you are the world.
as you lay dying in a hospital bed
we take a moment to breathe in
(we do not know this is a dangerous thing yet)
the air free of the chemicals and beeping and rushing we have grown accustomed to
we try and eat something that is not bland
the shops are closed
as you are dying, the world is dying with you.
when we had first arrived, the staff had thought i was old
they had me sign paperwork and give medical information for your stay as your next of kin
they looked in my eyes and saw my future
(Apollo was God of prophecy and medicine both)
knew i would command your fate into the ground
knew i would not condemn you to that terror of cremation
your family arrives
(black birds following armies, knowing that a feast will be served)
they always do, for matters they consider important
first arrives your sister
(i forget which one)
she is kind to me, of course
she dances around the obvious, of course
she is surprised that my mother and stepfather are there,
although she tries to hide it
at some point, there is a meeting around whether or not
you would want to have donated yourself to help others
(why is that information not already available?)
i don’t know for certain what you would say, but i tell them to do it anyway
(forgive me, for not asking)
(forgive me, for not saying hello)
(forgive me, for waiting until i was grown to talk)
your sister tries to give you your Last Rites while my family is away
the Priest, the Doctors, they all tell her no
she tries anyway
(i understand, she is trying to help)
(i understand, she does not know you)
your Mother arrives.
(so does her husband and my uncle)
i don the armor ive been welding for my (your) life (death)
I greet her with respect, we go through the motions of grief before death
(i do not give her my True Name, i do not eat of her food, i do not give her any debts)
(i am a changeling child, i know her kind well)
i prepare myself for real battles to begin.
the rest of the players trickle in
the family
your friends
(your friends go through your house, giving most to me. neither side asks, so no debt is owed)
(i do not have to go myself)
(it is one less battle to fight)
my mother becomes my second-in-command easily, as if she never even stopped
she is water, flowing and changing
she is rock, steady and tethering
here is how the war is fought
in uncomfortable hospital chairs, we talk, your family and i
your mother takes charge on her side
i take charge on mine
we are outnumbered, but we have legal power over your decisions
and their time is running out.
as per the rules set long ago, we must remain respectful. polite.
they are your family. they raised you. you are their precious son.
(you were born out of wedlock. you abandoned the faith. you raised a queer.)
my mother abandoned you. my stepfather must hate you. your friends are irrelevant.
(you were my mother’s best friend. you got my stepfather to branch out. your friends built a boat to burn for you)
but me? i am your child. you are my precious father, my world, who i am losing.
so when i tell them that you would want to be buried without a box, to feed the earth and let the worms eat your flesh?
they cannot oppose me directly.
most of your family ignores your brother, my uncle
they can’t understand the words he says so they think him infantile
when they aren’t ignoring him, they are Handling him
they tell him you are dying in little words
“Pete isn’t going to be around anymore soon”
they say in falsetto tones
they do not let him grieve. they do not let him love.
i do not let the rage boil under my skin
i do not let myself mourn that with your passing he will be taken away as well
it will not help him. it will not help you.
i often can’t understand what my uncle says either, but that’s not new
the wind likes to play tricks on me, tying words into knots before they reach my ears
i am one of the few that treats him like the eldest child he will soon be
he is one of the few that treats me like the child i shall still be for two years yet
so between battles, sitting amongst the corpses of words, we sit in silence,
and we draw
your death is scheduled
it has to be, to harvest what they can from you, to save who they can
there is ceremony to what comes after
they bring the body up, and we walk down the hall with it
doctors and nurses line the halls, giving respect to what we have lost
giving respect to what you have given that will save others
the only sound the whole way is my uncle’s sobs
i don’t know if he hates that it was a child, your child, who was the one comforting him
and so the world ends.
the funeral seems dull in comparison to the honor walk
sure, your family made a scene,
but my mother took the narrative back
and anyway.
by that point the fight was over
your wishes were respected
i had won.
the next day,
we went home.
and we didn’t come out.
and so the world ends.
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Can you please do a part two of the Sebastian fluff where he lets his thoughts get the best of him and gets anxious that reader now sees him as a monster because of what they read on his document so he prepares extra good items and plans to give them heavy discounts and even some free but reader barges in like
"MANTIS SHRIMP??? PUNCH SOMETHING RIGHT NOW"
And after a bit of reassuring(possibly some punching too bc reader is too starry-eyed for him to say no to em) Seb realizes he trully never had anything to worry about and just, generally grows fonder of reader?
