Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Posey looked down at the piece of paper as it sat down at its seat in the back of the class. It hesitated, praying to whatever God above had veered it’s life into eternal damnation as it opened up the gag-inducing paper slip.

Luthier Stradivarius

Quickly shoving the paper into its mouth it chewed and swallowed. Despite being a seasoned paper eater the wretched object still left a sour taste in its mouth. Maybe it was the ink. 

Maybe it was something else.

As Posey looked to the front of the class doll’s heart plummeted down to the depths of despair it saw the familiar head of kinky, bleached hair with a selection of bobby pins keeping the unruly mass in check. Primmed, poised…

Perfect.

Luthier… 

This was a sick joke of the universe, doll decided. 

Hell was real, and Posey’s eternal damnation came in the form of the annual Secret Santa for every single high school class in Sanity.

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Its mouth felt dry as the rest of the school day. No amount of water could distract it from the truth. 

Calm down Posey, it’s not the end of the world.

A rational, meek voice talked in the back of its turbulent head.

You’ll figure this one out, just like you figured out Prom last year.

Posey cringed inwardly, feeling like a sponge being strained. This was not as consequenceless as skipping out completely on the Prom Committee meetings and Prom by extension. It had to participate.

And Luthier had to like the present Posey had gotten for them. Something about Luthier looking down at a failed offering made its heart rate spike. 

In a sort of, morally ambiguous kind of manner.

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It had only been a few days but people had already figured out their own Secret Santa’s and had pounced at the moment to present it. To be fair, it was much easier to do when you actually talked to people outside of yourself in a way that didn’t instigate physical brawls in the hallway. Getting along with people didn’t seem to be in Posey’s skill set, despite its impressive range of abilities. 

But aside from the unhealthy social abilities that didn’t include lying and sucking up to authority figures, Posey was completely lost on what to do. 

Would Luth like a book?

A knife?

They did stab it one time in 2nd grade. 

Maybe a cassette? Of jazz music, maybe, Attley had liked that last year.

But Attley was being homeschooled this year, Posey reminded herself. And was not the target of its Secret Santa.

Wait. 

Attley!

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Attley was evidently more than excited to let Posey in, for any reason. It just hoped it wouldn’t have to stay for dinner this time around. Knowing the Grimshaws though, the chance was never zero. 

Yet, despite the comfort of Attley’s bedroom floor, with college paperwork strewn around, he couldn’t quite get comfortable. 

“I just- ugh! I don’t know what to get them! I have no point for reference!”

Attley frowned, looking at Posey.

“Alright, I think you’re stressing out too much about this. C’mon- You’re Posey! You always figure people out!”

Posey growled, stomping on the face of the cute bear carpet attley had set down ages ago. 

“But I can’t do that with Luthier , trust me I’ve tried,” It snarled, continuing to pace, “Anything I could possibly give to them, is way above my pay grade! I can’t get them fencing equipment or like, a new instrument!”

“Not with that attitude maybe!”

Posey stopped, turning to fully face Attley.

“Attley.”

It gripped its best friend's shoulders, digging its fingernails into their flesh.

“Posey,” Attley squeaked, their grin faltering for just a quick moment. 

“I am not going to get Luthier an entire Cello.”

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Whether it wanted to or not, Posey stood in front of a music store. This was obviously not the best idea, but it could be the source for some inspiration. 

The inside of the store was a warm welcome compared to the bitter wind outside. It held a cozy glow, with arrays of instruments hung on the walls. Mostly acoustic guitars, if Posey was being completely honest. 

What truly drew Posey’s eyes, was the discounted prices on a few instruments. It might not be a Cello but Luthier was musically inclined so it could be something. 

However, Posey had severely underestimated the costliness of the average instrument. Even on a ten-percent discount for the holidays. 

This store… was so expensive. 

It barely contained its growling as it strutted out the main door and back into the cold, just as the first few drops of rain came down. 

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They couldn’t help but feel a little cheerful, at this time of year. Despite the mostly empty house they lived in, it still brought in that Holiday cheer. Even with the gloom and rain, they had an umbrella at the ready and were almost set to get a taxi home. 

All they had to do was make one last stop before that. Though it didn’t bring them any joy. 

Still, after a few minutes later and a present tucked in between their other bags, they felt satisfied. Maybe even a little proud of themself. 

After all, they thought to themself, it could be a christmas miracle--

They couldn’t process much as they turned around and slammed directly into someone. The person seemed to be completely weightless as they fell flat onto their back and into a puddle. 

“Oh- Oh shoot! I am so so sorry about that--” They couldn’t help leaning down and offering their hand to the sopping wet poor soul.

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“Ugh it’s fine I-” Posey got up, the cold water seeping through the layer of their clothing and biting into its bones.

“Should’ve seen where I was going,” It grumbled, only now looking up at the person who had offered their gloved hand. 

Only one word came to Posey’s mind.

“Ew.”

Luthier balked, pulling their hand back and huffing, quickly regaining their demeanor. 

“Excuse me?!” They snapped as Posey stood up weakly, “What are you even doing here?”

“Can’t a guy just take a walk?” Posey said, checking its palms for any scrapes, only finding that the tips of its fingers had turned bright red a long time ago.

“I- Wait, do you live by here?” Luthier replied. They seemed a little confused and looked Posey up and down as it stuffed its hands into the pockets of its jacket.

“Uh, yes?” 

“... Oh.”

