Small Tang Ramble

Update for A World Without Him:

Im sorry for the late chapter this week. I've been slumped with school and extracurriculars recently, which hasn't really given me much free time to write. I'll try to get the chapter in on Sunday at the latest, as I already have what I want planned out. Again, I apologize for the late update.

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... Im not gonna survive long like this.

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Good Omens Season 2 Ending Drabbles

Spoilers ahead for Good Omens Seaon 2

I have just watched the entirety of Good Omens season 2 and what I want to say is... am I the only one that thinks Aziriphale went with the Head of Heaven guy (forgot his name/title/whatever) to easily?

Like I know that he had those longing glances and the whole talk and the KISS, but, it just seems a bit... off, to me.

Like, I think Aziraphale is so much smarter than that, even with his naivety towards heaven, because of all his growth from seasons 1 AND 2. He got to see a bit of the underbelly of heaven and obviously didn't like what they were doing.

Also, I initially though Aziraphale was gonna legit be kidnapped again or something when he went with the heaven official (still can remember that dudes name/title/whatever). He had sinister music coming off him when they went out the door, and had hateful glances towards Aziraphale and Crowley, like twice! That guy is so shady and since we didn't see the full conversation between him and Aziraphale, i think he did SOMETHING to Azi.

Aziraphale seemed to uptight, or maybe anxious, after his 'high of being back in heaven'. He seemed to want to say something, ANYTHING that would at least agree with Crowley, but he couldn't even nod or hum in agreement. Even when Crowley said something he should obviously agree on.

Their nightingale song also started to play after the argument and Crowleys line, maybe to signify that Aziraphale does REALLY want to go with him, playing their song saying that he agrees, even if he can't show it.

He seemed to be holding back tears, maybe trying to convey his true emotions with his eyes, but just couldn't for whatever reason. (My bets on Heaven Official guy)

And my final point, at the end where Aziraphale is about to go down the elevator. My initial thought, like everyone else's, was that he was doing his final decision of Crowley or Heaven, and chose to have his 'life' back.

But, maybe it was something more. The direct, long glance towards Crowley mightive been one last call for help, hoping Corwley could steal him away again. When it was clear Crowley was only their to see Aziraphale go and uproot the life they made together on earth, to see if he would really 'choose his old life than their life', he sighed and reluctantly got into the elevator.

Also, a little thing, the Heaven Official guy seemed a bit pushy. Taking Aziraphale away from his companions as soon as possible, saying he's the only right fit for the place of Archangel, and then saying so many nice things about the job, mostly things about getting to stay with Crowley that we don't even know are true. I just get a bad feeling from him.

Anyway, I loved this season we all have been waiting patiently for, for FOREVER, and I can't wait to see what happens in the Totally Coming Out season 3 that's coming up. I was already squealing when Good Old Fashioned Lover Boy played on Corwley's radio while going to save Aziraphale, so you bet I did the whole screaming and kicking when they FREAKING KISSED. I never in my life thought it would be cannon but IT IS, and I LOVE IT! I obviously was heartbroken at the end and was emotionally numb for a few moments, but that's what everyone probably experienced at that ending. I'll be patiently waiting for season 3.

TL;DR: I don't think this is something Aziraphale would do so quickly, like in just an afternoon and one meeting with little to no questions asked nor answered. I think something must've gone on in the conversation bits we didn't see and any alone time between Aziraphale and the Heaven Official guy.

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He looks like the fun uncle that is just the tiniest bit insane... I love him and his desgin!

Human Golden Cicada

Sorry for being gone on and off- I'm working my way back here- I think I'm struggling with tagging stuff here which makes it harder for me post :((

A World Without Him

Chapter 7

(TW some violence, a collapsing building, and someone having a panic attack)

Tang was back there. Again. The void with the voices, the hands, the dragging, the scraping, the orange.

He was tired at this point. Of every night he spent getting dragged over and over just for someone sick amusement if he had to guess.