Ps. Adore your writing, keep up the awesome work!!
"God, why did I let them take it? Stupid, stupid, stupid.."
Sebastian couldn't stop beating himself up, even though he knew he shouldn't care about the opinion of any human sent by Urbanshade--especially one of the "expendable" class.
Yet because it was you, specifically--who was currently in possession of his document--he began to wonder what you'd think of him once you found out the truth:
That he was nothing but a horrible monster. Plain and simple.
If not the knowledge that he was a hideous chimera of several sea creatures' DNA...then surely the revelation that he caused the lockdown of the Blacksite would ultimately make you resent him.
He released all those creatures, who stopped at nothing to prevent you from reaching the crystal and had you running, fighting, or hiding for your life.
He was responsible for all the injuries you've sustained while crawling into his shop, desperately needing a medkit and a place to rest.
He would understand if you'd never want to visit him again after what they documented about him..but the image of your furious expression and overthinking the words you'd possibly say to him left him feeling incredibly anxious.
Suddenly, Sebastian found himself gathering more supplies. Medkits, code breakers, and every light source he had currently in the shop, trying to market down whatever he could. He was even willing to let you take batteries for free...which was something he'd never normally do.
Would it be enough to make up for everything horrific you discovered about him and the terrors he indirectly put you through? Absolutely not.
Was he willing to try it anyways just for the small chance that you'd keep visiting him? Maybe.
No other human has shown him a single ounce of kindness or gratitude for his services. Nobody except you, of course, and he refused to lose that.
-thump, thump-
"Shit.." He froze, hearing movement in the vent duct, hands trembling for his light to shine brighter. Part of him wishes he could stay in the dark, as he didn't wanna see your face and whatever hurt expression it could possibly hold.
But he knew it'd be rude if you actually needed to buy something, so he forced himself to look as your familiar figure crawled out of the small opening. You seemed out of breath, like you were just running from something, and stood up to dust the dirt off your pants.
"Sebastian..I need to know something, and you need to be 100% honest with me."
The moment you pulled out his document, the shopkeeper could feel his heart sink.
"Wh..What did you want to know?" He asked, already bracing himself for the worst.
You sounded dead serious, and he was convinced you were finally going to let him have it.
You were going to force him to explain himself and his actions, and tell him what a monster he truly was. Literally and metaphoric-
"Its it true that you have mantis shrimp DNA????"
Silence.
Of all the possible outbursts he expected from you, that certainly didn't cross his mind.
Sebastian just stared down at you, utterly dumbfounded. He blinked several times, unsure if he was truly seeing the wide smile and starry-eyed look on your face.
He had been waiting for a deep scowl, eyes full of anger and betrayal and sadness that he wasn't the "friend" he claimed himself to be when you first visited his shop.
Yet now? He saw nothing but pure delight in your expression.
"Um..yes. But of alllll the things you read about me, that shocked you the most?" He was still treading carefully.
"Well, it sucks that you were an innocent guy who got thrown into a shitty situation." You gestured to him, frowning a little. "And I'm sorry you never saw justice, but...it's just SO cool that you're part mantis shrimp!" A grin returned to your face. "They've fascinated me for years! I used to watch videos of them all the time. Did you know the velocity of just one of their punches is equal to a .22 caliber bullet-?"
"Stop." He put a hand up, huffing. "At least some part of you must resent me. I mean...helloooooo, did you skip over the bit where I'M the reason those monsters are after you?! There's no way you could've ignored that..unless your brain turned off the moment you read "mantis shrimp"."
"I read everything, Sebastian." You huffed back. "Look, if I ever had to go through what you did..I think I'd wanna rebel, too. And as much as those monsters scare me, they've probably endured the same experiments as you. They probably felt just as trapped and afraid. You must see at least a few of them as your friends, right?"
"Eyefestation and the PAInter are the only ones I consider "acquaintances"." He answered after a long pause, shoulders slumped. "The anglers are primitive, but they recognize me as the one who freed them, so they don't bother me or my shop. The only creature that tends to be an issue is-"
-thump-
-thump-
Tensing, you looked over your shoulder to see a Wall Dweller emerge from the vent behind you, its mouth split open and drooling with hunger, standing on two legs.