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They both stood there. The air didn’t get lighter as the rain got heavier and Posey almost huddled under Luth’s umbrella for some sort of protection. 

Luth didn’t have to look down to be able to tell how badly Posey was shivering.

It didn’t help how short Posey was compared to, anyone, but in this case it was Luthier. They couldn’t help but smirk with superiority. 

“Mind if I walk you home?” They said, bending down a little to be eye level with Posey.

“And why would you do that?” It glowered, stepping back out from the safety of the umbrella.

“Think of it as community service,” They grinned, pulling Posey in and linking their elbows, “Now lead the way!”

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Luthier didn’t know what they expected, but they weren’t sure if it was the old apartment building with laundry lines and broken balcony railings. But they had come here to pay a debt.

Sort of.

The small teen shuffled away from them and to the apartments, casting a glance back to them. Luth wasn’t sure how to respond, but stiffly gave Posey a wave as it turned away.

The path back home was simple, they knew where to go from here. Luth turned around and started to trudge through the rain. Lights from the open shops glistened on the wet pavement, and families still meandered around with laughing children and soon to be parents.

The rain had let up a little bit, letting them relax and call their sister.

“Nicola?”

“Hey, Luthy-lu! Look at you! It’s not even past 8!”

They sighed softly, “Can you pick me up? I’m not going to get a taxi out here…”

“Uh…”

The hesitation let them know all they needed to, almost hanging up the call.

“It’s OK, Doghouse can pick you up!” Nicola reasoned.

Doghouse?

“He’s in town? I thought he’d come tomorrow?” They replied, trying to not let their excitement seep into their voice.

“Turns out he’s a day early!”

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There was something about each other. It was like all the pieces had been set in front of them but they just couldn’t puzzle the other together.

To Luth, Posey was frustrating. A nervous animal backed into the corner that bit at any hand that reached out, with no regard for its original intent. Sometimes willfully it would bite.

To Posey, Luth was unreachable. They seemed to be on the other side of an ice wall, aloof and careless.

They weren’t sure what to think of the other, but both quickly jumped into a rivalry. Most of the time they didn’t know what they were fighting about, but simply enjoyed the rush of animosity.

It was definitely a dynamic that confused their peers, but one that both enjoyed to some extent.

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Posey stood stumped, staring at the inside of his own locker and grumbling. It turned around to see other students chatting, wearing “ugly” holiday sweaters knit by parents or grandparents, wearing fake antlers, and generally enjoying themselves.

Maybe Posey could get Luthier a sweater. Though that was hardly a good gift, even if Posey knew which size to get the sweater in.

It pondered this question intensely, shifting the weight of its bag as it began to ascend the stairs.

Through the fog of its own thoughts it barely was able to tell where it was going until it slammed into the chest of a familiar cinnamon and wood shaving scented person. It stepped back to apologize before losing its footing and missing a step.

Posey barely had a moment to think before it ended up tumbling halfway down a flight of stairs.

“We have got to stop running into each other like this,” Luth said, hopping down to Posey as it checked itself over, “You really need to be more careful where you’re heading, you know?”

It only managed to make a gruff snort in response, rolling up the leg of its pants to check the throbbing pain in its knee and shin.

“Oh that’s not good,” Luth continued, squatting next to Posey to look at its bloody knee. They didn’t have to be so close.

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It breathed in, gathering its courage and turned to what it knew best-

“Yeah, no shit Sherlock,” It snapped, turning around to face Luthier with a hiss. They help up their hands in mock surrender.

“Should I walk you again, or something,” They grumbled.

Posey rolled its eyes, “Ugh, absolutely not I’ll clean this up and I’ll get going. No thanks to you-”

“Hey! It was an accident-” They growled.

“Sure- whatever.”

“I’m even offering to help!” Luth continued complaining, shuffling around in their back pack for something.

“Well maybe I don’t want your help, asshole!” Posey said as it pulled itself back up, resisting the urge to shove Luth.

“Well maybe I shouldn’t offer help to you, cause you fucking hate my guts for no reason!”

Posey flinched as Luth’s voice echoed through the now empty hallways, their volume surprising it. Its mouth felt dry as Luth kept on looking for something in their backpack, grumbling and muttering as they did so.

“I don’t hate you…”

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Luth seemed genuinely confused as Posey finally looked up to meet their face. Their jaw was set and tense, eyes flickering from side to side as whatever they had been looking for was forgotten. But despite the silence, the air seemed to have a buzz to it.

Tension only grew between them as Posey fully stood up, leaning against the wall. It didn’t even look back to see if Luth was standing there.

Still, it could feel their eyes on the back of its head. The only thing it could do was grip onto the stair’s railing as it pulled itself up.

“Wait- I-”

Posey turned around to look at Luth, keeping itself steady.

Luth didn’t meet its eye as they handed it a small My Little Pony brand band-aid. Unexpected but not unwelcome.

“Do you carry these around everywhere?” It let itself ask.

“For fencing, just in case,” They muttered, “Just take it.”

“Ok…”

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It held the band-aid in its hand, turning it over again and again. Posey didn’t use the band-aid, it interested it far too much to just waste it like that.

But it helped, somewhat, to have noticed the band-aid and kept it. It helped Posey notice and realized what Luth did or didn’t like. The wrinkle of disgust as they scrunched up their nose, and the preference for ballpoint pens that clicked away instead of having caps.

Posey felt like it was struck by a lightning bolt, its senses tingling as it filed away the small bits of information it collected.