Maybe this was his punishment for something in his past life. To take his sanity and break it bit by bit until he couldn't take the sight of this place anymore.

But this time was also different.

Only silence met his ears as he floated. Nothing grabbing, glowing, or whispering in his ears. A sense of foreboding welled up in his chest.

Then he heard sounds. It wasn't anything like the previous encounters he had with this place. Only continuous buzzing reached his ears instead of the usual incomprehensible whispers.

Tang closed his eyes, hoping someone would let him stay away from whatever was making that noise. And as he said previously, he's never been that lucky.

The buzzing suddenly became violent as Tang was pushed upwards by a strong force. He could barely breathe as he clawed at whatever was dragging him up before realizing... they were cicadas. Bright orange cicadas.

Thousands, no, hundreds of thousands of cicadas were swarmed together. They were buzzing and flying around him like a barrier as that thing kept pulling him up.

Tang could hear small whispers coming from them, and he wasn't sure if he was even alive right now as the cicadas landed on his scarf. The whispers loud and clear.

'Stay' 'Don't leave' 'You have to stay here' 'Danger' 'You can't go' 'Danger' 'Somethings coming' 'You won't be able to handle it' 'Stop struggling' 'Danger' 'DANger' 'DANGER'-

'JUST. STAY. HERE.'

The cicadas started to glow, almost radioactive before blinding Tang until everything was just a nice, bright, neon orange.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Waking up in a cold sweat had become a reoccurring thing for Tang as he sat up violently, taking in harbored breaths.

He smacked a palm to his head, rubbing his temple before throwing himself back onto the bed. He had woken up before his alarm again.

So, he had decided to pull himself together and start getting ready. It would give him more time to pack extra snacks for him and Allan, which was a good bonus in Tang's opinion.

When he finally had a plan in motion, he pulled himself up and out of bed. He lazily walked through his small apartment, taking his brush from the bedside table to the bathroom.

And then he sat on the toilet seat while he brushed his hair, not styling it in any way before putting the brush down and taking up a toothbrush.

Now, with his mouth tingling from the toothpaste, Tang went to his fridge to look for something good for today.

He settled for some apple slices, watermelon, and some jumbo blueberrie boxes he had found for 40% off. He threw them into some plastic containers before fixing up a small bagel with green tea to drink later for lunch.

It's about 6:08 AM now, and he's fully ready for work. Which he needs to be at in a couple of hours. And the walk is only 15 minutes...

So he decided to busy himself with menial tasks he never got around to doing, like piling his books by genre and author or rearranging his closet of knick knacks from over the years. Anything to keep his mind and hands busy.

He was waist deep in the closet when his alarm suddenly went off next to his ear, making him jump and smack his phone with a good amount of force. "Owwwww," Tang whined as he picked up his newly cracked and dead phone.

He cursed as he tried all the buttons, nothing turned on, then walked to his couch, and threw it on the cushions. He sat himself right next to it as he stared up to the ceiling again.

He laid there only seconds before sighing heavily and popping himself back up, grabbing his messanger bag and walking out the door.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The walk to the library was uneventful; it was plain, even. Nothing caught his attention, and everything seemed eerily calm with only one or two people out and about like him.

It was probably because he left earlier than usual, but Tang still had a bad feeling.

Maybe it was because of the lack of commentary his thoughts usually made. No snark comments or observations popped into his brain like they usually did for the past weeks.

He's glad they're gone, to be honest. He thought he was going insane for the first few round of them, and this probably means he's getting over whatever he was stuck with.

The library slowly came into sight as he continued to walk. He was almost right on time as he unlocked the doors, letting himself in with his badge.

He walked steadily to his desk, throwing his messanger bag to the side and plopping himself in his chair, mentally readying himself to start opening up the library.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Allan came about 10 minutes later, surprised at Tang arriving before him and even starting to power up the library's computers.

