[OPEN] you tried to keep me warm

[chronomancer]

Characters: Jaderi and YOU!
Setting: Media floor.
Format: Starting with action, but I'll match you.
Summary: You know what? Screw this. Eridan is going to watch movies and not go shithive maggots for a change. Yes. This is a thing he's doing. Totally.
Warnings: Eridan going shithive maggots and probably being mildly creepy. Eridan's mouth. Bad musicals. Event stuff, too.

[He should probably let people know he's back. Probably. Probably. Should probably do a lot of things, but he's not really feeling it. He's feeling a lot of things, but that's not the point.

What was the point?

Oh, yeah.

Right.

Watching shitty musicals and singing along and most definitely not doing something stupid. Stupider. Was stupider even a word? It should be. Probably was. Probably should go find the others. Let them know he's okay. Haha. Right. Equius and Jade. Jade and Equius. And the rest too. Sure.

What's he doing here again? Oh right. Musicals. Nice, soothing musicals. Always know where you're standing with a shitty musical, really. Same with a rifle. You're either shooting it or you're getting shot. Either you live or you're dead. Either or. Always, one or the other. Goddammit, life would be so much easier if it were a musical. Worse comes to worst, all you get is a shitty, subpar dance number that no one will ever remember again.  Like that. God, that's a terrible number, and somehow he still remembers the song anyway.

So hey, there's this scrawny, thin boy curled up on a couch with a few blankets, softly singing along the worst musicals known to man. And trying really hard to not do the batshit crazy thing. Because god knows no one needs him to do the batshit crazy thing. Ever. At least he doesn't bite?]

Comments

[chronomancer]

[He doesn't like heavy and decidedly unhealthy panting. What if it's a monster? What if he has to shoot it?

What if he can't stop once he starts?

But he can't die. He hates dying. It sucks. It really, really sucks. Taking a deep breath himself, he pushes himself up, rolling a little to kneel on the couch and look over the back at the source of the panting, rifle at hand.

And then he sees Equius and slumps down a little, going slack.]

...hey, Eq.

[It's a little tired and somewhat hoarse, but hey, at least it's not the bubbling panic he's trying very hard not to give in to!]

[geometry]

[Well shit.]

[He stares a lot longer than normal at the jadeblood, making no move to lower the weapon. What's worse, the panic that Eridan is taking like a champ? Equius, not so much. It's pretty clear just from his expression that he did not wake up on the sane and healthy side of the bed today, nor did he wake up on that side of the bed for the past two weeks.]

[Why did there have to be someone down here? Maybe it was a little ridiculous to want to be alone right now, but he did; to be alone and sit in the corner and summon Bl'hakyetkokún alone for the first time and just nuke his mind on something for a while.]

[But, you know.]

[Someone else is here. Eridan is here.]

[He mumbles an apology for god-knows-what and starts to go back up the staircase. Maybe he'll just lock himself in his dorm. That sounds like a good idea.]

[chronomancer]

Equius.

[Eridan slid off the little mound of blankets he's been in for the past few hours. He didn't want to, really, but given the expression on the yellowblood's face? Yeah.]

You can stay, I was just leaving anyway.

[Please buy his stupid empty smile. C'mon. You know you want to, Equius. He's leaving you half of a blanket fort already set. C'mon.]

[geometry]

[The stupid empty smile does nothing, predictably.]

[You know what else does nothing? Equius. He just stands there, looking at Eridan -- well, maybe "at Eridan" was a strong term. Rather, he was looking at the general mass of space where Eridan happens to be located. Things he did not want to deal with on the first day back: this. Why had he even come out at all. This was stupid. There were monsters and people down here.]

[...Whatever noise that was, it didn't seem to fit into any form of a word. It takes a few tries before he becomes understandable.] S-s-stay there... I...

[His voice sounds pretty bad. Guess who's done nothing but scream for the past two weeks?]

[chronomancer]

[Yeah, he's keenly familiar with that process. Eridan winces a little, raising his hands in what he hopes is a placating manner, but at least stops advancing.]

It's okay.

[Things Equius voice is doing to help Eridan's current anger problem? None. But he'll focus on Equius first. Helping people who are hurt is always more important than hurting people who deserve it. Right. And it's not just because at the moment he doesn't know who exactly is to blame for this and he's not so far gone yet to just rain violence on anyone. Knowing the kind of jumpy, neurotic wreck Equius usually is, Eridan doesn't want to crowd him. Mind, it's hard. It's really hard to not just move in and fuss. But hey, focusing on not upsetting Equius is good enough at keeping him from giving in to the angry, angry things already twisting in his gut. Right.]

Do you want some water?

[geometry]

[...]

[After a few moments, he lowers the bow... slightly. He seems to be glancing around the room a lot, as if there were some monsters hiding in the corners that hadn't shown themselves even after hours of Eridan sitting there being a sitting duck. But what if there were clever ones, ones that did exactly that? Hiding monsters, that had to be what was going on here-- wait. Shit. Eridan. One of the monsters had. Infiltrated his mind or something. Or it was a shapeshifter. Oh shit.]

