Chapter Text
“Can you remember your sixteenth birthday, Garth?” Trix asked, resting his head in his paw.
Garth sighed. “No. It’s still blank.”
Trix huffed. “And none of the potions have worked?”
“Nope.” Garth shook his head. “It’s like my body doesn’t want me to remember.”
“I thought you once said that all you could do was remember.” Trix hummed, swinging his legs, feet a good height above the floor from the chair he was sitting in.
Garth leaned back a little, shifting his weight as the chair groaned. He was a great deal heavier than Trix. “Yeah. That’s true. But I can’t remember the early days. Especially not the day it happened.”
“That sucks.”
Garth laughed. “No, it doesn’t.”
“Actually, you’re right. I remember that day perfectly. I wish I didn’t.”
Garth frowned. “You’ve never told me what happened.”
“Well,” Trix began, “I went to your house in the morning for your surprise party—”
“I had a surprise party?”
The expression on Trix’s face at that sentence made Garth regret asking. He looked away to avoid the tears welling in Trix’s eyes.
“Yeah, buddy, you did. You were going to, at least.” Trix sighed. “I’m sorry, is this too upsetting?”
Garth waved him down. “No. Keep talking. I want to know.”
“Okay… Well, we were worried when you didn’t come down in the morning since you usually wake up so early. We went up to your room and it was a mess. The window had been completely smashed in.” Trix paused for a second, but Garth didn’t turn to see why.
When he resumed, his voice was uncomfortably thick. “We looked around everywhere for you. We had spent hours scouring the entire town before we decided that you might be missing. The first thing I did was write missing posters on my spare parchment to hang up everywhere. I must’ve had enough for everyone in the town twice over.”
Trix paused again, and Garth heard him sniff. He cleared his throat. “Um. I must’ve stayed out half the night asking around and looking for you. I was too tired to go back home, so I snuck into your room and slept there. Your mum came in, awkward, but she let me stay there. She was really torn up about you…”
Trix paused and Garth felt a paw on his shoulder. “Are you alright, Garth?”
That’s what made Garth realise that his shoulders were shaking as tears silently streamed down his cheeks.
“Keep going.” He croaked.
Trix let his paw fall down. “Well… she let me stay there but I couldn’t get to sleep. I missed you too much. Then, um. Your—” Trix choked a little, “Your little siblings… they came into the room and slept with me. They clung onto me for weeks after you left.”
Garth finally made an audible sound as a cry tore through his throat. “Fuck. Fuck, shit, I’m sorry, Trix.”
A pair of furry arms that he had felt so many times before wrapped around his middle — even though they couldn’t reach all the way. Garth held onto them tightly. “Don’t apologise, buddy. I’m sorry this happened to you. You’re allowed to cry about it.”
Garth nodded, because he couldn’t manage any words. He just sat there and cried, feeling Trix’s own tears fall on his back as well.
Garth, curled in on himself with Trix at his side, fell asleep within minutes.