"Hah! Nice to see you up and early!" Allan greeted him as he went towards the back to put away his backpack and jacket.

Tang snorted before answering. "Heh, not by choice for your information." He jested, followed by a quick laugh from Allan.

Allan came back fairly quickly, walking up to the front of Tang's desk. "So, what are we doing today?" He asked.

"It's about the same, just without the overwhelming decor and crowds of children like yesterday," Tang replied, getting up from his spot to start looking for the carts.

Which... he forgot where they were located. He internally sighed before looking back to Allan. "Do you remember where the carts are?" He asked in a grated tone.

Allan just laughed at Tang's crappy memory and gestured to follow him through the shelves.

After they got the carts and put up the assigned books, not much else was left for them to do. Nothing was missing, broken, or in need of reorganizing.

Tang was fine with this as he just pulled out some books from his messanger bag to read, but Allan became restless. He kept pacing through the library, seemingly in need of something to do.

When he finally sat down next to Tang after wearing himself out, Tang thought of a way to help. "Hey, Allan?" He asked.

"Yeah?" Allan answered, a bit absent-mindedly. "Do you like Monkey King?" "Monkey King? Well, uh, yeah, I like to read a bit of fiction based around him." Allan said quickly, seemingly not ready for the question.

Tang smirked before pulling another book out of his bag. "I have an extra book here called Monkey Cop: the Scarlet Tape. It's a mystery/action comic based on Monkey King as a cop, solving crime. It is a bit bloody, but it has amazing art and a good storyline. This is the first from the series, and I can bring the next editions if you like it."

Allan seemed a bit hesitant, staring at the comic for a hood second. Tang huffed, amused, before speaking again. "It's not like we have anything else to do, kid. And besides, I've been waiting for someone else to get into this series for a while so I can rant about theories with them."

Allan sighed before taking the book out of Tang's hand and opening up to the first page. "Okay, okay. I'll read this. It does seem interesting, but if it turns out trash, never recommend me a book again." Allan half joked.

Tang laughed at his declaration, turning back to his own book. "Sure, but I promise it's good."

Time passed by as the duo just read in each other's company, Tang having to pause and bookmark a couple of times to answer questions or check out books.

Allan started reading out of boredom but eventually seemed really invested, mu.bling theories and audibly gasping at some scenes. Tang took it as a win before reading a passage from his own book again.

About an hour and a half had passed before Allan closed the comic dramatically, slamming it on the desk and leaned back in his chair.

Tang calmly closed his own book before looking back to Allan. "Sooo~ what did'ya think?"

"That book is a freaking rollercoaster. Like, the police captain being in cahoots with the criminal undercity was wild." Allan finally answered.

"Haha, yeah. I was so shocked when I first found out. I'm just glad he isn't immeadietly offed in future chapters." Allan twisted his head to Tang. "Wait, he doesn't get killed from being revealed? I thought for sure he would be dead by the next book."

"Heh, nah. He goes through his own character arc, too. I can bring the rest of the current series if you're interested." Tang offers. "Really?! Oh my gosh, thank you!! I just need to find out how Monkey King finds the real culprit behind the Scarlet tape murders!"

He has lots of energy, just like Mk. Tang thought. He chuckled to himself as Allan continued to ramble to him about Monky Cop, adding his theories and opinions about the series here and there.

"And what even happened to the junior officer they lost during the scuffle from chapter 17?! She just disappears, and no one talks about it?!"

Tang replied with the same amount of enthusiasm. "That's what I've been saying! She barely gets referenced in the future books, but she seems to have so many questions and mysteries around her. Apparently, she wasn't even registered at the station-"

BEEEEEP, BEEEEEP, BEEEEP-

An alarm sounded from Allan's phone, shutting down the conversation. Other alarms also sounded throughout the library, echoing through the quiet halls.

Allan quickly checks his phone as his smile drops. "Crap, it's a DA alert." Tang frowns at that. "Another demon attack already?"

