Chapter Text
As a young troll stirs awake from a restless nap, she finds herself ruminating in the half destroyed remains of her hive.
Ena has a dilemma. The very root of it? An infuriating, absolutely perplexing rustblood named Mizuki.
She’s known them since grubhood, meeting by chance on a forum, arguing for hours about literally everything they could think of.
In other words, they became fast friends. Their occasional chats turned into a daily thing, and before she knew it the mere sight of their trollhandle became something of a comfort to her. A sweep and a half passed before they had their first offline meeting, and it all went downhill from there. Well, not really, they didn’t break their friendship off or anything. She’s just being dramatic.
The two of them became closer. Attached to the hip even.
That doesn’t seem like much of a problem, is what people would usually say. Isn’t getting along even more a good thing? Usually it is, but they’re dead fucking wrong in this case, because they’ve failed to consider two things:
One, Mizuki is an unfairly attractive troll with a very sharp smile.
Two, seeing said smile while they banter back and forth without a chat client separating them is not doing any favors for her fickle bloodpusher.
She came to a conclusion about a perigee ago. That maybe she hates them, just a tiny bit, though it’s probably just a passing crush. Probably.
Oh, who is she kidding. She’s a complete hatestruck dumbass when it comes to them.
So yes, as embarrassing as it is to admit, she definitely hates Mizuki. After sweeps of seeing the way they smirk at her, all teasing and smugly confident, how they know which spots to poke over and over until her blood boils over in an irritated shout— how could she not hate them? All the little things contributed to this growing, roiling ball of pitch attraction that keeps her coming back to them for more.
They’re annoying, and Ena wants nothing more but to sink her fangs into their lips to shut them up, and maybe, just maybe, they’d be a little miffed that they got one-upped that they’d have no choice but to retalia-
Ena shakes her head and slaps her already warming cheeks. one glance at the black screen of her husktop just confirms her suspicions of how bronze her face is becoming. Eugh. Feelings. It makes her want to rip out her stupid bloodpusher beating black and throw it as far away as she can.
Her head swivels to the distant wail of one of her salamander consorts flopping on its face. That was probably Archie. Poor guy, he’s always been so clumsy.
Wait. Salamander consorts. SGRUB.
Right. She's a troll on a mission. It's time to get her thinkpan screwed on straight and check how the others are doing.
She boots up her husktop and scans the messages her teammates sent her.
-- lukewarmSyncopate [LS] began trolling exultantTempest [ET] at 13:44 --
LS: enanan,,,,
LS: you there?
-- exultantTempest [ET] is an idle troll! --
LS: ah,,,,,,,,,,,,,
LS: ;~;
LS: ,,,,,,anyway
LS: yuki and i are about halfway through with the frogs,,,,
LS: theyre very,,,,, elusive
LS: i think,,,,, theyre a little scared of her
LS: also,,,, we found a thing ;o;
LS: a weird cocoon,,,,,, inside it had a black slab with a swirl on it,,,,,,
LS: seems important,,,,, but we have no idea what it means ;-;
LS: thats pretty much the only things on our end,,,,,,
LS: well let you and amia know if we need more help,,,,,,
LS: ill talk to you later,,,,,
-- lukewarmSyncopate [LS] ceased trolling exultantTempest [ET] at 13:47 --
Just usual game updates with Kanade. She types back an apologetic response and promises to lend a hand next time. Then something catches her eye.
Strange. Mizuki’s completely silent, but stranger still, Mafuyu isn’t. She rarely messages anyone first outside of the group memos.
She clicks on the log.
-- reticentAcquiesence [RA] began trolling exultantTempest [ET] at 14:35 --
RA: [Enanan.]
RA: [I need to talk to you.]
RA: [This is a little urgent.]
-- exultantTempest [ET] is an idle troll! --
RA: [...]
RA: [Of all the times to be off your husktop...]
RA: :o|
RA: [Have you seen Amia within the last six hours?]
RA: [They haven’t been online for a while, and whenever I try to check on them from the server interface my view is sort of obscured.]
RA: [Not quite a blackout... just enough smears of darkness to keep them hidden.]
RA: [So that’s new.]
RA: [...K’s getting worried.]
RA: [Get back to me as soon as you can.]
-- exultantTempest [ET] is no longer an idle troll! --
ET: WHAT
ET: What do you MEAN you cant SEE THEM???
ET: Youre LITERALLY their server player THATS YOUR JOB
RA: [Well hello to you too.]
RA: [They’re either purposely avoiding us using their voidy powers,]
RA: [Or there’s something else interfering.]
RA: [I’d rather figure this out as quickly as possible.]
RA: [We have enough on our plate as it is.]
ET: Shit
ET: Something ELSE???
ET: I dont like the sound of that
ET: Because almost EVERYTHING in this STUPID GAME wants to kill us
RA: [Yeah. It's exactly why things could go very badly.]
RA: [Let’s just hope they’re just being distant for whatever reason.]
RA: [Have you talked to them at all?]
ET: Well I DID...... right before I took a nap
ET: Said they were going to go on a side quest their consorts wanted them to do
ET: Or something
ET: Not that I care
RA: [Ok.]
ET: Ugh what is that dumbass DOING???
ET: I dont know if theyve figured their powers out well enough to DO that kind of shit
ET: But its either THAT or some omnipotent weirdo FUCKING WITH US
ET: >:T
ET: I should probably message them
ET: Just to make sure theyre not dying or anything
ET: Oh GOD Amias not dying are they
RA: [Last I checked, they were in a fight in some ruins in their planet.]
ET: Theyre WHAT
ET: WHY DIDNT YOU SAY THAT SOONER
RA: [They seemed like they were doing alright.]
ET: Are they REALLY?
