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Y/n stood with his hands behind his back, gripping them together. His guitar hung from the strap and kept hitting his thighs. The guitar moved every few seconds because he was shaking.
Swiss was dressed up as Terzo and used his power to make his voice sound just like Terzo. If Y/n didn't know it was Swiss, he would have believed the performance.
Swiss did a whole speech about handing his mantle to Copia, praising the man who was taking his spot. It made Y/n sick to the stomach to hear and he had to stop himself from tearing his claws through his gloves. They were brand new, just like their masks and costumes. He couldn't rip them yet.
Copia and the fake Terzo did their on stage exchange before Copia started the main event of the ritual.
The whole time they were performing, Y/n would move away from Copia if he had gotten near. He could see Aether watching him from the other side of the stage, seemingly trying to send him a message to knock it off. Y/n ignored him, which led to the larger Ghoul to come over to him.
Y/n could tell the fans were eating it up, taking it as sass. To them, it was a show. They had no idea what had really happened. Y/n tilted his head at Aether, who bumped their hips together. Y/n took a deep breath at the movement.
"Be good." Y/n could barely hear it over the music and the earpiece in his ear.
Y/n frowned but didn't reply. He knew it wasn't an idle comment. It was a warning. Mess this up and they're all in trouble.
Y/n simply bumped Aether back before moving to his next position. It was next to Copia and Y/n wanted to absolutely disappear. Copia looked at Y/n and put a hand on his back. Y/n tensed up and turned his head towards the new Papa.
Copia gave a small smile to Y/n before taking his hand back and walking away.
Y/n watched as the man walked across the stage and let out the breath he was holding.
-
Y/n stepped into his hotel room and let the door click softly shut behind him.
Y/n stood with the closed door behind him for a second before he actually moved into the hotel room. It was decently sized and held a single bed. He tossed his jacket and helmet onto the bed idly before standing at the foot of the bed. He blankly stared at the bed, his eyes unfocusing. He could feel the anger and pooling energy bubble inside of him.
With a sudden loud scream, Y/n grabbed his helmet and tossed it across the room. It hit the wall with a crack and he didn't care to look at it.
Y/n picked up one of the boxes of assorted snacks he had on his desk and threw it at the wall also. He then grabbed the lamp and threw it with another scream.
Y/n turned and punched the wall; not hard enough to break it, but to hurt his hand. He held his fist against the wall for a second as the angry energy left his body and left him with the ungodly feeling of exhaustion and pain.
He missed Terzo. He didn't want to work with Copia. The others were in pain, but they were seemingly moving on too quickly. Y/n didn't understand how they could stand to see the Papas dying and then accept the man who replaced the last one. It wasn't fair. Terzo wasn't ready and Y/n wasn't either.
Y/n didn't realize he was crying until he slowly dropped his fist and slid to the floor. He sat on his knees and closed his eyes.
He couldn't do this.
Y/n let himself cry until he heard a soft knock on his door and someone let themselves in. Y/n knew it was a Ghoul and didn't move as they came in quietly. Y/n only opened his eyes and looked up when they stepped in front of him.
Y/n looked up to see Cirrus kneeling in front of him. She had her mask off, showing her dark brunette hair and lightly glowing eyes. Her hair was curly and didn't seem to obey physics. She looked slightly older, but not like the others were.
Cirrus put her hand on Y/n's cheek and smiled at him.
"I know it's hard." Cirrus spoke quietly to Y/n. "It was hard when Secondo gave his title to Terzo. He left the monastery and went off the map. No one knew where he went."
Y/n didn't understand what Cirrus was trying to say, but he listened.
"I cried for days. He had taken me and Cumulus in together. He saved us from a bad situation at the time. He was a miserable man, but he was kind to us." Cirrus smiled as she spoke about Secondo. "Most people didn't get along with him. Aether didn't. But we all understand how you feel. Seeing Secondo dead hurt so much more than when he disappeared."
Y/n blinked at Cirrus as she tucked a strand of hair out of his face.
