the bodies shifted over the ground towards him, skin peeling and liquifying on its way when they began to turn into the same red mush sinking into his aura...

...he made them disappear.

Not just the boy's bodies, but every subsequent body you brought here and your eyes widened at the sudden realization that that was what made them disappear.
Not the anomaly of the apartment itself, not the rain or the building disappearing, it had been him.
And it made you remember...

...they weren't the only ones I hurt.

Your first victims, that group of boys who made your life hell, who made you like this but it never ended there.

"Hey! That's me-...what, a creepy 'shape' haunting the apartment complex? I'm just a normal human, haha...I wouldn't say I'm some sort of monster-"

I wasn't a monster.

Not in the same sense as them, not something supernatural that appeared and disappeared together with this building...

This place was just where you lured your victims because you thought it made their bodies disappear.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ h̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ"

"Excuse me - can you please help me? My friend wandered into this building b-but I'm too scared to go in on my own..."
"Aww, isn't that cute. Did you friend and you play some sort of prank? You know little girls like you shouldn't be all alone, that's dangerous..."

" T̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥs̸̾ . Y̸ ⷱ o̸ͦu̸ͧ "

I was a serial killer.

"Ugh, what a creep...stupid and creepy, pick a struggle...at least I won't have to take care of your corpse, old pervert."

...and he was my accomplice.

"Y̸ ⷱ o̸ͦu̸ͧ .̸ ̸ͫM̸ͤ e̸ .̸̾ ̸ͣS̸ͫa̸ͤ m̸e̸.̸"

"...I didn't know you made the bodies disappear." You muttered but you doubted he cared about that fact. Still, you didn't repeat it for him to understand because he was holding your umbrella, surrounded in red stained light made out of the bodies you left for him and he had to be insane if he thought leaving a pile of corpses was a gift.

Just as insane as you, bringing and killing people for no other reason than that they came along, that they let themselves get lured in here and maybe some of them had good intentions, maybe some of them were actually good people trying to help you-

"You can trust me."

...but that didn't matter to me, did it...?

Good or bad...

"W̸ⷲh̸ͪy̸ⷱ?̸"

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ h̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ"

I just wanted them to suffer.

As much as you had suffered in here, trusting the person who lured you into this hellhole only to betray you, you wanted people to know your pain, the innocent, the guilty, the good, the bad, the women the men-

All of them, they had all forsaken you, they had all let you die in here and didn't answer to your screams or pleas for help, it was women that told you not to talk about it, it was men that mocked you, it was police and good people telling you to let it slide and get over your anger so you wouldn't ruin lives.
Three lives you'd destroy over what they called a mistake, but it wasn't a mistake to you.

You made me like this

And if taking your revenge made you just as worse as them in everyone else's eyes, you might as well continue on.

...so is that how I am?

Someone who just hurt others for no other reason than wanting to inflict pain you used to feel?

That's despicable.

"...is that what you wanted to remind me of?" You murmured and looked back up to Mr. Scarletella when the room shifted around you, sizzling as if it was losing form. "That I'm a murderer? That I'm not a good person?"

Even as a human, I was a monster.

"...?" His hand came up, cold fingers brushing over your chin before grasping it firmly.
The longer you looked the more his eyes felt less like a pitch-black void and closer to a mirror, flat and empty inside a dark room watching you and it was easy to get lost in them once you stopped being scared of him.
"T̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥs̸̾.̸ ̸ⷱY̸ͦo̸ͧu̸." He repeated and the words sounded familiar, as if you heard them before as he tilted the handle of the umbrella lightly towards you.

" M̸ͫe̸ͤ. W̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸t̸ͭo̸ͦ ̸u̸ͧn̸ⷫd̸ͩe̸ͤr̸ͬs̸̾t̸ͭa̸ͣn̸ⷫd̸ͩ.̸ ̸ⷱ ͦY̸ͧo̸u̸.̸"

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ᵍg̸ͥi̸ͮv̸ͤe̸ m̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸ⷡb̸ͦo̸ͩd̸ⷱy̸. ̸ⷡᶫB̸ͦl̸ͦo̸ͩo̸d̸." His head leaned down, too close for you to still be comfortable when his freezing breath brushed your lips. "M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸ t̸ͭa̸ͣk̸ⷦe̸ͤ  ̸e̸ͤv̸ͮe̸ͤr̸ͬy̸ⷱt̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥn̸ⷫᵍg̸.̸. K̸ⷦe̸ͤe̸ͤp̸ⷬ ̸ e̸ͤv̸ͮe̸ͤr̸ͬy̸ⷱt̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥn̸ⷫᵍg̸"
You didn't pull away but didn't move either, the air sizzling around you again when the room melted into a different scene and he shifted lower until his voice was right at your ear.

"W̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸ y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ."

A cold tongue trailed the side of your neck up and you shivered, gasping lightly when your back softly landed on a mattress.

"W̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ  ̸y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧr̸ͬ S̸̾e̸ͤn̸ⷫt̸ͭi̸ͥe̸ͤn̸ⷫc̸ͨe̸ͤ."

F̸e̸e̸l̸s̸ g̸o̸o̸d̸

His body felt like stone against yours, unmovable and marbled as he pressed you into the bed underneath him, with cold callous whispers in your ear.

"W̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸e̸ͤv̸ͮe̸ͤr̸ͬy̸ⷱt̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥn̸ⷫᵍg̸."

It felt easy to relax into the hand pinning your wrists down, into his body slowly warming up against yours as your heart beat loudly in your ears.
The loss of control, as if nothing you did had really been you and rather someone acting on your behalf, that Mr. Scarletella had been the one drawing the strings watching you, bringing you here, who made you who you were now...

"W̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧr̸ͬ ̸n̸ⷫa̸ͣm̸ͫe̸ͤ." He repeated, darker and you knew what he actually wanted.

Your name, your every being, what made you You in the first place, he wanted to own you and your soul and all you ever would be, and it felt so easy to say Yes when all you had been doing was struggle to come to terms with who you were.
It was seductive, the idea of not having to worry about what you were doing because you weren't the one to make that choice in the first place, to have someone lead you into doing what you secretly always wanted to-

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ h̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ"

Let Mr. Scarletella take your name and become the version he saw you as, someone who hurt, who killed, who gave him bodies and blood like a god would demand...

...but that's not what happened.

"...I didn't know you made the bodies disappear."

"...I didn't kill those people because of you." You muttered back and he tilted his head when you leaned closer, until your lips brushed his.

...I'm really...

He didn't pull away, letting you close the distance and press against his mouth in a kiss.
It was slow at first, but then quickly grew hungrier when he grasped your hip to pull you more against his towering body, letting your dress slide up as his tongue  slid along yours.

...messed up, aren't I...?

He tasted like winter air, white snow and blood mixing in your mouth when his kiss turned devouring.
Similar to the first time but somehow more urgent when he only let you breathe for seconds, biting down your neck until it drew blood and you groaned.

"W̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ." Mr. Scarletella's tongue ran along the wound he left, like a small claim when you felt him grind into you, not holding back how much your taste seemed to arouse him.
For how cryptic the man otherwise seemed his desire for you was obvious, in an almost shameless way when he kissed you again, with the same urgency. Fingers digging hard into your flesh in an iron grip when he pulled you in more, his coat opening and falling to the sides despite nothing touching it. You could feel bare skin touching you between the black layer of clothes he supposedly still wore, no barrier left protecting you from his hunger anymore.
His tongue pressed down yours, stealing your breath again while his fingers moved from your hip to between your legs and you squirmed.

"Mm-!!"

You gasped into the kiss at the sudden touch, slender fingers running along your slit and coming up to press firmly onto the nub that made your body tingle pleasantly under his small ministrations.

"ᵍG̸ͥi̸ͮv̸ͤe̸ ̸ͤe̸ͮv̸ͤe̸ͬr̸ⷱy̸ͭt̸ͪh̸ͥi̸ⷫᵍn̸g̸." He muttered darkly and you whimpered when a digit slid into you, with no resistance at how heated your body already was despite the coldness he radiated.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧr̸ͬ ̸v̸ͮo̸ͦi̸ͥc̸ͨe̸ͤ"

It felt like reaching too deep for how short a finger was supposed to be, a second pushing in just a moment after when you moaned and you felt him move inside you, shift until your body jerked in reaction to a particularly sensitive spot he hit.

Oh fuck

You could melt under his touch, firm and controlled, holding your wrists down while he pumped his other hand against you with a hungry stare from those eyes coming alive watching you.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧr̸ͬ ̸ p̸ⷬᶫl̸ͤe̸ͣa̸̾s̸ͧu̸ͬr̸ͤe̸"

He was drinking in your expressions squirming into him, no use in trying to pull your hips off of him because he would still reach the same spot without any change, still so deep inside you you could only bend your back off the mattress with a breathless moan.

"R-Right there-!"

His fingers hit the same spot over and over again at your command as if he actually understood it or simply saw from your reaction how much you wanted it, and small sparks of fireworks ran up your spine when they pushed you off the edge.

"F-Fuck-!!"

You could feel eyes burning on you but it just made the feeling boiling up inside you better, to have his undivided attention on you while his fingers relentlessly pumped into you to force you through your high, until your body wasn't spasming anymore, only whimpering weakly at the soft friction it created when he removed himself from you again.

"W̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ e̸ͤv̸ͮe̸ͤr̸ͬy̸ⷱt̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥn̸ⷫᵍg̸." muttered the man, looking down at his coated hand and while you still caught your breath, he brought his fingers up to his mouth.
A black tongue flicked out to lick you off of them and if your face wouldn't already be red from how heated you felt, it would probably turn an even deeper shade.

He doesn't have any shame

Not about wanting you, his desire for you was both thrilling and almost addictive with how close to desperation it seemed when his grip on you didn't change, iron and indomitable as if you could just disappear as soon as he didn't touch you.

"W̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ" Mr. Scarletella leaned down again, pressing mouth against yours and letting you taste ice mixed with yourself and blood as his weight pressed back down on you.
You were still on edge, flinching lightly when you felt his size push into you even when there was no resistance at all from your body, as if he wasn't something invading you anymore when he instead sheathed himself on you with a low breath.
He didn't need to breathe, the sound more akin to a deep, satisfied sigh when he pulled you in more while you panted from his size, thighs spreading out for comfort when the first thrust punched all air out of you.

"W̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ"

It didn't stay slow, even when your body was still burning from overstimulation and the friction turned intense quickly, just like his gaze on you.
You could hear the bed creaking from his thrusts into you, pants, and muffled moans leaving you each time your back rubbed over the mattress, enough that it felt hot under your touch.
He had an infuriatingly even and hard pace, no sign of exhaustion and you remembered just how long it took him to cum the first time, how tormented your body felt under him chasing his own high, and the sweet, delicious pain it gave you...

I can't

A hand came up to clasp the side of your face, his thumb slipping into your mouth to pull you back when your head bent too far into the pillows from how overwhelmed you felt, and his eyes were nothing but burning with desire, black coals glowing red as he watched you.
The thumb between your lips made it impossible to hold in any noises, panting against his hand and even now he still felt cold wherever your body didn't touch him long enough to warm his skin.
He was hot inside you, making your heat his own when you stretched and struggled to take his entire size, a dull, aching pain whenever he hit your womb and it almost felt like he was trying to break any barrier you could've left.