RA: [From what I could tell.]
ET: You JUST said you couldnt SEE SHIT!!!
RA: [I saw enough.]
ET: Thats not very REASSURING you know!!!!
RA: :o|
ET: That damn emoji...
ET: Ok LOOK I know what youre thinking
ET: Im not WORRYING
RA: [But you are.]
ET: NO IM NOT
ET: They can take care of themself
ET: I KNOW that
ET: But... I just
ET: UGH nevermind its stupid anyway
RA: [...I think I understand.]
ET: You do???
RA: [Yes.]
RA: [We might have a similar experience.]
ET: >:?
RA: [All I’m saying is, it’s perfectly normal to worry about your moirail.]
RA: [Especially in situations like these.]
ET: my w
ET: WHTA
ET: ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR FAYGO INFESTED THINKPAN
RA: [...Did I say something wrong?]
ET: YOU FUCKING THINK????
ET: MIZUKI AND I ARENT LIKE THAT FUCK OFF
RA: [......]
RA: [You’re not moirails?]
RA: :o|?
ET: NO
ET: FUCK
ET: IM HORNS OVER STRUT PODS IN *SPADES* WITH THEM
ET: NOT DIAMONDS
RA: [Ok.]
ET: .........You dont fucking believe me at all do you
RA: [I don’t think it should matter that much. Your quadrant issues aren’t any of my business.]
RA: [Quadrants aside, Amia won’t talk to either me or K, but they might talk to you since you’re closest to them.]
RA: [Go after them. We got sidetracked long enough.]
-- reticentAcquiesence [RA] ceased trolling exultantTempest [ET] at 14:53 --
Mizuki? Her moirail? Un-fucking-believable! Who the hell does that stuck-up clown think she is, making assumptions like that?
There’s a low growl in her throat as she puts her extremely warm and bronze face in her hands. Whatever. Maybe she started to feel a little terrible whenever she sees their face contort ever so slightly in pain. Maybe she started wanting to hold them in her arms more instead of antagonizing them. That doesn’t mean anything. Ena still hates them. That spark of animosity flaring up when they smirk at her, wanting to get back at them when they start to tease her and rile her up, it’s all still there.
She’s not pale for Mizuki, not when she’s still black for them. That doesn’t happen, ever.
(yes it does)
She knows how quadrants should work, and it’s definitely not like this.
(quadrant vacillation is very much a real thing, though)
She has this all under control.
(you are going to have your horns handed to you, girl)
Ena is not a religious troll by any means but by the Mirthful Motherfucking Messiahs above can the voice in her head shut her metaphorical protein chute for a minute?!
(sheesh alright. just saying though, you should probably listen to what i’m saying)
Shut up, me. Now.
(shutting up)
Thank you Logical Thinkpancell Ena. Let a girl stew in denial for a while, alright?
Ugh, she feels a headache coming on. Stupid quadrant bullshit. The bronzeblood slaps her cheeks lightly. As much as she’d like to just march over to their planet, she needs to message them first. She’s practically vibrating with anxious energy but she still doesn’t want to just make a fool of herself if it turned out she was worrying over nothing.
It wouldn’t hurt to get a head start though…
She shuts her husktop down and puts it away in her sylladex. Ena starts walking in the direction of the gate, palmhusk in her grasp. That way she could easily hop to LOMAR if she needed to.
-- exultantTempest [ET] began trolling contextualAmiability [CA] at 15:08 --
ET: God DAMN IT Amia where are you
ET: Youre not doing anything STUPID are you???
ET: We AGREED to keep each other updated EVERY THREE HOURS after that whole near-death fiasco with K
ET: And Yuki said its been about SIX HOURS since youve said a WORD to anyone
ET: Also we need to talk about your voidy powers later
ET: Theres things we need to unpack about that
ET: But enough about that
ET: Come on Mizuki
ET: Can you at LEAST RESPOND so I know youre not DYING IN A DITCH SOMEWHERE
She looks up to the sky as she continues her trek, holding her palmhusk close to her chest.
And she waits.
A couple of seconds go by.
Nothing happens.
Then she hears the familiar ping! of a Trollian notification.
-- contextualAmiability [CA] is an idle troll! –-
ET: Oh for FUCKS SAKE
ET: That does it
ET: Im gonna drag your ass back whether you like it or not
ET: Even if I have to search EVERY INCH of your planet
ET: ...........
ET: ....Stay safe alright?
ET: I havent even thanked you yet. For that outfit you alchemized for me
ET: So you better be alive and let me return the favor!!
ET: See you later loser <
ET: Fuck
ET: That was a TYPO OK dont worry about it bye
-- exultantTempest [ET] ceased trolling contextualAmiability [CA] at 15:17 –-
She forcefully captchalogues her palmhusk, almost slamming it into her sylladex. From a few feet away, Archie the salamander finally picked himself up from the ground with the help of the other consorts and is staring at her, his tiny head tiled to the side. She doesn't even notice and picks up her pace, her thoughts running as fast as her strut pods.
Oh God I almost sent them a quadrant emoji oh shit Ena you grub-fisted idiot—
Was she going to send a <3< ? Maybe a <> instead? She doesn’t know. Sending either symbol to Mizuki makes her want to break something in half. Her pump-biscuit starts beating in earnest to the beat of her footsteps and emotional turmoil.
Maybe she already knows the right answer and she just doesn’t want to admit it. In the back of her mind, an irritatingly sound and logical thought makes itself known:
You know, maybe Mafuyu had a point. Those messages I sent to Mizuki were embarrassingly pale.
She promptly squashes the thought as she reaches the gate, panting heavily. No time for all of that.
Not when she has a possibly-in-danger, would-be kismesis/moirail to hunt down.