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Night had fallen, a cloak of darkness lay over the town. Many of the barred windows were unlit, a depressing sign of the desertion this place suffered from. But there were a few hints of candlelight, lit fireplaces and oil lit lanterns behind closed curtains. It was the same in Snares’ little hideout, his home, though the curtain wasn’t drawn shut.
Rewind sat in the windowsill to watch the dark outside world, nearly hidden away within his thick oversized bomber jacket while his hands were buried deep in the pockets. It was a quiet hour this evening, the guest from an alternate universe and his host tending to their own business. It was nice to have some respite from slaying Beasts and running all over town and the outskirts to protect the few townsfolk that were still left, but the silence… it made thoughts creep.
It was a little lonely during these late hours by candlelight. The loneliness fed memories for both the skeletons. Snares tried to keep himself occupied with fixing broken traps while he sat on the floor, lost in his focus. Rewind, on the other hand, had nothing to preoccupy himself with and so his thoughts kept dwelling to a past which felt distant. To a home that barely hangs by a thread. Did that crazy glitching black, red and yellow freak already erase it, or was it still there, corroded by the growing occupation? He had no idea… At least he had Papyrus with him, that’s all that matters these days.
He threw a quick inspecting glance towards Snares before he lifted his own jacket ever so slightly to peer at the exposed ribs his crop top didn’t cover. It didn’t take much of him to reveal the hidden orange-tinted SOUL he carried, weakly flickering in his ribcage. Orange dust particles hovered around the broken edges, the upside-down heart missing a large piece which could no longer be retrieved, having turned to dust.
Hey bro… You comfortable?
There was no answer. There never was…
Rewind sighed as he hid the SOUL and released his jacket when he knew he was fooling himself with false hope, huddling further into the softness of the coat.
He misses him… a lot. Papyrus was such a joy to live with it, a kind and forgiving soul the monsters in and out of Snowdin adored. It was a good thing he didn’t remember all the lives and deaths he experienced before every fucked-up RESET; he kept his innocence and pureness while Rewind, who remembered everything, fell deeper and deeper into the dark hole of bitterness and trauma. Papyrus never judged him for being depressed, lethargic or short. Never did his support waver, not even during the times when Rewind preferred to intoxicate himself to no longer feel the pain or anger.
Can anyone blame him for wanting to have him back? To go to such great lengths in finding another Papyrus coded SOUL and body? He hoped nobody did, but at the same time, he didn’t care.
He slightly turned his head when he heard some mumbling and shuffling about. He could see Snares standing up and brushing off his behind while he quietly talked to himself, his goggle covered sockets on the bear trap-like contraption he was working on. Was he done for the night? Snares held his long chin in a thoughtful manner before he looked over towards his much smaller house guest, asking,” would you like a cup of beanwater, Rewind? I could go for one myself.”
Beanwater. Rewind snerked at what this universe had labeled coffee; it was so on the nose. He peered at the rather tall skeleton from over the edge of his hood’s thick fur trim as he remained seated in the windowsill before he shrugged and said cheekily,” sure, I’ll have a coffee.”
Snares pulled a face with the slightest “ugh” at Rewind defiantly refusing to call it by the warm beverage’s actual name before he walked over towards the stove in the corner of the room and took the kettle off it, the water in it already warm. “That word sounds vile, you know,” he said after opening a tin containing grounded beans and started to prepare the “beanwater” with his usual flair. “It sounds like coffin. Why name it similarly to that? The drink is hardly as foreboding.”
“Whatever you say, bud,” Rewind smirked amused and shifted to take his feet off the sill when Snares came his way with a rather dainty-looking teacup, steaming with hot and freshly made beanwater. It wasn’t exactly his preferred drink but he didn’t mind drinking it with his friend.
“Don’t sound cheeky. Whenever you call it “coffee”, you make it sound like it will kill you if you drink it. And surely, my brew is not deadly, or bad,” Snares grumbled as he sat down in the old large armchair standing in front of the barred fireplace and crossed his legs, delicately holding the finely painted cup like the proper gent he was.
Rewind remained on the windowsill, his mischievous grin hidden behind his mask. “Aww, don’t be like that. You make the absolute best beanwater I’ve ever tasted.”
Snares didn’t seem too convinced while he intently watched Rewind pull his mask down and blow on the hot drink to cool it off, silence returning to the lounge once more. He reckoned Rewind was only teasing him, the small skeleton grinning a little as he carefully slurped the so-called “coffee”. Still a vile word, no matter how many times he tries to say or think it.
His small companion could only guess the word was bothering him a little longer until a sense of serenity fell across the room, locking the dreadful reality of this world outside. While Rewind was lost in brooding thoughts once more as he slowly sipped the dark beverage, Snares listened to the crackling of the fire while enjoying his drink.
The minutes crept on by, the silence growing heavier until Snares placed his cup on the tall side table and reached into a pocket of his vest. He easily found what he was looking for, the gleam of metal in the fire’s glow catching Rewind’s attention and drawing him out of his brooding.
What was that thing? A pocket knife? A rather thick one if that was the case.