Any part of your body that could reject him and his need for you, as if he was trying to burn the shape of his size into you, make his claim on you in a way you didn't give him when his fingers dug hard enough into your wrists to bruise them.

"Y̸ ⷱ o̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ ᵍg̸ͥi̸ͮv̸ͤ e̸ ̸ͭt̸ͪh̸ͥi̸̾ s̸."

Your name, your soul, everything you are he wanted from you and you refused to give him, but he took your body instead.
He took the corpses you left, the blood, the umbrella, everything you gave that didn't mean anything to you and the longer he pinned you down with waves of angry, hungry pleasure crashing over you, the more it felt like he was trying desperately to hold on to you.

"W̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ"

That memory, the first time he saw you leave the bodies and blood he claimed, picking up your umbrella and carrying it with him everywhere he went, every rainy day you appeared in the building just to be gone...
The blackout windows he couldn't see out of and you remember whenever you caught a glimpse of him how you ran outside to leave as soon as you could, disappearing into a world he couldn't see or reach.

" ᵍG̸ͦo̸ͦo̸ͩ d̸ ̸b̸ ⷡ y̸ ⷱ e̸ͤ -"

And suddenly his words felt less controlling, and more like a desperate plea.

"W̸ ⷲ a̸ͣ n̸ ⷫ t̸ͭ ̸y̸ ⷱ o̸ͦu̸ͧr̸ͬ ̸n̸ ⷫ a̸ͣm̸ͫe̸ͤ ."

"G-Gonna-!!!"

You cut off when you couldn't form another word, mind going numb with pleasure as fireworks exploded under his hard body pressing into you.
A short, deep groan left him as well heat spurting into you when he came faster than you thought he would. Almost as if the first time he tried to savour you, enjoy his favourite meal for as long as possible unlike now where he was tearing into you like a starving animal.
Lips crashed against yours in a firm, deep kiss this time, his other hand slipping down to your hips to hold you in place under him and his grip was bruising when he refused to let go.

Both of your body and mouth, his tongue slipping back in while you still twitched in pleasant aftershocks, luring another muffled moan from you at how full with him you felt.
Even though you knew he had already cum he didn't seem as if he considered this finished, soon enough rocking his hips back into you even when you twitched from overstimulation.

"W-Wait - wait-" You whined and clenched the air when your wrists couldn't hold onto anything, but he ignored your pleas when his mouth sucked down bruises onto your neck again, feeling the same, delicious pain at how raw you felt at his touch.
An open nerve in his hands, lips catching and muffling your useless protests when you didn't know how serious they even were or if you just felt overwhelmed from him, the same urgency that built your high returning to his thrusts as cold puffs of breath hit your shoulder.
His body was massive, bending over you to even reach your throat and his hand was large enough to clasp your hip and stomach when he pulled you more in, making you meet his motions with brutal friction that made your toes curl.

Too much...

"C-Can't-!!!"

Your body jerked, back almost jumping off the mattress when another orgasm hit you like a train, a desperate whimper leaving you when he didn't slow down at all despite your reaction.
His hand only pressed your stomach back down, letting you feel him even more intense when you couldn't move away at all with the additional pressure.

N̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ  ̸r̸ͬu̸ͧn̸ⷫ.̸" Mr. Scarletella muttered, voice darker with lust as only indication of how much you seemed to affect him as well when you tensed, his thrusts turning more jagged again.
He was close, you could feel it in how his even, hard pace broke apart into harsh, shallow thrusts into you while you whined until he finally gave out a rough moan.
More heat spurted into you, his size slamming back inside deep with a breathless yelp from you at the sudden pain when he ground against you.

Your body was burning up, with a blanking mind when you still rode out your own high while he kissed you hungrily, only calming down when you could barely return it from how spent you felt...

...hurts...

"M̸ͫi̸ͥn̸ⷫe̸ͤ" Mr. Scarletella whispered possessively and your head spun, shutting your eyes at the feeling of his haand on your face.

"W̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧr̸ͬ ̸n̸ⷫa̸ͣm̸ͫe̸ͤ."

...that again...

"...no." You murmured tiredly, like always, and turned your face weakly to press a small kiss onto his hand to pacify him, as if he wasn't an entity trying to steal your soul.

"...?"

It seemed to catch him off guard, enough that he lifted his hand off of you to stare at it, and without any fear of him, he seemed a lot more confused than threatening.

...it'd be easy to just give up...

To give him your name and blame all your choices and what you've done on him, to let him take control...

...but it's not about control for him...

"M̸ͫe̸ͤ.̸ ̸ W̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ.̸ ̸ Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸ S̸̾a̸ͣm̸ͫe̸ͤ.̸ ̸ H̸ͪu̸ͧm̸ͫa̸ͣn̸ⷫ.̸"

"...I'm not giving you my name." You muttered and he didn't smile, but he didn't frown either when he stared at you blankly, still looming over your body and refusing to leave your body.
"I want to stay myself...whatever that is. If I give you my name, I wouldn't be myself anymore. Is that what you want..?"

Mr. Scarletella tilted his head, obviously not understanding what you were saying and you pulled on your own wrist until he finally let go of it, although only to lightly point at him.

...maybe if he understands me...

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸ ̸w̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸n̸a̸m̸ⷫe̸ͣᵐᵉ" You said and he nodded once.
"W̸ⷲh̸ͪy̸ⷱ?"

"...W̸ⷲh̸ͪy̸ⷱ?" He repeated as if he never heard that question before until he smiled again eerily blankly.
"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸ ̸ⷱy̸ͦo̸ͧu̸."

His hand clasped your face again, too cold to feel comforting when he wasn't heated anymore from your touch and you involuntarily flinched at the temperature difference.
"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸ ̸ͫm̸ͤe̸"

His fingers dug more into your skin, bruising it again and you weren't sure if he did it on purpose or if he just didn't know his own strength when his voice didn't sound as even anymore.

...I don't even know if I like you.

Part of you did, the same part that liked how he took the bodies and made them disappear, or how it felt to be in a position of power when you were the one holding the weapon to someone's head...

"Huh...Mr. Crawling? Where did he...I could've sworn he was just here...?"

" ̸ⷱY̸ͦo̸ͧu̸ ̸h̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ.̸"

...I don't want to be like this anymore

The short time you lived without those memories when you thought you were a normal human, before you remembered any of this, any of him...

I̸t̸'̸s̸ ̸a̸ ̸b̸i̸t̸ ̸t̸o̸o̸ ̸l̸a̸t̸e̸ ̸t̸o̸ ̸j̸u̸s̸t̸ ̸t̸u̸r̸n̸ ̸a̸r̸o̸u̸n̸d̸ ̸o̸n̸ ̸t̸h̸a̸t̸,̸ ̸d̸o̸n̸'̸t̸ ̸y̸o̸u̸ ̸t̸h̸i̸n̸k̸?̸

...Mr. Crawling...

D̸o̸ ̸y̸o̸u̸ ̸t̸h̸i̸n̸k̸ ̸a̸n̸y̸o̸n̸e̸ ̸e̸l̸s̸e̸ ̸w̸o̸u̸l̸d̸ ̸e̸v̸e̸r̸ ̸w̸a̸n̸t̸ ̸y̸o̸u̸ ̸l̸i̸k̸e̸ ̸t̸h̸i̸s̸?̸

Unabashedly and unapologetically, someone who had seen the absolute worst of you and still wanted you, someone who no matter how often you ran and disappeared still waited for you to come back every time it rained...
Someone who took what you left behind and cherished it, made it part of him to the point every resident in this world described him with just a single motion of carrying what he thought you gifted to him.

"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸ t̸ͭa̸ͣk̸ⷦe̸ͤ ̸ e̸ͤv̸ͮe̸ͤr̸ͬy̸ⷱt̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥn̸ⷫᵍg̸."

...I don't even think he really likes me.

"...W̸ⷲh̸ͪy̸ⷱ?"

But it felt like he didn't understand what he felt, either.

"...N̸ⷫo̸ͦ." You responded and somewhere you heard the split of glass breaking, his grip on your other wrist turning stronger.

"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸ᵍg̸ͥi̸ͮv̸ͤe̸ ̸ⷫn̸ͣa̸ͫm̸ͤe̸."

Another shattering noise and for a second you thought it was your bones but Mr. Scarletella didn't move, only the red glow dimming as reality seemed to shift again.
You weren't sure as to what was happening, if there was an earthquake breaking the room apart but the expression on his face shifted from the blank frown he had to something bordering realization, as if he was in some sort of pain when more cracks began to appear around him.

Is he...breaking..?

Maybe some sort of illusion that began to shatter at your words, crumbling around you into an endless void when he still kept you pinned on the bed with an empty stare and it felt like incoming dread, as if he was destroying the reality around you to keep you trapped in here with him-

No

"Mr. Scarletella - stop-!"

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸e̸  ̸ͫm̸ͤe̸?" He repeated hollowly and his face began to crack like glass as well, bits and pieces falling off revealing nothing behind them.

"...is that what you wanted to remind me of? That I'm a murderer? That I'm not a good person?"

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸ ᵍg̸ͥi̸ͮv̸ͤe̸ ̸ⷫn̸ͣa̸ͫm̸ͤe̸?"

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ ᵍg̸ͥi̸ͮv̸ͤe̸ ̸ͭt̸ͪh̸ͥi̸̾s̸."

"Y̸ ⷱ o̸ͦu̸ͧ .̸ ̸ͫM̸ͤ e̸ .̸̾ ̸ͣS̸ͫa̸ͤ m̸e̸.̸"

The world around you shattered even more like a flat surface breaking apart and revealing the same nothingness Mr. Scarletella crumbled into, a black void pressing in on you when you felt an instinctive fear kick in at the unknown you were exposed to.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ... ̸w̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ... ̸m̸ͫe̸ͤ...?"

He's going to trap me here-!

"N̸ⷫo̸ͦ-!!"

"!?"

You ripped your wrist free from his grasp, much easier than expected when it hit the surface of his face, making his body shatter completely above you with a haunting expression.

Something you couldn't place between empty and surprised, a hurtful realization when he crumbled into a million pieces along with the room breaking apart around you...

" T̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥs̸̾ .̸ ̸ ⷱ Y̸ͦo̸ͧ u̸."

"I'm just a normal human, haha...I wouldn't say I'm some sort of monster-"

" ̸ⷱY̸ͦo̸ͧu̸ ̸h̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ.̸"

And you woke back up in bed.

Chapter Text

You weren't exactly sure just how much time you spent asleep, but when you had woken up, your head hurt.

...what was I...

...did you just have some sort of weird dream?

It felt too real to be a dream, but there wasn't any sign of Mr. Scarletella around you or any marks on your body, neither from where he bit you nor any bruises...

...I guess his illusions stay illusions.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸e̸ ̸ͫm̸ͤe̸?"

...he looked upset.

You knew he thought the bodies you left behind were meant as a gift to him, but you didn't think he would care about your feelings for him - his obsession had seemed like a one-way street where he didn't care if you truly had an interest in him or not, but now...

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸ ̸ͫm̸ͤe̸"

...I don't even know if I can anymore.

