Chapter Text
It has been like this for an entire week. It was top gossip in the Cyber World and, of course, in Queen’s Mansion.
“I heard his sales drastically drop. Just like that!”
“What do you mean just like that? A couple of weeks ago his business was as good as always! What happened?”
“No one knows. He hasn’t left his room since that day.”
Eventually all this reached Queens ears. And Gods forbid her of having a has been broken salesman living in her mansion! So, the order was clear.
Get Him Out Of Here As Soon As Possible.
Of course, Swatch knew they had to follow said command. That’s what they were programmed and hired to do. But… They couldn’t bring themselves to kick who had been a valued costume out just like that! They weren’t heartless.
Despite what anyone would think, Swatch really came to like Spamton. He wasn’t perfect, at all. But he was good to have around, and he always knew how to make them laugh when they were having a stressing day. He always lifted the mood when he came into the café. Well, when he wasn’t enticing their clients with his adds or trying to gain the butler’s attention even though they were clearly busy. Setting that aside, Swatch loved having Spamton with them.
They sighed.
Swatch wanted to obey their Queen but there was a thing about the broken salesman told them that something was… wrong?
Right after the order was given, Swatch made their way to Spamton’s room. They knocked.
“Master Spamton?” They called but nobody answered. They took their set of keys out and unlocked the door. “I am coming in. Sorry for the intrusion.”
The place was pitch black, they tried to turn on the lights, but didn’t work. They definitely had to check that later. The only thing they could made out from the dark room was a somewhat faraway noise, but they couldn’t quite place what it was.
The mysterious ringing increased with each step forward into the darkness. “Master Spamton?” They said carefully, not wanting to make this situation harder than it already was.
Still, it was like the room was already empty. The one being called for never giving an answer.
Finally, Swatch reached the part of the apartment where the sound was coming from.
They gasped. The sight in front of them making their heart skip a couple of beats.
In the corner of the room, the figure of the former steamed salesman could be barely seen. His eyes were filled with static. His hands holding to a phone for dear life. That’s where the noise was coming from, but it wasn’t a voice or even something recognizable.
If someone were to look at him, they would tell he was speaking through the phone, but he wasn’t saying anything. He just stood there.
It took a lot of effort, but they finally built the courage to get closer to him.
“Spamton?” Swatch tried to reach him without touching him. But that didn’t seem to be working. So, they crouched to his level and shook him somewhat gently.
He finally snapped out of it and as in cue, the lights of the luxurious place returned.
His eyes had a bit of trouble focusing back to the light. When they did, all he could see was the similar tinted glasses Swatch usually wore. He realized they were a bit too close for him to be comfortable and it increased knowing this was his apartment. What the hell were they doing here?!
Swatch noticed the incommodity of their guest and took a couple of steps back.
“Sorry to have entered without your permission.” They cleared their throat trying to sound as calm as they could be. “I did knock but you didn’t answer, and I have an important message from our Queen to deliver.”
Spamton looked around before focusing on the head butler once again. “SO SORRY [[BIG BIRD]]!” He tried to regain his persona, but Swatch could see he wasn’t fine. “I WAS ATTENDING TO [[Important Calls!]] AND I COULDN’T HEAR YOU.”
Swatch rubbed their neck. The awkwardness of the situation falling on their back.
But they had a task, and they were going to accomplish it.
“As I said before, I have a message for you.” They tried not to look at his confused face. “Queen requests that you leave the premises as soon as possible.” Their voice was strained and kind of rushed but they hoped it was understandable. They didn’t was to repeat that part again.
Both were in complete silence for a couple of seconds which they felt like hours.
“WHAT DO YOU MEAN?” Spamton’s tone filled with incredulity. “IS THIS A [[Jokes on you!!]]?!” He tried to laugh it off. But he could see Swatch’s expression. They were not joking.
“You know I never joke, Master Spamton.” Their head was still filled with so many emotions.
“[[BUT- BUT- BUT- BUT]]” He groaned and took a quick breath trying to ignore the glitch. “COME ON! SWATCH! IT’S ME! YOUR OLD PAL [SPAM-]] SPAMTON!” He brought his hands to his hair and pulled a bit out of desperation.
