Helper

Ocean

word count: 4880

Fandom: MCYT Pairing: SBI Family x Brother!Orca!Reader Pronouns: He/Him Relationship: Familial Occupation: Pirate Captain Ability: Orca Hybrid

The character is that of a orca hybrid, allowing them to have traits of a orca. They have abnormal strength and speed with keen senses of hearing and sight, making their eyes and ears almost sensitive to anything. They are also granted with an abnormal height and the gift to shapeshift from a human/normal form to a more monstrous form. Both in and out of their full form, they are granted excellent swimming abilities.

Keys:

[M/N]: Male Name [S/C]: Skin Color [H/C]: Hair Color [E/C]: Eye Color  [U/N]: Username

Warnings: vulgar language, violence.

got this idea after reading this story by @sunflowerdaisybee​ of their SBI x sibling!reader, go check out their story because I liked it very much.

might make a part two, might not.

that is all.

“Full bore into the abyss!”

“Are you mad?!”

The captain of the ship that was sailing through a terrible storm let out a wild laugh as thunder boomed and lightning crashed from behind him, his crewmembers were hurrying themselves across the deck to prevent the ship from possibly capsizing from the terrible weather all because their captain was just too damn stubborn to go around the storm and instead went through it. This group of individuals was not your average group of ruffians, this was a group of pirates that was overrun with ocean type hybrids! Not a single one was a human, and the captain of this pirate crew was an orca.

The Killer Whale: [M/N]! This individual was wanted throughout the entire ocean for his countless crimes against the laws of the sea. Piracy, smuggling, arson, murder, impersonating an officer, sailing under false colors, kidnapping, looting, brigandage, pilfering, depravity, depredation, general lawlessness, and those are the few that he can remember. He was the reckless kind that would not hesitate to take matters into his own hands to get the results that he wants or needed, but he was also smart enough to know not to do anything too foolish. His crew was always his number one priority before anything else, he thought of them as another family; one that he had not left behind to live the life he wanted on the ocean.

This man was crazy and he just loved the ocean, it always made him feel free, he wondered if this is how his father felt whenever he would fly in the sky away from the ground. That’s why he loved the thrill of sailing through storms, that thrill of the waves crashing against his beloved ship, it always got his blood pumping whenever the rain poured down on him and that slightly fear of their ship not making it through made it all the more exciting. This man was an orca hybrid, a more than enough reason as to why people dubbed him the Killer Whale, but that’s beside the point. [M/N] was constantly in his full orca form. In his human form, he is about 7″2ft; his half human/half orca is about 8″0ft; his full form is 8″8ft, so this man is already gigantic from the beginning. 

“Hah!” turning towards the crewmate that shouted at him, he gave them a toothy grin as his hold on the wheel tightened so he wouldn’t lose the ship to the ocean waves “You afraid to get wet?” a few other crewmates groan, when he spoke like that, there was no talking sense into their captain. He laughed once more at the state of his crew as soon as they were out of the storm, they were all exhausted from their battle against mother nature and had practically passed out on the deck as soon as they hit clear waters and skies.

“Captain... can we please rest now?” he huffed, running a hand over the smooth skin of his head and nodded.

“Well, alright. We’ve done enough sailing, why don’t you drop the anchor so we can rest up tonight?” he rolled his eyes at the sound of loud cheering “You bunch of sea guppies, we’re all creatures of the sea! What’s there to be afraid of is we do capsize?”

“We lose all the treasure we accumulated over our countless adventures.” this caused [M/N] to pause, looking up in thought before nodding his head.

“Heh, now that’s a good reason, matey.” he laced his fingers together, cracking them over his head as he turned on his heels and started making his way to his quarters, passing by his vice-captain to give him some orders “You’re in charge while I go rest up myself, call me if anything happens.”

“Yes captain.” he clicked his tongue with winking before finally leaving, he let out a sigh while stretching his arms then collapsed onto his chair in front of his desk. He then kicks his feet onto the said desk while popping the cork of a bottle of wine and taking a couple swigs from the alcoholic beverage, he hums to himself as the liquid ran down his throat while some slipped between his lips and ran down his jaw. Licking his lips, he sniffles to himself as he looked around his personal room and smirked to himself, never in a million years would he have thought he would make a name as infamous as his own. 

“I really should pay the old man a visit.” he leans back once more, an arm hanging back as he takes another swig of the wine before pausing while letting out a hum at the sound of a bird.

*CAW*

*CAW*

“Hmm?” pulling his head up, he raised a brow at the sight of a crow landing on his foot “Now what’s a bird-like yourself doing out in the middle of the ocean with nowhere to land for miles?” he lifts his leg slightly and there he saw a letter of sorts strapped to its leg, his face lit up as he moved his leg so that it was closer to towards him so that the crow could perch itself on his hand. He set the bottle of wine down to caress the side of its head, humming softly when it leaned into the affectionate gesture. He soon removed the letter off of its leg and then proceeded to move it so that it was perched on his shoulder, with that, he opened the letter and read through the contents.

"Dear [M/N],

It’s been a long time, hasn't it? I won't take up too much of your time since you're probably very busy, being the captain of an infamous pirate crew, so I'll make this quick.

You left the house at a rather young age so you probably haven't met your brothers. That's right, you have three younger siblings! Adoptive, I know, though one of them actually is my biological son while the other two I picked up just like you.

I thought that if you're near the SMP, you could swing by and I could introduce you to them. I mentioned that they had an elder brother that was a pirate and they were more than excited to meet you. I hope you could meet them as well, but I won't pressure you to stop your adventures to meet them.

I'll see you when I see you.

Yours truly, Philza."

“Hmph, it’s almost as if he’s reading my mind.” he muttered to himself but ultimately felt excited after reading the letter, brothers? Philza picked up more kids and dubbed them his sons, now that was exciting to hear after a few months of no letters. He opens a drawer and drops the letter into the half-full drawer of letters from his father, he closes it then pulls out a blank paper, a quill and some ink to write his response. He reads it over before nodding his head and closing it, sealing it in an envelope then wax sealing it with a symbol of his pirate crew “Make sure this letter gets back to my dad, I’m counting on you.” he snickers softly when the crow salutes before flying off. 

‘Brothers, huh? I wonder what they’re like.’ he thinks back to his childhood with Philza and laughs to himself, he remembered how much of a handful he was for the already old man. He always loved being near the ocean, whether it be because he’s an oceanic hybrid or not, it was always so refreshing to be in the water than out of it. Philza wasn’t that big of a fan because of his wings so to compromise, he would pick him up and fly to a good enough height then drop him from a said height into the water for a big splash. Thinking back to his childhood brought a smile to his lips, he nods his head and stands to his feet and makes his way to the main deck where his crewmembers were casually talking while doing their assigned chores.

“Hear me, men!” he shouts, this caused them all to look over at him, raising a brow when they saw the bright smile on his face “Tomorrow, we set sail for the SMP! I have a certain someone waiting to see his son.” they all share glances at each other after the short announcement.

“We’re heading to land?”

“Then that means...”

“Party time!” he laughs at the conclusion, that was true. Whenever they did visit any island, that would always mean they head to the closest tavern to party for the rest of their stay there and relax until [M/N] decided they leave. He shook his head when they immediately raised the anchor while their navigator took to the wheel so they could head to the SMP ASAP, well, at least they weren’t wasting any time.

[with the sbi family]

“Dear old man,

It sure has been a long time, so imagine my surprise after you blessed me with the news of me having brothers. I’m very excited to meet the boys you have failed to mention in the previous letters, were you planning on surprising me or did you forget?

You must be getting really old if you did forget, and you wonder why I call you old man, old man. That’s beside the point, I’d be more than happy to drop everything just to see you and my new brothers. Don’t ever think that you’re giving me trouble just for a visit, I’ve been meaning to visit you anyways.

I don’t know exactly when I’ll arrive at the SMP, but knowing my crew, they’ll make it a top priority just to get to an island to relax after weeks of being on the ocean waters. We’ll be docked at the same place we always stay at whenever we come to visit.

See you soon.

Your favorite son, [M/N].”

“Pft, bold of him to assume he’s my favorite.” he muttered under his breath after reading the reply from his eldest son, his crow returned from [M/N] with a satisfied look on its face. Philza was excited to see the response and was thrilled when he read that [M/N] was quite literally dropping everything just to meet the brothers he had mentioned in the letter. Speaking of which, he hadn’t meant to mention [M/N] around his three sons, it was an accidental slip of the tongue and the three boys demanded to meet [M/N].

“Was that from the pirate?” Technoblade, the now second eldest who was a piglin hybrid, asked him as he rested his arms on the armrest while his head laid on top of his arms “Did he say he was coming?” Philza chuckled softly as he nodded his head, raising his hand to rest on top of his head.

“It was, and his name is [M/N].”

[M/N]: his eldest son that he accidentally picked up when he was sailing through a storm because god forbid he fly through it. The young orca was a stowaway in a crate of food that was likely abandoned or lost by his own family, so with nowhere to call home, he took the young calf as his own and raised him to the man he is today.

Wilbur: the second and biological son to Philza, a human child that bared more of a resemblance to his mother, the love of Philza’s life Kristin (Samsung Fridge) who’s love for music and theatre. Though he was quiet on certain occasions, the older man adored his son for bringing back the boisterous atmosphere after his eldest son left the home.

Technoblade: the third son, he found this young piglin hybrid alone in the nether with nothing more than the clothes on his back. He was probably the same age as Wilbur, he also thought Wilbur could use a brother since his eldest was gone and Wilbur looked lonely. Making sure that Technoblade wasn’t missing or anything, he brought the young boy home and raised him alongside his other son.

Tommy: his fourth and youngest son was randomly dropped off in front of his home with no letter or any sign left of the boy’s parents, but it was startling how similar this young child shared an appearance like himself. He probably wouldn’t have brought Tommy if it weren’t for the fact that both Wilbur and Technoblade were excited to get a younger sibling, so he thought, why the hell not and closed the door behind him with Tommy in his arms. 

“When is he going to get here, dad?” Wilbur asked, popping his head beside Technoblade.

“He isn’t coming directly to the house, so we’re going to him at the dock.” he let out an oof when Tommy threw himself onto Philza’s lap, a bright look on his face as he stared up at his father.

“So we’re going to see his ship? A real pirate ship?”

“That’s right, if you’re good enough, he might just let you aboard.” he chuckled when all three of them let out cheers of excitement, but himself was just as excited as his sons to see [M/N] again. How long has it been exactly since he last saw [M/N]? Several years, perhaps? He was seven when he first picked him up and he raised him to about seventeen years old before he left, Wilbur was born three years later and he’s currently eight... eleven years? That sounds about right.

“How old is he now, dad?” Wilbur asked.

“Hmm, if I do the math right, he should be about... twenty-eight?” Tommy makes a face.

“Old.” Technoblade and Wilbur snort, Philza just chuckled with a shake of his head and decided to tell them all the stories of the infamous pirate Killer Whale and all his adventures across the sea. When he finally got the letter that [M/N] arrived at the SMP and decided that he and his crew were staying for a couple days up to a week, he informed his youngest three and watching them scurry around to get ready was one of the funniest things to see. 

“Is he as scary as you made him out to be?” Tommy asked.

“Well, I say it’s like a character he has to play. He’s known as a ruthless killer of the sea, but he’s actually quite a big softy. Hah, he would often play with other sea life whenever we would go out swimming and sometimes he would cry at the sight of turtles being harassed by zombies. He gets very embarrassed whenever I bring it up.”

“Will he like us?” Technoblade asks “He’s twenty years older than us, don’t you think he’ll find it odd to have brothers that’s two decades younger than him?” Philza just shook his head.

“Not really. Family is family in his eyes. He told me that his ragtag crew of pirates are the family he couldn’t bring with him when he started his adventure. They range from a variety of different ages, different species, you name it! Whether you’re children or not, he’ll still consider you his brothers.” he was relieved when that was enough to reassure Technoblade, to which the young boy nodded his head as he reached forward to take Philza’s hand, Wilbur noticed this and took his other hand whilst Tommy sat a top the shoulders of their father. 

“Hurry up dad, I really want to meet him!” Tommy shouted, he laughs to himself when he was then being dragged to the docks by Wilbur and Technoblade, who were just as enthusiastic as their youngest brother. They now stood in front of tavern that was bustling with noises that ranged from shouting, screaming and singing...? Can that noise really be considered singing? Philza takes a deep breath and goes to enter but quickly stepped to the side, pulling his sons with him, when a barrel flew through the doors and crashed into the wall behind them. 

...

...

“I’m having second thoughts.” Technoblade says after hearing loud cheering come from inside the tavern after the barrel came flying through the doors.

“Oh, don’t worry about it. I promise, he’ll tone it down when he sees you guys.” he put Tommy down and made sure he was close to his brothers, he takes a deep breath as he approached the doors before finally pushing them open and entering the tavern. Technoblade, Wilbur and Tommy held onto the end of Philza’s haori and they were all blown away that the tavern was filled to the brim of oceanic hybrids that were partying like there was no tomorrow. They paid the family no mind as they continued to sing sea shanties while cheering on the two big hybrids that were drinking ale from barrels.

“Chug, chug, chug, chug!” the crew chanted wildly, one of the two collapsed to the ground, the barrel spilling ale everywhere for they weren’t able to finish it. The latter continued to drink and when he finished he let out a loud breath then slammed the now empty barrel to the ground before letting out a loud cheer, throwing his fist in the air with a wide grin.

“You’re a few years too early to challenge I to a drink off, mate.”

“That’s the captain for you!”

“Him and that bottomless stomach of his!” [M/N] gave a toothy grin, snickering to himself when his vice captain came up to him and wrapped their arm around his shoulder, he goes to continue to drink but was stopped at the call of his name.

“[M/N]!” he turned his head and his eyes widened slightly at the sight of the blonde man, Philza flinched slightly when all eyes were on him and was having second thoughts, he soon let out a grunt when [M/N] came rushing over to him with his arms wide open.

“Dad!” he exclaimed before kneeling down to wrap his arms around Philza and bringing him into a hug, his dorsal fin and fluke wagging as he embraced his father after so long “It’s so nice to finally see you after all these years!” he adds as he pulls away but still had a hold on him, snickering softly when Philza’s feet couldn’t touch the ground.

“It’s good to see you too, [M/N]. I missed you.” [M/N]’s fluke tail continued to wag, a few of [M/N]’s crewmates whistle at the sight.

“Wow, so that’s the man that raised captain [M/N]?”

“He really is a bird hybrid?”

“Is he a crow?”

“I’ve never seen a bird hybrid up close.” the blonde man started patting [M/N] on the shoulder to gain his attention and when he got it, he gave him a nervous smile.

“There’s still a few people I need you to meet.” at that, his face lit up once more and he moved Philza to the side and there he saw the three children that had to be his brothers. The tallest of the three had short pink hair that looked like it was growing with skin that was a lighter shade of pink than his hair, a paper crown sat a top his head as he wore a simple white button up, trousers and boots. The second was a boy with curly brown hair and matching brown eyes, he wore a bright yellow sweater with blue jeans and shoes. The smallest of the three had bright blonde hair that matched his-- their father along with the blue eyes, he wore a simple white shirt with red sleeves, shorts and sho-- wait a damn minute, where are his shoes? “[M/N], these are the brothers I mentioned in the letter. Meet Wilbur, Technoblade and Tommy. Boys, meet [M/N].” said man hurriedly put Philza down and gave the three young children and friendly smile.

“Hello, it’s great to finally meet you three. I hope we can get along.” [M/N] felt a bead of sweat roll down his cheek when the three only stared up at him in silence, then Tommy burst into tears “Wha-- what?” he paled, ignoring the way his crew were laughing as he tried to comfort the crying boy.

“Wow, you made them cry.”

“Some brother you are.”

“So scary.” his crew booked a private room so that Philza can usher the boys in to calm them down, to which the older two stood in the hallway, though, Philza was looking down at [M/N] as he was hunched over in a corner and drawing circles into the ground.

“Am I really that scary?” this question got him a smack across the head.

“You’re literally a killer whale, [M/N]. You’re huge with an intimidating aura surrounding you.” this caused him to continue sulking “If you don’t want to scare them, especially Tommy, why don’t you look like a human?” this caused [M/N] to flinch at the suggestion.

“Human?” he stood up and looked into his reflection through the mirror and pulled a face, placing a hand on his cheek “I don’t remember the last time I adorned the appearance of a human, my whole pirating life revolved around me being an orca.” Philza shrugged as he looked into the mirror with him.

“Well, it’s either that or you live with them fearing you.”

“Now that’s just mean.” he shrugs.

“But you and I both know that it’s true.” [M/N] exhaled through his noses and looked at his reflection once more, dangit. Wilbur and Technoblade were whispering sweet nothings into Tommy’s ear to soothe him, to which he had calmed down from his crying.

“I didn’t expect him to be that big.”

“I didn’t expect Tommy to cry.” Wilbur then looked down at him “Didn’t you say that you were a big man, Tommy?” the five year old only sniffled.

“I am a b-big man!” they all flinch, to which Tommy let out a yelp, when there was a knock at the door. They relaxed when they saw that it was only their father, however, he was briefly talking to someone from behind the door before shuffling inside.

“Come on, don’t be getting shy now.”

“I feel weird.” it was [M/N]’s voice, but it sounded different compared to earlier. Philza waved his hand and so [M/N]’s let out a sigh and finally entered the room, causing the three children to stare in slightly shock at his different appearance. Instead of the body of an orca with legs, [M/N] now looked completely human with pale skin and black markings where an orca’s skin was black. He still had an abnormal height but at least it wasn’t overwhelming like before, he had short messy [H/C] hair with deep [E/C] eyes. The clothes he wore looked a little looser and baggy compared to when he was an orca, I guess that was because his muscles were more apparent when he was an animal. As a human, he also had many tattoos of islands that he must have visited along with a few flowers, feathers and a compass, his ears were pierced as well and he had a black crow feather hanging along the side of his face from his hair “There, you happy?” he said as he looked at his father, placing his hands on his hips while leaning his weight onto his foot.

“Very, you look just as handsome as the day you left.” this comment raise heat to rush to his pale skin, Philza then clapped his hands as he looked at the other three children “Boys, this is [M/N]’s human form, I hope it’s less scary.”

“You’re making me look bad.” [M/N] nervously rubbed the back of his neck as his eyes averted from the three small children, he takes a deep breath before approaching them and kneeling down, making sure he didn’t get too close so they wouldn’t feel uncomfortable “I’m sorry if I’ve made you three nervous, I didn’t mean to. I haven’t exactly interacted with young children in a long time, but I really want to make this work because this is the first time I’ve had brothers this young before. I’ll stay like this to make sure you guys are comfortable around me, how does that sound?” he believed that Wilbur and Technoblade could handle it, but he was more worried about Tommy, the poor boy cried on sight. He waited nervously and eagerly for his response, swallow thickly as the blonde boy peered over the shoulders of his older brothers shielding him from the stranger.

“... did those hurt?” was the first thing Tommy said, [M/N] didn’t understand the question until he noticed where Tommy was looking, he glanced down while raising his hand and saw that he was staring at the few scars along his chest that were peeking from under his shirt.

“Huh? These? Psh, with the adrenaline pumping, it barely hurt. What hurt was getting the damned thing all stitched up.” he then raised his arm “Wanna see the scar I got after getting harpooned?” Philza stood in the background, a happy smile gracing his lips that [M/N] managed to get the boys to settle down and marvel at works of art all over his body along with the scars left behind the countless battles he’s had over the years. It made him happy that, despite the initial introduction, Tommy now sat snug in his lap while Wilbur and Technoblade sat beside him as he pointed at each of his tattoos and the meanings behind them.

‘I’m glad they’re getting along, I guess I was worried for nothing.’ 

Headcanon:

[m/n] spoke with his brother’s for hours, recalling another one of his tales, that he hadn’t realized that the noise from inside the bar had died down whilst his own father was leaning against his back as he fell asleep.

he probably would have moved them to the couch if it weren’t for the fact that even the three young boys had fallen asleep on him.

he was in a predicament.

fuck it-- he might as well just sleep on the floor with them.

the morning was great because he was cuddled up with his brothers along with his father.

it wasn’t so great for his crew because they were all groaning in pain from the hangovers from the excessive drinking.

he threw water of them to wake them up and told them to stop bitching. 

when the three boys were awake, he brought them aboard his ship and showed them around.

them and his crew were more than excited to show the children around, however, they too had to look like humans as to not overwhelm and startle children.

they were rewarded with booze.

when [m/n] had to set sail again, tommy burst into tears once more because he wanted [m/n] to stay.

why couldn’t he stay?

did he not like them?

quite the opposite really.

he was a wanted man, and the longer he stayed in a certain area, the faster the government authorities got to capturing his band of crazies.

wilbur and technoblade were just as upset because they wouldn’t get to see or hear all his epic tales and spend time with his crew.

[m/n], however, promised to visit more often and send letters to hear from them.

he even promised to send or bring them souvenirs from his adventures, giving them something to look forward too.

when asked why he couldn’t just stay longer, his answer was the fact that his story still hadn’t found its ending just yet and was still being told and written. 

the next time he did drop by he had a few new tattoos that signified his brotherhood to them and represented each brother.

a lute for wilbur, a cutlass sword for technoblade, and an infinity sign for tommy.

tommy thought the infinity sign looked dumb.

when told that it was his limitless brotherly love for him, he had second thoughts.

though he tried not to make it blatantly obvious, to which he failed at it, tommy was without a doubt his favorite brother.

he promised the three brothers, that if they were ever to call him in need of his aid, he would not hesitate to drop everything just to come and help them in dire need.

he was their elder brother, and he was going to make up for his absence for not being there for them when they were growing up.

Savory

word count: 7225

Fandom: IRL!MCYT Pairing: Quackity x Male!Reader Pronouns: He/Him Relationship: Romantic Occupation: Baker Ability: N/A

Keys:

[M/N]: Male Name [H/C]: Hair Color [E/C]: Eye Color [D/N]: Dog Name

Warnings: cringey

I like making my oc’s and even readers really tall, fight me.

this is hella gay and it hurts my brain because I rushed it.

that is all.

Dammit.

That was the only thought going throughout Quackity’s mind as he ran along the streets, why you may ask. Simple really, it’s because he lost his gorgeous pet cat, Tiger. Sure, he knew that Tiger was quite adventurous and most certainly feisty, but never would have thought that Tiger would run off so suddenly as he did, he immediately sprung into action and fled his house in search of his dear sweet pet cat.

“Tiger! Oh please, where did you go? Tiger!” he called out rather frantically, soon enough, worry started to arise when countless scenarios started playing throughout his head. What if Tiger got hit by a car? What if Tiger got mauled by another animal? What if someone took his cat?! Now the panic was starting to kick in and he was searching in a more frantic manner, running up and down the footpath while continuously calling out his cat’s name. When everything seemed dire, he heard the sound of soft laughter, he turned his head and he couldn’t help but freeze up at the sight before.

He wasn’t really one to act as flustered as he did at the very moment with his outgoing and flamboyant personality, but he really couldn’t help it at what was before him. He also had to agree that George had the pretty privilege and was most certainly gorgeous, but this guy took the cake. Short/Long [H/C] hair with strikingly bold [E/C] eyes, even from a fair he could tell that this rather attractive male had quite a broad and muscular body and that smile that graced his face that caused a slight tint of red to dust his cheeks as he played with a cat. Wait-- cat? He took a closer look and his eyes widened in a mixture of relief and shock at the sight of Tiger curled up beneath this man, showing his underside so he could scratch his belly.

“Hey! That’s my cat!” he shouts as he rushes over, this sudden commotion caused the man to stop petting Tiger and raise his head to turn over to where Quackity was currently rushing over, he nearly stumbled over his own footing when his [E/C]’s landed on him.

“Oh? I’m sorry.” he apologized, he tried standing to his feet but laughed when Tiger launched himself forward and clung onto the shirt of the stranger, who laugh as he held Tiger close so he couldn’t fall, laughing even more when the cat curled up in his arms and started purring when he started scratching under his chin “I didn’t know he was yours, kind of distracted me when he was sprawled all over the footpath.” Quackity returned the kind smile with a rather nervous one, rubbing the back of his neck when he realized just how tall the man in front of him was, probably about 6″3-4ft tall.

“It’s no problem. Thought I lost him, I’m just glad he’s alright.” the stranger nods his head and watched as the shorter one of the two reached forward to take his cat back, now it was Quackity’s turn to laugh when he saw how much trouble the stranger was having giving his cat back. When Tiger felt the man was no longer going to hold him, he started letting out meows while clinging onto his shirt, crying out louder when Quackity tried taking him back “I am so sorry.” the stranger just shakes his head.

“Oh, not at all. For some reason, animals tend to love me. I grew up with a lot of pets and my folks call me the animal whisperer with how much our pets loved me.” a couple minutes went by and Quackity wasn’t able to get Tiger to let go of the attractive stranger so he let out a sigh, hands pressing against the lower side of his back as he stared at his cat that soon climbed out of his arms and was now resting on his shoulders.

“I really am sorry about him, he’s not usually like this.” he only hummed, reaching up and scratching under his chin once more.

“He’s a real cutie he is.” he then offers his hand to the shorter man, polite smile on his face “I’m [M/N] by the way, thought you’d want to know.” Quackity’s eyes perked up at that and took his hand.

“Um, my name is Alexis! But people call me Alex.” he nods his head before pointing at the cat “Oh, his name is Tiger.” [M/N]’s eyes lit up at what he said.

“Tiger? Aw, such a cute name.” he cooed.

“Do you have any pets?” his eyes lit up once more.

“Of course.” he then turned his head, raising his hand and bringing his fingers to his lips before letting out a sharp whistle “[D/N], come!” he shouts, Quackity turned his head to where [M/N] was looking at was startled at the sight of a merle great dane barreling over to where they were standing. [M/N] laughs as he grabs Tiger and raises him above his head when his dog tackled him to the ground, he let out an oof as his body landed on the ground with a thud but he still continued to hold Tiger above him so he wouldn’t get trampled by his dog 

“This is my great dane [D/N]!”

“He’s quite big.” [M/N] rolls his eyes as Quackity took his chance to finally take Tiger out of [M/N]’s hands without him fighting back.

“Of course he’s big, he’s a great dane my guy!” he exclaimed, Quackity knelt down and set Tiger down and he was rather thankful that his little furry companion decided to loiter around him, he laughed when [M/N]’s dog started licking his face but he managed to push his face away to get a breather “See? Animals love me.” he nods.

“Sure, I’ll believe that when I see you start talking to birds.” he pursed his lips at the thought.

“Don’t tempt me.” when his great dane managed to settle down, he rolled his neck and rubbed his back after taking the full impact of his weight and his dog’s, he then noticed [D/N] nuzzling his snout into Quackity’s thigh and he hummed softly “He likes you.”

“Eh? Really?” Quackity’s face flushes once more when [M/N] gave him a gentle smile as he nodded his head, scratching his dog behind the ears. 

“What’s unique is that [D/N] is usually so defensive around strangers, but he’s taken a liking to you.”

“R-Right.” the two of them continued to chatter, though they moved locations to a nearby bench so that they weren’t sitting in the middle of the footpath and out of the way of walking pedestrians, and they were overall enjoying each other’s company. [D/N]’s head was resting on [M/N]’s thigh as he nuzzled close into his owner’s side while Tiger nestled silently in Quackity’s lap, the latter calmly patting his cat as it slept. The two of them hadn’t even realized how long they were talking for until they saw the street lights beginning to turn on as the day turned into night, [M/N] gave Quackity an apologetic look as he stood to his feet, gently patting his dog’s head after the abrupt action.

“Oh! I’m sorry for taking up so much of your time.” now it was Quackity’s turn to stand up, being more careful as he held Tiger in his arms.

“No, no! Not at all, I actually enjoyed this afternoon.” he then looks to the side, his nervousness beginning to crawl up the back of his neck “I was also kind of hoping we could talk again.” [M/N] blinked at the request before smiling softly, he pulled out a pen from his wallet to pull out an old receipt and scribbled something down on the back of it, he tore off the needed part before scrunching up the waste and handing the other part to him.

“Call me when you’re free, yeah? Then I’ll know when I’m not taking up your time when you’re busy.” he then waves his hand to bid the other goodbye before walking off with [D/N] by his side, yipping and barking while jumping side to side then following his owner home. Quackity continued to stand there like a fool before letting out a long groan, the soft blush on his cheeks continuing to grow as his hand tightened into a fist, accidentally crumbling [M/N]’s phone number.

“Dammit.”

Quackity was soon looking forward to having conversations with [M/N], he most certainly had the best humor when it came to the entire Dream SMP, but [M/N] was just so goddamn comedic there would be hours where the two of them are just talking while making jokes. It soon became a competition between the two of them to see who could make the other laugh first or the most, so far Quackity was the reigning champion between them but [M/N] wasn’t too far behind. Currently, Quackity was laying in his bed with his phone beside his head and there he was chuckling softly at the sound of [M/N]’s boisterous laughter sounding from his phone’s speaker.

”Come on, that joke was funny!” [M/N] cried out, he snorted to himself when he could tell that [M/N] was clutching his stomach as he continued to laugh, to which he only shook his head.

“I see that I am the ultimate victor when it comes to comedy since now you’ve resorted to dad jokes and puns in order to get me to laugh.” the latter snorts, wiping away a tear that shed.

”Dad jokes and puns are funny.” Quackity rolls his eyes, rolling onto his side so that he was facing his phone, smiling softly as [M/N]’s icon shun whenever he spoke, the light illuminating his darkroom.

“It depends on what joke.”

”Alright, I have another one for you!” Quackity shook his head once more, resting his cheek onto his closed fist as he closed his eyes, waiting for [M/N] to tell his terrible joke ”Why couldn’t the pirate finish the alphabet?” he hummed, genuinely trying to answer the joke but his mind came to a blank, maybe because it was the sound of [M/N] trying to stifle his laughter at the terrible joke.

“I don’t know, why?”

”Be... because he got lost at C!” it wasn’t the fact that it was the joke that made him laugh, it was the sound of [M/N]’s laughter that made him smile, maybe also the sound of a thud coming from his side of the line, he probably fell off wherever he was sitting because of how hard he was laughing “It’s such a terrible joke but it’s just so funny!” he exclaims, sniffling a little before taking deep breaths to calm himself.

“You have such terrible humor.”

”I do not!” they then both started laughing, soon the laughter died down and the two of them sat in their respective rooms in silence. It wasn’t an awkward silence, it was rather comfortable and the two of them basked in the silence as they listened to the sound of each other breathing softly. [M/N] closed his eyes as he leaned back in the chair he was resting on, he glanced at the time and noticed that it was already past midnight, he grimaced to himself and leans forward to apologize to Quackity but paused when he heard the soft sound of his snoring. His gaze softened a little as he stared down at his phone, he then chuckled softly as he picked up his phone and raised it to his lips “Sweet dreams, Alexis.”

[time skip: a few days later]

Quackity had gotten rather busy lately, with all his assignments from school and late-night streaming, he hadn’t really been able to converse with [M/N] overcall but rather having a few short conversations through text, but that was that. [M/N] also had his own things he had to take care of so he wasn’t necessarily that distraught when he would politely decline hanging out, a man’s gotta do to live, you know? He was now walking down the busy streets of California with no clear destination in mind, just a simple stroll and stopping here and there while casually listening to music blaring through his earphones.

’Hmm, I could really go for something sweet right now.’ he thought to himself, pursing his lips before taking a seat on a nearby bench, pulling his phone out, and thinking about [M/N] ’He did mention that he was in the food industry, maybe he might know a place or two.’ he shrugs his shoulders before scrolling through his contacts, pressing on [M/N]’s icon before letting it ring.

...

...

“Hello? [M/N] speaking, to whom am I speaking with?” he chuckled softly at the sing-song voice [M/N] used as he answered the phone, already knowing that the man on the other side of the phone knew exactly who it was.

“It’s the one and only.” the man on the other line perked up immediately at the sound of his voice.

”Alexis! Haha, what can I do for you? And not to be rude, I hope you can be a little quick, I’m kind of in the middle of work.” Quackity immediately felt bad for calling now knowing that his friend was in the middle of something.

“Oh, I am so sorry! I can call ba--”

”No, it’s fine, really!” [M/N]’s voice was sincere as he spoke, he couldn’t help but be a little flustered that he would take up his time just to talk to him over something so small, god, he felt embarrassed right now ”Now why did you call me? Is something the matter?” yeah, he was feeling really embarrassed now, he pressed a hand onto his face before looking to the side.

“No, it’s nothing major.” he groans to himself, throwing his head back “I was just feeling like eating something sweet right now and thought you could recommend someplace to eat.” his face flushed a shade of red when all he earned from the other male was silence.

”... hmm, where are you right now? Are you at home?” he shakes his head, before he could answer he heard [M/N] let out an oh ”Hold that thought.” he furrows his brows when he hung up, he let out a huff.

“Wow, rude much.” he sat there for a minute or two then perked up when he heard his phone ping, pulling it out, he saw that it was from him.

From: [M/N]  To: Alexis

look up.

“Look up?” he then heard tapping so he raised his head before jumping on the spot at the sight of [M/N], when he finally spotted him, he smiled softly and waved his hand to greet him. Before [M/N] ended the call, he looked at the window of the building he was in, and to his surprise, he saw Quackity sitting on the bench outside, quite the coincidence. He soon waved his hand to gesture for him to enter, and how could he refuse the opportunity to see his friend. He soon realized that the building he entered was a bakery of sorts that also served as a café, it felt very homey and it put his mind to ease, he then looked over the counter and saw his friend waving at him with a bright smile.

“Hello, I humbly welcome you to my café that produces baked goods of all kinds. Whether they’re the generic cupcake or brownies, or French pastries like Canelé or Crème Brûlée. You’ll find what you want here.”

“Wow, really? You own this place?” [M/N] huffs.

“Did you really just ignore everything I just said?” Quackity raises his hand, snorting a little at the offended look [M/N] was giving him.

“Well, what kind of reaction do you want me to give you? Do you want me to say “oh my god! You see all sorts of desserts for my fatass to eat? Wow, you’re a life savior!” no, but it is pretty cool.” he starts to laugh when [M/N] has him an unamused.

“Damn, alright.” he waves at his employees to take care of the other customers while he personally dealt with Quackity, he leaned against the glass case and smiled softly at him “Well, what can I get you sir? Is there anything appealing that you want?” he looks at the assortment of desserts before raising his head to look at [M/N], he thought for a minute before a devious smirk worked its way to his face.

“These all look certainly appealing, but,” [M/N] raised a brow in question when Quackity snapped his fingers then winked at him “the most delectable one I see is you.” [M/N]’s eyes widened slightly at the poor pick-up line, but that didn’t stop the slight pink flushing to the tips of his ears, Quackity thought he got him until he gave an answer.

“Unfortunately for you sir, I am not on the menu.” he gives a smirk of his own, leaning forward so that he was a few inches away from his face “I am a delicacy few can afford, so it’d be smart of you to choose wisely sir.” he giggles to himself when it was Quackity’s turn to be flustered, pursing his lips and turning his head away to hide the blush spreading across his cheeks.

“Okay... that was smooth.” he grins.

“Thank you. Now seriously, what do you want?” he went for the safe route and went for a Mexican Pan Dulce, one that would hit home, he had been missing Mexican cuisine so eating it again would definitely be nice. [M/N] shows him to a seat then sits with him, he stated he was on break so it should be fine to catch up a little “So how have you been? We haven’t been able to talk as of lately because we’ve both been busy, how’s your streaming been?” Quackity told him about his Twitch and YouTube channel a few weeks into their friendship and told him he could call him by his channel name but the latter was quite insistent on just calling him Alexis, saying that if he didn’t have a cool name to go by, they’ll both be addressed by their boring names.

“Well, walking into your café just reminded me what I wanted to do for a new video.” he quirked a brow, raising his cup of coffee to his lips, waiting for him to lay his new content idea on him “I wanted to do a cooking stream.” [M/N] claps his hands.

“How delightful, I’ll make sure to watch and make small comments on what you’re doing.” Quackity pursed his lips at the way he said it, he didn’t know if he was saying that to be nice or to poke fun at him.

“Well, since I now know your knowledge of cooking is quite out there, I was wondering if you would like to be a special guest on my cooking stream?” his eyes widened slightly once more at the suggestion, he then furrows his brows slightly.

“Alexis, cooking, and baking are two completely different things. To simplify, cooking is the broader category of food preparation methods, while baking is one of those methods. Cooking can be done a number of ways, while baking requires the use of indirect, dry heat from an oven to prepare food for eating.“ he pulled a face when he knew Quackity wasn’t listening to his explanation.

“... then it’ll be a baking stream!” [M/N] only shook his head with a sigh, but he laughed nonetheless “You don’t have to agree if you don’t want to, but we both know that I’ll fuck up everything without the proper supervision.” he watched as the [H/C] male lean back in his seat, rolling his fingers against the tabletop before shrugging his shoulders.

“Meh, sure, why not?” Quackity cheers “But it’ll cost yah.” he deflates.

“What?!” he then snorts.

“I’m pulling your leg.” they both hear a whistle so [M/N] glances over and saw one of his employees, they gesture to the clock so he glances down at his watch and pouts “Pity, it seems my break is already over. I was hoping to talk a bit more with you, but alas.”

“I’ll tell you when I’m planning on having my stream.” he nods.

“I’ll see you then, Alexis.” he winks before leaving to get back to work, he hums to himself, leaning back in his seat before munching on the pan dulce, now beginning to look forward to his next stream.”

[day of the stream]

“Pizza? I thought we were baking.” [M/N] said softly, putting down his bag and gently greeting Tiger as he entered Quackity’s humble abode, he also brought [D/N] and promised that his dog wouldn’t be too much trouble. He pursed his lips as he watched Quackity sit up in his kitchen before turning around to face him, tutting his finger.

“Pizza is a type of bread so bake is the correct term, however, you look at it.” he laughs when he saw the other roll his eyes, continuing to pet Tiger.

“Well, I’m sorry. I’m just used to baking sweet things, not savory, but I do know how to make a pizza.” he hums to himself when Quackity clapped his hands, a bright smile on his face. [M/N] watched silently as Quackity set up his PC and the camera, directing it to where they would be baking the pizza, he brought an extra pair of clothes just in case things got messy, he had watched a couple of Quackity’s videos and saw just how chaotic he was, but he was hilarious nonetheless.

“I’m almost ready setting up, oh! Here’s an apron.” [M/N] let out a laugh when he chucked it at him, he pulled it off his face before standing up and putting it on, tying the laces around his waist before pulling his hair back, making sure that flour wouldn’t be able to get in his hair.

“Is there anything you want me to do specifically, or no?” he hums at the question before shaking his head, giving him a smile and a thumbs up.

“Just be yourself.” he hummed at that, Quackity did tell him to wait, he was going to start his stream and greet his chat first before introducing them to his guest. Watching him was quite entertaining, seeing how he was able to hype his chat up to what he had in store for them, snorting to himself when he heard him claim how he was a “professional chef”, he shook his head at that. Quackity noticed this and spared him a knowing glance before looking back towards the camera, he rambled for a couple more minutes before clapping his hands “As you’ve already read in the title of the stream, we have a special guest that will be joining us today and helping us! Isn’t that exciting?” he glances at his PC to see the chat going crazy.

”Who is it?”

“Did you meet up with someone?”

“Karl?”

“A guest!”

“Alright, alright, calm down. He’s a friend of mine and he isn’t really a streamer or content creator, just your average joe.” [M/N] looked at him.

“Hey!” he shouts, this caused Quackity to throw his head back while laughing, he pats his chest to calm himself before throwing his arm out in the direction where [M/N] was sitting.

“Come on in, my friend! Come and introduce yourself to the chat.” he shook his head before getting up from where he saw sitting and walking into the camera shot, having to bend down slightly because the camera was pointing down at an angle that could fit Quackity and not himself.

“Hello~ I am the guest, my name is [M/N]. Nice to meet you all.” both himself and Quackity were blown away at how fast the chat was spamming messages and even donations, [M/N]’s eyes scanning them as fast as he could to read what they were saying.

“Awooga!”

“Sexy voice!”

“Gorgeous!”

“Tall hunk!”

”Wow, I believe your chat likes me.” he mumbles to himself, a soft blush rising to his cheeks as he continued to read the continuous compliments coming from the dozens of viewers, he then perked up when someone sent a donation.

ur_mom donated $5

Damn quackity, your friend lookin hella fine, if you know what I mean? he single? 

“Um, yes? I am single, but I’m not exactly looking for a relationship with a minor, please and thank you.” now the chat was roasting the hell out of the person who sent the dono, he laughs once more before glancing down at Quackity who had an offended look “Oh, come on now, don’t tell me you’re jealous that your viewers find me more attractive than you?” he scoffs, pushing him back with a laugh.

“Hell no! Looks isn’t everything, skill is key and I’ll demonstrate that through our cooking stream!” [M/N] pulls a face, placing a hand on his hip and leaning on his side.

“I literally own a bakery, I bake for a living. That’s the whole reason you invited me, remember?” they stood in silence for a couple seconds before Quackity pushes [M/N] away by his face and faces the camera once more.

“Today we will be making a pizza!” the chat begin to laugh when [M/N] swatted his hand away and gave him an offended look.

“Oi!” for the first half of the stream, [M/N] was practically stopping Quackity from harming himself, being floored when the man literally put his finger into boiling water to check if it was warm enough, he was surprised he hadn’t burned down his kitchen for how reckless he was.

“Alexis, I’m literally getting a headache with what you’re doing.” he says as he watched him mix the two cups of water and the yeast with a spatula all because he didn’t have a mixer, he slaps a hand onto his forehead when he then saw him pick it up and sniff the mix before coughing and gagging at the smell “I’m going to smack the shit outta you if you don’t stop that nonsense, boy.” Quackity laughs as he looks up at him.

“I know what you’re doing!”

“Mm hmm.” he then taps his shoulder.

“Then, I’ll leave this to you while I go prepare the flour.” he only sighs in response to that, taking the measuring cup of water and yeast and stirring it with a whisk instead, gagging himself at that smell that was coming from it “Where’s the bowl? Who the fuck stole my bowl?!” [M/N] only sighed as he shook his head, glancing over his shoulder.

“Look in your cupboards, Alexis, you didn’t pull any other bowls out.” he lets out an ah at that before crouching down and rummaging through his cupboards to look for a bowl, [M/N] squints at the abomination he was mixing, adding some more yeast in it just as Quackity returned with a bowl.

“Alright, we got the bow here.” he glances down at it and sighs, he changes his gaze to Quackity.

“That’s a strainer, not a bowl, keep looking.” he looks down at it before laughing, throwing it away and searching for a bowl once more, when he couldn’t find one he left the room calling for his mother and asking her where a bowl was, only later to return with one in hand.

“Ah! It was right in front of me.” he cheered, he then leaves once more to grab flour, showing it to the camera “Gluten free flour!”

“Gluten free? Damn.” Quackity smacks him in the arm before proceeding to look into the packet, opening it up and attempting to pour it into the bowl, [M/N] then looks up in thought before putting the measuring bowl to the side.

“What kind of yeast did you use again?” he asked, taking the box of yeast and reading through it.

“Vegan yeast.” he grimaces once more as he reads through it, he then glanced back at him.

“You do know that nutritional yeast is deactivated and will not rise, right?” just as he said that, a dono saying what he saw popped up.

...

...

“Anyways-” [M/N] closed his eyes, Quackity only laughed at his response before resuming the stream. Most of the time it’d be [M/N] pointing things out and giving detailed instructions on how to properly make the pizza, he had to admit, he knew he was nitpicking everything Quackity was doing, but he genuinely couldn’t help it when his main profession involved baking, but the latter didn’t mind whatsoever.

kazterboro cheered! x500

Can we get one flour handprint on that crisp black shirt?

“Goodness gracious.” [M/N] murmured softly, he eyed Quackity and grimaced slightly when he noticed that he was genuinely considering it.

“I’ll think about it.”

“Don’t think about it, flour is a hassle to get out of clothes until they are washed, I would know from experience, Alexis.” this only earned him a roll of the eyes as he mixed the flour with salt and yeast as he removed any cooking equipment from the counter that they won’t be needing anymore into the sink when the mixture turned into a dough and they were in the process of kneading it into its shape. [M/N] didn’t think much time went by when he turned away but by the time he returned, he saw Quackity had two flour handprints on his chest and they weren’t going away “... you better wash your hands with soap before you touch that dough.” he sulks but nods his head.

“Right.” he sighs with a laugh before rolling his sleeves up.

“I’ll knead the dough until you’ve finished, yeah? Shouldn’t take me too long.”

“Right, but I want to knead it too.” he nods before getting to work, Quackity was surprised because by the time he turned back around he saw that [M/N] had already kneaded the dough enough to the point he was able to spin it around on one hand while tossing it into the air before catching it spinning it around in one hand once more “What the hell? Barely a minute has passed and you’re already doing that?” [M/N] grins.

“My skill never fails to bring out the best in what I make.” Quackity continued to stare at him before reaching forward.

“Gimme a try.” he raised a brow.

“Sure you’re up for the task?” he waves his hand.

“Psh, how hard can it be?” this only earned him a quirked brow before [M/N] handed him the dough, five seconds later the dough he threw up and landed on his head. The two of them stood in silence before [M/N] burst out into laughter at how funny that was, he wiped away a tear before reaching forward and grabbing the edges of the dough, and lifting it up to take a peek at Quackity. There, he saw his face was a slight shade of red due to the fact that he made himself look even more foolish and he was avoiding his gaze.

“Now that was funny.” he says, he removes the dough from off of his head and chuckled when he noticed that his face was covered in flour “Perhaps you should leave this to me, huh?” Quackity did not like the mocking tone [M/N] was giving him so he removed his headphones off his head and let them hang on the microphone, he then took the dough from him and placed it down before grabbing a fistful of flour. He let out a gasp when Quackity threw the flour at his face, [M/N] coughed when he inhaled it before sneezing and waving his hand in the air to clear his vision.

“Not so funny now, is it.” [M/N] raised his head and stared down at him.

“Oh, it’s on.” the chat went wild as they watch the two grown men start throwing flour at each other and making a whole mess in the kitchen, laughing as they did and not even caring that they were going to have to clean it up in the end. They hadn’t known how much time and gone but [M/N] stopped to catch his breath, maybe it was the amount of flour in the air that caused him to start coughing or how much he was laughing, he stopped paying attention really. He took a step forward but paused when his foot slipped on the pile of flour beneath his foot, he panicked and reached forward, grabbing hold of Quackity but ultimately, they both collapsed to the ground “Ah... sorry.”

“No, no. We both should have seen this coming.” look down, Quackity froze up when he realized just how close he was to [M/N]. Pushing himself up, he realized that his hands were on either side of [M/N]’s head and his chest was pressed against his chest and his face was ridiculously close to his, he shuddered a little when he felt [M/N]’s hands gripping his thighs a little.

“Alexis?” when he opened his eyes, they both started to blush at the awkward position they were in, even more so when [M/N] tried to lift his head but that would result in them touching noses “Uh...” they laid there for a good couple seconds, wordlessly staring into each other’s eyes but they finally moved when [D/N] trotted over to them and licked Quackity’s face.

’Thank you [D/N] for breaking that awkward moment!’ Quackity screamed in his head before pushing himself completely off of [M/N] and waving his hand towards the camera, the chat spamming him about what happened.

“Sorry about that! Just a little mishap, that’s all!” [D/N] even graced the audience with his presence by jumping up and his front paws were on the counter, Quackity continued the next part of the stream while [M/N] continued to lay on the floor, face bright red but hidden as he covered his face with his hands.

’He was too close.’

[time skip: a few hours later]

[M/N] was currently in Quackity’s shower and he was having one of those deep shower thoughts running through his mind as he washed his body and hair of the flour that got on him when they had that little flour fight and when he collapsed to the grou-- he let out a silent shriek as he slapped his hands onto his face, face turning red once more as he remembered the feeling of Quackity on top of him as his hands tightly gripped his thighs... damn, his thighs were pretty thi--

“Stop!” he shouts as he slaps himself across the face, letting out a groan as he let his hands drag his face down. Quackity sat in his living room feeling refreshed by flustered himself, Tiger resting along his shoulders while [D/N] was resting his head on his lap. They finished the stream rather smoothly despite the little bit of tension in the air, but they didn’t let that get in their way from creating the abomination they called a pizza, [M/N] refusing to eat it in fear of getting food poisoning from their creation. He offered to clean the kitchen while Quackity had a shower first, insisting that it would be alright for him to do so, he let his head lean back but was mindful of Tiger.

“Dammit, stupid feelings. Why the hell do I feel like a school girl in those TV shows?” he muttered to himself before throwing his head forward, inwardly apologizing when both pets pulled away at the abrupt movement. His hands were pressed against his cheeks as he remembered the feeling of his thighs in [M/N]’s hands, the feeling of his breath fanning against his face along with the way his eyes didn’t seem to waver as they stared at each other “God am I gay...”

“You’re what?” he shot up and whipped his head to the point he was surprised he didn’t neck himself with how fast he moved, there he saw [M/N] in different clothes, towel hanging from his shoulders as his body steamed a little from the long hot shower “I’m not saying that it’s a bad thing, good for you.” Quackity stood to his feet, face red once again as he shook his hands and head.

“No, no, no! No, I-I’m not-- no, I don’t-- dammit!” he shouts, slapping a hand to his forehead “You know how I am with the jokes, I’m was kidding... I’m no--.” he lets out a groan as he sits back down, head in his hands as he tried to calm himself, god he was having such a gay panic that he wanted to die. [M/N] took a seat beside him, keeping a distance to ensure that the other was comfortable and whether or not he should touch him or not comfort him.

“I understand, I guess I just misunderstood what you were saying, there’s no need to panic.” they sat in a comfortable silence until Quackity raised his head, eyes hesitating to meet his.

“... are we gonna talk about what happened?” a soft blush flushed onto his cheeks.

“What do you want to talk about? Did I make you feel uncomfortable?” he shook his head.

“No! Not at all, honestly, I just wasn’t expecting it.” he raised his hands and pulled his beanie off his head, running a hand through his hair before messing with it “If I’m being honest, it was pretty gay.” [M/N] stared at him, he snorts before bursting into laughter.

“Yeah, I guess it was pretty gay.” they both share a laugh before staring at each other, Quackity gasped softly when he noticed [M/N]’s hand was slowly inching towards his, stopping just a couple inches away as he raised his gaze to look at him. He was silently asking him if it was alright, he didn’t need a verbal response when he laced their fingers together before bringing their hands up so they could both see how Quackity held his much larger hand in his own. He caressed the male’s hand with his thumb, reveling in the feeling of his soft/rough palm against his own.

“This is very gay.” he nods.

“It is.” [M/N] pulls him slightly until they were close again, not attempting to hide how flustered he was getting, he gave Quackity’s hand a light squeeze as he stared at him with a soft and gentle gaze “Do you mind if I...?”

“Make it even gayer?” the latter rolled his eyes but nodded his head, Quackity didn’t have the voice to answer him so he meekly nodded his head. Now that he had the go-to, [M/N] raised his other hand to gently cup his cheek, reassuringly caressing his thumb into his cheek before leaning forward and pressing a soft kiss to his lips. When he pulled away, he saw Quackity was shaking softly, eyes screwed shut as his face now resembled that of a tomato... hell, maybe even brighter. 

“I hope this shows you how much I like you, Alexis.” he said softly, to which the other hesitantly opened his eyes and saw the look of pure love swirling in his eyes, he let out a soft groan as he covered his face with his forearm and turned away.

“Dammit... stop messing with my feelings like that.” [M/N] only let out a chuckle, tightening his hold on his hand when he felt him try and take it back.

“So, do you accept my feelings?” he let his eyes peek from over his forearm and saw how he was waiting for an answer like a puppy, he tried to be stern with his answer but his voice betrayed him with how nervous he was.

“Y-Yes, I do.” he cursed himself that he stuttered, but the other found it quite cute as a wide smile spread across his face as he let out a cheer, throwing his arms up then wrapping them around his smaller frame and pulling him into a hug.

“You really have no idea what this means for me...!” he whispers softly, face buried deep in his shoulder. Quackity glanced up at him before slowly wrapping his arms around him to return the gesture, the heat never disappearing as the beating of his heart continued thumping aggressively against his chest. [M/N] pulled away and gave him an eager look before pulling him into a much deeper kiss this time, pouring all his heart and soul into it so Quackity can feel just how in love he was with him, he was gasping for air by the time he pulled him away as a string of saliva was what was connecting them together.

“Now that was gay...” he said softly, out of breath, [M/N] snorted at that before resting his forehead against his head.

“Yeah, but you’re gay for me.”

Headcanon:

when they start dating, [m/n] is fine that quackity doesn’t want to reveal his relationship to his viewers or friends just yet, it was quite understandable and waited patiently until he was more comfortable.

quackity usually doesn’t hesitate to express how he’s feeling, but he just feels so much more flustered when he’s around [m/n] and he’s usually the one that gets embarrassed when [m/n] showers him in love.

[m/n] definitely bakes food and has quackity taste test them to see if they’re alright or not.

bake nights. they have bake nights sometime during the week and it usually ends with them being covered in flour or some sort of batter.

this usually ends with them showering together.

quackity is the little spoon, without a doubt.

he enjoys feeling [m/n]’s arms wrapped around him and keeping him close, he’s actually quite warm and he enjoys the warmth coming from him to the point that he clings to him like a koala.

[m/n] makes little appearances here and there during quackity’s streams, his viewers have come to enjoy seeing him show up randomly during his streams.

[m/n] also checks up on him, handing him food and water and makes sure he’s alright and looking after himself. making him tea or something else warm to drink from all the screaming he’s doing.

the other twitch streamers also like [m/n] a lot, not only was his funny that he was a perfect match for quackity’s comedy, he was just so goddamn gorgeous that they were jealous that quackity had a front row seat to see him.

sometimes quackity gets jealous with how the chat keep flirting with his lover, the same going for [m/n] when they say something quite provocative.

but nonetheless, they both know that comments like those mean nothing to them.

their relationship was their little secret until quackity decides that this fine hunk of meat was all his, and his alone. 

he was yours, and you were his.

Monster

word count: 6395

Fandom: Stranger Things  Pairing: Chrissy Cunningham x Male!Monster!Reader  Pronouns: He/Him  Relationship: Familial Occupation: Protector Ability: Cursed Spirit

The character is a monster that has attached itself to its victim, posing as a sort of imaginary friend that only the victim can see. In the eyes of the victim, they have the appearance of an average man with a gentle expression and looks overall normal. To everyone else that they willingly let themself be visible to, they are nothing more than a ghost like wraith. They have the ability to let out a shriek like that of the wailing spirit banshee, and morph themself into a monstrous state.

Keys:

[M/N]: Male Name  [L/N]: Last Name  [N/N]: Nickname  [H/C]: Hair Color  [E/C]: Eye Color

Warnings: vulgar language, violence, mention of drugs

got this idea after reading this story by @skinnywalker​ of their chrissy cunningham x male!reader, go check their story out cause I liked it.

there is going to be a part two.

that is all.

“Chrissy, what did I say about watching what you eat?”

“T-That it messes with my performances.”

“No, if you’re not careful you’ll end up fat and ugly. Nobody likes a fat girl, Chrissy.” she felt her lip tremble, hands fisting her sweat shirt around her stomach as her eyes start to water “I hope you remember that next time before helping yourself to seconds.

“Yes, mother.” glancing up at her mother, she noticed a jagged hand on her mother’s shoulder as a monstrous figured loomed above her. Its eyes were pitch black with a sort of liquid bleeding out from it, pale purple skin with its jaw snapped open and ready to bite her mothers head off. Chrissy lets out a sigh with a shake of her head, this motion caused the monster to momentarily freeze then retreat back to wherever it came from “May I go to my room, mother?”

“You may.” she turns on her heel and quickly rushes to her room, closing her door behind her and throwing herself onto her bed. She cries into her pillow at the endless cruel words that continue to fly out of her mothers mouth, berating her for not being skinny enough for her cheerleading career, not being beautiful enough in her eyes. What was the point of beauty if she had to go through all this pain to meet those shitty beauty standards?! She sniffles to herself, pushing herself up, hugging her knees close to her chest as her blanket was draped around her. She felt the room get darker and that same jagged hand from before came out from under her bed, reaching for her and grabbing her by the ankle.

“Chrissy…” the voice moaned out, hoarse and deep that would make the average person tremble in fear, but she didn’t. The mere presence of this monster under her bed made her feel safe, she smiled softly as she reached down to caress the hand.

“Hello, [M/N].” said man pulled himself out from under her bed to reveal not a monster, but a kind looking man with short/long [H/C] hair and soft [E/C] eyes, he smiled up at her from where he was sitting then opened his arms up for her. She didn’t hesitate to move from where she was situated, throwing the blanket off of her to embrace the monster posed as a man. He hummed softly, gently rubbing circles into her back as she cried into his shoulder, though that insatiable rage for his Chrissy’s mother started to take over his mind.

’How could that foul woman talk to her own daughter like that? Why can’t she see the way she’s talking to her hurts her? Why can’t she see the damage she’s done to her daughter? Why can’t I just kill her? My Chrissy would be better off if that bitch would just die.’ sometimes he would find it difficult to control his thoughts, sometimes he would act impulsively and not realise what he’s done until it’s too late.

[M/N]. He was a monster that attached itself to Chrissy at an early age of her life, when she was nothing more than a mere child. At first, she was food that he would feed off of but was startled when she started looking forward to seeing him. She was a weird one. He had the appearance of a revolting monster that would make even adults cry, but this child laughed and cheered whenever she saw him. The first time he did see her cry was not because of him, but because of those despicable words her mother would fill her head with. Saying she wasn’t good enough, pretty enough, skinny enough. That moment he wanted to kill that woman, kill the bitch that caused his favourite human to develop an eating disorder and resort to liking him, a monster that wanted to eat her. But Chrissy pleaded with him, begged him not to hurt her mother because of her? That girl was too kind for his liking, she was kind enough to give him a name.

[M/N], her imaginary monster.

”Chrissy…” he moaned out again, she pulled away with a sniffle, laughing weakly when he reached forward to wipe away the tears she missed. He pulled back again and she watched as he dropped numerous snacks in front of him, he then pointed at her mouth and did biting motions with his own mouth ”Eat.” he didn’t like the smile she forced onto her lips, it looked bitter and sad, not the one he used to see.

“Thank you, [M/N], you’re always so sweet to me.” he watches her silently, eating the food that he stole for her to fill her empty stomach. He was fully capable of swiping things here and there, sometimes even pulling small tricks and pranks that would make her laugh. One time, when she and her family were getting ready to eat, he pulled her mothers chair out so she fell to the ground. Another time was when he swapped the sugar for salt so her mother was in for a salty surprise when she drank her morning coffee, he did all that just to see his Chrissy smile.

”Performance tomorrow…?” her head perked up at the question, lighting up in remembrance about the pep rally tomorrow for Hawkins basketball team, she nods enthusiastically.

“Yes, yes! My girls and I have been practicing vigorously, I believe you’ll enjoy it very much.” he smiles, reaching forward to pat her head.

”Anything you do… I like.” she smiled.

“I know.” she looks at the time and takes his hand from a top of her head, pulling it down while caressing his knuckles with her thumbs “It’s gotten late, [M/N]. I think I should go to sleep.” he slowly nods his head, reaching to pat her head once more then pulling away, allowing her to lay her head onto her pillow whilst he grabbed the end of her blanket and pulled it up to tuck her in.

”Sweet dreams…” he waves her goodbye and retreated back under her bed but she knew he was still there, he was always around until she fell asleep. When she did fall asleep, his monstrous figure loomed over her body once more, his jagged fingers reaching forward to gently caress her face while removing a few loose strands of her hair off of her face. He then peeks over towards her door, his figure drops into the shadows and shoots out to where Chrissy’s mother was sitting in the living room watching T.V.  It was so easy. He could kill this woman and make Chrissy’s life a little easier. What stood in his way was the love Chrissy had for her mother, she would hate him if he were to take her mother from her. But he just couldn’t understand the young girl. This woman was no mother to treat her daughter the way she does, and what about the rest of her family? Have they done anything to stop her from doing it? No, they didn’t. All Chrissy had was him, he was the only one by her side that would do anything for her. He would die for her. He would kill for her. He would destroy the goddamn world if he needed to. All he wanted was for Chrissy to be happy, her happiness was his everything, and he was going to be damned if he’d let anyone take that from her.

[time skip: the next day]

”Wonderful…” [M/N] murmured softly with a tired smile on his face, standing at the very back of the gym as he watched Chrissy’s performance, clapping his hands while swaying side to side. His smile brightened when he saw her look through the crowd in search for him, her own smile growing bigger when she finally did find him, he then gives her a thumbs up ”You’re doing… great.” [M/N] always reminded Chrissy of one of those parents that always came to their child’s performances, being that person that cheered the loudest, and though no one else can hear or see it, she really appreciated it.

“How was it, [M/N]?” she asked him, taking a seat on the floor after they finished the routine. She glanced to her side when she felt his fingers roll onto her shoulders then pulled himself out from behind her, his head hovering a few inches away from her face “Did you like the performance?” he nods his head, leaning his head onto hers.

”Very flashy…” she only giggled at that, soon Hawkins’ basketball team came running into the gym and the crowd went wild once more.

“Good morning, Hawkins high!” Jason Carver, the captain of the basketball team and unfortunately Chrissy’s boyfriend, greets into the microphone with a big grin in his face “First off, I’d like to thank each and every one of you. Without your support, we wouldn’t be here. Give yourselves a big hand.” [M/N] had to admit, this guy had quite the charisma to get the crowd in an uproar like he does “And of course, of course I have to give a special shout-out to the best and the prettiest fans of all time, the Tiger Cheer Squad. Chrissy… Chrissy, I love you babe.” this caused the crowd to aw at the confession while she in turn blushed, blowing a kiss to Jason. She then had to keep a straight face when [M/N] glanced at her then turned away, making gagging noises while pointing into his mouth.

“Stop it…” she whispered, though it was funny. [M/N] could give less of a shit about the rest of his speech, spouting out some bullshit from what happened the year prior and how they haven’t won a game in the past twenty two years or something along the lines of that, he wasn’t listening. Whenever Chrissy is at school, [M/N] makes sure not to interfere and lets her go on with her day unless she calls for him. Those times are rare but they’ve been becoming more frequent ever since she’s been seeing that woman, um, Ms Kelly or some shit, he can’t remember. As of recently, he had been noticing how Chrissy was suffering through nightmares, one’s terrible then from before, causing her to have trouble sleeping and her headaches how been getting worse. He was always there to help her through it, cooing soft words of encouragement into her ear or being that shoulder she needed to lean on. 

This was one of those times she needed him, she was getting spewing her breakfast and most likely lunch into the toilet. He was holding her beautiful hair back while rubbing circles into her back in a comforting manner, he made sure the door was locked so no one would disturb her but the door to the bathroom opened and a small red haired girl entered. He briefly left Chrissy’s side to see what that girl was doing, phasing through the bathroom stall door to take a peek at what that girl was doing. His presence was unknown to her as she took her bag off to grab a small container of pills, he furrowed his brows when he recognised them as pills that Chrissy takes to help lessen the pain of her headaches, they both then glance back when Chrissy starts coughing.

“Hey, you alright?” she called.

“Yeah—yes, I’m… I’m fine.” the girl glanced back towards the bathroom door then at the stall Chrissy was in before approaching.

“Okay, um… you’re sure?”  “Please just go away.” this was enough to get the girl to leave, Chrissy lets out a groan when she heard [M/N] let out a sigh from outside the stall. She chose to ignore him for the time being and reached over to flush her vomit down, she then groans when she heard pounding on the door “Are you deaf? I said go away.” [M/N] raised a brow in confusion, looking over at the stall where he heard Chrissy speak, but who on earth was she talking to?

”Chrissy…?” he called out, reaching forward to phase through the door but his hand flinched back. He looked around in confusion when he felt a presence but he just couldn’t see it, his head then immediately whipped back towards the door when he heard Chrissy scream. He didn’t hesitate to phase through the door and there he found Chrissy pressing her back to the wall in the very corner of the stall, eyes squeezed shut as she covered her ears.

“No! Go away! Go away! Go away!” she shakes her head, repeating the phrase over and over, pleading for whatever was causing her these hallucinations to just disappear. She let out a scream when something grabbed her, shouting her name while shaking her back and forward.

”Chrissy! Chrissy! Chrissy!” she gasped, eyes snapping open when she recognised the voice. In front of her now was [M/N] looking distressed and concerned, she looked around and saw that the lights above her were no longer flickering and the pounding on the stall door had ceased.

“[M-M/N]…?” she whimpered out, he lets out a relieved sigh.

”You’re back… I’m glad.” his mouth opened slightly to speak but stopped when she quickly threw herself onto him, she held onto him so tightly she preyed that he didn’t disappear under her hold. He looked down at her in concern then raised his arms to wrap around her, pulling her closer into him then rested the side of his head against hers, rocking back and forward as she sobbed into his shoulder ”I’m here… I'm here, Chrissy.” he glanced around him before tightening his hold around her, a dark aura radiating out of him. Whoever or whatever did this to his Chrissy, it wasn’t anything he’s ever seen. He knew Hawkins was a fucked up place ever since that kid went missing a couple years back, he knew because he was one of those fucked up things, but this was something different.  This isn’t good. [M/N] now made sure not to leave Chrissy side, instead of lurking in the shadows or the depths below, he was now directly over her shoulder watching for anything else that could potentially harm his Chrissy. She felt more at ease knowing that he was there, reaching for her shoulder. The people around could only see her patting her shoulder and squeezing it but she was actually patting his hand and giving it a light squeeze, in return he would soothingly rub her shoulder and continue to tell her that he was right behind her and that he wasn’t going anywhere. [M/N] now found himself and Chrissy on the outskirts of the school, in the middle of the woods where a lone lunch table sat in the opening.  “Hello…?” she called out uneasily, looking around for someone but saw no one. [M/N] glanced at her and saw her look off, he followed her gaze and saw she was staring at a tree, he looked at her once more and saw that her unease grew as she approached the tree.  ”Chrissy…? What are you… looking at?” he questioned but didn’t get an answer as she got closer to the tree, he looked between the two and concluded that she was seeing something entirely differently to him so he quickly floated over to her, grabbing her shoulder and snapping his fingers in front of her face “Chrissy, there’s nothing there…” she snapped out of her daze as she looked up at him in shock.

“B-But, there was a clock…! I swear I saw it.” she starts shaking her head as she backed away, he called out to her to stop but couldn’t when she backed up into the chest of the man she was meeting.

“Whoa, hey, hey, hey.” [M/N] quickly returned to her side, floating behind her as they both stare at the newcomer “Sorry, didn’t mean to scare you. You okay?” she wordlessly stared up at him then back towards the tree, the man followed her gaze then glanced back at her, he then saw the way she raised her head to her shoulder and squeezed it. The two now sat on the abandoned bench, [M/N] had come to recognise this young man as the Hawkins freak, Eddie Munson. He never paid too much attention to this gentlemen, he never paid attention to anything that wasn’t Chrissy, but he knew that he wasn’t well liked “There’s, uh… there’s nothing to worry about, okay? No one ever comes out here, we’re safe. I promise.” Eddie reassures, taking off his jacket and vest then opening his lunchbox to reveal his stash of weed.

“So,” Chrissy starts, clearly nervous as she couldn’t meet Eddie’s gaze “how does this work exactly?”

“Oh, just like any other old sale, except, uh, cash only, and, uh, for obvious reasons,  or receipts.” she slowly nods her head “I’ll do you half an ounce, for uh, twenty. What do you say? Plenty of bang for your buck. Should last a while.” Chrissy lets out a gasp, whipping her head around when she heard a noise but only saw a squirrel run up a tree. Eddie watches her then soon lets out a sigh, putting the bag of weed back into his lunchbox then closed it “Hey, uh, we don’t need to do this. Just give me the word and I’ll walk away. Okay?” she quickly shakes her head.

“It’s not that. I don’t want you to go.” he raised a brow at that “Its just… do you ever feel like you’re losing your mind?”

“Um, you know, just… on a daily basis. I feel like I’m losing my mind right now doing a drug deal with Chrissy Cunningham, the Queen of Hawkins High.” [M/N]’s brow perked up slightly when he saw a subtle smile appear on Chrissy’s face but it went away just as quickly “You know, this isn’t the first time that we’ve, um… hung out. No? You don’t remember?” she shakes her head apologetically.

“I’m sorry, I—” she glanced at [M/N] to see if he remember but he shrugged his shoulders with a shake of his head, Eddie just chuckled.

“That’s okay.” Eddie had a blank look on his face, soon both himself and Chrissy let out a startled noise when Eddie fell back onto the ground while pretending to stand himself. Chrissy immediately stands to her feet to see if he was alright while [M/N] hovered above him, seeing that he was fine he let out a sigh.

”What an… oddball.” he murmured, hearing Eddie laugh as he pulled himself up and onto his feet, [M/N] was going to say another comment but was taken aback when he saw the bright smile on Chrissy’s face as she laughed herself. It was a genuine smile that he hadn’t seen in a long time as she watched Eddie he himself.

“I wouldn’t remember me neither, Chrissy. Honestly, do I have stuff in my hair?” she continued to laugh as he smiled at her, shaking his hair to pull the leaves from out of his hair “You don’t remember me?”

“I’m sorry.”

“Middle school, talent show. You were doing your cheer thing. You know, the… the thing you do.” he tried to explain, waving his hands around to mimic the way she does with her pom-poms “It was pretty cool, actually. And I— I was with my band.” her face then lights up in remembrance.

“Corroded Coffin!” she exclaims, his smile grows as he clapped his hands.

“Corro— you do remember.”

“Oh my god! Yes, of course. With a name like that, how could I forget?” 

“I dunno, you’re a freak.” she chuckled softly, giving [M/N] a sharp look when she heard him growl softly, how dare this frizzy haired bastard call his Chrissy a freak?

“No, you just… you look so—”

“Different? Yeah, well, uh, my hair was buzzed, and I didn’t have these sweet old tatties yet.” she nods softly.

“You played guitar, right?”

“Uh huh. Still do, still do. You should come see us. Uh, we play at the Hideout on Tuesdays. It’s pretty cool. We… we actually get a crowd of about five drunks.” she laughs again, shaking her head softly “It’s not exactly the Garden, but you gotta start somewhere, right? So…” he shuffles over to a tree and starts lightly punching it, [M/N] returns to Chrissy’s side and watched that big smile on her face grow.

“You know, you’re not what I thought you’d be like.” Eddie hums, grabbing a few of his locks and pulling them in front of his face.

“Mean and scary?” she nods.

“Yeah.” he smiles.

“Yeah, well, I actually kinda thought you’d be kinda mean and scary too.” she gasps softly.

“Me?”

“Terrifying. Um, so, in other good news, flattery works with me, so… twenty five percent discount for the half. Fifteen bucks. You’re robbing me blind here, you know.” [M/N] frowned when that beautiful smile that adorned her face dropped as she stared down at her lap, he reaches over to caress her cheek as she fidgeted with her fingers.

“Do you have anything, maybe… stronger?”

[time skip: late at night]

”What a dump…” 

”Stop it.” [M/N] and Chrissy soon found themselves at the trailer park with Eddie to find said something stronger for Chrissy to take, Chrissy steps out of his van and he was kind enough to hold the door open to his trailer for her to enter first before walking in after her. She stood nervously in the middle of his trailer, rubbing her arms with her hands as she looked around, [M/N] doing the same but soon floating around Eddie to watch his movements.

“Sorry for the mess. Uh, the maid took the week off.” he apologised, cleaning up some rubbish that was left lying around then shuffling over to the other side of the room.

“You, um… you live here alone?” he shakes his head.

“With my uncle. But, uh, he works nights at the plant. Bringing the big bucks.” she nods softly.

“How long does it take?”

“Sorry?”

“The Special K. How long to kick in?”

“Oh, uh, well, it depends if you snort it or not. Uh, if you do, then, uh, yeah. It’ll, uh, kick in pretty quick.” he explains with a jar in his hand, he opens it and takes a peek inside but then lets out a sigh “Oh, shit.”

“You’re sure you have it?”

“No, no, I got it. Um, somewhere.” he raises his finger, signalling for her to give him a minute before turning away and scurrying off to his room to find the drug she was needing to relieve herself of her hellish realities. She takes a deep breath, bringing her hands to hold her arms once more then smiled softly with closed eyes when she felt [M/N] behind her, she leaned her back into the warmth of his chest as his arms wrapped around her gently.

“I’m so glad I still have you by my side, [M/N].” she whispered softly “I probably would have lost my mind a long time ago if I didn’t have you.” she felt slightly uncomfortable when he didn’t say anything back, he always had something to say because he loved talking to her even though he couldn’t really say much. She tried to turn around to get a look at him but let out a choked noise when his grip around her tightened, she lets out a gasp as she looked down at his arms that were around her “[M/N], you’re h-hurting me…!”

”I always try so hard to please you. Chrissy.” [M/N] spoke, but it wasn’t in the way he usually spoke. [M/N] spoke with a slow and slurred speech, not being able to finish his sentence properly without pausing, she started to tremble when the presence behind her became more ominous than comforting ”I only want what’s best for you. Chrissy. You know I’ll do anything for you, so I just don’t understand why you don’t want me to get rid of that eyesore that is your mother. That fucking bitch that hurts you. Don’t you trust me? Don’t you love me? Why won’t you just let me do this for you, Chrissy?!” glancing down at the arms that were holding her, she lets out a scream when she saw that they were slimy looking.

“Ah! Le— Let go of me!” she quickly elbows whoever was holding her and they let go of her, this gave her the chance to see who it was and scream when she saw that it wasn’t her [M/N] but some disgusting monster. She shakes her head and runs towards Eddie’s room, she pushes the door opened to try and find him but was instead met with the sound of a sewing machine and her mothers back “Mum?”

“Just loosening this up for you, sweetheart. You’re going to look absolutely beautiful.” her face dropped when her mother turned around, her face was completely grey with only the whites of her eyes visible. She didn’t take any chances as she left the room, closing the door behind her but instead of being in Eddie’s trailer, she somehow found herself back in her house “Chrissy!” she gasped when the door behind her opened but she quickly grabbed the doorknob and pulled it shut.

“No!”