"You can trust me."

It's easier to do without.

Sex had stopped being emotionally intimate to you for a while, even long before you had ended up in this world.
Not as if you were extremely promiscuous in your world, but...

"No no, don't act shy now, you're the one following us around all the time so the least you can do is give the boys some entertainment!"

...it was easier to think of it that way.

Ironically, you had become more open to the idea of sex in general again inside this world - maybe because this body felt more detached from how you used to see yourself as a human since you could change your shape, or because you had the feeling the residents in this world saw sex as something for pure entertainment where there weren't any strings attached..

...I guess Mr. Scarletella thought it meant more.

...I should probably try to talk to him when I can actually think about it...

Your answer wouldn't change, you wouldn't give him your name but you also didn't think that was what he truly wanted from you. More so something he thought was the only way to keep you, and even if you didn't know what kind of relationship the man exactly wanted...

I don't mind him as a friend...

He had, even if you didn't know that, supported you through what you now saw as a dark time in your life, when you were filled with anger and rage and took it out on possibly innocent bystanders.
Even if you didn't want to be like that anymore...

I can't just ignore my past either.

Forgetting about it had led to your anger boiling up to the point you couldn't even control it anymore, and it had hurt someone you really cared about as a result.

...I miss Mr. Crawling...

"H̸ͪe̸ͤᶫl̸ᶫl̸ͦo̸" Mr. Silvair tilted his head slightly with a smile when you opened the door to his room, seeing how he stood next to his bed with Mr. Chopped laying on it as their voices hushed upon your entrance."Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸a̸ͣw̸ⷲa̸ͣk̸ⷦe̸ͤ?"

"H...Hello." You muttered and cleared your throat when you heard how hoarse you sounded from not having talked for a while. "Uhm...sorry that I...didn't talk to you in a while..."
"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸s̸̾ᶫl̸ͤe̸ͤe̸ⷬp̸ ̸ l̸ᶫo̸ͦn̸ⷫᵍg̸ ̸l̸ᶫo̸ͦn̸ⷫᵍg̸ ̸t̸ͭi̸ͥm̸ͫe̸ͤ." He responded but didn't sound mad, more so with slight worry when he came closer.
"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸s̸̾i̸ͥc̸ͨk̸ⷦ?"

His hand raised to feel up your face with the same smile, and from behind you, you saw the bodiless hand climb up to roll Mr. Chopped a little to the side so he could supposedly see you.
"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸h̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ?"
"N̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸s̸̾i̸ͥc̸ͨk̸ⷦ" You answered and lightly shook your head when he let go again. For some reason, you had expected his palm to be cold but it was comfortably warm instead, making you realize that you were actually freezing a little.

I guess it's from my sleep...

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸s̸̾a̸ͣd̸ͩ?" Asked Mr. Chopped from the bed and Silvair turned lightly to the side as if to look at him.

Sad...?

"...what do you mean he left-? But he didn't tell me.."

...I guess I feel sad...

There was an uncomfortable feeling of guilt when you thought about Mr. Crawling and that you somehow upset him to the point he even left without telling you.

"...I guess I'm a bit sad." You muttered not for him to hear but Mr. Silvair tilted his head at that when he stood close enough to know what you said.
"Did Mr. Crawling come back...?"

You only had to raise one hand as you were about to mimic his motions, but the researcher shook his head almost immediately when he seemed to understand the sound of his name by now.

He still isn't back

It was slightly worse to you than when he would've returned without telling you, but at least then you'd know he was safe by now...

...what if he's stuck somewhere..?

"I'll go search him." You pointed at the door you had come from. "M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸ᵍg̸ͦo̸ ̸ᶫl̸ͦo̸ͦo̸ⷦk̸"
"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸?" Asked Mr. Silvair suddenly with a bit more of an amused smile when he raised a hand to point towards the door as well.

"I...what?" You furrowed your brows, not exactly sure where that came from but the researcher just chuckled when he turned away from you towards the bed.

...what was that about?

He didn't comment further on it but simply smiled with a light raise of his hand to wave you goodbye with Mr. Chopped pouting slightly as he watched you step out of the room again.
Your brows knitted when you watched the metal surface for another moment until you ultimately just shook your head and turned away from it, spinning the crowbar in your hand when you looked at the paths ahead of you.

...I don't know where Mr. Crawling went.

And the beginning direction could be entirely meaningless with how nonsensical this complex could be...

...I'll just have to look everywhere, potentially.

Maybe one of the other residents saw him pass by.

Traveling through the maze of hallways and rooms had become easier the longer you had been inside this world. It helped that you had an easier time now recognizing the patterns on how areas changed - where the residents had picked their territories, there were complexes within the apartment building that only changed within themselves, but didn't mix in with other parts.
There was Mr. Silvair's dungeon that always connected to the two steel doors in one way or another, the room where you had fallen into with the red alarm button that Mr. Hood usually stayed it, the broken down bus where Mr. Stitch stayed close by...

And of course, the large, massive ravine that usually appeared around Mr. Machete's area - you guessed it was one of the reasons he had picked it, to have an obstacle protecting his back where regular people couldn't cross over.


...I actually wonder what happens if you fall down there.

Your bodies could regenerate endlessly, and the rooms potentially arranged to close or shift the ravine, but what would happen to a resident who fell down there and couldn't get back up...?

...Mr. Crawling wouldn't fall down there, right?

You still remembered when it had opened up and how Mr. Hood had saved you by using his weapon, but...

He doesn't have a weapon like that.

...I'll check there first.

Even if the chances were slim that Mr. Crawling would somehow end up falling in, there were enough unknown factors you couldn't account for - an entity chasing him, the room shifting while you slept in a different part of the complex...

...I don't think Mr. Machete would bother fighting him because he doesn't seem like a threat at all. 

 From what he had told you, he wanted a fight to entertain him and Mr. Crawling seemed like a lot, but not a fighter. It was why you were so worried about him being on his own in the first place and now that you also had the knowledge that residents could regenerate endlessly, you couldn't even count on the thought that he had survived without you, too - he just couldn't die, so maybe he got hurt a lot more than you originally thought...

"No no NO- get away from ME-!!!"

...was that...?

You paused when you heard rapid steps as well as faint screaming down the hallway behind the shut door, slowing down a little when you weren't sure what direction they were going to.

Wait.

Was that just...in your own language-?
You had gotten so used to the residents' speech that you hadn't even realized it was another language altogether...

"LEAVE ME ALONE!!"

It's coming closer-!

The door almost hit you in the face when it slammed open, a figure stumbling through and colliding hard with you when they had looked behind themself instead of forward, sending you flying when you shrieked in surprise.

A human-!!


"Oh shIT-!"

Your bodies hit the ground, rolling over each other from the force he had run with as you slid across the floor, the world turned upside down when you needed a second to orientate yourself.
"God fucking-" His feet hit the ground when he hurriedly stood back up, ignoring how he had run you over essentially when his expression only twisted in shock for a second upon seeing you, quickly turning away again.

Rude

"Did no one ever tell you to say Sorry-!?" You muttered half under your breath when he didn't even bother to apologize and at that, he suddenly halted a few steps into his sprint again.
"Wait- you speak-?" He huffed with a labored breath and eyes widened in surprise when he turned back to you, and in the same moment you managed to get back up, you heard a voice behind you from down the hallway.

"M̸ͫo̸ͦv̸ͮe̸ͤ !"

I know who that is-

"Move-!"
"What-?"
You yelled out and immediately pressed yourself flat against the wall, pulling the man with you as you forced him next to you into it as well, with a familiar, large blade flying past you close enough to whirl your coat at the force of air that followed behind.

"??"

From down the hallway you could see a familiarly large figure approaching, not in a run when the resident didn't seem hurried to catch up to you, but even from here, you could see the frown on his face.
"Mr. Machete-" You furrowed your brows and then looked back at the man.
It was more so a young student you guessed, he looked like a teen with a high red face and panting breaths as it was obvious he had been running from the resident for a while.
You were surprised to see another human, it had been a long while since you met one in this world ever since the teen wearing a red jacket, and this one was even speaking your language...

"Do you know the guy!?" he immediately asked still out of breath when he looked like he wanted to bolt again as long as the resident was out of reach, but you kept holding onto his jacket so he wouldn't just storm off. "What - are you like...a human-?"

"I'm - why, don't I look like one?" You huffed with a slight pout and from the way he looked at you it was obvious you didn't, but you knew that too.

It's still rude to point out.

"I - I don't know, are you gonna try and eat me!? Because that's what the last two of you - guys tried to." He snapped back and you heard the steps coming closer, making the human tug harder on your grip to free himself. "Let go of me-"

"Calm down." You huffed and pulled him back in place. "If you want him to stop attacking you, stop provoking him-"
"Provoking!? I didn't do anything, that maniac just started to chase after me!!"
"Probably because you started to run in the first place - if you don't want him to attack you, lay down flat on the ground to make yourself smaller so you don't provoke him-"
"What is he, a fucking brown bear!?"

"W̸ⷲh̸ͪy̸ⷱ  ̸s̸̾t̸ͭo̸ͦp̸ⷬ?" scoffed the resident when he was close enough that he didn't have to yell across the hallway, stopping barely a foot away from you when he suddenly reached down to grab the human by the back of his shirt.
"H-Hey!!!"

"Wait-!" You tried to put yourself between them when Mr. Machete held him up, making him hold his arm out a little further but without dropping him when he gave you an annoyed frown. "N̸o̸  f̸i̸g̸h̸t̸ !"

"...?" The words only earned a scoff when he tilted his head to seemingly look down on you, the bandages around his head lightly falling over his broad shoulders and you could see part of them drenched in fresh blood.

...did he already injure the guy?

"T̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥs̸̾ ̸ h̸ͪu̸ͧm̸ͫa̸ͣn̸ⷫ" You gestured at the man hanging in his grasp like a cat, although much more terrified when stared at the two of you talking. "H̸ͪu̸ͧm̸ͫa̸ͣn̸ⷫ  w̸ⷲe̸ͤa̸ͣk̸ⷦ.̸  ̸ⷡB̸ͦo̸ͬr̸ͥi̸ⷫᵍn̸g̸."

"What are you talking about-?" He asked nervously, and you tried to give him a reassuring smile that only made him flinch in return. 


...do I really look that scary?

Compared to Mr. Machete you had to look much more harmless, the man was a mountain of muscles and scars with a giant weapon while you barely reached his chest even when he slouched in his posture.
You understood humans being scared of him but of you...?

"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸ k̸ⷦn̸ⷫo̸ͦw̸ⷲ." Replied Mr. Machete with the frown on his face turning to a sadistic grin when he turned his wrist to hold the human to face you, showing off his sharp teeth.
"T̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥs̸̾  ̸O̸ͦn̸ⷫe̸ͤ  ̸N̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸ ᶠF̸ͥᵍi̸ͪg̸ͭh̸t̸."

...he doesn't want to fight him?

"W̸ⷲh̸ͪy̸ⷱ ̸ a̸ͣt̸ͭt̸ͭa̸ͣc̸ͨk̸ⷦ?" You asked more confused then and he chuckled, tossing the man aside to the ground and earning another yelp from him.
He quickly scrambled back to his feet, visibly confused about why he suddenly let go but his face looked a bit more hopeful when he didn't immediately try to sprint away again.