"Yeah, apparently." Allan huffed out, shaking slightly as he and Tang stood up together. "Of course now we have to go through the DA protocols." Tang sighed before turning on the library intercom.

"Okay, everyone. A demon attack has been spotted in the city. We advise everyone to follow the yellow arrows stuck everywhere in the library. It'll lead to stairs going down to a reinforced storage-"

The ground suddenly shakes beneath Tang and Allan, causing some books to fall off shelves and the intercom to shut off. "Please go fast!" Yelled Allan as he took Tang's arm and started to quickly maneuver through the books.

Key word tried, as another, more violent shake toppled over the shelves, blocking their way. "Ugh, we need to go the scenic route through the back sections!" Tang shouted, letting Allan drag him again.

They twisted and turned between the layout, trying to get to the room quickly through the enormous building. Small shakes continued, shoving more books to the floor and making the old building creak with every tremor.

"Go left!" Tang yelled out directions as he knew these back sections of the library well. Dust and small debris landed on them from the displacement of the old and unused spaces.

Suddenly, a large tremor came again, knocking even more shelves down with it, some cracking into pieces. Tang and Allan also lost their balance, falling to the floor with a large thud.

"Aw, shit." Tang groaned as he propped himself onto his elbows. Allan was in better shape, just landing onto his back and sitting up right after.

"We have to go now!" Allan yelled, panicking as he grabbed Tang's arm again, ready to sprint off.

But Tang doesn't move from his spot. "Don't. Move." Tang orders Allan, pulling him down to Tang's level. "What are you doing!? We need to run-" "It's almost here. We won't make it time." Tang interrupts, quickly looking over the walls and ceiling.

Allan just stares at him before protesting. "What are you even-"

*BANG*

The loud sound shocked Allan into silence as he looked to the source. A giant hole was suddenly in the library ceiling, with debris falling into the lobby.

Then he noticed what caused the hole. A giant gray demon, at least 8 feet tall, holding a massive sword, fighting against a kid with a red staff.

"Is that...?" Allan trailed off, staring at the standoff between the Monkey kid and that demon. "We need to hide." Tang suddenly whispered as he dragged Allan behind a toppled bookcase.

They can only wait as the fight continued in the library. The gray demon had a knack for dodging Mk's staff, directing sharp slashes afterward when Mk was vulnerable. All those attacks only sliced walls or bookshelves in half, though, luckily missing Allan and Tang.

Then Mk seemed to direct the demons' attacks upwards, probably so they didn't hit any more of the library. However, the ceiling started to crumble from the constant sword strikes, eventually causing one side to start collapsing.

Bigger and bigger pieces of drywall started to surround Tang and Allan. The walls start to crack with the ceiling falling in chunks. "We can't stay here!" Allan shouts, trying to stand up but stopping his efforts after a chunk nearly misses his head.

"Then what are we supposed to do!?" Tang shouts, still in his crouched position behind the acrumbled bookshelf. The rumbling got worse and worse as more pieces started to fall.

"I don't know, but we have to do something!" Allan shouts as he stands up. "We have to go back to the entrance!"

"What!?" Tang shouts, alarmed. "But that's in their fighting path! We might get hit with all those extra ceiling bits crashing down, or worse!"

Allan doesn't say anything in response, just staring at the exit. Tang can't focus, only taking in panicked breaths. But, what can they do? They don't have any protection or powers to get through that. It'll take a miracle to survive!

Tang looks up at the cracked ceiling that's slowly caving in closer and closer. But, if they stay here...

Another sword slash hits the wall above them, having it crack at an alarming degree.

He looks back to Allan. "If we do this, we have to go right now!" Allan's eyes widen before shifting to a look of determination.

Allan grabs Tang's arm again before bolting, trying his best to dodge the falling debris and attacks from the fight in the middle. Him and Tang gained small cuts and bruises from the rocks they couldn't dodge, one certain chunk hitting Tang straight in the shoulder, but they kept running.