"-that." Sebastian glared at the creature; and before it could run away, he blocked the entrance with his tail fin. "Oh no you don't." He swooped over to grab ahold of its head with his third hand, causing it to shriek and kick its legs as he held it up high. "You seriously need to stop eating my customers when they're trying to BUY SOMETHING!!"
The Dweller just growled at him, to which he ignored it and glanced down at you. "What should I do with this thing?"
"Punch it!" You grinned, your fists balled up in front of you as you hopped up and down. "I wanna see how fast you could throw one!"
He raised an eyebrow. "Really?"
"Pleeeeaaase?"
"..ugh, if it gets that stupid puppy-eyed look off your face, fine." He looked back at the Dweller, grinning widely as he cracked his knuckles. "You wanna eat something so bad? Try this."
"....grahh-?"
In a blinding flash, his fist went through the creature's skull, effectively turning its head into dust. Then he dropped the whole body onto the ground with a grimance. "Eugh..never done that before.."
Then he looked down at you again, seeing your smile brighten. "Hope that made you happy."
"It did, that was amazing!" You laughed, kneeling down to rip off a chunk of the Dweller's flesh. He eyed you strangely, his expression changing to a look of horror as you shoved a piece in your mouth.
"What the f...why would you eat that?!"
"It's okay! I've had this stuff before." You swallowed, feeling rejuvenated already.
"B....Before?! What you're eating is clay and acid-"
"Actually, it's fresh meat. Reminds me of poultry, almost. I found a document somewhere saying that it has regenerative properties." You explained to Sebastian, whose eyes only widened the more you talked. "I didn't believe it at first until I saw the Angler kill one. I was hungry and...eating it healed my electrical burn somehow."
".......why was that not in its actual document?" He muttered.
You shrugged, ripping out another piece and offering it to him. "Care for a bite?"
"I'll..pass. But thanks." Lowering his body closer to you, he frowned. "Are you absolutely sure that-?"
"I'm sure."
"..you didn't even know what I was going to-"
"You were worried about my reaction to your file. I could tell from the discount signs and how you were scared to even look at me."
"............."
"But I promise it doesn't change anything, okay? We're still friends, Sebastian, and I'll still swing by to do business with you." You reassured him, smiling as you patted the back of his hand, before noticing the bandage on his third arm seemed bloody. "Um..when's the last time you changed that?"
"...oh this? Erm..it's fine." He attempted to hide it behind his back. "Nothing you should be concerned abou-"
"Too late. It's my concern now. Let me repay you for saving my tail."
He had no time to protest, as you were already on your feet and running for the medkit that was on the table. You weren't worried about getting to the next zone right now.
Not that Sebastian planned on kicking you out anytime soon.
No.
Now that he was able to confide in you, he was genuinely beginning to enjoy your company--especially as you asked him to rest his arm across your lap. From there, your gentle hands went to work changing the bandage out for a fresh one, using an alcohol spray to keep the wounds from getting infected.
He hissed and cursed a few times at the stinging pain, but not once did he try to get you to stop.
Suddenly, it all began to hit him in this exact moment.
You were willingly playing nurse to a giant sea monster that has killed a man and was responsible for the terrifying things you had to witness down here.
He couldn't understand..but at the same time he felt relieved that all along he had nothing to worry about.
"Th-That's fine..thank you.."
Hearing a sniffle, you glanced up as Sebastian hastily took his arm away, "standing" back up and turning away from you. You just smiled and patted his tail comfortingly, not saying a word as you waited for him to collect himself.
For once, that snarky and sarcastic fish you've come to know was gone, and he was letting his walls down, finally realizing he could trust you.
Eventually he fell silent, and you wondered what to do now. You bought everything you wanted to earlier, so you didn't wanna overstay your welcome-
"Do you mind staying for a little bit longer?"
The question surprised you, but you smiled and nodded. "Sure. As long as you don't mind, shrimpy."
There was a pause, and he slowly looked back at you, pouting. "Big talk coming from someone as tiny as you, friend." He playfully sneered.
You just laughed and shook your head, glad to see him in better spirits.
Thanks to that scrambler on his back, you didn't have to worry about HQ getting on your ass about continuing the mission or threatening detonation.
You could definitely stay awhile and ramble about more mantis shrimp facts to Sebastian...if he was willing to hear them, of course.
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