Spamton couldn’t believe this. Not only his career was done but he had to leave his home too?! What was he going to do now?
A quick thought crossed his mind. No. He could not return to them. And even if he wanted, they wouldn’t… They left that clear last time he saw them.
“I am sorry.” They said genuinely finally sparing a glance at the desperate puppet. “Do you need me to call someone? A friend? Maybe a relative?”
“NO!” Spamton responded immediately and a bit harsher than he intended to. “I… I DON’T…” He didn’t finish that sentence. He didn’t want to remember how alone he actually was.
But that was his fault.
Swatch didn’t know that much about Spamton’s relationship with his brothers other than that they used to work together until Spamton made it big. He never liked to talk about them.
“Don’t you have a place to stay?” They asked without thinking and they covered their mouth when they realized that. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to pry.”
Spamton chuckled at the bird’s always so formal and professional demeanor. He was going to miss that. “DON’T WORRY, [[Friend]]. I WILL FIGURE OUT WHERE TO [[Need a place to stay? Check out these wonderful houses near your area!]]” He sighed and walked past Swatch.
He looked around and began collecting some things. He realized he didn’t own many things. Too much for being a big shot. And thinking about it he didn’t know where he was going so, he guessed he didn’t need to carry that much anyway.
“WELL, IT WAS [Great Offers!]] TO MEET YOU, MY FRIEND.” He gave them a weak smile and offered them a hand.
Their heart clenched at the sight. They knew their job was done. They knew they should leave and just return withing an hour to make sure Queen’s orders were being met. But they couldn’t bring themselves to do it.
They regarded him one last time before their mouth simply stated: “Come with me.”
Whatever thought Spamton had in mind was interrupted by the sudden proposal.
“WHAT?” He was afraid he hadn’t heard them well enough.
Swatch took a deep breath before turning on their heels. They pushed every thought aside making it impossible for them to change their mind. “You are coming with me.” They began collecting whatever the salesman was going to leave behind while fixing the room.
“WHERE?!” His eyes followed their every movement. “WHY?”
“You said you didn’t have a place to stay, right? So, you are staying with me.” Spamton couldn’t believe what he was hearing.
“BUT… I THOUGHT…” Swatch interfered. “Queen said you couldn’t live here but she has no say if you were to stay in my apartment.”
Spamton had no words. He knew better than to accept any offer for free but the sound of not spending his night in search of a place to sleep or in a garbage can was really enticing.
The room was left spotless just as you could expect from the head-butler. They approached the salesman, Spamtons few belongings on a suitcase in one of their wings, the other stretched like an offering for Spamton to take it. “What do you say?”
He looked at them, a kind smile on their beak. He felt something being pulled at the back of his mind. Something warm.
He took their hand.
When they arrived at the butler’s apartment Spamton was still at loss of word. He couldn’t believe Swatch had offered him a place to stay. Don’t get him wrong, he was absolutely grateful to Swatch, but it felt… weird? No, that wasn’t the word. He didn’t know how to put half the things that were running though his head in words.
The place was quite cozy, it wasn’t anything big like Spamton’s last apartment, but it felt warmer. It reminded him of simpler times. A small smile pulled at the corners of his lips.
“Sorry for the mess.” Said Swatch a bit embarrassed while placing down Spamton’s belongings.
A mess?! Where?! This place was the definition of clean. “WHAT DO YOU MEAN A MESS?! YOUR APPARTMENT IS THE PERFECT PICTURE OF [[Problems with house cleaning? Clean your troubles with Queen’s acid products!]]” Spamton internally scolded himself. Swatch smiled at the attempted compliment.
“Thanks.” They made their way to the kitchen while Spamton made himself comfortable on the sofa. They still had things to talk about. “Tea?” Swatch offered and instinctively Spamton shuddered.
“[[REQUEST DENIED]] BUT THANK YOU.”
Swatch retuned to him and sat on the other end of the couch. None said a word. Both had questions but didn’t know where to start.