They jumped through the splintered frames and piles pieces of wall, ducking under odd stick-outs from the walls or collapsed building. His glasses got cracked from being snagged when ducking under debris, but they still had to keep running. To make it back to the entrance.

When the light from the open doors reached their vision, Tang almost cried in relief. It was still a good bit away, but it was in their sights!

They kept running, even when their legs felt like they would fall off at any moment, when they felt like they were going off fumes.

The entrance was almost 20 feet away now. A small rumble from an attack, cracked pieces of the building falling down, the splinyered bookshelf frames blocking their way.

He was almost there. They were almost there! Tang couldn't believe it, but it was right in front of him-

'Stop.'

Tang faltered slightly, tripping over a piece of drywall, but recovered quickly.

'Stop running' 'There's danger!' You have to stop'

Oh great, now they're back and trying to get me killed-

'STOP' 'YOU HAVE TO STOP' 'HE'LL KILL YOU' 'STOP NOW' 'STAY THERE' 'STOP RUNNING' 'STOP STOP STOP STOP-'

Tang jerked his arm away from Allan, stopping in his tracks and reaching to his head. Allan ran a good few feet ahead of him before stopping and turning back to yell. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?"

Suddenly, the ceiling had been struck a final time, sending most of it to the floors below. Tang stared in horror as he saw it fall near the entrance. "ALLAN-"

But he was too late. Allan started to run again, but he was too far away from the entrance to get out in time. Rubble filled Tang's vision before he could see what happened.

"Allan!" Tang shouted as he tried to run towards the entrance. But the next part of the ceiling suddenly collapsed, sending straight for where he was.

Tang could only try to take refuge in the dark corners of the library, against the wall holding his head in his hands.

He could hear his heartbeat in his ears, pumping erratically as he took uneven breaths. He knew he was shaking as tears rolled down his face.

Tang didn't know how long he was in that position for, only focusing on his breathing and trying to avoid the falling pieces of ceiling...

Wait. His breathing slowly steadied as he came to realize everything was silent. No rumbling, no breaken glass or large thuds from falling debris, no sounds of a fight or falling books.

He slowly raised his head to his surroundings. He was completely encased in broken bookshelves and broken pieces from the walls and ceiling. Slivers of light shine through the holes to his small area of refuge.

He was almost completely unharmed, except for the throbbing pain in his left shoulder and head. All he could hear from outside honking horns and a strong breeze flowing through the wreckage.

Tang just put his head back into his arms, letting tears roll down in this complete silence. He really didn't know what he did to deserve this.

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Chapter 4 on ao3!

★ Soul Searching ★ 1

(Oh, look! Another Tang au)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

(TW some descriptions of throwing up, but it's very brief)

Sunlight shines onto Pisgy's early in the afternoon, bathing everything in a warm, cozy light. The sign outside is shown brightly to the busy streets.

The weathering on the door and outside counter gives it a homey look. Everything to the way the windows are opened just enough to let the smell of noodles out, to the chalk announcement board with swoopy letters making its charm.

Inside the hole-in-the-wall restaurant, the sound of bubbling and the flickering lights above add to its atmosphere. The growing pile of to-go orders now shoved to the side so the chef can see the lobby.

Barely anyone is actually sitting in the restaurant. Just the chef in the back, with a green teenager and an older looking man with glasses sitting at the bar.

The chef seems to be fed up with the both of them. "Can't you two do something other than taking up valuable space while I'm working?!"

The man in the glasses just shrugs and smirks at the outburst, continuing to sip some noodles he grabbed from the ever growing to-go pile. "Pisgy, Pisgy, Pisgy. If we were to leave, who would give you such riveting conversation? And besides, we're patiently waiting for Mk to come back."

