Chapter Text
Vessels were created for one purpose, and one purpose only. They weren’t supposed think, feel, hope, or dream. They were created to be devoid of everything, a hollow shell.
But as Hornet grew closer to her strange siblings, she learned that the sentiment couldn’t be further from the truth. Little Ghost was small but had a huge personality. Being silent couldn’t stop them from showing how they felt. Hollow was more subdued, but there were glimmers of life behind the bandages.
After the three moved into Dirtmouth, Hornet was learning new about her siblings every day. From little quirks to how they worked. Learning how they ate was a strange day.
The day started when Ghost tried to crawl into Hornet’s bed. Her bed was a hammock weaved from silk, and she had spent quite the time making it. No matter how hard she tried, her little sibling would always find a way to worm into her bed.
Shoving them out, she sleepily grumbled, “Go bother Hollow, if you’re awake then.”
After being denied, Ghost went to Hollow’s room. Their elder sibling had a large bed with many blankets and pillows, forming a sort of nest around them as they slept. The little vessel hopped up and tried to squirm under some blankets.
Half asleep, Hollow pushed Ghost off the bed and onto the floor. Denied again.
Seeing as how their siblings wouldn’t let them up into their cozy beds, Ghost thought about what to do this morning. Their nail hadn’t seen some action in a while, perhaps they should find a sparring partner.
They haven’t seen Ogrim in a while. Maybe it’d be nice to pop down and visit them, ask for a spar. Ghost gathered their charms, their nail, and left the house.
Ghost had a blast visiting Ogrim. The Dung Defender was more than happy to spar, and it was incredibly fun! Even if Ghost got a little buried in the…‘mud’. But they had their fun, said goodbye to Ogrim, washed up the best they could, and headed back home.
It was only late morning, but they were soaking wet and smelled like death when little Ghost returned home.
They were greeted by Hollow sitting at the kitchen table and a note from Hornet. “Went out to get supplies. Don’t start any fires. -Hornet.”
Hollow leaned forward, inspecting their little sibling for a moment before recoiling from the smell. They stood up, grabbed Ghost by a horn and dragged the stinky vessel to the bathroom.
Dropping Ghost onto the bathroom floor, Hollow started the water. Once it was mostly full, they pointed at it. Get in.
Ghost looked at the bath, then back to their sibling, shaking their head. They didn’t need a bath! They were fine. They felt plenty warm already. A little unusually warm, to be quite honest.
As Hollow leaned forward to grab them, little Ghost ran off down the hallway. They weren’t going in the tub without a fight.
Their elder sibling had been through a lot. Being sealed away in the Black Egg Temple and having to fight not only the source of the infection, but their own siblings. They had been deeply injured after the fact, the crack in their mask and missing arm being grim reminders.
With all of that in mind, Hollow was absolutely no push over. With surprising speed, they chased after Ghost all throughout the house in an impromptu game of tag.
But as their game went on, Ghost felt their legs grow numb and their pace sluggish. What was happening? Why were they so tired and warm? With Hollow close behind, they darted into Hornet’s room to hide in her bed.
Unfortunately for Ghost, they were too slow. Before they could crawl in completely, Hollow grabbed their foot and lifted them out. They put up no fight as their elder sibling carried them back to the bathroom and put them in the tub.
They shivered in the water, which was now cold. Hollow did their best to scrub off the ‘mud’ and smell that lingered. Upset that they were being treated like an infant, Ghost kicked and splashed water all over their sibling.
With an angry, yet silent, huff, Hollow did their best to dry off before turning back to Ghost to dry them off as well. Once dry, they were taken out of the tub and placed on the bathroom rug. Their limbs were heavy, and it was difficult to hold their head up.
Ghost looked at Hollow, holding their arms up so they could be picked up and held. But their sibling shook their head, nudging little Ghost out of the bathroom so they could clean themselves up.
Feeling tired and dejected, little Ghost shuffled into their room and crawled into their bed.
Hollow drained the water from their sibling and began filling the bath again. They had no idea what made little Ghost smell that bad, but they hoped they would never encounter it.
They tried their best to sit in the tub, silently cursing their tall stature. They briefly considered how odd of Ghost to become tired so quickly but brushed it off. It was probably nothing.
Hollow felt something odd, a strange sensation in their throat. It felt like they had swallowed sandpaper, and it got lodged in their throat. But they distinctly remember not doing that, so something else must be going on.
Thinking too hard hurt their head. Wait, no, their head just hurt. Suddenly, as if a switch had been flipped, Hollow ached. And despite the heat of the water, they couldn’t help but shiver. Something was definitely wrong.
Stumbling out of the tub the best they could, Hollow wrapped themselves in their cloak and almost fell onto the hallway floor. Did Ghost somehow cause this? Did their little sibling feel the same way?
What should they do? Crawl back into bed? No, they would check on Ghost and wait for Hornet. She would know what to do.
Hollow stood straight, pushing their feelings deep inside. They were the master of that, pushing things down.
They knocked sharply on Ghost’s door, entering after the third knock. Little Ghost was lying in bed, squirming uncomfortably. Hollow rested a hand on their little mask, feeling how warm it was. What could be the cause of their ailments? A curse? Perhaps an invisible enemy?
Hollow fluffed up their sibling’s pillows and gave them a pat on the head, then headed for the kitchen table to wait for Hornet to return home and fix everything.