"Is...is he going to leave me alone-?"

T̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥs̸̾ ̸ O̸ͦn̸ⷫe̸ͤ ̸ R̸ͬu̸ͧn̸ⷫ.̸" Mr. Machete pointed at him and then further ahead to the door his weapon had pierced at the far end of the hallway before he brought his hand back to gesture at himself with a wolfish grin.

"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸ [][][]."


...he's saying hunt.

As in, he wasn't planning on fighting the man but rather had hunted him like prey for fun.


I didn't know that's what he does, too-!


"Can...Can I leave-?" The man asked and pointed in the same direction Mr. Machete had shown, obviously misunderstanding the conversation as it slipped into something you weren't entirely sure you could prevent.
You didn't even know why you bothered to help him, but..


Mr. Crawling helped me, too.

It felt like it was only fair to return the favor somehow, you still knew how disoriented you scared you had been arriving here the first time...

"N̸ⷫo̸ͦ!" You tried to sound stern but Mr. Machete only looked back down at you with the same wolfish grin. "Mr. Machete-"

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ w̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸ t̸ͭo̸ͦ ̸ p̸ⷬr̸ͬo̸ͦt̸ͭe̸ͤc̸ͨt̸ͭ H̸ͪu̸ͧm̸ͫa̸ͣn̸ⷫ ̸?" He sounded amused, pointing at the man with a half-heartedly raised finger.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ  ̸r̸ͬu̸ͧn̸ⷫ."

...run?

His hand came further up, showing you three fingers and you stared at him flatly for a second until he lowered the first with a wide grin.

"O̸ͦn̸ⷫe̸ͤ."

He's giving me three seconds-!

The realization came quickly when the gears in your head turned fast enough to understand his barren speech, and you immediately sprinted back to where you had come from, gripping the man by the waist when you felt your body grow.

"T̸ͭw̸ⷲo̸ͦ."

"H-HEY-!" He yelped when you dragged him with you like a puppet, bashing through the door and not even bothering to grab the weapon because you knew the resident didn't even need it to do serious damage. "Wh-What's happening-!?"

"He's giving us three seconds to run-!"

"Run!? I thought - I thought he was your friend or something!?" Yelped the teen under your arm when you stormed through another room, quickly crossing the metal bars above a pool of water. "If you can't stop him then why the fuck did you stop me-!?"
"He gave me three seconds, that's the friendliest he's ever been." You huffed in return and the man stared at you from under your arm with a disbelieving expression. "Listen - it's not like he couldn't have caught up to you easily if he wanted to, he just thinks this is funny-"

"Funny!?"

"He's a bit of an asshole, alright? What do you want me to say, it's not my fault he's like that!"

"You talk like this is fucking normal! What the fuck is this place-!? Who the fuck are you!? And why isn't anyone else talking like you-!"

"T̸ͭh̸ͪr̸ͬe̸ͤe̸ͤ."

A surprised shriek left you when you heard his voice much closer than expected, the sound of rapid footsteps hitting the metal bars you had crossed and you turned to the side as his large weapon shot just past where the man in your grip was a second ago.

He's going fast-!

Just from the speed at which he caught up, it was obvious he was toying with both of you, stopping at the foot of the staircase you jumped down on to drag his weapon from deep out of the wall while you didn't lose any time.

I'm just a giant target to him-

The path split into three ways in front of you but the ceiling was sinking lower to where you would have to be forced to break it to continue, and you knew you'd be too slow to run from him like that...

"We need to hide-" You quickly sat the man down as your body shrunk, making you feel lightheaded for a second when you stumbled against the wall. "Ugh-"
"Hide where-!?" He quickly turned around to look at the paths ahead of him before he took off to your right.

"H-Hey-!"

T̸h̸i̸s̸ ̸a̸s̸s̸h̸o̸l̸e̸
He's just scared-

You quickly pulled yourself up so you wouldn't fall behind too far, hearing the loud clanks of metal hitting concrete when Mr. Machete dragged his weapon along the staircase above you.
It wasn't too hard to catch up to the human, mostly because the path he had picked led to a dead end and although you felt a little salty about him trying to abandon you on the way when you had tried to help him, you couldn't fully blame him.
To him, this was about life and death, while you more or less got some exercise out of this since you couldn't die...

But he doesn't know that.

"Fuck - Fuck fuck, this is a fucking dead end, where the fuck-!?" He touched along the flat wall as if he hoped a secret path would open up, and you could hear the sound of metal dragging over concrete come closer with every passing second from around the corner.
Your eyes flew over the hallway until you spotted a vent close to you, although with the grid still on.

That-!

It was big enough to crawl through but too small for Mr. Machete and you quickly put your crowbar to use, wrangling the old rusted metal off of it and then whistling to the man so he would get in.
"Over here-" You crouched down, seeing how the other human whirled around to you upon hearing your voice, spotting the vent with a relieved expression. "He's too big to go through here, so we-"

Your voice was cut off when something suddenly wrapped around your neck, making you choke a pained groan as your body was dragged towards the pitch-black inside of the vent.


It's not empty-!

Eyes began to open, one by one with the tentacle wrung around your throat squeezing tighter, the muscle dragging you closer even when you put your weight against it to try and get out.
It was hiding too deep inside for you to try and hit it, another tentacle wrapping around your waist as well to try and drag you into the small opening.

I can't breathe-!

"Oh shit-!"

The man next to you yelped at the sight and you tried to beat against the limbs holding onto you, but you were losing steam fast.
Pain shot through you, dizzying your head fast and you heard heavy steps echoing closer when the human grasped the crowbar from your hand.

Wait-

You tried to push him off as well but couldn't when your other hand tried to drag the tentacle wrapped around your throat away, feeling how he ripped the tool from your hand as you choked a protest.

"S-Stay away-! I-I'm fucking warning you-!"

"...?"

The steps stopped, as well as the screeching of metal when black dots began to whirl in front of your eyes, trying to heave a breath in but only sucking a vacuum in from how tightly it choked you-

!!

But then it suddenly stopped, the force cutting off with warm liquid splattering your face when your body slammed back from how hard you had been pushing against it and your lungs felt like exploding from how rapidly you inhaled.

You ripped the remaining tentacles off of you, tossing them aside when you panted and the creature withdrew completely back into the vent with the large weapon blocking the entrance.

Mr. Machete frowned, turning his head to the side to look down at you with black blood sticking to his blade and you pressed a hand to your throat to cough.

...he helped me..

"...th...thank you..." You only muttered with a croaky voice from how hard the limb had pressed into you, and the resident turned fully towards you when he crouched down in front of you.

If he was worried he didn't say so, and it would be a little hypocritical considering how often he fought or killed you, not to mention that he had just hunted after you for fun like you were some sort of prey-
But his hand still raised to grab your face, pulling your head from side to side as he seemed to inspect the suction bruises left on you with a snarl on his lips as if the sight annoyed him.
"..w̸ⷲh̸ͪy̸ⷱ...?" You asked a bit confused and Mr. Machete scoffed as if the question offended him.

"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸ h̸ͪu̸ͧn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸ y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ.̸" He removed his hand from your face to point from himself to you, and then his thumb back to the vent behind him.
"N̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ  ̸o̸ͦt̸ͭh̸ͪe̸ͤr̸ͬ.̸"
...was he telling you that he just saved you because he wanted to be the one to kill you-?

Hey-!

Your gaze flicked up when you saw the human try to walk past Mr. Machete, with quiet steps as if to make sure the man wouldn't hear you.


This damn...

You had somewhat understood him panicking and running headlessly down a hallway and leave you behind, but now he had also used your defenseless state to actually steal your weapon, and now he was leaving you alone with someone he thought would kill you-

T̸h̸i̸s̸ ̸ e̸g̸o̸i̸s̸t̸i̸c̸a̸l̸ ̸ p̸i̸e̸c̸e̸  ̸o̸f̸-

Part of you wanted to point him out to Mr. Machete, even if you knew he was probably just scared out of his mind and might be a decent person otherwise...

"You can trust me."

I don't want anyone to get hurt because of me

" ̸ⷱY̸ͦo̸ͧu̸ ̸h̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ.̸"

I...

You didn't want to be like this, you didn't want to cause more violence and even if you tried to help and he left you behind not only once but also disarmed you against a potentially dangerous resident who was out to kill you-


W̸h̸a̸t̸'̸s̸ ̸ t̸h̸e̸  ̸p̸o̸i̸n̸t̸ ̸ o̸f̸ ̸ s̸a̸v̸i̸n̸g̸  ̸s̸c̸u̸m̸  ̸l̸i̸k̸e̸ ̸ h̸i̸m̸
Don't get angry

It wasn't worth it, it wasn't worth the guilt you'd feel over your outbreak, it wasn't worth it because then Mr. Scarletella would be right about you and-

!!!

And then Mr. Machete's hand snapped up, just when the human was close to passing him as he grabbed him by the back of his head and slammed him into the ground next to him without even looking at him.
With no warning or noise as well, only the sound of his forehead hitting the concrete and then exploding into mush from the force the resident used like a passing motion with your eyes widening as you stared at his body.

"W̸ⷲe̸ͤa̸ͣk̸ⷦ." He scoffed and lifted his hand from the pile of flesh he left behind, wiping the blood off on the side of his pants as if he just swatted an insect.
To him it probably was, he could kill without an afterthought and you slowly raised your gaze back to his bandaged face when he stood back up.

...thank god.

You weren't sure what you were thankful for, probably that he killed him before you did so you couldn't regret the choice.

That's despicable

"...y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ  ̸k̸ⷦi̸ͥᶫl̸ᶫ l̸ ̸ͫm̸ͤe̸?" You raised a hand to point at yourself when he suddenly tossed your crowbar back to you from the man, not really feeling like you could fight him in your state. Your head was dizzy from the lack of air and rapid change of size, and as you tried to get back up, you were staggering against the wall again.

T̸h̸a̸t̸'̸s̸  ̸w̸h̸a̸t̸  ̸I̸ ̸ g̸e̸t̸  ̸f̸o̸r̸ ̸ h̸e̸l̸p̸i̸n̸g̸  ̸s̸o̸m̸e̸o̸n̸e̸.̸ ̸

"...?" Mr. Machete grinned, bringing a finger up to in front of your nose.
"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ s̸̾m̸ͫa̸ͣᶫl̸ᶫl̸.  ̸ⷡB̸ͦo̸ͬr̸ͥi̸ⷫᵍn̸g̸.̸"

...I can't with this guy.

First, he made you run from him like you were some bunny, then he saved you from another entity attacking you because he wanted to be the one to kill you and now he wasn't even interested in doing it in the first place-?
"Then what was all of that for?" You huffed and leaned against the cold wall, avoiding looking down at the pile of mush that was left of the man's head. "W̸ⷲh̸ͪy̸ⷱ ̸ h̸ͪu̸ͧn̸ⷫt̸ͭ?"

"ᶠF̸ͧu̸ⷫn̸ⷫn̸ⷱy̸. Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ c̸ͨu̸ͧt̸ͭe̸ͤ  ̸s̸̾c̸ͨa̸ͣr̸ͬe̸ͤd̸ͩ." He replied with a wolfish grin and you gave him a blank stare.