Pisgy just glares at the man before speaking up louder than the first time. "Mei is waiting for Mk to come back." Pisgy gesture with a wooden spoon to Mei, who's looking at her phone with an unserious expression.

The man with glasses just raises a brow in response. Pisgy sighs heavily before continuing his rant. "And heck, so am I! He's left so many orders here, I could probably afford to fire him if I sold 'em all myself!

"Now what are you even doing? Mooching off of Mk's generosity for free noodles, and just sitting in front of me with a smug look on your face like I'm an idiot, which I'm not! Your so lucky I don't kick you out any time you set foot in here Tang."

Tang just laughs in response, spilling some sauce onto the ground as he readjusts his glasses to look at Pisgy. "Oh please Pisgy, you know you love me~" He said in a jaunty tone, smirk never falling. "If you didn't, I would've been in the hospital by now! Probably with a wooden spoon lodged in my head."

Tang continues to chuckle, with Mei joining in soon after Pisgy stomps off back to the kitchen, grumbling up a storm.

"He's always so grumpy! Maybe he's a bit more ticked today because Mk 'ain't back yet for all those orders." Mei says to Tang absent-mindedly, eyes focused on her screen as she slouches on her stool.

Tang huffed, amused. "Hah, maybe. I just think he has his apron in a twist all the time." He giggles at his own joke before pulling a stained and well-worn book off the counter.

"Journey to the West ", a classic in Tangs' personal opinion. He immeadietly flips the long time annotated pages to a specific bookmark, stopping right on top of a bright red post-it note.

Most of his scribbles were how inaccurate some of the legends were, how the stories were twisted to be seen in a good light for an easier consumption, Tang guesses. It hurt him to see so many people enjoy these fake stories, but at least he knew most of the truth.

However, there were parts that were kept somewhat accurate. Those were the ones Tang liked to reread the most, ones marked with bright red, from the only version available in metrapolis.

1, 2, 3.

4 red post-its fly past his vision as he takes in the legends, smirking at some passages before the next page was turned.

An hour had passed if Tang had to guess. The pile stopped growing after Pisgy gave up on Mk coming back in time. He's now sitting next to Tang on the bar, with Mei sitting at one of the nearby tables, seemingly still scrolling on her phone.

Tang had been working on his fifth bowl of to-go noodles when the ground started to rumble violently. It shook everything in the shop; things like chairs toppled over and loose kitchenware fell to the floor.

Mei screamed as her phone flew out of her hands and onto the table, Pisgy tried to stabilize himself on the counter while swearing up a storm, and Tang held up his bowl so nothing spilled out, one hand on the bowl the other holding on the counter for dear life.

It finally subsides after a couple of seconds, leaving the shop in disarray. "What the heck was that?!" Pisgy shouted as he righted himself back onto a bar stool.

"Ugh, I don't know, piggy. That was definitely stronger than a mega street race or an out-of-control party at the anti-gravity arcade." Mei answered as she sprawled across the table to take back her now cracked phone. She let out a small Aww, man! afterwards.

Tang had been gasping the entire time, seemingly trying to regain lost breath from the mysterious earthquake. "I don't know how *huff* you guys recover *huff* so quickly like that! Phew. It took all my strength just to save these precious noodles!" Tabg held up the bowl as some sort of proof, with half its contents missing.

"Maybe that's just because you're old, Tang." Mei smirked at him. Tang just scoffed after her with Pisgy giving an amused huff in the background.

Tang put his bowl of noodles back onto the counter before bending down to retrieve his book. It had a few noodle stains, but it's been through much worse than that. It isn't that bad.

Just as Tang sat back onto his stool, the restaurant doors burst open with a winded Mk in the middle of them.

"Mk! Where have you been? We've been stacked through the roof with noodles that were ordered ages ago! Our customers have already given ZERO STARS Mk!" Pisgy said, grabbing Mk by the ear and sitting him down across from him at one of the tables.