“SO… HOW IS THIS GOING TO WORK?” Spamton broke the silence.
“Well, I usually live alone but I do own a spare bedroom in case one of the Swatchlings is having a rough night and need company.” They took a sip of their tea. “You can take that room and make whatever adjustments for it to be comfortable enough for you.”
Swatch was being so nice to him… Why?!
The salesman only hummed in agreement and muttered a thanks. Swatch could see he wanted to ask something else. “Is there anything you would like to say?”
Spamton sighed. His eyes fixed on his hands. “I JUST… DON’T UNDERSTANT. WHY ARE YOU BEING [[Nice-Cream! Only $3.55]] TO ME. I ALWAYS THOUGHT YOU FOUND ME ANNOYING.”
Swatch could see why he reached that conclusion. Everyone in the Colour Café and the Mansion thought so too. Their dynamic was quite comical with him being the active salesman and them being the perfectionist butler. But they didn’t hate Spamton. Never could bring themselves to do it.
“I never disliked you, Spamton. Quite the contrary. Sure, you were hard to deal with sometimes, but it was always nice having you there.” They smiled at the memories. “It always lightened the mood whenever you were around.” They look at Spamton’s surprise yet bashful expression.
They did like him?! A warm feeling set on his being. He hadn’t felt that since his family left him. It was comforting knowing that there was still someone who didn’t hate him.
Swatch place the empty cup on the table before talking again. “If you don’t mind me asking…” Their tone was cautious, they knew this was a fresh topic, but they wanted to know. “What went wrong?”
The salesman’s core shook.
“I… IT WAS…” His mind shut, static running in his eyes again, reflecting though the glasses.
He wasn’t ready. No. He didn’t really have an answer. One day he was at the top of the world and the next one he was nobody. Once again. He could hear the ringing in his head but knew he couldn’t reach it. He will never reach it again.
Swatch took notice of this response and felt guilt forming in their stomach. They shouldn’t have asked that. Not yet. What were they thinking?
They placed a tender wing on Spamton’s hand, the puppet coming out of his trance state. He was about to apologize but the bird beat him to it.
“I am so sorry. I should have known better. It won’t happen again.”
“[[Apology Noticed.]] But you don’t have to apologize. It’s nothing important anyway.” He left it there. He knew it was the best he could give them at the moment. Maybe eventually he could…
“I will show you your room now so you can get comfortable and get a good rest.” Swatch got up and began walking towards one of the doors. Spamton followed him and they entered the room. The butler turning the light on. “I know it’s not quite what you have been accustomed to, but I hope you can get the rest you deserve.”
As they said, it wasn’t anything spectacular, but it gave Spamton “Swatch vibes”, if that made sense. He could feel Swatch’s presence in the room, and it relaxed him.
“SWATCH?” Spamton got the attention of his host. “IT’S PERFECT.” He got on the bed, with a bit of effort, but he got it. “ALSO… MIND LOSING THE FORMALITIES? I KNOW IT WAS THE [[Relationship advice!]] WE USED TO HAVE BUT I AM NOT-” He paused himself. It hurt even thinking that he wasn’t as big as he was before.
Swatch was a bit surprised. They always talked like that when referring to a guest and right now that’s what Spamton was, but their circumstances were different.
Spamton looked at Swatch with sadness in his eyes. Maybe he was inquiring a bit too much from their previous talk? What if it was just them giving him some generosity? He couldn’t help but ask. “ARE WE FRIENDS?”
They laughed lightly. Spamton really was something else. “Of course, we are.” He sat beside him on bed and placed a hand on his shoulder. “And I swear I will do my best to use a less formal language when I am with you.” Spamton could still hear a bit of that tone, but somehow, he knew they were going to keep that promise and that couldn’t make him happier.
Swatch made sure everything was in order, wishing Spamton had a good night, before retiring to their own room where they could finally relax.
They laid in bed thinking about the number of things that happened in the last hours. They didn’t regret any of it, of course. But they couldn’t help but wonder what was going to happen to them from now on.
Well, they will have to find out together.