Scared?

...probably because I was worried about the other guy.

You weren't scared about yourself, you knew you would regenerate, and even if Mr. Machete was difficult to fight - you rarely ever ran from the resident anymore, at least not seriously since you knew there wasn't a reason except to try and avoid a fight...

So did he just make me do it because he knew I'd try harder protecting someone?

For how stupid he sometimes seemed he apparently was really good at reading you.

"You're an asshole." You scoffed and pushed yourself off the wall again, only staggering more and into him when his large hand caught you by your stomach. "Ugh-"
It wasn't exactly soft and felt a little like a punch, making you huff a breath when you pulled yourself up on his muscular arm.


Brute.

"?" He looked down at you swaying lightly, the frown on his face turning to a grin that only made you wary until you saw how he brought his hand down to cut it open on his blade.
His palm rose again in front of you, holding it out and you knew why now when he obviously offered you his blood again, the sight making you gulp lightly.

...I don't get him at all.

Fight you, save you, hunt you, kill you, protect you, you wanted to tell him to pick a struggle and stick to it with you but you didn't want to be rude when he offered you his help for now...

"...thanks..." You muttered under your breath and brought your hand up to grasp his wrist, although it barely fit into your palm with how large it was.
The wound wasn't big, a gash across his already scarred-up palm and you lightly pressed your lips against it, sucking on it while still trying not to make it too uncomfortable for him...
Not that it mattered, you knew he probably enjoyed the pain more than he should, not reacting aside from giving you a grin when you glanced at him.

...he's probably into this.

If his reaction last time told you anything, then that he had a disturbing relationship with pain and lust.

...maybe it's because of his blood.

Something about it influenced you too, in a weird way with how good it tasted running down your throat, and soon enough, you heard him grunt lightly when you bit down the wound to open it up more.


...tastes good...

You sucked stronger on it, feeling his fingers dug into your cheek when his grip tightened a bit in return and even if you couldn't see his eyes, you felt them on your face looking back at you.


...warm...

It didn't just help against the dizziness but the coldness Scarletella's dream left in you, combined with how hot Mr. Machete's body felt even with a few inches distance between you...

!

His hand pulled away, just when you wanted to bite down again and you almost pouted in reaction, hearing him chuckle at your expression.
"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ w̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸ b̸ⷡᶫl̸ͦo̸ͦo̸ͩd̸?" He lightly waved the palm in front of you, and you half expected him to tell you to fight him for it again...

But he instead pointed a finger down onto the ground.

"[][][]."

You blinked a few times at the new word, sounding like a sardonic order and you looked at the concrete floor to the spot in front of him he gestured to.

...was...he telling you..?

"Are - are you telling me to kneel?" You huffed offendedly and his grin turned wider when you glared at him. "I'm not-"

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸w̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸b̸ⷡᶫl̸ͦo̸ͦo̸ͩd̸" Repeated the man without a change of expression, still pointing at the floor and your face turned only hotter. "Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ K̸ⷦn̸ⷫe̸ͤe̸ͤᶫl̸."

He's definitely getting a kick out of this-!

"Asshole." You scoffed and you wished you actually would've walked away or didn't feel the intense urge to follow after his order because you could still taste his blood on your tongue...

...damn bastard...

He knew exactly once you tasted it you would want more and now he put you into a position like this, humiliating you just for his entertainment when you unwillingly sank to your knees...

"ᵍG̸ͦo̸ͦo̸ͩd̸ ̸ͪ h̸ͧu̸ͫm̸ͣa̸ⷫn̸" Mr. Machete grinned and as soon as he brought his hand back down to your mouth you bit down hard, enough to make him laugh.
"C̸ͨu̸ͧt̸ͭe̸ͤ."

Asshole-

You just silently glared at him while still sucking on his hand, digging your nails into his wrist and hoping it would at least sting in an annoying way.
The warm feeling spread back out in your body, pacifying you at least a little until your eyes shifted over his waist in front of you...

!?

And the very prominent bulge right in front of your face only covered by his hand on your mouth.
"Mmh-!"
A surprised noise left you against his palm and Mr. Machete tilted his head, further down when he seemingly followed your gaze until he seemed to realize you had caught his barely hidden arousal.
"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ  ̸w̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ?" He smirked and brought his other hand up to the bulge, grabbing it and running a thumb over the thick size while your eyes widened.


Don't just do that in front of me-!


It gave you enough whiplash to actually pull away from his wounded palm, pressing a hand against your mouth instead as if that could stop you from faltering.
The shamelessness shouldn't surprise you but it still made your face burn when he ran his hand up along his thankfully still-covered size, with a sardonic grin at your reaction.

"What are you, some pervert-!?" You huffed between your fingers but didn't move away. You could and probably should move if you didn't want this, but the way he just did that right in front of you...

...is that because of his blood...?

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ  ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ  ̸ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸?" Mr. Machete sneered and his wounded hand grasped you again, squishing your cheek when you glared at him for the motion.

"W̸ⷲh̸ͪy̸ⷱ ̸ n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ  ̸r̸ͬu̸ͧn̸ⷫ."

...I...

The pointed question only turned your face redder because it was just what you had thought, as if he read your mind, that if you didn't like what he was doing why you weren't trying to struggle against it, or run before when he hadn't grabbed you...

"...just...get it over quick, if you need it that badly-" You muttered spitefully under your breath and whatever Mr. Machete understood from that, he took as an invitation to pull the waistband of the
fabric covering him down.

Shameless-!


You wanted to squeeze your eyes shut immediately but couldn't when he sprung free, making you stare at his massive size.
Of course, the asshole was big, and judging by his sly grin he knew that too somehow.
It almost looked human, but more veiny and rough in a weird way, as if the surface had texture instead of being smooth and you swallowed lightly when the hand holding your face instead moved to grasp his length.

I..

You should get up, you really should get up and not watch him do this, right in front of you, seeing how he began to run his hand along the thick size, smearing his blood onto it and making your mouth water.
You hoped it was because of the blood and not because you were seriously considering trying to take him, you didn't want to give him that satisfaction when he was already such a cocky bastard but it was hard to move, or react when he grasped your hair with his free hand.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ  ̸s̸̾t̸ͭa̸ͣy̸ⷱ." Mr. Machete grinned and pulled you in, bringing the blunt tip of his length up against your lips and they almost parted from how hot he felt to the touch.

"ᵍG̸ͦo̸ͦo̸ͩd̸  ̸ͪh̸ͧu̸ͫm̸ͣa̸ⷫn̸."

"I-"

You couldn't even bring the word out because as soon as your mouth opened he pushed in, ignoring your teeth as he forced himself into your throat and you choked instantly.
It was large, worse than Mr. Hood's tentacle when your eyes teared up immediately and you could taste sweet blood overshadowing the slight saltiness, making you swallow in response.
A low breath left the brute, grasping your neck when he held you in place and then you felt him pull out slightly, only to slam back in harder.

!!!

You choked again, making him chuckle raspily when it was obvious that had been his intention, not letting you bob your head like you thought he would but instead forcing you to stay still when he began to move.
"Mmh-!!"
Not slow at all, giving you hard thrusts down your throat when he forced your nose against his crotch with every thrust and you tasted blood mixing with drool running down your chin.

Too rough-!


It was difficult to breathe, grasping his pants in reaction when he didn't leave you any air or room to protest when you couldn't keep up properly with his pace, the brute not caring or reacting when you tried to hit against his thigh.

You're suffocating me-!

Your throat felt already raw and hurting from how much it had to stretch around him, although the grunts leaving him were weirdly...

Mr. Machete's hands grasped your head, hard enough that it hurt when your scalp burned from how he pulled your hair but it was a strange sense of pain that only made your face hotter at how much he seemed to enjoy this. 

I feel weird

He wasn't even touching you, he wasn't doing anything but use your mouth like an opening to fuck into but your body was still reacting, making your thighs squirm together for some friction at his grunts, his lips pulling to a wolfish smirk in your teary vision.

"C̸ͨu̸ͧt̸ͭe̸ͤ ̸ ᶠf̸ͣa̸ͨc̸ͤe̸" Chuckled the brute darkly and at that you glared at him.


He's still so cocky

You stopped hammering against his thigh in protest for air and instead bit down, expecting him to pull out like Mr. Hood had done-

But instead, you heard him groan, twitching in your mouth and when you released your bite he slammed back down your throat, making you choke on the warmth flooding your intestines.

Did he just cum from that!?

You could barely keep up to swallow, tasting blood mixed with his taste until he suddenly pulled back out. For a moment you thought it was because he was done, but then hot ropes hit your face and you flinched, pressing your eyes shut with a small squeak when the next hit your jaw.
Your cheek, lips and even across your face you felt him empty, with a deep sigh and by the time you could open your eyes again, your body was burning from shame.

He just-!

You felt a rough palm on your chin, tilting your head back when you glared at Mr. Machete grinning at you, still swallowing back his taste at the back of your tongue and hating the feeling of his seed dripping down your jaw.

"P̸ⷬr̸ͬe̸ͤt̸ͭt̸ͭy̸ⷱ.̸" Commented the brute and part of you wanted to slap him for that.
"You - are you done now-!?" You simply huffed hoarsely as response and brought a hand up to try and get rid of some of the mess, even if it wasn't much better because now you had it on your hands.
It was white, somewhat translucent, and looked human-like enough, even if his size hadn't felt like that.
The rough shape of it yes, but he had some weird texture that had made the whole blowjob even more difficult to take and almost painful from how big he was...

"O-Ow-!"

Mr. Machete grabbed the back of your hair suddenly, only to flinch you to the side when the force was enough to almost whirl you around-
That seemed to have been his intention too when the next thing you felt was his hand grasping your wrists, forcing you onto your stomach on the floor.

Wait-!

You felt his weight on you, not entirely or the man would crush you but enough that you knew what he was about to do when he grasped your dress.
"Hey-! I didn't say you could-!!" You yelped when the fabric ripped, exposing you up to your lower back when he obviously thought your clothes were in the way and your feet shot up to slam your heel into his back. "Mr. Machete-!!"

"??" The brute just growled in annoyance at your resistance but ignored it otherwise when one hand was enough to hold you down, and of course, he wasn't listening to you.

"Listen to me-! You stupid brute-!!"

Don't just-

A surprised groan left you when you felt a rough finger brush along your slit, not losing any time when he began to push it in and your body tensed in reaction to it.
As forceful as it felt, it surprisingly didn't hurt when he didn't just ram it in, instead waiting until your body relaxed a little before pushing further, as if he was testing how fast he could go...

"Mr. Machete-!" You whimpered, squirming under his grip and gasping when another followed, way too quickly for you to get adjusted to as he began to finger you open.
It happened too fast, making your head dizzy from the sudden pleasure running up your spine and your grip left you helpless against the ground...

"F-Fuck - w-wait-" A high-pitched moan cut you off when he hit a sensitive spot inside you, making your body flinch.

"?"
He obviously took note of it, slamming his fingers back to that same spot and making you gasp when it turned your head blank, enough that you even forgot to protest.