”Chrissy, open the door!” she screamed no as the door slipped from her grip and flew open, she immediately turned tail and ran as far as she could. She hurried downstairs and searched for a way out but then her attention went over to the figure watching T.V, a breath of relief leaving her lips at the familiar figure.

“Dad?” she mumbled out before rushing over “Dad! Dad!” turning around, she screamed at the sight of his mouth and eyes sealed shut with blood seeping out of the wounds. She shakes her head and backs away, she looks around as tears ran down her face, lips trembling in fear “[M/N], please! I need you! Please, [M/N]!”

[outside of chrissy’s mind]

[M/N] was staring at a discarded album of sorts abandoned on the floor when he realised Chrissy had gone a little too quiet for his liking, he pulls back from out of Eddie’s room and peeked over his shoulder to see if Chrissy was alright. He furrowed his brows when he realised that she hadn’t moved from the spot he left her in so he floated over to her, that was when he finally realised something was wrong with her. She was standing uncomfortably still and was twitching now and then, but what scared him was the fact that her eyes rolled into the back of her head and only the whites of her eyes were seen.

”Chrissy…?” he called softly, snapping his fingers in her face in an effort to get her attention but nothing happen so he clapped instead, and yet nothing happened ”Chrissy, what’s wrong…? Chrissy… Chrissy!” he now resorted to grabbing her by the shoulders and violently shaking her back and forward but even that didn’t work, his hands then hovered over her head and there he felt a trace of some sort of power coming from her. His lip trembled, he didn’t delve in mind type attacks on his victims, that took a lot of concentration and focus to pull off, but whoever the fuck was doing it was a powerful one. He needed to wake her up, and he needed to wake her up now. He heard Eddie shuffling around and his face briefly lit up in remembrance of that human man, maybe someone alive could wake her up. He quickly grabbed an empty glass bottle and threw it against the wall, it shattered upon impact but at least he got Eddie’s attention.

“Chrissy? Was that you?” Eddie lets out an awkward laugh, grabbing the drug that he was planning on selling to Chrissy and came walking out of his room “I know I took my time, but I found it. Beautiful bliss, just moments away.” [M/N] watched in anticipation to see if Eddie could do anything, to which the young man waved his hand in Chrissy’s face as he slowly approached the possessed girl “Chrissy…? Hello? Chrissy! Hey, Chrissy, wake up. Hey, hello! Chrissy, hello! Hey, Chrissy!” he then started waving his hand while snapping his fingers in her face to get her to wake up, soon the lights started flickering about, this caused [M/N] to exhale sharply.

”Oh, no…” he then looked back and saw Eddie clapping his hands in front of her before grabbing her shoulders, shaking her back and forward while tapping her shoulders.

“Time to wake up. Hello? Can you hear me? Wake up, Chrissy. Chrissy, wake up! I don’t like this, Chrissy! Wake up!” [M/N] takes a deep breath, slapping his hands against his cheeks and quickly goes back over to Chrissy. Eddie still couldn’t see [M/N] but he could definitely feel him, he felt a shiver run up his spine when something cold passed him but when he looked around to see what it was, there was nothing there, so he shook his head and returned his attention back to the girl in front of him, cupping her cheeks and gently slapping them “Chrissy! Chrissy! Chrissy! Chrissy, wake up now! Chrissy!” [M/N] grabbed her discarded bag and searched through it, finding a cassette tape inside. This was a song that she had been listening to for a bit, “Moi Je Joue” by Bridgette Bardot, an old French song from the 60s. He nods to himself and quickly rushes to Eddie’s room to throw it into his stereo, to which the young man was too preoccupied with Chrissy to notice but flinched when the disoriented music started playing. He glanced back at his room in confusion, hearing a song that he knew didn’t belong to him, but shook his head in favour of waking Chrissy up. [M/N] returned back to Chrissy and stood behind her, hands cupping her cheeks as he closed his eyes.

’I haven’t done this in the longest time, I had no need to when I had you. But now you need me, so I’ll come in there and rescue you from that nightmare whatever piece of shit pulled you in to.’ and so with a deep breath, he leaned down and pressed his forehead against the top of her head.

[within chrissy’s mind]

“Please…” she whimpered out, a tear running down her cheek as she pressed herself into the boards that sealed her way out of this hellish nightmare. This… thing in front of her, this fucking garbage was the thing that’s been giving her those hallucinations and pushed her beyond her limits. She knew [M/N] wasn’t the prettiest thing to look at it, even in his human form he still looked beyond human, but his presence was something she had long gotten used to. But whatever this monster was in front of her, god, she wanted to get as far away from it as possible.

”Don’t cry, Chrissy…” the voice spoke, she whimpered as she leaned away when it reached forward and wiped away her tears, god she really needed [M/N] right now ”It’s time for your suffering… to end.” she shook her head, pressing herself further into the boards when it raised its hand once more, it outstretched over her face.

“[M/N], please!” she cried out, tears rolling down her face “[M/N]!!” the monster jerked backwards when Chrissy was suddenly pulled backwards and instead he was met with a creature as monstrous as he was, it lets out a grunt when he roared at it as he held Chrissy close to his chest, his arms wrapped protectively around her.

”Don’t touch my Chrissy!!” he shouts at the top of his lungs, jaw splitting open as he roared at the bastard to get away from his human. She cried from within his chest, wailing into his chest as she wrapped her arms around the ghostly figure that’s been following her since she was a mere child.

“[M/N]!” she cried out, bringing her hands up to cup his cheeks to make sure he was real before burying her face into his shoulder “You came for me…! You actually came!” she sobbed out, he nodded his head but didn’t take his eyes off the thing in front of him but he did reach down to place his hand on her head, gently rubbing it to soothe her. She whimpered when he removed his hand from atop her head, instead, he glared at the monster in front of him and let out another roar.

”Get away from her!” he pushes Chrissy behind him then flies towards it, wrapping his arms around its torso and sent them both through the house. He had come to recognise this monster as the type of attacker than didn’t deal physical damage but had a strong control over the mind as he witnessed outside of Chrissy’s, so he knew he had to upper-hand. He was just throwing him around like he was some rag doll, holding him by the ankles and slamming his against the ground and walls before throwing him into the kitchen ”You thought you could target my Chrissy, my human that I’ve been haunting for nearly two decades?! I’ll make you fucking regret it!” he charged forward once more but was stuck in place when a force stopped him, he lets out a grunt as he tried to break free but was thrown back by said invisible force.

“[M/N]!” she cried out, she wanted to rush over but quickly backed up when that other monster started approaching her again.

”That guardian of yours won’t stop you from meeting your fate, Chrissy.” she shakes her head.

“No, I want to live.” it reached towards her once more but she kicked it back, just as [M/N] came flying over and tackling the monster in its side and into the wall “[M/N]!” he shakes his head, punching and clawing at the monster underneath him.

”Get out of here, Chrissy! Get out while I have him distracted!” she shakes her head.

“I-I… I don’t know how!”

”This is your mind, Chrissy! Think of your happiest memories to hide, and listen for the music! The music should help you find your way out of this nightmare!” he saw that she was still reluctant to go so he quickly threw the bastard away then rushed over to her, cupping her cheeks and giving her a reassuring smile ”Don’t worry about… a thing. I’ll take care… of this and be right back…” that slur in his speech calmed her down, she weakly nodded her head and that was enough for him to pat her head, kiss her forehead then gently push her along.

“You promise?” she whimpered, he nodded.

“I promise…” her lips trembled as she stared at him before finally turning on her heel and running away, with her finally gone, he took a deep breath and let his true emotions and form show. The monster before him let out an impressed hum, watching as his human disguise melted away and he was met with the abomination that was him ”I am going to enjoying tearing you apart, freak.”

“That’s quite rich coming from you.”

[outside of chrrisy’s mind]

Eddie had stumbled backwards when Chrissy started floating in the air, he didn’t know what the fuck he was watching as the Queen of Hawkins High was floating in the middle of his goddamn living room while some French song played in the background as the lights flickered about like he hadn’t been paying the power bill for months. If he thought talking to Chrissy that morning was crazy, this definitely took the fucking cake and he wished he was on something so this didn’t have to be fucking real. He didn’t know what to do, he wanted to turn tail and run but he just couldn’t leave Chrissy alone, before he could do anything, her eyes rolled back into place and she fell to the ground.

“Chrissy!” he shouts, quickly rushing over to see if she was alright but then jumped when she threw her arms around him, hugging him close and crying into his shoulder.

“Eddie! Oh god, I was so scared!” she cried out, burying herself deeper into his shoulder, fearing that he wasn’t real and that she was still trapped deep inside her mind. Eddie looked down at her before slowly reaching down and wrapping his arms around her, pulling her into his chest and letting her bawl her eyes out. It took her some time to find her way out but she followed [M/N]’s advice and listened out for the music, faintly hearing “Moi Je Joue” when she was running for her life, but now she was out and away from that thing that was trying to kill her.

“… Chrissy, what the fuck was that?” Eddie muttered out, she let out a shuddered breath.

“Me losing my bloody mind.” now she was worried about [M/N], she left him alone with that thing and she was concerned something happened to him while she was gone but she felt a sudden cold weight on her shoulder, this was enough for her to relax into Eddie’s embrace.

Contract

word count: 27,331

Fandom: Gravity Falls Pairing: Stanley Pines x Alvah (OC) Pronouns: She/Her Relationship: Platonic - Romantic Occupation: Guardian Ability: N/A

Keys:

n/a

Warnings:

spoilers to those who haven't seen the show, violence.

"Contract" pt. 2, pt. 3

had to split this into two parts because I wrote too much and hit the word limit, which is bullshit because a different post has over 60,000 words while this was about 30,000. so now I've just split them into seasons one and two, despite me wanting them to be together.

it was going to be broken up into two parts between season one and two but I reached the word limit again in the second part, and I didn't want it to be three parts because then the third part would be too short.

was gonna publish this when I finished the second part but literally screamed "fuck it", so now I hope I don't surpass the word limit again but I'm nearly done.

bound to be a lot of mistakes that I haven't fixed but fuck it. might fix it later.

season 1, episode 1. tourist trapped

Ah, summer break.

A time for leisure, recreation, for taking her easy.

Unless you're me.

We are now met with a scene with twin siblings fleeing for their lives in a golf cart while an unknown monster follows close behind them, knocking down trees in its pursuit for the siblings.

My name is Dipper, the girl who is about to puke is my sister Mabel. You may be wondering what we're doing in a golf cart fleeing from a creature of unimaginable horror, rest assured. There's a perfectly logical explanation for this situation.

Let's rewind. It all began when our parents decided we could use some fresh air. They shipped us up north to a sleep town called Gravity Falls Oregon to stay at our great uncle's place in the woods. My sister tended to look on the brighter side of things, but I was having a hard time getting used to our new surroundings. And then there was our great uncle Stan, that guy. Our uncle had transformed his house into a tourist trap called the "Mystery Shack", the real mystery was why anyone came. And guess who had to work there.

It looked like it was going to be the same boring routine all summer, until one fateful day.

"He's looking at it, he's looking at it!" Dipper, who was currently cleaning, looked at his sister oddly as she watched a boy open a letter she left out "I rigged it."

"Mabel? I know you're going through your whole boy crazy phase, but I think you're overdoing it with the crazy part." he comments as he sprays a jar and wipes away the dust.

"What? Psh, come on Dipper, this is our first summer away from home. It's my big chance to have an epic summer romance."

"Yeah, but do you have to flirt with every guy you meet?" they then recall each time she flirted with any passing guy, to the point she actually scared a boy guy whilst he was working.

"Mock all you want, brother, but I got a good feeling about this summer. I wouldn't be surprised if the man of my dreams walked through that door right now." and out walking through the door was none other Stan, looking disheveled and everything, holding his stomach as he burped "Argh, why?" Dipper laughed at her misfortune.

"Alright, alright. Look alive, people. I need someone to go hammer up these signs in the spooky part of the forest."

"Not it."

"Not it." the twins immediately protest, behind them, the handy man Soos, raises his hand.

"Not it."

"Nobody asked you, Soos."

"I know, and I'm comfortable with that." Stan turned his attention to the young lady working at the cashier, Wendy, ignoring Soos when he pulled out a bar of chocolate and started eating it.

"Wendy, I need you to put up this sign." Wendy, who was leaning back in a chair with her legs perched on the counter while reading through a magazine, raised her hand and lazily reached towards where they stood without taking her eyes off the page.

"I would but I, urgh, can't, urgh, reach it... urgh." he glares at them.

"I'd fire all of you if I could." he then looked back towards the twins "Alright, lets make it... ennie, meanie, minie... you." he stops and points at Dipper.

"Ah, what? Grunkle Stan, whenever I'm in those woods I feel like I'm being watched." the older man rolled his eyes.

"Urgh, this again." Dipper shook his head.

"I'm telling you, something weird is going on in this town. Just today my mosquito bites spelled out beware." he then showed his arm to Stan, to which he leaned down and squinted his eyes to take a look at the text.

"That says BEWARB." Dipper awkwardly scratches his arm "Look kid, the whole monsters in the forest is just local legend. Dumbed up by guys like me to sell merchandise to guys like that." he then gestures to a guy weirdly staring at a bobbly head figure that was of Stan, he then chucks the signs at Dipper "Now quit being so paranoid!" Dipper sighs in defeat.

A half hour later Dipper returns back to the shack after putting up all the signs but brought back something he managed to discover hidden out in the forest, a mysterious journal that was labeled three in the centre of it. Upon reading it, the author had logged down discoveries of creatures that plagued Gravity Falls from gnomes to flying eyeballs. He enthusiastically confesses everything to Mabel, who didn't quite share the same amount of interest as he did, but she did listen nonetheless as he babbled about everything that the journal had, that was until they heard the doorbell ring.

"Who's that?"

"Well, time to spill the beans." she then promptly spilt a can of conveniently placed beans, she then proceeds to point at herself with both her thumbs "This girl's got a date, woo woo!" she then falls back on the sofa, laughing to herself.

"Let me get this straight, in the half hour that I was gone, you already found a boyfriend?"

"What can I say? I'm just irresistible." the doorbell then rings again "Ooo! Coming!" she shouts and rushes to the door, Dipper than takes her spot of the sofa and opens the journal to start reading it, only for Stan to come walking in drinking a can of soda.

"Whatcha reading, slick?" caught off guard, he quickly shuts the book and hides it behind the sofa cushion and grabbing a magazine off the dino head beside the sofa.

"Oh, I was just catching up on uh..." he narrows his eyes on the page he opened to and saw it was of gold jewelry, he then closes the magazine to get a look at the cover to see what on earth he was reading "Gold chains for old men magazine?"

"That's a good issue."

"Hey, family." the sound of Mabel's voice caught their attention, causing them to stop what they were doing and look over to the girl who entered the living room with someone by her side "Say hello to my new boyfriend." turning around to face them, they were met with a boy(?) with ridiculously pale skin as he wore a hoodie with the hood over his head and his hair covering his left eye, he had a rather unsettling feel to him and what made them feel even more uncomfortable was the red stain on their cheek.

"Sup."

"Hey."

"How's it hanging?"

"We met at the cemetery, and he was really deep." she spoke as she caressed his arm "Oh, a little muscle there. That's... what a surprise."

"So... what's your name?"

"Uh, normal... man!"

"He means Norman." Dipper raised an eyebrow.

"Are you bleeding, Norman?"

"It's jam." Mabel gasps and shoves him.

"I love jam! Look at this!"

"So, you wanna, go hold hands or whatever?"

"Oh, oh my goodness." she giggles softly "Don't wait up." she then dashes away, Norman does the gun gesture to them before oddly walking away from them to follow Mabel, smacking into the doorframe in the process and crashing into something on the way out, causing Dipper's eye to twitch.

There was something about Norman that wasn't right. I decided to consult the journal. Known for their pale skin and bad attitudes, these creatures are often mistaken for... teenagers! Beware Gravity Falls' nefarious... zombies! At the revelation, he puts the journal down and looks out the window, eyes widened in shock when he saw Mabel sitting rather unbothered on a bench while Norman approached her, arms stretched out and groaning with each step he took.

"Oh no, Mabel!" he let out a scream when he saw Norman slam his hand down on her shoulders, when he backed away it was revealed that he had placed a necklace made of daisies around her neck "Is my sister really dating a zombie, or am I just going nuts?"

"It's a dilemma to be sure." Dipper gasps in fright at the unsuspecting voice, looking up, he saw that it was only Soos changing a lightbulb "I couldn't help but overhear you talking to yourself in this empty room."

"Soos, you've seen Mabel's boyfriend. He's gotta be a zombie, right?"

"Hmm, how many brains did you see the guy eat?"

"Zero."

"Look dude, I believe you. I'm always noticing weird stuff in this town, like the mailman? Pretty sure that dudes a werewolf, but you gotta have evidence. Otherwise, people are gonna think you're a majority coo coo clock.'' Dipper lets out a sigh, hands on his hips, as he nods to Soos' words.

"As always, Soos, you're right."

"My wisdom is both a blessing, and curse."

"Soos! The portable toilets are clogged again!"

"I am needed elsewhere." after readjusting his cap he backs away into the darkness, and by that, he backs away until he walks out of the room.

My sister could be in trouble. It was time to get some evidence. And after spending the entire day recording everything he could get on Norman he concluded he had gotten what he wanted, from the way he collapsed after getting hit by a frisbee, to punching through a glass window to open a door and struggling to walk straight, to even them frolicking through the cemetery and him falling into a grave and scarily bursting through the dirt... like a zombie.

I'd seen enough.

"Mabel, we've got to talk about Norman."

"Isn't he the best. Check out this giant smooch mark he gave me!" he screams in fright at the large red circle on her cheek, she then laughs "Haha, gullible. It was just an accident with the leaf blower. That was fun."

"No, Mabel, listen! I'm trying to tell you that Norman is not what he seems." he starts as he pulls the journal out from his vest, she gasped softly.

"You think he might be a vampire? That would be awesome!"

"Guess again, sister. Shabam!" he then proceeds to open the book to the page about zombies, she screams at the page, he looks at where he opened it too and saw it instead was on the page about gnomes "Oh, wait. I'm sorry, shabam!" she tilts her head to the side.

"A zombie? That is not funny Dipper."

"I'm not joking! It all adds up! The bleeding, the limp! He never blinks! Have you noticed that?"

"Maybe he's blinking when you're blinking."

"Mabel, remember what the book said about Gravity Falls? Trust no one!"

"But what about me, huh? Why can't you trust me?"

"Mabel! He's gonna eat your brains!" he shouts as he shakes her back and forward, this was when Mabel's face hardened as she pushed Dipper's hands off of her.

"Dipper, listen to me. Norman and I are going on a date at five o'clock, and I'm gonna be adorable and he's gonna be dreamy and I'm not gonna let you ruin it with your crazy conspiracies." she shouts as she jabs her finger into his chest until he backs out of their room and slams the door shut in his face. A few hours later, Dipper is in the living room when Mabel rushes down from the attic to answer the door where Norman was waiting for her and so the two were off for their date.

"Soos is right. I don't have any real evidence. I guess I can be kind of paranoid sometimes and-- wait, what?!" after going through the footage he found a clip of Norman and Mabel together, but what caught him off guard was Norman's hand falling off and him picking it up and reattaching it "Ah! I was right! Oh my gosh, oh my gosh! Grunkle Stan, Grunkle Stan! Grunkle--" he runs out of the living room in search for Stan, when he makes it outside he accidentally runs into someone and falls to the ground.

"Oh?" looking up he was met with the eyes of a kind woman, she chuckled softly at his disheveled self sprawled on the ground, so she kneels down slightly to offer him a hand to stand "Good evening Dipper, what seems to have you in a rush this fine afternoon?"

"Alvah!" to Dipper, she seemed to be the only sane person in the quiet town of Gravity Falls but he didn't seem to understand why she would ever associate herself with a man that was his uncle. Alvah was a middle-aged woman with long blondish grey hair that she had tied up in a braid with pale but sharp green eyes that held a warmth like an early morning day, despite coming out into the forest to visit the Mystery Shack daily she always wore rather elegant clothes wherever she went. Upon meeting the Pines twins she became somewhat of a maternal figure towards them, always being so calm, kind, and patient with the two of them and they would tend to run to her whenever she came to visit. He didn't know what sort of relationship she and Stan had but the only thing their uncle would tell them was that she was a long-lasting visitor of the Mystery Shack that just stuck around, she grew on him that he always expected to see her anytime throughout the week "You aren't-- Mabel is-- there's a-- I need--" she places her hand on his shoulder and gave him a comforting smile.

"Slow down, sweetheart, calm yourself." she takes a breath and he follows her, when she exhales her smile softens when he managed to calm his nerves "Now, tell me, what's gotten you so worked up?" she was still kneeling down when he stood up straight, hands waving around wildly as he spoke.

"Mabel's got this boyfriend and I believe he's a zombie! He's gonna eat her face!" she raised a brow.

"And what makes you believe that? Don't you think you're being a little overprotective of your sister to be throwing wild accusations like that?" she jerks back a little when he thrusts a video camera in her face, he then plays her the exact clip of Norman's hand falling off and him putting it back on "Well... that could just be a prosthetic, you know?"

"Alvah!" she chuckles softly, pulling her hands up in surrender.

"I'm pulling your leg, sweetpea." she then boops his nose "If you believe that this boy is a zombie, then you should go and prevent your sister from becoming his next meal." she then gently pushes him to where the golf cart was.

"So, wait, do you believe me?" she gives him a shrug.

"Whether I believe you or not, what matters is if you believe in yourself, first and foremost. If you think your sister is going to get hurt, trust your gut feeling before it becomes too late." she then nudges him once again, tossing him the keys that she managed to snag off of Soos "Now get going, I'll distract your uncle from questioning where you guys have wandered off to." he gives her a thankful smile.

"Thanks." she winks and waves him goodbye, by the time he drove off Stan had finished his spiel on a rock that looks like a face and dealing with the tourist and their stupid questions on it, they rushed into the Mystery Shack to look at the attractions while Stan approached and stood by her side.

"What's got him in a rush?"

"He said he needs to go save Mabel from her boyfriend that could possibly be a zombie." he laughs and slaps his knee.

"Woo, that kid is a riot!" she smiles.

"You aren't worried about them getting hurt, Stan?" she asks as they both turn to enter the Mystery Shack, her following behind as he led her through the gift shop to where the tourist were currently looking at a couple taxidermized creatures.

"They'll be fine. If I know anything about those little twerps, they wouldn't get themselves into any situations that would get them killed." this caused her to raise a brow at him.

"... tell me Dipper's real name." she stifled a laugh when she saw him pause, he folds his arm and looks up in thought before letting out a groan and hitting her shin with his eyeball cane.

"Irrelevant." she shakes her head while soothing her shin, for the rest of the afternoon she spent it observing Stan lying through his teeth to the unsuspecting tourists who awed at each other his words. Whenever he'd tell a joke he'd look to the back and see he'd get a laugh out of her, that prompted him to tell more jokes before he continued the tour, they were now back in the gift shop where Stan was showing them a new item, which was nothing more than a spiral on a stick that would spin and the gimmick was that it was a "very distracting object". The sound of screaming and something big approaching caused her to look out the open window, there she saw a giant... gnome amalgamation that was chasing after Dipper and Mabel? She turned away while closing the shutter doors to the window, yeah, no thank you "What's got you spooked?" her eyes move to Stan, who was staring at her questionably, she shook her head.

"You would be better off not knowing." he raised a brow at her.

"Well, alright." he then pushes her off the wall she was leaning "Anyways, man the cash register. Wendy isn't here and Soos is busy."

"I don't work here."

"Yeah, but you come here every day like you do. Enough chit chat, I don't pay you to stand there all pretty and talk." she deadpans when he walked away.

"... you don't pay me at all." she doesn't complain though, taking care of all the costumers who came up to pay for what they wanted to buy from the gift shop, no matter how absurdly overpriced everything was. She let out a sigh when the last of them finally finished looking around and left, stating that they were definitely coming back again. She was sitting on the counter, having a pleasant conversation with Stan while he was counting the cash they earned for the day when Dipper and Mabel walked through the door, both adults look at the children in amusement and concern.

"Yeesh, you two get hit by a bus or something?" she shakes her head at Stan when he laughs, smacking him on the shoulder before looking down at the twins, she smiles fondly and gives the boy a thumbs up. Dipper smiles at her as they both ignore Stan's comment and start making their way to their room so they could clean themselves up, the older man noticed their indifference to him and so he quickly changed up "Uh, hey! U-Uh, wouldn't you know it? Um, I accidentally overstocked some inventory so, uh, how's about each of you take one item from the gift shop? On the house, you know?"

"Really?"

"What's the catch?"

"The catch is do it before I change my mind. Now take something." Stan elbows the cash register so it would open but then felt like he was being stared at, looking up, he flinched under the softened gaze that was Alvah warmly smiling down at him.

"That was sweet of you, Stan." he just rolled his eyes, quickly averting his eyes away from her gaze.

"Didn't you hear me? I said I overstocked is all." she just hums.

"Sure." she was smacked in the leg this time, in retaliation, she kicked him in his side. Looking over she saw Mabel looking through boxes while Dipper was looking at hats, upon noticing, she only then just realized that he had lost his old raggedy hat and now replaced it with a blue one with a pine tree in the middle of it.

"That oughta do the trick."

"And I well have a," she pulls something out of a box and holds it to her chest, when she does a twirl she reveals it to them "grappling hook!" they all stare in bewilderment.

...

...

"Wouldn't you rather have like, a doll or something?" she then shoots the grapple and hoists herself off the ground, knocking over a couple boxes on her way up.

"Grappling hook!"

"Fair enough." she and Stan are left in the gift shop alone once more after the children picked out what they wanted, she hops of the counter and turns to speak again with Stan but stopped when Mabel ran up to her to give her a hug before finally leaving with Dipper.

"They're such sweet kids, don't you think?" he scoffed.

"They're unappreciative."

"Other than the fact you're giving them a roof over there heads, I don't think there's much you've given them to appreciate." she raises her hands when he narrows his eyes on her, she gives him a laugh "You should spend some quality time with them."

"I do." she deadpans.

"Forging bills is not family bonding, Stan. I was not pleased when I had to bail you out." he just laughs.

"Well, I'm way ahead of you, toots!" she raised a brow when he stashed the cash and walked over to where he had a calendar, his finger goes across the days until stopping on a specific date that was circled "It's fishing season on this day, so I plan on taking them fishing!" this made her smile and start clapping her hands.

"Ooo, how fun. I'm sure they'll love it." he nods.

"I know. Will I see you there? I'm sure the whole town will be out." she shrugs her shoulders.

"I'm not sure, I don't really know how to fish." his jaw dropped at the information.

"You're kidding?" she shook her head "Now you gotta come down! If I see you, I'll be sure to teach you a thing or two! I'll impress you with my killer fishing skills." she chuckles, tucking a strand of her hair behind her ear.

"I'm sure you will."

"Is that a challenge?" they grin at each other before bursting into laughter.

This journal told me there was nobody in Gravity Falls I could trust, but when you battle a hundred gnomes side by side with someone, you realize they've probably always got your back. Our uncle told us that there was nothing strange about this town, but who knows what other secrets are waiting to be unlocked.

--

season 1, episode 2. the legend of the gobblewonker

"Stan!" Alvah shouts, bringing her fingers to her lips and blowing hard so a sharp and loud whistle would rip through the air, she smiles when she saw the old man perk up at the sound of her whistle and the call of his name. She smiles as she waves her hand to greet him from the docks, she saw how he smiled when he saw her and waved his hand while mirroring her expression, as he made his way over to where she was she noticed how neither Dipper or Mabel were with him.

"You made it, toots." she crouches down so she wouldn't need to look down at him and so he wouldn't need to crane his neck just to look up at her, she then looks around in search for the twins.

"Where are the kids?" he huffed at the question.

"They decided to spend their time with Soos, rather than their old man." she raised a brow.

"You jealous?"

"Hah! Me? Jealous? Of what?" he flinches under her gaze, arms folded and eyebrow raising even higher, telling by that he could tell that she didn't believe a word he said "Sure, I brought them out here so we could have a family bonding moment, and sure it hurt a little that they preferred to go on an adventure with Soos instead, but I'll show them I don't need them to have a good time myself!"

"Sure you don't." she laughs when he splashed her with some water.

"Are you going to ridicule me or something? I thought you were supposed to be nice."

"I'm just teasing." he watched her stand up and shrink in on himself when she walked off, he sighed to himself when he was left on his own once more but perked up when a shadow cast over him. He glances up and saw Alvah standing over him with a basket of what he could only guess was food and a case of Pitt Cola, she dangled them in front of him "Don't you gotta show me your "killer fishing skills", Stan?" he smiles up at her.

"I'll knock your socks off." he takes both the basket and case from her, sitting them down in the boat, before standing up so he could help her into his boat. He gently takes her hand and guides her into the boat, being careful so she wouldn't fall with how jankey his boat is, and smiles when she settles in across from him "You ain't afraid of getting your hair wet, are you?"

"Of course not." she answered while readjusting her sunhat "Now let's go, I wanna see a trout." he raises a brow as he starts the engine.

"You know fishes?" he watches as she pulls a book about fresh water fish, she grins at him and flips through a couple pages.

"Did you know that there are nine species of sturgeon that are listed as either threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act? They are considered one of the world's most endangered groups of species." he makes a face when she continued to ramble about different species of fish, listing down from the most common to the rarest "Did you also know that catfish are a diverse group of ray-finned fish? Named for their prominent barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers--"

"Sweetheart, if I wanted to learn about fish I would have stayed in school." she pouts.

"It's good to know what you fish, because you could get fined for fishing endangered species. But that's only if you knowingly fish them out." she lowers the book and saw the way he was muttering about selling an endangered fish, he was promptly hit over the head by the book. She was currently eating a sandwich while watching Stan trying to tie a thread through a hook, laughing quietly to herself as he struggled to get it through the hole "I thought you said you could tie a knot with your eyes closed." she looked away when he glared at her.

"If you think it's so easy, why don't you give it a shot?" he shoves the thread and hook into her hands, knocking her sandwich out of her hands and into the lake.

"Hey!" she shouts, glaring at him for the loss, he just laughs as he takes a sandwich from out of her picnic basket and lounges in the boat.

"It's all you, toots." she narrows her eyes on him, she doesn't break eye contact as she sits back and holds both up in front of him. In the blink of an eye, she manages to loop the thread through the hole before tying a uni-knot "Wha-- how'd you--" his face hardens when she pulls out another book, this time it was about fishing; specifically how to tie knots.

"Boom." she giggles when he snatches the book from her and starts reading through it, she looks at him when he lowered the book then picked up another hook.

"Show me how to do the trilene knot." she grins. After patiently teaching Stan how to tie a trilene knot they finally threw out their lines into the water, Alvah quietly listening to Stan ramble on and on with stories from his youth, she'd ask a question here or there and laugh a little. They would both cheer when they'd catch a couple fish, Stan muttering about cooking them for dinner later, then they would settle into a comfortable silence as they basked under the sun's rays "Hey, Alvah."

"Yeah?"

"Wanna hear a joke?"

"Psh, sure." he clears his throat.

"Here goes. My ex-wife still misses me, but her aim is getting better!" she tears her eyes away from the water and stares at Stan, who was looking at her with the biggest grin on her face "... but her aim is getting better!" his grin slowly starts to drop the longer she stared at him.

"... today at the bank, an old lady asked me to check her balance." he stares at her "So I pushed her over." they now both stare at each other in silence before bursting out into laughter, Alvah has her hand hovering over her lips while Stan slapped his knee and laughed to his hearts contents.

"I didn't know you were a comedian! That was comedy gold! Here, here! I got another one! How much does a chimney cost?" he makes a face that begs her to ask, she chuckles and decides to play along.

"I don't know Stan, how much does a chimney cost?" he giggles to himself.

"Nothing! It's on the house!" they're both laughing hysterically once again, getting odd looks from others nearby but neither paid any notice "Woo, I gotta go out fishing with you more often! I haven't had this much fun in years!" she giggles.

"As flattered as I am, that sounds a little sad."

"You're a riot." she turns her gaze back to her line and frowns when she wasn't getting any bites as often as she did when they first started, she looked across the lake and saw the Corduroy family, her eyes specifically on Daniel Corduroy, aka, Manly Dan. She watched as he kept his eye on the water before grabbing a fish with his bare hands, yanking it out of the water then proceed to crush it in between his biceps.

"Hmm." she looks at Stan and saw he pulled another sandwich out from the picnic basket, she then proceeds to take it from his hands and turn back towards the water.

"Hey! What are you--"

"Shush." he huffs, crossing his arms and watching in amusement as she concentrated on the movement in the water. She wriggles her free hand as she hovered the sandwich closer to the water, her eyes dancing across the water to detect any sort of movement. Her head then snaps in a direction before reaching into the water, Stan raised a brow then his eyes widened in shock as he watched her drop the sandwich in favor of the king salmon she managed to pull out of the water.

"Wow! A king salmon! What a beaut!" he looks back at her and sweats a little at the bright look on her face, hair a little disheveled after staring at the water so closely for what seemed like ten minutes.

"Haha, did you know that they're called chinook salmon and that it is the largest and most valuable species of Pacific salmon? Salmon is rich in vitamins B6, B12, D, phosphorus and omega-3 fatty acids and that they play an important role in the culture, diet, economy and religion of several Northwest Tribes."

"Didn't know, don't really care." her face drops at that "Dang, if only we had a camera. Would love to take a photo of this monstrosity."

"Maybe you should catch the next one, Stan."

"I'll make sure to catch a bigger one!"

"Didn't I just say that they're one of the largest?"

"Then I'll catch an even BIGGER king salmon!"

"Go right ahead." he laughs at her and stands to his feet, he's getting ready to toss his line out when something blows right by them at great speed, then something even bigger that forms a giant wave. The king salmon that was in her hands got caught in the wave and swam to freedom while Stan and Alvah got completely soaked, Alvah stared rather owlishly at nothing in particular while Stan had an angered expression, he tore his hat off and threw it on the ground before letting out a defeated sigh and sitting down "Well, that was certainly... something." she mutters to herself and attempts to flick the water off her arms then grabbing a fist full of her dress and squeezing some of the water out.

"Today has been a disaster." Stan admits, she tilts her head to the side.

"Really? I thought you were having fun." she says, taking her hat off and cringing when she felt more water drip down her face "Did I bore you, Stan?" he immediately shakes his head.

"Oh, no, no! You definitely made everything all the more fun, honestly! It's just that..." she then finally noticed his gaze on the few boats still out on the lake, which all consisted of one thing, they were families spending time with each other "I really, REALLY wanted to go fishing with those knuckleheads, instead they wanted to go hunt some sea monster while I got stuck with you." she huffs with a laugh, grabbing strands of her hair and twisting it to squeeze the water out as well, she then throws her hair over her shoulder.

"That better be a good thing." he only smirks.

"You wish. I want them to know that I genuinely want to spend time with them, like a family."

"I'll say it again, Stan, but that's really sweet of you." she picks up his hat he threw to the ground and squeezed the water out of it then placed it on his head "I'm sure they'll come around eventually, at the end of the day, you're their great uncle Stan. I'm sure they'll see the error of their ways and come back to spend the rest of what is left of today with you, just like that." she reassures as she snaps her fingers, she then leans down to grab two cans of pitt cola, handing one to him to take.

"... you really know what to say to mellow a fella out." he says and takes the drink from her, she just gives him a soft expression in return. They both crack their cans open, thrusting them together then taking long gulps from their fizzy beverages. The rest of the day is spent with them lazily drifting with the water in a comfortable silence, it was only when they started to get cold that Stan decided it was time to head back and wait for the kids to return. She looks at Stan and saw he had a blissful smile on his face, a smile of her own stretched across her face the longer she gazed at him before she looked behind him to gaze at the lowering sun.

"Hey, over here!" both are caught off guard at the sound of Dipper's voice, looking behind them, they were taken aback at the sight of what was left of Soos' boat, they were surprised that it was still floating.

"What the... kids?" a flash from Dipper's camera made Alvah jump, not expecting it to go off, though it was more or less aimed at Stan so her eyes were spared "I thought you two were off playing spin the bottle with Soos."

"Well, we spent all day trying to find a legendary dinosaur."

"But we realized the only dinosaur we want to hang out with is right here." Stan scoffs while Alvah chuckles.

"Save your sympathy! I've been having a great time without ya! Making friends, talking to my reflection," Alvah was caught of guard when Stan raised his leg and saw an ankle monitor that she didn't not notice the entire "I had a run in with the lake police! Guess I gotta wear this ankle bracelet now, so that'll be fun."

"When did you get that? How did I not notice that?" he ignores her.

"So I guess there isn't room in that boat for three more?" the older two share a look then look back at the three in the sinking boat, Stan's eyes narrowing in on them. His gaze faltered when he saw the two put on fishing hats with awkwardly sewn names of "MABEL" and "DIPPY" on them, she thought they were real cute.

"... you knuckleheads ever seen me thread a hook with my eyes closed?"

"Five bucks says you can't do it."

"You're on!"

"Five more bucks says you can't do it with your eyes closed plus me singing at the top of my lungs!"

"I like those odds!" they had to rearrange a few things on the boat for the three of them to fit but they made it work, Stan, Mabel and Dipper sat together while Soos and Alvah sat across from them.

"Soos, what on earth happened to your shirt?" she questions, only now just questioning it.

"Long story dude." Dipper than pulls out his camera again.

"Alright. Everybody get together and say fishing!" Soos, Stan and Mabel get close, he then looks up at Alvah "You too." she chuckles and takes the camera from him, gently pushing him towards his sister.

"Let me take the picture, sweetpea." though hesitant, he was reassured by the older woman that she did not mind and so he joined his sister's side. The rest of that day was spent with Alvah capturing sweet moments of them having a great time, Stan indeed trying to thread the hook with his eyes closed but Mabel was covering his eyes when he started to peek, Soos and Mabel laughing as Stan read through a book of jokes with Dipper looking less than amused, Dipper actually catching a fish with Mabel pointing at it, Soos took the camera from her and snapped a shot of Stan with only half his face then proceeding to try and get one of Alvah to include her but missed up the timing because she was taking her hat off and so he only got the side of her, the next two were of Stan helping Mabel steal fish from another family by cutting their net then them fleeing from the lake police.

"Ahem." if it weren't for the fact that they were sitting next to each other he probably wouldn't have been able to hear it over the engine, he looked to his side and saw Alvah with a brow raised as she snapped her fingers "Just like that." he huffed, laughing to himself as he shook his head.

"Don't go getting a big head."

--

season 1, episode 3. headhunters

she doesn't really play a significant roll in this episode, only really appearing when stan reveals his wax stan.

scolds stan about lying to the people who came that there will be no free pizza, that being the reason they actually came.

she was thoroughly impressed with mabel's wax carving skills, getting every detail of stan.

alvah helps stan set up a memorial for wax stan, encouraging the twins on their search for the killer.

she did find the wax figures unsettling during the funeral and left to "comfort" stan when he ran out of the room crying, followed by soos.

when they return to the destroyed room and the children say it was because they "came to life" and what not, the adults laughed and stan thanked them for finding his head.

season 1, episode 4. the hand that rocks the mabel

doesn't really appear in this episode.

she thinks gideon is a little creepy, from his song to the way he pressures mabel into going on more and more dates with him, taking advantage of her kindness.

she alongside wendy, albeit the latter unaware, help mabel realize that she should be honest about how he makes her feel.

mabel laughs when alvah threatens to strangle the little boy if he decides to do anything to retaliate against her.

she appreciated it.

was standing beside stan when soos became a human disco ball, staring questionably at the man as he spun in circles.

season 1, episode 5. the inconveniencing

not really present.

season 1, episode 6. dipper vs manliness

is at the diner when the pines family come to get food.

they join her at her booth where she is drinking a cup of coffee and eating a plate of scrambled eggs and toast.

when stan was being a cheapskate, she tells them that it'll be on her and to get whatever they want.

mabel is ecstatic to be getting pancakes that morning.

when dipper says "pancakes are on me" and is laughed at by stan and mabel, and a small laugh that leaves alvah, the former doubt him.

when stan brings up his little "disco girl" fiasco, alvah tells him it's alright to listen to pop music while being a boy.

he asks her if he's plenty manly, she could only look away and silently sip at her coffee.

when dipper does the whole "test your manliness" contraction and fails, alvah is the only one that comforts him while he was being teased by the other patrons for getting the weakest score.

though she couldn't help but be impressed when manly dan broke the machine and impressively the stack of pancakes landed on other patron's plates.

when dipper leaves and it's just the three of them left, stan embarrassingly admits that he has a small crush on lazy susan.

alvah teases him about it.

she's with mabel helping her "spruce" up her uncle who's a "cranky, cross, weird old man" with the power of mabel.

she laughs at that.

she's really enjoying mabel, wendy and soos do their best to help the poor old man.

at this point she's not even helping, she's just laughing at their failed attempts honestly.

trying to get him to smile?

failed.

give him a facial?

failed.

try and shave his outrageous chest hair?

don't even remind me.

etiquette?

doesn't exist.

by the end of all mabel's "training" he looked even worse than when they first started, which only frustrate mabel.

"Your niece is SO adorable, Stan. Never knew she would be quite the cupid." Alvah teases from where she was, he just huffed at her, rolling his eyes and crossing his arms "Come on, she's doing you quite the favor if you're asking me. You could learn a thing or two from your love obsessed niece." he waves his hand at her.

"You've been nothing but a bother ALL day, Alvah! Just tell me I don't gotta shot and be done with it." Mabel, who was in the middle of a rant, briefly looked up when Alvah left their side to approach Stan. Wendy and Soos were chattering about other stuff that could help so they didn't notice how Alvah approached Stan, hands on her hips as she stood a little too close to him.

"Not at all. I heard back in the day you were quite the charmer, I believe you've got a good shot with her." she says and leans in close, he scoffed and leaned in, not backing away despite the small distance between them "Shoot your shot, I'm sure you'll hit a home run if you just be yourself."

"You're only saying that because with how perfect and pretty you are, you can just do or say about anything and people will gobble it right up." she laughs as she leaned back, hand to her chest and face flushed with how much she's been laughing that day.

"You think I'm pretty~?" his hands are now on his hips, eyes averting her teasing gaze, his own face flushing a little.

"I would be a fool if I said no."

"Oh my gosh!" Mabel suddenly squealing caught them off guard, the four of them all looking down at her when she sprung off the sofa with her hands to her cheeks "Grunkle Stan and Alvah! Alvah and Grunkle Stan! You two, you're perfect!" they both share a look then burst out into laughter.

"That's really nice of you sweety, but I'm way out of her league." Alvah raised a brow, twirling a strand of her hair around her finger.

"Really? And here I thought I was, and I quote, "perfect and pretty". Your words." he laughs.

"Yeah! But I'm irresistible and dreamy! No woman would deny me!" she jokingly rolled her eyes with crossed arms, she hummed softly when she felt Mabel tug on the skirt of her dress, when she spared her a glance she winced at how shiny her eyes were.

"What do you think of my grunkle, Alvah? Is he dating material?" she looked at Stan once more, eyes looking him up and down as she took in his character, and Mabel was graced with a soft and serene look on her face as she didn't break away from him.

"I think he's perfect for her." the sincerity in her tone was enough to satisfy Mabel, though the young girl did not miss the longing in her eyes the longer she stared at him.

"That's good enough!" she shouts then rushes out of the room, they all wait because not even a minute passes when she comes back "Grunkle Stan, come with me! And leave your pants at home."

"With pleasure." the two disappear and left Alvah, Wendy and Soos alone in the living room, to which Wendy and Soos look towards Alvah.

"You know, Mabel isn't wrong." Wendy quips.

"Hmm?" Soos nods his head.

"You and Stan, well, you two are like two peas in a pod! He doesn't get mad at you like he would at us."

"You laugh at his jokes."

"He enjoys being around you."

"You don't barf whenever he's next to you." as they continue to list more things about them, she just laughs at waves her hand.

"Me and Stan? As flattering as that is, I don't see him like that." she admits as she picks up the photo Mabel dropped, laughing at Stan's poor posture in the photo "He's just a really good friend, honestly." Wendy huffs with a smile, crossing her arms as she narrowed her eyes on her.

"With how you two dance around each other? Yeah, right."

"Believe what you wanna believe."

season 1, episode 7. double dipper

alvah probably wouldn't have gone to stan's "party" if it weren't for mabel's insistence that she just had to be there to keep stan company, or whatever that means.

she argues that she didn't have anything to wear for the occasion, but that doesn't stop mabel from making an outfit out of nothing but left over fabric.

that kid never ceased to surprise her.

"How do I look, Stan?"

"Same old, same old, I promise you that." upon seeing her he felt his words get caught in his throat, staring owlishly as she tugged on the scarf wrapped securely around her neck "W-Where did you-- ahem! Where..." she sighs to herself.

"I don't know how I feel about sequin, but Mabel insisted that I wear them so I could shine." upon that they notice the way some of the lights that shun down on her reflected off the glittery-like pants and sparkled "I don't quite like the way it feels, but I'll put up with it if it makes her happy. So Stan, I ask again, how do I look?" she asks once again and opens her arms, going so far as doing a little twirl with a giggle.

"You look..." she slowly raises a brow, waiting for an answer "you look real pretty, doll face." she continues to giggle when he shoved his hands in his pockets, face turning red while her own cheeks turned pink.

"Thanks, you look quite dashing as well." he clears his throat as he tugs on his collars.

"D-Don't I? I'm glad you noticed." he then holds his hand out to her, the other rubbing the back of his neck nervously before gesturing towards the dance floor "Wanna dance?" she looks down at his hand and noticed that it was shaking, if she took his hand would it be sweaty?

"You are so adorable, Stan." she coos and takes his hand, and it was indeed, sweaty "What are you, Dipper?" he gasps, hand to his chest.

"I am offended. Alright, toots, I may not be as young as I was before but I'll show you I still got it."

and he most certainly did.

at first she wasn't so sure when he led her to the dance floor and shouted at soos to play specific songs, but as the night went on she noticed that he was a really good dancer.

he was light on his feet and definitely had rhythm.

he knew just how to guide her, how to hold her.

she's laughing to her hearts contents with every swing and every twirl, the both of them ignoring when they hear mabel squealing in the background when she found them.

with how smooth stan was she hadn't even realized that she was dipped until she opened her eyes and saw her vision was upside down.

stan is grinning down at her when she looks up at him, panting softly at how long they've been dancing for.

"Speechless?" he laughs some more, hands holding her by the waist while one of her hands goes to her chest while the back of her other hand is pressed to her forehead, head leaning to the side.

"You've swept me completely off my feet." he laughs when he hoists her back up and the two of them are spinning around together, her hands resting on his shoulders while his stayed on her waist "This is fun, thanks for tonight." he chuckles.

"We oughta thank Mabel for this, you wouldn't even have come if it weren't for her."

"You're right." he leads them over to where the food was when Soos announced it was time for the competition between Mabel and Pacifica Northwest to continue, she's drinking from a cup while Stan was unnecessarily taking a lot of marshmallows when a bill strung from what she guessed was a fishing line hung in front of him.

"Right, like I'm gonna fall for that." she doesn't say anything as she watched Stan ignore the money dangling in front of him... for about a second before jumping for it, taking out the table and knocking everything to the floor then cashing after it, leaving her alone "Gimme that money, sonny!" she sighs, deflating a little.

"And there the night goes."

season 1, episode 8. irrational treasure

shows up at the end only to make fun of stan.

season 1, episode 9. the time travelers pig

shows up at the end to make fun of stan... again.

season 1, episode 10. fight fighters

helps mabel with stan's fear of heights.

and by help she's just in the background, encouraging stan that he doesn't have anything to be afraid of.

is with stan and mabel on top of the water tower, nonchalantly leaning against the railing while stan's gripping onto it like his life depends on it.

"Take off your blindfold, now!" when he does he's met with the daunting sight of being meters off the ground.

"Yeah, that's pretty much what I was expecting." Alvah snickers at Stan's frightened face, eyes widened in fear as he couldn't tear his eyes away. Stan briefly looks at Alvah and saw the way she was casually leaning against the handrail, arms crossed without a single care in the world "You're enjoying this too much." she nods.

"I am."

"You're doing better than I thought! Now let go of the handrail." Mabel instructs, Alvah stifles her laughter by how much he was trembling.

"No!" he answers back, voice all strained, that was enough to get Alvah to burst out into laughter.

"Hey, do you smell anger and hormones?" as soon as she said that they look behind Mabel and saw Robbie, who's supposed to be off fighting Dipper, climbing up onto the water tower.

"Finally, I'm safe!"

"Hey, Robbie, get your own water tower!"

"Shh! Keep it down! He'll find us!" she raises a brow at his sudden appearance and leans back to get a look at what he was fleeing from, she squinted her eyes when she saw a pixelated figure at the bottom of the water tower. Before she could do anything he kicked the supporting beams, causing the water tower to shake.

"What was that?!" Mabel shouts, Stan's grip on the handrail tightens as sweat bleeds down the side of his face.

"Oh boy!"

"We're safe, right?"

"Of course not! This thing is on stilts high, high up!" whoever the pixelated figure was managed to break the support beam, Robbie unfortunately fell off while Stan and Mabel were able to run to the opposite side from where it was falling, but Alvah was too also unfortunate and fell off but managed to catch herself.

"Alvah!" she looks down and breaks out into a cold sweat at the distance between herself and the ground, sighing nervously to herself.

"Well... this is an unexpected predicament." whatever was going on below them quickly moved elsewhere, she looks back up and quickly reaches her other hand to grab a hold of the railing to pull herself back up. She grows a little nervous when she felt the tower sway due to it now only being supported by three beams, she starts to pull herself up but cringes when she heard the handrail itself creak "Uh... a little help, please!" she shouts.

"Hang in there!" she sighs to herself.

"I already am." when she felt a hand she thought it would have been Mabel to come to her rescue, instead when she looked up she was met with Stan instead. He takes one of her hands first to pull her up and when she was above the handrail he grabs the back of her legs to swing them over and pull her back to safety, he was still a little weak to the knees so they collapsed to the ground with her laying on his chest, the both of them unmoving after the drastic turn of events "Thanks for helping me, Stan." his chest rumbles as he laughs weakly.

"Right back at cha, toots." she rolls her eyes and pats his chest, she finally manages to push herself up and stand to her feet, albeit with shaking legs, and helps Stan to his feet "I finally got over my fear of heights."

"So you actually WERE scared of heights."

"Don't push your luck."

season 1, episode 11. little dipper

makes a brief appearance to tell dipper that it's okay to be short and that he shouldn't need to be insecure about it.

soos points out that she and stan are about the same height when she wears heels.

they tell her to take off her heels.

she takes her leave.

season 1, episode 12. summerween

wears a simple angel costume and gives the children candy in stan's stead while he was scaring the children.

or attempting to scare them.

joins them at the end of the night for the horror movie marathon.

season 1, episode 13. boss mabel

finds it real cute how both mabel and dipper are similar to stan.

season 1, episode 14. bottomless pit

doesn't fall in like the other four do.

hears their screams fade out into existence and kind of just sits there and waits to see what happens.

not even a couple seconds later and the screaming returns and the four of them are thrown right back out.

she greets them like nothing even happened.

shakes her head when stan falls back in.

season 1, episode 15. the deep end

is just casually sunbathing.

season 1, episode 16. carpet diem

only appears to stare weirdly at soos, who's technically waddles, as he passes by.

season 1, episode 17. boyz crazy

not present in this episode, only at the end to comfort wendy after her break up with robbie.

season 1, episode 18. land before swine

joins them on their rescue mission to save waddles, and because stan called her so she could help comfort mabel.

she was always good at that.

after being told what happened by stan, she gave him a skeptical look and knew that he was lying to mabel about how waddles disappeared.

following the trial of yarn, it led them to what they believed was an abandoned church out deep into the woods.

"Okay, the red yarn leads to..." she trailed off when she saw at the end of the church was old man McGucket rocking back and forward in a rocking chair while playing a banjo... rather creepy that he was there in the first place "Old man McGucket?" he turns at the sound of Mabel's voice, smiling at them and waving his hand to greet them.

"Howdy, friends!"

"What are you doing out here?"

"You'll never believe me. So I was doing my hourly hootenanny..." Stan scoffs, rolling his eyes as he crossed his arms.

"Ohh! This guy."

"When this enormous wingly critter stole my musical spoons and flew lickety split into the abandoned mine down yonder." they all lean over to take a peek down the hole in the floorboards where the red yarn was leading, Alvah reached forward to grab Dipper by his shoulder when she noticed that his hat was going to fall in.

"Looks kinda hairy down there."

"Come on, Grunkle Stan, you can handle it. You punched a pterodactyl in the face, remember?"

"Oh, yeah. Haha! I did do that, didn't I?" Alvah side eyes him, she looks away when he glared at her.

"My! What a suspicious laughter!" he then looks at Alvah, who looks back at him with a kind smile, she leans back a bit when he points directly at her face "I remember you! I remember you from all the way back then!" he shouts, she tilts her head to the side.

"And I remember you from, like, last week?" he laughs wildly.

"I know what you are!" Stan and Soos got in front of her, making sure to make some distance between her and McGucket while the kids pulled her away "You can't fool me!"

"Knock it off, loon." Stan growls.

"That ain't cool, dawg." Soos says disappointedly, Dipper and Mabel look up at Alvah all worried.

"Are you alright?"

"Why's old man McGucket acting more crazy then usual?" Alvah just gave an innocent shrug.

"Perhaps I remind him of someone." that seemed like a logical answer, though when the others turned their attention back to the hole, they failed to notice the way both Alvah and McGucket stared at each other.

they go down with dipper first, then mabel, soos, alvah, stan and unfortunately mcgucket tell about how he kissed raccoon or something. none of them were really paying attention.

when the rope snapped and they all fell down into the chasm, they were lucky that they landed on a mushroom to break their fall, though alvah did land on top of soos.

following the trail of red yarn deeper into the mine shaft they found interesting plants, skeletons but what really caught them off guard were the dinosaurs trapped in tree sap.

from the famous tyrannosaurus rex to the stegosaurs, this cavern seemed to have them all.

but then they found where the pterodactyl was supposed to be, but due to the summer heat, the tree sap melted and it broke free.

they grew nervous when they found where a raptor was, its claw wiggling free.

they should probably hurry up.

alvah is with mabel when stan admits out loud that it was actually him that let waddles out and was the reason that he was snatched up in the first place.

mabel threatens stan that she'll never talk to him again if they don't find waddles, which causes an argument to break out between the two of them.

soos tries to mediate by reassuring mabel they could just continue to follow the yarn, but accidentally wound it back up into a ball.

mcgucket stands beside her when they all start arguing with each other, looking up at her when he saw that calm demeanour that she usually wore start to drop as they yelled at each other.

"Enough!" she shouts, shocking them all into silence. Not once have they heard Alvah raise her voice so angrily before that it echoed through the cavern, or with such an angered look on her face that if looks could kill they'd all be dead "I understand we're all under a certain amount of stress, but acting like children aren't going to get us anywhere!"

"Listen, we just--" Stan raises his hands, flinching back when she directed her fiery glare at him.

"Stan! It was wrong of you to lie to Mabel about what happened to Waddles. Mabel, you have a right to be angry but now isn't the time. Soos, I get that it was an accident but we're in a bit of a bind now that we've lost both the trail and the lantern. Dipper, he's doing his best so take a step back." she lets out a deep sigh, squeezing the bridge of her nose to calm her nerves "You guys are going to shut your mouths, we're going to go down that tunnel because that's where the yarn was leading to last, we're gonna find Waddles and do our best to avoid that pterodactyl because our lives damn well depend on it."

"Hey! Cheer up fellers!" her intense gaze turned to look behind her and it dropped immediately at what she saw "I fixed your lantern!"

...

...

"Oh, dear."

alvah was already running away with the kids in her arms, prioritizing their safety first while leaving the other three behind to catch up.

they're all hiding behind rocks when the tunnel they fled down led them to a cliff where a railway led to what seemed to be a nest.

the rocks they were hiding behind were shaped oddly like them.

she smacks stan when he suggested they use soos as a human sacrifice.

she glares at them all when they were going to start arguing again, that shut them right up.

the sound of oinking caught their attention and so they peek out of their hiding spot to find waddles in the nest along side a giant egg, that doesn't look good.

alvah was the first to chase after mabel when she left their hiding spot to go and retrieve waddles, carefully chasing after her as she crossed the rusting railway tracks.

she ushers the young girl to hurry but keeps close as she looked at the pile of skeletons that surrounded the nest, but kept a closer eye on the looming egg beside them.

the sudden appearance of the pterodactyl startled waddles, which caused the pig to run out of her arms in his harness and towards stan, who was still on the tracks.

they all watch in horror when the pterodactyl nose dives for them but missed and instead destroyed the tracks, causing the two of them to fall towards the wilderness below.

"Oh, no!"

"Stan!"

"Mister Pines!" Alvah slaps a hand onto her forehead when Stan disappeared into the jungle below them, she could only hope that he managed to survive that fall, but she has other things to worry about. She pushes the two children down then yanks Soos down to avoid being caught by the giant prehistoric lizard flying above them, now beginning to stress a little.

"This is just... wonderful." she says through gritted teeth, they all then gasp when Stan's hat fell into the nest "And I say it again, this is just wonderful."

"Guys, we've gotta save them!"

"McGucket, do you have an invention that can distract the pterodactyl?"

"Do I?" he pulls his hat off and starts rifling through it, when he didn't find anything he slumps down "Nope!" Alvah squeezes her temple again, the sound of crackling turned their direction towards the egg that was shaking and when it fell over they all pushed themselves as far away from it as possible.

"Aw..." Mabel cooed when a baby pterodactyl peeked out from the top of the egg, its beady little eyes staring right up at them, but Alvah got in front of Soos and the kids and kept them away.

"McGucket..." she spoke, reaching for him as well, but he just slipped through her fingers.

"Well, welcome to the world, little feller." she closes her eyes when the hatchling snapped its beak shut and proceeded to swallow him whole, she shook her head.

"He will... probably not be missed."

what stood between them and getting out of the nest was the baby pterodactyl, and with the looming threat of being eaten by either it or its mother, they were limited on options.

that was until soos suggested they get in a straight line, since a pterodactyl's vision is so far apart it won't be able to see them.

dipper doubts their theory, but with the apology and reassurance of soos, they eventually agree and get in a straight line.

alvah had to admit, she was very impressed when soos' theory was correct because the moment it laid its eyes on them, it was as if they were invisible.

"I gotta admit, that was real wise of you Soos." Alvah praised as they hid behind the rock formation once more, the young man smiles at her praise.

"Haha, thanks." a distant screech caused them to jump and peeking out of hiding spot to see what it was, they were met with the sight of... you can't be serious.

"Was that?"

"Stan?" right on the back of the pterodactyl with Waddles strapped to his chest was Stan, repeatedly punching it in the face "Waddles!"

"He's punching him in the face!" she couldn't help but whistle at the astonishing display of strength, not expecting Stan to pull of such a stunt.

"From heck's heart I stab at thee!" he shouts as he brings down both his fists to the top of the pterodactyl's head, the mighty creature lets out a screech before crashing into the cliffside and falling in its demise. Stan managed to jump off in time and pull himself up so he didn't fall with it, Alvah whistles again.

"Oh, yes! Haha!"

"You're alright, Stan?" he's panting tiredly, worn out after punching the living daylights of the flying lizard, he perks up when he hears clapping.

"I guess your story was true after all, Stan. I guess I've got to cross "watch Stan punch a dinosaur in the face" off my bingo card." he just laughs tiredly, rubbing the back of his head as she approached him.

"Ah, you're just saying that, but flattery won't get you anywhere." she knocks his shoulder, they then look down to see Mabel wearing Stan's hat, beady little eyes looking up at him "Here's your pig, kiddo." Alvah awes when Stan waves Waddle's hooves, how adorable.

"Ooo, Waddles! You saved him for me."

"Yeah, well, sometimes you just gotta... look out!"

stan takes alvah by the hand when the pterodactyl climbed back up from where it had fallen and started to chase after thme again.

they found themselves back where they had fallen in the first place and realized they had no way of getting out.

upon seeing the geysers shooting up debris, dipper points it out and says they can ride the water up.

however, when they got in the water was still.

they all scream out in terror when the pterodactyl was right before them, but soos screams "bros before dinos" and slams his fists down to get the geyser to activate and shook them straight through the room but out of the mineshaft.

mabel landed in the chandelier with waddles.

soos and dipper ended up in a piano.

stan with alvah on top of him landed in an open casket, with his hat somehow ending up on her head.

the destroyed ceiling collapsed and filled up the hole, hopefully sealing it up where the dinosaurs can't get out.

they all left that day, with alvah feeling satisfied that this experience brought stan and mabel closer, as well as soos and dipper.

she did, however, glance back towards the destroyed church before shrugging her shoulders.

she wasn't forgetting anything, right?

season 1, episode 19. dreamscaperers

"Hmm?" Alvah entered the shack and it was eerily quiet, usually, there would at least be some noise whenever she came by, especially at this hour. Entering the living room, she was met with the odd sight that was the Pines twins and Soos laying unconscious in front of Stan as he sat on the sofa, were they having a sleepover or something? She leaves the room and returns to drape blankets over their sleeping bodies and put pillows under their heads, when she reaches Stan, she throws the blanket over his lap and reaches to take his hat off when she felt something. When she removes his fez her fingers gently brush his hair out of his face, her hand recoils back when she hears a familiar laughter ring out through the room "Now that's a laughter I haven't heard in three decades." she mutters to herself, her hand reaches for his face again but this time she takes him by the chin to turn his face so she could get a good look at him.

"Ah... wha..." he muttered in his sleep, well, at least he still seemed sane. She pulls her hand back and laces her fingers together, pushing them forward to crack her knuckles then pushing her head up to crack her neck. Her fingers brush against his hair that fell over his forehead and she moves it to the side, her index finger presses against the center of his forehead as she whispers a few words under her breath and his face visibly relaxes.

"That should be enough... hopefully." she gently flicks his nose before turning on her heel to leave them be, she's done enough.

the dream demon summoned by gideon gleeful was running amok inside stan's mind in search for the code to stan's safe that secured the deed to the shack.

dipper, mabel and soos jumped into his mind to prevent that from happening but bill was just a force to be reckoned with.

unaware of how to defeat this demonic being, when dipper separated from them, bill was unleashing mabel and soos' worse nightmares.

soos' nightmare was a talking british dog man, odd.

mabel's nightmare was losing her cuteness and looking grotesque.

the two brightly colorful men, previously imagined by mabel, were erased from existence.

bill was having the time of his life bringing misfortune to these two humans.

"And now to finish you off, once and for all!" he points his finger at them, ready to blast them out of existence as well when he felt a presence he had long forgotten about. Dipper arrives after learning that they were in Stan's mind and that anything is possible, he flies up to confront Bill but instead, he was met with the demon slowly lowering his hand "Is that who I think it is?" they all look to where Bill was staring and saw in the distance an abnormal storm approaching them, the once star-filled sky was covered in dark black and red storm clouds where you could hear disoriented and agonizing screams.

"Cipher." the humans within Stan's mind tremble when the voices within the storm cloud came together and spoke, somewhat of a body formed that took the shape of a shadow and loomed over them "I didn't expect to see you here." Bill, whose body was red itself, turned back into its normal yellow color and his jolly personality returned.

"Well, well, well! Shouldn't I be saying that? You aren't one to enter a human mind, much less one so pathetic." the voice let out a deep chuckle.

"Well, my contractor states I must keep those they hold dear alive. Knowing you, you'd cripple this mind beyond saving." Bill let out a laugh as straightened his tie.

"Is that why you've been gone for thirty-odd years? Hah! I gotta thank this contractor of yours for keeping your butt out of the nightmare realm for this long!" he raised his hands in surrender when the figure raised its own hand, the outline of it glowing a bright red to charge up an attack "Hey, hey, now! Knowing that you're still around, I'm not dumb enough to mess with stuff you've claimed. I was on a job as well, and since these dummies thwarted my plans, I was dealing with them." he lowers his arm to take aim at them again but paused when the figure reached down, its own hand getting in front of them to protect them.

"Unfortunately, they're under my protection as well. So I'm going to have to ask you to leave." Dipper looks up at the figure, not expecting some supernatural being to come to their rescue. If he picked up anything from their conversation, this creature was in a contract with someone to protect Stan; to protect them. But who could it possibly be? "This form of mine may not be as powerful as my original, but I won't hesitate to erase you out of existence." they stare at each other in an unsettling silence until Bill starts to laugh so hard that a tear forms out of his singular eye.

"That's so hilarious! You and I both know that I can't be erased!" the red storm huffed.

"Yeah, but it's a threat nonetheless. So long as I am around, you will not be able to kill the humans under my protection." Bill huffed himself, he straightens his tie once more then his hat.

"Fine. Alright you kids, I'm gonna let you guys off the hook because of this old bat. Though, you might come in handy later. But know this. A darkness approaches, a day will come in the future when everything you care about will change." he tips his hat to bid them farewell "Until then, I'll be watching you. I'll be watching." and when he disappeared, a circle surrounded him that had various symbols that flashed until he was gone.

"Well he's annoying to deal with." the voice speaks, it then looks down at them, Dipper specifically "You better watch yourselves, Pines family. Now you've got a serious stalker on your hands." with that the storm started to disappear like, but Dipper reaches his hand out.

"Wait! Who are you?" the voice chuckles.

"That journal should know."

"Ah!" Dipper, Mabel and Soos wake up with a shout, shooting up from where they were lying down, they all then cheer when they realize they had awoken after such a confusion ordeal "We did it!" Mabel cheers, they then hear a groan coming from behind them and see that it was Stan waking up.

"What? Did what? What are you all doing here?" he asks confusingly, rubbing his head "And why was I dreaming of two brightly colored and radical young men?" the three of them stand up and approach him, though it was Dipper who rushed to his side first.

"Grunkle Stan, you're okay!" he exclaims, jumping up to hug him.

"What is this, a hug?"

"Nope. It's a chokehold." Dipper then maneuvers himself around him, wrapping his arm around his neck and proceed to lock him in a chokehold, causing the others to laugh as Stan struggled in his hold.

"Not bad, kid." he praises after being released from his hold, smiling at Dipper "Not bad."

"Oh?" they all perk up at the voice, looking towards the doorway, they were met with Alvah "You guys are finally awake? Were you having a sleepover, or something? I came in earlier and saw you guys sleeping, so I brought a couple blankets in so you'd be more comfortable." they all then finally noticed the blankets and pillows littered across the room.

"Alvah!" she watches in mild confusion when Mabel runs up to her, kneeling down so the young girl could leap into her arms "You won't believe how crazy our dreams were!"

"Really? I'm almost jealous I didn't join you." she lets Mabel go and watches as she lets out a breath of relief.

"I'm just glad Gideon didn't get into the safe. I really love this old shack." they all look up when the shack suddenly shock, a loud rumble being heard in the background.

"Hey, do you guys feel a..." they were all suddenly blown away when the wall exploded, Alvah was lucky she was behind Mabel so she wrapped her arms around the girl so she could shield her from the debris.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Pines family, did I wake you?" walking out of the hole in the wall was Gideon, with the safe destroyed and the deed to the shack in his hands.

"But we defeated Bill."

"Bill failed me! So I switched to plan b. Dynamite."

"What? Bill? Who... wha-- what are you guys talking about?"

"Spoilor alert, Stanford. I've got the deed! The Mystery Shack belongs to me! So, get off my property!"

season 1, episode 20. gideon rises

alvah apologizes to the pines family, not being able to house them because she lives in a small one bedroom apartment that charges her a ridiculous amount of rent.

her small apartment definitely didn't have room to house the twins and stan himself, so she was deeply sorry that she couldn't provide a roof over their heads.

she helps them however she can, whether it be giving them money or food, she'll do whatever she could for them.

she visits them when soos offers them a place at his abulita's home, and comforts stan when he was having a crisis about not being able to provide for the twins.

she isn't with them when they sneak into the "grand closing" of the mystery shack, she's watching behind the fences and cringes when they get caught and thrown out.

she was there when stan admits to the children that he couldn't take care of them, telling them that they had to go back home and that he bought them their tickets; it wasn't up for discussion.

they plead with him, even with alvah, but she couldn't do anything to help them and said it would be for the best.

"Bus fifty-two departing Gravity Falls. All aboard." the twins board the bus and take the seats at the very back where they looked out the window to see Stan, Alvah, Wendy, Grenda and Candy outside waving them goodbye.

"Sorry kids, it's for the best." he then turned around, not being able to face them after all that they've lost, Alvah placed her hand on his shoulder in a form of comfort as she looked up at the twins in the bus and gave them a sad wave goodbye. He does look back at them when the bus drives away but he quickly turns away, not being able to handle the look of sadness on their faces "What should I do now, Alvah? I've got no job, no house, I've got nothing." he looks up at her for a sign of hope but saw the conflicted look on her face.

"I... I really don't know." she muttered to herself "Everybody in this town is unwilling to see the truth that's in front of them because of the story Gideon wrote out unless we're able to help them open their eyes... there's nothing we can do about it. I am so sorry Stan, but I don't know if there's anything I can do to help you." his shoulders slump in defeat.

"I expected that." she finally looks down at him and gives him a weak smile.

"I may not be able to do anything to get you out of this, but I won't leave your side. Until you're able to get back on your feet, I'll be sure to see it through the whole way with you. I promise you, you've still got me by your side." she pats his shoulder and gives him the best smile she could muster, he looks into her eyes and despite the tears glistening in her eyes at the loss of the Pines twins, he could tell that her words were genuine "It'll take you dying to get rid of me." she let out a soft grunt when he pulled her into a hug, her eyes widened in surprise when she felt his fingers cling desperately to her blouse but she eventually relaxed as she wrapped her arms around him and leaned into him. 

"Thank you..." she gently rubs her hands up and down his back to comfort him.

"Don't mention it." when she finally managed to calm him down she bid Wendy, Grenda and Candy farewell and led Stan back to Soos' home. They were sitting on the couch with Alvah continuing to comfort him as he buried his face in his hands, shaking his head in disbelief.

"Well, Stan, this is it. Rock bottom. No family, stuck watching infomercials for that is." they both briefly look at the television to see an infomercial about an "owl trowel", or whatever that is, he then picks up the Gideon pin on the coffee table "How did you do it, kid? Why are you always one step ahead? Maybe he really is psychic after..." they both wince when a high pitch ringing went off, Alvah's eye twitched as she stuck a finger in her ear and twisted it around.

"Ah, what was that?" Stan jumped when the ringing went off due to his hearing aid.

"What keeps causing that?" she confusingly looked at him when he glanced down at the pin and a sudden realization dawned on him "Wait a minute. That's it! I know Gideon's weakness!" she still didn't understand what was going on when he sprung to his feet as he took her with him, she goes to question him but when he suddenly grabbed her by her biceps what happened next stunned her to silence. She let out a muffled gasp when Stan pulled her into a kiss that didn't last more than a couple seconds, when he pulls away he let out a cheer and quickly ran out of the room, leaving her standing there in shock. Abuela entered the room when they shared that intimate moment and looked up at Alvah, their brow raised when she saw her face slowly turn red.

"Are you alright, senorita Alvah?" her face finally crumbled, that gobsmacked expression crumbled and she was left looking flustered and embarrassed and shocked and-- she slowly raised her hands to her lips, still remembering the feeling of his chapped lips against hers and the brush of his stubble "Senorita?"

"I-I'm-- I'm alright." she let out a gasp when Stan ran back into the room, taking her hand and dragging her outside to where his car was.

"Come on, toots! We got a brat to expose!" will only music to make up any noise, the car ride was relatively quiet. Stan took a quick look at Alvah and saw she was just staring ahead of them, he would have guessed she was fine by the composed look she had on but telling how red her face was, it was giving her away. He glanced down at her lips and saw they were slightly smudged from where he had guessed her, well, guess he smudged it from when he kissed her rather out of nowhere "L-Look, I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable or whatnot. But it was just a spur of the moment, and the sudden shot of adrenaline got me going and-- what I'm trying to say is, it doesn't have to mean anything. It doesn't..." he looked at her again and saw the way her face turned a shade of pink this time, her thumbs fiddling together.

"... I didn't, NOT, like it." she murmured, pushing a strand of her hair behind her ear "You just... caught me off guard, is all. I wasn't expecting it." she narrowed her eyes on him when he stared rather smugly at her, wiggling his eyebrows a little.

"Oh? So are you saying if I were to kiss you again, you wouldn't protest?" he teased as his hands extended out to her, they were promptly smacked away.

"Don't push your luck, Stan. Just because I said I liked it, doesn't mean you'll get a taste anytime you want." they were both smirking at each other now, luckily they were at the red light or else Stan would have likely crashed the car, but Alvah noticed something in the distance behind Stan "Is that..." she started then grabbed Stan by his face and turned him around, they both squint their eyes at it.

"... Gideon?" they muttered, if either of them remembered back to the shack, Gideon was constructing a giant mechanical statue of himself and it looked like this thing could move. 

"Drive."

"Wha--"

"I said drive!" he was quick to ignore the law of the road and gun it down the road, he watched as she looked through his car and she surprisingly found a pair of binoculars... odd, she wasn't serious about finding binoculars, but Stan was a jack of all trades that just seemed to have anything and everything. He let out a shout when she threw herself over his lap so she could look out his window, he struggled to drive and went to shout at her but caught himself when she gasped "That little brat!" 

"What? What is it?!" she lowered the binoculars as a look of horror took over.

"He's got the kids!" she was thrown back into her seat when Stan took a sharp turn, she looked at him when she saw the serious look on his face.

"Buckle up, Alvah. We've got our kids to save." she was quick to buckle her belt and grab ahold of the handle above her head, gripping it rather tightly. By the time they arrive at the scene, after following it for some time and seeing it explode from a distance, Alvah's nails were digging into the handle but also the center console between herself and Stan. She was as pale as a sheet of paper when Stan came to a screeching halt, taking out the police cruiser in the process, he then throws his door open and steps out "Wait! Wait! Stop everything! I've got something to say!" he rushes ahead as Alvah shakily exits the car, using the side of it to steady her trembling legs.

"Gideon... is a liar!" she shouts weakly, now placing a hand on her chest to soothe her beating heart. She yelped when he grabbed her hand once more and dragged her over to the wreckage that was of Gideon's giant robot, she dusted herself off as they now looked at the crowd.