"Now you better have a good reason for this, or else I'm cutting your pay for a month with full work hours."

Mk seemed to go through a mix of sheepishness, awe, confusion, and shock before he answered in long winded rambles.

"Pisgy, Mei, Tang, the legend of the Demon Bull King is real! The Demon Bull King family took Monkey Kings staff off his prison, which I took in return to defend myself, and now he's probably out there wrecking everything! And now he's probably after me too because I have the staff and all those legends Mr. Tang told me were true, and now I'm freaking out!" Mk finished his ramble by lifting up the red and gold staff in his hand.

The restaurant was silent... before hysterical laughter from Pisgy and Mei filled the restaurant. "Bahahaha! You can't expect me to believe that kid! Those are all just legends!" Mei spoke up. "Hahahahah! Yeah, Mk! Are you sure you didn't get a concusion from that earthquake?"

Mk pouted as he raised the staff once again. "But I'm telling the truth! This is the Monkey Kings staff, and all those legends were true! You at least believe me, right Mr. Tang?"

But Tang didn't answer. He just stared at the staff blankly. His hands dug into the pages of his book until they were wrinkled beyond repair. "Mr. Tang? You okay there?" Mk asked in concern.

"That's... that's Sun Wukongs staff." Tang whispered through short breaths, still staring at the staff.

Mk quickly turned around to Pisgy and Mei. "See? At least someone sensible believed me."

Pisgy scoffed before challenging Mk. "If that really is the Monkey Kings staff, then why don't you show off some of its oH MY-"

But it was too late, as the staff elongated quicker than light and smashed straight through one of Pisgy's tables.

Mk showed them a bright smile. "Haha! See that?! That was freaking monkey power -"

Sounds of scraping metal and something hitting the floor stopped Mk mid sentence. Everybody turned around to face the bar.

Tang was on the floor, shaking violently with laboring breaths between small mumbling. His stool and book strewn to the sides as Tang kept staring at the staff, eyes unseen behind the reflections in his glasses.

Pisgy rushed over quickly, reaching out to shake Tang on the shoulder. "Woah, woah. Tang, are you doing alright there?"

But before Pisgy could even tough Tang's shoulder, his arm was swat away with a surprising amount of force. Pisgy cursed as Tang gasped and mumbled something out in response. "Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry, Pisgy. I'm sorry, I'm sorry; I just, I was shocked to see Sun- erm, the Monkey Kings staff in person like that, with the implications of the Demon Bull King back out again in out city."

Pisgy just huffed, "You're fine, Tang." Pisgy slowly put his hand around Tang's shoulders, giving them a slight squeeze.

"Thanks, Pisgy. I'll just... I'm gonna need some time for a moment. Go get Sandy; I'm sure he'll have some ideas about this." Tang gave a wobly smile as he slowly stood up.

Pisgy gave a scrutinizing look before seemingly giving up. "Yeah, you're right. He would know what to do." Pisgy turned back to the worried looking Mk and Mei. "Were gonna go meet my friend Sandy. He was THE MOST blood thirsty person I knew before..."

Their voices faded out of the restaurant as Pisgy ushered them out, with Tang left standing in the lobby. He just stood and let his smile drop for a moment. Eyes seemingly glazed over as he slowly walked back to Pisgy's bathroom.

His thoughts became louder and louder as he got closer and closer, collapsing as they started to become akin to stabbing his skull. Tang grits his teeth in pain as he lurches forward. Tears ran down his face along with black liquid out of his mouth, dripping onto the tile. He threw up.

Dark liquid and chunks of what looked like characol flooded into the toilet. He coughed violently before sagging onto the floor, mouth tasting like ash.

Tang takes off his glasses and puts them to the side as he puts the toilet seat down and flushed it. He sat on the toilet seat and forced himself to take deep breaths.

He thinks back to Pisgy, Mei, Mk, and that fucking staff... he hopes they'll be ok.

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