Feels good

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸ f̸ᶠi̸ͥᵍg̸ͪh̸ͭt̸?" Mr. Machete sneered from behind you and if your mind would be clear you would've heard the sadistic grin he must've had at how you could only pant when he didn't let up from you.
His fingers were already huge, making you struggle at the angle he could reach when he curled them inside you to feel for more weakpoints, until your body gave out.

"F-Fuck-!!"

A desperate curse left you when your back bent, forcing your upper body off the floor for a moment when fireworks exploded, leaving your body on edge from his rough touch inside you.
He didn't stop, of course he didn't stop when it was too much, thrusting his fingers back in to hit the same spot again and again with incredibly unfair precision. It hurt, he was overdoing it way too much when it forced you through your orgasm into overdrive, desperate groans and whimpers leaving your mouth at how you wanted to jerk away, struggle against the pain and intense feeling building, mixing inside you from his motions until you choked on the pleasure burning you up.

"Stop - stop stop- S̸̾t̸ͭo̸ͦp̸ⷬ" You sobbed gasping in more breaths, trying to squirm away but he wouldn't let you. His grip was iron, inescapable when it only took one hand to hold you in place, and his thrusts into you only slowed down so you could make out his voice in your dizzying mind.

I'm going to break

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸s̸̾p̸ⷬe̸ͤa̸ͣk̸ⷦ ̸P̸ⷬᶫl̸ͤe̸ͣa̸̾s̸ͤe̸." He responded and it was enough that you repeated the word almost instantly, anything to make him stop, you couldn't take even more, it was too much too much too-

"̸P̸ⷬᶫl̸ͤe̸ͣa̸̾s̸ͤe̸ ̸P̸ⷬᶫl̸ͤe̸ͣa̸̾s̸ͤe̸̸P̸ⷬᶫl̸ͤe̸ͣa̸̾s̸ͤe̸̸P̸ⷬᶫl̸ͤe̸ͣa̸̾s̸ͤe̸̸P̸ⷬᶫl̸ͤe̸ͣa̸̾s̸ͤe̸-!"

You almost yelled the last plea when his finger slammed back in to push you off the last edge, leaving you panting and hurting when they finally disappeared from inside you.


Can't...

Your body was burning, the cold concrete floor the only comfort when you couldn't move until the grip on your wrists loosened and a palm instead pressed against your mouth.
"Mmmpf-"

The taste of blood flooded your mouth again, making you swallow when it felt heavenly against the exhausted burn your body was in as if a surge of energy came back to soothe your sore muscles...

...I...

Your head felt like clearing up, just enough that you realized the weight shifting behind you and something way bigger lubing itself up on you.
"Mmffit-!" You tried to protest but he didn't pull his hand away, only grunting when you tried to bite him and accidentally drew more blood running down your chin. "Mit-!!"

Can't...

He was way more forceful than you were used to from any other resident, they all had at least stopped when you struggled but he didn't seem to realize how serious you were when you tried to fight him off...

Although you didn't know how serious you were yourself, or if you just felt overwhelmed because you shouldn't enjoy feeling this helpless against him.
It was similar to Mr. Scarletella but this was much rougher, it didn't even feel like he was doing this because he wanted to make you feel good...

" Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸w̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸t̸o̸ͭ ̸ͦh̸u̸ͪr̸ͧt̸ͬ?̸ͭ" 

It felt as if he wanted you to hurt, to make you sob and struggle under him as if he was enjoying breaking you and when he finally took his hand away from your face, he only used it to pull back your hair with a yank that made you yelp. 

"Mr. Machete-" You wanted to sound forceful but your voice came out as a tiny whimper from how he stretched your throat back, forcing your head to turn so you could see him from the corner of your eye. His lips curled to a sadistic grin, much closer than you anticipated him to be when you felt the blunt head of his size right between your thighs pressing in, leaving you trembling.

He'll rip me apart-

"T̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥs̸̾" He pressed a little more into you so that you could feel the uncomfortable stretch, almost whispering into your ear and you muffled a pained noise with your own hand when he didn't hold you down anymore, trying to ignore how your hips nearly twitched into him.

"H̸ͪu̸ͧr̸ͬt̸ͭ."

!!

That was the only warning he gave you, pushing in with the same forceful pace he had used with his fingers and luring a breathless scream out of you when you felt him force a path deep inside you.
"Mmnnnggg-!!"

It hurt, it definitely hurt and it felt weird, different from any other resident when it wasn't smooth but the friction only intensified on the marred surface of his size, mixing pleasure with delicious pain underneath him.

"T-Too r-ough!"

You inhaled shaking breaths, feeling impossibly full and yet he still gave you a few more inches when he pulled your hips back under him, not letting you crawl away when your body instinctively tried to pull away.
"W̸ⷲe̸ͤa̸ͣk̸ⷦ  ̸b̸ⷡo̸ͦd̸ͩy̸ⷱ.̸ " The resident chuckled, keeping an iron grip on your hair and when he pulled back out of you, you almost moaned from the feeling.

Oh fuck

"C̸ͨa̸ͣn̸ⷫ ̸ n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸ ᶠf̸ͥᵍi̸ͪg̸ͭh̸t̸" He whispered sadistically, and was this some sort of...fight to him, too-!?

"MMMH!!!"

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ ᶠf̸ͥᵍi̸ͪg̸ͭh̸t̸?" Hot puffs of air blew against your neck, his hand grasping your wrist and pinning it to the floor again in a bruising grasp.
"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ b̸ⷡr̸ͬe̸ͤa̸ͣk̸ⷦ?"

He slammed back in, expectedly hard but what you didn't expect was how fucking good it felt, the intense friction almost making you cum immediately when every pull and push ran ridges against your walls.
"F-Fuck" You moaned and grasped the floor, trying to hold onto anything so your mind wouldn't fully slip or break under the pleasure, his massive body above you holding you easily in place when you felt abs and muscles press against you.
His rough, calloused hand pressed back onto your mouth, muffling the bordering screams and letting you taste blood as your eyes rolled back, panting your breaths...

So good...

It barely felt conscious, hard, urgent thrusts into you against the floor when he was chasing his own high in you again, and pleasure was building so rapidly inside you that you could barely comprehend it.
One moment there was just sweet, delicious pain climbing up your spine and the next, your own orgasm hit you like a freight train with the next thrust into you, letting you bite down his hand and making him groan.
Out of everyone he was by far the most vocal, low grunts and growls leaving him above you more akin to an animal than a man when his motion felt more uncoordinated, as if he was just doing what felt the best to him and it happened to feel good to you too-

Can't think

There was only the taste of blood running down your throat keeping you grounded enough to feel him use you, turning your body sore and healing it at the same time in a cycle of horrible, agonizing ecstasy.
"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ  ̸ᶫl̸ͦo̸ͧu̸ͩd̸" breathed the brute down your neck and his fingers parted just the smallest bit to stop muffling your scream as your body was run off the edge again, mindless babbles leaving you.

"ᶫL̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸ ̸ⷱ y̸ͦo̸ͧu̸ͬr̸  ̸̾S̸ͨc̸ͬr̸ͤe̸ͣa̸ͫm̸."

He laughed, but it sounded rough when his hand instead pressed to the ground, shifting his weight to put even more force into his thrusts.


I can't

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸  ̸ⷬp̸ͣa̸ͥi̸ⷫn̸?" The brute sneered, and without warning bit down your shoulder, choking a cry out of you when sharp teeth pierced you. It let you tighten up, so much that he groaned into the wound while pulsing inside you, and a hot, rough tongue caught your blood running down. 

"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸ w̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸ t̸ͭo̸ͦ ̸ b̸ⷡr̸ͬe̸ͤa̸ͣk̸ⷦ  ̸y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ." 

Without the steady supply of blood keeping your body energized you were overwhelmed fast, panting from the intense friction and spreading your thighs out further as if it could help make him feel less stretching inside you - but all it did was give him better access when he might as well be in your guts by now, the pain inside you mixing with your burning muscles and tingling spine.

His thrusts turned harder, holding onto you harder for leverage so you'd stop shifting over the hard ground and you tried to breathe through the intense feeling he forced on you, overwhelming and devouring heat burning you up.
Black dots danced in front of your eyes at the overstimulation, rough, hard slaps of his skin against yours echoing back from the walls with consecutively growing grunts and he sounded close, close enough that if you held on a little longer, just a bit more, just a bit-

Can't-!

A loud, harsh growl left Mr. Machete behind you in the same moment you could only whimper, feeling hot, gushing heat spurt into you when your body could only shudder from another wave of painful pleasure rolling over you.
You were too spent to even twitch, the sensation running up your head and letting it spin while the brute pumped into you, with unrhythmic, jagged thrusts to drag out his own high with no regard for how it made you whine...

...brute...

You couldn't even turn to look at him when he finally pulled out letting him leak out of you onto the ground. It was hard not to pass out from how burned out you were, the brute pulling up your head just high enough to where his face appeared in your blurry vision.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ a̸ͣw̸ⷲa̸ͣk̸ⷦe̸ͤ?" He asked, as if he fully expected you to have passed out by now and you felt like a sack of rice in his hand when you uncoordinately stared at him.

"Y...ou..'re..." Your tongue felt heavy, too exhausted to even fully function when you panted for air, and your voice was raw from everything before.
"...horr...ible..."

Your response only made him grin wolfishly again and for a second you feared he would take that as an invitation to do you even worse when he lowered your head to the ground again.

"ᵍG̸ͦo̸ͦo̸ͩd̸  ̸ͪh̸ͧu̸ͫm̸ͣa̸ⷫn̸." Mr. Machete laughed and the back of your remaining dress was instead grabbed when he heaved you off the ground.
"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸ ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸  ̸ⷱy̸ͦo̸ͧu̸"

The warmth made you whine when you weakly realized he was hauling you onto his shoulders, tugging your stomach around his neck so you wouldn't fall off when he held onto your limbs, ignoring how sweaty and sticky you were from him.

"Yo...u..."

"...?" He actually paused, for the first time when you tried to speak and turned his head to seemingly look at you when you tried to focus long enough to get a word out.
Your tongue was heavy, your head still spun with unconsciousness coming closer when you weren't filled with adrenaline anymore and his face blurred...

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ..."

"?"

"..s̸̾t̸ͭu̸ͧp̸ⷬi̸ͥd̸ͩ..."

"???"

That was all you could get out before your body sacked, and you faintly heard him bellow a laugh in response.

Chapter Text

You somehow managed to not fall unconscious on the way back.

It drifted between awareness and dizziness, but you didn't fully black out while Mr. Machete carried you. Not comfortably, like Mr. Hood when he held you in one arm, the brute carried you like a sack of potatoes over his shoulder and by the time he let go of you, you were somewhat awake enough to catch yourself when he simply dumped you on the ground.

Asshole.

"O-ow!" You huffed in protest with a few grumbles under your breath at the rough treatment, pulling your dress back in place - at least where you could, it was now considerably shorter after the brute had gotten his hands on it.
"You could at least try to be careful-"

"?" He tossed his weapon aside, letting it stick out of the ground when it slammed through part of the concrete floor before he turned back to you with a grin.

...I don't like the face he's making.