"You guys all think Gideon is so perfect and honest! "Oh, I could never tell a lie! I'm Gideon!" Pah!"

"He's more honest than you! And we expected more from you, Miss Alvah. To think you'd take his side." 

"Yeah! And he's psychic, too!" she chuckles softly, hand to her chest.

"That's where you're wrong, officer." both she and Stan look at each other and nod.

"How's this for psychic?" he kicks a loose panel while she hits it, and when it comes down it reveals a dozen monitors that have secretly recorded the lives of the many townsfolk of Gravity Falls "Bam! Take a good look!"

"Wait a minute! Is that me?"

"The secret ingredient to my coffee omelette is coffee!"

"And me!"

"I can verify that that birthmark is indeed disgusting."

"Hurray!" slowly everyone started pointing at monitors that had recorded them unknowingly.

"That's right!" Stan then pulls out the pin he had and pointed it at them, behind them, they got live footage of the crowd as it scanned them "These pins are hidden cameras! And my hearing aid was picking up the feedback! Who's the fraud now?" Alvah crushed the one in her hand and saw the camera lens, after the reveal, they all threw the pins to the ground and then turned their attention towards Gideon Gleeful.

"Gideon, we gave you our trust."

"You lied to us!" Gideon backed away from the crowd as they approached him with angered expressions, he then backed into the debris that was his robot and fell to the ground.

"Please, I... it's not what it looks like. What are you gonna do with me?" Deputy Durland raises his head and looks behind him.

"Tyler?" said man sniffled, wiping away the tears that started to shed.

"Get 'em... get 'em!" Alvah is giggling softly behind Stan, a hand placed on his back as she watched over his shoulder when Deputy Durland pulled out tiny handcuffs and slap them down on Gideon's wrists. She let Stan rush over to them when they started taking him over to a different police cruiser, she let out an oof when something ran into her, and when she looked down, she smiled happily when she saw that it was Dipper and Mabel.

"Are you two alright?" she asked as she knelt, opening her arms to them so they could fall into her embrace. She held onto them so tightly, her hands rubbing up and down their heads while nuzzling into their cheeks "I'm so sorry we didn't come to you in time. I'm sorry we gave up on you." they let out weak laughter, tears of relief slowly running down their cheeks.

"Don't worry, Alvah, Dipper had it all under control." Mabel says with a cheer, said boy sniffled as he pulled himself closer into Alvah's embrace "You should have seen him! He punched Gideon right in the face!" she pulled away so she could get a look at Dipper, astonished at what she just heard, and there she saw Dipper's face turn red from embarrassment.

"Oh, psh, it wasn't anything too crazy."

"Dude, you jumped off a cliff. I think that's pretty crazy." they both let out a startled cry when she ruffled their heads.

"Sounds to me you take after your uncle." she lightly punches him in the arm, winking at him "I'm proud that you stood your ground and protected your sister. I'm glad you followed your gut." Dipper's lip trembled at her words, eyes swelling up with tears again before throwing his arms around her neck.

"Thank you, Alvah." she chuckles and brings them back into a hug once more, gently carding her fingers through their hair.

"Don't mention it, kiddo." she briefly looked up and saw Stan standing in front of a camera, posing after he managed to retrieve the deed to the shack back from Gideon. She pulls away from the twins and gestures for them to be by their uncle's side, it was their moment. Stan meets her gaze as she stands in the back with the crowd, waving for her to join them, but she politely declines with a smile. As she watched them celebrate, the longer she stared the more she felt something eat up inside of her.

What was it called again?

Oh, right.

Guilt.

season 2, episode 1. scary-oke 

"Welcome to the grand re-opening of the Mystery Shack!" the crowd starts cheering, applauding at Stan's announcement that they could finally return "We're here to celebrate the defeat of that skunk Lil' Gideon." the mention of his name caused them to boo as Stan pulled out a makeshift doll that was of Gideon "Please, please... boo harder. But I didn't catch that pork chop all alone. These two scamps deserve some of the glory. Well, most of the glory." Toby, the local news reporter, raises what they believe to be a camera. 

"Smile for the camera." Stan deadpans at him. 

"Your camera's a cinderblock, Toby." the man immediately sulks. 

"I just want to be a part of things." Shandra Jimenez, the real news reporter, gets in front of them with an actual camera. 

"Smile for a real camera." 

"Everyone say "something stupid." 

"Something stupid." the flash of the camera goes off after they do funny poses "And don't forget to come to the after party tonight at eight." Mabel smiled as she knelt to grab a karaoke machine from below her. 

"We're doing a karaoke bonanza, people. Lights! Music! Enchantment! And an amazing karaoke performance by our family band, Love Patrol Alpha!" Dipper and Stan are immediately reluctant, not remembering about agreeing to do something like that. 

"Oh, I don't know about that." 

"I would never agree to that ever." 

"Too late, I wrote your names on the list." she then holds the sheet to her face, eyebrows wiggling up at Stan "I even got Alvah to agree." this caused him to flinch and look out into the crowd to try and find her, shoulders slumping a little when he wasn't able to spot her. Wendy bursts into the room with an airhorn and gets them to follow her outside so they could buy tickets to the party, when it was just them in the gift shop, Stan let out a sigh of relief with a smile on his face. 

"Ha! The town loves us. We finally got that Gideon smell out of the carpet. Everything is finally going my way." 

"Hey, Grunkle Stan," Stan let out a hum, looking down at Dipper "now that we have a moment, I've been meaning to ask for my journal back." Stan raised a brow. 

"What? Journal?" he pats himself for it then knelt down and lifted up the counter to pull the journal out from underneath it "Oh, you mean this old thing? It was so boring I couldn't even finish it." he then thinks back to how he photocopied the pages, he shakes his head as he hands it back to the young boy. 

"Wait, you're just gonna give it to me? Just like that?" 

"What else do you want? A kiss on the cheek?" Dipper was quick to flee with Mabel. 

"... I wouldn't mind a kiss on the--" 

"Not gonna happen." 

"What about me?" turning his head, he was met with Alvah, who was leaning against the counter with her chin resting on the back of her hands while she was kicking her feet back and forward. He felt his lips crease into a smile once his eyes landed on her, she winked at him "Think you can spare me a peck?" she giggled when he pulled at his tie to loosen it. 

"Thought you'd never ask." she tilted her head to the side and giggled again when she felt his lips press against her cheek, they were both laughing like high school students on their first date. Since the day where Stan kissed her they've become a lot more open about affection, there isn't a definite label for them, but they're more openly flirtatious than they were in the beginning "So, Mabel tells me you're doing a song for karaoke tonight." he laughed when her face dropped. 

"I am?" she then looks off, scratching her cheek in thought "I don't ever remember agreeing to something like that." she hums softly when he leans against the counter, their faces inches away from each other. 

"Well, I'm sure you've got the voice of an angel." 

"Mm? Then you better kill it, Love Patrol Alpha." she snickered softly when his face turned a shade of pink, she reached forward and pinched his cheek "Your adorable little niece told me about that one." she laughed when he smacked her hand away, pushing himself back and rubbing his cheek. 

"That ain't happening. Nope. Nah dah. Never." she walks out from behind the counter and drapes herself over his back. 

"Oh, come on. You don't wanna disappoint Mabel, do you? Do it for her." he lets her hang off of him but their attention goes over to Soos, who is currently looking out the window. 

"Hey, Mr. Pines, what's that code word I'm supposed to yell when I see a government vehicle?" the moment Stan heard "government", Alvah was thrown off him as he rushed over to the window. 

"Wait, what? Government vehicle?" the moment his eyes landed on said vehicle he quickly pulled himself back inside and quickly closed the windows, he then rushed over to the intercom and spoke into it "The Mystery Shack is now closed. Everybody out! I will not hesitate to use the hose on the elderly." Soos helps Alvah to her feet just as Dipper and Mabel run back into the room. 

"Grunkle Stan, what's happening?" 

"Yeah, you never shut down the gift shop." Alvah is ushering the kids to the side as Stan paces back and forth, Wendy and Soos watch in concern when the doorbell rings and Stan approaches the door. 

"Welcome to the Mystery Shack, gentlemen. What can I get you? Key chains? Snow globes? These rare photos of American presidents?" the two men at the door pull out government badges, each displaying their ID. 

"My name is Agent Powers. This is Agent Trigger. We're here to investigate reports of mysterious activity in this town." 

"Activity." 

"Mysterious activity in the Mystery Shack? You got to be joking." 

"I assure you I am not. I was born with a rare disorder that makes me physically incapable of experiencing humor." Stan lets out a nervous laugh "I don't understand that sound you're making with your mouth. Now if you'll excuse us, we're conducting an investigation." they then brush past Stan, who started to sweat nervously as they searched the gift shop. Alvah was holding both Dipper and Mabel by the shoulders as they watched the two men look around but she let out a gasp when Dipper slipped away from her. 

"Did you guys say you're investigating the mysteries of this town?" 

"That information is classified. But, yes. Look, between you and me, I believe there is a conspiracy of paranormal origin all connected to this town. We're just one small lead away from blowing the lid off this entire mystery." Dipper's face brightened. 

"Are you kidding me? I'm investigating the exact same thing. I found this journal in the woods which has almost all the answers. If we work together, we could crack the case." the agents share a look. 

"If you have evidence of these claims, we should talk." Agent Powers starts as he pulls out a business card. 

"We can talk right now. Please, please, come in. I have so much to show you!" it was at that moment when Stan and Alvah interfered, Dipper didn't expect Alvah to get in between him and the agents and push him backward while shaking her other hand in front of Agent Powers, a casual but warm smile on her face as Stan got behind her to usher Dipper away as she captured his attention. 

"Isn't his imagination just something? If you ask me, there isn't anything weird going on around here. Probably just the locals playing pranks and whatnot. You shouldn't believe the rumors that circulate around this quiet little town." both she and Agent Powers stand up straight, both their eyes locked on each other "There is no mysterious activity going on around here. Stuff like that just... doesn't exist. If I were you, I'd forget all about this town and get as far away as possible." the two of them just stare at each other, neither breaking eye contact until Stan got in front of her. 

"She's right, agents. Kid has an overactive imagination, and, like, a sweating problem." 

"Zing!" Mabel shouts from the background and Alvah giggles. 

"Paranormal town stuff, like Alvah here said, it's just part of the gift shop lore. Sells more tickets, you know." he snaps his fingers and Soos proceeds to put bumper stickers on their chests and headbands on their heads. 

"We have other spots to investigate. We'll be on our way." Agent Powers leaves while Agent Trigger grabs a couple of bobblehead dolls his arms can carry. 

"I'm confiscating this for evidence." 

"Smart move." she let out a breath of relief when they left, having them around was going to be a pain in the-- 

"Wait! No, wait! We have so much to talk about." they were already gone by the time Dipper reached the door, but Stan placed his hand on Dipper's shoulder and turned him around. 

"Hold it, kiddo. Trust me, the last thing you want around here at a party is cops." he then takes the business card from Dipper's hands "I'm confiscating that card. And how's about you go be a normal kid? Flirt with a girl, or steal a pie off a windowsill." 

"But Grunkle Stan, you don't understand." 

"And don't go talking to those agents." Dipper looks at Alvah for help, eyes pleading for her to talk to Stan and convince him, but she just gives him an apologetic look with a shrug and follows after him. She was the last person he expected to side with Stan, well, not really, but whenever it came to anything that Dipper was passionate about or set his mind to, she was always the first one to encourage him. But weirdly enough, she was openly against the idea of those government agents being around, going so far as to claim that there was nothing weird going around in Gravity Falls. It was hours later and Alvah was helping set up for the after-party, helping Mabel set up her karaoke machine. 

"You look cute, Mabel." the young girl giggled and did a little twirl. 

"Thanks, Alvah." she then gestures for her to step aside, pulling out some sort of glittery gun, she then witnessed her shoot confetti out of it at Stan "Boom! Well, the confetti cannon works. And the karaoke machine has all the best songs. "We built this township on rock and roll", "Danger lane to highway town", "T8king over midnight" by &NDRA." Alvah hummed softly, what old songs. 

"Listen, kid, you do not want to hear this voice singing. Trust me." 

"Grunkle Stan, karaoke isn't about sounding good. It's about sounding terrible, together." 

"Together." Alvah echoes before letting out a grunt when Mabel hugs her face, Mabel is standing on the stage so she had the elevation to do so. 

"And Alvah wants to see you sing as well, don't you?" they look at each other and she gives a cheeky smile. 

"Scared?" Stan scowls at them, he opens his mouth to say something but instead closed it and stomped off, the two laugh "Surely he won't back down from this fight." she hummed softly when Mabel kissed her cheek. 

"You're just the best, Alvah." she winks. 

"I know." she stands off to the side as guests start pulling up, she greets the few people who walked past her and quietly enjoys the party. Soos and Mabel were having fun at the party, Stan was outside at the admission stand, but she couldn't spot Wendy or Dipper anywhere. 

"Hey, toots!" she perks up and looked over to see Stan approaching her, she smiled and waved her hand "Have you seen Wendy and Dipper anywhere?" she shook her head with a shrug of her shoulders. 

"Nope, was just questioning that." she looked towards the crowd and spotted Mabel, she lifted her fingers to her lips and blew on them "Mabel!" the girl paused in her movements and looked to where she heard the sound of her name when she spotted Alvah she grinned until she noticed she was waving her over, so she quickly rushed over. 

"What's up?" 

"Have you seen your brother anywhere?" she snorts. 

"Yeah, he went inside with Wendy." she then wiggles her eyebrows at them "Hopefully they're not doing you know what." they both look at each other. 

"I hope they're not doing you know what." Stan rushes inside, Alvah snorts at the panicked look he had on his face and ushers Mabel back to enjoy the party. After a couple of minutes, she only sees Wendy, and still no sign of Dipper, perhaps he wasn't feeling up for a party after what happened that morning. She should probably apologise to him about not having his back, but it's for the best if government officials are left in the dark about what's going on in this quie-- she let out a whoa when she suddenly felt rumbling, she then glances over at the food bar and her eyes widened when she saw the bowl of punch splashing around as the earth shook. 

"I think it's an earthquake!" Wendy shouts as she blows an airhorn "Hey, everybody! We got to get out of here!" as soon as she announces that everyone starts fleeing back to their cars, Alvah tries pushing past the crowd to get to Mabel but is unfortunately carried off with the panicked citizens. It was only when the crowd dispersed that she was able to run back to the shack to check up on the kids when she saw... zombies? 

"What the...?" she muttered under her breath as she saw the zombies surround the shack, she panicked when she couldn't find Dipper or Mabel anywhere, what made it worse was she saw a zombified Soos, who was now looking at her. 

"Hey, dude. Would it be cool if me and my new buds eat your brains?" she gave him a scrutinizing stare, gaze hardening the longer she stared at him "I'm not hearing a no." 

"Soos!" she yelped when they started approaching her so she was quick to run away, she tried opening the doors but they were locked so she went to try and find an open window but they too were closed and latched shut. She didn't have any time to properly find a way inside because the zombies were beginning to surround her, she backed away from the window then rushed forward and jumped through the window, breaking through the glass while shielding her face from any broken glass. She let out a sigh when her clothes got caught in the broken shards and tore a little, but that was the least of her worries, what she needs is to find those ki-- she gasped when a zombie appeared out of nowhere, grabbing her by the shoulders and pushing her into a door hard enough that it broke and they both fell in. She managed to kick the offender off of her but it was crawling back with the determination to eat her face, she looked around the closet for anything to defend herself and her face lit up at what she found "Oh, Stan, you shouldn't have." back to Dipper, Mabel, and Waddles, the two of them were cornered in the gift shop with nowhere else to go. 

"Dipper, isn't there something in the journal about defeating zombies?" 

"No! There's nothing in here about weaknesses. This can't be happening. I wanted answers so badly that I put everyone in danger. Now we're toast. It's all my fault and no one can save us." Dipper gasped when he was grabbed by the zombie and pulled off the ground "No, Mabel! I'm sorry!" 

"Dipper!" he screams as he's faced with a groaning zombie but is suddenly released when the zombie was hit in the head, he falls to the ground and Mabel was quick to rush to his side, looking up at their savior they are met with a disheveled looking Stan. He was missing his fez hat, his tie was loosely hanging from his neck, he had several tears in his suit and zombie blood splattered over him. 

"You two, attic. Now!" 

"Grunkle... Grunkle Stan?" 

"I said now!" they didn't need to be told twice, they quickly ran past him to get upstairs while he swung a bat down on the wave of zombies that surrounded him "Alright you undead jerks, ready to die twice?" he's panting as he's backed into the living room, taking down a few more zombies "The only wrinkly monster who harasses my family is me! Take that, and that!" it was only when the kids were safely upstairs he stops to take out a couple more zombies, shoving the bat into a zombie's mouth and went it snapped in two he punched it wearing his brass knuckles "Anyone else want a piece?!" he punches down a couple more just as the front door is busted down, he dodges a couple of swipes but was nicked in the stomach, he pulls his fist but stopped when he heard a shout. 

"Get down!" he quickly falls back into the staircase just as the zombie's brains are blown right out of its head, turning his head, he was met with Alvah just as disheveled as he was. Her dress was torn and was covered in dirt and zombie blood, and her hair was still tied in a loose braid but some strands of her hair were sticking out, what did it was the double-barreled shotgun she held followed by the shotgun shell strap wrapped around her body "I'm gonna get that kid, for sure." she pants, she let out a grunt when one of the zombies that was on the ground grabbed at the end of her dress so she pointed the barrel at its head and shot it dead. 

"Alvah, are you--" he sputtered out his words when she grabbed her dress and tore it down the side, spreading her legs a little wider for more leg room. 

"That's much better." she muttered as she flipped the latch to open the barrel of the shotgun, she flicked the empty casings out and slipped two new shells down the barrel before snapping it shut and pointing at a new group of zombies "Where are the kids?!" 

"Um, um-- uh, they're, uh--" 

"Stan!" she snaps, shooting a few zombies at once and quickly reloading "Now is not the time to gawk! Where are the kids?!" she asks again, he shakes his head to get a hold of himself. 

"Right, they're upstairs!" she nods. 

"Good! Let's go join them." they stand back to back as they punch and blast the zombies away, he pushes her up the staircase first then follows after her, they look at the father clock and proceed to push it down the first flight of stairs to create some distance before rushing up towards the attic. The door is closed when they reach it, she's standing behind Stan as he bangs on the door to open it, keeping an eye out for any zombies that could appear anywhere and when he finally got the door open she quickly pushed him inside and shut the door behind him. 

"Grunkle Stan, Alvah!" he gently pushes her to the side as he grabs a chair and lodges it beneath the door handle, Dipper lets out a nervous laugh as he approached the two tired adults "Well, at least, you can't deny magic exists anymore, right?" the two of them take a second before letting out sighs. 

"Kid, I've always known." 

"Wait, what are you talking about?" Alvah stands behind Stan as she turns around, a guilty look on her face. 

"I'm not an idiot, Dipper. Of course, this town is weird and the one thing I know about that weirdness is that it's dangerous." Alvah let out a scream when a hand broke through the door and grabbed her by her hair, Stan punches her free and grabs her when she fell forward, pushing her backward alongside the kids "I've been lying about it to try to keep you away from it, to try and protect you from it." when another zombie burst through the window she let out a growl and shot it right back out, she and Stan peek out and grimace when the shack was surrounded "It looks like I didn't lie well enough." Dipper then looked at Alvah, waiting for her explanation. 

"Ignorance is bliss, Dipper. Some people just don't need to know about all this supernatural stuff, and the less I know the better it does for my mental well-being." she fell to the floor and leaned against Mabel's bed, the young girl hurried to her side, and held her arm when she started rubbing her scalp where she was yanked back by the hair "I know it's not ideal to ignore it, but if I think about it, I find it hard to sleep at night. And if you tell the wrong people, welp, I guess tonight is a great example of that." Mabel was now applying rainbow band-aids to the open cuts on both Stan and Alvah as they try thinking of ways to get out of their current predicament. 

"What do we do? What do we do?" Waddles takes cover under Mabel's bed beside Alvah, who rests her hand on top of the pig's head to comfort him. 

"Normally, the journal would help us, but there's nothing in there about defeating zombies." Dipper says as he opens the book and flips through pages before showing them, and under the UV light, there they see words written on the blank page. 

"Wait, wait, wait, the text. It's glowing in the black light." 

"What?" he turned it around and under the light as he flipped through pages he saw words written in some sort of invisible ink "All this time I thought I knew all the journal secrets, but they're written in some kind of invisible ink." 

"Invisible ink." Dipper quickly goes back to the chapter about the zombies and sees instructions on how to defeat the zombies. 

"This is it! "Zombies have a weakness! Previously thought to be invincible, their skulls can be shattered by a perfect three-part harmony." Three-part harmony? How can we create that? I have a naturally high-pitched scream." 

"I can make noises with my body. Sometimes intentionally." 

"Whoop, whoop!" they looked towards Alvah, who was bumping her hands in the air "Love patrol alpha!" she cheered then giggled, trying to make light of the situation despite the possibility that their faces could get eaten, Mabel grinned and snaps her fingers. 

"Exactly." they all find themselves standing on the ledge of the second floor window, well, Alvah was casually sitting on the edge as she leaned against the karaoke machine while Stan and Dipper stood as stiff as a board holding microphones, Mabel was the one that looked like she was having the time of her life despite her life being in danger "Zombies and gentlemen, I'm Mabel, they're Dipper and Stan and together, we are Love Patrol Alpha!" 

"Whoop, whoop!" Alvah goes off in the background, she laughed when Stan glared at her to be silent. 

"I never agreed to that name." Dipper says quickly. 

"Hit it!" Alvah quite literally hits the top of the karaoke machine and "Taking over Midnight" by &NDRA starts playing, she giggles softly when Stan squints at the screen. 

"Uh, Mabel, our lives may not be worth this." Dipper pursed his lips and tried getting into the beat. 

"Friday night, and we're gonna party 'til dawn. Don't worry daddy, I've got my favorite dress on-- Mabel, this is stupid." she ignores him and sings the next part. 

"We roll into the party, the boys are looing our way. We just keep dancing, we don't care what they say. And all the boys are ganging up in my face--" Mabel let out a startled scream when a zombie climbed up, Stan pulled her back just as Alvah stepped forward and shot it off. 

"Come on you guys, you have to sing together or it won't work." she urged while reloading the shotgun, Dipper and Stan swallow their pride. 

"Boys are a bore, let's show 'em the door." 

"We're taking over the dance floor." Alvah couldn't help but smile when they all started singing together "Oo-oo, girls do what we like. Oo-oo, we're taking over tonight. Oo-oo, girls do what we like. Oo-oo, we're taking over tonight. We're queens of the disco!" Alvah laughs and claps her hands but notices that it's actually working, looking over at the horde of zombies, one by one their heads started exploding. 

"You're doing it! Keep it up!" as she watched them she saw that they were actually having a good time, perhaps it's because no ones around that Dipper and Stan aren't embarrassed. 

"Oo-oo, girls do what we like. Oo-oo, we're taking over tonight." 

"Taking over tonight!" she quickly pulled Dipper back when a zombie climbed up once more and punched it in the face, knocking its head right of its neck and it landing in a bowl of soda, she winced and shook her hand. 

"Ow." she let out a whoa when Stan pulled her close and that was when she noticed that all the zombies were dead. 

"Thank you! We'll be here all night!" 

"Deal with it, zombie idiots!" 

"Pines! Pines! Pines! Pines!" Alvah only laughed, they were back inside and she managed to find Stan's fez hat and placed it on top of his head, he thanked her and adjusted it himself just as Dipper started apologizing. 

"I'm sorry about this, guys. I totally ruined everything." 

"Dipper, are you kidding me? I got to sing karaoke with my two favorite people in the world. No party could ever top that." she stands back as Stan crouches down to Dipper and Mabel's level, hands on their shoulders. 

"Kids, listen, this town is crazy. So you need to be careful. I don't know what I'd do with myself if you got hurt on my watch. I'll let you hold onto that spooky journal as long as you promise me you'll only use it for self-defense and not go looking for trouble." 

"Okay, as long as you promise me that you don't have any other bombshell secrets about this town." 

"Promise." 

"Promise." Alvah pulled a face when she noticed both Dipper and Stan cross their fingers behind their backs, she sighed while shaking her head, Stan then let out a sigh. 

"Man, we have got a lot of zombie damage to clean up. Where's my handyman anyway?" they look up when they see Soos enter the room, still zombified, Alvah aimed the shotgun at him while Stan picked up a chair "Holy moses!" 

"Wait!" they both paused and looked down at Dipper to see him pull out the journal "There's a page in here about curing zombification. It'll take a lot of formaldehyde." 

"Ooo, and cinnamon." 

"Come on, Soos, let's fix you up." Mabel takes the chair from Stan and starts pushing Soos away, scolding him when he kept muttering about brains, with Dipper following behind and leaving Stan and Alvah alone in the living room. Stan looks at Alvah and saw she was rocking back and forth on her feet with her hands behind her back, he looked away when she spared him a glance and whistled. 

"So..." he cleared his throat, placing a hand on the back of his neck "you were pretty cool back there, with the shotgun and all." she gave a nervous laugh herself. 

"Hehe, yeah. I found it in one of your closets when a zombie fell into me, I got real lucky." she says as she tosses the gun on the sofa "You looked pretty cool as well, punching those zombies left and right. I think I hurt my hand a little." she admits as she waves her hand once more, her knuckles a shade of red after punching the head off the zombie. 

"Well, your hands are pretty delicate, toots." Stan says as he takes her hand into his, rubbing his thumb along her knuckles while blowing cool air onto them "Thanks for protecting the kids." she gave him a reassuring smile. 

"There isn't anything I wouldn't do for those kids." she then bumps her hip into his "Including you, Stan." he just laughs, his eyes then landed on the karaoke machine that Mabel left behind. 

"Well, sweetheart, you heard my magnificent singing voice, now it's time I heard yours. You even got a performance out of me." she scoffed jokingly, placing a hand on both her hip and chest. 

"And you think that's enough to convince me?" 

"... pretty please?" her resolve broke a little at the plea, he watched her raise her leg before kicking the karaoke machine and a song started to play, she raised a brow at the song but shrugged, nonetheless. He watches as she grabs a bundle of her dress, lifting a hand to her chest and lowering her head to curtsy. Stan couldn't help but chuckle and return the formal greeting with his own awkward little bow, she giggled softly before reaching a hand forward for him to take just as she started singing.

Mabel returns to the living room, leaving Soos in Dipper's care, upon realizing she left her karaoke machine and went to retrieve it, only to pause and hide in the hallway when she heard music followed by the most beautiful voice singing alongside laughter. Peeking into the room, she gasped softly when she saw Alvah and Stan dancing alone in the living room, he held one of her hands above her as he spun her around then pulled her into his arms, her back to his chest as he held her close. She looked up at him over her shoulder and continued to sing, turning around to throw her arms over his shoulders and pull herself closer. Mabel covered her mouth when she saw Stan kneel down a little to grab Alvah but her waist and hoist her up, she planted her hands down on his shoulders to stable herself and let out a squeal as Stan spun her around before gently tossing her up, catching her bridal style in his arms as he continued to spin, she giggled as she kicked her feet and threw her arms around his neck and hid her face in the crook of his neck. 

"Ooo, Dipper's going to flip when I tell him this." she whispered under her breath before running back to where she left Dipper, missing when Alvah pulled herself out of his shoulder and how both herself and Stan stared into each other's eyes. 

"Try once more, like you did before. Sing a new song, chiquitita~" they continued to stare at each other as the song slowed down before she let out a gasp when Stan laughed just as the music started picking up again, he placed her down and grabs her hands so they could spin around. Since the song had ended she was just laughing as they spun around like idiots until they collapsed on the ground, panting softly and staring at the ceiling "That... was really fun." Stan chuckled from beside her. 

"It was." he stared at her from where they lay, he looked at her and saw that one of her hands was resting on her chest while the other lay motionless between them. They were already so close when they were dancing together, he held her close to the point he could feel her breathing against his neck and the way her heart was beating like crazy, hell, he held her hand the entire duration they were dancing, so why the hell was he getting nervous now? Was it because the adrenaline was finally dying? He taps his fingers against his chest as he continues to stare up at the ceiling before going for it, Alvah flinched at the sudden contact and looked down to see Stan placed his hand on top of hers. Her eyes trailed up his body and they saw the way his eyes refused to move away from the ceiling but she could see the way his neck to the tips of his ears had tinged a shade of red, he gulped when he felt her hand move from under his but instead of taking it back, she simply twisted her hand around so she could intertwine their fingers together and give his hand a squeeze. 

"All you had to do was ask, Stan." she giggled quietly when she saw him turn his head away from her, throwing his other arm over his face to hide the embarrassment flush across his face. 

"Shut up." she hummed softly, but that feeling of guilt started to eat at her once again as she looked away. 

season 2, episode 2. into the bunker 

only appears at the beginning with stan, helping guide the construction workers where stuff goes. 

season 2, episode 3. the golf war 

joins them to play mini golf and is pretty good at it, that is until she hits the golf balls too hard and sends it flying. 

stan laughed at her when accidentally hit someone in the head. 

mabel gave her a sticker that said "be PAWsitive". 

she'll take what she can get. 

she comforts mabel when pacifica insults her once more but couldn't help but burst into laughter when mabel fires back and calls her a "walking one-dimensional bleached blonde valley girl stereotype". 

she was so proud. 

season 2, episode 4. sock opera 

mabel is begging on her hands and knees for alvah's help with her sock puppet show, knowing how good the older woman is when it comes to sewing. 

she has to pick mabel up to get the girl to cease, mostly because they were in public and it was making alvah look bad. 

she laughed at the sock puppet mabel made of her, she thought the likeliness was almost uncanny. 

as the days grew closer to mabel's puppet show, she noticed with each passing day dipper's desperation to unlock the laptop they found in that underground bunker was getting to him. 

she told the boy to take it easy, that the laptop was going anywhere and he could put his focus on it when he isn't so busy helping his sister. 

she found it sweet that he was helping her in the first place. 

"Oh, hi, Dipper. There you are." Alvah was with Wendy and Soos, planning on going to the theatre with them since Stan's car was full with the girls and the stuff for her puppet show, they walk out of the shack and find Dipper standing outside. 

"What up, dude?" Wendy greets, Alvah herself smiles at the boy as she waves. 

"You excited for your sister's play?" she felt a chill run up her spine when they approached him, she patted her chest and looked behind her but ignored the feeling when she didn't see anything "You're not catching a ride with Stan and the others? Guess they didn't wait for you." 

"We're headed to the theatre." 

"Need a ride, Dipper?" the boy let out a laugh. 

"Anything for you, Red." Alvah raised a brow at the odd nickname Dipper gave Wendy, she decided to ignore it and takes a seat in the backseat of Soos' truck, leaving Soos, Wendy and Dipper in the front. They arrived at the theatre and had taken their seats, Stan was to her left with Soos, Dipper and Wendy to her right, and the entire time she kept her eye on Dipper because he was just acting weird "Ah, nothing like the theatre, huh, toots? Hey, Soos, want to hear the exact time and date of your death?" Soos laughs. 

"Okay." she opens her mouth to say something but then Mabel appeared, looking happy upon seeing them. 

"Hey, guys, you all made it." 

"Are you kidding me? I would never miss, whatever this is." Alvah elbows him in his side. 

"By the by, Mabel, where'd you put my journal again?" 

"I used it as a prop for the big wedding scene. I still need a reverend though." 

"Hey, what if I play the reverend? I mean, someone's got to hold that journal, right?" 

"Great, let's go." that feeling of a chill running up her spine returned again the moment Mabel ran off with Dipper to get behind stage, she pulled a face but instead of doing anything she crossed her arms and leaned back into her seat. Stan looked down at her and saw the way her face twisted with concern, she let out a hum when he elbowed her. 

"You alright, toots?" she let out a sigh. 

"I don't know. Dipper's just been acting... off? He's become so desperate to find the author of that journal of his that he's losing himself, you know? I'm worried about him. Maybe you should talk to him that this summer is not just about uncovering the mysteries of this town but about having fun, it's like he's almost forgotten." Stan let out a huff. 

"Yeah, yeah, maybe I shouldn't have given him that journal back, but uncovering mysteries is how that kid has fun. He's just got to stop taking it so seriously." he then places his hand on her shoulder, causing her to look up at him "Alright, I'll talk to him and try and get him to settle." she smiles. 

"Thanks, Stan." he chuckles. 

"If I didn't know it, you're acting more and more like the kid's guardian than me." she laughed and shoved him gently. 

"Oh, how could I replace you, Stan? You're their great uncle Stanford." they're both laughing but quiet down when the play begins. 

alvah, no matter how confusing the play was, was quite impressed with the story and found herself applauding throughout the night. 

she made a few comments here and there but other than that she was enjoying herself. 

it was during the wedding scene when everything seemed to fall apart. 

alvah let out a gasp when mabel and dipper fell from above and crashed onto the stage, she was confused as to why they were fighting over the journal. 

she side-eyed stan when he pulled out a camera and started recording them, saying how he could "sell this". 

she pushed him off his seat. 

the "fight" lasted a couple seconds with mabel slamming the journal on dipper's face before running around in circles and dipper eventually tiring himself out then collapsing. 

soon enough they were all ducking when a box of pyrotechnics went off and fired off into the crowd, one even landing in the box of sock puppets and exploding all over the stage. 

the stage was promptly destroyed. 

season 2, episode 5. soos and the real girl 

only really appears to tell soos that he's a really swell guy and that he'll find a girl perfect for him. 

smacks stan when he says he doesn't like soos' chances. 

is also really creeped out about "old goldie". 

season 2, episode 6. little gift shop of horrors 

doesn't really appear in this episode. 

season 2, episode 7. society of the blind eye 

only appears at the end of when the children, soos and wendy return with old man mcgucket after their fiasco with the society of the blind eye. 

after discovering that mcgucket was the owner of the laptop they suspected that he was the author of the journals. 

so they went on this whole adventure to the museum so they could recover his memories. 

that was when they stumbled upon the cult that was "the society of the blind eye", who were erasing people's memories of the paranormal activities that were going on. 

when they were finally able to defeat this club of freaks and get a hold of mcgucket's memories, that's when they discovered his past and his connection with alvah. 

"Alright, McGucket. Are you ready to see your memories? Find out who you really are?" Dipper asks as he switches the machine on that allows them to play back the memories that were unrightfully stolen, McGucket doesn't look all too thrilled, or nervous about what he is going to see. 

"I'm not so sure. What if I don't like what I see?" Mabel places her hand encouragingly on his arm. 

"We've come all this way. Go on." with his memory tube in hand, he approaches the machine and slots it into place. The television spurs to life and they wait a couple seconds before it reveals a younger less crazy version of McGucket. 

"My name is Fiddleford Hadron McGucket, and I wish to unsee what I have seen." they all gasp, finally seeing who exactly the old man-- or rather, Fiddleford McGucket really was "For the past year, I have been working as an assistant for a visiting researcher. He has been cataloguing his findings about Gravity Falls in a series of journals. I helped him build a machine which he believed had the potential to benefit all mankind, but something went wrong. I decided to quit the project. But I lie awake at night, haunted by the thoughts of what I've done. I believe I have invented a machine that can permanently erase these memories from my mind. Test subject one. Fiddleford." 

"It worked! I can't recall a thing." 

"I call it "The Society of the Blind Eye. We will help those who want to forget by erasing their bad memories." 

"Today, I came across a colony of little men. Very disturbing. I would like to forget seeing this." 

"I accidentally hit another car in town today. I feel terri-bibble. Terrible. I've been forgetting words lately. I wonder if there are any negative side effects..." 

"I saw something in the lake, something big!" 

"My hair's been a-fallin' out, so I got this hat from a scarecrow. Hey, are my pants on backwards?" 

As they watched the days go by with each clip, they saw how Fiddleford descended into madness and by the time the days reached ??? he had become the senile old man McGucket they all knew today who had laughed maniacally at the end while spouting out senseless words, the screen was filled with static. The room fell into silence as they looked at the once renowned inventor become a shell of his former self. 

"Oh, McGucket, I'm so sorry." 

"Aw, hush. You kids helped me get my memories back, just like you said." 

"But did you want those memories back?" 

"After all these years, I finally know who I am. Maybe I messed up in the past, but now that I seen what happened, I can begin to put myself together again." he reaches for his memory tube when the TV spurred to life again, causing them to jump back in surprise. It wasn't over yet? McGucket takes a step back and watches the TV once more and they heard the audio first before they saw any visual of what was going on, but from what they could tell, whoever McGucket was talking to he didn't seem all too pleased. 

"Get away from me! I don't want you anywhere near me!" they hear a clatter followed by glass shattering as Fiddleford tried getting as far away from whoever was with him "I know what you really are! I know you're just a wolf in sheep's clothing! You're a monster amongst us lesser beings!" they hear a sigh. 

"Fiddleford, you're being overdramatic." the voice was of a man that they could not recognize, it was hard to determine who it could possibly be "I'm not here to hurt you, I just wanna apologize for what happened back then." 

"So, you're acknowledging the fact that you did it on purpose!" 

"No, I didn't! You just appeared unannounced and caught me off guard! How on earth is that my fault?! It's not my fault you saw something you weren't supposed to see. Now look at you, you've started some... some, some cult!" 

"It ain't no cult! We're helping people, you see? We're erasing the bad things that people don't wanna remember." 

"And what if you're erasing too much? What if people start to forget who they are? And what about you? I know you've been using that thing one too many times on yourself to the point you're forgetting who you are. Do you even remember what you were doing in Gravity Falls in the first place?" 

"U-Uh, I was... I-I was--" the sound of a slam caused Fiddleford to shriek, they all then noticed how a picture started to form and at first all they saw was a still somewhat decent-looking Fiddleford looking absolutely terrified as he stared at the looming individual who was slowly approaching him. 

"What happens when you start to forget about your wife? And your son? Do you even remember their names? What if they come up from California and they see something they weren't supposed to see? Are you going to erase their minds as well? How selfish can you be?" the individual takes another step just as the picture is formed and their eyes widened when they saw a pair of uniquely colored red eyes that held nothing but disappointment "How do you think he'll feel if he saw the state you've fallen into?" he didn't flinch when he pointed the gun at him, his gaze only hardened. 

"Don't-- Don't come any closer or else I-I'll... I'll use this on you!" he rolled his eyes. 

"Yeah, you don't have the guts to shoot me with that thing." Fiddleford's shaking got worse with each step he took "Now put that thing down before you hur--" their eyes widened when he shot him with the memory gun, even he was surprised that he actually shot him, he stumbled back in surprise and fell into the table behind him while clutching his head. They saw a wave of confusion wash over his face as he looked around before looking back over at where Fiddleford was, when he saw the way, he was panting as he stared at him, his face hardened with anger. 

"I-I... I warned you." he let out a shout when he lunged at him to smack the gun out of his hand. He brought his arms up to shield his face from what he believed he was going to attack him, but instead he let out a frustrated huff. 

"Fine then, have it your way. I'm only checking up on you as a request from your old friend, but I have no obligation to actually care for you." turning around and despite the TV failing to capture a high-quality image they were able to distinguish a fairly young man dressed in rather odd clothes, it was someone that they didn’t recognize from anywhere. Not from the town, not a tourist who could have visited the Mystery Shack. It was a total stranger to them. Who were they? They mentioned a friend. Could that friend the author or someone else entirely? "Perhaps when you come to your senses, I'll be nice and fill in the few blanks of what you can't remember. But that'll be until then." the video cuts off and they're left in silence once more, they all look at McGucket and see him shaking. 

"I... I remember him. I still can't remember everything exactly, but... but he's one of the reasons I became like this. But he didn't do it intentionally, I think?" 

"Does that mean whoever the man was had his memory erased? Does that mean his memory is somewhere here as well? Maybe if we find it, we might get some more answers." 

"Oh, you kids can go do that without me. I've got some remembering to do." they were hesitant to let him go but he reassured them that he’d be fine, he took a pair of glasses he found on the TV and left them to search for the mystery man’s memory tube. 

Meanwhile... 

"Stan... Stan, s-stop it!" Stan laid on top of her, laughing alongside her as he kissed up her neck and all over her face, his hands holding her by her waist as she did her best to push him away by his face and shoulder "I'm ticklish! Hahaha, stop it!" he only continued his attack just so he could continue to hear the melody that was her laughter, his grip on her tightening as she squirmed underneath him. 

"Nah uh, sweetheart. I don't know how long those kids are gonna be, but I wanna spend the rest of my night with you." she smiled up at him, wrapping her arms loosely around his neck and pulling herself up so she could press her lips against his and he welcomed it warmly. His hand moved up to her lower back to lift her closer to him so she tightened her hold around his neck, they both pulled apart to take a breath and before they could dive in for more, they heard the front doorbell ring. They break apart and look to where the door is, waiting breathlessly for it to ring again, they think they're in the clear and go to continue until it rings again "Urgh, dammit! I'm gonna strangle whoever's at the door." she giggled softly when he lifted himself off of her, grumbling to himself as he went to answer the door. 

"Go easy on them." she teased, she hums to herself as she waits for Stan to tell whoever it was to get lost but jumped when he instead shouted for her. 

"Alvah, it's for you!" she raised a brow, oh? She shrugged her shoulders and pushed herself to her feet, cleaning herself up a bit before leaving the room. She had her calm and kind demeanor as she peeked over Stan's shoulder, greeting whoever it was with a smile but her face twitched a little when she saw who exactly it was "How old man McGucket knew you were here, I'll never know." she and McGucket stared at each other, similar to how they stared at each other back at the mineshaft, but she saw a different glint in his eyes the longer they held their stare. 

"I'd like a word with you, Miss Alvah." 

"Well now, wait just one moment bus--" 

"Of course, perhaps we'll settle the feud between us." Stan stared at her in shock, giving her puppy dog eyes to get her to come back inside, but she simply patted Stan on the head and pushed him gently inside "I promise we won't be too long, just go back inside and wait for me. I'll even stay over, if that's what you want." he stared at her before throwing his head back with a sigh. 

"Urgh, fine! But don't take too long! We were just getting to the fun part." she laughed and ushered him inside. 

"I won't!" she leaned her head inside and waited for him to be fully gone before closing the door behind her, her face completely changed as she leaned against the front door, arms crossed and attention back on the man in front of her "So, Fiddleford Hadron McGucket, what would you like to remember?" a smirk stretched across her face when she saw Fiddleford glare up at her. 

"Everything." she chuckled cruelly. 

"Oh, with pleasure." 

season 2, episode 8. blendin's game 

the children don't bring up knowing that alvah and mcgucket have history amongst each other. 

either that or they just don't want to believe that alvah did something bad that caused mcgucket to spiral the way he is. 

in the episode, alvah knows the history behind soos' tragic tale of his birthday and, despite the heartache it gives him, encourages the twins to make this birthday worth it. 

she was also there ten years ago when stan first hired soos, patting his head with a smile. 

season 2, episode 9. love god 

doesn't involve herself with stan when he tries to appeal to the "hippy weirdos" during the festival. 

she does laugh when she saw his failed attempt at making a hot air balloon. 

she quotes "I heart kids" for the rest of the day, irritating him. 

season 2, episode 10. northwest mansion mystery 

doesn't make an appearance in the episode. 

season 2, episode 11. not what he seems 

"What happened here?" Alvah arrived at the Mystery Shack when the Pines twins were putting out a fire with water balloons, she greets the twins when they came running up to her with hugs and looked over at Stan, who was casually sitting on the outside sofa while drinking a pitt cola. She waved her hand and perked up when he waved his hand to greet her back before gesturing for her to come over, she ruffles their heads before making her way over to him and taking a seat beside him "Good morning, Stan. You seem to be in a chipper mood." he lets out a laugh. 

"I'm in an even better mood now that you're here." she giggled softly. 

"Stop it." they're laughing together until they're both looking out at Dipper and Mabel, she snickers softly when Dipper throws a balloon rather weakly that it barely makes it a foot from him, he's immediately wiped out by a balloon to the face by Mabel "But seriously, what's gotten you smiling this morning?" he clears his throat as he rubs the back of his neck. 

"Well, do you remember how I told you I've been working on something for the past thirty years?" she raises a brow but nods her head "I think... I think it's coming together now. I'm so close to it now that I'm not gonna let anything get in my way from my greatest achievement." her gaze softened as she placed her hand on his knee. 

"Then I hope everything goes your way, Stan." he smiles at her and places his hand on top of hers, however, her eyes widened in surprise when a water balloon was thrown at her, soaking her. They look over and see that it was Dipper who had thrown it, whose face was frozen with horror. 

"O-Oh my gosh, Alvah! That was meant for Stan!" said man was howling with laughter, she stared at Stan and promptly shoved him off the sofa, which caused the kids to laugh, and then proceed to shower him with water balloons. 

"Alright, alright! Hahaha! I tell ya, it's unnatural for siblings to get along as well as you do." Mabel lets out a laugh. 

"Haha! Don't worry, we've still got plenty of summer left to drive each other crazy." she cheers as she grabs a hold of Dipper, he then pushes her back and splashes her with a water balloon. 

"Heh, yeah... plenty of summer left." she grabbed his hand from behind him after hearing the way his voice dampened a little, he squeezed it and smiled when she squeezed his hand "Kids, there's something I... something I should tell you. It's, um... w-well it's complicated. I..." she was startled when he abruptly took his hand back from her "I'm gonna go refresh my soda." she and the children watch him rush off in a hurry, they look up at her to see if she knew why he fled the way she did but even she looked confused. 

"Alvah?" her face saddened when he disappeared but she shook her head and smiled at the kids. 

"I'm sure whatever he has to tell you is just hard for him to expl--" she shot up to her feet when she heard shouting, immediately getting in front of the kids to protect them "Stan? Are you alri--" she lets out a gasp when a group of armed men came out from around the corner and pointed guns at her, the kids jumped back when she was tackled to the ground. 

"Alvah!" she lets out a grunt when the man above her grabbed her by the wrists and slapped handcuffs around them. 

"Target secure." she turned her head and her eyes widened when she saw the soldiers surround Dipper and Mabel. 

"Kids are secure." she was lifted to her feet as a squadron of government soldiers broke into the house through the windows, she glared at the man who was handling her. 

"Hey! I haven't done anything! I know my rights." she turned her head when she saw Stan was being escorted by another government soldier "Stan! What's going on? Why am I being arrested?!" 

"Alvah, I-- hey! Hands off, you stooge! I don't understand. What did I do that warrants this much arresting?" Stan shouts as he was held down on the boot of a car, she was treated nicer than him and was left standing, she scoffs when she saw Agent Powers and Agent Trigger appear. 

"The government guys? I thought you got eaten by zombies." 

"We survived... barely." 

"I used Trigger as a human shield. He cried like a baby." she deadpanned, she didn't need to know that "This is security footage of a government waste facility. At 0400 hours last night, someone robbed 300 gallons of dangerous waste." 

"What? You think that's me?" 

"Don't play dumb with us, Pines!" 

"But I actually am dumb! Last night I was restocking the gift shop... I swear!" he was then taken into the car, leaving Alvah with the kids still handcuffed. 

"Why am I being arrested? What did I do?" she leaned back as her face scrunched up with anger when he got close to her. 

"We've been keeping an eye on Mr Pines ever since that zombie incident and we've noticed that you have a close relationship with him." she let out a gasp when she was being led away to a different government vehicle, her eyes not leaving Agent Powers "We might not have any video evidence of you helping, but we can't write you off the list just yet." 

"I'm being arrested for mere association with him?! I swear, this isn't going to end well for you!" 

stan finds it slightly amusing seeing alvah get a mugshot but is silenced when she glares at him from across the room. 

she and stan are separated into different interrogation rooms but she could just hear him fumbling over his words, trying to say "he's innocent until proven guilty", but failing. 

they really had no need to take her in as well but from what they've observed, she and stan were nearly always seen together. 

what's to say she wasn't with him during that ordeal? 

they asked her questions to get her to talk, to get her to prove that it was indeed stan who stole the nuclear waste. 

but throughout the interrogation, she was eerily quiet. 

giving short or one-worded answers. 

what really disturbed them was how calm she looked, her eyes and voice devoid of any emotion. 

from what they got from the locals, alvah was a walking ray of sunshine. no matter who saw her she always had some way to make them smile. 

she was kind, nice, and polite and the type of person who you could talk to no matter the topic. 

but the woman sitting in the interrogation room, a singular light hanging above her head as she stared at them without blinking... it terrified them. 

"She's a lot creepier than I would have thought." 

"Let's get some air. Her answers are getting us nowhere." Alvah watched them leave the room before slumping back in her seat, she knew this day was coming but she didn't expect she'd be arrested like Stan, it was a little humiliating if she was being honest. She hoped the kids were alright, she knew Stan was fine telling how the agents left him alone in the room, but she was getting a little frustrated that they were holding her here all because she and Stan were close. She began to scowl but let out an oh when everything, including herself, started floating a few feet off the ground before dropping back down with a notable thud. 

"Huh, now ain't that interesting." unlike Stan, she was handcuffed to the table in front of her so she tugged it back when it dropped a few inches away from where it originally was. This was going to get a lot more fun, a few hours rolled by and the group of agents came back into the room with determined expressions. 

"Look here, lady. You may not be guilty of any crimes unlike Mr Pines in the next room over, but you could get into serious trouble for withholding information. If you tell us what you know, you can go home." she just raised a brow at him. 

"Uh huh." she answered boredly, leaning back against her seat while letting her head hang back, looking up at the ceiling like it was the most interesting thing she's seen all day. She didn't flinch when the agent slammed his hand onto the table, she simply raised her head to look at the agent, expression indifferent "Struck a nerve?" she snickered when he grabbed her by the collar of her chest, yanking her out of her seat and scowling at that smug look on her face. 

"You're stepping on thin ice, lady." 

"Ooo, I'm so scared." she let out a laugh when he threw her back into the chair and she waved her hands from where they were chained "Now that ain't a way to treat a lady. Have you no manners?" she then started laughing rather manically, this was the first emotion they got out of her that entire time and it really freaked them out, with how far her smile stretched across her face and how her laughter echoed throughout the empty room. 

"God, you're creepy. I don't know why this town likes you so much." she winked. 

"Thanks. I take that as a real compliment." she grinned cheekily at him when he slumped against the table, she glanced over at a clock and saw that it was seconds away from nine o'clock "Hey, do any of you guys get motion sick?" they look at her with confused expressions. 

"What? No?" she chuckled. 

"Good, then you'll be just fine." the moment the clock struck nine everything in the room started floating just like before, but this time it lasted much longer and the agents in the room began freaking out. She continued to sit calmly in her seat while the other men tried their best to find anything stable, she glanced to the side when she heard in the room over a whole lot of shouting, she figured Stan had managed to free himself and was effortlessly getting himself out of the room. The moment the gravity came back everyone fell to the ground with a grunt, she just looked down at them amused, she perked up when she saw something run across the window of the door before coming back. 

"Alvah! Let me--" she raised her hand and shook her head, gesturing for him to leave. 

"You clearly have somewhere to be, Stan. I'll be fine. I'll catch up with you later." she winked at him and though he seemed reluctant he dashed out of the police station, now that Stan was finally gone, she inhaled deeply while rolling her shoulders "Finally, the day of his return has arrived." the agents were slowly peeling themselves off the floor when they finally noticed Alvah stand to her feet, the one that was being violent with her pulled himself up by using the table but noticed that when she stood up the handcuffs that kept her secured to the table snapped off. 

"Hey, lady..." he paused when he saw her lace her fingers together and push them forward so she could crack her knuckles, followed by rolling her neck before finally settling her eyes on him "y-you can't just--" he was cut off when she grabbed him by the collar of his shirt, the same way he grabbed her, and pulled him until they were inches away from each other's faces. 

"What happened to that big boy attitude from before? Don't tell me that was all for show." that same grin that scared them stretched across her face again but this time her eyes held a sort of viciousness, or rather, insanity "You should have left us well alone, and maybe then you wouldn't have to suffer such a gruesome fate." the next couple of minutes the room was filled with cries and screams followed by maniacal laughter that slowly died out as time ticked by, the agents in the next toom quickly burst out of the room the moment they collected their bearings and ran out to chase after Stan but first checked up on their fellow agents interrogating Stan's part-- they all recoil back at the stench of death lingering out of the room, how blood was splattered across the floor and walls and even the ceiling, and at the center of it all was Alvah, holding the broken arm of the same man who was acting up on her. 

"Y-You..." her head snaps towards them like a doll, they flinch back at the sight of blood dripping down her face as she presses the heel of her boot into the agent's head to keep him still. 

"You should have heeded my warning, Agent Powers." she spoke, she took a step forward but raised the leg that was on the agent's head, they flinched back when she slammed her foot down and crushed his head "If I were you, I'd forget all about this town and get as far away as possible. But now... I can't let you leave. You know too much." Agent Powers takes a step back when she snaps her head again, her pupils moving erratically within her eye socket. 

"We should have kept our eyes on you, not Stanford." 

stan was running as fast as he could back to the mystery shack, hoping that soos did as he was asked and protected the vending machine. 

little did he know that dipper and mabel found his stash of fake id's, the newspaper article that proclaimed he was dead and the code that unlocks the vending machine to reveal the hidden door that leads to the basement. 

soos, dipper and mabel venture down into the basement and in horror found exactly what the government agents were searching for. 

the machine that could potentially destroy the world. 

with only a minute to go, the trio found a manual override that could possibly shut the machine down and stop it from tearing the universe apart. 

turning the three keys at the same time, it powers up a button directly in front of the machine that could shut down the machine. 

they quickly rush over to it, intending to shut it down for good when stan finally made it back. 

"Don't touch that button!" they all whip their heads towards the door and see a panicked look on Stan's face as he shouted at them to stop, he saw the way they stared at him with mixed feelings. Betrayal, anger, confusion, Dipper's hand was hovering over the button that could potentially ruin thirty years of his progress "Dipper, just back away. Please don't press that shutdown button. You gotta trust me." the boy's gaze hardened on him as he looked between him and the button. 

"And I should trust you, why? After you stole radioactive waste, after you lied to us all summer! I don't even know who you are!" 

"Look, I know this all seems nuts, but I need that machine to stay on. If you just let me explain--" his head snapped towards his watch and started beeping, indicating that another gravitational anomaly was going off "Oh! Oh, no! Brace yourselves!" the machine that Stan had been working on spurred to life, a gateway of sorts opened up as they were lifted off the ground, this anomaly was much more powerful than the previous ones because it started to lift the shack off the ground along with the other buildings within Gravity Falls. 

"T-Minus thirty-five seconds." they're all floating off in different directions, Mabel, however, got her foot caught in the wire attached to the shutdown button. 

"Mabel! Hurry! Shut it down!" Stan panics when he saw her pulling herself towards the button, he manages to plant his feet on the wall he was thrown into and push himself towards her. 

"No! Mabel, Mabel, wait! Stop!" he let out a grunt when Soos slammed into him to stop him "Soos, what are you doing? I gave you an order!" Soos tightened his hold on Stan. 

"Sorry, Mr Pines, if that really is your name, but I have a new mission now, protecting these kids!" 

"Soos, you idiot, let me go!" Dipper manages to throw himself at Stan, sending the three of them flying through the air. 

"Let me go!" 

"Mabel, press the red button! Shut it down!" 

"No, you can't! You gotta trust me!" 

"Grunkle Stan, I don't even know if you're my Grunkle! I wanna believe you, but..." 

"Then listen to me. Remember this morning, when I said I wanted to tell you guys something?" they briefly looked away when the timer went off, saying that they had twenty seconds, the gateway surged with energy and threw the boys back into the wall opposite to where Mabel was, she raises her fist to push the button but stopped when he started speaking again "I wanted to say that you're gonna hear some bad things about me, and some of 'em are true, but trust me, everything I've worked for, everything I care about, it's all for this family." 

"Mabel, what if he's lying?! This thing could destroy the world! Listen to your head!" 

"Look into my eyes, Mabel! You really think I'm a bad guy?" 

"He's lying! Shut it down, now!" 

"Mabel, please!" Mabel looked between Stan and Dipper, her head swirling with all kinds of thoughts. Mabel didn't know who to choose-- who to believe. On one hand, Stan was pleading with her to not push the button? But what did he gain from this machine being on and possibly destroying the universe. On the other, Dipper was telling her to push the button to prevent such a catastrophe from happening. The timer slowly counted down as her hand lowered towards the button, she looked back at Stan and saw how much he was begging her not to do it. 

"Grunkle Stan... I trust you." with that she raised her hands above her head and allowed herself to float away from the button. 

"Mabel, are you crazy?! We're all gonna--" the moment the timer struck one a blister of white light exploded out of the machine and enveloped the entire room, this lasted for a couple seconds before gravity returned and everything fell back to the ground. Looking towards the machine, it was completely destroyed at this point but the gateway was still powered on and Dipper saw through the smoke a figure walking through. The figure approached them but stopped right in front of one of the journals, Dipper watched as he placed his six-fingered hand on top of the cover before lifting it off the ground and putting it in his coat "W-What? Who is that?" Stan, who lifted himself off the ground and adjusted his hat, stared up at the figure with disbelief. 

"The author of the journals... my brother." 

... 

... 

"Is this the part where one of us faints?" 

"Oh, I am so on it, dude." with that Soos fainted, but as they all slowly took in what just happened in the span of a minute, the sound of someone slowly clapping echoed through the room along with their footsteps. Looking towards the entrance, through the dust, Stan recognized the figure as she slowly approached them. 

"Well, well, well. You did it, Stanley. I just knew you could." Stan's eyes widened at the sight of Alvah, he had completely forgotten about her at the police station, but now she was here... different. She had blood splattered across her face and dress, the ends of her hands dripping with it while the end of her dress looked soaked along with her boots. As she gets closer he reaches his hand out to her but she completely ignored him, her eyes fixated on the man he proclaimed as his brother "Welcome back, Stanford." 

Bells

word count: 3975

Fandom: Poppy Playtime Pairing: N/A Pronouns: He/Him Relationship: N/A Occupation: Enforcer Ability: Court Jester

The character takes the appearance of a Victorian-era court jester, while their face is the only thing made of plaster their body consists of poly-blend sateen fabric, and their insides are filled with polyfill, allowing their body to bend and twist however they want, allowing them to get into even the smallest of crevices. They have a removable mask that they can replace with different ones that signify emotions but they're usually wearing the comedy mask, they also have bells on the end of their hat that jingles each time they move.

Keys:

n/a

Warnings: spoilers to chapter 4 and those who haven't played nor seen the game, blood, death and all that shit.

@ghrgrsfdesfrfg recommended this and I was heavily invested in this idea

Playtime Co. is releasing a once-in-a-lifetime toy!

Prepare to be captivated by the Royal Jester, a breathtakingly detailed action figure unlike any other. This stunning collectible stands tall and proud, boasting a regal design that blends the sinister charm of a jester with the power of a king.

The Royal Jester is a collector’s dream – a statement piece that merges art and imagination. This is more than just a toy; it's an artwork, a conversation starter, and a prized addition to any collection of fantasy and gothic figurines. Perfect for fans of dark fantasy, playing cards, or unique character designs!

There are four limited-edition Jesters; the four brothers of each suit.

The Royal Jesters of Spades, Clubs, Hearts and Diamonds!

Which one will you pick?

-

Subject: 1236

Original Procedure: 10/91

Behavior:

Assigned to the Game Station as one of the new games added to the area, Experiment 1236 is much different from his three "brothers". Before he was transferred into the body he inhabits now, he already had severe behavioral issues to the point it would be dangerous to leave him alone with any of the children. Showing signs where he lacked empathy, a disregard for rules, and was prone to random acts of violence.

This behavior transferred over into his new body and had to be confined within the prison where the staff advised we keep him locked up, but I found his behavior rather intriguing. The few staff that monitor him had commented how 1236 likes to play "games" with them, where he hides in the room and only comes out when the staff are fully in the room, that is when he reveals himself and attacks them.

He has still retained his cognitive thinking but his craving for violence is what makes the others reluctant to leave him around any of the children, that is why I suggested we leave 1222, as well as his brothers, to monitor him closely from being alone with any of the children. As long as we keep him well entertained he shouldn't have the need to act out, he wouldn't dare bite at the hand that feeds him.

Conclusion:

So long as he doesn't harm any of the children, have him remain within the Game Station for further monitoring.

I believe Leith Pierre will find some use in him.

Signature: Dr. Harley Sawyer

-

"Hi, kids! Welcome to the Game Station! I'm Stella, and we've got four super-duper fun games to play! These little tests show us just how crazy strong and smart you are! Follow Mommy Long Legs down the stairs, and she'll show you our latest game! See you in a bit!" Mommy giggled to herself as the children ran around her arms and legs, a few even grabbing her by one of her hands to tug her toward the entrance that read "Scavenger," where the four Kings resided.

"Come along now, children. We have four new friends to meet!" They all cheered in excitement—new games were always so thrilling. "Stay close to Mommy now; we don't want any of you getting lost."

"Yes, Mommy!" Unlike the other three games, "Scavenger" took place in a grand theatre that had the children marveling in awe. They all gasped and huddled around Mommy when the lights turned off before, one by one, they switched back on, leading up toward the stage to reveal four beautifully decorated boxes with a symbol on each: a black spade and club, and a red heart and diamond. The children approached the stage eagerly, waiting to see what would happen. They let out startled screams when the lids of the boxes burst open in a flurry of confetti and four figures jumped out of their respective boxes, the curtains behind them opening and a band started playing circus music.

"Guests!"

"We have guests!"

"What a surprise!"

"A pleasant surprise!" All four figures bowed their heads, and when they lifted them, they wore tragedy and comedy masks with different markings. The owners of the club and heart boxes wore the tragedy masks, while the spade and diamond owners wore the comedy masks. Over the mask’s sockets, their respective symbols were painted in either red or black. "Allow us to introduce ourselves, dear children! We are the Royal Court's Four Jesters!"

"I am the Royal Jester of Spades!"

"I am the Royal Jester of Clubs!"

"I am the Royal Jester of Hearts!"

"And I am the Royal Jester of Diamonds!" As they announced their names, they bowed once more, and the children clapped excitedly. The Jester of Spades was about to speak, but the Jester of Diamonds stepped forward and spoke ahead of him. Though Spade was technically the leader of the Jester Brothers, Diamond had a way with words that captivated the children far more. Despite being the "eldest" of the four, Spade's role often faded into the background because of Diamond's influence "We have a game for you, children, that'll put your minds to the test! Are you ready for such a task?"

"We're ready!" The children’s enthusiasm made Diamond laugh. He snapped his fingers, and more lights illuminated the theatre, revealing several boxes scattered throughout.

"This game is simple," he continued as he and his brothers flipped over their own boxes and reached inside to pull out cards.

"Each box has a symbol corresponding to our suits."

"Inside the boxes, you'll find a card with the same suit…"

"Or you'll find a nasty surprise waiting for you," the four jesters said in unison, laughing together.

"When you find four cards of the same suit—"

"You must then find the matching brother."

"We will be hiding in our boxes somewhere in the theatre."

"And the winner is the one who finds all four cards and one of us first!" With that, the jesters slammed the lids on their boxes shut and stepped forward. "Shall this game begin?"

"Yeah!" The children shouted with glee. The jesters tossed their cards into the air, which exploded into a cloud of smoke. When it cleared, both they and their boxes had vanished.

"What are you waiting for, children? Go and find them!" Mommy cheered. The children quickly scattered, heading toward the many boxes. Mommy stayed behind, keeping her eyes on the boxes bearing the diamond suit. She knew the brothers had left out an important detail: they were constantly moving, slipping unseen from box to box, and occasionally stealing cards from the children to keep the game going. Sometimes, they even hid in the wrong suit’s box just to pop out and surprise the children, snatching more cards. But it was the Jester of Diamonds she kept the closest watch on. He was the most unpredictable of them all—no matter how hard she tried to track his movements, he always stayed one step ahead.

Mommy wasn’t allowed to interfere with the games unless a child's life was at stake—but Diamond knew better than to cross that line. He didn’t want this game to end prematurely. When a couple of screams rang out, Mommy tensed—only to sigh in relief when she saw it was one of the "nasty surprises": small marionette dolls modeled after the four brothers, similar to the Mini-Huggies. The dolls would jump out of boxes to scare the children and sometimes snatch a card before retreating. As a few of the brothers popped out of their boxes, there was still no sign of Diamond. He always liked to play the waiting game.

"Mommy, Mommy! Look, I found all four cards!" A child ran up, waving their cards excitedly. Mommy clapped her hands to congratulate them, but froze when she saw they were diamond cards.

"Oh, how wonderful. Now you must find the Royal Jester of Diamonds to win! You better hurry—he’s the trickiest one to find." The child gasped and dashed off to search for the diamond-suited box. The jesters always knew when a child had gathered four cards and would either hide or keep the game going by relocating to a distant box. A sudden scream drew Mommy’s attention. It was the same child, being dragged into one of the boxes. She rushed over and flung the lid open—only to find it completely empty.

Panic gripped her until a chorus of cheers rose from the stage. She turned to see the four brothers emerging from the diamond box, with the Jester of Heart at the bottom holding up Spade and Club. At the top stood Diamond, the victorious child perched on his shoulder.

"And we have a winner!" Diamond announced. "Please, give a round of applause to our lucky champion, who found all four of my cards!"

"Yay, you did it!"

"Good job finding him!"

"That was really hard!" The other children chimed in. Diamond gently set the child on the stage and took the four cards from them. With a swift motion, he transformed the cards into a golden crown. The children gasped as he placed it on his head. "We have a new King of the Court!" The four jesters bowed low before the child.

"Whoa, a king!"

"He's the king!"

"I'm jealous."

"Maybe we can try again another day."

"Ahaha! We’re so glad you liked our game," Heart said, rising.

"But there are still more games to play—"

"Like Musical Memory—"

"And Wack-a-Wuggy—"

"And Statues!" The children giggled excitedly. Mommy called them to follow her to the next game, casting one last wary glance at Diamond as his eyes lingered on her retreating figure.

"You shouldn't keep the rest of our friends waiting!" The four jesters bid the children goodbye, but Heart, Club, and Spade couldn't help but notice how all the children flocked around Diamond the most. It was irritating—no matter how hard they tried to appeal to the children, Diamond's natural charisma always made him the favorite. They just couldn't compete. "Now, children, follow Mommy out so she can lead you to where our friend Bunzo Bunny is waiting for you!" Diamond waved at Mommy, and she quickly ushered the children away, peeling the ones clinging to him off with a gentle touch.

"Mister Diamond is right! We still have three more games to play, so let's move on to Musical Memory!" Mommy’s voice was cheerful, but she could practically feel Diamond's gaze on her back as they walked away. She chose not to comment on it.

"You did it again, Diamond!" Spade's voice hissed with frustration the moment they were alone. It infuriated them that Diamond was so good at masking his true feelings—his unreadable nature only made it worse. Spade growled as Diamond shrugged nonchalantly. "Oh, don’t just shrug your shoulders. You know exactly what you did." Diamond scoffed, his tone laced with mock innocence.

"Please. I do a lot of things. If you want me to take responsibility for whatever's made you angry, you’ll have to be more specific." He took a step forward, and Heart quickly moved between them, stopping Spade from doing anything rash. "Come now, use your big boy words and tell the class what’s upset you." Spade’s hand clenched into a tight fist before he jabbed a finger toward Diamond’s face.

"You know I’m the leader, Diamond! I’m the one who’s supposed to explain the rules when the children enter!" Diamond chuckled, casually swatting Spade’s hand aside.

"Oh? Is that so? But if you’re the leader, why am I the face of the Royal Jester Brothers?" He gestured toward a nearby banner depicting the four of them. Despite their central grouping, Diamond’s colors were more vibrant and bold compared to the others. "I don't mean to step on your toes, brother. I just think you need to be more creative with your words. We’re jesters! We’re meant to wow and amaze the crowd—to entertain and make them laugh! You should work on your approach." Heart nodded thoughtfully.

"He’s right, Spade."

"Wha—"

"He’s got that charm we lack, dude," Club added with a shrug. "We mostly just follow his lead or stick to the script."

"But… I’m not boring, right?" Spade’s voice wavered, Heart and Club exchanged an awkward glance.

"Ehh…" Diamond laughed, the bells on his hat jingling with the motion.

"Don’t fret. You can just leave it to me! Our game has only just opened—there’s a lot of pressure on your shoulders. Let me share that burden with you. You don’t have to worry about capturing the audience—I can handle that. Or if you’d prefer, I can give you some tips on how to really win them over."

"Yeah, he’s been helping us out too," Club added.

"You shouldn’t blame him, Spade," Heart said gently. "The children had fun and loved our performance. Isn’t that what really matters?"

"I… I suppose you’re right." Spade’s frustration deflated, and he sighed.

"It’s fine," Diamond said with a dismissive wave. "You probably just got overwhelmed." The tension dissolved quickly, but as Diamond turned away, his expression beneath the mask twisted into one of quiet disgust. Pathetic. Spade’s need for attention was so disappointing. Diamond genuinely didn’t understand why Spade was so worked up—he thought he was doing him a favor by taking control of the narrative.

"Diamond!" A sharp voice called from below. Diamond’s head perked up, and he peered over the theatre’s upper railing to spot Leith Pierre, Head of Innovation and CEO of Playtime Co. "Get down here. I have a job for you." Diamond’s sinister mask glistened under the spotlight. A job? Intriguing. He leapt over the railing, landing gracefully on the backrest of a chair. Leith grimaced and edged away from the jester’s too-close, too-creepy face.

"How can I help you, Mister Pierre?" Diamond asked, his arms swinging loosely in front of him.

"There are a few… 'rodents' running around who’ve gotten into something they shouldn’t have. I need you to locate and dispose of them. I don’t care how you do it—just make sure they’re no longer a problem. And keep it quiet. We don’t want our guests knowing we have a pest issue." A shiver ran down Leith’s spine as Diamond tilted his head, his mask’s empty sockets somehow conveying an unsettling glee.

"However I want?" Leith cleared his throat, taking another step back.

"Yes, yes. Play with them for all I care—just make sure no one sees."

"You can count on me, sir." Diamond bowed low, his tone dripping with mock formality.

"Right… You’re the only one I trust for this sort of cleanup," Leith muttered.

The Jester Brothers shared some abilities with Mommy Long Legs—though their limbs didn’t stretch quite as far, they could extend their arms a fair distance. Their arms and legs are capable of rapid extension and retraction and can effectively evade harm by contouring their body and bouncing away in a spring-like fashion. With this in mind, Diamond slipped easily into the factory’s ventilation system, crawling through pipes and squeezing into crevices with eerie grace. This was why he behaved, why he didn’t lash out when Spade overstepped. The real fun began when he was set loose.

The thrill of the hunt was irresistible—tracking down the employees no one would miss was his favorite game of all.

This is what happens when you wander where you don’t belong, the man thought when Leith gave him this job after catching him in a restricted area within the Game Station. Talk about being in the wrong place at the wrong time. As he ventured deeper into the factory, the voices and sounds of the other staff grew distant, their echoes bouncing off the cold, industrial walls. He could practically hear the hum of water through the pipes and the scurrying steps of mice. This was fine—he liked working on his own anyway. All he had to do was fix the burst pipes and be on his merry little way.

When he located the pipes, he quickly got to work, the silence around him becoming a source of comfort compared to the loud screaming of children playing in the Game Station. The thought of children made him think of his own family waiting for him at home. He could still remember the looks on their faces when he told them he was working for Playtime Co. It wasn’t a glamorous job—he didn’t get to interact with the toys or mascots—just a simple engineering role where he fixed whatever was broken. As he continued to work, he began to faintly hear a subtle sound: tapping. He couldn’t quite make out what it was, but he knew it wasn’t water dripping onto the pipes. It sounded more… metallic.

He shook his head, deciding to ignore it in favor of finishing the task at hand, but the feeling of being watched began to creep over him.

The tapping didn’t cease. In fact, it almost seemed like it was playing a sort of beat. If he focused hard enough, he could almost recognize it—it sounded like the music that played when you entered the Jester's Theatre. With that realization, his nerves tightened. He picked up his flashlight, shining it around even though he wasn’t sure what he was looking for.

He swallowed thickly, his mind drifting back to the gossip and rumors his fellow engineers spread just to spook each other—how staff would disappear without a trace when they ventured too deep into the factory. It always started with distant tapping, mimicking the music from the Game Station. Then came the bells. You knew you were in danger when you heard jingling bells—subtle meant you were still safe, but if they were close… that meant whatever was making the sound was near.

No. No, he was just being paranoid. Rumors were just rumors. Right?

He inhaled deeply, trying to calm the rapid beating of his heart, but his breath hitched when the bells started—and they were close. Too close.

Forget this. Mister Pierre can shove it—I’m getting the heck out of here.

In his panic, he left his equipment behind, sprinting back down the hall from which he’d come. The tapping, the bells—what came next? What came nex—

"Hahaha…~"

The laughter.

He’d been spotted.

He risked a glance back and froze. Through the suffocating darkness, a faint glow stared back at him—two points of light, fixed directly on him. Those rumors weren’t rumors after all. Fear surged through him, and without a second thought, he ran.

The laughter grew louder, bouncing off the walls and ringing through the corridors. The noise behind him kept getting closer, no matter how fast he ran. Whatever was chasing him was fast—too fast for it to be human. Was this why people had been disappearing? Was he next? Had Mister Pierre sent him here on purpose, knowing what would happen?

He turned a corner sharply—and collided hard with a pipe.

The impact knocked him to the ground, his vision swimming as pain blossomed across his forehead. Dazed, he pressed a hand to his head, trying to quell the throbbing ache. The sound of bells drew closer, the metallic jingling slow and deliberate.

He didn’t dare look up.

"Awww… what’s the matter?" a sing-song voice cooed from above him. "Did you fall down? Poor little thing." a whimper escaped his lips, his body trembling as he fought to crawl backward.

"P-please… please don’t… I-I didn’t even want to be here… I—"

"Oh, but you are here!" his interrupted gleefully, the bells around on his hat jingling with every movement. "And you’ve been so very rude, sneaking around where you shouldn’t be. Tsk, tsk. What should I do with you?"

"Please… I-I have a family… kids…" his voice cracked, tears spilling down his face. For a moment, there was silence. Then a soft giggle.