When Snares brought it to his mouth and cupped it in his hands, a new sound steadily filled the room. It was raw at first, a little whiny too until Rewind realized what it was. Music. It was a harmonica. He stared a little dumbfounded as he watched Snares’ hands move while the skeleton breathed life into the small instrument, playing a somber tune.
The sound and sight caught Rewind completely off guard and made him sit still on the windowsill while staring with a large socket at his friend, rendered speechless. He hasn’t heard music for so long… He hadn’t even realized the absence of it during the journies he made through the Multiverse. No radio music or tv can compare to the sound of an instrument played liv, absolutely not.
He listened while engraving the picture of Snares sitting there into his mind, the song he played bringing forth a sense of nostalgia. Papyrus played an instrument… An accordion, one of his most precious possessions. In every life he played it and, during many of the lives Rewind relived, he would join in with his violin. Just playing together… Having a laugh, trying to outplay the other or match their tune to create something new or old. Those times were the best, until, well…
Rewind lowered his gaze after he set his cup next to him on the windowsill, looking down at the floor as the memories came flooding.
The human child’s killing spree, along with the growing corruption of the AU’s data, brought an end to those happy memories. Rewind became so focused on trying to stop the child from causing more harm with their corrupted RESETs, that playing music with his little brother was no longer a priority. Or desired. No more violin and accordion duets, no more laughing and having fun. Eventually, his brother’s accordion music faded away too.
He hunched forward to lay his hand over his eyes as he shook his head and bit back the stinging within his socket, the eternal regret he was burdened with haunting him, urged on by the melancholic tunes Snares created. What he wouldn’t do to play one more time with his brother, to make others smile with the music they made.
He should never have let that damn child take that away from him.
“Rewind, are you all right?”
The question pierced through him like a bullet, the realization his friend was no longer playing on his harmonica hitting him hard. He didn’t mean for Snares to stop. It hurt to listen but at the same time, it was almost like then, before the madness… Before everything got fucked up. He wants this. He wants the painful memory and pretend he’s back home, that he’s still living a good life with his brother.
He quickly pulled his mask back over his mouth and nose cavity to hide his grimace while keeping his head down, nodding. He tried not to sniffle when he quickly wiped his fist across his uncovered socket to be rid of the golden-tinted tears but it happened regardless, the quiet noise causing Snares to stir in concern.
“I’m fine!” Rewind said quickly to stop him from coming over, his voice gravelly. He huddled further away into his coat and the tattered red scarf he wore, repeating himself more softly. “I’m fine.”
Snared looked uncertain after he froze mid getting up, frowning a little. He slowly straightened as he watched his small friend before he made a decision and walked over towards the window, not paying any heed to Rewind turning his face away to hide from him. He set Rewind’s unfinished drink aside before leaning beside him against the windowsill, soon conjuring up a handkerchief which he held out to the huddling skeleton. “I am terribly sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you.”
Rewind eyed the offered handkerchief from the corner of his socket, almost glaring bitterly at it. This guy and his damn tissues. Every time. He doesn’t need them. He clenched his socket shut and nudged Snares’ hand away as he spoke with a rough voice,” I said I am fine, Snares.”
The tall skeleton didn’t seem to settle on rejection as he instead reached for Rewind’s face to dab his cheek and mask dry, looking concerned but also persistent to stop his friend from crying. “Stop fussing like a wee babe,” he said a little stern while pressing the thin cloth against Rewind’s cheek, lightly holding his chin to keep him still. “Was it the song?”
“No, just--stop, I don’t--fuck, Snares,” Rewind grumbled as he tried to push Snares’ hands away, without much success as the hand holding the handkerchief kept stubbornly returning, even more persistently after he swore. He knew Snares meant well and it was therefore he didn’t act on his frustration; he can’t harm or be mad at a Papyrus, he simply can’t… and especially not this one, a good friend he had grown far too fond of. He turned himself away while making himself smaller on the windowsill and said with feigned toughness” I wasn’t crying, okay?”
Snares gave him a knowing look as he finally stopped with trying to wipe his tears but he still apologized, sounding worried and genuine,” I am sorry.”
Fuck, Snares… Why are you like this, the small monster wondered when the apology made his SOUL twinge and his whole being recoil. He shouldn’t be the one apologizing, he did nothing wrong. It isn’t Snares’ fault that Rewind turns into a rude angry jerk when caught being emotional. Shit…
Rewind sighed with a shake of his head before he angrily leaned in front of Snares to grab for the hand holding the harmonica, pulling it closer. He didn’t look at him, he didn’t dare to do so as he did feel a sense of shame for snapping at his friend, mumbling,” play some more… please.” He carefully released the thin wrist while he kept himself turned away, head held down in dread as to what Snares would do or say.
The following silence made him nervous but the raw sound of the harmonica returned not long after, this time closer as Snares stayed by his side. And Rewind listened, quietly appreciating what his friend was doing and what it stirred inside of him. They were painful memories but at least he hadn’t forgotten them. He will thank Snares later for reminding him, and for caring about him.