From what you could tell, you were back in his area - up on the spot he usually sat on and you guessed he had just decided to walk back to what was familiar to him...

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸a̸ͣw̸ⷲa̸ͣk̸ⷦe̸ͤ?" Mr.Machete leaned down to you, too close for comfort with a toothy grin and by now you knew exactly what he was thinking about when you put a hand on his face to shove him back.
"Don't even think about it - I'm barely healed up enough to stand." You grumbled and his head tilted back from your shove before he finally took a step back. "You fuck like a brute-"

Not that surprising honestly

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸t̸ͭa̸ͣk̸ⷦe̸ͤ ̸m̸ͫe̸ͤ.̸ ̸ⷡB̸ͦo̸ͩd̸ⷱy̸ ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸b̸ⷡr̸ͬe̸ͤa̸ͣk̸ⷦ." Responded the resident and it almost sounded like a compliment while you tried to stand back up, still feeling a little shaky even when your body wasn't sore and hurting anymore.
"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸m̸ͫa̸ͣk̸ⷦe̸ͤ ̸ᵍg̸ͦo̸ͦo̸ͩd̸ [][][]"

...friend?

You blinked at him in confusion when that was the first time he called you something close to a friend, but why would the fact you didn't just pass out on him matter for that-?

...it...doesn't mean friend at all, does it...?

"...[][][]?" You repeated slowly and it didn't mean what you thought it did, but what did you say about Mr. Hood then-?

"[][][]." Mr. Machete smirked and raised a hand to point from himself down to you, poking a finger against your stomach and you've seen the gesture enough times to know what that was supposed to mean...

Is...is he calling me...?

Something like, his partner-???

Is that what I called Mr. Hood-??

Your face heated up again, to the point you knew it was showing with how the brute in front of you grinned in amusement at your reaction, even if it wasn't because he flustered you.
More so that you called Mr. Hood something like your partner for no apparent reason and it would explain why the resident was so confused about what you said and how Mr. Chopped sounded doubtful when Mr. Gap said that...

This asshole-

You knew Mr. Gap understood human speech enough to know you wouldn't mean that out of all things, and you could bet he only did it to put you into this position in the first place-!

When I get you-

"I'm not going to be your anything-" First you huffed at Mr. Machete, finding your footing and poking him in the chest in return. "You're rude, brash and you just do what you want-"

He cut you off, not by talking back but rather when his hand grabbed your finger and for a second you thought he'd swat it away. But the grin on his face turned to a frown as his head turned, as if he heard something you didn't below you in the room.

...?

You didn't speak up at how serious he looked at whatever he had heard, the brute letting go of you as he turned around and you side stepped to even be able to look past his broad body.
The room below you was empty, only a pile of rubble in the middle and a shut door you knew led to a long, straight hallway...

...I hear it.

First quietly, barely audible from further away but unmistakably growing louder the closer they came.

Footsteps.

...is that..?

They didn't sound like ordinary footsteps, too echoing behind the door and Mr. Machete seemed to sense something similar when you saw him grab the weapon out of the ground.
You could guess who the steps belonged to, they sounded otherworldly enough to be unique and before you could protest, Mr. Machete grasped you by the back of your dress.

"H-Hey-!"

"C̸ͨa̸ͣn̸ⷫ ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸ ᶠf̸ͥᵍi̸ͪg̸ͭh̸t̸." He said with a frown and leaned down, pulling you to his back when he apparently wanted you to climb onto it.

...that's surprisingly nice of him..?

It was a change of pace at least when he didn't just throw or hurled you over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes, letting your arms wrap around his neck with the crowbar still clutched in a hand.
The tool had become almost something like a comforting object to you, and more often than not when you thought you had misplaced it, it somehow ended up with you again...

"Are you going to hide-?" You asked and one of his hands was large enough to grasp your thigh to hold you on his back easily. It was surprisingly comfortable, even if you didn't like how tightly you had to wrap your legs around his waist to avoid exposing too much of your body underneath the shortened dress - your body had healed by now and restored itself, but the fabric wouldn't do that on his own...

...I'll have to ask for new ones...

The steps turned quieter the further Mr. Machete went down the hallway with the large opening towards the ravine, and you guessed that's where he wanted to escape over to.
It wasn't a bad idea, from how you had gotten to know Mr. Scarletella, he usually just walked in short distances before disappearing into nothing again, although you weren't sure why he would show himself in this area out of all of them...

...is he looking for me?

It gave you a knot in your stomach knowing how you left off the last time with each other, and you didn't think it'd be the best idea to try talk to the man while Mr. Machete was here...

"...can I ask you something?" You muttered while he carried you, and Mr. Machete gave you an acknowledging grunt.
"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸k̸ⷦn̸ⷫo̸ͦw̸ⷲ ̸r̸ͬe̸ͤd̸ͩ ̸r̸ͬe̸ͤs̸̾i̸ͥd̸ͩe̸ͤn̸ⷫt̸ͭ?"

"D̸ͩa̸ͣn̸ⷫᵍg̸ͤe̸ͬr̸. ̸̾S̸ͪh̸ͦo̸ͧᶫu̸ͩl̸d̸ͣ ̸ͮa̸ͦv̸ͥo̸ͩi̸d̸." He responded, serious enough that you had the feeling he actually took his own warning by the word.
It didn't happen often that he acknowledged someone was more dangerous than him, and you had guessed it was because Mr. Scarletella was impossible to hit...

...but for some reason, you felt like that was a lie.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸e̸ ̸ͫm̸ͤe̸?"

...he looked hurt.

Not like you would show, or any other human you knew, his expression didn't twist in pain nor did he cry, but just the way he looked...

...empty...

"Y̸ ⷱ o̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ s̸̾a̸ͣd̸ͩ ?"
"...I guess I'm a bit sad."

"Y̸ ⷱ o̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸n̸ ⷫ o̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸ ᶫl̸ͥ i̸ ⷦ k̸e̸ ̸ͫm̸ͤ e̸?"

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ. ̸ ̸ͫM̸ͤe̸.̸̾ ̸ͣS̸ͫa̸ͤm̸e̸.̸"

...I can't keep avoiding him...

Even if it was all because of a misunderstanding, even if the resident had scared you at the beginning stalking you, he had done it because he was convinced you had the same feelings, didn't he..?
That you lost your name and your memories, that killing you would regenerate your body because that was what he was used to from the residents here since he didn't really understand humans...
He took a humanoid shape, he talked, he entered your world and watched you but he still felt so alien in his behavior, trying so hard to be something that wasn't what he actually was...

...just to get closer to you.

...I feel bad for him...

You turned to look back from the distancing door, but when you looked forward, the exit towards the ravine still seemed as far as away as before.

...?

Meanwhile the steps behind you grew louder in the room, to the point it echoed louder in your head than your own or Mr. Machete's heartbeat and even when he leaned down to try and sprint, the distance didn't change.

You could feel air pass by, his rapid steps hitting the ground and body shaking with each small collision with it but the room behind you only turned further away without the ravine ever getting closer-

"B̸ⷡa̸ͣd̸ͩ ̸r̸ͬe̸ͤs̸̾i̸ͥd̸ͩe̸ͤn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸C̸ͨo̸ͦm̸ͫi̸ͥn̸ⷫᵍg̸.̸" He frowned with a growl from his chest, slowly stopping to run when he seemed to realize it was pointless when he instead turned to face the room.

!!!

It had changed entirely, no longer a small, bright speck in a hallway of darkness from how far he had run and instead turned to a barren, deep red room when you saw the familiar entity stand across you.
The light emitting from him was bright, distorting slightly at the edges when it bled further than it should and strained your eyes to look at as your heart beat loudly in your ears.
It was the same reaction you had to him before, an instinctive fear response and you could feel Mr. Machete's heart beating just as hard against your chest from his back when he still carried you, although he held his weapon ready to strike.

...I don't know if he's mad at me

"Mr. Scarletella-" You began and the air sizzled lightly when the resident disappeared with another blink of your eyes, only to reappear right in front of the man carrying you.

"̸Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ"

His face was close, leaned down to stare up at the brute even when Mr.Scarletella was taller than him, and at the unnerving stare you even felt Mr. Machete flinch.
It was barely noticeable but his movement seemed to surprise him, swinging the weapon straight through him as Mr. Scarletella disappeared again.
"Wait-!" You tried to interfere, but the resident appeared again, this time leaned over your own shoulder as you shrieked.

Where did he-?

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸?"

"!!"

Mr. Machete whirled around, fast enough that you yelped when your body almost flew off if you wouldn't have clung to him harder but the second he had turned, the other resident was gone again.

What is he doing-?

He wasn't fighting, you actually weren't sure if you ever had seen Mr. Scarletella outright fight someone...
Every resident you knew that knew him simply said to avoid him, you had avoided him in the beginning as well so you never saw or heard him do more than simply pass by with everyone going out of their way to not cross paths with him...

"W̸ⷲh̸ͪy̸ⷱ?"

The red entity flickered back into existence in another blink of your eye, just when you heard Mr. Machete growl in annoyance at his constant evasion only to watch the large sword go straight through his body again.
It made the air sizzle, hairs standing up on the back of your arms when it felt threatening even when he was smiling widely, too widely to show any genuine feelings in his dead eyes staring at Mr. Machete.

What is he asking about-?

"Mr. Scarletella-" You tried to speak up but shrieked when the man holding you jumped back, further away as if to get space between the resident and him, and as much as he seemed to see it as a fight, Mr. Scarletella didn't react further than tilting his head back up staring at you.

In the wrong angle, it should break his neck with how he was holding himself until he straightened again, his neck twisting back a 180 degrees to snap in place staring at the two of you and even when his expression didn't change at all, you saw his hand clutching the umbrella harder.

Something feels off

The last few encounters you had with him had almost felt calm, with no fear when you had gotten used to his presence despite the effect he had on your body...

But this feels hostile

"...?"

"N̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸r̸ͬu̸ͧn̸ⷫ. ᶠ ̸ͥᵍF̸ͪi̸ͭg̸h̸t̸." Snarled Mr. Machete, readying his weapon again when it was obvious the constant disappearance frustrated him, and his body felt tense underneath you.
It was weird seeing him so on edge, you've never had the feeling he took a fight serious and this was barely a fight at all, Mr. Scarletella not attacking when it seemed more like he was simply stopping him from leaving...

Something is different about him

" M̸ͫe̸ͤ . w̸ ⷲ a̸ͣ n̸ ⷫ t̸ͭ ̸ t̸ͭo̸ͦ ̸ u̸ͧ n̸ ⷫ d̸ͩe̸ͤr̸ͬs̸̾t̸ͭa̸ͣ n̸ ⷫ d̸ͩ . ̸y̸ ⷱ o̸ͦu̸ͧ ."

"ᶠF̸ͥᵍi̸ͪg̸ͭh̸t̸?" Repeated Mr. Scarletella and when the air sizzled, Mr. Machete was fast enough to swing his weapon in the same moment the resident disappeared again.

!!!

You thought it would go through the man showing up in the second the large blade came down on him, but instead-

His hand caught the weapon.

Between his thumb and fingers, holding it without the blade touching his palm even when it was obvious how much strength Mr. Machete put into that swing, and even when he tried to pull away, it didn't budge at all in his grip.