"Ohhh, I love it when they beg." The voice was right in front of him now, and he felt a cold hand grasp his chin, forcing his head up. The fallen flashlight managed to reveal the figure above him and there he saw the Jester of Diamonds strung up within the pipes, his limbs curling around them to keep his body suspended "Beg some more. It’s my favorite part." his laughter rung out again as his free arm wrapped around the engineer, caging him within his arm then hoisting off the ground.

"N-No, please! I beg of you, d-don't hurt me..." his mask slowly lifted away, revealing something far more monstrous than any toy should have been. The face beneath the mask was a grotesque parody of a jester’s grin—wide and stretched too far, with jagged, uneven teeth glistening with saliva and fresh blood. Drool dripped from the corners of his mouth, mixing with the crimson that stained his lips. The smell of iron was sharp and suffocating.

The last thing the man saw was that terrible, twisted smile lunging toward him.

Later, the sound of gnawing filled the corridor. Diamond crouched over the broken body, his sharp teeth tearing into flesh with wet, squelching sounds. Blood dripped down his face and hands as he fed with terrifying enthusiasm, his shoulders shaking with occasional giggles of delight. When he finally stood, his grin was wide and satisfied.

"Delicious," he whispered to no one in particular, his voice thick with amusement.

When he left, he made sure to block off the area so no other human employee would stumble upon the "mess" he’d made. Speaking of mess, he glanced down at himself and sighed at the blood soaking his costume. Returning to the theatre through the ventilation shaft, he slinked into the dressing room and breathed a sigh of relief when he found it empty. The company was kind enough to provide different costumes for him and his brothers, and he quickly changed into a fresh one, trashing the bloodied outfit without a second thought.

Humming a cheerful tune, he left the dressing room in search of Mister Pierre.

"Look, look! It's the Jester of Diamonds!"

"Hi Jester! Your game was fun to play!"

"I hope we can play it again!" Diamond waved at the children as he walked through the Game Station toward the train, where he spotted Leith alongside one of the scientists. Wanting to reach them quicker, he used his powerful legs to spring himself over the crowd of children, eliciting gasps and laughter. Stretching his arms out with an exaggerated flourish, he cushioned his fall and landed gracefully right in front of Leith, his bells jingling softly as he straightened up.

"Ah! Just the toy I was hoping to see!" Diamond gives a dramatic bow, but Leith waves his hand to dismiss him. "Enough of the flair—did you do what I asked?" Both he and the scientist notice how some blood dripped out from behind Diamond’s mask. The jester chuckled softly, his tongue peeking out to lick it clean.

"Yes, sir. The rodents have been exterminated—you just need someone to clean up the mess." Leith smiled and clapped his hands.

"Wonderful! I'll be sure to reward you later." Leith said with satisfaction but Diamond shook his head.

"There should be no need, sir. My reward was the fun I had while playing my game of hide and seek."

"Ah hah, right. Well, you can go back to playing with the children. I'll be sure to keep sending you more 'playmates' to keep you entertained." Leith could see the way the jester practically glowed at the prospect of more “games.” Satisfied, Diamond left the two men and returned to his brothers and Mommy, seamlessly slipping back into their playful routine. Leith sighed to himself. "As much as he freaks me out, he's almost as handy as Boxy Boo." Harley Sawyer chuckled.

"Indeed, but he's far more intriguing than 1160. He makes a game out of it, no matter what you ask of him," he said, watching how Diamond played with the children alongside his brothers and Mommy. "What a masterpiece he turned out to be."

Siblings pt. 2

word count: 28,395

Fandom: Stranger Things Pairing: Robin Buckley + Steve Harrington x Female!Harrington!Reader Pronouns: She/Her Relationship: Romantic/Familial Occupation: University Student Ability: N/A

Keys:

[F/N]: Female Name [L/N]: Last Name [N/N]: Nickname [H/C]: Hair Color [E/C]: Eye Color

Warnings: flayed reader, angst, violence, blood, vulgar language, murder, character death

“Siblings” pt.1, pt.3

@eddiemunsonsmiddlefingers​ has a map of hawkins and I’m constantly using that to reference where shit is. it’s awfully helpful.

I wasn’t planning on making a part two to this story but I suddenly got an idea from a line I kept repeating in my head and thought “why the hell not” to the point I might make this a story.

so I was going to write the scene where el saw billy’s happiest memory but chose against it, since we all know what it is, I’m not going to bother and just write [f/n]’s.

might eventually make this a story on my wattpad account because I dove too deep into this.

I rushed the ending, it sucks but I needed to finish this to settle my mind.

that is all.

“You know? I’d probably find that downright hilarious if not for the fact that you’re dating my brother, Billy.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, really. Plus, that bitch is weird. There’s actually a word in the dictionary for what she’s doing.”

“And what might that be?”

“Grooming.”

[F/N] and Billy were having one of their late night hangouts at the Hideout, sitting at the bar drinking alcohol, not really shit faced yet but they were slowly getting there. Billy was in the midst of telling [F/N] the reoccurring times Karen Wheeler, mother of Nancy and Mike Wheeler, has been opening flirting with Billy. She remembered the first time Billy had told her about this, of course she was weirded out about it but she laughed that this grown ass married woman was flirting with a guy that was about two decades younger than her, basically the same age as her eldest daughter! She would’ve laughed again when he flirted back with her, just to get her off his ass, but now he and her brother were in a relationship. The four of them would never make their relationship public, never. They’ve simply stuck to being friends on the outside, but when they’re alone, they do all things a couple would do. Sometimes when they’re on a double date, people would always mistake Billy and [F/N] as a couple as well as Steve and Robin, mostly because each duo were always seen together. They took advantage of that, so whenever either Billy or Robin came over to the Harrington household, there was never bad air lingering around. So sometimes it would fuck [F/N] off when middle aged women would flirt with a minor, knowing that he was in a committed relationship with her! The people of Hawkins were so fucked in the head.

“Doesn’t she make you uncomfortable, Billy?” she asked out of concern, reaching forward to place a hand on his knee and squeezing it lightly “I won’t bring this up with Steve, but you know in this town, word travels fast. Besides, I don’t want him getting worried and getting the wrong idea.” Billy softly nods his head.

“I know. That pretty boy would probably lose his shit on me first, then go after that Wheeler.” they both look up in thought, trying to imagine the thought of Steve going apeshit on Nancy’s mother, they were almost tempted to tell him just to see it happen to the point that burst out into laughter “He is your brother, so if he’s anything like you, he’ll probably beat the shit out of her!” she throws her head back with a laugh.

“Hah! As much as I agree with that, he respects women now. He’d probably ask me to drag her out by her hair, to which I will gladly do it!” they laugh again before grabbing their drinks and raising it up “To Steve potentially losing his shit on Wheeler’s mum!” they clink drinks before proceeding to down it, when they finish their drinks Billy raised his empty bottle to the bartender.

“Two more, please!” since the two of them drove to the Hideout, and the fact they had things to do early in the morning, they couldn’t get totally hammered so after a few drinks they later stuck to drinking water to sober themselves up then continued chatting or peacefully listening to the music that the Hideout had or the few indie bands that performed that night. After a couple hours of having fun they finally decided to drag themselves out and back to their cars, however, they were both leaning on each other to help each other walk whilst laughing and giggling to themselves. Billy’s laughter echoed throughout the car park as he watched [F/N] collapse to the ground and nearly face plant into the side of her front bumper but managed to catch herself before she gave herself a bleeding nose and possibly a concussion “Will you be alright, Harrington?” she waves her hand to brush him off.

“Please, you’re just as shit faced as I am.” they start laughing again before settling in their cars, [F/N] rolls down her window to let the wind blow through her car after starting her car before briefly pausing when Billy flashed his lights at her, she raised a brow at him then narrowed her eyes when she saw him smirk at her “The fuck are you looking at me like that Hargrove?” his smirk only widens when he revved the engine of his Camaro.

“How’s about a little race? I wanna give my pretty boy a little smooch before going home.” she scoffed, rolling her eyes.

“Gross, I don’t need to know that.” she hummed in thought before raising her finger “I’ll race yah after seeing Robin, alright? We’re passing her house, and I wanna see her if you’re gonna see my brother.” Billy shrugs his shoulder with a laugh, brushing his hair out of his face. 

“Alright, might wanna tell your girlie that you’re gonna lose after I smoke your ass back to your place.” she scoffed.

“Whatever.” they both laugh and finally pull out of the parking lot. Robin was currently laying on her back, head bobbing softly as she listened to the music coming from her headphones playing through her cassette player. [F/N] graciously made her a mixtape of songs that they both liked, she smiled as she remembered that memory fondly. Because of the wealth the Harrington name held, [F/N] would always buy her expensive gifts after hearing the type of lifestyle she had grown up in. As lovely as each gift was, Robin asked her for something sentimental instead of jewellery like necklaces and earrings and rings (though she does appreciate them and wears them on special occasions), Steve told her that [F/N] had been hauled up in her room ever since then and when she came to pick her up, [F/N] presented her the mixtape. She’s probably listened to the entire playlist on repeats so many times that she can remembered ever song in order, but she just can’t help it, she was so in love. 

*TAP*

*TAP*

“Hmm?” she hums out in confusion, just briefly hearing the sound of tapping when the song faded out. She pulled the headphones off her head and looked around in confusion, she got a little angry when she thought that it was her siblings fucking with her but stopped when the tapping was coming from her window. She pushed herself upright and a big smile appeared on her face when she saw [F/N], who was currently looking down and talking to someone before raising her head to look at Robin once more, wobbling back and forward “[F/N]?” she muttered softly in question before stumbling to her feet and rushing to the window, throwing it open to greet her girlfriend, only to wince at the stench of alcohol and cigarettes coming from her breath.

“Robin~” she cooed out with a shout, only to shush herself when Robin raised a finger to her lips while shaking her head so she in turn covered her mouth with her hands “Sorry, sorry, I just missed you.” Robin rolled her eyes.

“We saw each other a couple hours ago.” she giggled to herself when she saw a flash of confusion come across her face before she nodded her head.

“Oh, you’re right… but I wanted to see you again.” Robin shook her head once more with a soft smile, she then realised that there was quite a distance from the ground and her window so she leaned forward whilst looking down and had to slap a hand over her mouth to quiet herself when she saw that [F/N] perched herself on Billy’s shoulders, to which he was just as equally drunk and could barely stand straight “Oh yeah, and Billy is here as well.” he looks up and gives a grin, saluting Robin, to which she returns to gesture.

“Howdy.”  “Hi?” she chuckles and looks back at [F/N], to which she was grinning ear to ear as she leaned forward, closing the small gap between them and pressing a small peck on her lips “What’s with the kiss, [F/N]? Not that I don’t like it.” the slightly drunk girl smiled at her, winking softly.

“Thought I’d drop by and give you a goodnight kiss, why? Don’t want any?” Robin scoffed before reaching forward, grabbing [F/N] by her cheeks and pulling her into a kiss. Robin couldn’t help but let out a groan when she could taste the alcohol and cigarettes against her tongue, she briefly pulled away but was only brought into another kiss when [F/N] grabbed her by the back of her neck to keep her still. By the time they separate [F/N] was grinning ear to ear, Robin flustered up a little when she saw the left over lipstick from her lips smudge across [F/N]’s neck “I’ll see you in the morning, sweets?” Robin giggled, wrapping a strand of her hair around her finger and twirling it around.

“Mm hmm.” Robin and [F/N] were giggling at each other before [F/N] started falling backwards, she let out a startled yelp and looked down at Billy and saw he lost his footing and couldn’t hold her up anymore and was starting to fall backwards, to which she tried to grab Robin’s windowsill to save herself but it slipped right under her grasp and the two of them fell to the ground with a loud thud. Robin gasped and stuck her head out of the window to see if they were alright, shaking her head slightly with a tired smile on her face when she saw the two of them slightly dazed and groaning.

“Nice one, Billy…” she murmured under her breath, grunting softly when he slapped her leg.

“You’re fat.”

“You’re weak.” he scoffs at her before proceeding throw her legs off of him, they then pull themselves to their feet and start retreating back to their cars, [F/N] sparing Robin one last glance followed by a kiss then finally scurried into her car. Robin sighed dreamily when [F/N] waved her goodbye as she and Billy drove off, she closed her eyes then pushed herself back into her room where she collapsed into her bed, smiling like a dork when all she could think of was how lucky she was to finally have someone that loves her. Speaking of which, [F/N] and Billy were gunning it down the streets, they were going to have to deal with the police and Hopper later but they didn’t give a shit as they sped down the empty streets of Hawkins, laughing wildly. They took a slight detour just so their moment of fun could last a little longer, that’s where they found themselves side by side, the both of them trying their best to get ahead of the other.

“We should’ve made a bet, Harrington!” he shouts at her, she scoffs and looks back at him.

“Oh, yeah? Then how about the first one back to my house has to buy us both gas for our cars for three weeks!” he smirks at that.

“Then I hope your wallet can handle the expenses of gas because you’re on!” he lets out a laugh as he shifts gears while putting more pressure on the gas, she grimaced when she saw him get a head of her and was creating some distance. She knew his Camaro was significantly faster in comparison to her Mustang, but that didn’t mean she didn’t have a few tricks up her sleeves to keep up with him. Billy looked into his rear view mirror and saw [F/N] hot on his tail, he licked his lips with a laugh as he turned his attention back to the road ahead of him, he had this in the ba— he lets out a shout when something flew into the windscreen. [F/N] let out a confused noise when she saw Billy swerving around but when she saw that she was still speeding towards him, evidently going to crash into him, she lets out a shout and slammed on the breaks and quickly swerved out of the way before she could hit Billy. She managed to get control of her car as it comes to a halt, she was breathing heavily at what happened before remembering about Billy.

“Oh my god, Billy!” she shouts, jumping out of her car and running over to see if he was alright “Billy! Shit!” she runs over to his car and winced at the state of it, she moves over to the drivers side and opened the door.

“Piece of shit…” she heard him groan out.

“Are you okay, Billy?” he sucked in a breath, pushing himself back into his seat then raised a hand to press against his forehead, wincing when his hand touched his bleeding forehead “Shit, you’re bleeding.” he scoffs at her.

“No shit.” she frowns at him, reaching forward to cup his face and make him look at her. 

“God, I hope you don’t have a concussion.” he smacks her hands off of him then gestures for her to move, she does so but ultimately helps him out of the car.

“Just great, this is just fucking great.” he mutters to himself as he looks at the state of his Camaro, she in turn approached the front of his car and saw the cracked windscreen, she furrowed her brows in confusion and mild disgust when she saw some sort of slime on the windscreen where it was cracked. She reached forward and gently touched it, only to regret it as she shudder at the feeling, she wiped it off against her pants “Fuck, this is going to cost a fucking fortune to repair.” Billy threads his fingers through his hair, at the verge of yanking them out of his scalp but calmed down slightly when [F/N] placed a hand on his shoulder.

“Don’t worry about it, Hargrove. I’ll help pay for it… with my parents money.” he scoffs, shoving her back softly to sit on the hood of his car.

“I don’t think they’ll appreciate the loss of money in their account.” she scoffs right back at him, sitting down beside him and offering him a cigarette, to which he graciously took and let her light it, enjoying the feeling of the nicotine filling his lungs then letting it all out.

“Please, I’ll be lucky if they notice a couple grand is missing.” the two of them start smoking away, she sniffles a little as she let the cigarette hang loosely by her lips “Perhaps this wasn’t a good idea on our part. We’re drunk, possibly high and extremely tired.” Billy rolls his eyes, taking the cigarette from his lips and held it in between his fingers.

“Yeah, but we’re both competitive and like to win.” she pursed her lips.

“True.” they fist bump each other “Anyways, what hit your car? A bird?” he shrugs his shoulders.

“Not sure, was going way too fast to get a glimpse of what it was.” she looked back at where they were previously then looked around at their surroundings, she suddenly felt a chill run down her back as the abandoned steel works factory loomed over them, she swallows thickly then turned back to Billy and gestured to her car.

“How’s about we get the fuck out of here? This place is giving me the heebie jeebies. I’ll be even more generous as to let you stay at our place while someone looks over your car, I personally know a good mechanic that can get your baby whipped back up into shape in no time.” he looked liked he was considering that option, he then winces when she cupped his face once more and looked at his bleeding forehead “But after we take care of this, I don’t want Stevie getting worried about this.” he nods his head.

“Agreed… we’re not telling him about this, right?”

“Are you crazy? Fuck no.” they both stand up but whipped their heads in the direction they heard something shuffle.

“Who’s there?!” Billy shouts, neither get a reply “I said who’s there?!” [F/N] shook her head, noticing that Billy was getting paranoid. Before she could say anything Billy’s feet were suddenly swept out from under him, he all but dropped to the ground before he was being dragged away. He desperately clawed at the ground to stop himself but there just wasn’t anything to cling onto, this continued as he was dragged through the factory and as he was going to be pulled down into the lower level of the factory he managed to grab a hold of the railing of the stairs. He clung onto it desperately, panic coursing throughout his body when he could feel his grip slowly slipping and when it did he expected to be dragged down the staircase but [F/N] caught him.

“I… got you!” she strains out, her grip on him deathly tight as she tried to pull him back but her feet where being dragged forward. She tries to dig the heels of her feet into the ground to keep herself from moving any further, their sweaty hands weren’t helping their predicament because she did lose her hold on his left hand but she quickly grabbed the railing. All this was for naught when something slithered around her ankle and yanked her, she fell to the ground with a thud with Billy on top of her before they were both dragged down the stairs into basement. The moment the two of them came face to face with this weird goopy looking thing they couldn’t help but scream at the top of their lungs as it roared at them, holding each other right as it loomed over them. The next few moments were silent, just the sound of chains swaying in the soft wind followed by quiet rumbling, this moment was interrupted when both Billy and [F/N] managed to pull themselves out of the basement. [F/N] starts pushing Billy and herself away but they both stumble to the ground, pushing themselves back as they spare a glance back at the entrance to the basement and shudder when they hear a roar come from that thing. Billy pulls himself onto his feet first and grabs [F/N] by the back of her jacket to yank her to her feet, she’s holding onto his arm as they’re scrambling out of the factory and rushing to their respective cars. They don’t waste a second to drive the fuck out of there, Billy driving ahead of [F/N] but he pulls to the side when he saw a phone booth, neither of them turn their cars off as they jump out but Billy makes it into the phone booth to make the call while [F/N] stood outside, breathing heavily as she kept looking back towards the direction they came from.

”911, what’s your emergency?” Billy goes to speak but the words got caught in his throat, I mean, how could it not? What the fuck was he supposed to say? Hey, my friend and I got in a car accident because we were drunk then we found this weird fucking monster, send help right away please! The two of them started to panic when the light in the phone booth started flickering as their surroundings changed ”Is someone there? Hello—” the voice cut off when the light completely turned off, Billy hangs up the phone as he walks out of the phone booth. He hears a noise and starts walking towards it, flinching slightly when he felt something so he glanced down and saw [F/N] just as equally terrified as he was holding onto his arm and hand. He places his free hand on her shoulder then the two of them walked towards the fog where they heard footsteps coming towards them.

“What do you want?” Billy manages to croak out, voice shaky and not sounding like his usual self “Hey, I said what do you want?!” he was desperate for an answer but the two of them started to panic again when they saw a group of people coming towards them. Red lightning struck as the group of people came to a halt, instead two people from the crowd came walking towards them and they both equally froze when their vision cleared up and they were staring right back at themselves.

[time skip: the next day]

Steve stood in front of his full body mirror as he does his hair up, something he always does in the morning though it was usually done for naught because of that stupid little hat he has to wear that was apart of the uniform that was just as stupid. He sets his hairspray on his desk, looking at his iconic hair and touching it up for the nth time of that morning before nodding his head when he was satisfied with how it looked. With everything ready he picked up his keys and tucked them into his pocket then walked out of his bedroom with an extra skip on his step in his step, things were finally looking up for him that he couldn’t not be happy. His sister was home for the summer break, he’s actually enjoying work (kind of), he’s made friends with the girl at said work, his sister is dating said girl while he himself has gotten himself into a relationship that first started off rocky but evidently he fell in love with him. He wasn’t expecting to see his sister as he walked past her room, she was always gone in the morning to go pick up Robin, but he halted at her door when he saw the state she was in.

“[F/N]…?” he muttered softly, pushing open her door that was left open just a bit and his eyes widened when he saw her. She was sitting hunched over at the edge of her bed, elbows planted on her knees as her head rested on her interlocked fingers. She was panting heavily while sweating profusely, she looked downright horrible “Oh my god, [F/N]! Are you okay?” he exclaims as he rushed over to her side, kneeling down to try and get a look at her face and saw her face was pale while her [E/C] eyes were dull from their usual shine.

“Steve…” she weakly breathed out, he moved his hands to gently place a hand on her forehead and quickly withdrew it when he felt a burning sensation under his fingertips.

“You’re burning up, [F/N]!” he shouts then proceeds to push her onto her back so that she was lying on her bed but she shook her head, weakly pushing him back so she could get up.

“No, no… I need to get Robin, I promised to get her.” she weakly hits at his chest, letting out a whine when he grabbed her by her wrists to stop her futile attempts to get him off and gently lays her down on the bed.

“I’ll get her, okay? I think she’ll understand why you couldn’t get her if I tell her that you’re sick, alright? You’ll only worry her if you show up as the mess you are right now, besides, I don’t think you can drive in the state you’re in.” she lets out a groan, slapping her hands onto her face and dragging them down “I’ll open the window so it can help you can cool down, if there isn’t anything in the cabinets I’ll grab some shit from the pharmacy on my way back from work. Don’t do anything that’ll make you feel any worse than you already are.” she chuckles weakly, placing a hand on her chest and looking over at Steve.

“Since when were you the one… to look after me?” he just shook his head, he walks into her bathroom then later came out with a wet cloth to wipe away the sweat on her forehead then placed another wet and cold cloth on her forehead to help cool her down.

“Since my sister was the one that got fucked up in my stead.” she scoffed then hummed when she felt Steve cup her cheek, she leaned into his touch but winced when it got too hot for her liking and jerked away, he sighed sadly and retracted his hand from her “I’ll try and get off early so I can take care of you, alright? Don’t do anything to drastic while I’m gone.” she waves her hand.

“No promises…” she pants out as her hand dropped back down onto her chest, he sighs softly then knelt down to press a kiss to her temple then retreated out of her room to leave for work. Hours go by but not a single thing changed, she only felt worse and worse as she tried to calm her breathing down, tried to stop herself from sweating so much, but the summer heat was just becoming to unbearable. She closed her eyes as she tried breathing through her nose, a horrible mistake on her part when the memory of the night before came flooding back. Her fingers dug into her shirt when the flashing images of those rats scattering along the floor reappeared, being held down by some fucking monster as it forced something into her body. Her eyes snapped opened as she let out a scream, shooting up straight as she continued to pant, she takes the cloth off her head and throws it to the ground as she weakly makes her way to her bathroom. She leans her weight into the sink, her hands gripping onto the sink as her head hung loosely in front of her. She managed to lift her head to stare at her reflection, her vision slowly clearing up so she can get a good look at her reflection but then another flashback from last night appeared before her.

”What do you want…?” she managed to whimper out, her usual personality nowhere to be seen as she leaned closer into Billy’s side, who held onto her tightly but neither one of them could tear their eyes away from their doppelgängers.

”To build.” both doppelgängers said in unison, they even sound like them but their voices were slightly disoriented with a deep, echoing feeling to it. Billy and [F/N] manage to tear their eyes away from them to look at each other, nothing but confusion were seen on their faces ”I want you to build.”

“To build what?” Billy asks.

”What you see.” [F/N] shakes her head.

“I-I… I don’t understand.” they both flinch backwards when that same lightning struck and they were suddenly back on the side of the road, [F/N] all but collapses to her knees as she threads her fingers through her hair, her shoulders trembling at the terror the two of them witnessed. Billy was still standing as he looked around for wherever they could have gone, shaking his head.

“I don’t understand!”

“Ah!” she screamed at her reflection before proceeding to punch it, not bothering to remove her fist when the shattered glass fell into the sink and cut her hand. When her breathing calmed down she pulled her fist and let her trembling hand hang by her side, she took deep breaths through her nose before turning her head to the side “I need to talk to Billy…” she muttered softly then quickly left the bathroom, putting on her shoes and grabbing a jacket that had her keys in her pockets. The drive to the Hawkins community pool felt like a nightmare, her windows were all the way down and her AC was blasting to cool down her overheating body, but what freaked her out was when she was stopped at a red light. She perched her arm on the open window as her finger nervously tapped against the stirring wheel, she hissed in pain when she felt like she was being burn so she glanced down at her hand and furrowed her brows when she saw a burn mark forming on the back of her hand, she immediately pulls her arm back into the car. She pulls up to the pool and quickly hops out of her car, not bothering to lock it up and just simply slams the door shut and rushes into the pool. She spots Billy just as disoriented as she is, she didn’t waste any time to whistle to catch his attention, when his head shot up and looked for her, he managed to spot her waving her hand.

“[F/N]…?” he mumbles in confusion, he pushes himself up when he saw her waving him over, mouthing that they needed to talk. He all but jumps out of his seat and rushes over to her as fast as he could, stumbling with his footing but he managed to reach her in the end, grabbing her by her wrist and dragging her into the changing rooms, the showers specifically “What are you doing here?” she takes a shaky breath, holding her arms and digging her fingers into her jacket.

“Are we not going to talk about last night?” she asked, she inhales sharply as she runs her hands over her face “Have you been seeing things? Hearing things? I feel like I’m losing my mind…” she croaks out, she lets out a yelp when he grabbed her wrist again to look at the burn on her hand.

“What happened here?” her eyes trailed down his arm and noticed a similar looking burn on his elbow, they both started feeling hot again, [F/N] tears her jacket off but that isn’t enough and so Billy shoves her into the shower and turns on the cold water. They both silently soak in the water but start to get distracted when the pain in their burns starts aching, they’re both reaching for their wounds and grimace when they could hear something moving beneath their skin, the moment their hands grazed against the wound a flash of a monster appeared in their heads followed by high pitched screeching. They both fall to the ground, clutching their heads in agonising pain, pressing their heads into the tiled walls to try and lessen the pain but nothing was working, they were yelling in pain but it soon came to a halt when they heard a voice.

“Billy…?” [F/N] couldn’t recognise it, the two of them managed to push themselves back to lean against the wall behind them as they watched the girl kneel down in front of them “Billy. Take me to him.” they both stare at her in confusion.

“What?” they mutter.

“I said are you hurt?” she then looked in between the both of them as they continued to stare at her “What’s going on? I heard screaming. Should I call an ambulance?” she asked out of genuine concern, she then slowly backed away when she noticed the look of pain and confusion disappear and was replaced with one of malice. She lets out a scream when [F/N] shoots towards her, her hand slamming against her mouth to muffle her screams of terror whilst her other hand held both her wrists in an iron grip.

“I’m so sorry about this.” she whispers, she then pulls her up then slammed the back of her head against the ground to knock her unconscious. Both herself and Billy stand up and stare down at the unconscious girl then looked at each other and nodded.

[time skip: starcourt mall, scoops ahoy]

Robin felt a little deflated that entire day, first she wasn’t able to see [F/N] and Steve was the one to pick her up in her stead. She was confused when the younger Harrington pulled up to her house and so she obviously asked where her girlfriend was, the answer she got was a worried looking Steve telling her how awful [F/N] was and that she was very sick to the point she could barely move. Sure, she was worried for her girlfriend and completely understood why she couldn’t come get her, but she just couldn’t understand how she got sick. Last night she looked completely fine, only being a little tipsy but other than that, she was fine. Robin now found herself serving free samples to some little girl that was slowly getting on her last nerve, ready to pop a nerve, but then the sight of [H/C] hair her eyes.

“[F/N]?” she mumbled under her breath, wasn’t she supposed to be lying down in her bed at home? She shook her head and turned towards the window into the back room, throwing it open to get Steve and his little friend Dustin’s attention “Hey, Harrington! Man the counter, will you? I need to go check something out!” she shouts, choosing to ignore his shouts of protest as she abandons the counter and rushes out of the store, pushing past people to check if who she saw was actually her girlfriend. Her face lights up when she heard her familiar laughter so she turned the corner and was going to greet her but froze up at what she saw, there she saw [F/N] talking with some guy as he openly flirted and joked with and she was laughing at it.

“That is the dumbest pick up line I’ve ever heard, you dork.” he scoffs, bumping his shoulder against hers.

“But it made you smile, didn’t it?” she then shoved him back, not being able to hide the big smile on her face.

“Barely.” her heart dropped into her stomach when she saw [F/N] grab the guy by the collar of his jacket and pull him back, the two of them stumbling out of view. Robin grits her teeth and rushes over to where the two disappeared, she rounded the corner but was left flabbergasted when she saw neither of them, they just simply vanished. Maybe she was just seeing things, maybe she was just desperate to see [F/N] that she conjured her up, but why the hell was she shamelessly flirting with some random fucker? The end of the night came sooner than later, from seeing her girlfriend with some guy to helping her brother and some random child with a Russian translation, she was currently sitting in Steve’s passenger seat as he drove them to his house.

“Is she really sick?” Steve let out a dramatic sigh, rolling his eyes.

“Yes! How many times do I have to tell you, Robin? What you saw was definitely not [F/N]. For one, she’d never flirt with a guy. Two, she’d never let a guy flirt with her, because she’d either fight them or throw up.” that option made her chuckle, that sounded like her “My sister isn’t the type of person to cheat, okay? She actually beat that into me, so I highly doubt she would ever do something so frivolous.” Robin sighed, the back of her head hitting the car seat.

“I know… I think I’m just getting paranoid.” she jolts in her seat when Steve placed his hand on her shoulder, she looked at him and saw him giving her a reassuring look.

“Robin, if my sister does anything and says anything hurtful to you, you’ll tell me right?” he inhales through his nose and looks back towards the road “She doesn’t do or say things without meaning it. When she said she was in love with you, she meant it. When she said she wanted to be with me, she meant it. So if she somehow says she doesn’t want to be with you anymore… she’ll say it to you straight and she won’t do it behind your back, she isn’t like that. She isn’t one for hiding her feelings and she isn’t afraid to voice her opinions, rarely have I ever seen her bottle up her emotions. I don’t see any reason why she would ever go behind your back, but if she does anything to you that just doesn’t seem right, tell me. I’ll make sure to talk to her, so don’t worry about anything, alright?” she couldn’t help but get a little teary eyed, Steve smiled softly when Robin tearfully nodded her head.

“Alright, thank you.”

“No problem.” Steve then lets out a laugh when he pulled up to their house, gesturing to the driveway “Look at that, Robin! Her car is here.” Robin shrugs, sure, but it doesn’t cross out the possibility that she still left the house. Entering the Harrington household, Steve flips on the hallway lights and shuffles out of his shoes, letting out a slight grunt when Robin shoved past him to rush up the stairs to get to [F/N]. Steve told her that her condition was horrible, that she was sweating profusely and couldn’t stop her body from trembling, going so far as she couldn’t control her breathing. She needed to see this for herself, she needed to see how sick her girlfriend was to calm her mind of the image of her perfectly healthy girlfriend that she saw at the mall with some gu—

“S-Stevie…? Is that you?” Robin jerked backwards a little shocked after throwing the door open, there in the dark room with the hallway light to illuminate the room, was her girlfriend laying on her back whilst clutching her chest, looking just as terrible as Steve described “Stevie…?” she called out once more, she nearly tripped over her feet when she finally managed to move.

“N-No, [F/N], it’s me.” she saw [F/N] perk up at the sound of her voice and so turned her head towards her, smiling weakly when her eyes set on girlfriend.

“Robin…” she cooed, Robin smiled softly and knelt down, placing a hand on her forehead and let her thumb caress her skin “You’re here… why?” they hear Steve clear his throat, he decides not to turn on the light as he took a spot on the other side of Robin, standing over his sick sister who smiled at him.

“She wanted to see you, asking me after our shift to bring her here to check up on you.” Steve decided it would be for the best to keep Robin’s actual intentions a secret from his sister, it was the better option because that reason made [F/N] smile at the both of them.

“Y’all are saps…” she mumbled out, she then reached for Robin and gently tapped her shoulder “I’m sorry I couldn’t pick you up this morning, I feel so awful for leaving you hanging like that.” Robin shook her head, taking her hand into here and squeezing.

“No, no, it’s fine. I’m just glad that your brother came and got me, would have sucked if I have to bike instead.” they both giggle at that, Steve smiled at his sister and her girlfriend, not understanding where Robin ever got the misunderstanding of [F/N] ever betraying her in the worst way. He then pulled a face when he realised why and swore in his head to never voice that stupid thought of his, he reached forward and placed his hand on [F/N]’s cheek and she leaned into his subtle touch.

“Your fever seems to have calmed down a little, did you take some tylenol?” she nods softly.

“Mm, I found some in my cabinet.”

“Alright, that’s good.” Steve has Robin help him with taking care of [F/N] to the best of their abilities, staying with her until she was drifting off to sleep, and when she finally did he pulled her out of the room and closed the door behind them “See? What did I tell you? She never left the house, Robin.” she nods her head, holding her arms.

“I know, I know. I just can’t help but feel insecure, you know? She’s totally out of my league, and yet she wants to be in a relationship with me! A nobody, a weirdo that’s apart of band and is employed in an ice cream shop.” Steve scoffs at that, placing his hands on his hips.

“That’s exactly what she likes about you, Robin. She finds it cool that you can play instruments.” she rolled her eyes bashfully, spinning one of her rings around with her thumb.

“Stop it.” Robin takes on last peek at [F/N] before finally leaving with Steve so he can take her home, it didn’t take long for the younger Harrington to return home nor did it take long for him to fall into a deep sleep. The moment silence fell upon the Harrington household [F/N] eyes shot open and she no longer looked sick anymore, she sat up and threw the covers off her body to reveal the clothes she was wearing were never changed. She shuffles out of her bed and walks over to her locked bathroom, pushing the door open to find the same boy Robin saw her with submerged in cold icy water. [F/N] did indeed see Robin in the corner of her eye when she was at the Starcourt Mall, that was the reason why she pulled that boy into empty hallway but she pulled him into an empty room before Robin could see them and proceeded to choke him out with little to no effort. 

She now found herself back at the abandoned steel works factory, exiting her car, she lifted her head to see Billy was there as well. Neither said a word to the other, just silently moving to the trunks of their cars and opening them up, finding their tied up victims unconscious, Billy lifts Heather into his arms while [F/N] throws the guy over her shoulder and the two of them walk side by side back down into the basement where it all started. Settling the two down, they hover over their unconscious bodies that slowly started regaining consciousness. Of course the two of them were unaware of the situation they were, blinking their eyes as they looked around in confusion, their eyes met and they were both confused when they saw their mouths were duck taped shut while their hands and feet were bound. Panic started to arise as they tried to free themselves, Heather letting out whimpers as she tried to shake free while the guy was screaming under the tape, they were both silenced when Billy grabbed Heather by her shoulders while [F/N] grabbed the other guy by his face and held his jaw in a tight hold.

“Don’t be afraid.” they said in an emotionless tone, both victims ceased their muffled cries and movements “It’ll all be over soon. Just stay very still.” they then remove the tape from their mouths before finally pulling away and stepping back, standing together as the same monster that did something to them crawled out of the shadows towards its latest victims, snarling at them as they screamed in terror. 

Billy and [F/N] could do nothing but watch.

[time skip: two days later]

The two of them continued to collect more and more victims for the monster to turn into mindless zombies, sometimes almost getting caught by their respective siblings, but they always managed to play it off. [F/N] remembered bringing a girl home she met in the middle of town, she recognised her as an old classmate friend and said how she wanted to reconnect. The girl was helpless against the mind controlled girl, struggling under her iron grip as she ties her hands up but was interrupted when the front door to the house was opened and in came walking Steve. He enters the kitchen and there he found his now healthy sister by the counter with an innocent smile on her face, waving her hand to greet him on his return home.  “Anything interesting happen today, [F/N]?” she only shrugged her shoulders.

“Same old, same old.” he was satisfied with the answer and ventures upstairs to his room, unaware of the whimpering girl under the counter wanting to cry out for him to save her from his crazy sister but could only whimper silently when [F/N]’s fingers dug into the meat of her face whenever she felt her struggle. She was now hauling her down into the basement of the factory, she hummed softly when she saw Billy and Heather already down there with two victims of their own “You’ve been busy, huh?” she mused, Billy glanced up at her and saw the girl over her shoulder.

“So have you.” 

[F/N] now found herself sane and sitting in her car, inhaling and exhaling softly as she watched the unknowing people walk by her, not knowing that she was picking out her latest few victims to bring to the monster. A pinch of her sanity was clinging to the back of her mind, she was already losing her mind because she could do nothing but watch her body go around kidnapping people and offering them up to this monster to do who knows what. She takes a deep breath, running her fingers through her hair before her eyes settled on a group of girls, she remembered one of them as a girl she hooked up with a few times while they were still in high school, this could be an easy catch because the other girl still had some lingering feelings for her. She rolls her neck, ready to do what she’s been doing for the past few days but her body suddenly fought against it. There were two fights going on in her mind right now, one was sweet talking this one time fling into bringing her and her friends back home to have some fun, possibly get them wasted out of their minds then bring them back to the factory, but the other was against it. This last piece of her sanity was fighting against that, she didn’t want to flirt with this girl, she didn’t want to tell her words that were rightfully reserved for her girlfriend. She lets out a groan, aching pain throbbing in her head as she tried taking control of her mind but ultimately lost when the pain became to unbearable.

“Don’t make this harder for you than it already is…” she muttered to herself, her voice not sounding like her own. Flicking down her sunglasses, she pulls at the collar of her jacket before finally opening the door to her car just as the girls were walking past her car. This obviously caught their attention, they were already checking out the ridiculously nice car but the moment [F/N] stepped out of the car the girl she hooked up with couldn’t help but freeze up when she saw her long time crush. [F/N] pretended to pay them no mind, throwing her car door shut and locked it, walking past the group of girls and as she walked further away, she stopped when the girl called out to her.

“H-Hey, [F/N]!” her friends snickered at how shaky her voice was as she stuttered over her words, she cursed at them but straightened up when [F/N] turned her head over her shoulder to look at the group.

“Yes?” she swallowed thickly, taking a step forward as she clutched onto the straps of her hand bag.

“D-Do you— do you remember me, by any chance?” her face flushed up when she tilted her head down, her sunglasses slipping down the bridge of her nose so she could see past the tinted lenses and at the girl in question “We were in the same chemistry class? We sat together and did a few projects together?” she was really hoping that [F/N] would remember, she took a step forward as she turned around fully, raising her hand to grab the frames of her glasses and pulled them down as she looked her up and down.

“Chemistry…?” she muttered to herself, looking up in thought then smirked down at her “Right, you’re— you’re Veronica, right? Veronica Gibbons?” her face lights up immensely because [F/N] Harrington remembered her, she actually remembered her! She enthusiastically nodded her head, reaching forward to grab her hand.

“Yes! I’m so happy you remember me.” her friends were giggling from behind her, knowing just how big of a crush she had on the female Harrington, also remembering how much she cried when she left Hawkins to study in a different state, but now she’s back as she has a chance to be with her. She then tilted her head when [F/N] pouted softly, taking off her glasses then biting the end of one of the frames.

“Actually, I’m still having a little trouble remembering, think you can help jog my memory up?” the group of girls giggled at the suggestion, Veronica turned back towards them and saw them gushing at her and giving her the thumbs up, gesturing for her to shoot her shot with [F/N].

“S-Sure.” 

Robin felt like she accomplished a mission. You could really do a lot with just twenty bucks, she exits the post office and stuffed the entire layout of the Starcourt Mall into her bag and jogs over to where she parked her bike, only slowing in pace when she heard soft giggling. Turning to see what the laughter was all about, she saw a group of girls gushing about how lucky their friend was, she thought nothing of it until the name “Harrington” left their lips. She then glanced over at the parked Mustang and immediately recognised it as [F/N]’s car, she then noticed that they kept glancing back towards the little alleyway and her insecurities started getting the best of her again. The name “Veronica Gibbons” left their loose lips and more thoughts started circulating in her head, she remembered that girl. She was definitely one of the best looking students during her year at Hawkins High School, she was that iconic popular girl that did cheerleading, was beautiful, smart and was wanted by the entirety of the male population. But there was a rumour that she was into girls, that she was into the particular Harrington that was untouchable, a heartbreaker who’s heart would never beat for anyone but her brother.

She didn’t hesitate to drop her bag on the ground and rush over to the alleyway, turning the corner and her heart stopped when she saw it. Veronica was pushing [F/N] back against the wall, her hands tightly gripping onto [F/N]’s biceps as she pressed her lips against her own. [F/N] didn’t bother reciprocating the loveless kiss, just let the shorter one of the two take the lead as she desperately kissed her. She tried not to think about it, she tried so hard not to think how awful she feels for playing with this girls feelings just because she couldn’t control her own body, she didn’t want to think about how much this was going to hurt Robin, but what she doesn’t know won’t hurt her. Veronica pulled away and gave [F/N] a sheepish smile, flushing up when she noticed that her lipstick smeared onto her lips, she turns away to avoid her intense gaze but a gasp left her lips when she noticed a figure at the end of the alleyway.

“[F/N]…?” her heart dropped into her stomach, visible fear in her eyes that were hidden under the tinted lenses of her sunglasses. Robin gritted her teeth when she saw Veronica pushed herself off of [F/N], clearing her throat and fixing herself up, excusing herself from the heartbroken Robin as she tearfully gazed at [F/N], who had yet to acknowledge her existence “[F/N], please… tell me that what I saw didn’t really happen.” [F/N] just let out a sigh, crossing her arms and leaned against the brick wall behind her, finally sparing Robin a glance that just wasn’t kind.

“What’s there to talk about?” Robin’s hand clenched into a tight fist, whoever this person was, it wasn’t her [F/N]. Her loving and sweet [F/N] who’d give her the world, who would fight the world just to see her happy, whoever this imposter was, she hated their guts for what they’ve done with her girlfriend. She marches over to her and stood in front of her, glaring up at her with a tearful gaze and saw that [F/N] had an indifferent expression on her face, like she didn’t care that she just got caught “You seem upset, little birdie.” she cooed out, Robin nearly keened at the nickname, any other time she would turn red, but right now she was filled with anger and anguish.

“Is this just a joke, [F/N]? Are you not going to acknowledge the fact that I just caught you kissing another girl, or the fact that you let that girl kiss you despite already being in a relationship with me?! Is she another relative of yours you and Steve forgot to bring up? If that’s the case, that’s really fucking weird.” Robin turns away, running a hand through her hair than back at her “I thought you loved me, [F/N]. I thought you said you wanted to be with me, but as of lately, I feel like you’ve become an entirely different person. Ever since that night, I haven’t seen a trace of the girl that said she was in love with me. What the fuck has happened to you, [F/N]!” Robin continued to rant and rave at the betrayal and [F/N] just took it, because another war was raging on in her head.

Take her.

Not her.

Bring her.

Ignore her.

Kill her. 

Spare her.

[F/N]’s fingers clawed at the wall behind her, her nails digging into the bricks to the point they were being crushed under her hold. Her teeth were biting down so hard on her lips to the point they were bleeding, she was trying to distract herself from the grotesque thought of bringing one of the few people that she loves to that fucking thing. She was trying so hard the past two days to avoid Steve and Robin, she was trying so hard to limit her time with those two because if she was with them for more than a couple minutes then she would lose all control of her body and she would hurt them. That was the last thing that she wanted, she didn’t want to hurt them, she didn’t want them to die all because she made one stupid decision. She said nothing as Robin continued to question what their relationship has come to after two days of her acting off, she wanted nothing more than to wrap her arms around Robin and tell her everything, tell her that everything is going to be okay and that kiss with Veronica whatever meant nothing to her. But she knew the moment her arms were around her, there was no letting go of her, and not for a good reason either. She wanted to do something to keep Robin away, give her a reason to avoid her, to never see her again.

“You’re making me think that everything about our relationship was for nothing!” she shouts, tears now running down her face, oh how she wanted to wipe those tears away but she didn’t want to touch her with the hands that have been the cause of people losing their minds and possibly their lives “Was there absolutely nothing, nothing special about our relationship?” Robin stood their panting in front of [F/N], the girl silently looking down at her.

“… are you done?” she flinched back at the harsh words.

“Wha—”

“Was anything in our relationship special? Wow, you were really deep in that delusional fantasy of yours, huh? Well, let me tell you something, Buckley.” she harshly jabs her finger into Robin’s chest, causing her to stagger backwards as each jab got harsher and harsher at each step she took “Your love for me was nice, it was, but it’s gotten boring. There’s nothing about you that excites me anymore, so yeah, maybe our relationship was for nothing.”

“[F-F/N]…” she lets out a whimper when her back was no pressed against the opposite wall, [F/N] looming over her with a dark look on her face.

“There is no us, not anymore. I don’t need you.” [F/N] makes sure to grab her by the jaw, lifting her up off the ground as she glared down at her “You mean nothing to me.” Robin lets out a whimper when she felt her nails digging into her skin, she spares her a glance through her teary eyes and when she looked into [F/N]’s eyes, there was no warmth but dull and empty eyes staring right back at her. She let out a gasp when [F/N] dropped her, letting her collapse to the ground and grovel at her feet. She turned on her heel and started walking away, ignoring how much she wanted to stop and apologise to Robin, how this isn’t what she wanted but this was the hill she was going to die on if it meant that Robin was safe from her ”And Buckley, don’t even think about telling Stevie about this, not that he’ll even be on your side in the first place. I’m his sister, he loves me, and you? You’re nothing but a coworker he has to put up with.” she didn’t even bother looking back at Robin when she finally left the alleyway, leaving Robin to wallow up with a broken heart as she cried out in anguish.

“[F/N]?” she let out a hum, turning towards Veronica who now sat in her passenger seat while her friends were excitingly sitting in the back “Are you alright?”  “Why wouldn’t I be, sweetheart?” she flushed at the pet name, she points at her face.

“You’re crying…” her eyes widened softly at that, glancing down at her face to see a single tear running down her cheek, she chuckles softly at that and wipes it away with her thumb.

“Just a little dust that got in my eye, nothing to worry about.”

Hours go by and night has enveloped Hawkins, to which [F/N] was currently loading the drunk, unconscious and tied up girls into her car once more. Getting them completely intoxicated took no trouble whatsoever, they were more than happy to get wasted with the more popular Harrington. [F/N] herself was drinking away her sorrows after breaking up with Robin, wanting nothing more then to numb the pain and forget that look of pain and betrayal on Robin’s face, but it’ll forever be burned into the back of her mind. She lets out an exhausted sigh after loading the last of the girls into the backseat, rolling her shoulders after walking back and forward from the house and her car repeatedly. Steve had yet to return from Scoops Ahoy despite how late into the night it was becoming so she was taking his absence as an opportunity to get everything done. Driving to the factory wasn’t as eventful, driving legally to avoid unwanted attention so she doesn’t get pulled over, when she reached the basement she was quite surprised to see the state Billy was in.

“Fuck happened to you?” she questions, quietly offering up the girls to the monster then returned to his side with a rag and some water “You look like you got the shit beaten out of you.” he looked up at her, letting her clean up the blood and sweat “That girl, was it her?” he nods.

“Yeah. It was her.” she nods softly, taking his hand and wiping away the blood on his knuckles “She knows now. She knows about me. She could’ve killed me.” she nods again, she puts the rag down and gently pats his hand.

“Yes, but not us. Not us.” they then glance at the crowd of people they’ve either managed to kidnap altogether or were infected by the rats that were controlled by the monster “There’s no way she’ll know that there are more of us. She could barely handle you, so what makes her think she can handle all of us?”

“You’re right.”  “I know. Our time is nearly upon us, so we needn’t worry until then.”

[the next day, with the party]

The party along with Jonathan and Nancy were all hunkered down in the Wheeler household in the basement, each discussing what had happened the following night and their latest discoveries. The children told the two young adults how the Mind Flayer had returned and that Billy Hargrove was under its control, in return they told the party how an old woman, Mrs Driscoll, was found eating fertiliser and was acting crazy. Nancy then deducted how that since the attack last night along with their sauna test happened at the same time, the possibility of the Mind Flayer flaying more than just Billy.

“Billy was doing something to her, but there was someone else as well.” they all look at El when she spoke up, she looks at Max “There was another girl, but she looked more worried for him.” she closed her eyes to remember seeing Billy, she remembered seeing that girl who looked terrified as she called out for Billy.

“Another girl? What did she look like?” Max urged, maybe if they find this girl she could help them find Billy and maybe even the Mind Flayer.

“Um, she was tall, maybe about Billy’s height. She had [H/C] hair, [E/C] eyes and a few beauty marks on her neck and face.” she closed her eyes to remember any other features that stood out to her “Her eyes, though, her eyes reminded me a lot of Steve’s.” this subtle feature caught Nancy’s attention, her face lighting up in remembrance, this caused the others to look at her when she started snapping her fingers.

“W-Wait— Wait right there.” the others watch as Nancy rushed out of the basement, questioning what she was planning on grabbing, and when she returned she had a handful of polaroids and a few articles “El, is the girl you’re describing… her?” El leans forward to see Nancy was looking through the photos before pushing a certain article towards her, she ignores the headline as her eyes zone in on the picture. They she saw the girl she saw through her vision but this time she had a giant grin on her face, a bit of a crazed expression on her face as she stuck her tongue out while one of her hands was doing the rock on devil horns.

“Y-Yes, yes! That’s who I saw,” Nancy and Jonathan share a look of disbelief “W-Who is she?”  “That’s Steve’s sister! That’s [F/N] Harrington!” this caused the lot of them to lurch forward and look all the pictures of said Harrington “I remember her being back in town, but to think that she and Billy were actually friends.” she muttered under her breath, Max was looking at a picture had in his hands and her eyes widened when she too recognised her face.

“Holy shit.” Max says, now they look at her when they saw her pick up a different photo, this time it was of a polaroid of the girl at a party, sitting on a couch with her legs over the arm rest as she was chugging down an entire bottle of vodka “That’s Billy’s girlfriend.” now Nancy and Jonathan were in even more shock.

“Fucking, what?!” Max nods her head.

“I’ve seen her around the house a couple times, and whenever she’s around he’s a lot more happier. I remember hearing a girls laughter from his room and when I came in to see what it was…” she shudders at the memory, shaking her head “It wasn’t particularly a fun sight.” the certain memory she’s remembering back to was when she, Steve and Robin snuck into Billy’s room through his window with some weed and alcohol they were planning on sharing with each other. None of them had realised Max was home until they heard her calling Billy’s name followed by her footsteps, Robin and Steve were quick to hide away and when [F/N] attempted to jump out the window, she instead tripped over her own feet and landed on top to Billy, that was when Max walked into the room and misunderstood the entire situation. All the residents of the Hargrove/Mayfield household are one hundred percent convinced that the two are in a relationship, this fact was rather beneficial for the both of them.

“I heard rumours going around that Billy was dating [F/N], but I never believed them.” Jonathan admits “But it makes it all the more believable that the two of them were together.”  “Then do you think she’s flayed? Like Billy?” Nancy takes a breath.

“There’s only one way to find out.” they now find themselves driving to the Harrington household, all feeling concerned and anxious. Nancy was the most worried because she’s witnessed firsthand what the older Harrington was capable of, she was already crazy as is and would only tone it down when her younger brother was in the picture. She loved her brother to bits that the moment someone looked at him wrong she didn’t hesitate to beat their asses with a chair, she remembered how she got arrested for nearly beating a kid near death because they threatened to kill her brother. They reap what they sow, no? Pulling up to the house, Jonathan and Nancy recognise the car that’s in the driveway, it was [F/N]’s infamous Mustang that could rival Billy’s Camaro when it came down to public disturbance.

“Is there anything about her that we should be careful about?” Jonathan looks up in thought as they approach the front door.

“Um, if you thought Billy was bad… I’d say she’s worse.” they pale at that, she’s worse than Billy? “But if you get on her good side, she’s actually a pretty decent person, nice even.” Nancy nods her head, agreeing with what he’s saying. The two now stood in front of the two, both equally hesitating to knock because they share an equal fear of the female Harrington, Nancy was the one to take a deep breath and knock on the door. They waited for a while for the door to open, awkwardly looking around to pass the time, they hear stumbling footsteps and a few things getting knocked over before the door was open. Nancy and Jonathan reel backwards when the smell of alcohol hit their faces, there in front of them was the sight of a depressed and intoxicated [F/N] that was leaning against the doorframe to keep herself from falling to the ground while in one of her hands was a bottle of tequila. 

This is not what the party were expecting.

“Who the fff… phuck are you?” [F/N] slurred out, clearly not in the right state of mind and very much drunk.

“Is that you… [F/N]?” Nancy asked, very much unsure that the girl in front of her was the Harrington that she knew. [F/N] was one to get drunk at the oddest times of the day, but it looked like she had been crying, and she does not shed tears for anything or just about anyone. [F/N] giggled drunkenly, swaying softly before lifting the bottle of tequila and taking a long swig from it, letting out a satisfied breath as the alcohol burned her throat.

“Yeah? What’s it to you?” [F/N] was going to ignore the bothersome people who came knocking at her door while she was trying to wallow up in sadness, ready to just outright slam the door in their faces but paused when in her drunken eyes she could just make out who exactly the girl is “W-Who are you?” she stuttered out, Nancy swallows thickly, patting her dress to smooth it out.

“Um, it’s me, Nancy Wheeler?” [F/N]’s blood starts to run cold, sobering up just at the mention of the name “I dated your brother a while ago, and we’ve met a couple times when we weren’t dating?” the silence scared them, maybe it was because [F/N]’s drunken state disappeared as she stared Nancy dead in the eyes and wouldn’t break eye contact no matter how many times Nancy looked away or turned her head away, [F/N] just continued to stare at her. Soon, a soft smile appeared on her face as she chuckled softly, she then leaned down to put the bottle of tequila on the ground then reached forward to grab Nancy by the sides of her head. The others watch in confusion as [F/N] gently caressed her face but it changed when she leaned her head back then slammed her forehead right into the bridge of Nancy’s nose hard enough to break it. She let go of her head and let her fall back onto the ground, not really caring as the girl cried out in pain and clutched onto her nose, she then leans back down to pick up her tequila as the children and Jonathan surround Nancy.

“Oh my god, Nancy!” Mike shouts as he falls to his knees, comforting his sister as she tried to stop her bleeding nose “What is wrong with you?!” he shouts up at [F/N], who once again threw her head back as she downed another swig from her bottle, completely ignoring him.

“I don’t like you, Wheeler.” she sneers out, taking a step forward and glaring down at the girl “I know what my brother did to you and Byers over there back in 83′, as his older sister I apologise, but what you did to him last year? He told me everything, how the girl he wanted to be with said everything between them was bullshit, then went and ran straight into the arms of the guy she told him not to worry about. You should’ve thought twice before showing your face to me, Wheeler, because now you’re on my number one hit list.” she makes the “I’m watching you” gesture with her fingers then turned around to go back into her house, only stopping when Jonathan used his foot to keep the door from closing properly.

“Wait, [F/N]!” she glared at him “We really need to talk to you.” she scoffs, throwing her head back.

“About what?”

“About Billy.” she was in the middle of taking another long swig from her bottle but froze up at the mention of Billy, slowly lowering the bottle to look at the older Byers “We really need to talk about him, and we’d appreciate it if you could tell us everything you know about him that’s happened in the past couple of days.” she stared at the lot of them being letting out a sigh, that’s where they found themselves in [F/N]’s kitchen as her drunken rage turned into a sob fest.

“You know?! I feel like he’s been acting different as of lately, and— and that he’s been distancing himself! I feel like he’s become a completely different person!” she cried from where she was seated, the others all sat across from her as her body moved dramatically “Then he broke up with me, saying how it was for the best! What the fuck does that mean?! Why does breaking up with me the best for us?! I still wanted to be friends, but I couldn’t even have that either! So here I am, drinking myself into a stupor!” she shouts and goes to drink again but let out a whine when nothing came out, pulling it away from her lips and tipping the bottle only for a few droplets to come pouring out. The others all glance at each other and watch as she moved to a wine cabinet to grab a bottle of expensive looking wine.

“She’s totally not flayed, right?” Lucas questioned, Mike shook his head.

“Not a chance.” they all wince when she trips into the wine cabinet, no chance.

“Hey, where can I get some ice?” Jonathan asked, [F/N] looked back towards him before shakily pointing at the fridge.

“Should be some in the freezer, Byers. Help yourself out.” Jonathan nods and goes to get some but Mike was already on his feet to grab it himself, wanting to soothe his sister’s pain, at least Max and El stopped the bleeding. He’s in front of the fridge and about to open the freezer but stopped when he saw a picture hanging on the fridge, taking a closer look, his eyes widened at what he saw. There he saw [F/N], Steve, Billy and that cashier that works with Steve, Robin Buckley if he remembered correctly, standing together with wide smiles and looking happy “Mike, the ice!”

“Oh, right, sorry!” he opens the freezer and grabbed the ice tray, handing it to Jonathan, and closed the freezer door but continued to look at the picture just as [F/N] came over “When did you take this?” she let out a confused noise and leaned forward to see what he was looking at, they all watch as she froze up once again, her hand lifting up from her side to look at the photo. It was during the time when they were at the fair, Steve wanted to take a photo and there was no saying no to Steve. [F/N], Robin, Steve and Billy, in that order, stood together and took a round of different photos and each kept one, right below it with the caption “night of 85′ where it started”. She closed her eyes as a bitter look crossed her face, nothing will be the same ever again and that memory of the four of them happy together will be one of her fondest memories.

“It… doesn’t matter.” she lets out, grabbing the corner of the picture she yanks it off the fridge and tucks it into her pocket “A-Anyways, what’s this about Billy? What’s he done that’s caused you lot to come to me?” El was the one to speak, reaching forward to hold [F/N]’s hand.

“We would like to know if… if you’ve been with him in the past few days, if by chance you’ve been feeling strange.” she stares down at her hand in confusion, she doesn’t pull her hand back though and just simply squeezes it.

“Well, if drinking before five counts as weird, then not particularly, no.” they all sigh at that, she pulls her hand away and crossed her arms, humming to herself whilst looking up in thought “Um, he and that Heather Holloway have been acting weird together. He doesn’t usually hang out with that girl, but the way he talked about her was weird. He even dressed modestly when planning on having dinner with her parents, and that man usually dresses like a complete whore.” they look at her weirdly as she snaps her fingers, she lets out a grunt as she popped the cork off the wine bottle and proceeded to pour herself glass.

“Heather Holloway?” [F/N] nods her head, head falling backwards as she brings the glass to her lips and drinks the wine “Alright, anything else?” she begrudgingly looked off to the side, thinking of anything else that came to mind.

“Uh, he told me he had been planning on visiting this old lady in the hospital? Does that mean anything to you?” she noticed them all visibly flinch, sharing knowing looks with each other “Telling by the looks on your faces, I guess that was helpful?” she questioned, her face scrunched up when Nancy nodded her head in her direction.

“Very!” she bit her tongue and shrunk back when [F/N] glared at her, El grabbed [F/N]’s hand once more and shook it lightly.

“Billy is in trouble, and what you’ve told us has helped our chances on finding him and helping him.” El’s face lifted up when she noticed the way [F/N]’s face softened up at that, she pursed her lips as she averted her eyes from the girl.

“I hope he hasn’t gotten himself into anything too dangerous.” they all hated how that wasn’t the case, with everything they got out of the drunk yet slightly sobering up Harrington, they left just as quickly as they arrived. Will was the last out the door but he suddenly felt a chill run down his spine, his hand immediately slaps onto his neck and he turned around to see [F/N] following them out so she can shut the door behind them. She felt his gaze so she looked down at him to see what he wanted, the chill went away when her drunken eyes looked him up and down “What?” he nervously shook his head.

“N-Nothing.” she narrowed her eyes on him but evidently shrugged her shoulders, the moment they were at their car she slammed the door shut, not waiting for them to pull out of the driveway.

“Will, are you alright?” Mike asked, his hand reaching over to gently grab his hand, Will looked up at Mike and gave him a nervous smile as he nodded his head.

“Y-Yeah, I’m good.” [F/N] stood in her empty kitchen, wine glass in her hand as she tapped her finger against the marble countertop. If she played her roll well enough, the group will probably go and investigate the Holloway household then make their way to the hospital to check on poor old Mrs Driscoll, she was now rolling her fingers against the counter.

“Well, why not give them a surprise for snooping in things they shouldn’t go poking their heads in?” she laughs to herself, downing the rest of wine in her glass before proceeding to round a few other flayed people to come help her.

[later at night]

The party arrive at the hospital when the sun was down and it was late into the night, they quickly rush out of the car and towards the hospitals entrance, completely unaware of the Ford Mustang that was parked not to far away from where they were. Per hospital visits, only two people were allowed to visit a patient at a time so Nancy and Jonathan went ahead while the others lingered around the waiting room. The two walk down the hallway to get to Dorris Driscoll’s room in silence, but to be honest, it was a little too quire despite it being a hospital. They hadn’t seen a single nurse or doctor since they arrived at the floor, it was rather unusual but they shrugged it off with that it wasn’t that busy of a night. Entering the room, they were met with the sight of Mrs Driscoll nowhere to be seen while the flowers Nancy brought and placed into a vase were knocked over.

“Where is she?” Jonathan asks as they scan the room, Nancy shakes her head.

“I don’t know.” she answers as she rushes towards the fallen vase, Jonathan following right behind her.

“Are you sure this is the right room?”

“Yeah.” they both then look up when the lights started flicking on and off, footsteps were heard from the hallway until a figure appeared at the door, the two turned around just as the figure spoke.

“She’s gone home.” there they see Tom Holloway, appearance looking disheveled as his hands and end of his button up were covered in blood “We were hoping you might come back.” the two start backing away when Tom enters the room and starts approaching them slowly, Jonathan raises his arm in front of Nancy to keep her behind him as they inched further and further away from Tom.

“Who’s blood is that?” Tom doesn’t answer him as he gets closer to them.

“Tom, whatever you’ve done, it’s not you. He’s making you do this.” now that they were practically within arms length from Tom, Jonathan didn’t take any chances and grabbed the vase, smashing it into the side of Tom’s head. The older man fell into the wall giving Jonathan and Nancy a chance to flee out of the room, they didn’t get far when another flayed appeared down the hall with a wound exactly where Jonathan hit Tom with the vase.

“Owie.” he feigns the pain as he caressed where his temple was bleeding but it healed, black veins bulging out from his temple as he started walking towards them.

“Go, go, go!” Jonathan shouts, pushing Nancy towards the staircase in an attempt to escape the two flayed men. The two of them are racing down the stairs, they aren’t really aware what floor they’re on but they don’t want to take any chances as they’re running down the hall, going further and further they see the dead bodies of the hospital workers, at least they now knew whose blood that was “This way, this way!” he shouts as he pulls Nancy down a part of the hospital that had construction being done, the two men that were chasing them weren’t even running and were just simply walking at a steady pace.

“You haven’t got them yet?” Bruce glanced over to see [F/N] on a chair, body hunched over with her elbows resting on her knees. Beneath her foot was a nurse whimpering, crying silently as [F/N] pressed the heel of her shoe into her head and slowly applied more pressure as the nurse squirmed to get free “How hard is it to grab those two idiots?” she questioned.

“Just playing a little game of cat and mouse, that’s all.” she chuckled cruelly, shaking her head.

“Get them before they cause us more trouble. That girl isn’t here to assist them, so one of you should be enough to handle them both, alright?” he nods his head and rushed off to go find Nancy and Jonathan, not like that would be hard. She finally turned her attention to the crying nurse who looked up at her, eyes pleading with her to let her go “It’s a shame that you weren’t able to see the world he was going to create, but I guess it’s better for you not to stay and find out.” [F/N] then reached over to the axe that was resting against the wall, both her hands and the blade drenched in blood of the various victims that were claimed that night. She now aimlessly walked the hospital halls, whistling a random tune as she felt the flayed Bruce find the two and so she made her way over to where they were, Bruce was chasing after Nancy as she screamed for help while Tom was making his way over to where Jonathan was.

Find them.

Kill them.

Erase them.

Annihilate them.

“They’re working on it.” she murmurs under her breath, getting closer and closer to where Tom was with Jonathan, he was playing with his food. She shook her head, maybe it was wrong to bring those two along with her and she probably should have brought two other peo— she suddenly let out a grunt, her head being thrown back as she stumbled into the wall. She brought a hand to her mouth and saw black blood bleeding from her mouth, she drops the axe when she felt another impact smash her across the face and she finally fell to the ground. She was growling under her breath, panting as she starts pushing herself up but fell back when another smash to the head was delivered to Bruce while Jonathan stabbed Tom in the neck. The shared pain they felt sucked and had [F/N] grovelling on the floor, both hands slapped around her neck as black bleed bled from her face and neck, her veins then started bumping black as they started turning visible “You worthless… imbeciles!” she roared out, the Mind Flayer gifted her and Billy more power since they were the first to turn into his mindless zombies, so their regenerative abilities were superb in comparison to the rest. While Bruce and Tom lay motionless on the floor she picked herself back up, rolling her neck and hearing it crack under the pressure, she leans down to pick the fallen axe up and dragged it behind her to find the two causing them so many problems. 

She was greatly irritated, gripping onto the axe with so much force that the wood started to crack under her hold. Those two had one simple job to do and they failed horrendously to the point that their bodies turned into goop, she heard the sound of panting so she looked over and saw a doctor she thought she had killed, dragging himself along the floor to get to safety. The moment he heard footsteps he thought he was saved so he turned to see his saviour but his face fell at the sight of an enraged [F/N], dragging her axe behind her and leaving a trail of blood behind her. The doctor let out a cry as he tried crawling away again but was stopped when she stomped on his back, she brings the axe above her head and swing it down, landing a clean hit into the back of his skull and killing him. Blood splattered onto her face as she didn’t bother wiping it off, just simply yanked the axe out of his head and continued on with her journey. She was walking down the hall when she saw the goop of what was Tom and Bruce form into the monster, a miniature version of the Mind Flayer.

“Now look what you’ve done with yourself.” she speaks, walking out from the hallway as her body was drenched in a mixture of black and red blood, she then turned her head and a wicked smile spread across her face at the sight of Jonathan “There you are~” she cooed, now standing beside the Mind Flayer as she stared Jonathan down while the monster stared at Nancy.

“[F-F/N]…?” they both stutter out, she giggled to herself, throwing the axe over her shoulder and bounced it lightly.

“The one and only.” she winks at Jonathan then turns towards the monster, lifting the axe up to point at it “You had one job, right? One! And you failed it, immensely. All you had to do was kill them, and you couldn’t even do something so simple to the point you’ve gone and turn yourself into that. Good job, really, good job.” she shook her head in disappointment as the monster lets out a whine, knowing that the original Mind Flayer favours her and Billy over the rest.

“[F/N], w-what have you done?” Nancy whispers out as she looked the older Harrington up and down seeing she was covered in blood that just wasn’t hers as her veins were pumping with black blood “You were flayed? For how long?!” she cries out, she just shrugs.

“Does it matter? You’ll be dead anyways.” she looks back up at the monster and whistles, pointing with her thumb towards Nancy “Get her, I’ll deal with the other one. You won’t have trouble with this, will you?” she chuckles when it lets out a roar and starts charging towards her, she in turn starts marching over to where Jonathan is.

“Shit.”

“Nancy! Run!” she immediately backs into the door to the staircase but let out a panicked cry when sandbags were keeping the door from opening fully, Jonathan starts to panic as well because the monster was quickly closing the distance between the two of them and [F/N] was also getting closer to him. When Nancy manages to break through the door and run away he felt a sense of relief but it didn’t last when [F/N] was on him, he grabs one of the IV poles to defend himself but lets out a grunt when she kicked him in the chest, he evidently falls to the ground because of this.

“I’m really going to enjoy this, I never really liked you anyway, creep.” she lets out a grunt as she tries slamming the axe down on him but he managed to roll away just in time. He’s pushing himself back to get away from [F/N] as she leisurely strides after him, dragging the bloodied axe behind her in an almost taunting way “I don’t even need to do much to influence this body into wanting to kill you, it’s already rather homicidal and her hatred for you and that other girl is pretty deep.” Jonathan manages to push himself onto his feet and starts running away from her but in a way that he was chasing after the monster and Nancy.

“Is this because I beat her brother up and Nancy broke up with him?!” she only shrugs, easily matching his pace as she chased after him.

“Probably, but she was already crazy even before that, I’ve just pushed aside her rationality.” she swings at him again but he ducks out of the way, wincing when the axe made contact with the wall and a crack formed under the impact “Her love for her brother is both her weakness and her strength. She’d do anything for him; anything.” she’s swinging at him left and right, him narrowly dodging out of the way when he’s finally at the hallway where he sees the miniature Mind Flayer at a door that he believes Nancy has locked herself in.

“No, Nancy!” this was his shortcoming when he froze up, watching as the monster lost its physical form to turn back into a state of goop so it could slip under the cracks of the door. He was kicked in the back and fell onto his stomach, he pushes himself onto his back but let out a grunt of pain when she hit him with the butt of the axe, causing him to fall limp onto his back and daze him.

“No more running, little Jonathan. You’re making my job harder than it needs to be, so just sit still,” she starts, raising the axe over her head and smiling crazily down at him “and let me kill you.” she laughs wickedly and finally swings the axe down, having a clean shot to kill Jonathan but the axe is stopped inches away from his face. He gasped, eyes widen in shock as he stared up at the blade while [F/N] in turn was confused, letting out a strained grunt as she tried pushing it down but it wasn’t budging.

“Jonathan!” the two of them whip their heads around and see the party down the hall, El’s hand stretched out a stopping the blade from meeting Jonathan’s face. They all flinch back at the vicious look in [F/N]’s eyes, god, she looked exactly like Billy during the sauna test. El didn’t waste any time as she raised her hand, this motion caused the axe in her hands to move away from Jonathan, and because she was still holding the axe in her hands, El used it to send [F/N] flying back and pin her to the wall with it pressed against her throat, just like Billy.

“Holy shit, she was flayed the whole time!” Lucas shouts as they all rush towards Jonathan to help him up, they all spare [F/N] a glance and saw she was growling at them, letting out a animalistic roar as she pushes against the axe that was keeping her at bay, El in turn was putting more power into keeping [F/N] still “Does that mean she lured us here?!”

“It doesn’t matter now!” Mike shouts, they all shudder when [F/N] starts giggling maniacally “Why the hell are you laughing?!”

“You dumbasses a-are… are exactly where I want you.” Mike shakes his head.

“Really? But aren’t you the one being pinned to the wall right now?” she continues to laugh, her head rolling backwards and resting against the wall behind her. The dark blood pumping through her veins become more visible as she lets out another roar, finally managing to push El’s hold off of her and throw the axe towards them, they all duck out as the way just as she lands on the ground with a heavy thud.

“Jeez, way to go dickwad.” Max sneers at him, [F/N] wipes away the blood dripping down her nose as she leaned down to pick up the fallen axe. She throws her head back, running a hand through her hair as she laughs again, El is panting as she ignores the blood running down her nose.

“What’s so funny?” blood is running down her face and she can’t tell whether it’s hers or not, but she doesn’t care as she looks down at the children, she throws her axe over her shoulders and motions with her eyes to the room behind them.

“Aren’t you forgetting about someone?” at the mention of that they heard a scream, they all turn their heads towards the door and [F/N] laughs once more “I know a fight I can’t win when I see one, so here’s how this is going to go. You lot have two options. Option one, I run away and you lot are given the chance to save Nancy from meeting her inevitable end because you choose to save her instead of chase after me. Or option two, you give up on little Miss Nancy to chase after little ol’ me, this gives you the chance to learn things about where the monster is and what he’s planning on doing, but this also means that Wheeler meets her end. So what’s it gonna be? Are you going to be the hero that saves the damsel in distress, or the hero that sacrifices her to save the world?” she doesn’t wait for them to answer as she’s already running in the opposite direction, El raises her arm to stop her but flinched when she heard Nancy’s cry for help.

“El, leave her! Please, you’ve got to save Nancy! You’ve got to save my sister!” Mike cries out, tears swelling in his eyes when Nancy’s screams got louder, he then desperately tugs on her arm “Please, El! Please!” El’s eyes were still on [F/N]’s retreating figure, growling softly under her breath when she saw the light smirk on her face before she turned the corner and disappeared. [F/N] was pouting softly as she exits the hospital, spinning the axe around her wrists, and was slightly disappointed she couldn’t kill Jonathan or that Nancy. Oh well, there was still plenty of time to get them next ti— she jumped up in surprise when the monster was thrown out of the room and landed right beside her, she looked up from where it fell and saw the lot peering outside the window, she then gives them a two fingered salute before rushing over to her car and driving away as the monster turns itself into goop once more to escape through the sewers.

“… so which one of us is telling Steve?” Lucas murmurs, they all pale at that. Back with [F/N], she finally reaches the factory, letting out a groan as she walks down the stairs to the basement, hand on her neck while rolling her neck as the axe rested on her shoulder.

“You look like hell.” she scoffs at Billy, wiping the blood on her face with the back of her hand.

“I feel like hell. I couldn’t get shit done because the two idiots I brought with me were of no help whatsoever.” the goop that escaped from the hospital the appears, slithering towards the original to merge with it, it grows in size as the two stare up at it.

“It’s time.”

[time skip: the next day]

El sat in front of the TV that was playing nothing but static, a blindfold over her eyes to help her focus on finding where the Mind Flayer could possibly be while the others sat back and watched her overexert herself. She was panting as she tried so hard to keep pushing herself but in the end she couldn’t anymore and ripped the blindfold off her eyes, she now found herself in the kitchen getting a glass of water, gulping it down until the glass was completely empty. The others were discussing what they should do, they could possibly go and find [F/N] but they didn’t want to take the chance on fighting the newly psychopath and she probably wasn’t going to be home, the other option was Billy who definitely was home but him being there was just a trap waiting for them. El set her empty glass on the kitchen counter and let her eyes wander under until they landed on a box of lucky charms, staring at the rainbow, she got bitter flashbacks of her mother but then an idea struck in her head that she went back to the ground.

“It’s too risky.”

“Yeah, and unnecessary. Killing the flayed won’t stop the Mind Flayer. We have to find out where it’s spreading from. We have to find the source.”