[The progression of this thought was displayed perfectly on his face; needless to say, there's more backing up. And that bow, it's right back up again.]

...Eridan?

[Ow.]

You're real, right?

[Might as well throw the second question in there because Gira is A+ at writing tags.]

[chronomancer]

[Gira is A+ and perfect and you better not be badmouthing her, okay.

Eridan offers a wry smile and a small shrug.]

'm gonna assume you don't want me to go all philosophical on you about this, hon, and just say yes. Yeah, I'm real, as far as I can tell.

[He stays in place though, waiting. He'll wait for as long as Equius needs, really. He knows what it's like to be in that frame of mind. It's not very pleasant.]

[geometry]

[WHAT NO OF COURSE NOT HAHAHAHA... HA HA HA... Ha ha... ha.]

You sure?

[Because obviously, the best way to detect a possible demon mind-controlling your matesprit is to ask them.]

[chronomancer]

[Don't make me start on the praise be to Yevon Gira, because we'll be here all night.]

Pretty sure.

[He offers another smile, which he hopes is reassuring.]

[geometry]

[No need for that, tyvm~]

[Anyway, he spends a full thirty seconds just watching Eridan. Waiting. Waiting for that bastard to just lunge for him, in which case this arrow? Is going right through that Aquarius symbol.]

[It's still pointed at that symbol as he finally decides to take a step forward. His fear clearly hasn't eased much at all.]

[chronomancer]

[You made me use a FFX reference though. I might have to now, anyway...

Eridan keeps himself in place. A little unkind thought squirms its way through his mind, mocking. He feels his lips twitch a little, but otherwise he controls himself.]

I'm not going to hurt you, Eq.

[geometry]

[He'd like to believe that. He really would. But since he literally just pressed back from that small twitch, it just wouldn't be the truth.]

[Perhaps today wasn't such a great day to test Eridan's patience.]

[Murmuring another apology would do nothing but hurt his throat more, so he scraps that idea. And slowly, the bow lowers again, with an actual loosening of the arrow to boot. It's still in position; if he wanted to, he could pull it back up in a second if Eridan tried anything.]

[Cue awkward and mortified silence from him.]

[chronomancer]

The water is still a thing that can happen, you know?

[Eridan smiles a little bit more as the bow lowers again. He doesn't step forward though. He won't unless Equius invites him to.]

I have a glass here. Or I can go get you one downstairs. It'll make your throat feel better.

[geometry]

...Not yours.

[Ah, the power of priorities.]

[chronomancer]

[Eridan's smile widens a little.]

Alright. I'll bring you a fresh one, alright? Can you wait here for a second?

[geometry]

[...The way he looks at Eridan, beginning with the words "wait here", should answer that one for him.]

[chronomancer]

[Oh Jesus fuck, stop stabbing him in the heart with pity. And then twisting the knife. God.]

Less than a second, even.

[He flickers and then he's back, slightly more to the left, holding the promised glass. And maybe he looks a bit hurried. It might look like teleporting for you, but it involved a lot of running and hurrying along for him. But hey, he's not complaining. For once. He offers Equius the glass, slowly, again with the not stepping forward and into his personal space unless he's expressively invited.]

See?

[geometry]

[Sorry brah, you know he can't help it. It just kind of happens when he's standing around teetering on the edge of complete mental breakdown.]

[Carefully, one step at a time, why the fuck was he having trouble balancing now of all times, he creeps toward the jadeblood. ...And when he's finally got said water somewhat in his hand, he jumps and nearly drops it and curses (really curses) under his breath, because cold. Wow. Okay.]

[Obviously his brain is working great today and Eridan has no need to worry!!]

[chronomancer]

[Eridan reaches out when Equius nearly drops the glass but stops short of touching him. It's hard, but he manages. He offers another quiet smile.]

Would you like to sit down?

[geometry]

[He can't do much but stare and nod at that smile. Why is Eridan smiling at him. Why is anyone smiling at this?]

[He nods.]

[chronomancer]

[Because when shit hits the fan, it's always either smiling or screaming and Eridan's pretty sure Equius doesn't need the screaming.]

C'mon, you'll feel better once you rest a little, yeah?

[He risks stepping closer to Equius, though avoiding sudden movements, and motions for him to sit on the couch, the same nest of blankets Eridan had just been sitting on before.]

[geometry]

[Equius fumbles around a bit with the water (aw damn, now it's on the carpet) and glances back at the spiral staircase, as if thinking that maybe there was still an opportunity for him to escape the wrath of Fussmaster Eridan Ampora. Of course, this was not true. But he looks around quite a bit before even coming close to the blankets.]

[And then proceeds to chug the water in a few gulps and wrap that shit like a cocoon.]

[chronomancer]

Rest a little.

[Eridan leans a hip on the armrest of the couch, still keeping his distance.]

I'll keep watch, okay?

[geometry]

[...Keeping watch?]

Aren't you [cough hack cough] leaving?

[chronomancer]

If you want.

[Shrug.]

But it's easier to rest when there's someone watching your back, right?