He's strong-!

You didn't expect that at all, you knew that he was stronger than you, but strong enough to just stop an attack like that with five fingers-!?

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸ ̸ᶠf̸ͥᵍi̸ͪg̸ͭh̸t̸?" Mr. Scarletella's smile didn't reach his hollow eyes staring directly at you, past the resident you still held onto as if he didn't even truly acknowledge him and when he jumped back again, it was without his weapon.

"N̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸ᶠf̸ͥᵍi̸ͪg̸ͭh̸t̸. S̸̾h̸ͪo̸ͦu̸ͧᶫl̸ͩd̸ ̸a̸v̸ͣo̸ͮi̸ͦd̸ͥᵈ!" You tried to tell Mr. Machete, watching how the red cloaked man raised the weapon to his face as if he was inspecting it like a foreign object.
"R̸ͬu̸ͧn̸ⷫ-"

"C̸ͨa̸ͣn̸ⷫ ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸r̸ͬu̸ͧn̸ⷫ. ̸ⷬP̸ͣa̸ͭt̸ͪh̸ ̸ͩd̸ͥi̸̾s̸ͣa̸ⷬp̸ⷬp̸ͤe̸ͣa̸ͬr̸." Grunted the brute in return and as you turned to look at where the end of the hallway used to be, there was no light anymore.
There was only the red, brightening glow from Mr. Scarletella in front of you and when you looked back, he stood right in your face again.

"!!"  You shrieked and this time Mr. Machete had to dodge, hurling himself with you to the side and almost colliding into a wall if he hadn't pushed himself off as the heavy blade collided right where he stood seconds ago into the ground.

He's using his weapon-!?

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸ ̸ᶠf̸ͥᵍi̸ͪg̸ͭh̸t̸." Mr. Scarletella smiled wider, the distortion in his voice growing stronger when the air sizzled, and in the next second the weapon crushed part of the wall you had stood at before the resident avoided his attack.

"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸ᶠf̸ͥᵍi̸ͪg̸ͭh̸t̸."

Is he taking it as challenge-!?

"!!"

Mr. Machete dodged again, barely by an inch when he slid over the floor, catching himself with a hand digging into the ground and you clutched harder to him with a shriek at the force of his movement.
It was in seconds, but with how quick Scarletella could move you didn't know why he was dragging this out for so long if he truly wanted to kill him-

What is he doing-?

"S̸̾t̸ͭo̸ͦp̸ⷬ - S̸̾t̸ͭo̸ͦp̸ⷬ-!"

You yelped when another attack barely missed, although it cut part of Mr. Machete's arm open, letting the man jump back.

"???"

A confused grunt left him when there wasn't another attack following, and when you looked back at Mr. Scarletella, he was raising the blade up to his face.
His lips parted open, revealing an unnaturally long, black tongue emerging from it when he began to lick up the blood his attack had left, and at that, Mr. Machete growled.

He's drinking his blood-!?

It only was a second that felt like forever at the disturbing sight when you didn't understand why he was doing it, until the next attack hit.
Mr. Scarletella moved differently, slightly more hunched in a predatory posture as if he was ready to pounce again as soon as the brute dodged to the side with you, and when he stood back up it was in the same slouching position as Mr. Machete carrying his weapon..

And suddenly it clicked for you.

He wasn't trying to kill him.

He's trying to copy him

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸ ̸ᶠf̸ͥᵍi̸ͪg̸ͭh̸t̸?"

It was uncanny, seeing how Mr. Scarletella began to imitate the man carrying you the longer their fight went on, down to the way he took his steps as they circled each other and you were right, he had been imitating a human all along.

Because now his limbs began to change, with each passing second the resident was trapped with him as the red coat shifted, sinking into his skin and forming another layer like muscle tissue, contorting to a broader, more muscular body...

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸ ̸ⷡb̸ͦo̸ͩd̸ⷱy̸.M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸t̸ͭa̸ͣk̸ⷦe̸ͤ ̸b̸ⷡo̸ͦd̸ͩy̸ⷱ"

It was unnerving to see, how another step brought him closer to how Mr. Machete looked, down to the scars on his body when the resident seemed just as on edge as you if not more. There was no sign of his usual cockiness or grin , only staring at the entity in front of him while you tried to look for any opening to escape to-

̸ͨC̸ͪh̸ͣa̸ⷫᵍn̸ͤg̸e̸ ̸̾s̸ͪh̸ͣa̸ⷬp̸ͤe̸.̸" Spoke Mr. Scarletella and by the time you looked back, he was almost identical to the resident carrying you, even with the same clothes and bandages covering his eyes.

"C̸ͪh̸ͣa̸ⷫᵍn̸ͤg̸e̸ ̸ͮv̸ͦo̸ͥi̸ͨc̸ͤe̸̸ⷦ."

His tone lowered, falling a few pitches and turning rougher as he even imitated that and the hairs on your neck rose at how uncannily similar he looked-

"C̸ͨh̸ͪa̸ͣn̸ⷫᵍg̸ͤe̸ ̸ͤe̸ͮv̸ͤe̸ͬr̸ⷱy̸ͭt̸ͪh̸ͥi̸ⷫᵍn̸g̸" Mr. Scarletella grinned, too wide to fit for Mr. Machete and it was the most obvious sign something was extremely wrong, and it only turned worse when he suddenly stood right in his face in the middle of another jump back.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ." His smile dropped to a dead stare, and even though both of them were moving the distance between them didn't change at all when his hollow, black eye peeked through the bandages covering them.

"N̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸n̸ⷫe̸ͤe̸ͤd̸ͩ ̸y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ."

A hand shot forward and before the brute could dodge him again, his hand closed around his head in a hard, crushing grip exploding his skull to mush.

"MR. MACHETE-!!"

You screamed in horror at the sight, feeling blood and pieces of bones splattering your face when his body sacked and you almost hit the ground.
But your fall was caught by a rough palm, pulling you back into a muscular chest with hand holding too tightly onto you when Mr. Machete's face stared down at you from Scarletella's body.

"Let go-! Let GO-!!" You tried to pull out of his grasp but he was already stronger than the brute and definitely stronger than you, his grip turning bruising and his grin disappeared into a frown leaning in.
"Let me GO-!"

"Y̸ͧo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸?" He said, the pitch black irises looking through slithers of the bandages as he held you still in place when you wanted desperately to check in on the other man, even if you knew he could regenerate-

Your first instinct was still to worry, he had tried to protect you after all when it became obvious how much Mr. Scarletella had been toying with him, and now taking on his shape-

It felt like he was wearing his corpse like some sort of trophy, as if he expected you to be happy about it and he brought a blood-covered hand up to his face, licking the gore off his fingers with your face twisting from shock.
"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸c̸ͨa̸ͣn̸ⷫ ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸t̸ͭa̸ͣk̸ⷦe̸ͤ ̸n̸ⷫa̸ͣm̸ͫe̸ͤ." He said, smiling too much when he pointed at the headless body to the side of his feet and then back up to his mouth.

"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸e̸ͤa̸ͣt̸ͭ.̸" Mr. Scarletella held too tightly onto you, with a wider turning grin showing off the sharp teeth he stole from your friend as the room dyed an even intenser shade of red.
"E̸ͤa̸ͣt̸ͭ ̸E̸ͤa̸ͣt̸ͭ ̸E̸ͤa̸ͣt̸ͭ.̸ ̸B̸ⷡo̸ͦd̸ͩy̸ⷱ ̸c̸ͨh̸ͪa̸ͣn̸ⷫᵍg̸ͤe̸ ̸̾s̸ͪh̸ͣa̸ⷬp̸ͤe̸.̸ ̸ⷡB̸ͦo̸ͩd̸ⷱy̸ ̸s̸̾t̸ͭa̸ͣy̸ⷱ ̸s̸̾h̸ͪa̸ͣp̸ⷬe̸ͤ.̸"

He wants to eat him to become him

The words only made you stare at him in horror and if he realized how insane he sounded, he didn't show so when he still looked as if he expected you to be happy about his words-

I need to get away

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ... ̸w̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ... ̸m̸ͫe̸ͤ...?"

"N̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸ ̸Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ-!" You tried to push him off of you, throwing the same words at him you had before as if it'd repel him-

"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸ ̸y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ!̸ N̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ-!"

"̸K̸ⷦn̸ⷫo̸ͦw̸ⷲ"

But instead of glass shattering, or cracks appearing in the illusion, he just smiled sharply at you with widening eyes.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸n̸ⷫo̸ͦt̸ͭ ̸ ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸ ̸m̸ͫe̸ͤ." He repeated and it still didn't reach his eyes, staying hollow but intense staring at you as he held you in place.

"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸m̸ͫa̸ͣk̸ⷦe̸ͤ ̸y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ."

Make me-!?

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸ ̸f̸ᶠi̸ͥᵍg̸ͪh̸ͭt̸.", His face contorted more, the bandages moving on their own to cover his eyes properly and it was uncanny how much alike he looked to Mr. Machete...

He isn't talking about fighting...
He's talking about him when he says 'fight'-

"M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸t̸ͭa̸ͣk̸ⷦe̸ͤ ̸b̸ⷡo̸ͦd̸ͩy̸ⷱ. T̸ͭa̸ͣk̸ⷦe̸ͤ ̸v̸ͮo̸ͦi̸ͥc̸ͨe̸ͤ." Mr. Scarletella continued and you felt a wall in your back when there was none before, the large body overshadowing you easily.
" ̸ͭT̸ͣa̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸ ̸ e̸ͤv̸ͮe̸ͤr̸ͬy̸ⷱt̸ͭh̸ͪi̸ͥn̸ⷫᵍg̸."

His breath was still cold, the biggest indicator that it was still him wearing your friend's skin like a suit when he leaned down, keeping you pressed into the wall with cold skin touching you.

"Stop - let go of me - Mr. Scarletella-!"

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸ᶫl̸ͥi̸ⷦk̸ͤe̸ ̸f̸ᶠi̸ͥᵍg̸ͪh̸ͭt̸. M̸ͫe̸ͤ ̸ᶠf̸ͥᵍi̸ͪg̸ͭh̸t̸." He whispered and even if it was Mr. Machete's voice and face, he sounded so wrong, too soft spoken, too intense with a smile that was too wide.

"Y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ ̸l̸ᶫi̸ͥk̸ⷦe̸ͤ ̸m̸e̸ͫᵉ"

He's insane

Not that it wasn't obvious before but this was even worse, before he had just stalked you and annoyed you at times with his sudden appearances but now he outright scared you when he didn't sound like himself at all.
He didn't sound like himself nor Mr. Machete, there was nothing of the man you thought he was when he stripped his skin off like a costume to wear another and whatever moments you had with him that you thought were genuine-

"M̸ͫe̸ͤ. w̸ⷲa̸ͣn̸ⷫt̸ͭ ̸t̸ͭo̸ͦ ̸u̸ͧn̸ⷫd̸ͩe̸ͤr̸ͬs̸̾t̸ͭa̸ͣn̸ⷫd̸ͩ. ̸y̸ⷱo̸ͦu̸ͧ."

It was all gone the moment you saw him wear Mr. Machete's face like just another mask.

"Let go- LET GO-!!!"

"!?"