“Billy and [F/N] know it.” they all turn to El when she entered the room “They’ve both been there, to the source. She even said that if we went after her and caught her, we could’ve learned where the Mind Flayer was.” Mike shook his head.

“Yeah, but—”

“It’s a trap, I know. We can’t go to Billy or [F/N], but I think there’s another way. A way for me to see where they’ve been.” she’s sat in front of the TV once more with a blindfold over her eyes, concentrating on the static noise coming from the TV. She takes a deep breath and concentrates until she finds herself in the void and in the distance she can see something. As she gets closer she finds herself staring down at Billy and [F/N] sitting beside each other on what she assumes is Billy’s bed, [F/N] had her eyes closed as she rested her head on his shoulder and Billy himself was sitting up straight while staring into nothing. The one thing the two of them were doing was holding each other’s hand, occasionally squeezing, as her other arm was wrapped around her waist as his other hand rested on his knee. El now stood in front of the two, who weren’t completely unaware that she was there, but they both had a feeling that someone was there. El lets out a shaky breath as she reaches down, grabbing both of their free hands “Billy… [F/N]. I want to see. I want to see what happened.” Billy raises his head and [F/N] opens her eyes, El could see the tears in their eyes as they stared up at her, she lets out a gasp when the hands she was holding let go of hers and instead held a tight grip on her forearm. She tries to break free but neither one of them were letting go, their hold on her only tightened as she fought against them but when they did let go of her, she falls back but their memories of everything they’ve done flashed in her head. From [F/N] and Billy killing people, from them kidnapping people, from them hurting people, from the Mind Flayer infecting the two of them, from the very beginning when Billy crashed and [F/N] rushing to come to his aid.

El let out a grunt when she fell onto the concrete sidewalk, she groans as she rubs the back of her head and slowly pushed herself up so her hands were holding her up, she looked around and saw that she was on some random street that she couldn’t recognise but the sun was up and there weren’t many people around, it was practically empty. She finally pulls herself onto her feet and starts walking around, maybe trying to find someone or something she can recognise. She lets out a gasp when she heard laughter so she goes to turn around and see what it was but paused when a young child, a little girl, ran past her laughing to her hearts content. Looking her up and down, she wore a [F/C] sweater and shorts while her hair was tied up with a hair tie that had small little ladybugs on it, the girl laughed again before turning around and waving her hand in the direction El was standing in.

“Stevie, come on! You’re so slow.” El gasps softly and when she turns around she sees the child version of Steve Harrington, he looked to be about ten years of age, pushing a bike where the girl was standing “Didn’t you ask me to teach you how to ride a bike?” Steve pants as he walks past El and towards his older sister.

“You’re not the one pushing the bike [F/N].” he complains, she just rolls her eyes.

“Stop being such a big baby, dingus.” he pouts, El follows them and finds that they’re in some neighbourhood in Hawkins that has smooth terrain for Steve to ride his bike. El smiled softly seeing [F/N] tease Steve while he in turn was crying at her to stop, she did eventually stop when she saw his eyes start getting misty and started pushing his bike. It was quite sweet watching the older Harrington treated her brother rather delicately, he seemed like such a crybaby when he was a kid.

“I-I’m having second thoughts, [F/N].” Steve said to her, his voice barely above a whisper. He was currently on the bike, his hands clutching onto the handles as his feet rested on the pedals, [F/N] stood beside him while holding the back because she knew that he didn’t have the balance to hold himself. She exhaled through her nose, looking him up and down.

“Well, we can always do this another time, not everybody can get it on their first try.” she tries reassuring him but noticed that he still looked upset over the matter, her eyes looked down in thought before she reached over and placed her hand on top of his “Hey, Steve, I’ll be right beside you, alright? I’ll always be with you every step of the way, I promise you that.” Steve sniffles at that, looking down at his sister with teary eyes.

“R-Really?” she nods, a big smile on her face.

“Really, I’ll always be there for you.” seeing her smile made one just as big spread across his lips, he then nods as he looked ahead of them.

“Okay, I can do this.” and as [F/N] promised, she was right beside him to help keep him balanced as he pedalled down the sidewalk, but the moment she noticed that he was doing on his own was when she pulled her arms back and instead ran beside him.

“You’re doing it, Stevie! Look at you go!” she cheered, he took a quick glance at her and saw that he really was doing it on his own, a big smile broke onto his face as he went on. When [F/N] could no longer keep up with him, she stopped running at his pace and let out an exhausted breath as she hunched forward to catch her breath. El approached the young [F/N], looking at her face and there she saw the look of pure love as she watched her brother go, she saw that she completely adored her brother to no ends. El remembered Nancy mentioning how [F/N] would do about anything for her younger brother, it didn’t what it was, it’s just that she would go to great lengths for him. [F/N] gasped and this caused El to stop looking at her and instead back at Steve, who winced when she saw the wheel get caught in something, causing him to fly off the bike “Steve!” she shouts out and immediately rushes to his side, to which he was bawling his eyes out as his knees were bleeding and hands were scrapped.

“It hurts, [F/N]! It hurts so much!” he cries out, [F/N] drops to her knees as she looked him up and down, trying to figure out what to do as he continued sobbing. She then tries to calm him down but it just doesn’t seem to work, nothing she was doing was working and he only seemed to be getting worse, so she starts to cry with Steve. El found it a little funny that the two siblings were crying, Steve because he was hurt and [F/N] because Steve was crying. She never would have imagined that the drunk, depressed and psychotic [F/N] she met the day prior was the same caring little girl she watched before her. When [F/N] did manage to calm down, not enough to stop crying, she picked Steve up and carried him on his back and ran to the closets house, abandoning the bike in favor of someone helping her brother. The person she chose was quite startled to find two crying children at her door step, awkwardly question what was wrong but managed to understand what happened through all the snot and tears [F/N] blubbered out.

[you can skip past this, this is basically her past that I accidentally started to write and I couldn’t fucking stop]

[F/N]’s happiest memory was anything that involved Steve, she was the eldest Harrington child of the Harrington couple. The two of them never wanted a daughter and expected their first child to be a son, but when they got [F/N] instead they didn’t hesitate to have sex again just to conceive another child in hopes of getting a son, and their hopes came true when Steve was born. [F/N] noticed at a young age how her parents favoured Steve over her every time, it didn’t matter what it was, it was always him before her, but she never did care about that, because her parents were just assholes and her baby brother didn’t do anything to deserve the anger she had for their parents to be directed at him. There was just something different between the two of them when they started getting older, they were joined at the hip when they were children but the moment they were in middle school, it was a different story. [F/N] naturally entered middle school before him and she already earned herself a title, the up and rising star of Hawkins Middle School that would surely become the Queen of Hawkins High when she graduates middle school. She was beautiful, a Harrington genetic gift, naturally smart and athletic, very kind and charismatic that she was the person everyone wanted to be with.

So her achievements greatly overshadowed Steve’s to the point that their parents attention moved from him to her, at first she was happy that she got their validation, but noticing how her and Steve were drifting apart and his admiration towards her turned green with envy, she started second guessing all the popularity she gained. It got worse for Steve when he started middle school, he was known as the “other Harrington” that just couldn’t match up to his sister, he was just constantly in her shadow no matter where he went. Constantly being compared to her was like a nightmare to him, he was struggling to finish an English essay? [F/N] would have easily gotten it done in half the time it took him to write a single sentence. He managed to score a three pointer in basketball during P.E? How about winning against Hawkins Middle School’s rivalling team with the most points they’ve seen in years. He didn’t want to be known as the younger brother of [F/N] Harrington, he wanted people to know him as Steve Harrington, but that was never going to happen as long as people knew that he was her brother. [F/N] obviously noticed the treatment her sweet little brother was going through, she tried so hard to talk to him or get people to stop with their bullshit, but that made Steve angrier, he didn’t want her pity.

“Steve, why won’t you talk to me anymore? Please, I just want to make things between us better, like what it used to be when we were children!” she pleads out to him, she flinched back when he slammed his hands down on his desk, whipping his head around to glare at her.

“You want to make things right? Alright, maybe stop being better at everything! Maybe stop being the topic of every conversation people have when they come to talk to me! Maybe just stop being the reason my life is ruined!” he pushes his chair back with his legs as he approaches her “Stop being smart! Stop being pretty! Stop people the centre of attention!” she lets out a grunt when he shoved her back, her stumbling out his room as he reached for the door “Maybe just stop being my sister altogether!” he finished and slammed the door in her face, she continued to stand where he left her as she stared at his door, she let out choked up noises as tears glistened in her eyes before finally sniffling and walking away.  That was definitely the last time the two of them properly spoke with each other and no matter how many times she tried to work things out, how hard she tried to make things better, he just never gave her the time of day to hear her out. Her graduation from middle school to high school was probably her worst day because Steve didn’t even want to be there and only came because their parents would be more disappointed in him if he didn’t come to support his sister, and for him it was probably a great day because it meant that he didn’t have to see his sister the following year at all. If she didn’t do anything soon she was possibly going to lose Steve, so staring at her reflection she stared at herself and couldn’t help but hate she was looking at. She never felt like she was looking at herself, just looking at the person her parents made her out to be without her ever being able to properly find herself. She wanted to change, she wanted to be different from the person she saw in the reflection, and there was just one person that could possibly help her.

“Eddie Munson!” she screamed at the top of lungs at the trailer park, she knew the bastard was home, telling how the lights in his trailer were on. Eddie “the Freak” Munson was her polar opposite in middle school and a boy who was in the same year as she was. She remembered first seeing him during their middle school’s talent show with how him and his band “Corroded Coffin” performed heavy metal, it was very loud and a little disorganised, but it was pretty good in her opinion. She met Eddie on a few occasions but each time weren’t really pleasant, mostly because he spoke to her as if she didn’t know how the world worked since she was a privileged little girl that got everything she wanted. She didn’t know what hurt more, the fact that he isn’t entirely wrong or that it was him that woke her up. Eddie opened the door to the trailer and was surprised to see [F/N] standing there, so with his usual cocky attitude, he crossed his arms and leaned against the doorframe.

“Well what do we have here? What can this jester do for her majesty, [F/N] “the Queen” Harrington?” he cooed, [F/N] didn’t bother to say anything and just went straight to the point.

“I need your help.”

“And what can little ol’ me do for you?”

“I need you to make me look like you.” now he was a little thrown off at the request, the one and only girl that everybody loves and has everything at the palm of her hand, was asking for his help in making her… look like him? She noticed that he was confused so she raised her hand, she goes to speak but a chill ran up her spine when a burst of wind blew through her body “Can I come in? I’m fucking freezing.” her swearing was even more startling, [F/N] was prim and proper and wasn’t know for using such vulgar language, and yet here she was.

“O-Oh, yeah, of course.” and that’s where Eddie found himself holding a box of tissues for [F/N] as she told him everything that happened during her year in middle school, bawling her eyes out as she told him that her worst fear was possibly coming true “So, let me get this straight… you want me, to make you look like me so that your parents and possibly others start viewing in a different way and that people will start liking your brother?” she sniffles, nodding her head.

“Yeah, that’s pretty much it.” he sucks in a breath, running a hand through his growing hair after growing through his buzz cut.

“I don’t know if I find that endearing that you came to me for help or insulting that you came to me for help.” she gave him an apologetic look “But I see where you’re coming from, female Harrington. You don’t want people to see you in a positive light and if they hate you enough they’ll draw their attention towards the better Harrington.” she nods her head.

“That’s exactly what I want.” he lets out a startled yelp when she grabbed his hand, holding it in between her own and gave him a desperate look “I’ll do anything to drift the attention away from me and give it to him, I won’t care how people view me as long as they stop making my brother feel even worse than he already feels. I want to be there beside him instead of on the sidelines.” he inhales sharply, this really wasn’t what he was expecting to happen on a Saturday night.

“Well… alright.” she lights up, a big smile on her face “But I want no complaining from you, alright? The moment you start doubting anything I do, I’m gonna give up on you,” she nods her head at the terns he set.

“Of course, totally!” she stands up, still holding his hand, and shakes it rather vigorously “If this works, I owe you big time, Munson.”

And being a man of his word, on the first day of her high school year, the soft and kind [F/N] was nowhere to be seen. Instead Hawkins High was met with the new and improved Harrington that wore leather or denim and had several piercings that were definitely not done by a professional, she even wore dark make up instead of the light or natural one. To say everyone was shocked would be an understatement, everyone was in disbelief when she pulled up to school in such attire but it was the fact that she was with Eddie Munson of all people! They were laughing about and talking as if they have been best friends since they were children, even his group of friends were in on the deal of making her less popular so she wasn’t seen without being with Eddie and his group of freaks. Her entire personality was a total flip as well, from the well spoken and polite young lady turned to a rude and vulgar woman who’s attitude was the worst that people couldn’t stand being with her. The teachers couldn’t believe what they were seeing either, she was once a straight A student but now she was barely passing with D+ and C-’s.

She learnt everything from Eddie, and she was always grateful for him because she actually felt free. Being with him and his group of friends was so relaxing because she didn’t have to worry about how she looked and how she acted anymore, she could actually properly be herself. Listening to heavy metal and screaming at the top of her lungs, smoking weed and laying on the floor of his trailer, letting him ramble on and on about some fantasy game called D&D, she didn’t care, it felt nice to actually have real friends instead of those people leeching off of her. But that didn’t matter, well it did, but what really mattered was the fact that it was working. People didn’t want to be associated with the former Queen who now hung around with the freaks and because she was barely pulling her weight in school and was constantly failing, her parents were absolutely livid with her.

“What has gotten into you, [F/N]? You were never like this leading up to this year! It’s all because you’ve been hanging around that Munson boy! He’s not a good influence on you!” she just rolled his eyes as her mother shouts all sorts of nonsense at her, both her mother and father have cornered her and sat her down to have a proper talk with her.

“Not only that, but you’re failing every single one of your classes! You’re barely getting marks above F’s, and at this rate, you’re not even going to pass at the end of your senior year! You’re sullying the Harrington name, [F/N]! I thought we raised you better than this.” she scoffs this time, leaning back into the sofa as she crossed her arms.

“Well I’m sorry for not being mummy and daddy’s perfect little princess anymore, but if you’re not going to accept the me I am today, then why the fuck should I pull my weight anymore? Besides, you still have your perfect little golden child Stevie to take my place if I ever go too far.” she snickers to herself when they continued to yell at her, telling her to that this rebellious act of hers better come to an end or she will face consequences, to which she just laughed in their faces before shoving past them and out the front door where Eddie was waiting for her with his shitty van.

“Dude, we could hear the shouting all the way from out here!” Gareth exclaims, throwing open the back doors for her to jump in, to which she laughed as she took Jeff’s hand as he helped her in “They sounded really angry, you alright?” she just shrugged.

“Honestly I could give less of a shit at what they’re saying, but it’s definitely working, I can just feel them ready to disown me and label me as the family disappointment, I’m just waiting for it now.” Eddie laughs from the drivers seat, glancing back at her.

“You’re crazy.” she winks with a click of her tongue.

“I have you to thank.” they all laugh as he drives to the Quarry.

Steve was completely baffled when people started treating him differently. For some reason he was now known as the better Harrington, the one that didn’t stray from the path of righteousness, or whatever the hell that meant, but it felt good that every topic wasn’t about his sister anymore. Well, when his sister was brought up, it was to tell him how awful it was to now be related to the psycho apart of Eddie Munson’s group of friends. When Steve first saw [F/N]’s transformation and change of behaviour, he didn’t believe it until he saw the way she now argued with everything their parents said. She never used to fight back against them, she would usually just nod and agree with anything they said, but not anymore. Now their parents were looking at him again, telling him they expected great things from him, how he was the new light of the Harrington family and that he was better than his good for nothing sister. As for [F/N], she was happy to see that her brother was finally getting that popularity he deserved and it didn’t matter that she had hell to pay for such a cost, all that mattered to her was that Steve wasn’t bitter having to go to school anymore.

She didn’t care that people insulted her.

She didn’t care that her parents hated her.

If Steve was happy, that’s all that mattered.

Sitting on the hood of her car, [F/N] had blood running down her nose and a bruise forming on the side of her cheek, knuckles torn and bloodied as her clothes were a little disheveled. The bruise on her cheek was given to her during an altercation with her father once again, this time he couldn’t stand her attitude and backhanded her clean across the face hard enough to give her a nose bleed. She didn’t see an ounce of regret on his face and not even her mother did anything to stop anything from escalating, she couldn’t take staying in that house any longer and just left without another word. Her knuckles bleeding were from her brutally punching a brick wall until she physically couldn’t close her knuckles anymore and just tired herself out until she sat on the hood of her car while smoking a cigarette to calm herself down.

“… fuck.” she muttered under her breath, she was totally going to Eddie’s trailer to get high and drunk to the point she couldn’t remember who the fuck she was. When she finally decided she was done, she hopped off the hood of her car and snuffed out her cigarette, getting to ready to jump into her car but paused when she heard her name.

“[F/N]!” she was confused when she saw Steve rushing over to her, she was confused as to why he was there.

“Steve?” she called out, she really didn’t want to deal with him right now be decided to stick it out to see what he had to say “What do you want? Don’t you have basketball practice going on right now?” he scoffed, shaking his head as he looked her up and down, wincing when he saw her bloodied knuckles.

“I don’t give a shit about that.” he reaches for her hand but flinched back when pulled her hand back.

“Why are you here? Don’t you have better things to do than deal with me?” he swallows the saliva in his throat, not liking the tired look in his sisters eyes.

“I-I’m here because I’m worried about you, I just— I don’t understand why you’re acting like this, [F/N]. You’re nothing like the way you were in middle school, what happened to her? Why did you suddenly change? Why are you so different now, [F/N]? I just don’t understand.” he shakes his head as he remembered back to the year prior when his sister first changed, the once quiet house was now filled with arguing and shouting matches between her and their parents to the point that Steve couldn’t handle it “Why are you like this, [F/N]! You had everything and then suddenly you threw it all away because of what? What?! Why did you do it?! What was it?!” Steve didn’t understand why he was yelling at his sister, he usually wouldn’t raise his voice like this and especially not when his sister was bleeding because of their father, but he just needed to quell his curiosity as to why his sister would do such a thi—

“I did it for you, Steve!” she shouts, he was taken aback, what? “I threw away everything for you! The popularity! The attention! Mum and dad’s respect, everything! I gave up everything because I saw how my popularity was affecting you! I couldn’t stand the thought that my brother was feeling the way he was in middle school all because people couldn’t see past me whenever they were with you. I hated the fact that we aren’t as close as we were when we were children, so I thought, if I act differently to what people are used to, then maybe people will start liking Steve Harrington instead of his older sister. And look at that, it worked! It actually worked, because people fucking hate me now and they adore you! You’re the Harrington that isn’t a fuck up!” [F/N] hadn’t realised she started crying until she felt the tears running down her face instead of blood, she pulls back and quickly wiped away the tears, grunting out in pain when she clenched her fists.

“B-But… why? Why would you do that?” Steve stuttered out, not believing she would do something like that, she just rolled her eyes before throwing her arms open at him.

“You said it yourself, Steve! I asked what I had to do to make things right, and you listed everything off! I had to stop being better at everything, I had to stop being the topic of every conversation, I had to stop being smart, I had to stop being pretty, I had to stop being the centre of attention! I did everything! I did everything you asked! Now all that’s left is to stop being your sister!” god, the fact that she remembered everything while he didn’t had Steve start tearing up, she had to tear her eyes away from him to stop her urges to comfort him, she takes a breath and jabs her finger into his chest “I gave you what you wanted, so I hope you’re satisfied with what you’re given. I’m only waiting for mum and dad to fulfil you’re last request and maybe then you’re ruined life will be magically fixed.”

“[F-F/N], I’m sorry— I didn’t—” she raised her hands, rubbing her sleeve under her nose.

“Save it.” she sniffles as she turns her back “Go home, Steve. I’ll stay out of your life as long as you want. Wouldn’t want to ruin the perfect life you’ve accumulated since I’ve fallen from my grace.” with that she leaves Steve standing all alone, feeling even more worse when she finally saw those tears run down his face.

That… that was her worst memory that she regrets.

She regrets shouting at him.

She regrets making him cry.

She regrets that she hurt him and left him alone.

[yeah, that’s all I’ll write for her backstory. I definitely had more to write, but it’s gotten too long and I want to get back to the main plot]

El tears off the blindfold, panting heavily after finally leaving the memories of Billy and [F/N] when she found the location of where the Mind Flayer was located. She looks around to see no one in sight, she was all alone in the cabin despite hearing their voices not to long ago.

“Mike?” she calls out but got no answer, she repeatedly called out his name again but was left unanswered until another voice spoke up.

“He can’t hear you.” turning her head, she gasps when she sees Billy emerge from out of one of the rooms “You shouldn’t have looked for me. Because now I see you. We can all see you. You… let us in. And now… you are going to have to let us stay.” as the Mind Flayer speaks through Billy, he’s slowly approaching El as she backs away from him in tears, she’s gasps when someone was right behind her.

“Don’t you see?” looking over her shoulder she saw that it was [F/N] with that same psychotic grin on her face, leaning over the couch El backed herself into but quickly pushed herself off to get away from her “We’ve been building it… for you. All this time, we’ve been building it. All that work, all that pain… all of it, for you.” the two of them now stood together, eyes misty as they held each other’s hand.

“And now it’s time. Time to end it. We are going to end you. And when you are gone, we are going to end your friends. And then we are going to end… everyone.” they speak in unison and before they could do anything, El screams at the top of her lungs as she throws her hand out towards them, sending them flying back to where they came from, and so the two of them woke up exactly where El found them in Billy’s room. [F/N] had a sad look on her face as she lifted herself off of Billy’s shoulder, neither one of them said a word as they sat in silence and squeezed each other’s hand.

“This sucks.”

[starcourt mall]

It all happened so fast. One moment they’re being attacked at Hopper’s cabin, next thing they know they’re hiding out at the Starcourt Mall because Billy had somehow managed to find them and was waiting out for them in his busted up Camaro. [F/N] was nowhere in sight and they didn’t know what terrified them the most, the fact that she was just lurking around waiting for them or that Billy was ready to run them over without a second thought. Hiding in the mall didn’t go as well as they thought, because the next thing they knew was that the Mind Flayer was right on top of them and broke through the skylight, landing right where they were and was now in search for El. The group consisting of Nancy, Johnathan, Lucas and Will somehow managed to escape and were hurriedly trying to replace their stolen ignition cable, their hearts beginning to race at the sound of Billy’s engine revving.

“Shit!”

“Get the car started, go!” Nancy cocks her gun as Jonathan jumps into the drivers seat to start the car, Nancy raises the gun and aims it towards Billy. She doesn’t back down when he starts driving towards her, she narrows her eyes as she starts firing at him, the others are panicking as she’s shooting at his already shattered windscreen that’s doing little to no damage as he continues to get closer and closer to her. The moment her gun ran out of ammunition was when she started to panic, she looks between the gun and Billy before ducking down and curling up against the car despite knowing that was going to do little to nothing to suppress the pain of getting smashed against the car but was surprised when Steve, in a different car, rammed right into the side of Billy’s Camaro. Both he and Robin grunt out in pain at the impact but were both pretty much okay, Robin looked up at Steve and saw that he had a panicked look on his face due to the fact that his boyfriend almost killed his ex and in order to stop him from doing that he crashed a car into him.

“Steve, are you alright?” she asks him, he’s panting as he continued to stare at Billy’s unconscious body laying limp in his car.

“Ask me tomorrow.” their gaze then goes upwards when they heard snarling, Robin gasps in shock to see the disgusting fleshy monster dubbed as the Mind Flayer on top of the Starcourt Mall, they whip their heads around when they heard the honk of the other car pull up beside them.

“Get in!” the Mind Flayer was quick to give chase but paused when a new pair of headlights flashed on, it decided she could take care of them. Johnathan thinks they’re in the clear, the Mind Flayer isn’t in sight as they’re driving away but he wasn’t taking any chances as he continued to high tail it away from the mall. He spares a glance back at Will and saw he was gently caressing the back of his neck, he was close, and he just wasn’t showing himself.  “What the hell was that thing back there?!” Robin shouts, pointing out the car in the direction they just fled.

“I’m guessing that was the Mind Flayer, and that was the body made of the flesh of various dead people?” Steve sums up as he looks at the other four, to which they all nod their heads to confirm what he said “Great, I can’t wait to get back home and explain to my sister why I was gone and why my face is beaten up. Hopefully she doesn’t go on a murder spree upon seeing my face.” the four of them wincing didn’t go unnoticed, even Robin flinched hearing the mention of his sister.

“Um… about that, actually…” Lucas starts, rubbing the back of his neck “Your sister, uh— she’s kind of um, like…” Lucas peeks back at Steve and felt a chill run down his spine, Steve was wearing an expression that he normally never wore. His expression was a mixture of concern and slight anger, concern for the safety and well-being on his older sister and anger that something has happened to his sister while he was trapped in an elevator then tortured by Russians.

“What’s wrong with my sister?” Nancy licks her lips, not really sure where to begin on the matter of his older sister.

“Steve, your sister…” she sighs, running a hand through her hair “Your sister, kind of…” Steve was getting more irritated over the fact that they weren’t telling him, he grits his teeth as he glared at them.

“What’s wrong with my sister?!” he shouts this time in hopes it’ll get them to spit it out, Will lets out a shuddered breath when he felt a tingle in his neck, he glances backwards and saw a flash of someone’s high beams hit them. They all turn around to see what it was and the roar of a car engine slowly gaining on them made their hearts drop into their stomachs when they recognised the car, Steve and Robin look out through the back window and their eyes widened when they saw the familiar license plate “[F/N]…?” he manages to mutter out then let out a grunt when the car rear ended them.

“Shit! Jonathan!” he curses under his breath as he changes gear to create some distance between them and her but their car was nothing in comparison to her mustang because she caught up to them easily, each time she made sure to rear end them. When she noticed nothing was happening she pulled back a little just so she was now driving beside them, they all turn to look at her but Steve and Robin were the most shocked because they haven’t seen her like this. Deranged looking, eyes bloodshot and teary as her body was sweating uncontrollably while her veins were pumping black ooze throughout her entire body.

“You wanna know what’s wrong with her?!” Lucas shouts, letting out a scream when [F/N] drives the side of her car into theirs “She’s been flayed by the Mind Flayer and this entire week she’s been kidnapping people and offering them to the Mind Flayer, and not too long ago she killed a bunch of people at the hospital and nearly killed Nancy and Jonathan! There, now you know!” Will smacks Lucas for the way he said it, gesturing to Steve and saw how the boy looked confused and scared. What confused them was that Robin shared the same expression, Lucas said that she was under that things control for about a week, so does that mean…

“Wait, you’re telling me that the whole reason she’s been acting different— that she’s acting like that, is because that monster we saw before brainwashed her?!” Will nods his head, she slumps back in the back as she recalls how [F/N] was acting when she broke up with her. She knew that there was something wrong with her but she just couldn’t pin just what was wrong, her eyes had lost their usual shine and she was avoiding eye contact with her, refusing to. It felt like she was talking to someone entirely different, and all that was true, that person from before was not her girlfriend but an imposter in her body. Robin looks at Steve and saw his eyes never left [F/N], she had a crazy smile on her face as she stared Jonathan down “Steve…” she mumbles.

“What did it do to you, [F/N]?” he’s only ever seen that look on her face maybe once or twice, and that was when she was getting some sick pleasure out of beating the shit out of a few high school kids that picked on him, she was crazy like that, but she made sure not to make that face again whenever he was present because it was a little unsettling “That’s… that’s not my sister, that’s not [F/N]. Is this— is this also happening to Billy?” they nod.

“They were together when it happened.” that just made things worse, it must have happened just after they left Robin’s. Was that why [F/N] was sick that morning? Oh my god, it was happening right under their noses and neither of them noticed. Jonathan steadies the car again when [F/N] rams hers into them again but let out a confused noise when she suddenly stopped, he glances over at her and saw she was looking ahead of them. He watched in confusion when she drove ahead of them then turned around but stopped in the middle of the road, Jonathan slams on the breaks to stop them from going any further and there the two of them are staring each other down.

“Jonathan…” Nancy mutters, not a single one of them breaking eye contact with [F/N], Jonathan takes a breath as he grips the stirring wheel, swallowing thickly every time he hears [F/N] rev her engines as her car jerks forward. [F/N] was no longer in control, no matter how hard she was trying to fight the Mind Flayer for control it was no use and she was locked inside her own body as she watched it move on its on accord. A dark grin was adorn on her face, watching closely to what Jonathan was going to do next. Was he going to back up and continue this game of cat and mouse? Was he going to play a game of chicken instead? Both options sounded fun to her, but she decided it was going to be her to choose for him because she pushes the handbrake down and slams on the gas and exhilarates forward “Jonathan!”

“I know!” he fumbles with the gear but switches it to drive and starts driving towards her as well, he had a plan in his head to swerve out of the way just at the nick of them, but he failed to inform the others as he kept getting closer and closer. Steve looked between Jonathan and sister and he couldn’t calm down, he could only think of how bad the collision will have on [F/N]. He was always like this, worrying for his sister than for his own well-being, just like her worrying for Steve rather than herself. Like brother like sister. Neither one of them were slowing down to the point [F/N] was laughing hysterically, changing gears to go fast enough to kill them and quite possibly herself. Well, if she hurt herself it didn’t matter, the Mind Flayer can heal her body no matter how severely injured her body gets.

“Jonathan, what are you doing?!” Will shouts at his brother.

“Relax, I know what I’m doi—” he was cut off when Steve pulls himself out from the back, reaching past Will and Lucas for the handbrake “Steve— what are you doing?!”

“I’m sorry, Jonathan! But you’d honestly do the same.” he pulls the brake up and the car instantly starts to drift, Jonathan tries to regain control while Nancy smacks Steve’s hands off the handbrake but they were too late when [F/N]’s mustang hit the side of their car, luckily. They spin off the road while [F/N] came to a stop in the middle of the road, she didn’t expect that outcome but she was happy that it was in her favor, she guesses Steve doesn’t want to hurt her either. Such a loving little brother.

“I didn’t think things were gonna be this easy, honestly. Even Billy’s having a hard time.” she snickers softly and looks in the rear view mirror, pouting softly when she noticed a small cut on her forehead that was bleeding a little. With a shrug, she swipes her thumb over it and grins when it healed up instantly. Kicking her door open, she steps out then leaned in to grab the axe sitting in her passenger seat and doesn’t bother turning her car off as she starts approaching the other car, throwing the axe over her shoulder and continuously bounced it while whistling a song. Jonathan lets out a groan, clutching his forehead after his head took the force of the airbags that deployed, he really was going to kill Steve later for this, but he couldn’t help but understand what Steve was going through. Not too long ago it was his brother that was under the Mind Flayer’s control and now it’s Steve’s sister that didn’t even know this shit was going on in the first place, oh the irony. He whips his head around when he heard Nancy let out a scream, they all look over to see that it was [F/N] “Yoohoo~ open the door.”

“Fuck no!” Nancy promptly locks the door to emphasise her point but [F/N] just rolled her eyes, pulling her fist back then punching through the door then proceeded the tear it off. Nancy doesn’t hesitate to push herself away from [F/N] just as she leans into the car, her eyes scanning through the many occupants inside but she let out a sigh when she didn’t see the one they were after.

“She’s not here.” she muttered under her breath, probably informing the Mind Flayer that El was still at the mall and not with the others that fled. She was going to leave it at that, the Mind Flayer was calling her back, but those feelings for what Nancy fucking Wheeler did to her brother started to resurface, and that’s where she found herself grabbing Wheeler by her hair and dragging her out of the car.

“Nancy!”

“Nancy, no!” Nancy cries out in pain from the roots of her hair being violently tugged on, the pain gets worse when [F/N] slams the side of her face onto the hood of the car and holds her there.

“[F/N], please… don’t do this. You don’t want to do this.” [F/N] lets out a hum, looking up in thought before nodding her head.

“No, no, that’s where you’re wrong. You have absolutely no idea how much I want to do this; how much I really want to kill you with my own hands.” Nancy starts to tremble, tears swelling up in her eyes when [F/N] raises her free hand that was holding the axe, seeing the dried blood splatter all over the blade and some on the shaft “I’ll pay your little brother a visit after I’m done with you, I’m sure he’ll be happy seeing your decapitated head mounted on a stick.” before she could bring the axe down she’s being pulled back by Jonathan and Steve, Nancy falls to the ground as Robin goes around and tries to pry the axe out of her hands.

“[F/N], please… stop this! This isn’t like you to go this far!” Steve pleads. Steve knew his sister was strong, but right now was just plain ridiculous, it was taking both himself and Jonathan putting their entire weight to keep her from moving but even that wasn’t enough. She lets out an animalistic growl as she lets go off the axe and letting Robin stumble backwards, she throws Steve off next and hunches forward to lift Jonathan off the ground as she grabs his arms that were wrapped around her neck and proceeds to throw him over her, this also causes him to tear her jacket off but she could care less about it. She sets her sights on Robin and doesn’t hesitate to punch her across the face, Steve goes to stand up to reprimand [F/N] again but let out a grunt when she kicked him down and grabbed the axe that she managed to catch. His breath gets caught in his throat as he watched [F/N] swing the axe over her shoulder and it comes down as quickly as it was raised, he wants to raise his arms to shield his face but what can that do? With tears in his eyes, he looks up at his sister with pleading eyes and there— there he saw a flash of color return to her eyes, a flash of regret and confusion when they met his. He saw a glimpse of his sister inside those eyes that were fighting back against the Mind Flayer, but he knew she couldn’t hold it for long but he was grateful for the time given because she redirected the blade aiming for his face into the side of the car. He flinches at the impact, watching as the car rocked back and forth before finally settling down. His sister is now panting above him, staring down at him with a slightly less hostile expression, but he knew she wasn’t herself yet, her eyes were still in a dazed state while her veins were still black “[F/N]…” he whimpers out, all he wants is his sister back.

“S-Stevie…?” she croaks out, he gasps at her voice whispering out to him but soon her face twists in pain. She pulls away, pressing the heels of her hands into her forehead to fight against the aching pain the Mind Flayer was inflicting on her, fighting for dominance within her head and it managed to win because now she was fleeing the scene and back to her car. She did hesitate to leave, her eyes glancing back at the others that were slowly picking themselves off the floor, but she shook her head before driving back to the Starcourt mall.  “Welp, that hurt,..” Robin groaned out, holding her cheek as some blood pulled up in her mouth “I can’t believe she hit me.”

“She… she didn’t mean it.” Steve muttered, hand over his chest. 

“But I don’t understand.” Robin says rather bitterly “Why didn’t she kill you? She was clearly going to do it, but she stopped at the last second.” Jonathan let out a groan as he pushed himself onto his feet, his hand clutching tightly onto the jacket he tore off her body before he was thrown off.

“Back at the hospital, the Mind Flayer said… it said that Steve was both her weakness and her strength. She got more violent with Nancy and I because of what happened in 83, but once she saw Steve it settled, even if it was for a brief moment.” Steve continued to lay on the ground, his hand instinctively reached up to caress his cheek as memory flashed in his mind. He was remembering back to a time where [F/N] punched him across the face because he was basically screaming at her to punch him, he didn’t expect her to actual do it because she swore that she’d never hurt him, but she did.

“W-Why— why’d you hit me?” he whimpered out, tears being to swell in his eyes as he cradled his swelling check, to which she just sighed while rolling her eyes and placing her hands on her hips.

“You told me to, and besides, you were acting like a shit so you definitely deserved it.” his lip trembled and a small sob escaped his lips, she rolls her eyes again and smacks him in the shoulder “I hope you know that this goes for show that I’ll practically do anything for you, Stevie. But this will be the first and only time I’ll hurt you like this, mmkay? You’ve been acting a little entitled these past few weeks and you needed a little wake up call. Your arrogance will be your undoing one of these days, so don’t let it go to your head. I won’t be around to wake you up next time.” he sniffles, raising his hands to wipe away the falling tears.

“I promise, as long as you promise not to hit me like that again.” she chuckles softly, wiping away his tears.

“I promise. From today, I’ll never hurt you like that ever again, not even if you deserve it.” she starts to laugh when she ruffled his hair and he cried out in horror, screaming at her that she ruined his hair, she just continued to laugh as she ran away from him whilst he screamed bloody murder.

“[F/N]…” he starts tearing up but held them back when a hand was offered to him, he saw that it was Robin wearing [F/N]’s discarded jacket.

“Get up, Harrington. We’re gonna save your sister, and when we do, I’m gonna give her a proper ass whoppin!” driving back to the Starcourt mall they sat in silence, Jonathan breaking all the road laws as he sped down road in the car that was hanging onto its life by a thread. Steve raised his eyes from where he sat and saw Robin digging her face into the fabric of [F/N]’s jacket, he noticed that she was thinking about something because she had a look on her face that was debating whether or not she should speak or not “… she broke up with me.” this caused his body to straighten up, even the others in the car peeked back to listen in on the conversation, rude.

“What do you mean she broke up with you? W-Why didn’t you tell me sooner?” she let out a sigh, blinking back the tears that were slowly swelling up in her eyes.

“I guess it was because of that Mind Flayer, or whatever the fuck that thing is. I think she was in the middle of choosing that things latest meal, because I caught her in an alleyway letting a girl kiss her. It was when I went to go look for the blueprints.” Steve gasps softly at that, so that’s why she looked so dejected when she came back “I couldn’t recognise her, she stared at me with these cold, dead eyes and the way she spoke to me… I felt so scared being there. I wish I knew, I wish I knew she was going through that and then maybe I could’ve helped her. Maybe I wouldn’t have felt so angry at her that she broke up with me, left me in that alleyway all alone— and for what? To protect me? So she wouldn’t have to hurt me ever more than she did by breaking my heart? She even threatened me if I told you, saying you wouldn’t believe me because I’m nothing but your coworker while she’s your sister.” she sniffles to herself, wiping away the tears that fell from her eyes, she spared Steve a look but flinched a little. He now wore a very livid expression, Robin became a really close friend to Steve after he and his sister got together and they became closed after their encounter with the Russian soldiers under the mall, so hearing how his flayed sister threatened and broke up with her pissed him off.

“If you don’t kick her ass, I’ll kick it for you. But first, we’ve got to find her and Billy and free them from the control of the Mind Flayer. Whether you forgive her or not, that’s up to you, but she’s still my sister.”  “What about Billy?”  “I hope he can forgive me for totalling his camaro.” they stare at each other and laugh weakly, Robin now rested her forward on his shoulder and let her hands dip into the pockets but she hummed in confusion when she felt something. Pulling it out, her breath hitched when she pulled out the photo of the four of them at the fair. Steve felt her body tremble so he looked down and he himself flinched at the photo, seeing that photo almost felt like yesterday. Steve wished he could go back to the time where the other three were clueless about the Upside Down; clueless about the true horrors of Hawkins and that he was the only one who knew the truth. Where his sister was madly in love with his friend, where his boyfriend was in the safety of his arms, where none of this was happening on the first place and that the four of them were having their weekly sleepover at the Harrington household.

Man, what a distant memory.

[starcourt mall]

[F/N] arrives right on time, finding Billy pushing himself off of El just as the Mind Flayer descends from the skylight. El was regaining her consciousness as the blur of the monster slowly registered in her mind, [F/N] wordlessly stands beside Billy and reached over to take his hand into hers. He doesn’t spare her a glance and neither does she, and though they were still under the influence of the monster in front of them, the two of them squeezed each others hand to let each other know that they were still in there. The Mind Flayer is paying the two of them no mind, slowly approaching the small child to devour her, rid the last obstacle in its way, when something blew up in its face. Billy and [F/N] cry out in pain at the blow, sharing the pain with the Mind Flayer, blow after blow Billy and [F/N] grovel to their knees in pain as the Mind Flayer roared at the intruders. [F/N] peeked through his hands and saw the lot she nearly killed had followed quickly after her, how she never noticed them was beyond her, but she was going to finish what she started.

Deal with them.

Finish the job.

Make no mistakes.

“Shut up…” she growled out, managing to push herself onto her feet and towards the escalator to where their unwanted guests were, leaving Billy to watch over El. Of course none of them were expecting to see [F/N] on them, they were all to preoccupied laying waste to the Mind Flayer to notice that she was there. Lucas was the first to suffer at her mercy, the others heard his cry for help and immediately turned to see where he was, watching in shock when they saw [F/N] turn him around and strike him across the face that he fell to the ground after spitting out blood from his mouth,

“Lucas!” next was Will, who was unfortunate to be within arms length because she did not hesitate to raise the axe and hit him with the butt if the axe and knock him unconscious “Will!” Jonathan screams out and was ready to drop everything to help his brother but was stopped when Nancy grabbed his arm, pulling him back and shaking her head.

“No, no! Jonathan, I understand what you’re going through, but no! She will kill your the moment you’re within her grasp, she’s not letting us go this time.” he shakes his head.

“I don’t care! I need to get Will!” he cries out and rips his arm free from Nancy’s hold but stopped when he saw Steve and Robin already rushing over to stop [F/N] from going any further with the children, Nancy grabs his arm again and tugs at it to get his attention.

“Steve and Robin will deal with her, we’ll keep the Mind Flayer distracted, alright? Steve won’t let anything happen to your brother.” speaking of which, the Mind Flayer’s anger was beginning to mix in with her own, anger for the previous host that managed to slip through its grasp. Placing her foot on Will’s chest, she raises the axe up to slam it down but was once again stopped when it was smacked out of her hands, she growls at the perpetrator and saw that it was Robin, who had her hands out in front of her to keep some distance between her and [F/N].

“[F/N], baby, please… it’s me, it’s Robin.” she pleads, she flinches and takes a step back when [F/N] pushed herself off of Will but kicked his unconscious body away to approach Robin “Whatever this thing has done to you; has made you do, I want you to know that this isn’t your fault, none of it is. You’re just as innocent as the next person is, and I want you to know that I… I forgive you. Everything you said in the alleyway, I know you didn’t mean any of it. I want you to know that I still love you, through everything that’s happened, I love you.” Robin felt hopeful when she saw [F/N]’s hardened gaze soften, maybe she was caught up in her delusions of freeing her mind that she reached for her hand, that was her mistake because her hand quickly grabbed a hold of Robin to keep her from moving and with her other hand sucker punched her straight in the gut so hard that she spat out saliva. She didn’t let when Robin gasped out of breath, collapsing to her knees as she hunched over and clutched her stomach.

“I care not for your words, they mean nothing to me. Didn’t I already tell you that?” Robin lets out a sob at her cold words, wishing nothing more than to feel the warmth she once had only for her, but she could only cry out in pain when [F/N] twisted her arm “You’ve lost your chance of staying away, so I hope you’re prepared for the consequences.”

“Hey!” turning her head, she was taken aback when Steve came rushing over and slammed the bottom of a fire extinguisher into her face. She let out a gasp at the sudden blow, letting Robin go as her head was thrown back after the impact, she then raised her hand to cradle her throbbing nose as Steve’s arm dropped due to the weight of the extinguisher “You need to stop this madness, [F/N], I beg of you. I need you back, I need my big sister back!” he takes a step back when she growled at him but her face screwed up in pain once more, a mixture from getting hit with a fire extinguisher, the fireworks the Mind Flayer was getting hit with, but also [F/N] fighting for dominance over her mind once more.

He’s lying to you.

He doesn’t need you.

You don’t need him.

“Please, let’s just go home. With Robin and Billy, we’ll go home and watch movies like we used to. Talk about how much we hate our parents, how much we hate Hawkins and how we’ll leave as soon as Robin and Billy graduate. We’ll be together, like we always have. Just you, and me.” [F/N) groans out in pain, shaking her head as she slapped her hands against her forehead to quell all the madness that was going on “Just come back to me, my big sister.” Steve takes a step forward, reaching for her but gasped when she punched him in the face.

“Shut up!” she screamed at him, she struggled to stay standing whilst clutching her throbbing head.

Destroy him.

Annihilate him.

Murder him.

Kill him.

Steve couldn’t remember what happened next, first he was struggling to keep himself standing, the next thing he knew he was barely clinging to consciousness as he laid on his back while he suffered continuous blows to his face. [F/N] was currently on top of him, screaming at the top of her lungs as she punched him left and right, holding nothing back as she delivered blow after blow. At this right she was definitely going to kill him, but she just couldn’t stop herself, this time not pulling her punches and putting all her strength into each one. She saw him weakly reach out to her but she merely smacked his hand away then grab him by the collars of his shirt to pull him forward, reeling her head back to slam her forehead into the bridge of his nose. Blood gurgled in his throat and he was questioning why he was still conscious, wishing nothing more then for this continuous chain of pain to end, but he knew his sister was in a lot more pain. Weakly opening his eyes, he saw the pain in her eyes as she unwillingly hurt her sweet little brother that used to cry at the drop of a hat, so he reached for her once more when she held him up by his shirt as her other hand was pulled back.

“We… we were kids.” she furrowed her brows in confusion, what nonsense was he spouting out now? “We were k-kids and you were tea— teaching me to ride my bike. I wouldn’t stop crying, and you were making f-fun of me. You promised you’d be with me every… every step of the way. You never broke that promise, [F/N]; never. Even when you were gone, you made sure to write letters. Even when I s-said I hated you, you were still there.” his trembling hand managed to reach her face, gently cupping her cheek and caressing it with his thumb, her face softened and she leaned into the touch, a single tear running down her cheek “I love you, [F/N]…” his hand finally dropped to his side just as [F/N] took a deep breath, closing her eyes to reminiscent on every good memory she had of Steve, slowly but surely the black veins disappeared and the voice that screamed in her head grew silent. She blinked her eyes a few times in confusion, leaning backwards and looking around to see where exactly she was before finally looking down, and there her eyes widened in horror.

“Steve… Steve!” she screams at the top of her lungs, the tears swelling in her eyes falling freely down her cheeks. She hurriedly jumps off of him and lifts his weakened body into her lap, cradling his body into her arms while rocking back and forward “No, no, no, no, no! I didn’t mean to hurt you, I-I’m so sorry! I tried— I tried so hard to keep myself away from you, to stop myself from hurting you, but I’ve gone and broken my promise to you! I’m sorry, I’m sorry…!” she kept apologising over and over, but she just felt sick to her stomach. She couldn’t look at herself anymore, she couldn’t even look at her hands knowing that she was beating her brother that she swore she’d never hurt anymore. It hurt even more knowing that she hurt the love of her life, breaking her heart to keep her safe but then she hurt her when she was trying to save her from the monster that plagued her mind.

“[F/N]…” she gasped, looking down at her brother and saw that he was reaching for her again, she doesn’t hesitate to take his hand into hers and caress it, nuzzling the side of her face into it “You’re back…?” she chuckles weakly, nodding her head as she smiled weakly at him.

“Yes… yes, it’s me. It’s your big sister, who loves you very much.” he smiles at her but it breaks her heart seeing him looking up at her, face beaten and bleeding as his eyes were barely able to open “Will you ever forgive me?” he chuckles, closing his eyes and feeling his body relax under hers.

“What a foolish question, I’ll always f-forgive you…” she hunches over his body, her own trembling as her tears fell onto his body. A sob leaves her lips but her attention was torn off his body when she heard a loud roar, recognising it, she turned her head towards it and it widened at the sight of the Mind Flayer, her gaze soon hardened in rage at the mere sight of it. This fucking piece of shit was the cause of it all, for her and Billy hurting people, kidnapping people, killing people… her breaking up with Robin, and her hurting both Robin and Steve. She’ll never forgive it, she’ll never forget what it’s done to her and Billy, all because they were foolish enough to not go home and stayed out longer. Steve let out a confused noise when his head was lifted off of her lap, he watched as she picked up the fallen axe and at first he was worried she was back under the control of the Mind Flayer, but her gaze was trained on the Mind Flayer instead of anyone else “[F-F/N]…?” she breaks out into a running start then proceeds to step onto the railing and over it, raising the axe over her head then swings it down on the Mind Flayer.

“[F/N]?!” Billy, who was also free from the Mind Flayer’s control, shouts in surprise. Billy was holding one of the tentacles back that was aiming to kill El, pushing it back with everything he head, when [F/N] jumped off from the upper levels screaming and swinging the axe into the Mind Flayer’s body.

“You fucking piece of shit!” she yells, ripping the blade out of its gooey flesh then swung it down again “You made me hurt my brother! You made me break up with my girlfriend! You made me hurt so many people, and all for what?! Because you couldn’t make your own body?! You rat sack son of a bitch!” [F/N] knew what she was doing was stupid, that what she was doing was going to get her killed, but she really couldn’t care at all. She wanted to pay for what she’s done, why should she get off scot free? She wanted punishment, retribution for her actions “The only ending you’ll get is with your death!” she knew her actions would lead to her downfall, that what she was doing was meaningless, because the Mind Flayer easily threw her off and she landed on the ground with a thud. The next thing she knew was that one of the many tentacles surrounding the monster pierced her body, she slowly looked down and coughed up blood seeing the many teeth sink into her chest.

“Billy!” she hears a scream, turning her head, she sees that Billy has been met with the same fate. Pain runs throughout her body when several more of that things tentacles pierce through her body until it finally let her go, her body collapsing for she had no more strength left to keep her up. This was it, she was going to die alone knowing that she hurt her brother and her girlfriend— her ex? She didn’t know, all she knew was that she was going to die without making it up to the two people she loved the most, especially now that she was leaving her little brother alone. She coughs up more blood as she turns her head, noticing that Billy was still kicking so with what little strength she still had, she pushed herself onto her stomach and started dragging herself over to where he was laying. Finally reaching him, she pushes herself up then collapsed onto him, he looked down at her and saw she was crying.

“I won’t let you… die alone.” she muttered weakly, reaching her hand to rest on his cheek “I won’t leave you alone.” in turn for this final act of gentle affection, he raises his own hand to take her hand into his and the two of them stare into each other’s eyes.

“Why didn’t you leave me…?” he asked her, questioning what sanity she had for going back and saving him. She wouldn’t have had to suffer everything if she just abandoned him, he was used to it anyways, but she just gave him the best smile she could muster.

“Because… I wanted to see yours and Stevie’s wedding.” he stared at her but it did manage to crack a smile onto his face, and that was enough for the both of them.

“You’re stupid.”

“Maybe I am.” Steve was being helped down to the lower levels by Nancy and Jonathan, Robin following closely behind as the immense pain in her stomach still hadn’t settled, and Steve couldn’t properly walk on his own after the continuous blows he took to the face and head. They finally made it to the ground level and Steve looks over to see where Max was, crying in El’s arms, he looks where she was collapsed and his heart immediately dropped into his stomach at what he saw.

“No… no, no, no!” he cries out, Robin follows his gaze and herself saw both Billy and [F/N]’s motionless bodies that continued to bleed out “[F/N]! Billy! Please, god, no!” Steve thrashed in Nancy and Jonathan’s hood until they finally let him go, he fell to his knees but he scrambled to his feet and rushed over to their bodies. His hands trembled over their bodies, the tears in his eyes falling onto them “Please, no. Not like this, please. You can’t leave me, you can’t leave me alone…! You promised to be by my side, you promised!” his trembling hands reached to cup their faces and his face fell when they felt cold under his touch, god, this was really happening. Robin fell to her knees by his side, shaking her head at the sight of [F/N]’s lifeless body, she couldn’t believe that this was actually happening. She doesn’t hesitate to throw her arms around Steve’s body, squeezing him tightly and the two of them cried together knowing that they both lost somebody they loved.

But at least the two that did die, died in each other’s arms smiling.

Casino

word count: 7994

Fandom: MCYT  Pairing: Multiple Relationship: Romantic Pronouns: Multiple Occupation: Multiple Ability: N/A

Keys: N/A

Warnings: N/A

so this is the first time I’ve posted on tumblr and I have absolutely no clue how to use this platform, mostly because I use wattpad more than any other writing platform but, here you go.

this is a mcyt one shot between my oc and my three other friends. this was made purely out of fun.

that is all.

The Cursed Lands.

The wildly known Casino where the Gods go to gamble all they want. Whether it be the riches they accumulated over the years they’ve reigned in their respective realms, or if they’re really willing to risk it, then the lives of the mortals that reside in their realms along with the countless realms and worlds they own. The Lesser Gods were foolish enough to do such a thing as test their luck on Elder Gods, only to lose it all. A God can absolutely ruin themselves in the Casino, that is why it is dubbed as the Cursed Lands, because no matter how many times you either win or lose, the thrill of it all is just so addicting.

Over the bustling voices of various Gods and Goddess cheering and chattering amongst each other, the co-owner of the Casino was whistling a tune while flicking a poker chip up and down, catching it within the palm of her hand before flicking it up once more. In her other hand was a wine glass filled with red wine that glittered, almost resembling that of mortal blood. She overlooked the grounds filled with various games occupied by Gods and Goddess of ranks of all kinds, Gods of more importance or more money were led to rooms with higher risk games while Gods with lower ranks were kept on the Ground Floor. She let out a hum, smirking to herself and catching the poker chip in between her fingers before turning away and bringing her glass to her lips, taking a long swig from her glass.

“Hey, boss.” she hummed once more, looking over to see that it was one of the bouncers, which was a wraith. Most of the security in the Casino, despite not being needed, were mortal spirits that lingered around in certain realms that were brought into the Casino to act as bouncers whenever the Gods and Goddess became a little too rowdy. Hades is also a dear sometimes too, letting her borrow his Hell Hound whenever guests got a little too carried away “She’s finally arrived.” her eyes lit up at what the wraith had said, slamming the wine glass down and flicking the chip up once more before catching it in the palm of her hands.

“Wonderful!” she cheered, standing to her feet and throwing her arms open “Where is she now? What game is she playing?”

“Currently, Roulette.” she purses her lips.

“Roulette, huh?” she couldn’t help but click her tongue as she leaves the room, the wraith following close behind after shutting the door “Why did it have to be roulette? She’s going to run the casino dry with how good her luck is.”

“Would it have been better to have her play Blackjack? That was her second option.” she raised her hand, shaking it.

“No, Blackjack has better odds at winning in comparison to Roulette.”

“I see.” she turns her head back towards the wraith that was slowly following behind her before turning back forward, she noticed that a nymph, a waitress, walking by with a tray of champagne so she grabbed the entire tray and saluted the golden skinned nymph.

“Thanks for the drinks, my dear.” she cooed softly, to which the nymph smiled in return before going off. She took a glass for herself and started downing it, greeting Gods and Goddess along the way and by the time she reached the Roulette table, she only had two glasses of champagne left, the empty glasses were handed to the wraith, to which he handed them to another passing nymph “Now, where is she?”

“And that’s another win for the Mother of All!” a voice announced, followed by a rally of a mix of cheers and cries.

“Ah, there she is.” pushing through the crowd, she saw the golden-haired woman dressed in a traditional but formal Greek themed dress with a white and gold laced mask over her eyes, the woman was smiling brightly while throwing her fist in the air.

“Another win for me, neh?” she cooed softly.

“You’re just too good at this!” she scoffed slightly, looking down at her nails.

“I thought you said this was a no skilled game, my dear.” the Lesser Gods look up at her in disbelief, watching as the dealer pushed over the chips that she won and saw her grab one of the chips from the table, she flicked it up before catching it and rolling it over her knuckles then having it perched in between her index and middle finger “There’s no need for you lot to be such sore losers. Just take the loss and try another game to win in instead of sulking around, it’s rather unbefitting of Gods like yourselves to act so immature.” the Gods watched as she turned the chip so they could see just what exactly they lost, a few hundred mortal lives “Better luck next time~” they growl at her before clicking their tongues, knowing they didn’t stand a chance against a God of her caliber.

“Whatever, just stay out of our way.” she simply giggled, waving her hand to bid them goodbye as she watched the two Lesser Gods scurry away. She was in the middle of turning back to the table but stopped at the sight of a familiar face approaching her through the ground.

“Ara? Is that you, old friend?”

“It is indeed!” she gave the tray to the wraith before wrapping her arms around the taller woman “As much as I love your company, can’t you play harder games? You’re just far too good that you’re putting Tyche, the Goddess of Luck, to shame!” she giggled softly, waving her hand so a porcelain doll dealer could come and collect her chips.

“Many apologies, Zanna.” she then giggled softly, taking one of the many brief cases filled with the chips she won while the others floated beside her “Maybe if you made the games a little harder, it’d be more of a challenge.” Zanna gasped at what the Goddess said as she started walking away, taking that glass of champagne the wraith was still holding while she was at it.

“Ah! The audacity— Cybele! Take that back right now!”

Zanna and Cybele, partners in crime and friends since the dawn of time, Cybele being just a bit older than the co-owner of the Cursed Lands Casino. Cybele was that mentor type figure to Zanna, teaching her about the various duties that Gods and Goddess partake in, but the Greek themed Goddess knew that everything she was teaching to the younger Goddess was going through one ear and out the other, so she found it pointless. She was simply a freelancer Goddess that did whatever the hell she wanted, but she did find it flattering that Zanna would still come by just to spend some time with the Goddess of Life and Creation.

In return, Zanna herself would teach Cybele to act more relaxed and to be a bit snarkier, sassy even. The tone Cybele always spoke in was soft and polite, like a ray of sunshine, but Zanna was a bit of an influence on the older woman whenever she would randomly pop in for a lesson, aka, a day of tom foolery. The Promised Lands is a place where Gods and Goddesses must act modest and mature— and then there was Zanna, the opposite of what she was supposed to be. She was the lowest ranking of Goddess with not a single ounce of importance to herself or her name, everyone underestimated her, but Cybele of course. So as the years rolled on, Zanna made a name for herself as one of the youngest Goddesses that managed to secure a spot at the top beside her mentor figure.

“I hear your lover is the owner of this joint, give him my many thanks for making such a terrific establishment for us to enjoy.” Zanna chuckled, blushing softly at the compliment.

“Well, you can tell that to him yourself.”

“Oh? So, I’m finally going to meet this infamous lover of yours?” Zanna scoffed before jokingly shoved Cybele.

“Ah, shut up.” she then waves her hand “He was a mortal from one of your realms that I helped ascend to Godhood. He managed to become the God of Riches and Gambling, hence the Casino.” now Cybele was impressed, pausing when in the middle of drinking from her glass.

“Wow, really? And from one of my realms as well, quite impressive if I do say so myself.” she then looked up in thought, placing her empty glass on a tray “Is he from one of my most chaotic realms?” Zanna purses her lips, looking up in thought.

“Um... yeah, the one you visit the most.”

“Oh! The DreamSMP!” Zanna nods, Cybele then giggles softly while clapping her hands “Do I know him?” Zanna looks away, wincing slightly.

“Well, um, I think you know him a little too well.” she tilts her head in mild confusion.

“What do you mean by tha--”  

“Mi amor!” they both halt in their tracks, however, Cybele grimaced at the sound of the voice before holding back and sneer when both she and Zanna turned around “I’ve been looking everywhere for you, Zanna.” soon he too came to a stop and looked at the woman standing beside his lover, even with the mask on, he could see through it and immediately recognized the face behind it, so he scowled up at her “Cy.” she only smiled.

“Quackity.” Zanna shivered, hearing the malice in her words behind that smile, she raised her hands when she felt the tension raise the longer the two glared at each other.

“U-Um, guys?” Cybele gently grabbed her arm before pointing at Quackity.

“Of all the mortals, why him? You do realize he’s got two other fiancés, right?” she simply shrugged her shoulders.

“Sharing is caring?” she rolls her eyes “Plus in every lifetime I’ve had to relive, it was always with him. I just love him so much, Cybele.” Zanna grabs Cybele’s forearm and squeezes it “I know you two have beef with each other, but please, just let me have this.” Cybele’s tense shoulders slowly relaxed at the pleading look Zanna was giving her, so she sighed, letting it go reluctantly.

“Alright fine, but I won’t hesitate to kill him if he does anything out of line.” Zanna smiled at the answer, jumping up and wrapping her arms around Cybele, her placing her hands on her hips to steady them both before they fell to the ground.

“Ah! You’re the best friend anyone could ever ask for!” Cybele smiled at that, patting her back before placing her on the ground, to which she sauntered over to Quackity, extending her hand out to her lover, to which he didn’t hesitate to lace his fingers with hers and bring her closer, Cybele rolled her eyes at the affection that Quackity usually only shared with his other two lovers.

“Best friend? But I’ve never seen you two around each other.” Zanna waved her hands.

“Psh, we’ve been friend's way before she washed up on the SMP! We’re like old time friends! She knows everything about me, and in return, I know everything about her.” Cybele waved her hand.

“I wouldn’t say that.” she looked at her, to which she pursed her lips while shrugging her shoulders, Quackity continued to glare at her but was stopped when Zanna cupped his cheeks and made him look at her.

“My love, I know you have a lifelong grudge on Cyb— I mean, Cy, but I really want my two favorite people to get along.” she kneels down to press a kiss to his forehead before pulling away and smiling softly at him “You’ll do that for me, won’t you?” Quackity gave her a skeptical look, glancing back over at Cybele and noticing that she had just as much of a worried expression as he did. He then let out a sigh, raising his hands so they could rest on top of hers.

“If it’s what makes you happy, then I have to comply, no?” she smiles before kneeling and wrapping her arms around his smaller form then standing up straight, Cybele snorted, covering her mouth with her fist at the sight of Quackity dangling from Zanna’s hold. He noticed her quietly trying to stifle her laughter, so he glared at her, flipping her the bird, she giggled softly at the futile attempt.

“Short stack.” she whispered loud enough for him to hear.

“You--” Zanna looked back at Cybele and saw she was smiling innocently.

“Shall we get going? I’ve wasted up so much of your time, Cy.” she waves her hand to dismiss the thought, watching as Zanna put Quackity down on the ground.

“By wasting my time do you mean spending time with a friend I haven’t seen in a long time? Then it’s worth wasting.” Zanna smiled at that before jogging off, probably to get a room ready for the lot of them to play a could games, both Quackity and herself were smiling fondly at her before slowly following her.

“What do you think she’ll say that her best friend had just insulted her lover?” Quackity said, she hummed.

“That it’s true and that I shouldn’t state the obvious?” he gave her a flabbergasted look; she shrugged her shoulders as she looked down at him “What? It’s true, is it not?”

“You’re unbelievable.” she then watched as he stomped away, she snorted.

“Do you rather I call you flatty patty?” this caused him to freeze, his face to the tips of his ears turning a pretty shade of pink “Oh wait, that’s what Schlatt called you, right? Many apologies, I should come up with something more original, shouldn’t I? I’m not particularly fond of using other people’s pet names.” she had to slap her hand over her mouth to stop the laughter from slipping when he whipped his face around and glared at her with the signs of embarrassment evident on his face, he couldn’t fire anything back, so he just went off to find Zanna to save himself from the embarrassment.

“Was that really necessary, Cybele?” she hummed at the sound of a new voice followed by a hand on her shoulder, turning her head back, she smiled softly at the sight of her lover.

“Ah, Foolish, were you having fun, my love?” he hummed at that, leaning down to press a kiss to her cheek.

“I am now that I’m with you.” she giggles at that before leading him to the room Zanna was preparing now with Quackity.

“How cute, Foolish.” he simply nods, slipping his hand into hers “Did you know that Zanna has become lovers with that mortal Quackity?” she then stops herself “Wait, former mortal. Apparently, she helped him ascend to Godhood and now he’s a newly found God.” Foolish gave her a surprised expression.

“Really? That’s quite impressive. If anyone, I thought Technoblade would ascend to Godhood.”

“He’s come fairly close, but he has angered a few Gods and impressed the other few. I mean, have you seen how irritated Death has gotten because he keeps slipping through her fingers?” she then snaps her fingers “And Ares really loves all the bloodshed, but Hades is also irritated with the fluctuation of all the souls entering the Underworld nearly every day. He probably would’ve lost his mind already if Persephone wasn’t by his side to quell his anger.” Foolish snaps his fingers at that.

“You make a fair point.”

“Don’t I always?” they both laugh.

“I wonder what God he has become.”  

“She told me he became the God of Riches and Gambling.” he nods.

“Ah, hence the casino.”

“Mm hmm.” when they reached the private room, they were greeted by the wraith bouncers, to which they bowed their heads to the Elder Gods before pushing open the door and they were met with the sight of various nymph waitresses, porcelain doll dealers and even a shrunken down version of the Kraken as the bartender “Wow, she’s really outdone herself.”

“Indeed.”

“Ah hah, there you are!” looking over, they both smile when they saw Zanna approaching them but Foolish squeezed her hand when he felt her irritation when Quackity was by her side.

“Behave yourself, Cybele.”

“I will, I will. I already promised her, so don’t hassle me, my love.”

“Just making sure.” when they were in front of each other, Quackity and Foolish nod at each other while the two women smile fondly at each other “It’s been a while, Quackity. I hope you’ve been doing well, managing two casinos, that is. Las Nevadas in the SMP and now this one, the Cursed Lands.” Quackity laughs at that, wrapping an arm around Zanna’s waist and pulling her closer towards him.

“True, true! If it weren’t for Zanna, I already would’ve lost my mind having to take care of two Casinos, though the management really falls into Zanna’s hands for this one, Las Nevadas is mine.” Cybele and Foolish nod at that, glancing around and greeting fellow Gods and Goddesses that pass by each time “The people that come here are also so rich, and most of the time the things they gamble are so weird.” this caused the two Elder Gods to pause while Zanna paled a little.

“Pardon?” he waves his hand, starting to walk and leading them over to a table for a game of Poker.

“Well, I don’t really know how to explain it. Well, usually, in Las Nevadas, the shit people usually trade is gold, Ender Eyes, Enchanted shit, the usual shit when they’re desperate for a win. But the stuff I see here... wow, spooky shit. See, like over there!” the three look over at what he was pointing at, and they saw another Elder God but down an orb to the table, at closer inspection, the three Gods could tell that it was a realm that the God owned, and they were risking it for a big win “You see what I mean?” Cybele and Foolish purse their lips before looking down at Zanna, who laughed awkwardly before leaning down and patting Quackity’s shoulder.

“Uh, baby, could you get the table ready? There’s a couple things I need to tell these two, if that’s alright with you?” he simply nodded.

“Sure!” he presses a kiss to her cheek before rushing off, when turning around, Zanna flinched at the stern look the two were giving her.

“Zanna, sweetness, he does know that this is an Interdimensional Casino where Gods from all around the universe and different dimensions come to bet and gamble with the mortal lives and realms under their command, right? He does have knowledge that he himself is a God, right? He is aware that the people around him aren’t mortals, right?” she remained silent.

“Um... no.” Cybele presses the palm of her hand onto her forehead while Foolish exhales deeply through his nose.

“So, he has no knowledge of what this Casino really is and that he believes everyone here is a mortal?” he then looks at a nymph passing them “Than what about the staff? He must be suspicious about the staff, Zanna!” she waves her hand.

“Like he said, the Cursed Lands Casino is under my management, all the staff that was hired were hired by me. I simply told him they were mobs, and he believed me.” they both let out sighs.

“You are unbelievable, Zanna.”

“We should be lucky he’s unbelievably stupid.” they all look over at Quackity and saw he was talking to a dealer, when he noticed they were looking, he smiled and waved.

“Mm.” she then sighs softly “But that’s what I love about him.” Cybele just rolls her eyes, Foolish shook his head in mild disappoint.

“Oh, goodness.” he waved them over and they approach, Cybele’s hand resting in Foolish’s as the approach the table, but now Cybele was staring at the dealer of the table. They weren’t the usual porcelain dolls from every other game, oh no, this was a villager that she herself knew rather well. The villager felt the intense gaze and looked up while in the middle of shuffling cards and flinches when she noticed that it was Cybele staring at her.

“Um... hello?” she greeted but Cybele didn’t drop her gaze and continued to stare at her, of course she knew this damned villager, not only was she one that was from her realm, but she’s also one that she traded with a good number of times! However, this villager was different to the usual villager because this one could talk instead of giving a hum as a response, not only that, but this villager had the best things anyone could trade with that even Technoblade praised highly and tried countless times to keep this villager in his basement, but she would always find a way to get out. Not only that, but she didn’t look like the average villager, and she even had her own self-awareness not to get trapped in ridiculous spots. She pursed her lips before placing her hand on Zanna’s shoulder once more, not breaking eye contact with the dealer.

“Why the hell is a villager from my realm here as well?” Zanna herself pursed her lips before gesturing to her.

“Well, she kinda just wandered in saying that she needed a job, so I just gave her the job. She’s pretty good with her hands, so we made her a poker dealer.” they all look at her and watched as she easily shuffled the cards, going as far as to juggling the cards over her knuckles before dealing them onto the table into their respective spots.

“That is impressive.” Foolish mused, Cybele couldn’t help but nod her head.

“But how did she get in?” Zanna opened her mouth to speak but closed her mouth when she couldn’t think of a plausible excuse.

“You know what? I really don’t know.” she then shrugs, going over and placing a hand on her shoulder “This is Honey, one of my best dealers, as I’d like to say.” Cybele and Foolish nod their heads “She didn’t really have a name, so we just call her Honey.” Foolish tilts his head to the side.

“Why Honey?” Zanna’s grip on her shoulder tightened as she gripped her shoulder with great force, causing Honey to sputter while turning her head away with a pale look on her face as a ball of sweat formed on her cheek.

“Because she keeps stealing the honey from the bar to the point that we keep running out of honey to make honey-based cocktails and drinks. It’s bad for business, so to pay off the massive amount of debt I have her as a dealer and it’s deduced from her pay.” Cybele, Foolish and Quackity sweat a little at that when they saw the depressed look on her face.

“My honey...” she cried, Cybele then looked up in remembrance.

‘So that’s why she asked about my bee farm...’ Cybele thought, she then hummed softly and snapped her fingers and a bee’s knees cocktail appeared in her hands, she then placed the drink on a coaster before sliding over to Honey.

“Since you’re our dealer, especially one from my own realm and one that does me great service whenever I see you, I might as well repay you from something as you serve us tonight.” Honey instantly recognized the drink and smiled brightly, she takes the glass into her hands and then gives Cybele a look.

“Do you think a drink is enough to bribe me?” they stare at each other before Honey raised the glass “Well, it’s working!” she then downs it then slams the drink on the table “Woo! Let’s get this party started!” Cybele giggles before taking a seat, Foolish taking the one beside her, planning on playing the game of poker with her, Zanna then leaned down.

“I’d appreciate it if you didn’t intoxicate my dealers in order for things to be in your favor.” Cybele scoffs lightly at that, waving her hand.

“Do you really think I’d stoop that low just to win? Oh no, I wipe the floor with those who think they can get the upper hand before yanking the rug from beneath them and come out victorious.” Zanna hummed at that, leaning backwards and crossing her arms.

“Alrighty then.” the first few games it was just some causal playing between the four of them, couple verse couple, in a sense. Cybele had to admit that Quackity was rather good at poker, having to play carefully against the former mortal, well, he wasn’t the God of Riches and Gambling for nothing. She did lose a good few rounds against him, but won the rest, in the end, the two dominated the poker game. Foolish let out a sigh, frowning at his hand before letting out a sigh and throwing it on the table.

“I give.” he then scoffs, watching as both Cybele and Quackity throw down their hands and noticed that they both had four of a kind, both in different ranks, even Zanna scoffed as she threw her hand to reveal she only had a straight “You two are just too good.” Cybele giggled before looking over at Quackity and offering him a hand.

“I must say, playing against someone who knows what they’re doing is rather fun and more intense. Thank you for the fun game, Quackity.” he scoffs but grins nonetheless, reaching forward and shaking her hand.

“The feelings mutual.” they both grin at each other before they all jump at the sound of a hand slamming on the table, glancing over, Zanna lets out a long sigh while Cybele smirks softly at the new face, Foolish noticed her expression and reaches over to caress her arm.

“Don’t.”  

“I haven’t done anything.”

“I know that look.” she chuckles, looking away before glancing back over and giving him a soft smile.

“What a lovely surprise to see you, Zagreus, it’s been a while.” he offers her a smile himself, but they all know that it didn’t mean well “But simply not long enough. What the hell do you want? Can’t you see we’re all having a lovely time playing a game of poker? What reason do you need to come in uninvited?” Zanna pursed her lips when she noticed that Cybele was intentionally pushing his buttons, she reached over and grabbed her elbow.

“What are you doing?” she whispered to her, Cybele just gave her a side eye.

“Don’t worry about it, I know what I’m doing.” Zanna scoffed before leaning back in her chair while crossing her arms, Quackity noticed the tension between Cybele and the newcomer and leaned over to Zanna.

“What’s going on between those two? The only time I see Cy like this is usually with me and people she doesn’t like.” Zanna pursed her lips.

“Well, it’s the latter. Those two have some... history, and someone that she knows really praises him.” he nods his head.

“... I don’t get it.” she slapped her hand onto her forehead, she then looked between the two and noticed that Cybele was now beginning to get annoyed with Zagreus’ presence, I mean, of course she would, she lost quite a lot to this man because of his underhanded plays. But that was back in the days where she herself was just a Lesser God and didn’t have many realms and mortals under her control, now she was one of the biggest Gods that could gamble a lot and still wouldn’t lose a single thing.  

“How about a rematch, Cybele?” she sighs at that, leaning back in her seat.

“And why would I do that? There isn’t a single thing from you that I want, I am completely content with what I have.” though she has bad blood with Quackity, she was quite irritated that he ripped him out of his seat before sitting down in it. Zanna glared at Zagreus and was planning on throwing him out for manhandling one of the owners of the of the casino but was stopped when Honey raised her hand to dismiss the behavior.

“Wha-- why?” Zanna seethed at Honey, she then hums and gestures to Cybele.

“Quackity, despite me always wanting to strangle you whenever I see you, I do not stand for such rude behavior.” she then crosses her legs, resting her elbows on the table before leaning her chin on the tops of her hands “What do you want, Zagreus?” he chuckles, leaning backwards and kicking his feet on the table.

“Simple, I just wanna play a couple games with you, Cybele, that’s all.” she rolls her eyes.

“What’s the catch?” he smirks.

“I’m glad you’re catching on~” he coos, she growls at him.

“What do you have to offer that would even pique my interest in the slightest?” she then noticed him pull out a gold poker chip, this caught her attention, along with Foolish and Zanna’s, Quackity just stared at it confused while Honey was downing another glass of a honey based alcoholic beverage.

“A cursed soul...” Foolish muttered.

“And one I recognize...” Cybele added, slowly closing her hand into a fist “Showing off your trophy you won off from me all those years ago?” he hums at that, rolling the chip over his knuckles.

“You were just foolish enough to fall for such a simple trick and gamble with one of your most valuable mortals.” he then cackles, gesturing to Foolish beside “Is that why you’re his lover? So, you can be foolish together? What a riot!” both she and Foolish slam their hands on the table, strong enough to break the table in half but they both held back their anger. She inhales deeply through her nose to quell her anger before leaning back in her chair and offering him a smile.

“That’s some talk for someone who must cheat in order to win, especially when it was against a Lesser God like myself in the past.” she pressed her fingers against her lips as she gives him a smug expression “That’s quite embarrassing don’t you think?” now this caused the people at the table to snort, having to stifle their laughter, her smirk grows when she noticed that his cocky attitude slowly dropped at what she said “Are you going to cheat again in order to get more things from me? Pathetic, I can still win against you with the game being in my favor, no matter how many underhanded plays you have against me.”

“Then why don’t you put your money where your mouth is?” she chuckles, shrugging her shoulders.

“Well, alright. But don’t start whining when I start winning.” this time he growls.

“You’re on.” Foolish, Quackity and Zanna all stood behind Cybele as Zagreus sat up properly, straightening himself out as few of the lingering Gods and Goddesses circled the table to watch the poker game. Honey looks at Zanna and saw her nod, she lets out a sigh before opening her hands and the guards littering the table returned to her hands and there, she skillfully shuffled the deck, juggling them over her knuckles once more before dealing the right amount to each player. Cybele snapped her fingers and all the chips she won fairly appeared on the table on her side, Zagreus did the same and they could see that she just had bit more in comparison to him. She looked down at her hand before looking at the chips before her and pushing a variety of white chips to green towards the center of the table, Zagreus doing the same.

The value of the chips was like mortal chips, the colors on the chips were a little more vibrant and the value behind them wasn’t in money, but what kind of mortal that was living in the realm.

Black = Vantablack – Apostles Orange = Gold – Cursed Souls Green = Emerald Green – Spirits Grey = Silver – Saints Blue = Lapis Blue – Mobs/Monsters Red = Crimson Red – Sinners White = Snow White – Normal

“Why don’t you go first, Cybele?” she giggles, taking three of her cards out and pushing them towards Honey, who traded three more cards towards her, Zagreus doing the same but with two cards.

“Oh, but ladies first~” she cooed, giggling softly when that got a rise out of him and a few of the spectators to laugh.

“Whatever.” rearranging the cards in his hands, he laid them out and a few of the spectators gasped at the reveal “A full house.” he boasts, his smirking rising but begins to fall when Cybele didn’t look the least bit threatened by the hand, the three standing behind her even looking unimpressed.

“Ooo, that’s too bad.” laying her hand down, his eyes widened slightly at her hand “Four of a kind.” Honey smirked at the win, raising her hand and all the chips on the board moved over to Cybele’s side as the cards returned to her hand once.

“And the win belongs to the Mother of All.” she crosses her legs, winking at Zagreus, who looks irritated, but he composes himself.

“Another.” she shrugs.

“Alright.” Quackity didn’t have the best relationship with Cybele after a certain event and the two absolutely hated each other, but he really couldn’t help but cheer her on and be rather impressed with how good she was playing. The hands she had were insane that he couldn’t help but feel sad for the other guy, but it was funny that every round they played Cybele never dropped her neutral expression while Zagreus was slowly losing his temper and confidence. There were times Cybele would lose but that didn’t matter, she still had the bigger winnings in comparison to Zagreus. By the end of it, Cybele dropped her hand to reveal she had a straight flush, while he only had a flush.

“Holy SHIT, Cy! You’re wiping the floor with him!” Quackity cheered, grabbing her by the shoulder and shaking her back and forward before leaning over and scooping up a great number of the chips she won before letting them drop to the table “For someone as meek as you, you’re pretty good a gambling.” she shrugs her shoulders.

“Just because I’m a pacifist doesn’t mean I don’t know how to gamble.” Foolish rolled his eyes.

“Right, pacifist.” she grins sheepishly, shrugging her shoulders.

“Enough!” Zagreus grits his teeth as he slammed his fist on the table, Cybele simply scoffed.

“What did I say about the whining? I’m pretty sure Persephone raised you better than this.” his face flushed red out of embarrassment before growling at her, she simply waved him off while flexing her hand. She looked down at the remaining chips he had and saw he had a few chips left but she eyed the gold chip he was flexing about before “Well, since I’m feeling a little generous, how about I put something on the line that will certainly pique your interest.”

“And what would that be?” opening her hand, she spread her index and middle finger open and a single vantablack chip formed in the space between her fingers. Vantablack chips were the rarest type of chips that only a good few Gods had in their possession and only they can manifest a vantablack chip, not the casino “An Apostle?” Zagreus questioned.

“Not just any apostle.” she flipped it around and he stood to his feet, his chair being pushed back in the process, as he stared at the chip “I give you Technoblade, the man highly praised by Ares and even you for all the bloodshed he creates while screaming “Blood for the Blood God”! Ah, such a good man.” she looked back over at him and saw he was staring intently at the chip.

“You’ll give his soul to me?” she laughs, throwing her head back.

“Hah! No!” she snorts at the assumption, closing her hand and bringing the chip into the palm of her hand “This is a poker match? Not everything is free, and we both know what I want in return if I put his soul on the table.” he groans at that, he closed his fist and slowly opened it for the gold chip to form in the palm of his hand.

“A cursed soul and an apostle...”

“Two valuable souls in one place.”

“Never thought I’d see a game like this.” the Gods and Goddesses surround the two gushed at the sight of the two rare chips in one place between two Elder Gods, Zanna and Foolish were staring at Cybele with shocked expressions while Quackity was barely catching on.

“Are you nuts, Cybele?!” Foolish whispered to her, grabbing her by her shoulder and pulling her back “What if you lose?!” she looks back at him.

“Do you really think I would gamble with the soul of a lifelong friend’s son if I knew I was going to lose? Unlikely.” she turns back towards Zagreus and puts the chip on the table, pushing it towards the center and grins “So how about it? Feeling lucky?” Honey looked between the two participants, she herself feeling a little excited about the outcome of the game, Zagreus stared at the gold chip in his hand before sighing and placing the chip down and towards the center as well.

“You’re on.” Honey grins, clapping her hands and the cards returning to her once more.

“Let’s have a fair game!” she cheered, downing another cocktail as the cards around her formed into the deck and she shuffled them before dealing them out. In this game, the two chips were the highest valued chips so there wasn’t a need for the two Gods to gamble with anymore chips, but Zagreus was feeling lucky and pushed all the remaining chips he had left onto the table with a big grin. Cybele noticed this as she was removing a few of her cards, she looked up in thought before shrugging her shoulders, why the hell not? With a flick of her wrist, all her winnings were pushed towards the table and placed behind the vantablack chip.

“What are you doing, Cybele?” Zanna asked, flabbergasted that Cybele willingly bet all her winnings onto the table “Did you do that out of spite?!” she shrugged her shoulders.

“Maybe.” Zanna and Foolish facepalm while Quackity laughed, even Honey snorted “What can I say? I’m just feeling rather lucky~” Zagreus narrowed his eyes on the older woman, not a single trace of nervousness on her face. He grits his teeth at her confidence, looking at his hand before swapping out the cards he didn’t want with new ones. A few minutes of silence go by as the two rearrange their hand, Zagreus looked up at Cybele and quirked a brow when he noticed her starting to look nervous as she stared at her hand, even the three behind her looked nervous, this was his chance.

“So, how about you go first?” he offered, this caught her off guard as she looked up at him then back at her hand, she then brought them to her chest as she offered him a hand.

“H-How about you? My hand is... so and so.” he smirks.

“Well alright.” he looks back down at his hand before finally revealing it, the crowd gasped and even Cybele paled at the sight of a straight flush he laid out. Zagreus’ smirk grew as Cybele continued to stare at her hand, her hands trembling before she lowered her head, he then raised his hands “Then I believe this win is mi--” he cut himself off when Cybele snorted, looking back over at her, he flinched when she raised her head, and she was trying her damned hardest not to burst out into laughter.  

“Man, I didn’t believe I was good at acting but I got you good, didn’t I?” she giggled to herself before throwing her head back, she takes a deep breath before laying her hand down and his eyes widened at what she had “A royal flush.” she leans back in her seat, shrugging her shoulders while opening her hands out behind her, to which Zanna, Foolish and Quackity did not hesitate to high five her “Sorry but, you just weren’t lucky enough.” she was the least bit threatened when he slammed his hands on the table, pointing a finger at her while she just leaned back and crossed her arms with an indifferent expression.

“You... you—you cheated! I know you cheated!” he shouts, she purses her lips.

“That’s a load of bullshit coming from the likes of you.” Zanna closed her eyes.

“Ah, here we go.” she muttered, she then turned and waved her hands to get the attention of a couple bouncers before snapping her fingers and a passion fruit martini appeared in her hands “She’s swearing, we’re in for a show tonight.” she muttered as she started to down her drink, Foolish nodded.

“Mm hmm.” even Quackity nodded his head.

“Yeah, the only times she swears is at me.” Honey snorted at that before snapping her fingers and having all the winnings more over to Cybele’s side, the vantablack and gold chips floating up and into her hands, to which she proceeded to roll the gold chip along her knuckles while the other was resting in between her thumb and index finger.

“You really think I didn’t notice you cheating the entire time.” she chuckles when she noticed him flinch and back off slightly, she then gestures to the three behind her and he saw them standing up straight and glaring at him, Honey doing the same as she was shuffling the deck “It just goes to show that I can still win even when odds are against me, and no matter how much you cheat, you still cannot beat me. How pathetic.” he growls.

“I want a rematch!” she rolls her eyes.

“With what? You lost everything; you have nothing to bet with.” she closes her hand with the vantablack chip while flicking the gold chip up then catching it “If you know what’s good for you, run on back home and whine to your mother and father on how you lost to me despite your underhanded plays.” this earned a round of laughter from the surrounding Gods, he claws at the table before grabbing the underside of it and proceeding to throw it across the room.

“I CAN beat you with or without cheating!” he screams as he starts approaching her, his arms reaching forward to grab her, but she didn’t move. The three behind her intended to get in front of her to stop him but they were all surprised when Honey stopped him, grabbing him by his shoulder and giving him a smile “Huh? What do you want?! Fuck off!” he tried to punch her, but she easily ducked, making sure to stand behind him before wrapping her arms around his waist.

“I’m sorry but fighting in the casino is strictly prohibited.” she said with a smile before bending her knees slightly then leaning back, bringing him with her before flipping him upside down and slamming his head into the ground, serving him a german suplex. Cybele, Zanna, Foolish and Quackity stare in astonishment at the sight of Honey suplexing the Elder God with little to no effort before standing to her feet and dusting her hands off before snapping her fingers “Get this idiot out of here!” she hollered, waving the wraiths over, who nodded and proceeded to grab Zagreus and drag him out of the casino. She then pats her pockets before opening her pocket and pulling out an entire poker table and putting it on the ground, replacing the one Zagreus threw away.

“What... did I just witness?” Cybele questioned, even Quackity was bewildered.

“Did I just watch a villager... suplex the fuck out of some rando?” the two look at each other before bursting into laughter, Zanna approaches Honey and places a hand on her shoulder, Honey looks up at her and noticed her give her a thumbs up.

“Instant raise.” she grins.

“Yes!” she cheers, pumping her fists “I should suplex people more often.” Zanna now shakes her head.

“No.” Honey rolls her eyes, Cybele hummed as she crossed her legs once more and rolled the vantablack chip across her knuckles once more before flicking it up and watching it disappear, when Zanna was by her side once more she grabbed both her a Foolish and pulled them close.

“Don’t you dare tell Phil that I gambled with Technoblade’s soul or else he’ll have Kristen come after my ass to claim my own soul.” they both raise their hands.

“You think we have a death wish? Of course, we won’t tell the guy.” she lets out a sigh of relief.

“Good.” she let Zanna and Honey gather up her chips and put them into suitcases while she turned her attention to the gold chip now resting in the palm of her head, Foolish was by her side as they both stare at the poker chip before she flipped it around so they could see just who exactly the soul belonged to.

“Hmm, I remember this girl.” she mused, smirking softly in remembrance “Didn’t her ancestors spite us and the Gods in charge of that era and faction smite them with a curse?” Foolish looked up in thought, squeezing his chin before nodding his head.  

“Yeah, and if I remember the curse correctly, it has something to do with that Japanese folklore called the Hanahaki disease, minus the part where it’s a one-sided love.” Cybele gasped softly, her hand covering her mouth.

“Oh, poor thing.” she mumbled softly “And to think that the curse was still going on after so many years, can’t imagine the pain she’s going through.” Foolish nodded his head.

“But now she’s in good hands once more.”  

“Yup.” she stared at the chip once more before flicking it up and watching it disappear, she then pats her legs before standing to her feet “Well this evening was certainly fun, I thank you for tonight.” Zanna grins, snapping her fingers and the suitcases full of chips were floating by Cybele’s side once more, she then brought her arm to her chest before bowing her head.

“But the pleasure is all mine. You’re the only individual that can make such a mundane night more eventful.” both she and Cybele grin before they grasp each other hands then pulling each other into a hug, patting each other’s back “Come more often, Cybele, I’ll make sure to make the games more difficult for your entertainment.” she smirks.

“You better.” she then turns to Quackity, holding her fist out to him, he stares at it before chuckling and fist bumping her.

“Just because tonight was fun, doesn’t mean we’re friends.” he nods at that before giving her a thumbs up “But tonight certainly is a night to remember.” she grins and nods her head to him.

“As to you, Quackity.” she then links arms with Foolish and waves “See you back at the SMP.”

“Sure.” as she passes Honey, she chuckles softly and pats her head.

“Stay out of trouble, Honey.” she purses her lips, fixing up her hair when Cybele messed with it but laughed nonetheless.

“Whatever.”

Support

word count: 6453

Fandom: FNAF Security Breach  Pairing: N/A x Female!Reader Pronouns: She/Her  Relationship: N/A Occupation: Mechanic Ability: N/A

Keys:

[F/N]: Female Name  [L/N]: Last Name [N/N]: Nickname [H/C]: Hair Color [E/C]: Eye Color

Warnings: spoilers to those who haven’t seen fnaf sb.

"You hired me, a person who majored in Mechanical Engineering, to repair damages around the Pizza Plex and the occasional animatronics when they’re damaged?” [F/N] questioned, hands tucked into the pockets of her overalls as she looked at the people who hired her “I better be getting paid good money for this, because this is not what I signed up for.” one of her few employers laughed, throwing their head back before placing a hand on her shoulder.

“Don’t worry about it. You’ll be getting paid your share, you’ll even get bonus’ for everything you fix around the Pizza Plex.” she raised a brow at that, they smirked when they piqued her interest “Everything involving the job should be in the contract that you signed, but we are also not responsible for any harm that comes your way as you work here, mmkay?” she gave them a look.

“What is that supposed to mean?” she questions, only to be ignored when they walked over to their desk to grab something, she lets out a sigh, head hanging low before looking up and crossing her arms “So all I need is to keep the machines in tip top condition and fix anything that needs a little fixing? That’s it?” they nod their head.

“Oh, and if we need you to do anything else, we’ll call for you.” they let out a small cheer when they managed to find what they were looking for and so they handed it to her “That’s a high leveled security badge, don’t lose it now, because that’s the only thing that gives you access to the entire property.” they explain, she nods her head before proceeding to put it into one of the many pockets within her utility belt.

“Am I mainly going to be stationed within Parts and Service?” they nod their head, grabbing a clipboard and reading through it.

“Uh huh. You’re free to roam around the Pizza Plex, but when you’re needed somewhere or you need to return to Parts and Service, we’ll send you a notification on your Faz Watch.” at the mention of that, [F/N] glanced down at the watch and looked at the many things it had to offer.

“Hmm, cool.” she muttered to herself as she clicked on a few things. 

“What you need to know about each bots and how to fix them should be in Parts and Service, give them a read when you have to the time, okay?” she nods her head “Alright, for now, go introduce yourself to a few of the animatronics and Officer Vanessa.” she looked back at them.

“Officer Vanessa?” they nod.

“Mm, one of the few human security guards.”

“Ah.” she was then promptly pushed out of the office, she rolled her shoulders before glancing down at her Faz Watch once more and walked off in the direction of where the elevators were, she pushes the button to stop at a floor before going on a small venture to find the Green Rooms of the Glamrock Band. She now looks around in confusion when she somehow found herself in the main lobby instead, she lets out a long sigh “Fucking dammit, this map is hard to read.”

“Need a hand?” raising her head, she was met with a woman who looked just as equally tired as she was, she wore a simple uniform of a white dress shirt with black buttons, shoulder pads and a badge on the left side of her shirt, a pair of black jeans and a cap that said SECURITY on it that sat upon her blonde hair that was tied in a ponytail, even her green eyes looked tired “You must be the new mechanic?” she jokingly salutes.

“And you’re Officer Vanessa.” she shrugs her shoulders.

“That’s me.” she offers her a hand and they shake hands “The name’s Vanessa A, you can call me Vanessa, or whatever you want. I work as a Security Guard for the Pizza Plex.” [F/N] does the OK gesture with her hand before placing a hand on her chest.

“[F/N] [L/N], and I work as a mechanic.” Vanessa nods her head before waving her hand to gesture for the other to follow her.

“I can only assume you’re looking for the animatronics, so I’ll help introduce you.” [F/N] grins as she follows her new workmate.

“Thanks a lot, Ness!” she cheers, Vanessa rolls her eyes but secretly smiled at the nickname. [F/N] followed closely behind Vanessa as she led her to where the Glamrock Gang were being held, asking questions here and there about each animatronic and what their functions were “Oh! I heard that bear and chicken were the original ones during the early stages of the franchise, right? Freddy and Chica, right? The other two were... Bonnie and Foxy?” she nods.

“Wow, you still remember that stuff?” she chuckles to herself, rubbing the back of her head.

“Heh, you could say I was a bit of a fan when I was younger, but it’s been so long since I’ve last been here that I’m surprise I still remember.” 

“Then you must be living in a dream that you’re finally working within your favorite franchise.” [F/N] hums at that, a soft smile appearing on her face.

“Right.” Vanessa nods her head and left it at that.

“Welp, here we are.” Vanessa starts, entering the lobby that led to each of the Glamrock’s Green Rooms “Welcome to Rockstar Row. It starts with Freddy Fazbear, Roxanne Wolf, Montgomery Gator then lastly Glamrock Chica.” [F/N] nods her head, looking around in awe at everything within Rockstar Row.

“Radical.” Vanessa narrows her eyes at the woman, did she just-- she shook her head before raising her wrist up so she could press a button on her own Faz Watch, calling the animatronics in the area to come to them.

“If you ever need to find the animatronics or need them to come to you, just push this button on the Faz Watch and they’ll come straight to you.” she was going to question that but paused when she heard loud thumping, things even started to shake, turning her towards the room, she let out a startled shriek when the four animatronics came barreling towards them.

“Holy shit!” she shouts, Vanessa waves her hands.

“You get used to it.” a bead of sweat bled down the side of her face at that.

“Huh?”

“Officer Vanessa.” raising her head, the person who spoke was the iconic Glamrock Freddy, the face of Freddy Fazbear’s Mega Pizza Plex, despite being a machine, he gave the two of them a warm smile “What seems to be the issue if you called us all here?” Vanessa waved her hand before gesturing to [F/N], who stood rather awkwardly beside Vanessa.

“I just need you to meet the new mechanic, introduce yourself newbie.” said woman pouted at that before giving the four animatronics a wave.

“Hey, [F/N] [L/N], at your service. Ready to fix you or upgrade you when the time comes, I’m there when you need me or I’m just hanging around in Parts and Service.” Freddy smiles once more before taking his hat off to her and nodding his head.

“Hello, [F/N]. I am Glamrock Freddy, but you probably already knew that, didn’t you?” Freddy says, voice sounding playful, he then lets out a whoa when he was pushed to the side by Chica, who beamed down at [F/N] with a bright smile.

“I’m Glamrock Chica, so lovely to meet you!” she straightens her posture as she continued to wave her hand towards the newest employee, Roxanne was next, crossing her arms while throwing her hair over her shoulder.

“Roxanne Wolf, and don’t you forget it.” she growls when Monty pulls her back, [F/N] leaning backwards when the alligator leaned in close, a big grin along his face while baring his teeth.

“The name’s Montgomery Gator, and you’ll probably be seeing me a lot.” [F/N] glances over at Vanessa as Freddy grabs Monty by his shoulders and pulls him away from her.

“What does he mean by that?” Roxy answers that question before Vanessa could even open her mouth.

“Because Monty is the most destructive out of us all, especially when he has his temper tantrums.” Monty growls at Roxy, who snickers to herself from behind Chica, who got in between the two of them before Monty could get his hands on her, Freddy was behind Monty and holding him back from doing anything brash, Vanessa just exhales loudly.

“I’d say he’s just overly emotional, but they all are, he’s just more physically violent.” she explains “But he’s actually a really chill guy, just try not to agitate him, okay?” [F/N] gives her a thumbs up.

“Got it.” she bids the four animatronics goodbye, following Vanessa out of Rockstar Row to Parts and Service “Aren’t there a few other animatronics?” the blonde nods her head.

“Mm hmm, the Daycare Attendant that resides in the Daycare, if you couldn’t already guess, and DJ Music Man, or DJMM for short, who’s booth is within the Fazcade. He’s the biggest animatronic within the Pizza Plex, but he’s actually a really nice guy, so don’t mind his size.” she nods her head.

“Mmkay, I’ll take your word for it.” the journey to Parts and Service was a short one, but it was calm as the two walked in silence “I guess this is my stop.” [F/N] murmured to herself as she stopped right in front of the door that was labeled PARTS AND Service, Vanessa looks at her and nods her head.

“I guess so.” she rubs the back of her head before pointing at her Faz Watch “If you ever need anything, you can contact me on the Faz Watch or your walkie talkie, either works.” she salutes her once more.

“Righto, Officer Ness.” Vanessa couldn’t help but chuckle at that, she salutes her back.

“Then I’ll see you around, Mechanic [N/N].” both women laugh before Vanessa finally left to do her duties, [F/N] lets out a deep sigh before entering her new “office” that she’ll probably be forced to confide in majority of her time working there. She pulls a face at the dark room that looked all gloomy and boring, she lets out a groan as he body slumped while she threw her head back.

“What a dumpster fire.”

[a few weeks later]

“The lights have been going off in the Daycare at random times then from their set times?” a few weeks into her new job and she’s already wishing she was in a coma because at least she would get some decent sleep, her sleep schedule had gone and fucked off within the first week of working as the Mega Pizza Plex’s new mechanic, having worked hours without a clear schedule and having to come in whenever they gave her a call. Parts and Service had practically become her second home at this rate, she cleaned the place up and added a few things here and there to make it more lively, at least it didn’t look like she was in an abandoned laboratory.

True to their words, Monty was the animatronic that came into Parts and Service more often compared to the others. Majority of the time his claws or arms would be busted from the time he would lose his temper, sometimes he would overheat and he would short circuit and she would need to cool him down while repairing his claws from the damages done by the constant beating they got whenever he lost his temper. It got to the point that she had to upgrade them herself and add a few extra details to stop Monty from damaging them to the point they wouldn’t be recognizable. But his constant visits meant they had plenty of time to get along and talk about whatever comes to either of their minds, sometimes the gator would bring his guitar just so he could play a couple songs to her and ask for her opinion. In return, [F/N] would bring her record player and old records and have different songs play as she worked on Monty and later ask which song he liked most from each album.

Freddy would come and visit [F/N] just to simply talk and keep her company, [F/N] would take that opportunity to do some weekly check ups and to see if his system was in order, having been told by her higher ups that since he was the face of the entire Pizzeria and one of the most popular animatronics, he needed to be handled with extra care and that she couldn’t fuck up no matter what. Freddy was always in great condition and the most she would do with him was update his system while also giving his shell a good clean, other than that, they two of them would often have nice chats.

Roxy was something, alright. The first time she came into Parts and Service was when an accident happened on her raceway and she had to come and get herself fixed; cleaned up, per say, because she was a total wreck. [F/N] sweat dropped when the wolf was crying oil from her eyes, wailing how she looked like a disaster and that if she didn’t look the best nobody was going to like. This leads to [F/N] giving her eyes an upgrade and practically giving the wolf a complete makeover, she wiped the oil off her forehead with a rag and watched the way Roxy marveled at her look within a mirror. From then on, Roxy wolf visit [F/N] for a preen up and talk about anything that annoyed her that day or just to watch her as [F/N] worked on other things.

Her and Chica was a little funny. Chica reminded [F/N] of one of those fitness instructors from those old T.V shows, and it showed by the way Chica spoke like one of the motivational speakers whenever [F/N] worked, The chicken was also a sweetheart because she would bring [F/N] food and water to keep her steady and hydrated, she scolded the woman when she saw her bring a bottle of alcohol and energy drinks into Parts and Service just to down the bottles, saying that it was to keep her from falling asleep. Chica’s maintenance would be just deep cleaning, she was told that Chica would sometimes glitch out and each from the trash or food in general, cleaning her stomach cavity was a nightmare because it was absolute filthy. She never told the girl, because she thought that it would make her cry, so she keeps that to herself as she works.

Now her relationship with Vanessa, it was a good one. Vanessa leaned towards a quiet and stern personality, while [F/N] was a bit more relaxed and carefree, but they got along quite nicely. [F/N] was already friendly with the woman and knowing how she preferred being in her own personal space, she respected that and would visit her after informing the security guard through their Faz Watch’s. The two of them would have simple and subtle conversations whenever they were together and only when Vanessa has had her wake up call would be when she’s more expressive and less dead inside, it’s quite funny, honestly. Other than that, the rare moments Vanessa would visit [F/N] in Parts and Service would be the blonde woman reveling in the workshop as [F/N] worked on repairs and whatnots in absolute silence just to simple calm herself and leave herself to her thoughts.

Anyways-

“Yeah, apparently the lights have been going off then when they’re scheduled to go off.” Vanessa informed her “Moon has also been leaving the Daycare whenever it happens and has been causing a bit of a ruckus.” this causes [F/N] to raise her head from what she was doing and look over at her.

“Is that the reason why so many of the S.T.A.F.F Bots have been coming to Parts and Service in pieces? I guess it wasn’t Monty after all.” 

“See, I told you it wasn’t me!” she presses her lips to a thin line, glancing down at Monty, who was on the chair within the Protective Cylinder with his chest open and her hands fixing up his wires after they came loose after a performance “Damn, I’d really appreciate it if you’d stop thinking of me as the type to just destroy things on a whim.” he lets out a yelp when [F/N] yanked on his wires.

“Well, maybe if you did stop destroying things and giving me more pointless things to fix, than maybe I would stop thinking that.” he whimpers at that and went back to laying on the chair, she huffs “I got it, I’ll see what’d going on with the power in the Daycare.” Vanessa nods her head to that.

“Good, I’ll inform the higher ups and leave you to it.”

“Thanks, have a good one, Ness.” she nods her head once more before leaving Parts and Service, [F/N] waves her goodbye before glancing down at Monty, who pushed himself up and was resting his weight on his elbows “Thanks to that, you’re off the hook.” he silently cheers.

“Wonderful.” he winces when a dark look shadows over her face, he immediately turned away, shivering on the spot as she leans in close.

“But if I ever find out that one of the Map Bots, Security Bots or S.T.A.F.F Bots were mangled up and it was your fault, I’ll throw your dismembered head into one of the ponds in your golf course.” he whimpers, giving her a shaky thumbs up.

“Got it boss.” she rolls her eyes before chuckling softly, she finished her work and Monty leaves Parts and Service to return to his Green Room within Rockstar Row, she slaps her hands onto her face before grabbing her clipboard and adding something else at the bottom of the already long list.

“Lights within Superstar Daycare.” she adds a full stop at the end of it with a sharp jab before tucking it under her arm and leaving for the Daycare, it was also a perfect time to meet the Daycare Attendant; Sundrop, though maybe she might not be able to meet him because she was needing to be above the ceiling panels of the daycare to check out the wiring and whatnot for the lightning. When she arrived, she attached herself to a harness for safety before crawling into the space and checking out the lights above the daycare, she learned there were other lights within the daycare that were powered by five generators “I guess I’ll check that out after I’m done up here.”

This brings us to Sundrop, it was after hours and he was in the middle of cleaning up the daycare after all the children left the daycare, he was stacking the blocks on top of each other when his sensors managed to catch a sound and slight movement. He raised his head and looked side to side in confusion, trying to detect what his sensors did but he saw nothing, he blinked when something trickled from above him and landed on his nose. With that in mind, he raised his head and noticed that ceiling panels were moving, was someone up there? Unlike Roxy, he didn’t have eyes that allowed him to detect what was through the ceilings panels, but he could tell that it wasn’t simply a rat nor Mini Music Man, maybe he should report this to securi—

“WAH!!” his eyes widened at the sight of the panels giving way and someone falling through the ceiling, his immediate response was opening his arms out to catch them but the harness they strapped themselves to caught them before they could hit the ground so now they were dangling in front of Sundrop.

…

…

“Hey there, and sorry, I’m just hanging around.” he pulls a face before bursting out into laughter.

“Oh, I see what you did there! Be— Because you’re hanging from the ceiling.” she giggled softly at the laughter she earned from the animatronic sun, he pats his chest and looked at her once more to notice her open her arms out.

“Think you can give me a hand?” she hums softly when she noticed the sun rays around his head perk up at that, his body did the same thing as he raised his arms up.

“Oh, of course!” she lets out a soft exhale as she dusts herself off, she looks up at the ceiling before letting out a groan. “Fuck.” Sundrop lets out a gasp as he points at her.

“Language!” she rolls her eyes then glanced down at the floor, perking up when she noticed that her clipboard fell with her so she picked it up and clicked her pin, jotting down other stuff onto the list.

“Fix the ceiling in the daycare.” she underlines it then unclicks her pin and put it behind her ear, she then turned her attention to the animatronic and gave him a polite yet tired smile “Hello there, quite the first impression, but my name is [F/N], a mechanic hired by the Pizza Plex.” he stared down at her before the already permanent smile on his face grew.

“Why, hello there new friend! I am Sundrop, the Daycare Attendant!” she nods her head, he bounces around as he watched her look around “May I ask as to what you were doing?”

“Oh, I was informed that the lights in the daycare have been going out then when they’re usually scheduled too. I’ve been tasked to figure out why and possibly fix the problem.” she raised a brow when Sundrop grew nervous, she shrugged her shoulders as she started wandering around the daycare in search for the five generators.

“A-Are we going to get in trouble?” she raised her hand and waved it to dismiss his concern, eyes not leaving her clipboard.

“Unless you’re the one that’s causing it, then I highly doubt it. Don’t worry your pretty little head about it, I’ll fix what’s wrong and be out of your way.” she answered truthfully, this didn’t ease his concern as he started following closely behind her, she pressed her lips together at the feeling that if he could breathe she could feel his breath against her neck. She glanced back at him and watched him lurch backwards, hands raised up before he pressed his fingers together, nervously pressing them together “Look, you’re not in trouble. Nothing bad is going to happen to you if that’s what you’re thinking.”  “Mm, it’s not just that…” he muttered, she raised a brow.

“Then what is it?” he takes a breath then presses his finger to his temple.

“I’m worried about Moon… and what he’ll do to you.” she stared up at him before letting out a laugh, she brought her hand to her mouth as she reached forward and grabbed his wrist, she pulled it down and rubbed her thumb into his metal wrist.

“You don’t need to worry about little ‘ol me, I’m fully aware of what Moon is capable of and I know I’m capable of handling him and looking after myself, but thank you for your concern nonetheless.” she nods her head to him then glanced behind him when she noticed the security desk, so she pats his hand before walking past him and towards the desk. Her back was towards him so she didn’t notice the way Sundrop stared at his hand as she reached for one of the flashlights in the flashlight recharge station, she then looks at the messy desk and pushes away anything unnecessary so she can grab the schedule for when the lights at supposed to turn off.

She turns around once more so she could lean against the desk as she reads through the documents, she sniffles and yawns to herself as she reads through the contents of the documents, mentally noting down when the lights were supposed to turn off and when they’ve been going off when they’re not supposed too. She glances down at the time before looking up with her eyes when the lights turned off, dang, it was at the hourly mark when all the power converts to the charging stations so all the animatronics are supposed to recharge at the recharge stations. She flicks the flashlight on and luminaries her path in search for Sundrop, but there wasn’t any sign of the animatron—

“What’s this? An unexpected guest?” a shiver ran down her spine when she felt something loom over her from behind “The daycare is closed for the day, you are intruding. It is my job to dispose of unwanted intruders.” before he could even get his hands on her, she wiped her body around and slammed the end of the flashlight into his faceplate hard enough that he stumbled to the ground and screwed with his AI, causing it to glitch.

“I know about you, Moon. You’re practically another security guard but more violent.” she knelt down, grabbing him by his long neck and pulling him forward “I am not to be underestimated, alright? Fuck around and find out.” she throws him back and stood to her feet, dusting her shoulder off before looking for the generators scattered across the daycare, meanwhile with Moon, he was still trying to register what just happened.

“She really kicked your butt.” Sun retorted in their shared mind, Moon scowls as he rubs his face.

“Silence, Sun.” he just giggles in the back of their shared head, she was going to reprimand Moondrop once more when she felt him behind her but let him be when he quietly watched her work around the daycare. Moondrop raised a brow when he noticed her sway a little, her body tittering back and forth while her eyes were drooping, only then did he notice the bags under her eyes and how exhausted she looked “When was the last time you had a proper night’s rest?” at that question, she sniffles a little and looked up in thought.

“… mm, when did I start working here?” he gives her a shocked look.

“That’s not healthy.” she shrugs.

“I don’t get paid to sleep, I get paid to work and that’s that.” before she could continue her work, she was turned around by Moon, him kneeling down and raising his finger while tutting it side to side.

“I understand you’re doing your job, but while you’re here in the Daycare and I am here instead of Sun, you will sleep until the lights are turned on. It’s not that long, but getting some sleep is better than getting none.” she stared up at him, glancing to the side as she thought about the offer, then shrugged her shoulders.

“You better wake me up if something bad happens then.” before he could say anything, she drops everything that was in her hands before proceeding to face plant into the ground. Both himself and Sundrop panic and quickly kneel down to pick her up off the ground, he then settles himself into a quiet corner, cradling her in his arms as she fell into a deep sleep that she most definitely needed.

[a week later]

Maintenance in the Daycare was something [F/N] looked forward to now because not only did she get to hang with Sundrop and Moondrop, but because she got to sleep and wake up not wanting to fucking die. Moondrop was a fucking riot to hang with when he didn’t have homicidal thoughts, mostly because the two of them would do shit that would drive Sundrop through the roof. Speaking of which, the sun animatronic scares her in ways that doesn’t frighten her, but the fact that she caught him chugging down a bottle of glitter glue… she had to sprint out of there when the machine chased after her and shouted that it wasn't what it looked like.  “Why are these vents so fucking big?” she muttered to herself, crawling through the space in search for the thing that was making so much rattling whenever the Pizzeria closed. She was told to find it, it was just that the rattling happened around the vents around Parts and Service and it greatly annoyed her so she wanted to investigate it so that the noise would cease, and yet she had no luck in finding it so far.

“Hey, [F/N].” she glances down at her Faz Watch and saw that she was getting a message from Vanessa, so she turns so she was laying on her back and raised the watch closer to her “Where are you right now?”

“Vibing in a vent.”

“Why are you— never mind, DJ Music Man is in need of a check up. Some teens threw food in his mouth and we can’t seem to get it out.” [F/N] closes her eyes, inhaling deeply through her nose as her head drops and hits the vent.

“Is he in his booth?”  “Uh huh.”

“I’ll be there in a couple minutes.”

“Got it.” Vanessa disconnects from the line and so [F/N] lets out a long groan this time, she exhales and pushes herself onto her elbows, and then did she see what was making all that racket in the vents. There she saw a miniature version of DJMM and this version of him was holding a pair of cymbals in his hands,

“Now that’s fucking cute.” she muttered, his teeth made a chittering sound as he patted on his feet, he then waddles over to her and she sets up a bit so he could situate himself in her lap “Hey there, little guy. Mind showing me the way to the bigger version of you through the vents? You seem to know your way around these vents better than I.” he claps his cymbals happily before leaping out of her lap and leading the way, she follows behind closely and when she reaches the end of the vent, he moves to the side to let her remove the screws to the vent. Unfortunately for her, she hadn’t realized where the vent was placed so when she crawled out, she fell and landed awkwardly on her face.

…

…

“Not a word.” even though he did not have a voice box like the other animatronics, she could tell that he was laughing. When she collected herself, she extends her arms out towards the vent and this allows him to lean from the opening and into her arms, and with him secure, she makes her way out of the room and towards the area where DJMM resides in “Hey, big man, you awake?!” she shouts, cupping her mouth with her hand to amplify her voice, she hums to herself when the large spider like animatronic peeked his head out of his booth.

“You called?” the sound of various radio channels was heard and DJMM rose up from where he was, she grinned as Mini DJMM sat on her shoulder “What can I do for you?” she playfully rolls her eyes, hands on her hips as she continued to look up at him.

“I believe we both know why I’m here.” he lets out a sigh, leaning down and resting his big body onto the back of his hands.

“Children these days just don’t know discipline, especially the teens.” she nods her head.

“Uh huh, some of them are very vicious.”

“You don’t say.” she huffs, shaking her head.

“Well, let’s not delay this any longer, aight?” he lets out a reluctant sigh but nodded his head, he extends a hand out to her and she didn’t hesitate to hop into the palm of his hand and with that he made his way to a bigger part of the Pizza Plex that was reserved specifically for him when he needed to be cleaned “Oh, while we’re in the topic, I’ve been informed that you have a new upgrade.” he glances down at her.

“Upgrade? Of what sorts?” she hums, removing the clipboard from her hip and so she and Mini Music Man look at the documents, she narrows her eyes at it as she pulls it closer to her face.

“Apparently it’s called… Bouncer Mode?” she hums at that, pursing her lips as Mini Music Man claps his cymbals gently in curiosity “You’re just another form of security basically, escorting guests that aren’t found in the Pizza Plex’s files out or guests that are threatening.” he nods his head.

“So I’m basically extra muscle?” she snaps her fingers.

“Yeah, that sounds about right.” she gently knocks on the palm of his hand and gave him a grin “I can only imagine how frightening seeing you chase after them can be, talk about nightmare fuel.” they each share a laugh, upon reaching the warehouse, music was playing in the background as [F/N] spent the next couple of hours cleaning DJMM up to the point he was squeaky clean, by the end of it, she was laying on the ground, soaking wet and exhausted while DJMM was bouncing up and down that he finally got a wash up after weeks of negligence from management.

“Many thanks, [F/N].” he chuckled softly when she raised a thumbs up towards him, she then peeled herself off the ground, taking her cap off and shaky her head to rid the water infested in her hair.

“Now that that’s over, let’s get you that new upgrade. It shouldn’t take too long, so you should be back in your booth in no time!” he nods his head to her words so here she was, sitting on his shoulder with a laptop on her lap and Mini Music Man in her head, watching her tap away at the keyboard while the information for DJMM flew across the screen.

“It won’t do anything to hinder my current software, right?” she nods her head, eyes not leaving the screen.

“Yeah, don’t worry about that. It won’t activate unless a threat is detected, and since we haven’t been really getting threats in the Pizza Plex lately, it’ll probably be sitting in the back of your head.” he nods his head, upon finishing the final touch up of the upgrade, she pushed the enter button and it was uploaded into DJMM’s software. Both she and Mini Music Man leaned forward and watched as the data was processed and when he came to be, he stood up straight “How do you feel?”

“… the same.” she deadpans, she sighs.

“Well, we’ll never know until someone trespasses onto the property.” she says offhandedly, thanking him as he lowered her towards the ground “I mean, who’s foolish enough to break into a pizzeria?” he shrugged.

“Desperate fans.” she snorts.

“True.” she walks with him back to his booth, dropping Mini Music Man off in the process then left the two with a goodbye, the two doing the same and waving her goodbye. She was now back in Parts and Service, collapsing onto her wheelie chair with a groan, she leans back while running a hand through her hair after removing her cap and starts fanning herself.

‘Management have been stepping up the security around the Pizza Plex lately, going so far as to giving DJMM, who’s usually so gentle and laid back, such a bizarre upgrade. I noticed it immediately and had to tone it down in fear that he might actually hurt someone.’ she exhaled deeply, glancing over at her desk and noticed the few photos of her and the animatronics, Vanessa and even a few children scattered across it and even on the computer ‘I’m getting worried as for what’s to come.’

Headcanon:

it’s an unspoken rule amongst the animatronics that no harm must come to [f/n].

why?

simple.

because she is one of the nicest mechanics, technicians, helper, whatever, that’s worked at the pizza plex in the longest time.

the other employees that has worked in parts and service were so mean in the past and never considered the animatronics feelings and opinions, always brushing it off their shoulders just to finish their work.

not [f/n], oh no.

despite always being tired and a little standoffish, she was always rather welcoming and very friendly, even for the short tempered monty and lethal moon.

moon learned not to mess with her when he realized just how strong she was.

he and sun were coming in for their check up when they witnessed her lifting monty up with pure strength and the alligator was struggling to remove himself from her grip.

what freaked him out was the way monty screamed for help.

anyways-

whenever the animatronics had to come in for their monthly maintenance and other upgrades, [f/n] would always just and make the process as comfortable and atmosphere as welcome as she could.

she knew they were always frightened being in that dark gloomy room, so she always tried to brighten it up and make it as quick as she could.

and for that they were grateful.

her and vanessa get along quite swimmingly as well.

vanessa liked her company because she wasn’t so chatty, but when they did decide to converse, they spoke of topics vanessa knew and was fond of and the blonde enjoyed it.

conversations with the mechanic made her feel sane and whole.

the oddest thing about [f/n] after she started working at the pizza plex and her sleep schedule got pretty shit, she would fall asleep in the oddest of places.

the daycare’s ball pit? yup.

monty golf? uh huh.

roxy’s raceway? totally.

the worst spot? somewhere in the ceiling.

mini music man was the one to discover her, strapped in her harness and practically at the verge of falling of the beam she was laying on.

she was firmly scolded by freddy, chica, djmm, sundrop and vanessa.

moon, monty and roxy were laughing while mini music man was shaky his head.

the map bots startled her when she was still new and didn’t know her way around.

she decked one across the face when it suddenly appeared in front of her, promptly had to fix it before anyone discovered what she did.

she likes the caution bots. they remind her of puppies/dogs.

other than that, she’s the friendly and overworked mechanic that wishes she could get at least a raise for the amount of work management is throwing at her.

… motherfu— 

Loyalty

word count: 23,866

Fandom: MCYT Pairing: JSchlatt x Male!Wolf!Reader Pronouns: He/Him Relationship: Familial/Platonic Occupation: Bodyguard Ability: Wolf Hybrid 

The character is that of a wolf hybrid, allowing them to have traits of a wolf. They have abnormal strength and speed with keen senses of smell, hearing and sight, making their nose and ears almost sensitive to anything. They are also granted with an abnormal height and the gift to shapeshift from a human/normal form to a more monstrous form.

Keys: [M/N]: Male Name [S/C]: Skin Color [H/C]: Hair Color [E/C]: Eye Color [U/N]: Username

Warnings: character death, vulgar language, alcohol consumption, violence

I don’t know if I’ve seen this anywhere but this is my own headcanon on the three canon lives thing the dsmp have. when their first two lives are taken, their bodies are reduced to dust and they return back to spawn or their bed, but on their last and final canon life, their body doesn’t reduce to dust and they die the regular ol’ way.

that is all.

“Loyalty” pt. 2

“Don’t touch that thing, you might catch something.”

“What a disgusting little thing, can’t it go somewhere else.”

“Ugh, I wish someone would do something about that thing.”

Those were the constant words that made their way into the ears of the young wolf pup hybrid, there was nothing that didn’t go unheard with his enhanced senses. No matter how irritating those words were he couldn’t help but wince when they were all true. His hair was overgrown and any other patches of fur that were visible were matted, he couldn’t even remember the last time he had a bath so there was a foul stench coming from him along with the dirt covering his [S/C] skin. Even his nails were overgrown and cracked with dirt beneath his nails, such an unsightly appearance. A weak growl mixed with a whimper erupted out of his throat as he clawed at the ground beneath his collapsed body, he really was pathetic that he could do nothing to make the situation he was in better. He had nothing but the worn-out clothes on his back to his name— name, huh? It’s been so long since someone has called his name that he can’t even remember the name his own mother gave him.

He was so alone he craved for any sort of attention; any sort of affection just to make him feel better, but what fool would take pity on this waste of life who was nothing but a bag of bones? He let out another whimper as he hung his head low, his hands resting on his head as tears of frustration finally started rolling down his cheeks. The cruel reality was bearing down on him and he just didn’t want to face it, he didn’t want to live in this kind of situation anymore but what can a scrawny little brat like himself do when he was nothing more than an easy target for anyone who preyed upon him? He just wanted a chance to make things right, he just wanted a chance to live a life that wasn’t so pathetic.

“Hey kid.” he let out a gasp at the sound of a voice, he raised his head and started to tremble at the sight of a figure looming over him. He couldn’t see who it was but with their intimidating height and the horns on his head, he couldn’t cease the fear in his heart as he pushed himself against the wall behind him, his ears tucking back to show his fear.

“Are you the devil…?” he croaked out, his voice so dry it made him wince and start coughing, he flinches when he heard the man above him laugh.

“The devil? Now that’s a new one.” he comments, the boy doesn’t hesitate to push himself further into the wall of the alley when the man before him knelt down, there, he was able to get a better view of the man’s face. He looked quite young, he had a scruffy beard and messy brown hair but what stood out were the goat horns and ears, another hybrid. It had been so long since he’d seen another hybrid, though the species was different, he was a hybrid nonetheless “What are you doing out here on your own, kid? Where’re your parents?” at the mention of that he looked down.

“… my mother died, and when my father saw no value in me, he left me to rot.” he answered weakly, the goat hybrid hummed at that, squeezing his chin “If you’re not here to ridicule me or kill me, it’s best if you’d be on your way, wouldn’t want to catch a disease I might be carrying.” the man only hummed again, the boy was confused when he saw the man back away slightly only to offer his hand to him with a generous smile on his face.

“Your father is a fool to see no value in you.”

“Huh?” that generous smile turned into a smirk.

“Come with me, and I promise you, you’ll be of use to me in the future.” his eyes widened slightly at that, how could this stranger know if he could be valuable or not? Such a ridiculous claim that had him sneering slightly, but his ears slowly relaxed as he stared at the hand before him, the offer was tempting but how could he trust this man? “Listen, kid, don’t take this offer as pity. I can and will leave you here to die if you don’t decide quickly, but I know you’ve got the potential to be something bigger. So, what do you say?” he swallowed thickly as he continued to stare at the hand before finally reaching forward and taking it.

“I hope you can show me how I have potential.” he laughs at that.

“It sounded sappy, didn’t it? You can just say I’ve got a good eye for valuable things.” he stands to his feet and the boy let out a yelp when he was yanked up, the man noticed this and put him down “Sorry about that, you’re just a skinny little thing.” the boy let out a sigh.

“Right.” he raised his head when he noticed the man raise his hand and slip off a bland gold ring off his finger, he turns towards him and flicks it towards the boy, he opened his hands and caught the ring before looking down at it in confusion.

“Then name’s JSchlatt , but call me Schlatt. From here on out, I’m your owner. The ring will signify my ownership over you, so don’t go losing it or else I’ll kick you to the curb, got it?” he let out a gasp as he nodded his head, Schlatt merely chuckled with a scoff before walking off, the boy gasped again as he quickly rushed after him “What about you? Do you gotta name, or do I have to name you?” he lowered his head once more, his ears pressing flat against his head.

“I don’t remember my name…” Schlatt pursed his lips at the sound of that, what a hassle.

“Hmm, well… how does [M/N] sound?” the boy's ears perked up at that “Take it or leave it. I’m not particularly good at naming things so it’s either that or you go by boy.” Schlatt paused when he heard him yip, he turned around and his eyes widen softly at the sight of the small amount of joy circling in his eyes, his tail wagging softly.

“No, no! I like it.” he looks down at his feet, holding the golden ring in his hands while his tail wagged happily “I like it a lot.” Schlatt scoffed again before walking again but was grateful that the boy— [M/N] liked the name, and he genuinely did. He didn’t favor the name his father gave him, it was a pretty half-assed name because his father could give a damn about naming a child who had no value to him. He raised his head to stare at the back of his new owner and a newfound loyalty started to swell in his chest, maybe it was the DNA of the wolf hybrid coursing through his veins that was making him behave in such a way, but he didn’t care. This man saw something in him that he couldn’t even see, he’s given him a chance and now he was willing to die for this man to live up to his expectations. 

[present time, years later]

“Hey, [M/N], are you even listening?” said man felt his ears twitch at the sound of his name, he slowly opened his eyes and looked around to see he was standing in the dressing room backstage awaiting their cue, he sniffled before turning his head in the direction of the voice that called his name.

“I apologize, I was simply resting my eyes.” his ears flickered a bit when the man laughed.

“Yeah, that sounds more like you taking a nap.” he hums at that, he then lets out an oh when he offered him a tie “Give me a hand with that, would you? You know how bad I am at putting those things on, but I need to look professional.” he nods his head as he takes the die from his hand, approaching him swiftly.

“Of course, but at least this time you aren’t swearing.” now he couldn’t help but laugh at that.

“True, true.” it takes him no time tying that tie around his neck, he’s probably gone and done it over a hundred times that he could probably do it with his eyes closed. When it was securely tied around his neck, he nodded his head before reaching over and grabbing the blaze to his suit and handing it to him, when he puts it on, he buttons it up for him before standing behind him and the both of them stare at their reflection.

“Don’t you look dapper, JSchlatt? Or should I say, Mister President?” he laughs again as he looks up at the boy standing behind him through the reflection.

“Oh, please. I always look this good.” now he snorts, Schlatt smacks him in the shoulder, only to wince himself when the back of his hand was met with his sturdy body “Damn, it only feels like yesterday when you were nothing but a skinny little brat. Now look at you, you’re even bigger than me now.” it was true, looking down at himself, [M/N] now towered over Schlatt and stood at least 6″10ft tall. His body was broad and stern that it would take another hybrid similar to him to knock him down, if not, there was no way the average person could take him down. 

“Hmm, is that why you appointed me as your bodyguard? Must I address you as sir now?” Schlatt shrugged his shoulders, pulling out a cigar from the pocket in his blazer.

“Nah, call me what you want.” [M/N] nods his head, pulling out a Zippo lighter to light his cigar “Actually, when we’re alone, call me Schlatt. When we’re around others, address me formally.” he nods his head, pocketing the lighter before putting his hands behind his back.

“As you wish, Mister President.” Schlatt smirked at that, taking a puff from the cigar but blew the smoke away from [M/N], knowing how sensitive his nose was when it comes to certain smells.

“You know, that has a nice ring to it.”

“I’ll try not to wear it out, knowing how much it inflates your ego.” his smirk only widens, taking another puff from his cigar.

“Damn straight.” he rolls his eyes, Schlatt raises a brow when he notices [M/N]’s ears stand up as he turns his head towards the door to the dressing room, his tail and other tuffs of fur visible standing on end “What’s the matter, kid?”

“Someone is approaching the room.” they hear a knock at the door and [M/N] was already on the door before the person could knock a second time, he throws the door open, and there stood Quackity, hand raised to knock once more but froze at the sight of the giant wolf hybrid looming over him.

“U-Uh...” before [M/N] could do anything, Schlatt hovered his hand over his chest to stop him.

“Stop, it’s just Quackity. He’s with us, remember?” Quackity gave a nervous smile as he looked up at [M/N], who snarled when he continued to stare, the duck hybrid flinched at it while Schlatt merely laughed “Don’t mind him, he gets like that with people he doesn’t know are around me. An overprotective dog.” [M/N] huffs as he stands up straight behind Schlatt but refused to drop his stance, Quackity just nodded his head and nervously removed his gaze from the taller man to Schlatt.

“Ri-- Right.” he clears his throat then gestures behind him “They’re ready now.” Schlatt hums at that, [M/N] notice him raise his hand so he grabbed an ashtray and let him put out his cigar in it before tossing it away, Schlatt grins as he straightens his blazer.

“Well then, let’s get this show on the road.” he laces his fingers together before cracking his knuckles, Quackity steps to the side to allow Schlatt to walk off. He lets out a short laugh and goes to follow him but looked back to see [M/N] staring at him, he flinched at the intense glare coming from the taller man, he laughed nervously again when he heard a low growl come from him “[M/N], come!” his head perked up at the order, he glares at Quackity one last time before rushing off to where Schlatt was patiently waiting for him.

“J-Jeez...” he shuddered out, placing a hand to his chest and feeling the rapid beating of his heart “I feel like he was going to eat me.” Schlatt looked up at [M/N] when he noticed him unconsciously lick his lips.

“Don’t even think about eating him.” he snorts when he noticed him jolt up.

“I wasn’t thinking that.”

“Uh huh.” he pursed his lips as he looked away, he chuckles at the reaction before pulling at the collar of the blaze, he looks up at [M/N] and spread his arms so the taller man could get a good look at him “So, how do I look?” the wolf hybrid stared at him before chuckling, shaking his head and buttoning his blazer up again and straightening his tie.

“Like you mean business, sir.” Schlatt nods at the answer, raising his arm to tug on the end of the sleeves of his dress shirt then throwing his arms out to loosen the sleeves a bit.

“Good.” they stood by the sides of the stage, still backstage away from the prying eyes of the citizens of L’Manburg, and awaited their cue to go on stage to greet the crowd. [M/N] continued to stand behind Schlatt but was on guard when he sensed two individuals approaching them, he glanced to his side and noticed that it was simply Quackity and that guy with those white frame sunglasses with black tinted lenses, he didn’t even bother to remember his name, maybe he’ll ask Schlatt later. On the other side of the stage stood the representatives for POG2020, that being Wilbur Soot and his little brother TommyInnit, he started growling once more but stopped when Schlatt gently hit him in his chest “Quiet.” he bowed his head.

“Sorry.” he chuckles softly, shaking his head.

“There’s no worry, besides, the win is ours.” [M/N] nods his head at that.

“Right, they don’t even know they’ve been had.” Schlatt smirks, they’re all soon called onto the stage, Wilbur being the one to stand at the podium to read out the votes of the elections while Schlatt’s party stood to Wilbur’s right while Niki’s party and Tommy stood to his left.

“I am now going to read out the number of votes each party has gained.” he clears his throat as he reads through the sheet of paper in his hands “With 9% of the vote, being, 20,000 people or so. In fourth place, is Coconut2020.” there was some applause coming from the crowd as Niki and Fundy cheered.

“20,000 people!”

“Thank you, Eret for your support!” [M/N] just rolled his eyes, they came forth and they lost by a landslide, so why the hell were they celebrating?

“The pity votes.” now he couldn’t help but snort, stifling his laughter at Quackity’s unexpected comment, the duck hybrid grinned when he made the usually neutral wolf hybrid laugh.

“Are you laughing, [M/N]?” Schlatt asked, rather amused that he was, he just pressed the back of his hand to his lips while shaking his head as he tried not to laugh.

“No, I just wasn’t expecting that, sir. I was caught off guard, but it was pretty funny.” the ram hybrid just chuckled at the reaction, shrugging his shoulders before turning his attention back at Wilbur while crossing his arms.

“Now, with 16% of the votes, coming in third place, is Schlatt2020.” they all whispered various comments about Schlatt, but he and his party didn’t react like the people who placed third, they were rather neutral and had an indifferent reaction because they knew the outcome of that election “That means there are two parties left. Big Q, look at me.” Quackity looked out from behind [M/N] and saw Wilbur staring at him, Schlatt gestures with his head towards Wilbur and so Quackity approaches him and now the two stood in front of each other “This leaves the two major front runners as the final option here.”

“Right.” they both nod their heads before Wilbur turns to look at the crowd once more.

“In second place, with 30% of the votes, is... lead by the party leader Quackity.” Tommy and the rest who were supporting him and his brother were quick to celebrate when Wilbur announced that Quackity was second place in favor of POG2020, however, Schlatt and [M/N] smirked when they saw that look of confusion and disbelief on Wilbur’s face when he was having to reread the votes over and over “Wait, Tommy, listen, Tommy!”

“What? We won didn’t we?” Wilbur took a sharp inhale.

“Well, uh... two nights ago, on the night of the election, after the announcement of Schlatt2020 and Coconut2020... Quackity made a deal with the leader of Schlatt2020 and, uh, Mister Jschlatt stood beside me. Quackity said that no matter what happens, Quackity would pool SWAG2020 votes onto Schlatt2020 votes.” the crowd gasped at the announcement as Quackity took his place behind Schlatt once more, the four of them mockingly smirking at the rest of them as Wilbur read out the rest of the votes “POG2020 got 45% of the votes, meaning that the coalition government of Schlatt2020 and SWAG2020 got 46% of the votes. Meaning that tonight, ladies and gentlemen, on Tuesday the 22nd of September 2020, Schlatt2020 has been inaugurated.” everyone gasped in shock at the way things had turned out while Schlatt and Quackity were laughing at the results, [M/N] was smiling softly and clapping his hands, as for George, he was doing the same thing but rather tiredly.

“See, the win was ours from the beginning.” [M/N] nodded his head.

“Mm hmm, had no doubts sir, that’s why I was calling you Mister President even before the results were announced.” Schlatt grinned when he saw Wilbur swallow thickly, practically nervous under the eyes of the ram hybrid but gave him a forced smile.

“Well, u-uh, Mister JSchlatt, it was a real honor competing against you. But I-- uh, please step up to the podium and deliver your inauguration speech.” they were all promptly kicked off the stage as Schlatt took his place in front of the podium, [M/N] was behind him and glaring down at the crowd below him while Quackity stood to his right and George to his left.

“Well,” Schlatt started, tapping at the mic before leaning against the podium with a giant smirk on his face "that was pretty easy. And you know what I said the day that I got unbanned from the Dream SMP and the day I said I was running? An election that I won, by the way. I said, "Things are going to change." I looked every citizen of L'Manberg in the eyes and I said, "You listen to me: This place will be a lot different tomorrow." Let's start making it happen.” Schlatt chuckled at the looks he was getting from the crowd, he turned back to [M/N] for a brief second to nod at him before finishing off the rest of his speech, the taller man understood and got himself ready “My first decree as the president of L'Manberg - the EMPEROR of this great country - is to REVOKE the citizenship of Wilbur Soot and TommyInnit!” the crowd immediately went into hysterics at the announcement.

“What?!”

“NO!!”

“No way!”

“Is he serious?!” Schlatt looks back at [M/N] and saw he pulled at his Firework Launcher, George and Quackity notice this and pull out their bows, Schlatt just laughs maniacally before throwing his arm out.

“Get them out of here! Get them out of here! You're no longer welcome!” [M/N], who’s face was indifferent, pushed Schlatt behind him and knelt down while he aimed the rocket in the direction of where Wilbur and Tommy were standing, finger on the trigger and eyes locked on.

“Yes, sir.” pulling the trigger, the crowd immediately dispersed to avoid the rocket while Wilbur and Tommy turned tails and ran, however, [M/N] didn’t stop and continued to fire rockets at them while George and Quackity shot arrows at them, one actually managing to hit the two and lodge into the back of Wilbur’s shoulder as they fled. George and Quackity lowered their bows while [M/N] raised his crossbow, his keen eyes continuing to scan the area until a hand was gently placed on his shoulder.

“That’s enough, you did your job splendidly, [M/N].” his ears went flat against his head at the praise before standing to his feet, returning to his place behind Schlatt “Oh, that was so easy! Until further notice, Wilbur Soot and TommyInnit are merely a memory of L'Manberg. A relic of the past. A reminder of the darkest era this country has ever seen. And I guarantee you all, dear citizens... Tonight, that changes. We are entering into a new period of L'Manberg, a period of prosperity! Of strength! Of unity!” [M/N] smiled and clapped his hands gently once more, he then went on a rant and saw that he was going to lower the taxes and even fill the fountains up with Hawaiian Punch.

“Seriously?” he whispered to the ram, he just shrugged.

“Meh, it was in the spur of the moment, but I’m gonna do it anyway.” the wolf shrugged his shoulders and leaned back “Anyways, Tubbo? Where’s Tubbo?” the boy raised his hand from within the crowd.

“I’m right here.”

“Tubbo, get up here! Get up here on my podium.” now [M/N] was confused, why on earth was Schlatt calling up Tommy’s friend? “Don’t you want the job?” Quackity snickers as he leaned towards Schlatt.

“I don’t think he wants the job.” Tubbo’s eyes widened as he stood up from where he was sitting with a panicked expression.

“N-No, no! I’m on my way.” he sputtered out repeatedly while trying to find a way up to where they were standing, when he managed to climb up to the stage, after repeatedly dying to fall damage, he stood nervously beside Schlatt while trying to avoid looking at [M/N], who was snarling while glaring at him.

“Stop it.” he scolded, the man huffed as he looked away “Tubbo, you, as my secretary of state, as my right hand man of L’Manburg!” Schlatt ignored the whine coming from [M/N] when he said that, he sighed and gave the man a look before smiling down at the younger boy “I need you to do something for me, Tubbo.”

“What Mister President?”

“I need you, to find Tommy and I need you, to show him the door. Rumor has it, he’s somewhere around. Perhaps, uh, perhaps on top of a building.” at the mention of that, [M/N] turned his head to the right and saw on top of the tower was a frightened Wilbur and standing beside, though he couldn’t see because of the potion, was undoubtedly Tommy, probably with an expression just as frightened as his “Tubbo, bring them here at once.” [M/N] looked away from the tower as he looked down at Tubbo, he looked hesitant to do Schlatt’s bidding, I mean, of course, he would, he was going against his best friend and the man he previously fought a war with.

“I-I...” Tubbo looked up and paled when [M/N] glared at him, he swallowed thickly before nodding his head “I’ll do my best, Mister President.” [M/N] relaxed at that and turned away, Schlatt smiled as he pats Tubbo on the shoulder.

“Good, now, you best be on your way. Go get 'em.” he nodded his trembling head before rushing off, Schlatt grinned as he straightened his tie and waved at the people, [M/N] pursed his lips as he leaned down to whisper in his ear.

“Why didn’t you send me, sir? You know I’m better at tracking than anyone else, it was illogical to send him.” Schlatt only chuckled, turning around and gently patting [M/N] on the cheek.

“Yeah, I know that, but you’re my bodyguard. Your job is to stay by my side and protect me from potential dangers, and I can’t exactly have my bodyguard leave my side just to gather a bunch of rats.” he gave him a smile “I’m counting on you to protect me from here on out, that’s your first order from me as the President. Don’t disappoint me.” at that, [M/N] had stopped listening to Schlatt ramble on about other things he had planned for L’Manburg as his heart thumped in his chest once more. He hadn’t felt like this ever since Schlatt had first picked him up when he was just a little cub, this feeling of loyalty swelling in his chest for this man, he smile with a newfound resolve as he stood behind Schlatt with a prideful gaze.

He was going to carry out that order until his last breath.

[a few days later]

“Ma-- Manberg, sir? You’re going to change L’Manberg to Manberg?” [M/N] asked, reading through the papers Schlatt had handed to him in confusion, he lowered the papers as he stared at the man “Why? L’Manberg sounds fine as is.” Schlatt merely laughs, leaning back in his seat as he holds a glass of whiskey, spinning the glass around with his wrist and watching the liquid sway before looking at his bodyguard.

“Well, this country no longer takes any L’s.” Schlatt grinned when he got the man to snicker at that, he downs the whiskey as he lets [M/N] read through the other decrees he thought of. The first one was obvious, it was revoking Wilbur and Tommy’s citizenship to L’Man-- oh, no, Manberg. The second was to remove the walls surrounding the country that were built since the beginning, the third was renaming L’Manberg to Manberg because he claimed the country isn’t taking L’s anymore. [M/N] scoffed with a laugh, shaking his head when he saw that Schlatt wanted to replace many of the longstanding structures of the city with tall apartment buildings and a monument of himself.

“Really? A monument of yourself? Quite egotistical, don’t you think?” Schlatt laughed at that, throwing his head back as he placed his empty glass on his desk.

“What? Don’t you think it’ll give this country a nice touch to it?”

“Whatever makes you happy, sir.” he shuffles through the rest of the papers but he stopped when his eyes landed on the last one, Schlatt watched as he furrowed his brows as he read through it “You want to raise the taxes, but only for the female residents of Manberg? Sir, you do realize that Niki Nihachu is the only woman residing in Manberg, right?” he chuckles.

“Of course I know. Because I kicked her friends out, she’s been acting out and even stood up to me at one point.” he slams his hand on his desk and glared at [M/N], though the latter was not affected by the gaze because he knew that it wasn’t directed at him “I’m just putting her in her place so she learns not to go against my authority.” he hums, eyeing the page carefully before looking at Schlatt once more.

“Are you sure? This isn’t going to look good for you, makes you seem prejudice against women.” Schlatt waves his hand to dismiss the thought.

“You’re overthinking it, kid. You’re simply not looking at the bigger picture!” [M/N] raised a brow.

“And that would be?” Schlatt looked at him before looking away.

“I’m still imagining the picture kid, don’t put me on the spot like that.” he snorted at the response he got, he lets out a breath as he rearranged the papers once more before bowing his head.

“Well, I’ll leave you to your duties and hand these to Vice President Quackity.” the older man nods his head, swiveling in his chair before raising his hand and motioning for [M/N] to come. The man looked at him in confusion before approaching him from behind his desk, he leaned forward before jolting up, his ears and tail shooting upwards when Schlatt placed his hand on top of his head and gently pat his head.

“I really do appreciate you sticking by my side throughout the years, kid, never forget that.” [M/N] raised his head, Schlatt laughed when he noticed that his pupils had blown out as his tail was wagging behind him. He remembered he would always do that to him when he was a kid and it really pleased the kid, [M/N] stood up straight with a flushed face as he pressed his hand to where Schlatt’s hand previously was.

“I-I...” he couldn’t even say anything, he was just too flustered, Schlatt had to hold back his laughter when [M/N] turned tail and ran, nearly tripping over but instead slammed into the door before throwing it up and slamming it shut behind him. [M/N] had his back pressed to the door as he tried to calm himself down, he just couldn’t stop smiling, he always did enjoy getting praised by Schlatt, maybe that was the wolf side of him that made him react like this. He took a deep breath, shaking his head and running a hand through his hair to straighten it out, when he composed himself, he slapped on his straight face before walking down the hall to where Quackity’s office was.

“Hey, [M/N]!” his ears perked up at the call and he looked over to see Fundy waving his hand, he narrowed his eyes on him to remember what his place was in the White House. Um, if he remembered hard enough, Schlatt said that he was the...  Archbishop/Right hand man? He really couldn’t be bothered remembering all these names that meant nothing to him, though, he did stop so Fundy could approach him, with caution, of course. Fundy knew how vicious [M/N] was with people who weren’t Schlatt, he really was just Schlatt’s hound dog that wouldn’t hesitate to carry out any of his orders, no matter how malicious they were.

“What do you need, sir?” he answered, Fundy laughed as he shook his head and pat him on the arm.

“Come on now, since we’re working together, don’t you think you should drop the formalities? We’re friends, aren’t we?” Fundy flinched when he noticed [M/N] was glaring at the hand that was touching him, he laughed nervously as he removed his hand.

“Friends?” he questioned, holding the papers in one hand, he raised the other to wipe his arm where Fundy had touched him “I don’t remember us becoming such a feat. We’re nothing more than associates, nothing more, nothing less.” he awkwardly laughed at that when the taller man kept a stern look on his face as he stared him down.

“Ah haha, r-right.” [M/N] sighed, rolling his eyes.

“Anyways, do you know where the Vice President is? Mister JSchlatt asked me to deliver these papers to him so he could take a look at them.” Fundy’s ears perked up at that.

“Quackity?” he then pointed off in a direction “He’s currently in his office with George.” he nods his head at the information.

“Thank you, and with that, I’ll be on my way.” he was polite enough to bid the fox hybrid goodbye before leaving him, it didn’t take long for the man to reach Quackity’s door and so he politely knocked on the door and waited to be let in.

“Oh, come in!” he heard the voice from within the office, he pushed open the door and there he saw Quackity sitting on his desk while talking to George “Oh, it’s you, [M/N]. What brings you here?” he raises the papers in his hand as he approaches the two.

“The President asked me to hand these to you. He wants you to read through them before handing them back to him, saying that he also wants your opinion on what he wants to do to this country.” Quackity nods as he takes the papers from [M/N]’s hands, giving them a brief skim through before setting them down on the desk beside him.

“Alright.”

“He would appreciate an immediate response because he would like those decrees to happen immediately. I don’t wish to rush you, but the President gets quite fussy when people make him wait.” Quackity nods his head once more at that.

“Got it, I’ll try and have it done before later tonight.” [M/N] bows his head at that.

“Much appreciated, Mister Vice President.” he then bows his head to George “Ambassador. Have a good day gentlemen.” with that he took his leave and returned to his post in front of Schlatt’s office door, no one was to come in without him mentally noting down who it was that entered and who left. Anyone that passed by was impressed that he never moved from his spot, didn’t fidget or twitch, he only made a reaction when someone was approaching before turning them away when Schlatt didn’t want to see them.

“U-Um, excuse me?” he raised his brow as he looked down, there, he saw a nervous looking Tubbo waving his hand to try and get his attention “Schlatt told me to meet him in his office, telling me he had a job for me.” [M/N] furrowed his brows before looking up in thought, he did remember him mentioning that Tubbo was going to meet him later in the day, so he nodded his head.

“Right.” he opened to door and looked over at where Schlatt was “Sir, Tubbo is here as you wished.” Schlatt raised his head at the announcement, a grin on his face as he stood up from his desk.

“Wonderful, wonderful! Let him in, why don’t you?” [M/N] nodded his head before stepping to the side and gesturing with his arms for Tubbo to enter the room, when he walked in he was planning on closing the door behind and wait outside the room but stopped when he noticed Schlatt give him a look that told him to stay. He glanced back at Tubbo before nodding his head and stepping into the room, closing the door behind him and standing in front of the door, and let the two talk. He didn’t bother listening to the conversation, it really wasn’t anything that concerned him, it was the usual political bullshit that Schlatt pulled out of his ass while using different tactics to intimidate and frighten the child into submission, to which it worked because Tubbo could barely look him in the eye. Only when he heard Schlatt mention Tubbo’s first job did he ask him to do, was when [M/N] started to listen “I thought I told you to find Tommy and bring him here, Tubbo.” the boy swallowed thickly.

“I-I’m trying, really, Schlatt.” he licks his lips “They’re not here in L’Manberg--”

“It’s Manberg, Tubbo.” he raised his head in shock at what Schlatt had said “Because you didn’t know that I was changing it, I’ll let it slide just this one time. I hope there won’t be any more slip-ups.” he nods his head.

“R-Right.” he takes a breath to calm himself “Anyways, they’re not here in Manberg, sir. I don’t know where else they could have gone.” Schlatt hummed at that, circling him while clicking his tongue.

“That is not the answer I wanted, Tubbo. You know him better than anyone, so I expected you to find them first.” he then gestures to [M/N], Tubbo looked over at the wolf hybrid and saw he had his neutral expression on his face “[M/N] is my most trusted companion, he’s been with me for a long time so I know him like the back of my hand, as he is with me.” Tubbo nods his head.

“Yeah...?” Tubbo stands in his spot as he watched Schlatt approach the man, dragging his hand across his shoulders before wrapping an arm around his torso and leaning his weight into his body.

“So I know how great of a tracker he is, as well as a hunter.” Tubbo flinched, know understanding where he was going “He is a wolf hybrid, a grey wolf at that, making him an apex predator, meaning that he is at the very top of the food chain. When he’s got a whiff of your scent, it’s all over, there isn’t a place on this earth that you can hide and he won’t be able to find you.” he nods slowly.

“T-That sounds like a really good assist, sir.” he nods.

“It is.” he then leaves [M/N]’s side as twirls around the room, throwing his arms open before pointing at Tubbo “Now you must be thinking, why I didn’t send [M/N] off to find your pesky little friend and that former President? Well, it’s simple. I don’t want him to leave my side, he’s the one person I trust with my life and I don’t want him to go off just to do a trivial job. That’s why I left it to you, because you know your friend Tommy better than anyone else, so you must know what he’s planning.”

“I... I--”

“Tubbo, listen.” Schlatt was by Tubbo’s side, wrapping an arm around him and leaning down close to his face “I’m going to tell you this one last time so you can get the job done right, okay? Go and find Tommy and kill him, or else I’ll send [M/N] to get the job done right, and I know neither of us wants that. He can be quite merciless when it comes down to doing hunting jobs to the point that even I can’t tell him to stop. He does a messy job, but at least he can get it done.” Tubbo was really being put on the spot at that point, he hasn’t seen what [M/N] is capable of, and he really doesn’t want to find out either.

“I...” he lowers his head “I understand, Mister President.” Schlatt smiled at the response, raising his hands to let him go.

“Wonderful! I’m so glad to hear that.” he pats Tubbo’s back and raises his arm to direct him to the door “Now that you understand what happens if you don’t do your job properly, off you go. Report anything you find to [M/N], okay?” he nods.

“Got it.” with that he leaves the room, [M/N] goes to follow him out but was stopped when Schlatt grabbed his arm.

“Before you go,” he raised a brow when he noticed his expression darkened “keep an eye on him, won’t you?” [M/N] only smirked, showing off his canines.

“I was going to do that whether you ordered me or not.” he cracked his knuckles as the other man laughed.

“Right, that is so you.” he takes a breath as he leans against his desk “Keep your friends close and your enemies closer, eh?” [M/N] salutes him.

“Yes sir.”

[weeks later]

“You’re... married?” [M/N] questioned as he looked at Schlatt and Quackity in confusion, the latter looked proud of the accomplishment while the former looked just as confused as he did “We-- Well... congrats?” he lets out a confused whine as he tilted his head to the side, he scratches the back of his neck as he tried to continue his work but the fact that Schlatt got married to this... guy, really rattled him.

“Don’t think about it, even I don’t understand why he wanted to marry me.” Schlatt said as he waved Quackity goodbye, to which the duck hybrid waved his hand enthusiastically before running down the hallway, [M/N] pursed his lips as he looked down at the golden ring on his finger before glancing away “Anyways, how’s keeping an eye on Tubbo been lately?” he asked, the both of them entering his office to speak about the matter privately.

“As you’ve instructed, I continue to make quick observations on him whenever he comes and goes. When he’s around others he’s calm and relaxed, but that persona immediately drops when he’s around me, sir.”

“Maybe that’s because you scare the kid, pup.” he laughs when [M/N] flushes at the pet name, it had been a long time since he called him that, he cleared his throat “Sorry, continue, please.” 

“Thank you, anyways, as I was saying, he’s always on edge whenever he’s around you or me.” he raises a hand as he taps his cheek “He’s gone frequently during the day as well, sometimes I ask Fundy where Tubbo goes and he doesn’t know, not even Quackity. George is no help, he’s never around or he’s always asleep, so he’s completely in the dark. But the times he passes by me, I take a whiff of his scent and I smell rubble, gun powder, oddly potatoes, and something else that I just can’t place.”

“Do you think he’s purposely covering his scent to throw you off?” he purses his lips.

“Perhaps, but I’m close, I can feel it.” Schlatt nods his head.

“Alright, when you manage to find something, I give you permission to leave my side and follow after him.” [M/N]’s eyes opened at what he said.

“P-Pardon? You want me to... leave your side?” Schlatt rolled his eyes at the reaction he gave him, he knew he was going to react like this, knowing how protective this damned mutt can get when he isn’t by his side.

“You’re the only one I trust to accomplish this job, [M/N]. You’re efficient at what you do, so be quick. Get in, and get out before they notice and return to me with the results I want, okay? You’re the only one that won’t be able to mess this up, yeah?” [M/N] was hesitant, of course, he was, he fiddled with the hem of his dress shirt as he kept his head low. Schlatt let out a sigh as he stared at the man before him, he would always do that whenever he was nervous, he still hasn’t changed from when he was just a kid “Come on now, stop being so worried, I’ll be fine.”

“... really?” he nods his head.

“Of course, I’ll be waiting for you here, mmkay?” he takes his hands and gently pats his head, laughing when he saw his tail wagging behind him.

“O... Okay.” he soon pats his arm.

“That’s the spirit! Oh, would you look at that, I have a meeting to get to with someone important.” he rolls his neck as his hands slip away from [M/N], to which the man quickly straightened himself out before following Schlatt out. Many things had occurred since the day he had become President, he ordered Fundy to burn down the L’Manberg flag and to create a new Manberg flag made of obsidian and crying obsidian to make it harder to control, he banished Niki from Manberg after refusing to pay her taxes and had every other resident of Manberg to raid her bakery and steal everything she owned, so now she owned nothing. [M/N] felt a bead of sweat form on his cheek as he listed every bad/horrible deed Schlatt had done to the country, making him look even worse than he did in the beginning. He wasn’t going to admit it, though he totally would, he knew if Schlatt continued with the path he was going down... he wasn’t going to die an easy death “Ah, we’re here. They’re already inside, so I want you to stay out here and keep anyone looking for me out, okay?” [M/N] nodded his head.

“As you wish, sir.” he winks before throwing the doors open then letting them close behind him, with that, [M/N] turned around and kept his back to the door. With his hands behind his back, he kept his posture and expressionless face on as he watched people walk by, some greeted him and he greeted them back briefly. He wasn’t really paying attention to how much time had gone by but his ears did go up when he saw Tubbo approach him.

“Hey, [M/N], is Schlatt in there?” he nods his head.

“Yeah, he’s having a meeting with someone and told me to keep anyone looking for him out. Must be really important.” Tubbo nods his head.

“Oh, okay. Then I guess I’ll wait out here with you if that’s alright.” he shrugged his shoulder.

“Do what you want.” Tubbo nods again before proceeding to stand beside the taller man, he rolled his neck as he fixed his stance until his nose twitched. An unknown scent caught his attention and so he sniffed the air to catch a whiff of the scent once more before it disappeared, soon his head moved down to where Tubbo was standing and the younger boy was looking up at him in confusion.

“U-Um, [M/N], what are you--” 

*SNEEZE*

Tubbo was taken aback at the loud sneeze coming from the man, it was completely unexpected that he jumped in surprise before he approached [M/N], backing away when he sneezed again.

“No, go away!” he shouts “Why do you smell like pollen?! Why the hell are you even covered in that shit from head to toe?!” he shouts, sneezing again and covering his nose so he wouldn’t pick up the smell of pollen.

“You can smell the pollen off of me?” he questioned.

“Of course I can, I have a sensitive nose and I can pick up on various smells, dammit!” he shouts, sniffling and rubbing his nose when his nose started getting runny. Though that part was true, he caught wind of Tommy’s scent as well, though his meeting with the small child was brief, he has a memory bank of all the different types of smells he had smelt in the past. He just had to find a reason to cover up the fact that he was blatantly smelling Tubbo, thank god for his hay fever. Tubbo was still quite taken aback by [M/N]’s reaction but he was in a state of panic that he forgot how good his sense of smell was, how on earth could he forget, he just felt fortunate enough that he was playing in a field of flowers with bees that he was covered in pollen to fool him.

“O-Oh, um, sorry?” he apologized questionably, handing him a handkerchief to blow his nose.

“Just-- please go away, I beg.” 

“Ye-- right! I can just show this to Schlatt later!” he exclaims before running away, he blew his nose in the handkerchief, grimacing at the amount of snot on it before folding it up and pocketing it then running his finger under his nose to control him.

“Hey,” he shrieked at the voice from behind him, turning around, he saw Schlatt cracking open the doors by a bit to peek his head through “what was all that noise about?” he sniffed.

“Tubbo was here waiting for you, but he was covered in pollen when I tried sniffing him and I started sneezing.” Schlatt nodded his head.

“Ah, your hay fever.” he nods, he goes to enter the office once more but couldn’t when [M/N] places his foot in between the doors to stop him, he then leans down to whisper in his ear.

“But I did manage to smell Tommy off of him.” now this caused Schlatt’s blood to run cold for a bit before it started to boil, though, he managed to keep his composure as he smiled up at [M/N].

“You know what to do.” he bows his head.

“Of course.” he waited until his meeting was over to take Schlatt back to his office, he looked into the room Schlatt was in and briefly saw the color green but ignored it to take Schlatt back. When he safely returned to his office, he nodded his head to him before closing the door behind the man then turning on his heel to find where that little bastard had slipped off to his. His gaze caught the sight of Quackity, who was flaunting his wedding wing to Fundy, who just looked downright confused “Excuse me, Quackity, Fundy!” he called out, the two raised their heads and Quackity greeted him enthusiastically while Fundy was still nervous under his eyes.

“Hey, [M/N]!” he cheered.

“Y-Yeah, hey.” Fundy added, [M/N] only sighed.

“Yes, hello. I was just wondering if you two knew where Tubbo was, he was waiting for the President beside me when he was having a meeting with someone else before he ran off when he realized he was the cause of my little... accident.” he sniffled once more “Anyways, the President has returned to his office and I was wondering if you knew where he was so I can tell him that he’s free now.” Fundy let out a hum as he looked up in thought.

“Well, I haven’t seen him in the past hour, he said that he was going out on a stroll.” Quackity nodded.

“I saw him go east from where the White House is, saying he wanted to collect some bees before talking to Schlatt. If you hurry, you’ll probably catch up to him.” he notes, [M/N] nodded his head to what they said.

“Thanks.” they bid him adieu as he walked off, when he was outside the White House, he stretched his arms and legs, crouching down a couple times before turning his body east from where the White House was before kneeling down and pressing the tips of his fingers onto the ground. He bends his knees as the soles of his feet dig into the ground, with that, he shot forward and sprinted off to find Tubbo. It was a little difficult because he could smell the pollen mixed in with his scent but as Schlatt had said, once he’s got a whiff of your scent, there’s nowhere you could hide on this earth that he wouldn’t be able to find you. He launched himself into the air before catching himself in the trees of a forest somewhere outside of the borders of the Dream SMP, he landed on the ground before sprinting forward, however, he didn’t know how long he was going to have to search to find anything suspicious but then he came to the opening by a hill.

He raised a brow at the sight of a small dirt shack embedded within a hill, he tilts his head to the side before approaching it. He opens the door and looks around in confusion before inhaling the lingering scents within the shack, now he smelt an assortment of different scents. He was onto them, the shack had a bed, a couple chests with furnaces, and other things but what he saw that really mattered was an opening that was leading underground. He rolled his neck, planning to go down it but stopped when he saw a dog.

“...”

“...”

“Hey.” he greeted, raising a hand, he smiled when it gave him a cheerful yip in return, he ruffled its head before heading down. He soon found himself in a ravine, looking around, it was mostly a system of caves, made of stone and wooden stairways with torches along the walls. He pursed his lips when he saw a huge potato field... now that explained the smell of potatoes, he scoffed, such a downgrade, he thought to himself before crouching down when he heard voices. He drank an Invisibility Potion before peeking his head down and there he saw Tubbo talking to Wilbur, Tommy, and some piglin hy-- oh, shit. He recognized that piglin hybrid, the Blood God Technoblade, an anarchistic pig, now he was going to be a problem.

“I’m sorry Wilbur, I panicked and came here as fast as I could.” Wilbur shook his head as he held Tubbo’s shoulders.

“That doesn’t matter, just tell us what happened.” he let out a sigh.

“I think I nearly got caught.” Tommy was up on his feet immediately, he shoved Wilbur away as he checked Tubbo all over.

“What? Did they hurt you? Are you okay?” he shook his head to wave Tommy off.

“I’m fine, it’s just that Schlatt’s bodyguard.” now this caught their attention, Tubbo told them how troublesome his bodyguard is, Tubbo could never get close to Schlatt without [M/N] being in the same room sneering down at anyone that thought they could touch him. Not only that but because he was a wolf and that if he even caught a whiff of their scent he would be on them immediately and Tubbo’s job as a spy for Pogtopia would be exposed.

“What did he do?” 

“I had work to show to Schlatt but couldn’t because he was in a meeting, course [M/N] was also waiting outside the door as he usually did and this time I decided to wait beside him. But he suddenly started sniffing me, I panicked there and then but before I could do anything he started sneezing.” Tommy snickered at that.

“Sneezing? Why?” Technoblade questioned.

“I was covered in pollen and he said he had hay fever.” Tommy was laughing now, this caused [M/N] to purse his lips at that the boy who was laughing at him “I think the fact that he has hay fever saved my butt, who knows what would’ve happened if I didn’t play with the bees.” Technoblade now rolled his eyes.

“Yeah, sure. I thought we warned you to roll in the dirt or have a shower after you visit us, that guy is our problem. The moment you get caught, we’re all in trouble.” he scolds before freezing, pulling out an axe from his inventory and throwing it over his shoulder.

“What? What’s the matter, Techno?” Wilbur asked, watching the anarchist on alert as he looked around.

“I smell a dog.” [M/N] huffs while the others freeze.

‘Dog? Now that’s rude.’ he shakes his head, he got what he needed so he no longer needed to stay, he goes to stand to his feet but winced when he noticed that when he shuffled his feet a couple rocks fell, he then fell to the ground to avoid the axe that was thrown at him ‘Jesus!’

"You led him to us!” he shouts, he goes to pull out another weapon but paused when he heard a bark, they all look up and see that it was simply the same dog that [M/N] passed on his way into Pogtopia.

“Heh, you’re overreacting, it’s just L’Mandog.” [M/N] was silently crying when this damned dog came out of nowhere and saved his skin, [M/N] knew he was strong, strong enough to handle the three and Technoblade if he was alone, but there was no way he could take on those three and Technoblade at the same time, that was too much. He silently thanked the dog before rolling away and rushing out of that ravine, Technoblade looked back over at the spot he threw his axe before looking at Tubbo.

“You should stay away from Pogtopia for a couple days, Tubbo. We’ll wait till this all blows over and if he acts out of place, then we’ll know.” Tubbo slowly nodded his head.

“Yeah... yeah, okay. I don’t want you guys getting hurt just because of my slip up.” Tommy grinned, giving his friend and thumbs up.

“Don’t worry, Tubbo, everything will be fine.”

[the next day]

“A festival?” Quackity questioned, putting down the sheet of paper Schlatt had handed to him and the other members of his cabinet. They were all in the meeting discussing Schlatt’s upcoming event for Manberg which was going to be a festival, but they were all confused as to why he was pulling such a stunt, they couldn’t find a reason as to why he was throwing a festival. [M/N] was also in the room so they look over at him to see his reaction, Schlatt tells the man everything, so he must know what’s going on... instead, they saw him scrunch his face up in confusion as he continued to stand behind him, whispering festival under his breath “W-Wha... what for, sir?” he laughed, throwing his arms back.

“Can’t we throw a festival to celebrate? It’ll be in the name of democracy.” [M/N] pulled a face as he leaned down to whisper in his ear.

“But you are against democracy, sir.” he shrugged his shoulders, smacking the back of his hand against his chest.

“Oh, lighten up, will you?” [M/N] sighed before standing up straight, wiping his chest where Schlatt had smacked him before rolling his shoulders and looking at the other three who were attending the meeting, maybe he should kick George just to make him come to at least one meeting “Anyways, I am placing Tubbo in charge of the planning.” said boy jolted in his seat before looking over at Schlatt in shock.

“M-Me?! Why?” he grinned at the young boy.

“Other than Fundy and Quackity, you’re the person I trust the most with such an important event, plus I believe you’ll be pretty decent in coming up with plans for the festival.” they hear a whine and look over at [M/N], jumping in surprise when they saw his ears dropping down, his bottom lip trembling. He then leans down once more, grabbing Schlatt by the shoulder while pointing at himself.

“W-What about me? Don’t you trust me enough, sir?” he rolls his eyes, smacking [M/N]’s hand off his shoulder as he pulled a cigar out of his pocket and puts it to his lips, letting Quackity light it.

“You can’t plan for shit, I know that from experience.” they sweat drop when they saw him turn around and start sulking, Schlatt took a puff from his cigar before waving his hand “I’m trusting you, Tubbo, to set the whole event up and I am also giving you the role as a key speaker.” Tubbo swallowed thickly at that before nodding his head.

“Okay, I won’t let you down, Mister President!” he felt nervous when Schlatt smiled at him.

“I know you won’t.” Tubbo shuddered, not really knowing how to take that last comment, soon, Schlatt stood to his feet as he straightened his blazer before snapping his fingers, causing [M/N] to snap out of his sulking and have him straighten his posture “That’s all we have to discuss, [M/N], come.”

“Coming.” with that the two of them left, and when they were alone, [M/N] immediately dropped the confused face “Do you think they fell for it?” he questioned, Schlatt laughed as he took another puff his from cigar before letting it hang from his lips so he could look up at [M/N].

“Without a doubt, pup.” he throws his arms up and lets them rest behind his head, lacing his fingers together as he walked down the hallways of the White House “I never knew you had a thing for acting, fooled them pretty good.” Schlatt laughed when he saw [MN] raise his head, his nose comically becoming pointed and longer.

“Perks of knowing how to lie on the spot, sir.” he rolls his shoulders “All I really need is to not act up in front of Tubbo, once he notices something wrong with me, he’ll tell Wilbur and his lot that we’re on to them.” Schlatt nods his head and gently knocks on his chest.

“Then act like you usually do, a lost puppy following his owner.” [M/N] briefly stopped in his tracks at what Schlatt called him, practically calling him out, his tail gets tucked between his legs before he chased after him when he noticed the distance growing between the two when Schlatt continued to walk.

“H-Hey! I’m not lost.” 

“So you admit you’re a puppy?” his cheeks flush pink from embarrassment.

“Please stop teasing me, sir.” Schlatt only chuckles.

Surprisingly, the preparations for the festival went rather smoothly. Tubbo kept a watchful eye on [M/N] just in case there really was something underhanded going on with the festival but the latter made no moves that were deemed suspicious. The only times the wolf interfered with the planning was when Schlatt ordered him to help with heavy lifting or to input his own opinions and thoughts to the plan, to which he was more than reluctant to do such a thing. Sometimes [M/N] would make sure there was some decent distance between the two of them in case Tubbo was playing in a field of flowers or with bees again just so his hay fever doesn’t act up while he’s working, it would be such a hassle.

“Um, what do you think of this, [M/N]?” Tubbo asked, showing the man a design for one of the decorations. He stood nervously in front of the taller man, trembling slightly when he stared intensely at the design for what seemed like a hot minute before leaning away and giving him a thumbs up.

“It’s not bad, but remember to keep the flow consistent throughout the entire design, okay? You’re going with a simplistic theme, right? There’s no need to overdo the decorations, it looks fine as is. You’re doing a good job.” Tubbo was taken aback at the feedback he got from him, he wasn’t really expecting it but he did appreciate it.

“T-Thank you for the input, [M/N]! I’ll take that into consideration.” [M/N] merely nods his head, giving him another thumbs up before watching the younger boy rush off to get the things he had in mind ordered. He glanced down at his hand and watched it relax before it slowly closed into a tight fist, poor kid, he was a pretty decent kid and it almost made him feel bad when he knew about what was going to happen to him during the festival.

Almost.

[day of the manberg festival]

“Got to hand it to him, he did a wonderful job.” [M/N] murmured under his lips, clapping his hands as he saw the festival come to life. Many people had come to attend such a wonderful day, even the few who were previously banished from Manberg. [M/N] stood to the side as he scanned the area where the festival was taking place for anything suspicious but he also where he still had a clear view of where Schlatt was, he sniffed the air for the lingering scents of Wilbur and Tommy, scrunching his face up when he could just faintly sniff them out but he couldn’t spot them “They’re somewhere... I can feel it.”

“Who’s here?” he looked down to see that it was Quackity that asked him, [M/N] merely scoffed as he straightened his posture, crossing his arms as he continued to scan the crowd of happy people.

“Rats.” Quackity rolled his eyes as he elbowed [M/N]’s arm, which promptly earned him a snarl from the taller man, only for him to ignore it as he laughed and ate some of the food that was provided for the festival. Quackity had long gotten over his slight fear of [M/N], growing used to the glares, snarls, sneers, growls, and scowls that he could touch him and get away with it. Maybe it was the fact that he was married to Schlatt that [M/N] eased up on him... maybe-- hopefully “Anyways, how long till the President gives his speech? He told me he had it planned to start a few hours after the festival began.” he waved his hand nonchalantly.

“Hmm, maybe in half an hour.” he offered some of his food to [M/N], to which he raised his hand to block it from getting anywhere close to his face as he shook his head to deny he wanted any, Quackity shrugged as he nibbled on his food “Schlatt also told me to tell you that he wants you to enjoy the festival too.” [M/N]’s ears perked up at that as he looked down at Quackity.

“What?” he nods his head.

“Uh huh. He told me to tell you, saying that even though you know what’s going to happen today, he still wants you to enjoy the evening. Whatever that means.” he explained with another shrug of the shoulders, he purses his lips as he glanced over at Schlatt, it took a bit of time for the older man to notice his glancing but when he did, he smiled softly and gave him a thumbs up along with a nod.

“Really?” Quackity looked up at him and raised a brow when he saw a soft blush flush across his face “He remembered...” he whispered softly.

“He remembered what?” he glared down at the latter.

“You’re really nosey, you know that?” he laughs.

“It just shows that I care.” he rolled his eyes as he began to walk away.

“Yet I do not care for you.” with that he left Quackity alone to sulk at the harsh statement, he wandered around the festival trying to find something that would preoccupy himself before the main event started. He didn’t really participate in any of the attractions that the festival offered nor eat any of the food... well, maybe he did swipe a couple candy apples that were selling. A soft smile spread across his lips as he munched on the treats before looking up at the sky, he liked festivals because he remembered when Schlatt took him to one when he was just a kid.

‘I wonder if we weren’t trying to execute that kid, maybe he’d enjoy the festival with me like he did when I was a child. My fondest memory with him.’ he thought, hearing the sound of his laughter ringing in the back of his head as the memory played out in his head... oh, he could only wish to go back to the good old days where he hadn’t had to worry about getting stabbed in the back.

<JSchlatt> whispers to you: hey, kid, where are you?

He let out an oh when he saw the message pop up in the lower left side of his vision, he let out a hum as he expanded the message board and read through the message Schlatt had sent him.

You whisper to <JSchlatt>: just enjoying the festival like you told quackity to tell me, sir.

<JSchlatt> whispers to you: you having fun?

You whisper to <JSchlatt>: quite frankly, I am.

<JSchaltt> whispers to you: good, but right now, I need you to come back to my side. I’m about to start.

You whisper to <JSchlatt>: I’m on my way.

“Hmm.” [M/N] stood to his feet immediately, though he did look down at his candy apple before opening his mouth wide enough and chomping down on it, eating it completely before taking the stick out of his mouth and jogging away, throwing the stick behind him and it actually landing in a trash bin. He was in the middle of making his way back to the stage where it was going to happen when he accidentally walked into someone, he caught them by their arm before the both of them could stumble to the ground and helped straighten them up “Oh, I apologize for walking into you.” he says, when the person looks at him, his eyes widened briefly, but not enough for them to notice his shock.

‘Oh, fuck.’ in front of him was none other than the Blood God himself, Technoblade ‘The hell is this guy doing here? So does that mean Wilbur and Tommy are here after all?’ he brings his arm to his chest and bows his head.

“I apologize once more for bumping into you, but if you’ll excuse me, I must go.” and with that, he rushes off, Technoblade dusts the arm [M/N] had touched off as he watched the taller man flee, he raises a brow.

“That was not what I was expecting.” he muttered, he imagined [M/N] to be more intimidating from how Tubbo described him, but after seeing him up close, he looked a bit like a pushover “Hmph, for a guy that Tubbo warned me about, he’s quite polite.” [M/N] now stood beside Schlatt as Quackity started off his own speech, gathering the crowd so he could start things off, the man leaned down so that he was hovering by his ear so their conversation would be hushed.

“Technoblade is here.” this set off alarms in Schlatt’s head but he didn’t let it show, he just continued to smile at the crowd “So that can only mean that the other two are here as well to see what the hell is going on.” Schlatt briefly tore his eyes away from the crowd to look up at [M/N].

“Think you can find them?” he stands up straight as his eyes wandered the crowd.

“It’ll be a little harder because there’s so many people, food, and other stuff that’s messing with my nose, but I know they’re here...” he muttered quietly, Schlatt nods his head and pats him on the back.

“Just make sure they don’t get close, okay? Especially that Technoblade, I know that you’re strong, but I don’t want to take any chances of you getting hurt.” Schlatt furrowed his brows when he could feel [M/N]’s puppy dog eyes staring at him, so he smacked his arm “Drop the gaze, you’re supposed to be a wolf, not a puppy.” he smiles softly.

“You’re the one that calls me pup, sir.” he rolls his eyes.

“I’m gonna call you mutt if you don’t shut your mouth.” he lets out a whine before eventually falling silent, [M/N] stood silently beside Schlatt as he sat down in his chair and the both of them silently watched Tubbo give his own speech to the people (I was gonna write his part of the speech but I couldn’t be fucked and I didn’t have the patience to watch the video/stream just to find exactly what he said), however, [M/N] let his eyes wander a little bit during the speech and his ears perked up at the sight he was looking for.

‘There you are.’ he thought to himself, dropping his gaze just in case Wilbur and Tommy stopped looking at Tubbo just to keep an eye on him ‘I’ve got them now.’ he discretely tapped the side of Schlatt’s seat to gain his attention and when he moved his eyes to look he nodded his head, he could almost read Schlatt’s thoughts when he saw that dark smirk spread across his face before he soon started to chuckle.

“W-Wha... what’s wrong, Schlatt?” Tubbo asked as he looked back at the man, to which he shook his head.

“No, I was just thinking about it, Tubbo.” he then stands to his feet as he slowly approached him “Tubbo, would you like to have fun?” Tubbo glanced back at [M/N] and saw that the dark aura that usually surrounds him came back as he glared at him, he shrunk back as he looked back up at Schlatt.

“Y-Yeah, we like-- what’s up, Schlatt?” he shook his head.

“Nothing, nothing. But, is that it? Is that the end of your speech?” he slowly nods his head, Schlatt hums before he goes over to Quackity and hands him yellow sand and so the two of them make a box surrounding Tubbo, they then turn the sand into concrete so Tubbo had no way of getting out. The crowd grew anxious and confused as to what Schlatt and Quackity, to which he was also was confused, were doing “Okay, Tubbo, I’ll cut to the fucking chase.”

“S-Schlatt...?”

"Tubbo, Tubbo... I know what you've been up to.”

“What have I been up to?” 

“What have I been up to' he says! What have I been up to? You've been CONSPIRING! With the IDIOTS, with the-- with the TYRANTS! That we kicked out of this server, that we kicked out of this great country!" [M/N] didn’t need to peek into the box to know that the color drained out of his skin as a panicked expression grew on his face as Schlatt raised his voice “Tubbo, I don't know if you know this, but treason isn't exactly, uh... isn't exactly a respectable thing around here. I know what you've been doing, IT ALL ADDS UP, BUDDY! The fucking TUNNELS, your ABSENCE from GREAT events, I mean, you walked off in the middle of THIS one! You walked off in the middle of this one, Tubbo! Don't try and tell me you've done nothing wrong! Because everybody knows it! I see it with my own two fucking eyes, what you've been doing!" Schlatt takes a breath as he stops in front of the only opening to the box and he glared down at Tubbo “Do you know what happens to traitors, Tubbo...?” he swallowed thickly.

“N-No...” Schlatt chuckles darkly.

“Nothing good." he takes a step back and raises his hand “[M/N], you know what to do.” Tubbo pressed himself into the wall behind him, fear circulating in his eyes when [M/N] came into view with his Firework Launcher in hand.

“[M-M/N]...?” he couldn’t stop his body from trembling, he was just so goddamn terrified as the wolfman stared down at him with such a cold gaze “W-Why are you-- what’s going on?” tears started swelling in his eyes when he saw a malicious smirk spread across his face.

“Don’t you know?” he said, loading the crossbow with a firework and raising his arm to aim it at Tubbo, ignoring all the cries behind him, begging and pleading for him to stop “This whole festival was for you, Tubbo. Schlatt thought it would be funny to see you plan for your own execution.”

“Execution...?!” [M/N] winked.

“Mm hmm.” he steadies his arm, finger on the trigger “Now, you’re relived of your duty, sir.” he chuckles before pulling the trigger and letting the firework fly, colors flying everything as it exploded onto Tubbo. 

[Tubbo went off with a bang due to a firework shot by [U/N]]

Sure, it was a little messed up that the smell of burning flesh met his nostrils along with the sight of his skin burning to the fireworks, but it really meant nothing to him. He slowly lowered his arm as Schlatt placed his hand on [M/N]’s shoulder, patting it softly with a dark grin on his face, Quackity looked at the two in slight fear at what he just witnessed. He couldn’t believe that not too long ago, he remembered seeing [M/N] with such a puppy dog look on his face and even Schlatt looked happy and calm, to think that the true meaning of the festival was to actually kill Tubbo because he was a traitor and these two knew all along.

“You two are sick.” Schlatt dusted his shoulder off when a few sparks got on him while the smirk never left his face.

“Well, you’re married to me, so you better get used to it.” Quackity swallowed thickly before fleeing the stage, Schlatt merely shrugged his shoulders and goes to leave as well but was stopped when he heard a shout.

“You bastard!” before he could react, [M/N] pushed him behind him just as the former turned around and grabbed Tommy by the neck then slammed him into the ground. The boy threw an Ender Pearl towards them and tried to strike [M/N] down, only for him to sense him way before he could even deal any damage, he thrashed and kicked at the taller man to get him to let go but only let out a grunt when he felt [M/N] tighten his grip on his throat.

“There you are, you little rat.” he sneered, leaning forward and hovering away from his face “I knew you would appear, it was only a matter of time.” Tommy sneered at him.

“Oh, fuck off you twat! I’ll kill you for what you did to Tubbo!” [M/N] merely scoffed, leaning back but keeping his grip on Tommy.

“Oh, please. You can’t do shit. If you really cared about him, you would’ve been there to stop me, but you can only do something when the deed has been done. Both you and Wilbur are just pathetic, you two just can’t seem to do anything.” mocking him only added fuel to the flames, [M/N] put his Firework Launcher into his inventory then pulled out a sword “I’m not really a fan of using weapons, my expertise rely more on my fists, but I’ll make this a quick death.” Tommy felt a bead of sweat form on his cheek, nails digging into [M/N]’s wrist as he saw the blade of the sword glisten in the light.

“W-Wait...!” Schlatt chuckled, patting [M/N]’s shoulder.

“Proceed.” he nods.

“Yes sir.” there wasn’t even a hint of hesitation in his eyes as he raised his sword “Your third life is mine.” he swings it down and before it could even land on Tommy, an Enchanted Axe blocked the attack.

“Hmm, to think I mistaken you for a pup.” looking up, he was met with the condescending gaze of Technoblade using his axe to block [M/N]’s blade from meeting Tommy’s face “I think I have to stop you right there, mutt.” [M/N] bares his teeth as he tries putting more pressure into his sword, Tommy noticed both weapons were trembling by the amount of pressure the two hybrid men were putting into it.

“And the pig finally decides to step in, huh?” he lets out a grunt when Technoblade had enough and kicked [M/N] in the chest, kicking him off of Tommy and giving him enough time to pull the younger boy up onto his feet “That was quite rude, I was busy with that boy and I would have appreciated it if you didn’t interfere.” Technoblade chuckles, pushing Tommy behind him while also watching [M/N] stand to his feet, he threw his axe over his shoulder while [M/N] rolled his neck and shoulders.

“Well sorry to break it to you, but this guy is with me.” Tommy smiled up at Technoblade while [M/N] merely scoffed, cracking his knuckles as he got in front of Schlatt.

“Right, to overthrow the government, right?” Technoblade laughs, bouncing his axe on his shoulder.

“Yeah, are you going to stop me from completing such a feat?” 

“Honestly, I could care less about the government, I am only here because I am following the man who is the President. All I care about is staying by Schlatt’s side, and if you are here to threaten his life, I can’t help but see you as an enemy.” Technoblade lets out a breath, lowering his axe and holding it in both of his hands.

“With the way you think, I feel like the both of us could have been friends.” [M/N] rolled his eyes, lowering his body and letting his arms hang in front of him, eyes never leaving Technoblade.

“Who needs friends when you have that one person that makes you happy?” now this made Technoblade think of that one person that made him happy, he shook his head.

“Yeah, we really would have gotten along.” [M/N] flexes his fingers as neither side took their eyes off each other, it was a long stare off but as soon as Technoblade saw [M/N] presses his hands into the ground, the soles of his feet digging into the ground, he readied himself. He was startled at the speed [M/N] went when he shot towards him, he lets out a grunt as he swung his axe but [M/N] easily slid under the heavy swing and was now behind him. Tommy let out a cry when he was kicked off the stage though he was luckily caught by the audience below before he could die to fall damage, Technoblade immediately turned around and swung at him again but [M/N] tackled him off the stage and the both of them fell to the ground but he was lucky because he landed on top of Technoblade so he barely lost any hearts.

“Now that hurt...” he let out a grunt when Technoblade kicked him off but he managed to stick the landing, his claws digging into the ground beneath him to bring himself to a stop “Need a second to catch your breath, Blood God?” Technoblade licked his lips as he stood to his feet, wiping away some of the blood that ran down his lips from out of his snout.

“Please, I can do this all day.” a growl emitted out of [M/N]’s throat as his animalistic traits started to take form, from his forearms to his hand's fur overlapped his skin as his hands turned into razor-sharp claws while from his legs changed into hind legs “Now that’s not fair.”

“Please, I haven’t even shown you my true form yet.” 

“Psh, that sounds cringey.”

“You just made it cringey.” [M/N] closes his hand into a tight fist, his knuckles cracking under the pressure he closed them, before flexing his fingers “Are you ready to rumble?” Technoblade wipes his nose of any more blood, swiftly drinking a regen potion and pulling out his sword this time, getting ready to strike [M/N] down.

“Yeah, I’m ready.” [M/N] lets out a howl before charging forward, yet before he could even land a scratch on Technoblade, a message appeared in the bottom left corner of his vision that made him freeze up.

[JSchlatt was shot by WilburSoot]

Technoblade was also taken aback by the message but he didn’t freeze like the man in front of him, he took his distraction as an opportunity to hit him with the pommel end of the sword. [M/N] went down, his hands planting on the ground to catch himself, before raising his head to where he left Schlatt, and his heart shattered at the sight of an arrow piercing through his chest. Despair surrounded his heart as he watched him collapse to the ground before his body evidently turned to dust, a new body ready for him at his spawn point where he know only had two lives left.

“I didn’t take you as the type to get distracted by trivial things.” Technoblade said as he approached his shaking body, he raised his sword and goes to strike him down but fell back when [M/N] ran away. Technoblade was going to chase after him but stopped when Tommy and Wilbur got in front of him, the both of them having a smirk on their faces at the sight of the biggest troublemaker fleeing.

“Talk about running away with his tail between his legs, huh?” Tommy mocked, laughing at the sight of the big bad wolf running away “Nice shot, by the way, Wilbur. That really did it.” Wilbur nods his head as he pats Technoblade on the shoulder.

“It’s thanks to Techno distracting [M/N] that I had a clear shot on Schlatt, the man wasn’t even paying attention to his surroundings.” Technoblade let them blabber about what was happening as he continued to look where [M/N] ran, his eyes widening softly when he realized which direction he went in.

[with the reader]

There was only a single thought that was running through [M/N]’s head as he ran on all fours towards the White House, tears in his eyes as he ignored the aching pain in the side of his face.

‘I fucked up! I fucked up! I fucked up!’ he didn’t bother wiping the tears from his face as the White House slowly came into view ’I had one job and I fucked it up!’ he skid to a stop as he stood on his hind legs, he actually kicked the door down before rushing down the hallways to find Schlatt’s room that was located somewhere in this build. He had one job, he had ONE job and that was to protect Schlatt, and he fucked that up by getting too caught up in his fight with Technoblade that Schlatt lost one of his lives and he watched the man he grew up with turn to dust. When he was finally at his room, he threw the door open and there he saw Schlatt sitting in his bed with a confused look on his face, his lip trembled as the older man raised his head to get a look at the person who entered his room.

“[M/N--” he couldn’t even finish when the younger one let out a sob, rushing over to his side and grabbing a hold of his hand, tears running down his face.

“I’m so sorry, Schlatt! It’s all my fault that Wilbur killed you!” he cried out, his form trembling as he pressed his forehead into his hands “If only I didn’t focus on Technoblade then none of this would have happened! I failed you!” [M/N] couldn’t stop himself from crying no matter how hard he tried, the tears he wiped away were only replaced with more tears. This scene reminded him of the time [M/N] accidentally shoved him off a cliff and he narrowly avoided death by landing on a hay bale, and though it did save him from losing a life for a pathetic reason, it still did some heavy damage. [M/N] wouldn’t stop crying no matter how hard Schlatt reassured him that he was fine, it just showed how much this kid really worried for him.

“I’m fine, puppy, really.” he let out a whine as he shook his head.

“B-But... you only have two lives left because I got reckless.” Schlatt hummed, slipping a hand out of [M/N] grip to press against his head, ruffling it softly.

“We only live once, kid, I just have to make my next two worth it.” his hands slip down to cup his cheek, a soft smile graced his lips when the wolfman leaned into his touch “I don’t blame you for what happened, I would never.”

“You should.” he chuckles as he shakes his head.

“I should be worried about you too, puppy. That was an insane fall you dropped from, you even took a hit from Technoblade. I’m proud that you stood your ground against him.” he sniffles, sitting up straight and wiping away some of his tears with the back of his hand.

“He’s not all that tough, I can take him.”

“Yeah you can, you’re not even in your true form while he’s in his.” now that was enough to get [M/N] to snicker weakly, [M/N] really chose to be in his human form because he got fewer stares and he looked intimidating enough as a human, plus he could do more. [M/N] stood to his feet, backing away when he noticed Schlatt wanted to get out of bed. The man threw the covers off his body and stood to his feet, [M/N] keeping close in case the man collapsed, respawning into another body really did take a lot out of you.

“What are going to do now, Schlatt?” he clicked his tongue.

“What do you mean what do we do?” he said with a scoff “We make sure we bite them back.”

[a few weeks later]

[M/N] let out a deep sigh when he heard shouting coming from within Sclatt’s office followed by loud thuds and glass shattering, the older man has been going through a lot to the point that he was drinking more and sleeping less to cope with the fact that he was slowly losing it all. The people he thought he could trust were abandoning him to join the rebellion that Wilbur and Tommy had formed to overthrow Schlatt’s rule, and it wasn’t helping the fact that the more that he drank the more he let his anger overwhelm him. [M/N] would no doubt stay with him till the very end, but he was quite surprised that Quackity was still sticking around despite everything he’s done, but he was pretty sure that was going to change very soon with how Schlatt has been treating him lately.

“Is this all you can do, you fucking worthless waste of space?! I ask you to do one simple thing, and you can’t even do that right?! Why do I still keep you around if you can’t do anything?!” Schlatt shouts, slamming his fist onto the desk, causing Quackity to flinch at how loud he was shouting.

“I-I’m sorry...”

“You think a sorry is going to cut it?! What I want from you is to get it right! We’re in a time where I want results, not mistakes!” he lets out a sigh, running his fingers through his hair before collapsing into his chair “Whatever, just get out of my face. I’ll deal with you later, so just leave me alone.” Quackity didn’t hesitate to rush out of the office, clutching the side of his face that was brutally slapped across by the man, it was still aching and he could feel some blood pooling up in his mouth.

“Marrying him was a mistake...” he whimpered out, sniffling and wiping away the tears that threatened to fall, when he opened his eyes he let out a startled yelp when a bottle was in front of him. Looking up, he was surprised to see that it was [M/N] offering him a regen potion to help heal the bruise that was beginning to form on the cheek that was slapped “U-Uh... thank you.” he hesitantly whispered as he took the potion into his hands.

“Don’t mention it.” Quackity awkwardly stood there, contemplating what to say next, he opened his mouth to speak but was stopped when [M/N] raised his hand “Don’t say anything. I didn’t give that to you because I cared, because I don’t care about you. You could just say that I’ve been where you’ve stood.” Quackity’s eyes widened at that.

“R-Really...?” he nods.

“I’ve done some really dumb shit to get him angry, and I rarely got him angry because I was obedient to the very end.” he closes his eyes as he thought back to the past “To be honest, I deserved it, so I took the punishment. The difference between you and me when it comes to him, though, is that he actually cares about me.” the duck man flinched at that, his wings flaring up, and though he really wants to retaliate, he knew what [M/N] was saying was the truth.

“You’re right.” [M/N] scoffed.

“I know I’m right.” he soon lets out a sigh, he pats Quackity on his back and gives him a light shove to get him moving “I’m really the only person that can get him to calm down from his temper tantrum, so get going and don’t visit him for the next couple of days or else he might use you as his punching bag.” [M/N] turns towards the door, hands on each handle to pull them open but he paused, he turned his head to where Quackity was walking away and spoke up “And if you really know what’s good for you... you’ll divorce him.” this caused Quackity to stop in his tracks.

“What?! Are you insane? He’ll kill me if I--” he shakes his head.

“I’m telling you this for your own safety. You’ve already seen what Schlatt can do, imagine what he will do within arms reach.” Quackity started to tremble at the thought, he looked down at the golden ring on his finger then back up at [MN] who took a deep breath “I can handle him because I’ve been with him for such a long time to the point he’s the only person I need, but you still have a variety of different people to help you. Don’t waste your time on someone who isn’t going to treat you the way you want to be treated.” he couldn’t help but feel touched by the way [M/N] spoke to him, he never really speak to him in such a way to comfort him, and it felt nice. He wanted to say something but couldn’t when [M/N] opened the doors and entered Schlatt’s office, he felt the confidence in his chest deflate and he could only pray that he’ll be okay.

[M/N] took a breath as he stepped into Schlatt’s office, closing the doors behind him as he looked around. He saw the shattered glass by the door where he could only assume Schlatt had thrown his glass cup at Quackity out of a fit of rage, chairs were thrown, books were scattered and he could only describe the state of the room as if a tornado had blown through it. He glanced over to where Schlatt was and grimaced when he saw that he was chugging down a bottle of whiskey as if it was water, he felt nauseous because of the strong smell of alcohol coming off of that man. It pained him seeing Schlatt doing this to himself, he understood what all of this was doing to him, it was overwhelming him to the point he had to use alcohol to numb the pain.

“Schla--”

“Didn’t I tell you to fuck off?!” he didn’t flinch when Schlatt turned around and threw the bottle at him, the glass shattering upon impact on his head. Despite the intoxication messing with his head, he slowly began to register that the man in front of him wasn’t his poor excuse of a husband, but instead, he was met with-- “[M/N]...?” he slowly slurred out, he let out a gasp when he saw him raise his hand when not only liquor ran down his face, but also blood “O-Oh, god, I’m so sorry, I--” he raised his hand to stop him from talking, shaking his head.

“No, it’s fine, Schlatt, you know this barely hurts...” he says that, and yet his body sways a bit, Schlatt immediately sobered up enough to get out from behind his desk to approach the man, reaching up and cupping his cheeks.

“No, you dumb dog, it’s not fine!” he shouts, he quickly pulls him by his hands and sits him down in his chair. [M/N] could have easily dodged that bottle, but it’s at times like these where he lets it happen just to see how Schlatt would react to him accidentally hurting him. He sat in silence as Schlatt quickly grabbed anything that could help bandage the wound, he first fed him a regen potion before cleaning up the wound and bandaging it up. [M/N] would always get himself hurt in the past to protect Schlatt so the older man knew exactly what to do to help the younger man, [M/N] noticed his hands were shaking so he slowly raised his own hands and grabbed them “I-It was an accident...! I’m so sorry, I didn’t know it was you...”

“It’s fine, Schlatt, it’s better me than Quackity. You probably would’ve done more damage to him in comparison to me.”

“It would’ve been better if it were him than you.” sure it was harsh, but [M/N] couldn’t help but feel flattered that he cared for him that much. He placed his hand on the bandages around his head, a soft blush tinting his cheeks, he raises his eyes but his head shot up when he noticed that Schlatt pulled out another bottle of liquor, this time it was a bottle of vodka. He popped the bottle cap and poured some in the glass, he was going to down it in one go but couldn’t when [M/N] stood to his feet and grabbed the glass, pushing it down so that it was on the table.

“Schlatt, no.” he scoffed and tried lifting the glass once more but [M/N] pushed it down once more “You know exactly why I am not letting you drink.” he let out a sigh and let the glass go, this time he tried to down the bottle but [M/N] was quicker and took the bottle from him.

“Hey, what gives?!” he ignored his whining and complaining, putting the cap onto the bottle once more and putting it away so the man wouldn’t try anything again. He opened a chest and pulled out some wonder, emptying the glass of vodka and instead replacing that with water.

“Drink that along with some painkillers, it’ll help ease your hangover that is surely going to come from the amount you’ve been drinking as of lately.” he huffs and snatches the water, opening his drawer to pull out the painkillers and plopping them in his mouth then downing the water. Schlatt collapsed into his chair and soon the two fell into silence was once, [M/N]’s ears twitching every so often to hear the way Schlatt was breathing to the beat of his rushing heart slowly coming to a soft beat.

“Sometimes it feels like I’ve become the one that needs to be looked after, I remember it used to be you all the time.” [M/N] frowned.

“That is because you NEED to be looked after, Schlatt. If I’m not around then who will take care of you in my stead?” he lets out a sigh, running a hand through his hair “I’m going to tell you this again, but you know exactly why I don’t want you drinking as excessively as you did before. Your heart can not take it anymore.” he says in a stern tone, the other merely rolled his eyes as he leaned his weight into his chair.

“You say that as if you know my body.” his ear twitched.

“I do know your body, almost better than you.” a shallow growl comes from his throat before he kneels down, taking his hands and rubbing his thumbs over his knuckles “I can’t help but worry for you, Schlatt. You’re not as youthful as you used to be when you drank, it’s going to come to bite you in the ass and I won’t be able to help you.” he grits his teeth, his grip on his hands tightening a little as his head hung “I NEVER should have let you do this stupid job, we NEVER should have gotten ourselves involved in the first place. None of this would have happened if we just kept to ourselves.”

“... but, it was fun, wasn’t it?” [M/N] paused at that, raising his head and looking up at him to see that he was giving him one of those genuine smiles “You and I against the world?” he could tell that Schlatt was trying to make light of the situation, he laughed sadly while cracking a small smile.

“Yeah, it was fun...” Schlatt lowered his head as the alcohol that was still left in his system started to overtake his emotions and mind, [M/N] heard a sniffle so he turned his head to get a better look at the man above him, only to be taken aback at the tears that were beginning to run down his face. 

“[M/N], I-I... I don’t like anything about me.”

“What?” Schlatt took his hands away from [M/N] and looked down at them and they slowly started to tremble as his emotions started running wild.

“I don’t like who I’ve become. Everyone around me is slowly disappearing, they all hate me, and who knows how long until you leave me.” he immediately stood to his feet, this causes Schlatt to panic as he rises to his feet, his hands grabbing onto [M/N]’s jacket in a desperate attempt to get him from what he thought was leaving “No, you’re going to leave me too, aren’t you?! I won’t let you leave! I can’t handle the thought of you leaving me! That thought is too painful!” [M/N] started to cry at the same thought.

“No! There was never a time in my life when I was with you that I would leave your side!” he shouts, grabbing his wrists and making him look up at him “I would never leave you, I will stay by your side until the end of the world. I’ve told you this time and time again, but what I am saying is the truth, I would NEVER live without you.” now that was enough to break down Schlatt’s walls, tears slowly started running down his face as he sobbed into [M/N]’s chest, his body trembling as his grip on his shirt tightened. [M/N] sniffled before wrapping his arms around him, burying his face into his hair while trying to be mindful of the horns protruding out of his head. He hadn’t paid attention to how long the two of them just simply cried in each other’s arms but it was long enough to the point that Schlatt had actually fallen asleep, [M/N] looked him over before letting out a sigh and picking the man up bridal style. Carrying him to his bedroom was an effortless task, what startles him was the fact that Schlatt was getting lighter and lighter each time he’s had to carry him, it scared him. He tucks him in bed after removing his jacket and shoes and decides to stay by his side, he let out a frustrated groan as he ran his hands through his hair and messed with it.

’Everything is just in shambles. The stress is soon going to overwhelm Schlatt to the point his heart won’t be able to handle it, and he keeps turning to alcohol as a solution to dull the pain.’ his hands slowly drag down his face until he brings a fist to his mouth and bit down on one of his knuckles ’I don’t know what to do to help him, and before I know it I’ll lose him. I just want to help him... but I don’t know how.’

”Oh, what a sight.” [M/N] stood to his feet at the unsuspecting voice, hand out and hovering over Schlatt in case the intruder dared try to bring him to him, his eyes scanned the room as a threatening growl comes out of him “Hey, hey now. There’s no need to show aggression, I’m only here to visit.” [M/N]’s gifted eyes could easily see through the darkness that covered the man’s body, he didn’t ease up, even when he knew who it was.

“What the hell do you want, Dream?” said man just gave a chuckle, knowing that nothing could get past [M/N] and his keen senses.

“I’m here on business, and the man I want to do business is currently sleeping.” he took a step forward but came to a halt when [M/N] continued to growl at him, his eyes glaring at him through the darkness, Dream raised his hands “Come on now, you of all people should know I wouldn’t dare to hu--” [M/N] snarled this time.

“Just cut to the chase, smiley man. I don’t give two shits about your false words of sincerity, all I know is that you’re in an alliance with Pogtopia.” Dream couldn’t help but flinch when he bared his fangs at him “All I know is that you could be here to threaten Schlatt’s life, and if I even think for a split second that you are deemed as a threat, I will not hesitate to smash your skull in.” Dream lets out a nervous laugh at that, knowing full well that [M/N] was capable of such a feat

“W-Well, no, actually-- whatever, the alliance between me and Pogtopia is nothing but a farce.” [M/N]’s raised a brow at what he said, not believing him 100%, he let out another nervous chuckle “Well, it’s not too far off, actually, because--” [M/N] let out a sigh as he slowly relaxed, crossing his arms and keeping a close eye on him to make sure he keeps his distance.

“Get to the point already, I’m losing my patience here.” Dream sighs, relaxing when he saw him ease up and wasn’t able to eat his head.

“I promised to help Schlatt, in return, he would give me something important.” Dream noticed a change in [M/N] facial expression, his ears perked up in alert before he glanced down at Schlatt “I can only assume you know about our deal.” he licked his lips out of nervousness.

“I could...” he taps his fingers on his arms “He did mention to me that you might show up unannounced, and if he weren’t available, that I could take his place to negotiate.” beneath his mask, his eyes slowly lit up when he saw [M/N] slowly think it over before rolling his eyes, throwing his head back while letting out a groan “Ugh, fine. Give me a minute.”

“No, no, take your time.” he flinched when [M/N] side-eyed him before rolling his eyes, he reluctantly left Schlatt’s side in search of what Dream was looking for. Said man watched as [M/N] approached a bookcase, pushing a few books to the side to get to the button that was hidden and pressing on it. The bookcase soon revealed an Ender Chest that was hiding and [M/N] opened it up, he sorted through it before finding exactly what he wanted and pulled it out, turning away and allowing the bookcase to return how it was before.

“I’m the only other person to know about what the contents of this book contains, he only ever trusted me. Sure, he kept secrets from me, but he never lied to me. He was always straight with me, so don’t even try with me when it comes to this book.” Dream nods his head as he reaches forward to grab it, however, [M/N] grabbed a tight hold on his hand and yanked him forward, leaning down so he was hovering over his ear “I also want to inform you, though, the moment you take this book from me seals your fate with me. If you even have a thought of betraying Schlatt, there won’t be a single place on this server that will keep you safe. I will find you, no matter where you are, and fucking kill you. Do you understand me?” Dream gulped, seeing the look in his eyes that told him that he was not joking around, he took a breath and nodded his head.

“I understand...” [M/N] stared at him before leaning back and offering him the book, he didn’t miss the look of hesitance Dream had before taking the book from his hands.

“Now that you got what you wanted, fuck off. I’ll report to Schlatt that you swung by and I took care of it.” Dream could only nod his head before leaving through the window he entered in, it really frustrated him how Schlatt had such an obedient dog that followed his every command no matter how violent or extreme, he did it with not an ounce of hesitation. Dream was also frightened by the man, there was no way he could take him on when it came down to PVP, sure he was a legend himself alongside Technoblade, but the latter was much easier to handle because at least he was a little predictable. [M/N] was the literal definition of a wild beast, a feral wolf that would and most definitely could snap his neck the moment he deemed them a threat.

“Fuck.”

[manberg vs pogtopia]

“We’re fucked.” was all [M/N] said as he looked at the people who were going to fight for Pogtopia “Sir, we might as well throw in the towel, we are going to lose without a doubt.” Schlatt only laughed, punching his chest and gesturing to the people who were allied with them.

“Oh, come on, there could be a chance.” he inhaled deeply, squeezing the bridge of his nose.

“What chance? There is literally you and I, plus those four fuckwits, verses Pogtopia, the Badlands, the Slums, and Purpled’s Cabin! How on earth are we going to win against those odds?! We’re fucked, I tell you! Fucked!” seeing [M/N] panic, who was mostly known for being composed, really set them off and they couldn’t help but get nervous themselves.

“Stop panicking pup, you’re ruining the atmosphere.” he let out a groan, dragging his hands along his face as he looked down at Schlatt.

“I am being logical, Schlatt. There’s no way we’re going to win.” he takes Schlatt’s hands and gives him a desperate look “Let’s just give Manberg to Wilbur, there’s nothing left here for us. Everyone left and this country has no significant meaning to us, just-- please, just give it to him. We are going to die in vain for a country that means nothing to us.” he winced back when Schlatt ripped his hands out of his own and gave him a stern glare.

“And give him the satisfaction of besting me? I’d rather die.” that response caused [M/N]’s ears to press against his head, his tail falling limp behind him “Since you’re quiet, I can only guess that you’ve finished spitting out nonsense?” a whine came out of him as he slowly nodded his head.

“Yes, sir.” the four who were in an alliance with Manberg watched as [M/N] followed behind Schlatt, but they couldn’t help but agree with the man, Schlatt was just too goddamn stubborn to admit that he was at the fault at that very moment and that Manberg was going to fall in the very end. They were practically just wasting their time with an idiot.

“Hey! I see them marching up!” Sapnap called, they all rush outside and looked down where they saw the number of people on the side of Pogtopia, [M/N] pursed his lips as he looked down at Schlatt with a knowing look, to which the older man pressed his hand to his cheek and turned his face away.

“Those are... those are a lot of people.” he rolls his eyes, leaning down on the stone brick as he watched the people of Pogtopia and their allies rock up.

“You think?” he was smacked across the head, he lets out a huff as his eyes locked onto three people. Wilbur was the first, growling at him as he remembered he was the one that took Schlatt’s first life; Quackity was second for taking Schlatt’s second; Technoblade... because he had an annoying face and knew he was going to be the one to give him trouble.

“[M/N], think you can handle them?” he pulls a face at the request, the four that were foolish enough to form an alliance with Manberg look at the duo in confusion.

“I can’t guarantee I’ll be able to keep them all back, maybe a handful, but I am pretty sure a few will slip by me.”

“That is more than enough.” [M/N] cracks his knuckles as he rolls his neck and shoulders, Punz leans into Dream’s ear as they watch him stretch.

“What is he going to do?” he shrugs his shoulders.

“Beats me, he’s Schlatt’s dog, not mine.” they both flinch when he whipped his head around and glared at them, he huffed as he stared down at Pogtopia that was slowly but surely getting closer. He stands on top of the stone blocks that made a makeshift railing to prevent people from falling off before jumping off himself, immediately, the allies of Manberg rushed over to the edge and watched as [M/N] descended down the large stone tower, Schlatt slowly approached the edge without a care in the world.

“Go get 'em pup, don’t hold back.” [M/N] landed on the ground with a loud thud, the ground itself cracks upon impact, he stood up straight and slowly started walking forward as the people of Pogtopia came to a halt.

“Look who it is, it’s Schlatt’s lapdog.” Fundy mocked, [M/N] rolled his eyes at the lame insult.

“Oh, look who it is, the guy who got abandoned by his own father, how sad.” Wilbur pulled a face while Fundy turned red “Shut your damn mouth if you aren’t ready to shoot your shots, mmkay? Mmkay.” Tommy then steps forward, pointing a sword in his direction.

“Why are you here alone, [M/N]? Here to wave the white flag?” he raises his hands while shrugging his shoulders.

“Personally, yeah. I know a battle I can’t win when I see one, but it’s rather unfortunate that I’m following the orders of a stubborn man.” he laces his fingers together and cracks them above his head “I’m not afraid to admit when I’ve been beat, but I also don’t go down without a fight.” Tubbo now steps forward, fear still lingering in his body at the sight of [M/N], he swallowed it down as he readies his Firework Launcher.

“Then why don’t you join us, [M/N]. You clearly see that following him is pointless.” he was really hoping [M/N] would refuse the offer, then it would give him an excuse to blow his head off the same way he did to him. [M/N] glared down at Tubbo, beginning to strip out of his Netherite Armor as he started approaching them.

“Well, unlike you, I don’t betray those I’ve already sworn my loyalty to.” after removing the vambrace from off his forearm and dropping it to the ground, he rolls his neck once more before taking a deep breath and relaxing his body. He felt his breathing pick up along with the beats of his heart increasing at a rapid pace, he lets out a grunt as his body started to change shape. He plants his hands on the ground when collapsed to the ground, slowly but surely, his body was beginning to change into the shape of his true form as a grey wolf. He tore off his jacket and shirt when his torso was too big for it, he was lucky enough that the pants he was wearing only ripped and tore but not completely off, so he’ll be okay if he wants to return to his human form. He now stood at 8″2ft tall, no traces of human features in sight as he stood tall on his hind legs, he was growling down at them, flexing his claws as he growled at them before taking a deep breath and letting out a loud howl that made their ears ring.

“What the fuck?! That’s what he actually looks like?!”

“What the fuck is this?!” a deep chuckle startled them, he looked down at them, his [E/C] eyes glaring down at them as he lowered his body.

”Really, I have nothing against most of you people that are here.” he speaks, the depth of his voice sending shivers down their spines ”I’m only out for Wilbur and Quackity, and maybe Technoblade because you’re the one I deem as the biggest threat.” Quackity took a step back at how his main targets were ”I’d let the rest of you go, but I have a job to do, and that is to be a literal feral menace.” Wilbur clicks his tongue as he throws his arm out.

“Attack!” [M/N] let out a loud roar as they charged forward, he presses his hands into the ground, digging his claws and the soles of his feet into the stone path before launching forward. He easily pounced over the vanguard and aimed towards Technoblade, who was surprised and took a step back but couldn’t dodge the claw that brutally landed on his chest and shoved him back. Schlatt had a smirk on his face as he watched a group of them try and take [M/N] down, but he knew they weren’t going to accomplish it, [M/N]’s true form was his trump guard because the man was rarely in that form. He said that it was too intimidating and he takes up too much space being in that form, says he’s more comfortable being a miniature-sized human.

“He should look like that more often, would keep people off our dicks.” Dream looks at Schlatt.

“So that’s what he really looks like?” he nods.

“Mm hmm. Sometimes I’m surprised with how long he can keep up his human form, it takes a lot out of him and it’s usually at night where he takes the appearance of his true self.” they hear another roar so they look down and see that he grabbed Jack Manifold and was swinging him around, using him to hit the others that got too close before throwing him full force into Niki.

“Quite the upper hand.” Sapnap laughs as he leans over to see that he was actually handling himself pretty well.

“I’d hate to be at the other end of those fists.” he says, watching as [M/N] grabbed a hold of Awesamdude’s head, his grip so tight that he lifted up him and slammed it into the ground before beginning to ruthlessly plow blow after blow under he didn’t move “So glad we’re on his side.”

“Mm hmm.” [M/N] was currently having a standoff with BadBoyHalo, their hands were locked together and both sides were trying to push the other back. [M/N] was being pushed back because Bad had more height in comparison to him, but that meant nothing because he managed to stop Bad from pushing him back. He growls as he takes a couple steps forward before tightening his grip on his hands then throwing his arms back, causing the other to stumble back a bit, leaving him wide up. [M/N] didn’t take any chances before proceeding to wrap his arms around his torso then lean back, performing a german suplex on him and slamming his head into the ground.

“He’s fucking insane!” Skeppy shouts, watching as [M/N] stood to his feet and let out another roar, causing a few of them to step back “I didn’t sign up for this!” Technoblade let out a chuckle as he dusts his shoulder off, walking past the frozen few to approach the feral dog.

“You say that, but haven’t you noticed? He’s starting to get tired.” he grimaced when Technoblade was telling the truth, [M/N] was beginning to pant as he tried to calm his breathing by taking deep breaths “Need to take a breath, Devil’s Hound?” said man couldn’t help but chuckle, shaking his head as the words he said during the festival came out of Technoblade’s mouth.

“That’s surely a new one, but I can’t help but agree. Schlatt tends to be a devil when he gets too rowdy.” he lets out a groan as he cracked his knuckles, stretching his back before letting his arms hang in front of him as he lowered his body. Technoblade got himself ready when [M/N] charged towards him again, he swings his axe when he got close but was taken aback when he bit the head of the axe right off its shoulder before spitting it out and punching Technoblade across the face. The piglin hybrid staggered backward but didn’t stop and instead threw what was left of his axe to the ground and pulled out a sword, the two disputed in their own battle, and [M/N] cursed to himself when he noticed that many of the people he didn’t incapacitate were slipping past him and making their way up the tower.

“You aren’t going to stop them?” Technoblade asked, grip on his sword tight while his other hand was pressing against the flat side of his blade to not get pushed back when he blocked one of [M/N]’s clawed attacks.

“I’m more focused on you, Technoblade. I already took care of the most troublesome ones, and when I take care of you, I’ll go deal with them next.” he laughs and manages to throw [M/N] back, Technoblade rolls his shoulders before holding his sword in front of him with both his hands gripping the hilt.

“Then I guess I’ll have to keep you here as long as I can.”

“Heh, we’ll see.”

[insert fight scene, I was going to write the fight scene between techno and the reader but I just wanted to get to the main part where schlatt was getting drunk in the drug van]

“Schlatt? Schlatt!” [M/N] called out, looking around in distress for the man. His fight with Technoblade wasn’t fair from the beginning, both he and the piglin man were so absorbed into the fight neither side noticed Tubbo taking aim at [M/N], firing a Firework at him and he hadn’t noticed until it was too late. Technoblade backed away just as it hit [M/N] and it exploded on impact, it didn’t kill him, but it did some serious damage. It managed to burn through his fur to his skin before he could put it out, he was sure it would leave a scar from the left side of his arm, a bit of his torso and face. He would’ve continued fighting if it weren’t for the message he got from Schlatt.

<JSchlatt> whispers to you: hey, kid, I need you.

You whisper to <JSchlatt>: need me? what do you mean? I’m kind of in the middle of something, so I hope you can wait.

<JSchlatt> whispers to you: I don’t think you understand, I NEED you right now.

”Hey, don’t tell me you’re getting distracted again.” Technoblade taunts as he saw [M/N] not paying attention, he raised his head as he clutched his left shoulder before turning around and running off “Wait, what?! Why are you running again?!” he spits out the blood in his mouth as he turned his head to look at Technoblade.

“Wouldn’t you do the same thing to protect the person you care about?!” he shouts before launching himself into the air, Technoblade was once again frozen in place at his choice of words. He couldn’t help but chuckle bitterly, shaking his head at the thought of that one person he would give his life for, so he understood where [M/N] was coming from. Back to the man in question, [M/N] was looking around frantically for Schlatt, he wasn’t in the last place he left him so where could he be now? He managed to catch a whiff of his scent and ran off in the direction it was coming from, he raised a brow in concern at the sight of the Camarvan before shaking his head and kicking the door open, there he saw Schlatt wallowing away while drinking alcohol “Schlatt?! You can’t be serious!” he exclaims as he approaches the man, collapsing to his knees as he inspected his body.

“Ah, there you are, [M/N]~ I was wondering when you’d show up.” he slurred out, [M/N] grimaced as he shook his head, knowing that the man was already drunk out of his mind and all rationality was out the door.

“Why on earth are you drinking while in the middle of a war, Schlatt? Are you trying to get yourself killed?” Schlatt ignored all his words, he raised his eyes and they slowly widened at the sight before him. The left side of his body was burnt horribly and was continuing to bleed, but he pushed through that pain as he looked Schlatt up and down, god, sometimes he wished this damned kid would hate him just as much as everyone else did.

“What... what happened to you?” he whispered, [M/N] looked down at himself and just laughed bitterly.

“Call it karma, I guess. Tubbo got his revenge on me while I was focused on Technoblade, but enough about that, stop drinking that!” he shouts, smacking the bottle out of his hands then standing to his feet “We’re obviously losing this war, sir, so let’s just get outta here!” he exclaims, Schlatt just laughed as he let his head rest on the thing that he was leaning against.

“And go where? We’ll be living the rest of our lives as the cowards who fled during a war.” [M/N] grits his teeth.

“So you would rather die in vain for a country that meant nothing to you?!” he shouts, he runs his hands through his fur and growls “There is nothing left here for us, let’s just leave this all behind and restart our lives! We’ve done that before, so why can’t we do that again? What’s stopping you from continuing your journey?” he closes his eyes before turning his head to look up at him.

“I’m dying, [M/N].” he noticed [M/N]’s shoulders slump at what he said “You and I both know that I am, so what’s the point in living when my time is almost up?” [M/N] felt his body tremble as the news hit him, of course, he knew that Schlatt was dying, but he just didn’t want to accept it.

“Why not live the rest of what is left of your life doing what you love?” Schlatt chuckled weakly, shaking his head once more.

“I’ve done all I’ve ever wanted with my life.” [M/N] noticed Schlatt was reading for him so he knelt down and leaned forward, he flinched when Schlatt cupped his noninjured cheek and gave him a weak smile “It’s your turn to live your life, [M/N]. Get out of here and leave me behind.” he knew that [M/N] would never do such a thing, he knew that he meant everything to him, but he just had to tell him. 

“No... no! I can’t just leave you behind!” he shouts, tears beginning to swell up in his eyes “I won’t leave you behind! I told you I would stay by your side until the end of the world!”

“Then is me dying considered the end of the world?” he fell silent at that, he let his head hang low as the tears slowly ran down his face, he let out a huff as he looked up at the big wolfman “As my last order to you, I want you to forget about me and leave this place behind to live your own life.” he sniffled, collapsing to his knees again, burying his face in his hands.

“But what is my life without you?”

“Your own.” his vision on Schlatt got blurry because of the tears, he could never picture a time in his life when he wasn’t by Schlatt’s side, the only time that ever occurred was when he was nothing but a lowly beggar in an alleyway. He wouldn’t have had a life to live if it weren’t for Schlatt.

“See? They’re right here.” Schlatt looked behind [M/N] and they both saw both forces storm the room they were in, [M/N] immediately stood to his feet and stood protectively in front of Schlatt, baring his teeth and growling at them to not take a step forward. It didn’t take long for the two of them to be surrounded, however, he didn’t quite care at the fact, his eyes zoned in on the masked fucker that had double crossed him.

’Now you’ve signed your death waiver, you son of a bitch.’ his attention soon changed over to where Wilbur was, said man looked the wolf hybrid up and down before raising his hands. 

“Easy now, [M/N], I just wanna talk.” he let out a tired scoff.

“Talk about what? How you want to kill Schlatt and I? Is that it? You know how stubborn this bastard is.” Schlatt looked up at him.

“Did you just call me a--”

“You are one, just admit it.” this silenced him, [M/N] sighed deeply when he saw ram hybrid reach into the chest he was leaning against to pull out another bottle of alcohol, Tommy couldn’t help but snicker at the sight.

“So, that’s your leader, [M/N]? That’s who you’re bowing down to?” he snarled at the boy.

“Shut your damn mouth. If it weren’t for the fact that you’re not at arms length, I would no hesitate to punt you, child.” 

“You wouldn’t.” he raised his brows as he stared at Tommy.

“Don’t make me.” Wilbur sighed as he got in front of [M/N] once more, shutting Tommy up from making anymore unnecessary comments, [M/N] let out a grunt when Schlatt grabbed his arm and pulled it down as he looked out from behind him.

“Fundy! Wha... what are you doing here?” Fundy only gave him a confused look as he let out a sigh.

“Schlatt... are you fucking serious?”

“Fundy are you--” Schlatt pushed [M/N] back with all the strength he had and smashed the bottle of alcohol on Fundy, who managed to react fast enough and block the blow with his arm. The others reacted immediately so [M/N] took a step forward, wrapped his arm around his shoulders and pulling him into his chest, he wrapped his other arm around his body when he felt him slowly slip into a drunken rage but calmed down within the arms of the wolfman.

“Listen! Schlatt, you’ve fucked up the country! You fucked up everything! You had a dream and I followed it, but you brought it downhill. Everything-- you’ve ruined it. You ruined everything we had!” he then looks up at [M/N] “And if he wasn’t so goddamn loyal to you, he probably would have left you just like everybody else!” Fundy took a step back, his ears pressing against his head when [M/N] glared at him.

“Don’t spout out nonsense that will never happen.” Fundy took a breath, swallowing the amount of fear lingering in his heart as he took a step forward and glared up at [M/N], who didn’t waver at his poor attempt to intimidate him.

“I thought you were something! The both of you!” [M/N] only rolled his eyes while Schlatt laughed, the wolfman looked down at the man within his arms and saw him gripping the arm around his shoulder.

“Yeah... yeah I am something! I-I’m what you’re not, Fundy!” he took a step back so he could look at Schlatt.

“What am I not?” he chuckles.

“I am a man!” now it was Wilbur’s turn to step in front of his son before anything else could escalate, chaos began to erupt as they were all now planning to kill the both of them together, [M/N] took a breath to calm himself but the hand around Schlatt’s body pressed against his chest and there he could feel the increasing speed of his heart thumping against his chest. 

“Schlatt, that’s it! Are you ready to die?” [M/N] immediately pushed Schlatt behind him in order to shield him “Are you ready to fucking die?!”

“Fuck you!” he slurred out, Wilbur only rolled his eyes.

“Tommy. Tommy, look at me.” the young boy looked at the former President “Do you still have Dream’s bow?” he scanned through his inventory before pulling out said boy, pulling the wire back and clipping it into place.

“Yes.”

“Tommy... I want you to put it between his eyes.” Schlatt laughed at that, [M/N] glowered and didn’t hesitate to get in his line of shot but was shocked when Schlatt pushed past him and got in front of Tommy, not a shred of fear in his eyes as the crossbow was pointed directly between his eyes.

“Are you guys really going to kill him?!” Karl shouted.

“Well, there’s no other way.” he starts “Victory, or death!” Schlatt only laughs.

“You know... if I die, this country goes down with me.” the room erupted into chaos once more, it didn’t help when Technoblade was chanting “kill” repeatedly, it probably would have annoyed him if not for the fact that the ongoing nonsense was taking its toll on Schlatt. His ears shot up in alert when he noticed him beginning to sway as beads of sweat began started forming on his head, he takes a step forward before letting out a shout when he noticed him stagger forward, using the chest to his side to stabilize himself before collapsing.

“Schlatt!” he shouts, rushing forward to catch him before he completely collapsed to the floor. Everything was fading from black into white from Schlatt’s point of view, he was violently gripping his chest to the point his knuckles turned white and he was surprised that he hadn’t torn his shirt. He was out of breath and he was trying his damned hardest to swallow some oxygen into his lungs but it was really difficult, his vision was blurry but he could just make out to image of [M/N] looming above him. The boy had turned himself into his half human/half wolf form and there he saw the tears threatening to fall down his cheeks but also the injured side of his body from taking the full blast of the firework, but what caught his attention was something glistening in his eyes, he looked down and there he saw the golden ring he gave [M/N] all those years ago hanging from his neck.

’Heh... after all these years, he still kept it.’ he wheezed, he was shouting something but he couldn’t make out anything he was saying ’Damn, now I feel bad for leaving him behind.’ he managed to give [M/N] a weak smile as he gently tapped his arm despite the amount of pain he was going through.

“I’m sorry for being a disappointment, my son...” [M/N] let out a shallow gasp as the tears finally started rolling down his cheeks.

“Y-You’re so cruel...” he raised his hand to grip onto the ring while his other held his hand “Calling me that after you stopped all those years ago... dad.” Schlatt gave him gave him a regretful, tear filled smile before his heart attack finally got the best of him and claimed his final canon life.

“Did... did he just have a heart attack?!” Tubbo shouts before the room erupted into laughter at the anti-climatic turn of events, but the only one who wasn’t laughing was Technoblade. His eyes never left [M/N] as the hybrid wept in silence, cradling the deceased body of his father figure in his arms, but he couldn’t really tell if his body was trembling out of anguish... or anger. He was astonished to see that he hadn’t lashed out yet, if he were ever to be in that kind of situation with-- he closed his eyes, shaking his head to rid the thoughts plaguing his mind before looking back over to where [M/N] still had yet to move.

SCARY

POOR PUPPY

WE SHOULD KILL HIM

PUT HIM OUT OF HIS MISERY

HOW SAD

WHAT A SHAME

The hundreds of voices ringing in his head agreed that it would be better to put the man down, just the few brief encounters with him and how he would drop everything just to see if Schlatt was alright was enough to know that this wolfman would not be able to live with himself over the fact that he could not protect his owner. His hand was on the hilt of his blade as he took a step forward but paused when he noticed that Quackity was the first to approach [M/N], he remembered that the duck hybrid was the closest when it came to Schlatt and even [M/N] to the point that he kept his hands and fingers whenever he got close to either one of them, so perhaps Quackity thought he could be the one to talk some sense into [M/N].

“Hey, [M/N], I know just how much Schlatt meant to you.” he starts, reaching down and placing a hand on his shoulder and giving it a light squeeze “But you have to know that the guy that you were following around was a terrible person and that he wasn’t going to change, this was for the better.”

“...” Quackity’s ears perked up at the sound of [M/N] mumbling under his breath.

“What?” he stumbled back when [M/N] suddenly stood up, this caught the attention of everyone and they all turned to face the duo but were shocked to see [M/N] reach forward and grab a fistful of Quackity’s hair through his beanie and hold it in a tight grip as he pulled his other fist back.

“Grit your teeth.” before he could react, [M/N]’s fist repeatedly slammed into his face with little to no hesitation, each punch being harder than the last that they were all surprised that Quackity was still conscious. Sam and Bad rush forward to grab a hold of [M/N] while Fundy grabbed the arm that was holding Quackity so Wilbur could pull him back “You fucking piece of shit! Don’t go saying that when you don’t know anything me; when you don’t know anything about him!” he turns to look at Bad so he punches him in the face, causing him to stagger backwards before reaching back and grabbing Sam by his head then throwing him over his shoulder.

“Dammit! Take aim!” Wilbur pushed Quackity behind him and watched the others load their crossbows and aim them towards [M/N] who still didn’t back down, tears ran down his face as he glared at the lot of them but his eyes zoned in specifically on Quackity.

’[M/N] is really valuable, he’s strong enough to go on par with Technoblade in a battle to the point he might be even stronger. I would have thought that once Schlatt died, it would’ve been easier to get him to follow the orders of someone else, maybe even Dream.’ he clicks his tongue ‘To think that their relationship ran that deep. Shit.’

“What the fuck do you know about the both of us that allows you to run your mouth like that, huh?! You don’t know anything!” he shouts, he grits his teeth as he slams a hand to his chest “You may have been able to marry Schlatt, but he didn’t love you the way he loved me! You may have been able to get close to us both, but there wasn’t a time that when you were with us that I didn’t hate you! I fucking HATE you! I hate you all!"

“You’re overreacting, [M/N]!” Fundy shouts, [M/N] didn’t hesitate to snarl at him and growl when a few people started getting closer to him.

“Shut the fuck up! You don’t get to talk when you can’t even decide which side you want to be on.” his head lowers a little as he threads his fingers through his hair and fur, pulling at them as his pupils shrunk and started to shake, eyes bloodshot as the tears refused to stop falling “You have no idea what I’m going through, so don’t even try to sympathize with me. You don’t know what it was like watching the person who raised you slowly descend down into madness as the world was against him; you couldn’t even fathom what it was like being at his side and not being able to do anything to help him. You have no idea what it feels to be so powerless despite being within arms length!”

“[M/N]...” Niki muttered softly, she flinched when he turned to glare at her.

“I don’t want your pity... I have nothing now. You took the last thing that was worth living for from me, so I have nothing to live for.” their fingers were now on the trigger when he raised his head to look at them all and they all saw that broken smile on his face, eyes hazy as the tears continued to fall, his arms were slightly raised to show off his claws “There’s nothing stopping me from taking at least one of you down with me.”

’There’s nothing holding me back. There’s nothing stopping me from killing at least a few of them before dying myself. I have nothing to live for, so why good would it do if I just continued to live on?’ he takes a step forward but his eye twitched when the golden ring reflected the sun’s rays into his eyes, this caused him to look down at it and his eyes briefly caught the sight of Schlatt’s deceased body.

“It’s your turn to live your life, [M/N]. Get out of here and leave me behind.”

..

...

“As my last order to you, I want you to forget about me and leave this place behind to live your own life.”

...

...

‘I can’t die yet.' the last bit of rationality, or rather sanity, returned and the haze in his eyes disappeared, he glanced down at Schlatt one more time before closing his eyes ’The least I can do is respect his last request.’

”Fire!” he raised his at the order and countless arrows were fired at him, he managed to dodge most of them while using his arm to block them from hitting anything vital, not even wincing when they pierced through arm. He ignored them all as he turned his back to them, kneeling down and softly picking Schlatt up and cradling him close to his chest.

“Wait.. no! Stop him!” they all couldn’t react fast enough when [M/N] knelt down before leaping forward and using his shoulder to bust down the wall, he fell to his knees when he was outside of the Camarvan as the adrenaline was slowly beginning to fade away as his fatigue and exhaustion caught up with him, but he shook his head as he fought it down and fled the battlefield. By the time he was far away, he collapsed to his knees and was panting rather heavily, he looked down at Schlatt’s motionless body and cried softly as he buried his face into his shoulder.

“I’m not ready yet, dad... don’t leave me behind.” he sobbed to himself before laying Schlatt’s body down, he then took a deep breath as he looked up at the sky, leaning against the tree before removing the arrows still in his arm. His arm throbbed in pain but it eased away when he pulled out a few regen potions and some golden apples, the wounds healed up instantly, he stared down at the arrow before crushing it, snapping it in two.

’What am I to do with my life now? There was never a time where I did something on my own accord without taking orders, that’s just how I lived my life up to the age I am now.’ he exhales deeply.

“Now what?”

Lullaby pt. 3

word count: 15,031

Fandom: Poppy Playtime Pairing: N/A Pronouns: She/Her Relationship: Familial Occupation: Caretaker Ability: Ballerina Music Box

The character takes the appearance of a beautifully crafted music box ballerina figurine made of the toughest porcelain and glass, their clothes made from real fabric that is soft to touch and hair so smooth and silky you'd mistake it for real hair. Attached to their back is a wind up key that continuously spins when they're active and stops when they switch off. If the key is removed they cease to operate until key is returned and they are wound up again. Before CatNap, the character was the one to put the children to sleep with their built-in music box that would constantly be updated with new songs to play to help ease the children to sleep.

Keys:

[F/N]: Female Name

Warnings: the hour of joy, blood, death, all that shit.

"Lullaby" pt. 1, pt.2

I couldn't figure out how to end this so i'm not really satisfied with it, maybe I'll tweak it later but i'm not fucked right now.

that is all.

“Go! Get out of here! Get back to the Safe Haven!” Ballade’s voice cracked with urgency as she, Hoppy, Kickin, and Doey fled through the prison’s crumbling halls, their arms full of the few toys they had managed to rescue from the ruined ones. The closer they got to the Safe Haven, the more relentless their pursuers became. Ballade’s heart pounded — she couldn’t let them find it. She couldn’t let them get close. Not with CatNap lurking nearby. “I’ll stall them — just go!” she insisted, turning toward the oncoming threat.

“But what about you?!” Kickin’s voice rose in panic, his arms weighed down by the rescued toys.

“Forget about me! I’ll be fine!”

“How can we know that?!”

“Because CatNap won’t kill me — and those ruined critters can’t hurt me. But if any of you get caught, he’ll make sure you don’t walk away from it.” Her face hardened at the mention of him, her voice bitter. She knew his cruelty — but she also knew it would be far worse for the others.

“But if they take your key—”

“We won’t know how to save you!” Hoppy cried.

“Maybe it’s for the best.” Ballade’s voice softened, her guilt seeping through. “After everything I did… this mess is my fault. If I’m the price for your safety, so be it.” She turned to Doey, placing firm hands on his shoulders, her eyes filled with a desperate seriousness. “Take care of them, Doey. You’re the only one I trust to keep them all safe.”

“W-What? Me?!” Doey’s eyes went wide, his voice shaking. Behind them, the twisted laughter of their pursuers echoed closer, growing louder.

“I know it’s a lot, and I hate putting this burden on you, but I don’t have a choice! Please, Doey — if I don’t come back, don’t try to save me. Just… forget about me.” Doey shook his head violently, panic rising in his chest.

“B-But I don’t know the first thing about being a leader! I-I can’t—” A loud crash cut him off. They all spun toward the sound — the ruined critters had finally caught up, their broken forms crawling into view.

“There’s no time!” Ballade shouted. She pushed them back, then struck a support beam with all her strength. The ceiling groaned before collapsing in a cascade of rubble, blocking the path between them and the ruined toys. Dust filled the air, but Ballade didn’t waste a second. She turned back toward the enemy, steeling herself. “Go! I’ll hold them off. And remember what I said — if I don’t come back—”

“Ballade—” Kickin started.

“IF I DON’T COME BACK!” she repeated, her voice fierce. For a moment, no one moved. Then Hoppy sucked in a shaky breath, turning her face away as the sound of sinister laughter grew closer.

“…Don’t try to save you,” she whispered weakly.

And then they ran.

She let out a breath as she heard the sound of their footsteps disappear down the hall until she couldn't hear them anymore, she rolled her neck and turned towards the ruined critters with a fury burning in her eyes.

"Well then? Come on, let's see you get past me."

-

A figure stepped cautiously into a dimly lit hallway, their flashlight beam cutting through the heavy darkness. The walls here were lined with faded murals of smiling toys and children, their once-bright colors dulled with age and grime. The eerie quiet was only broken by the soft hum of flickering lights overhead. As they moved forward, the beam of their flashlight fell on something ahead — a shape standing motionless in the center of the corridor. Instinctively, their heart leapt, but as they got closer, they realized it wasn’t a threat.

It was a cardboard cutout.

The cutout depicted a toy they hadn’t seen before — a delicate, doll-like figure with big, expressive eyes and an elegant dress. Despite the wear and tear, the character’s design had a grace to it: flowing ribbons, musical motifs, and a kind but somewhat melancholy smile. The words “Press Here” was scrawled in ornate letters within a white speech bubble, though parts of it were scratched and peeling. Like the many other cardboard cutouts they came across, the reached forward and pressed the button and the cutout came to life with a burst of static from a hidden speaker.

“Hello there, little one!” The voice was warm and gentle, with a soft musical lilt, though the audio crackled with age. “Welcome to Playcare — the happiest, safest place in all of Playtime Co.! My name’s Ballade Ballerina, and I’ll be your guide while you stay with us!” there was a moment of silence before they press it again. “Here at Playcare, we believe every toy — and every child — deserves love, laughter, and a safe place to call home. You’ll make so many friends here! There’s games, stories, and oh-so-many songs to sing!” The recording glitched, her voice stretching into a distorted warble before cutting back in. “…And remember, if you ever feel scared or lonely, just find me! I’ll always be here to help!”

The cutout’s smile seemed a little too wide now, the dim light casting long shadows across its face.

The speaker clicked off, leaving only the faint buzz of static in its wake.

Ahead, the hallway stretched into darkness, and with a deep inhale they ventured on.

We now welcome our protagonist, the Player, and their journey for answers as they traverse deeper and deeper into Playtime Co. after the horrors they had experienced since stepping for into this facility.

Huggy Wuggy had been the first nightmare — a towering figure of blue fur and wide, unblinking eyes, his silent pursuit relentless. The player could still hear the sound of his massive limbs scraping through vents, the way his sharp teeth snapped just inches from their heels. Only through sheer desperation and quick thinking had they managed to outmaneuver him, dropping a heavy box on him just in time and watching him fall into the depths below.

And then there had been Mommy Longlegs.

Her sing-song voice still echoed in their mind, playful and sadistic. The chase through the twisted factory had been a nightmare of tangled machinery and crushing danger. Her elastic limbs had reached through impossible spaces, her laughter turning shrill when the player narrowly escaped her grasp. The final confrontation left the player scraped, battered, and with a deep sense of unease — as if she wasn’t truly gone.

And now they find themselves in what is left of Playcare.

Broken play structures loomed in the dim light. A carousel, long stilled, sat tilted on its side. Empty cribs and overturned chairs lay scattered across the area, and torn stuffed animals slumped against the walls.

But it hadn’t always been this way.

Once, Playcare had been filled with the sounds of laughter and music — a safe haven for the children of Playtime Co.’s employees. The walls had been vibrant and bright, decorated with colorful murals and happy handprints. The toys here had been companions, carefully crafted to nurture and delight. But something had gone terribly wrong.

The downfall of Playcare had been swift and brutal. Whispers of experiments gone awry crept through the abandoned halls — the blending of innocence and industry turned monstrous. The toys designed to protect became the very thing to fear. Children vanished, their giggles replaced with terrified screams. Staff members who tried to intervene were never seen again. The signs of that ruin were everywhere. Walls scarred with deep gouges, as though something with claws had tried to escape. Dried stains marred the cracked tiles, and the flickering lights cast frantic shadows. The colorful handprints smeared across the doors were not all made in paint.

Given the mission to bring back the power to the Playcare, the Player entered Home Sweet Home first as instructed by the young boy Ollie had instructed.

The red smoke hit them first — thick and choking, its hallucinogenic effects warping the world around them. Walls twisted and pulsed, laughter turned into distorted echoes, and familiar shapes morphed into something sinister. The Player stumbled through the haze, their vision swimming with impossible images — the faces of children flickering into grotesque grins, toys shifting and writhing with unnatural life. It felt endless. But somehow, they pushed through. When the smoke finally thinned, the Player found themselves in the wreckage of what had once been Home Sweet Home — a place once filled with children and laughter, now as broken and abandoned as the rest of Playcare. Cribs lay overturned, toys lay shattered, and the air was thick with an oppressive quiet.

And there in the main lobby of Home Sweet Home, the Player spotted a stage that had seen far better days. Its wooden frame sagged with age, the paint chipped and faded, and the once-vibrant curtain hung in tattered, dust-covered folds. The air was thick and heavy, carrying the faint scent of decay and something sickly sweet — like old candy left to rot. The soft creak of the floor beneath their feet echoed through the hollow stillness as the Player approached cautiously. Their eyes locked onto the curtain, noticing it was open just a crack. Through that narrow gap, a faint green glow pulsed softly.

Curiosity and unease prickled at the Player’s skin as they reached out, their fingers brushing the old fabric aside. The curtain’s texture was rough and brittle, and a cloud of dust rose as they pushed it aside. With a slow, hesitant motion, they opened the curtain wider — and their breath caught in their throat.

There, slumped against a pile of forgotten and broken boxes, sat the remains of Ballade Ballerina. The once-elegant toy had fallen into a state of tragic disrepair. Her porcelain-like face was cracked and smudged, the painted features chipped but still heartbreakingly delicate. Her glassy eyes, half-lidded and lifeless, stared into nothingness. Her dress, which had surely once been a vision of grace, lay in tatters — the flowing fabric torn and stained, the ribbons frayed and hanging limp. Her hair, once meticulously styled in a pristine bun, had fallen loose, draping unkempt and tangled over her face.

Despite her ruined state, there was an eerie beauty to her stillness — a lifelike presence that made the Player’s skin crawl. It was almost as if she could move at any moment. And through the dimness, the source of the green glow became clear: a battery clutched tightly in her unmoving hand.

"Whoa..." The Player’s voice was barely above a whisper, but even that seemed too loud in the oppressive quiet. Despite everything, they couldn’t help but marvel at the sheer realism of Ballade. Other than Poppy, she was the most human-like toy they had encountered — and even in her broken state, there was a strange sense of care in how she had been left here, as if someone had made an effort to preserve her, even as everything else around her crumbled.

Shaking off their unease, the Player activated their GrabPack, aiming for the battery. The metal claw latched onto it with ease, but when they tried to pull it back, Ballade’s arm jerked forward — her fingers remaining locked around the battery in an iron grip. The Player grimaced and tugged harder, but no matter how they pulled, she wouldn’t let go.

"Haaa, of course it wouldn’t be that easy," they murmured, frustration creeping into their voice.

As they stepped closer, their eyes fell on a crumpled, faded drawing lying near Ballade’s feet — clearly the work of a child from long ago. It depicted Ballade in happier days, twirling gracefully with a wind-up key embedded in her back. The detail stood out immediately. The Player’s gaze shifted to Ballade’s back, and sure enough — the slot for a wind-up key sat empty and waiting. Their heart sank. Of course it wouldn’t be as simple as taking the battery — they’d need to find that missing key.

Letting out a tired sigh, the Player stood and surveyed the wreckage around them. The thought of combing through Home Sweet Home for a tiny key felt like an impossible task — a needle in a haystack. But there was no choice.

Leaving the stage and the battery behind for now, they pressed forward, solving the puzzles scattered throughout Home Sweet Home. Room after room yielded new challenges and eerie reminders of the building’s past. Children’s murals, long faded, peeked through layers of grime. Toys lay scattered and broken, their smiles cracked and hollow. Every step forward felt like intruding on something long abandoned — and yet not entirely lifeless.

Eventually, their search led them to the upper levels — and into a room unlike the others.

It was unmistakable. The oversized, plush cat bed and scattered toy remains made it clear.

They had found CatNap’s old room.

Realizing what they had stumbled upon, they turned to leave — until something on the oversized bed caught their eye. Their heart leaped when they spotted it: the unmistakable glint of Ballade’s wind-up key. Without hesitation, they darted forward, snatching up the key and cradling it in their hands like a fragile treasure. Relief flooded them — but it was short-lived. The ever-present sense of being watched prickled at the back of their neck. CatNap was still lurking somewhere nearby. They had to move — and fast.

Keeping their steps light and their movements subtle, the Player hurried back down the stairs, every creak of the old wood sending spikes of fear through their exhausted body. They reached the stage without incident, their chest heaving with the effort to remain quiet. Climbing onto the stage, they knelt beside Ballade’s still form. Gently, they pushed her slumped body forward, revealing the empty key slot on her back. Taking a steadying breath, they slotted the key into place.

Then they began to wind.

The resistance was immediate — the mechanism inside her body was worn and rusted, and every turn of the key felt like a struggle. The Player’s arms burned with the effort, their grunts of exertion breaking the oppressive silence. It was a wonder the key turned at all.

Finally — with one last, straining twist — the key clicked into place. As the key slowly began to turn on its own, Ballade’s hand twitched. Fingers that had been frozen in a death grip began to uncurl. The green battery slipped free, falling to the stage with a quiet thud. The Player exhaled in relief, their muscles trembling with exhaustion, and reached forward to claim their prize.

With the final battery in hand, the player stumbled off the stage, their heart pounding so hard it felt like it might burst from their chest. Every muscle in their body ached from the endless chase, the constant fear, the exhausting puzzles — but the urgency to get out of this place kept them moving. They tightened their grip on the battery as though it were their only lifeline.

Behind them, the eerie ticking of Ballade’s wind-up key still echoed softly, rhythmic and deliberate, growing fainter with each step as they hurried toward the battery slot. But even as the sound faded, it felt like it followed them — like something unseen was counting down.

The building around them felt more oppressive than ever — the walls seemed to close in tighter, the air thick and stale. Every shadow stretched a little too far, twisting unnaturally with the dim, flickering lights. Every distant creak and groan made their skin prickle, their breath catching in their throat. The remnants of Home Sweet Home were silent, but never still. And worst of all, they knew they weren’t alone.

CatNap was still out there. The colossal cat had been stalking them ever since they set foot in this cursed building — an ever-present threat lingering just out of sight. Watching. Waiting. The Player’s eyes darted to every darkened corner, every vent, every narrow hallway. The feeling of being hunted had become almost suffocating.

Reaching the battery slot, the Player slid the battery into place with trembling hands, the device clicking into position with a satisfying thud. They exhaled shakily as the system hummed to life, ancient machinery groaning and sputtering like a creature slowly awakening from a long slumber. Lights flickered, casting long, wavering shadows on the walls. The room vibrated with power as circuits sputtered and sparked to life.

But even with the relief of progress, that uneasy feeling didn’t leave them. Instinct tugged at the Player, a cold chill crawling up their spine. Slowly, almost unwillingly, they glanced back toward the stage.

They froze.

The stage was empty.

Ballade was gone.

The curtain still hung open, the boxes she had been slumped against remained — but she was no longer there. Only the faint sound of the ticking key remained, echoing softly from somewhere deeper in the building. The Player’s throat tightened, their pulse quickening as they scanned the darkened room. And then — the ticking stopped.

"W-Where... where did she--" the Player’s voice barely rose above a whisper, their words cut short by the suffocating weight of fear. But there was no time to linger, no time to question. They’d done what they were supposed to do within Home Sweet Home — the last thing they needed was to stick around where that big cat and an even bigger doll could find them.

Screw it.

They turned and ran, feet pounding against the floor as they rushed out of the building, desperate to put as much distance as possible between themselves and the threats lurking inside. But as they vanished into the dim, flickering corridors, they remained unaware of the pair of eyes watching their every move from the shadows.

-

Ballade didn’t know how long she had been turned off for — she never really could tell how much time passed when she was asleep until someone "woke her up." It was almost like being in a coma or perhaps paralyzed; she couldn’t move or see, but she could faintly hear what was happening in her surroundings. Distant voices, the scraping of metal, the slow decay of her world — all filtered through the darkness of her slumber.

She could feel it too — the slow breakdown of her own body. The way her delicate mechanisms grew rigid and rusted over time, the stiffness of her joints settling like an ache she couldn’t relieve. Dust settled thick over her frame, and the once-smooth grace of her design began to fade beneath the weight of neglect. Her porcelain-like face, once pristine and expressive, had cracked, faint fractures spreading like delicate spiderwebs. The once-vibrant paint of her features had faded and chipped, her eyes dull and lifeless. Her limbs, so carefully crafted for fluid movement, had grown stiff and unyielding, the internal gears grinding with each attempt at motion. The soft fabric of her dress had long since frayed, the elegant ribbons trailing in tatters. Her hair, once styled into a graceful bun, had loosened and fallen over her face in knotted, dusty strands. The neglect was total — and yet, she had felt it all.

But then, there was something new.

A click. A winding. The sudden, jarring sensation of gears turning, slow and strained, after so long without movement. She could feel her key twisting into place, the old machinery inside her fighting to respond. It hurt — but it also meant something else.

She was waking up.

*blink*

*blink*

A soft gasp left her lips as her eyes blinked to life, flickering with an eerie glow as they darted around in alarm, desperate to see who — or what — had turned her key. The disorientation was overwhelming. She felt the stiffness in every part of her body, her joints cracking and groaning as she shifted. The effort it took just to lift her head sent sharp pangs through her worn-out frame. She managed to catch a glimpse of a figure slipping out of her tent — too fast to make out any details. But she ignored it for now. There was something more important.

She needed to move.

The struggle was immediate and humiliating. As she tried to push herself upright, her legs buckled beneath her, the rusted mechanisms inside protesting every motion. She fell once, twice — each time catching herself just before hitting the stage floor. The effort left her breathless, but she forced herself onward, finally managing to stand on trembling legs. Peeking through the gap in the curtain, her wide eyes scanned the room — and then stopped, her breath catching.

A human.

Her mind reeled. She couldn’t believe what she was seeing. An actual human employee. But… how? Weren’t they all dead? The factory had been silent for so long — abandoned, left to rot just like the toys inside. And yet there they were, very much alive. But why? Why on earth would anyone willingly come here? What could they possibly hope to achieve? More than anything, though — what confused her the most — was the fact that she did not recognize them. They must be a lower level employee, Leith told her she didn't need to put in the effort of remembering employees who were disposable. But still, how the hell did they get so far into the factory on their own?

How did they get past Huggy? And Mommy?

Her eyes narrowed as she watched them place the battery in its slot and restore power to Home Sweet Home. Hmmm... she’d just watch them from afar for now, just to see what they were doing. After stretching her limbs, she hoisted herself up by the rafters above her head, the rusted joints protesting but slowly obeying her commands. With surprising agility for something so long dormant, she leapt up to the upper levels of Home Sweet Home, silent and shadowed. From her vantage point above, she watched with cold amusement as the employee looked around in alarm, their panic clear when they noticed the empty stage. It was almost hilarious to watch them scramble out of the building with their tail between their legs.

Seriously… how had they gotten this far?

Ballade's eyes narrowed as she watched the employee from her spot in the upper levels of the building, their frantic movements betraying the fear she expected. Every little sound they made echoed through the hollow, broken remains of Home Sweet Home. The flickering lights cast long, distorted shadows across the decaying walls, making the space feel even more eerie and oppressive. She shifted quietly, her body still stiff and aching from years of stillness, the rusted joints inside her creaking with every small motion. She winced at the sound—like old gears grinding against each other—but her curiosity kept her silent and patient.

And then she saw it—something that truly caught her attention.

"Is that..." she whispered, her voice barely audible as she peered through a cracked and grime-streaked window, her face twisting in mock disbelief. "Poppy?" It had been so long since she’d last seen that doll—so long since any familiar faces crossed her path. The sight of that small, porcelain-like figure sent a strange jolt through her system. Ballade leaned against the windowsill, her faded ribbons trailing limply from her arms as she watched intently. Through the dim light, she saw Poppy handle Kissy Missy—ever the sweetheart—after she had tackled the employee to the ground in what was clearly an attempt to kill them.

Ballade’s fingers tapped rhythmically against the rotting wood beneath her, the soft sound blending with the distant hum of restored power and the occasional groan of the building settling. Her mind pieced together the situation from the fragmented conversation she managed to overhear. The employee had come to Playtime Co. searching for their missing coworkers—fools, she thought, for stepping into this graveyard of twisted dreams. And yet they had somehow survived encounters with Huggy Wuggy and Mommy Long Legs, defeating both of them despite the odds.

But their victory had been hollow. They’d been meant to leave—finally escape this nightmare by taking the train from the Game Station. And yet... Poppy had intervened. Ballade’s lips curled into a wry, bitter smile. Of course she had. That was so like that manipulative little girl. Trapped in that fragile doll body, Poppy was incapable of doing things on her own—so she pulled the strings of others, making them dance to her tune. It was always the same—always others who did the hard work while Poppy watched from the sidelines, her innocent appearance masking the calculating mind underneath.

And now it seemed she’d found her latest puppet.

The employee. The survivor.

But how long would they last, Ballade wondered, before Poppy’s game broke them too? How long before this poor fool realized they were nothing more than a disposable piece in Poppy’s never-ending quest for freedom? Ballade almost pitied them. Almost.

"Hmm, what to do, what to do." she murmured to herself. She continued to watch them from Home Sweet Home as they restored power to Playcare and a sense of nostalgia hit her like a wave. Memories of when Playcare had been whole—when laughter filled the air and the children’s joy was the only sound that mattered. She could still hear their giggles echoing faintly in her mind, the pitter-patter of tiny feet running through the halls. She remembered the way they’d reach for her hand, their eyes wide with wonder as she twirled and danced for them on the stage. The warmth of their applause, their delighted cheers—those days felt like a distant dream, faded and fra— she nearly threw herself out the window when she saw them approaching the school. "Oh, no. If she's still in there... uh oh."

-

Uh oh, indeed.

The Player moved cautiously through ruined corridors of the school, every step echoing off the cracked and peeling walls. They turned a corner into what looked like an old classroom, the faded remnants of colorful posters and children’s drawings hanging limply from the walls. As they ventured through the school, collecting notes that solved the mystery that happened to this establishment, the PA system crackled to life. A high, lilting voice filled the corridor, sweet yet off-kilter, like a pre-recorded message gone wrong.

"This is Miss Delight speaking, please excuse the interruption! Students, remain in your seats until the bell has rung, and no going in the halls without a hall pass!" The Player’s skin prickled as the message faded out. They pressed on, tension coiling in their gut. Later, as they crawled under a desk in another room, they caught a glimpse of her—a flash of frilly pastel fabric and jerky, uneven movement. Miss Delight walked across the hallway just ahead, her head twitching unnaturally, one glassy eye swiveling in its cracked porcelain face. The Player held their breath until she passed. As they were still reeling from the sight, Miss Delight’s voice boomed again over the PA system. "Wait, I recognize you… Yes! I remember! You used to work here! How are you… alive? Hm? Barb? Oh… Barb says you're looking for your co-workers. CatNap wouldn't like that you're here! You should leave, for your own safety."

Ignoring the warning, the Player pushed forward through the abandoned school. Eventually, they reached a door leading to a dark, forbidding area. The PA crackled again, the sweetness in Miss Delight’s tone giving way to something darker. "Not a good listener, are you? You're a lot like the other humans in that way. I wonder if your screams will sound like theirs too! I look forward to finding out."

Determined, the Player powered on the generator, hoping to illuminate their path. But the light was short-lived. With a loud crash, the door burst open, and Miss Delight strode into the room. In one swift motion, she lashed out with Barb—her twisted, jagged weapon—smashing the generator and sending its battery flying across the room. The lights flickered, then died, plunging the halls into darkness once again.

The Player races through the dim corridors, their breath coming in ragged gasps as Miss Delight’s sinister laughter rings out behind them. Every time they risk a glance back, they see her frozen in place — a weeping angel-like figure locked mid-step, her face twisted into an eerie smile. But each time they look away, even for a second, she draws closer. The sound of her footsteps echoes impossibly loud in the empty space, and the Player can almost feel her breath against their neck. Panic rises with every turn, every flickering shadow playing tricks on their eyes as they search frantically for more batteries to restore power and unlock the closed gates and doors.

At one point, the Player whips their head back, heart slamming in their chest — and Miss Delight is right there. Too close. Her twisted face inches from theirs, her hand outstretched, ready to grab — and then she stops. Dead still. The Player lets out a breath of relief that they managed to catch her before they caught them and slowly backs away, unaware that Miss Delight's gaze wasn't looking at them but instead on what was ahead of them. It was the gaze that was stopping her from getting too close to them, from killing them.

As they near the exit in the maintenance area, the desperation in Miss Delight becomes palpable. Her movements grow more erratic, more forceful, as if the thought of losing her prey is too much to bear. They sprint for the final gate, hands fumbling with the controls as the sound of her approach grows louder and faster. Finally, they spot a lever and yank it down with all their strength. The heavy door begins to close with a grinding screech — but Miss Delight is not done yet. With a burst of speed, she drops her frozen façade and charges forward, her porcelain face contorting with a mix of rage and desperation. The Player watches in slow motion as she reaches out, fingers just inches from their face — and then the door slams shut with a sickening crunch. The laughter stops. The halls fall silent, save for the faint echo of metal settling into place. And when the Player dares to look back, all that remains of Miss Delight is the twisted ruin of her head beneath the heavy door — her wide, delighted grin forever frozen in place.

"Whew..." finally, they can take a breather.

-

Ballade moved with calculated precision, her every step taken in the dark corners of the school, her presence barely more than a whisper in the air. She watched as Miss Delight, once a beacon of warmth, now stood twisted and savage, her eyes burning with hunger, no longer the kind and gentle teacher that had once graced these halls. It was a sickening sight, the aftermath of years of suffering, the price paid for survival. Ballade could feel the weight of regret heavy on her chest. If only she had been able to reach her sooner, perhaps things wouldn't have spiraled so far.

Ballade’s eyes tracked the employee, her focus shifting between them and Miss Delight. She couldn’t let the deranged teacher get too close. With careful timing, Ballade would step out just enough to catch Miss Delight’s attention, drawing her gaze away from the employee. It wasn’t much, but it was enough to stop Miss Delight in her tracks. Ballade would retreat the moment the employee turned their attention back towards the woman, ensuring the cycle continued. She had to make sure Miss Delight didn’t get close enough to the employee. She still wasn't sure what their goal was but Poppy needed them alive to achieve something, and she was very curious as to what it could possibly be.

When they reached the hallway leading to the exit in the maintenance area, the employee suddenly turned and fled, desperate to escape both the school and Miss Delight. Ballade watched helplessly as Miss Delight reached out for them, her fingers stretching toward their target. But as she drew near, the employee slammed the door down, crushing Miss Delight beneath its weight. Ballade approached the lifeless form slowly, a deep sadness in her eyes as she stared down at what had become of her.

"Oh, Miss Delight," she whispered softly, kneeling beside her. "I'm so sorry this happened to you. I wish it didn't have to come to this." Her hand gently caressed what was left of Miss Delight’s face, a tender gesture in the face of such brutality. As much as it pained her, maybe this was for the best. After a few moments of quiet reflection, Ballade rose to her feet. With a grunt of effort, she reached for the underside of the shutter and, using sheer brute force, ripped it open. She stepped out into the cavernous depths, her eyes narrowing as she set her sights on the employee once again. They were heading toward the Playhouse, the den of those ruined creatures. How could she not follow them now? The stakes had never been higher.

-

It was seriously one horror after the other.

After completing some puzzles within the caverns and quietly passing by CatNap worshipping an amalgamation of dead toys, the Player approaches a heavy, rusted door with a faded sign above it, signifying they're next destination was the Playhouse. The air grows colder as they step inside, the dim light flickering ominously. The walls are cracked and stained, and the distant sound of skittering echoes through the darkness.

Continuing into the Playhouse proper, The Player navigates a maze of shadowy rooms and claustrophobic tunnels. They're startled at the sight of the Ruined Critters lurking around, grotesque and twisted versions of their former selves, appearing suddenly from holes in the walls and nipping at their heels. Their chittering grows louder and more frantic as more of them join the pursuit. To keep them away and light their way, the Player uses their newly acquired orange hand — a weapon-like tool gained after surviving the School and defeating Miss Delight — to shoot flares that burst with brief, brilliant light, sending the Critters scurrying back.

Their progress is halted by a massive door requiring two pressure pads with the Playtime Co. logo to be activated. So much work to do, they thought. They enter a network of tunnels, solving the puzzles to locate two heavy boxes and drag them onto the pads, shooting at the ruined critters that came out of their little hidey holes before continuing with the task at hand. They perk up at the sound of shifting mechanisms rumbling through the walls as the door slowly creaks open. Beyond the door lies a vast chamber dominated by a towering central spire. A platform connected to a long beam juts out from the structure, they scurry onto the platform, pressing a button that has the platform moving rather slowly. As it aligns with various doorways, they curiously explores each one, eventually entering a cavernous pool room with stagnant water reflecting the dim light. At the back of the room are two foreboding yellow doors.

They shudder to themself as they enter the room and find a rusting cell block. They could only guess who the residents of the cells belonged to, counting eight altogether as they walked down the dimly lit hall. They're careful to mind their step when they spot a hole in the ground barely covered by the wooden boards that could collapse under their weight, if only they could just find the exi-

"You..." they jump in surprise at the sudden voice, their heart leaping into their throat. They whip their head around and their eyes widen at the sight of DogDay... or rather, what was left of him. A once-joyful toy now reduced to a ragged and broken figure hanging on the wall by his arms, his once-bright colors faded and his blood seeping through gaping tears in his fabric. "...You're Poppy's angel, come to save us."

"S-Save you...?" they whisper, their voice trembling as they take an uneasy step closer. Their eyes rake over his horrific form, a hand flying to their mouth in shock. His bisected torso, blood-stained and grotesque, was only held together by a leather belt cinched tight, barely keeping what little remained of his innards from spilling out. Despite his broken state, DogDay gave a weak, humorless chuckle.

"Nothing left to save... not here..." he rasped, his voice strained and fragile. "You're in CatNap's home, angel. Their home." He lifted a trembling arm, gesturing toward their bleak surroundings. The subtle sound of scampering echoed through the Playhouse—the Ruined Critters, always watching. Always waiting.

"A million pairs of eyes are on you now. Watching, waiting... hungry," he continued, his words a haunting whisper. "That... thing... CatNap. The Prototype is his god, and this..." his voice cracked as he gestured toward his broken body, "this is what he does to heretics." The distant sounds of the critters grew louder, their scratching filling the heavy silence.

"These little toys follow CatNap to avoid that very fate—and in return, they are fed." His breath hitched, his eyes glassy and distant. "We tried to fight it... to fight the Prototype's control." He swallowed hard, his voice barely above a whisper now. "I'm... the last of the Smiling Critters." the state he was left made them think of Ballade, how she was left to collect dust and to be forgotten by those who remembered her. CatNap must have had a deeper connection with these two to have kept them around, even with the conditions he gave them. "Listen to me, you need to get out of this place. You need to live." their eyes widened.

"You want me to... leave you here?" they whispered softly, their eyes darting around when they heard footsteps. "At least let me take you with me." he only shook his head.

"I appreciate the sentiment, but I'll... only slow you down." they bit their lip.

"There must be something I can do." they mutter but DogDay shook his head.

"You and Poppy can fix this, end this madness, the torment, the—" The Player let out a startled shout when a hand suddenly appeared against the cell bars. They stumbled back, quickly raising the flare gun, only to freeze in shock at the sight of Ballade. She paid them no mind, her wide eyes fixed on DogDay with an overwhelming sense of sadness and horror.

"Oh, puppy..." she whispered, her voice trembling as her hand reached toward him. "What has he done to you...?" The empty void of DogDay's eyes seemed to spark to life at the sound of her voice—at the sight of her after so many years.

"B-Ballade? Is that really you? I'm not hallucinating, am I?" His voice cracked with disbelief. She shook her head, stepping into the cell and collapsing to her knees. Her hands cupped his ragged cheeks, her thumbs brushing over his battered face with heartbreaking gentleness. He leaned into her touch, starved for comfort after years of isolation and agony.

"This isn't a dream, right?" he whispered, his voice fragile.

"No, puppy," she murmured, her voice thick with emotion. "I'm really here. I'm here, my sweet baby." She pulled him into a tender embrace, cradling him as his broken frame shook with quiet sobs. Her hands rubbed soothing circles over his back, desperate to offer whatever solace she could.

"How long was I gone?" she asked, her voice muffled against his shoulder.

"...Four years," he whispered, his voice breaking. DogDay let out a soft grunt as her arms tightened around him. When he finally pulled back, his gaze locked onto hers—and the pain reflected in her glassy eyes was almost too much to bear.

"When you disappeared," he continued, his voice quivering, "it was the worst time of our lives. We didn’t know what he did to you, where you were... we couldn't even confirm if he’d taken you to the Prototype or not. We were so scared. What happened that day?" Tears welled in his eyes as he searched her face for answers.

"I'll explain later," she said quickly, shaking her head. "Right now, we need to get the hell out of here." Her eyes flicked up to the belts strapping him to the wall. "Hold on, puppy—I’m getting you down." her grief now replaced with anger, she grasped tightly at the belts and tore him free from his confines and when he fell into her arms, his own arms wrapped around her and they shared another tender embrace.

"U-Um, I hate to interrupt..." the Player's voice broke the moment, hesitant and uneasy. Both Ballade and DogDay turned toward them. "But I think we've got company." Ballade's face darkened instantly. She felt DogDay's arms tighten around her, his broken body trembling as the sound of the ruined critters echoed around them—scratching, skittering, getting closer.

"N-No, not again... please, not again," he whimpered, his voice cracking with fear. Ballade's eyes hardened.

"You! Come here!" She moved with sudden urgency, grabbing the Player before they could react. Spinning them around, she carefully pressed DogDay against the back of their GrabPack. With quick, practiced motions, she snatched up several of the discarded belts littering the ground and began strapping DogDay securely to their back.

"Alright, can you move well enough with him on your back?" she asked, tightening the last belt. The Player staggered slightly, adjusting to the unexpected weight.

"I-I think so—"

"No time! Get moving!" Ballade shoved them forward just as the first of the ruined critters began pouring out of the holes in the walls, their twisted forms scrambling toward them. DogDay watched as Ballade backed away, rolling her neck, her whole posture shifting into a predatory readiness. Despite his fear, a weak chuckle escaped him when he saw that familiar, dangerous glint in her eye.

"Is she going to be okay?" the Player asked breathlessly as they ran. DogDay let out a weary, fond laugh.

"Oh, she’ll be fine. Trust me." The Player plunged into the twisting tunnels of the Playhouse, their pulse pounding in their ears. DogDay’s weakened voice guided them through the maze-like corridors while the distant sounds of Ballade’s fight faded behind them. But the ruined critters weren’t far off. Their skittering grew louder, closer, and soon they were spilling from the walls, giving chase.

"Faster! Please—faster!" DogDay pleaded, his panic rising as the swarm closed in. Ahead, the path ended at a steep drop. Without hesitation, the Player launched themselves forward, using their Purple Hand to swing across the gap. The roller door slammed shut behind them with a metallic crash, cutting off the horrid screeches just in time. Shaken but alive, the Player stumbled into an elevator, their breath ragged. As the lift carried them upward to the top of the slide and out of the nightmare of the Playhouse, the reality of their narrow escape began to sink in. But there was no time to rest. Not yet.

"Finally... we're out!" the Player shouts aloud before pressing their hands to their face. "That was literal hell," they murmur against their palms. They feel a pat and see that it was DogDay.

"Are you alright, Angel? I'm sorry you had to lug my dead weight around while you were running." DogDay’s voice is soft, filled with guilt. They give a weak laugh in response.

"Nah, you're probably the nicest face I've seen that hasn't backstabbed me or actively tried to kill me. It's nice to have someone like that around after what's happened in the past few hours." DogDay gives his own weak laugh.

"I'll say. But thank you, Angel. You didn't have to do what you did." They shake their head.

"That toy scares me. I think she would have snapped my neck if I refused to do as she said." DogDay makes a face at their words, though they don’t see it. You're not wrong. "Anyways, are you sure she'll be okay? I feel bad for just leaving her there by herself."

"That's the thing, Angel. She prefers to be alone when dealing with the ruined critters — it allows her to fully let loose."

"Let loose?" they echo, confused.

"Yes. She was a toy designed to handle the bigger toys the human employees couldn’t — like Huggy and Mommy. The little ones? Though they outnumber her, they won’t even be able to leave so much as a scratch on her." As if on cue, the doors to the Playhouse are suddenly kicked off their hinges and a few dead critters fly out. Ballade steps out, crushing the neck of a ruined Crafty in her hands before kicking a ruined Bobby so hard it splatters blood all over the pavement.

"Better think twice before coming at me again, twerps!" she shouts, tossing the dead toy aside without a second thought. Her eyes scan the area, lighting up when she spots DogDay. "Puppy! You're okay!" DogDay cheers as Ballade scoops him up and starts twirling him around. It’s only when she starts planting kisses on his head that she notices the extra weight.

"I don't suppose you could put me down, could you?" the Player grunts from where they dangle off DogDay’s back. She sweatdrops.

"Oh, right. Sorry about that, Angel." Her tone carries a teasing lilt as she uses the nickname. Holding DogDay in her arms, she nuzzles her cheek against his head, cooing sweet nothings to comfort him. "Thank you, Angel. Not only for returning my key to me and turning me back on but for also protecting DogDay from those ruined toys." They rub the back of their head.

"It was nothing — I’m just glad you were there to hold them back." Ballade chuckles softly.

"Well, I've been following you ever since you stepped foot in the school. How else do you think you survived?" They blink in surprise.

"Wait — what?"

"I kept Miss Delight back each time you turned your back on her," she explains with a grin. "She got real close a couple of times, but I stopped her before she could kill you." She tilts her head, eyes gleaming. "You're welcome, by the way."

"Thanks," they mutter, still processing everything.

"Why are you trying to turn on all the backup generators by the way? What has Poppy got you doing?" Ballade asked, following the Player toward the Generator Room. She adjusted her hold on DogDay as she crouched down to squeeze through the tiny door. "I don't suppose you're trying to get the full 'Playcare' experience, are you?" The Player let out a weak, playful laugh.

"No, she wants me to redirect the red smoke — send it in the opposite direction from where it was in the beginning." Both Ballade and DogDay froze at the words, exchanging a look of confusion and concern.

"Why would she want you to do that, Angel?" DogDay asked, his voice uncertain. "Did she tell you why?" The Player shook their head.

"Not really." DogDay watched Ballade closely, noting the way her expression hardened in thought. They must have been in Gas Production Zone, inside were three massive tubes that controlled the red smoke’s direction. Ballade hadn’t seen it in years, not since everything fell apart — but even after all this time, she remembered the right tube was where the red smoke had always been contained. If Poppy wanted to redirect it to the left tube… that meant the smoke was headed toward the prison and the lab.

"Don't tell me..." Ballade murmured to herself, her voice barely above a whisper.

"What is it, Ballade?" DogDay asked, his face filled with concern. She glanced at him but shook her head, brushing it off.

"It's nothing," she said, though the tension in her voice told a different story. "I'm probably overthinking it." The Player kept moving ahead, taking the key from the tube and heading toward the Counselor's Office. Ballade and DogDay trailed close behind, their footsteps soft but ever-present. After a moment, Ballade noticed the Player sweating a little.

"Is something the matter, Angel?" she asked, a hint of teasing in her tone. "Nervous?" The Player hesitated before glancing back.

"Are you... planning on following me?" Ballade blinked at the question.

"It's not like we've got anything better to do. Why? Don’t want the extra muscle? I can keep CatNap back, if he’s got the gall to show his face." DogDay winced slightly when he saw Ballade clench her fist tightly. She probably wouldn’t mind getting a shot at CatNap if the opportunity arose.

"We can help you get the backup generator up and running," DogDay added quickly, trying to ease the tension. "We know this place like the back of our hands. And like Ballade said, she’s your extra muscle. I might not be as strong, but I can be an extra pair of eyes." Both of them looked at the Player with genuine gratitude. "Allow us to pay you back for setting us free," DogDay said softly. The Player hesitated, then nodded.

"Well... having you two around will definitely make this task safer and quicker."

"That’s the spirit!" Ballade grinned, ruffling their hair in a warm, familiar gesture—an old habit from the days when she looked after children and the few employees she liked. "Let’s get a move on. That generator won’t run itself." With a gentle push, she urged the Player forward, following close behind. Since Ballade’s body was larger than the doorframes, she had to crouch to avoid knocking her head, letting DogDay take the lead. The three of them made their way down the corridor until they reached two locked doors. To their left stretched a hallway filled with red smoke, while the path ahead led to the reception area, which required a battery to unlock.

Well, at least they knew where they needed to go.

*THUD*

"Ow." The Player and DogDay turned to see Ballade rubbing her head after hitting a light fixture when she tried to stand up. "I forget these buildings were only meant to accommodate the human employees, not us toys." DogDay laughed softly, patting her head in an attempt to comfort her.

"We never really were allowed in here." Despite the tension, the Player couldn’t help but chuckle. It was nice to have some company around. After a quick search, they found the battery hidden in an air duct and swiftly placed it into its slot. The door swung open with a mechanical hiss, inviting them inside. As they entered, Ballade and DogDay wandered toward an old vending machine, their curiosity piqued.

"You think the drinks in here are still good?" DogDay mused.

"Only one way to find out," Ballade replied, cracking her knuckles as she prepared to strike the machine. But before she could, an all-too-familiar alarm blared through the room, making both toys jump. Their heads whipped toward the TV screen, where the Player had just inserted a VHS tape labeled 8/8/95.

The room fell silent, save for the low hum of the monitor as the tape began to play. The Player didn’t seem to notice how Ballade reached for DogDay and gently covered his ears. He hadn’t been conscious that day, but the ringing had gone off the entire time — a sound that never stopped until everything was over. When the tape finally ended, the Player turned toward the two toys, noticing their unusual quiet. Their suspicion grew when they found the duo locked in a silent embrace, Ballade’s hand softly rubbing DogDay’s head in a soothing, apologetic gesture. The weight of whatever memory the tape had stirred hung heavy in the air, unspoken but undeniable.

"It's over, puppy. I'm sorry that it happened, I'm sorry."

"Are you two... alright?" she looked back at them and gave a weak smile.

"Just... old memories resurfacing, but we'll be alright." The Player was kind enough to wait for them to collect themselves before proceeding. Walking down the halls of debris and dead bodies was a familiar sight, but it still hurt seeing the few bloodied toys that littered the ground. The Player found the room they needed to enter filled with red smoke — not a problem thanks to the gas mask they’d acquired in Home Sweet Home. The real problem was the locked door — their eyes widened when Ballade kicked it off its hinges with a single powerful strike. "Ladies first," she said with a smirk.

"Thank you." It beat having to take the long way around. The Player slipped on their gas mask and stepped into the room, but they quickly noticed the two toys lagging behind.

"Go on ahead," Ballade called. "We’ll wait here. I can follow you, but DogDay can’t. The red smoke doesn’t affect me, but I also don’t want to leave DogDay alone while CatNap is still roaming around." DogDay whined softly.

"Sorry for being a burden." The Player shook their head.

"You guys being here keeps me at ease." They offered a reassuring wave before heading off to restore power and unlock the next door. With that, Ballade found a corner where she could keep an eye on both the room the Player had entered and their only exit. She knelt down and patted her lap, inviting DogDay to lay his head down and rest. As she gently stroked his head, the soft but fragile sound of her music box began to play, filling the tense silence with a bittersweet lullaby. After a few moments, DogDay broke the quiet.

"Can you tell me now?"

"Hmm?" Ballade glanced down at him.

"The day you didn’t come back with the others... Can you tell me what happened?" Ballade’s hand stilled. She took a deep, steadying breath, closing her eyes for a long moment. When she finally exhaled, the weight of old pain settled into her features.

"...To me," she whispered, "it really feels like it was only just yesterday."

-

"Is... is that all you got?" Ballade panted, hunched over her knees as she struggled to catch her breath. If she could sweat, she'd be drenched — the endless waves of ruined critters sent her way had pushed her to the brink. Her chest rose and fell in ragged motions, and though she fought valiantly, the sheer number of enemies was starting to take its toll.

She had cornered herself without realizing it. There was no clear path of escape, no way to break free from the swarm. The little toys couldn’t harm her directly — they had no claws or teeth sharp enough to leave so much as a scratch — but their numbers were proving to be their greatest weapon. Their relentless assault, throwing themselves onto her to weigh her down, was working. The growing piles of broken bodies made movement harder with every second, and the sheer mass of them threatened to bury her alive. Ballade gritted her teeth, shoving one off her shoulder and stomping down on another’s head, but her limbs felt heavier with each passing moment. She was strong — built for battle — but even she had limits. And the enemy knew it.

“You always were a strong fighter, [F/N].” Lifting her head, Ballade let out a weak, bitter laugh. Bloodied, battered, and surrounded by the broken bodies of ruined toys, she still managed to glare defiantly at the figure stepping from the shadows.

“Of course… it just had to be you…” she spat, eyes narrowing as CatNap approached with that same calm, calculated air she remembered all too well. “Was this your idea? Wearing me down? Other than the Doctor, you’re the only one who knows that endless hours of fighting will tire me out.” CatNap shrugged, his eyes watching her closely.

“There was no way I could beat you in a fair fight. Wearing you down was the best and safest option.” She scoffed, her breath ragged. The cynical laughter of a ruined Hoppy rang out from the shadows behind her, and with a violent stomp, she silenced it, grinding its remains into the floor.

“Safe for you?” He tilted his head, his tone almost gentle.

“For you.” Her face twisted in confusion. She took a step toward him—and then the exhaustion crashed over her like a wave. Her limbs felt like lead, and the subtle ticking of her wind-up key behind her back began to slow. Each click echoed louder in her ears.

“You… you planned this,” she rasped, trying to force her legs to move. But the ache in her joints grew unbearable as they started to lock into place. He nodded slowly.

“I knew you wouldn’t let me or the critters get too close to your hideout. And I knew you’d sacrifice yourself to let the others escape. That’s because I know you. You’d rather get hurt yourself than see others suffer—trying to make things right after what you did…” Her vision blurred, the room spinning around her. She stumbled, her knees buckling as she collapsed onto the lifeless bodies scattered beneath her. The coldness of them pressed against her, an eerie reminder of what would soon become of her.

“You’d rather… my body shut down… than fight me…”

“It’s better this way,” he said softly. “Better than the Prototype or the Doctor stepping in.” Her key turned slower. The sound of it was fading. “If you change your mind now… maybe I can convince the Prototype to forgive you.” Her head snapped up, eyes narrowing despite the weakness overtaking her.

“…Huh?”

“The Prototype is merciful to us toys,” CatNap continued, his voice soothing, persuasive. “I’m sure, with time, he’ll forgive you for turning your back on him. He only wants what’s best for us. So please, [F/N]—” He extended a paw toward her, his expression almost pleading “—won’t you join my side again?” For a long moment, she just stared up at him. Her breath came in shallow, uneven gasps. The room around her felt distant and cold. With the last bit of strength she had left, she raised her arm—and smacked his paw away.

“I made a mistake… trusting you years ago…” her voice was weak, but her words were laced with venom. “I’m not gonna… make that mistake… again…”

And her body stilled, locked in place and waiting for her key to be turned again. Ballade lay there amidst the lifeless bodies of the ruined toys, her form slumped and motionless. The soft ticking that had once been the quiet rhythm of her life had finally gone silent. CatNap stood over her, his shadow falling across her still frame. His paw flexed slowly, claws extending and retracting as he stared down at her. This was his moment — the perfect opportunity. One strike, and the most dangerous and capable toy within the factory would be gone. The Prototype’s paranoia would be eased, their fear of Ballade’s rebellion finally put to rest. He raised his paw, ready to deliver the final blow… but he hesitated.

The seconds stretched out, and his arm trembled. His mind replayed flashes of the past — moments of laughter, of camaraderie, of whispered conversations in the dark when they’d both been afraid. He remembered the warmth in her voice when she’d encouraged him, the fierce loyalty she had always shown, even when the world around them turned to madness. But then came the guilt. The lies. He had manipulated her trust, twisted the truth to push her toward the Prototype’s cause. And deep down, he knew — if she had known the reality, the full extent of the Prototype’s plans — she never would have sided with them.

CatNap’s arm fell to his side, his face twisting in frustration and something dangerously close to regret. He couldn’t do it. Whether it was loyalty, guilt, or the echo of their old friendship… he just couldn’t strike her down.Instead, he grabs her wind-up key and yanks it out, the sharp, metallic sound echoing through the hollow chamber. Ballade's body slumped further, completely lifeless now, her glassy eyes staring into nothingness. CatNap stood there for a long moment, his paw still clutching the key as his chest rose and fell with shaky breaths. With a strangled sigh, he let his arm fall to his side. The fight drained out of him as his claws retracted, and without another word, he reached down and grabbed her by the nape of her neck. The weight of her dormant form was nothing as he dragged her through the winding corridors of the factory, up to Playcare, and into Home Sweet Home — the place where she would remain, motionless and silent, for four long years.

And yet, he never left her side. Day after day, he watched over her stage like a silent sentinel, his eyes ever-vigilant for the ruined critters that occasionally dared to draw near. He chased them off with swift brutality, his protectiveness never waning. Sometimes, when the loneliness grew too heavy, he would climb into the stage and curl up beside her lifeless body, just as they used to do when things were… better. Back then, she would talk for hours, filling the silence with stories of her day or soft lullabies that soothed his restless spirit. Now, the only sound was the distant hum of the factory and the occasional soft, ragged breaths he took as he lay beside her, longing for the warmth of her voice once more.

-

"I'm not completely... unconscious when my key stops turning," she began, her hands gently caressing DogDay's head. "I'm somewhat aware of what's going on around me, just not fully. To me, it was like I was trapped in a dream and no time had passed at all inside my head — like I just went to sleep and woke up the next day. The same, however, can't be said for my body." Her voice softened as she lifted her arm, the quiet creak of her joints filling the air. She was one of the toys that had been looked after the most. A rare, one-of-a-kind creation that couldn’t simply be remade. As the Doctor often said, she was a masterpiece — fully conscious, capable of speech, and above all, obedient. That was why she had weekly maintenance to ensure she would malfunction.

DogDay nuzzled closer, his voice quiet. "I... I had no idea."

"No one did," Ballade murmured, a distant look crossing her face. "Not even CatNap. I kept that one to myself."

“It must've been so hard for you." DogDay’s voice was soft, filled with a gentle kind of empathy. Ballade shrugged, her movements stiff.

"Eh, maybe I deserved it. I did side with the Prototype, after all. I had it coming." She tried to sound flippant, but her voice cracked just a little. DogDay pursed his lips before slowly reaching out and taking her hand. His grip was warm, steadying. He squeezed it, and when she looked down at their joined hands, something in her hardened expression softened.

"...You did what you thought was right," he said quietly. Her face twitched. She wanted to pull away, but the warmth of his hand kept her still.

"I locked you and the other critters in your cells," she whispered, her voice heavy with guilt. "I knew the Hour of Joy was coming years before it even happened, but I did nothing to stop it. I—I killed humans and toys alike and thought what I was doing was right… but I was wrong. So wrong." DogDay’s eyes filled with a sadness she hadn’t seen in a long time.

"But you did it out of love," he murmured. "What you did… it may not have been the right choice, but you thought there was no other way to save us. You fought for us in the only way you knew how." He paused, his voice growing softer, more fragile. "You may not be able to forgive yourself… but I forgave you a long time ago." Ballade’s breath hitched, and though she was incapable of crying, the way her lips trembled made it clear how deeply his words cut through her. She shook her head slowly, the weight of her guilt pressing down on her.

"How… how could you forgive me?" she asked, her voice breaking. "I helped ruin everything." He looked down at their hands, his fingers tightening around hers as he searched for the right words.

"...You could have left a long time ago," he began softly, his voice heavy with emotion. "You're capable of doing so—but you didn't. You stayed here to help us. You stayed to make things right… even when you didn’t have to." He paused, his breath catching, then slowly pulled himself up, wrapping his arms around her neck. He nestled into the side of her neck, his voice a warm whisper. "So how could I not forgive you?" She believed she choked out a sob as her hands slowly rose, trembling, to press against his back. She held him close, her grip tightening like she was afraid to let go.

"Y-You always did have a heart of gold, puppy," she whispered softly then they both sat in a comfortable silence, waiting patiently for the Player to return while remaining vigilant- who knows what could be lurking in the shadows. A couple minutes past and Ballade hears the whir of electricity, seems they finally managed to restore power to the back up generator. "I'm going to check on Angel, will you be fine here if I leave you?" he salutes her, she snickered softly when she could see an imaginary tail wagging.

"Affirmative." she pats his head.

"Okay, but I'll be quick." She set him down gently where she had been sitting, giving him a reassuring pat before rushing off to find the Player. She moved through the thick red smoke with ease and entered the maintenance room, her eyes scanned the area, but the Player was nowhere to be seen. She hummed softly then scaled the wall leading to the room with the generator but then she saw the shutter doors closed, her brows furrowed in confusion. Without hesitation, she grabbed the edges and tore them open with a loud screech of metal. But the room was empty. Her eyes swept the space carefully until they caught the glint of an open vent, the cover hastily removed and set aside. They must have trapped themselves in the room and neither she nor DogDay could hear them, if they called out for help, so they took an alternative route. But where did they-

"Ballade!" The desperate cry of DogDay rang out, sharp and panicked. Her head snapped toward the sound, and without a moment’s hesitation, she leapt down from where she stood, landing in a low crouch with a soft thud. She broke into a sprint, her heart pounding against her chest as she raced back to where she’d left him. The Player would have to wait — DogDay's safety came first. She couldn’t let anything happen to him. She wouldn’t. As she neared the end of the corridor, she felt a brief wave of relief when she saw him — still in one piece, still there. But the feeling vanished in an instant when she noticed the wide-eyed panic on his face. He was pointing down the opposite hallway, his whole body trembling.

"CatNap!" he gasped. "I saw CatNap!"

"Where?" DogDay couldn’t help but shudder at the venom laced in her voice.

"Down the hall from where we came from!" he cried. Ballade scooped him up and sprinted down the corridor, specifically to the door they ignored. She barreled toward the door leading to the room filled with red smoke, her hands slamming against the doorframe as she skidded to a stop. Her eyes widened in horror when she spotted CatNap through the glass, his claws raking viciously at the Player.

"Angel!" DogDay’s desperate shout echoed through the hall. The sound made CatNap’s head snap toward them, his eyes locking on the sight of Ballade and DogDay. His expression shifted from menace to fear.

"Get away from them, CatNap!" Ballade’s voice was a furious snarl. She struck the door with enough force to make it shudder in its frame. CatNap didn’t take his chances. He stumbled backward and quickly scrambled into the vent, disappearing from sight. The second he was gone, DogDay leapt from Ballade’s arms just as she kicked the door open, red smoke billowing out into the hallway. Her eyes flicked upward toward the vent, but she forced herself to focus on more immediate concerns. "Oh no," she whispered harshly when her gaze fell on the Player’s still form. They lay unconscious on the ground, their gas mask shredded and useless.

"Are they okay?" she let out a breath as she quickly picked them up.

"Maybe a few scratches, but CatNap broke their mask. They inhaled some of the red smoke." DogDay pressed a hand to his forehead.

"Oh no." she nods as she carried them out of the room.

“My words exactly.” Ballade let out a long sigh, the weight of the situation settling heavily on her shoulders. “Let’s get out of here.”

She knelt down, offering DogDay an easy path onto her back. Once he climbed on, she stood and carried them both out of the building, not venturing far — just enough to escape the oppressive red smoke. Outside, she settled on the worn concrete steps, the cool air a stark contrast to the suffocating heat of the facility. Carefully, she removed the GrabPack from the Player’s back and adjusted their position so their head rested gently in her lap. As their face twisted with the torment of the hallucinations the red smoke induced, Ballade’s fingers instinctively moved to their forehead, brushing soothing circles in an effort to ease their pain.

“Will they be okay?” DogDay’s voice was soft and worried as he slid off her back and settled beside her. He leaned into her side, seeking the comfort she always provided.

“Hopefully,” Ballade murmured, her eyes never leaving the Player’s pale, strained face. “It might be a while before they wake up. I feel like this is the first bit of rest they’ve gotten since getting stuck here… even if they’re suffering through whatever haunts their mind.” She huffed softly, the sound heavy with a mix of frustration and concern, her hand never stilling as it moved in gentle strokes through the Player’s hair.

"Shouldn't we... hurry?" DogDay asked softly, his voice tinged with concern. Ballade shrugged, her eyes still scanning their surroundings.

"What's the rush? CatNap's not gonna do anything rash now that he knows we're out and protecting the employee, and Poppy can eat it. She ain't gonna rush me—I just woke up." DogDay couldn't help but chuckle at her choice of words.

"I guess you're right."

"Of course I'm right." Ballade’s tone softened just a bit. "Let's enjoy this last bit of freedom before we have to go back to the prison." He peeked up at her, his brows knitting together.

"How do you know we're going to the prison?"

"Where else is there to go?" she said with a sigh. "I’ve got an idea of what little Miss Poppy is planning, but I highly doubt she's gonna let them go now that she's trapped them this deep. If we don't keep a close eye on them, she's gonna wear them down." Her voice grew quieter, more serious. "And that's the last thing we need." She wrapped an arm around him, her hand rubbing up and down his arm in slow, comforting strokes. DogDay leaned into her warmth, his tension easing little by little. But even as she comforted him, Ballade’s eyes never stopped moving, watching every corner, every fleeting shadow. She was waiting, daring that cat to show his face again. If CatNap came near them—near DogDay, near the employee—she wouldn’t let him get close.

"Nngh..." the two look down and saw the Player stirring softly, their hand weakly lifting from their side to press against their head. Their hand rubbed over their eyes then dragged down their face and when they finally came to they were startled to see Ballade looming over them.

“Well good morning, sleeping beauty~” Ballade teased, laughing when the Player practically launched off her lap. DogDay peeked over her shoulder and couldn’t help but giggle himself when the Player scrambled to their feet, eyes wide in confusion.

“W-What happened?” they asked, brushing themselves off. Ballade pursed her lips, drawing lazy circles in the air with her finger.

“CatNap attacked you, and you inhaled some of that nasty red smoke. We saved you just before he could do any real damage, but… sorry we didn’t get to you sooner.” The Player let out a long breath, rubbing the back of their neck as they settled down next to Ballade again. “Did you enjoy your nap?” she teased.

“Other than the hallucinations? Yeah. Great nap,” they deadpanned, making her snicker. “Why didn’t you wake me up?”

“We noticed how exhausted you were,” DogDay answered before Ballade could. “She thought you could use the rest… even if you were suffering through a couple of hallucinations.” Ballade sweat-dropped at his bluntness.

“Never know when you’re gonna get to sleep again.”

“Yeah, especially when I’m already stuck in a nightmare,” the Player muttered.

“You could say that again,” Ballade agreed softly. The three of them fell into a comfortable silence until the Player surprised them both by leaning their head against Ballade’s arm. She blinked in surprise but let them stay—what’s a few more minutes of peace? “…I almost miss it,” Ballade murmured so quietly they almost didn’t hear her. The Player and DogDay both glanced up at her.

“What do you miss?” the Player asked. She laughed softly, a little wistful.

“The work. The best thing about being assigned to Playcare was watching the kids… making sure the Smiling Critters didn’t get into too much mischief—which they often did. But still… most of the time, I was just lazing about, listening to their laughter.” She smiled, the memory clearly warm despite the weight of everything that had happened.

“We gave you a lot of trouble back in the day,” DogDay said with a small grin.

“Oh, you did. But you? You were the peacemaker,” she said, giving his head a soft pat. “Kickin and Hoppy were the ones that had me running around like crazy, but they never got far.” Her smile faded as a heavier thought crossed her mind. “I miss it. The good days… I really do.” The Player swallowed thickly when they noticed her hand clenching into a tight fist. The tension only eased when DogDay placed his paw on her other hand, grounding her. She was surprised when the employee gently placed their hand over hers. Looking down, she saw the pained expression on their face.

"I don't understand what you've been through, not one bit," they admitted, their voice soft but steady. "But I do know one thing... you didn’t deserve what happened to you." They turned her hand over, rubbing their thumb over her knuckles in a comforting gesture. "None of you did. You were just… you were just children." Her eyes widened.

"You..."

"After finding those VHS tapes and notes on my way down here, I could put two and two together." They shook their head, a mixture of sorrow and determination in their gaze. "You could have had a life, but you were robbed of your childhood. I can't give that back to you, but the least I can do is help take down the Prototype—the thing that brought all of this crashing down." Ballade and DogDay stared at the Player for a moment before bursting into laughter. Ballade placed a hand on her chest to steady herself, while DogDay pressed a paw to his mouth, trying to stifle his giggles.

"You're funny, Angel," DogDay managed to say between muffled chuckles.

"We appreciate the sentiment," Ballade said, amusement still lacing her tone, "but if you really want to take down the Prototype, you're going to have to do a lot of work. He’s been scheming since the early nineties... I think. I’m close." She inhaled deeply before rising to her feet, easily hoisting DogDay onto her shoulder. She then looked down at the Player, offering her hand. "Well, if you’re serious about this, then let’s get to it." The Player met her gaze before letting out a soft laugh, placing their hand in hers.

"Let’s." She helps them up, and the three of them take the power cord connected to the Counselor's Office and bring it back to the generator room. When connecting it, they realize they're just a tiny bit short due to Poppy restoring power to the skylights. Ballade leaves DogDay with the Player and quickly rushes off to grab the power cord from that terminal. She's back in record time, and with that last power cord, they've produced a giant blue battery. She offers to carry it, but they reassure her that it's no problem, picking it up with the GrabPack and carrying it to the Gas Production Zone.

"Do you think..." DogDay's voice breaks the silence as he shifts slightly on her shoulder, lagging behind a bit as the employee walks ahead. "Do you think we'll actually be able to beat the Prototype? We've been trying to get the upper hand for years, but we haven't even come close." Ballade stares at him for a moment before shrugging.

"Who knows? Maybe we'll all die in the end. Maybe that's better. But they've come so far... maybe they really will kill the Prototype and finally end our suffering." She feels DogDay’s small arms wrap around her.

"I hope they do." She pats his arm gently. "I'm just so tired of needing to survive, I just wanna live again." She nods, her voice soft.

"Me too, puppy. Me too." As they finally approach the Gas Production Zone, the Player has already entered the room, making their way toward the blue battery slot. Just as they reach it, the doors suddenly slam shut. "Wha—what's going on?!" Ballade shouts, rushing forward. She grimaces as she peers through the glass, only to see the shutters closing as well.

"Angel! Angel, are you okay?!" DogDay yells, his voice edged with panic.

"It's CatNap!" Their eyes widen as the Player’s voice crackles through. "He's filled the room with the red smoke! I—I've got to go!" She can hear CatNap's heavy footsteps stomping after the Player before they vanish completely.

"No... no, no, no!" Ballade dropped DogDay to the ground and tore the door open, flinging it aside before forcing her hands beneath the shutter doors and ripping them apart. A thick wave of red smoke billowed out, forcing DogDay to cover his mouth as Ballade rushed inside, searching desperately for both the Player and CatNap. She cursed under her breath. The room was empty. The lift to the escape room had already been activated, the blue battery abandoned on the floor. "They got away, but CatNap went after them...!"

"Then follow after them!" Ballade hesitated, catching the way DogDay’s gaze flickered toward the red smoke, fear flickering in his eyes.

"What about you?" DogDay clenched his fists before looking up at her.

"Take me with you... I'll—I'll be fine." She swallowed thickly.

"Are you sure?" He nodded.

"Yes. I don’t want to wait this time."

Ballade sighed but nodded nonetheless, scooping him up before stepping back into the smoke. She felt him shake his head, trying to fight off the hallucinations as she quickened her pace toward the elevator. As they waited for the lift to descend, she kept a comforting hand on his back. Finally, when it arrived, she jumped in, hitting the next button to take them up. If memory served her right, the room CatNap had taken the Player to was a panic room. She vaguely remembered Stella mentioning it in passing—back when things were normal. It was never meant to be used, but when everything went to hell, that’s where most of the human employees fled. And she had personally dealt with them.

-

Fending off CatNap in the Safe Room was a waking nightmare.

The moment they entered, Poppy’s voice crackled through unseen speakers, her instructions flashing on the terminal. Defend yourself. Activate the traps. Survive. The Player wasted no time. They grabbed a battery and slammed it into one of the defense stations, watching as a steam wall roared to life, sealing off one corridor. They activated a green hand port, but the moment it triggered another steam wall, the first one flickered off. A mistake. They cursed under their breath and tore the battery out, resetting it before CatNap could take advantage of the gap.

With the final battery in hand, they sprinted to the top-left receiver, locking it in place. A timer appeared on the terminal. The countdown had begun. Then came the footsteps.

They paced between the two open corridors, Flare Hand at the ready, breath hitching as shadows loomed at the ends of the hall. CatNap. Or was it? The red smoke thickened around them, warping their vision, making the walls feel closer, suffocating. Illusions. They raised their arm and fired a flare down the corridor—the ember burst, cutting through the haze. Nothing. A hallucination. The terminal alarm blared—new battery required. The Player bolted to the next receiver, shoving in another battery just as the trapdoor above them creaked open. Their stomach dropped. A low, guttural growl rumbled from above. He was using the ceiling now. They barely had time to react before the hatch shifted, a clawed hand reaching down. Their heartbeat pounded in their ears as they lunged, slamming the trapdoor shut just before CatNap could drop in.

His claws scraped against the metal, the sound making their skin crawl. Every second, his footsteps echoed from all directions. The illusions flickered in and out of existence, growing closer, the glowing white eyes multiplying in the shadows. They couldn’t tell what was real anymore. Somewhere beyond the suffocating red haze, Ballade and DogDay’s voices rang out. Their stomach twisted—was it really them? Or just the smoke playing tricks on them? There was no time to figure it out. CatNap was relentless, his attacks coming faster. The Player barely managed to stop him, blasting steam at him, whipping around to fire off flares, and slamming the trapdoor shut again and again. Their lungs burned, their arms ached, but they couldn’t afford to slow down. Every time they turned, those soulless white eyes were closer.

The terminal outlet flashed brighter than before. The Player’s eyes snapped to it. This was it. Without thinking, they shot out their Green Hand, feeling the electricity surge through their arm as the circuit overloaded. CatNap crashed through the trapdoor just as they turned. With gritted teeth, they raised their hand, aimed at the monstrous cat, and fired. A surge of pure electricity shot forward, slamming into CatNap’s chest. His body convulsed, a twisted, piercing screech ripping from his throat. Smoke poured from his body, his glowing eyes wide in shock as the energy coursed through him, crackling through fur and metal alike. The stench of burnt flesh filled the air as he collapsed.

CatNap, against all odds, was still alive. His body trembled as he struggled to push himself up, smoke curling from his scorched fur. His ragged breaths filled the tense silence, his limbs barely able to support him. Then, the trapdoor above groaned open. The Player flinched as a long, mechanical claw descended from the darkness—a skeletal hand of slender silver pins, its joints clicking unnervingly as it extended downward. The Prototype.

The metallic fingers twisted with eerie precision before stopping, hovering inches from CatNap’s face, waiting. His breath hitched as his pupils shrank to pinpricks. Then, with a slow, reverent movement, he pushed himself onto his knees, head tilting slightly as if gazing upon something holy. He remembered the first time that hand had reached for him—the day it saved him, the day he learned what true power was. His lips curled into something between a grimace and a grin as he presented himself openly to the Prototype. He was here to save him. Just like before. Just like always. What more could he ask for—

"No!" A voice cut through the tension a second before Ballade slammed into CatNap, knocking him away. They hit the floor hard, but she didn’t hesitate, scrambling over him as she fixed her wild eyes on the Prototype. She and DogDay had finally reached the panic room, just in time to see CatNap kneeling before the monster that had destroyed them all. The Prototype’s fingers had been poised like a spear, seconds away from driving straight through his skull.

Ballade didn’t know why she had moved. She was still so angry. Angry at him for lying to her, for manipulating her into following the Prototype, for trapping her inside her own body for four long years. But as she gripped his tattered fur, her breath shaking, something inside her twisted painfully. No matter how much she hated him, there was still a part of her that remembered the boy he used to be. The one she had cared for. The one she had lost. Ballade grappled with CatNap, the two rolling across the ground in a violent struggle. She managed to slip behind him, locking her arms around his neck in a tight chokehold. He clawed desperately at her arms, but after enduring a surge of electricity and severe burns, his strength was fading fast. He was no match for her.

"You are not going to die!" she shouted, tightening her grip as he thrashed. "I won't let him take you, Theo!" CatNap's breath came in ragged gasps.

"No! My god... he wouldn't abandon me! After everything I did for him, he wouldn't just..." His voice faltered, and his wide, panicked eyes darted upward. DogDay appeared beside them, his arms wrapping around both Ballade and CatNap, reinforcing the hold. His voice was soft, yet firm.

"He abandoned us a long time ago, old friend." CatNap's gaze snapped back to the trapdoor above. The Prototype, his supposed savior, was already withdrawing, disappearing back into the darkness. There was no hesitation, no second thought—just cold indifference. The realization struck like a blade to the gut. The god he had worshipped, the entity he had given everything for, had never truly cared for him. A furious growl rumbled from his throat, and he twisted violently, trying to break free.

"Let go! Let me go!"

"No, not this time!" Ballade barked, her grip unwavering. "I ran from you once, blaming you for what I had done. But it was my fault for abandoning you with that thing when you were just as manipulated as the rest of us. And I am so sorry, Theo!" His struggles weakened, his body trembling. His voice came out in a whisper, fragile and broken.

"N-No... he- he didn't..." But the truth was right in front of him. The Prototype was gone, and all that remained were the people who still cared for him, even after everything.

"I'm sorry... I'm so sorry for blaming you. You only did what you thought was right, and I believed in you. We both did. We put our faith in something we thought would save us, something that promised us salvation—but all it did was take everything away. And I let it happen. I turned my back on you when you needed me the most." Her voice trembled, thick with regret. "I can't take back the things I said. I can't undo the pain I've caused, the choices I made, the years we lost... but I swear, Theo—I swear—I want to make it right." even after everything that happened, even after they put each other through, she just couldn't bring herself to hate the young boy whom she loved with all her heart.

"I-I'm..." she peeked her head over his shoulder and let out a breath when she saw tears streak down his burnt face, she loosened her grip when she felt the fight drain out of him and he instead hunched forward and start crying. "I'm sorry for what I've done...!" she hummed softly as she moved her arms to wrap around his body and embrace him, her head leaning against his cheek and nuzzling it softly to comfort him.

"I know, I know..." Ballade left CatNap to DogDay, who was clinging to the toy and repeatedly apologizing for the state he had reduced him to. She turned toward the Player, who had been watching. "Are you alright?" she asked, kneeling down to avoid overwhelming them.

"Yeah... yeah, I'm good." They let out a sigh of relief and reached forward to gently pat her head.

"I'm sorry we weren't there to stop him in time. I feel awful for leaving you alone." Ballade shook her head, waving her hand to dismiss the concern.

"It's fine, really. I'm just glad you were here in the end." They smiled softly and withdrew their hand. Ballade helped them to their feet and then glanced back at CatNap and DogDay.

"I think this is where we leave you," she said, causing the Player to look up at her in shock.

"What?" She chuckled at their reaction.

"Don't worry. You're just going to have to go on without us for now, but we'll catch up. I’m going to have CatNap find DogDay's legs—he definitely left them somewhere. I also need to grab a couple of things. If you're going deeper into the factory, there are some things I need before we can follow." Ballade patted their shoulder. "But I must warn you... what you went through up here is nothing compared to what's below. If you're not careful... you might not make it out." The Player swallowed thickly.

"Right... I’ll take that warning to heart."