"You're not alone. We all lost someone, but this wasn't the first time we've lost them. We also didn't have the same relationship as you did with Terzo." Cirrus took Y/n's hands and helped him up. "Copia doesn't want you to be upset with him. Please don't blame this on him."
"He had to know." Y/n whispered back once they were standing.
"But you don't know that." Cirrus shook her head. "You have to talk to him."
"Do I have to?" Y/n asked as Cirrus let go of his hands to pick up his mask.
Cirrus inspected the mask and Y/n could see one of the horns broke. The right eye piece was also cracked. Y/n felt regret over throwing the mask.
"You do." Cirrus nodded before handing him his mask. "If you don't, Aether will make you. Him or Swiss."
Y/n didn't want to have to deal with that.
"I'll do it." Y/n sighed and put his mask on. He looked to Cirrus, who was now grinning.
"Great. It'll be the first step in making you feel better." Cirrus turned away and Y/n could have sworn she was Satan himself if he hadn't known she wasn't him; but a messenger of him.
Y/n quietly sighed as he followed her towards the door.
-
Y/n had found Copia flipping through a Cosmo magazine in their tour bus.
The man didn't have any makeup on besides the makeup around his eyes; the same he had before he became Papa IV. Y/n could see how old he was without his makeup, but he still looked good for his age like Terzo did. Copia seemed to notice Y/n standing in the tour bus door and looked up.
"Bonfire. Hello!" Copia offered a smile. "How are you tonight? I heard from Swiss that you've caused a ruckus. Are you okay?"
"I've had a rough night." Y/n felt slightly defensive under Copia's gaze. He felt slightly uncomfortable and like the man was analyzing him. He knew he wasn't, but it felt like it.
"I know. It's been rough since Sister had the Papas killed." Copia nodded and closed his magazine. He looked almost… sympathetic. "Terzo was my friend. My brother. We grew up in the monastery together."
"You two were friends?" Y/n frowned. How could Copia call him a friend? "Then why did you kill him?"
Copia blinked at Y/n with shock. His mouth opened slightly but closed like he was at a loss for words. They just stared at each other before Copia spoke up.
"Is that what you think? Is that why you avoided me on stage?" Copia sounded offended.
"Yes. You seemed so gleeful when they told us you were the new Papa. On stage you were so… easy going with the whole idea." Y/n waved a hand through the air.
"Bonfire," Copia folded his hands on top of the Cosmo mag. Y/n realized Copia was using his given name, not his stage name. "I did not know of the deaths until afterwards. Sister and Papa told me that I was being given the title right before you all showed up. Once you all left us, they had me go arrange the bodies to be moved. That was how I found out."
"So you didn't know?" Y/n frowned. He couldn't believe it.
"Would I kill my brothers for a chance to be on stage?" Copia asked but didn't wait for an answer. "No. I cared too much about their success and The Olde One's approval of them."
Y/n felt embarrassed now.
He was blaming their deaths on Copia the whole time when in reality, it was Papa Nihil and Sister Imperator. The two orchestrated the whole ordeal.
"I'm sorry I thought ill of you." Y/n apologized and felt a nasty emotion bubble within him. He could feel the other's worry briefly.
Copia stood up and held his hands out to Y/n, taking the man's hands into his own. Copia frowned slightly at Y/n, as if he was perplexed about something.
"You had no idea. How were you supposed to know that the dickhead and Sister were going to do that?" Copia's blatant disrespect surprised Y/n for a second. "You're allowed to be upset. I am upset with them, but I would much rather you take your anger out on me than them."
Y/n felt his lips quiver slightly as he opened his mouth, tears starting to form in his eyes. Copia let go of one hand and brought his up to the broken horn on Y/n's mask. Y/n could slightly feel the man's finger as he touched the damage.
"Did you do this during your commotion?" Copia asked and let his fingers ghost over the mask then the crack in the lense. His hand ended up on Y/n's cheek.
"I threw it." Y/n sniffled and Copia nodded.
"It will be okay." Copia patted Y/n's cheek and offered him a small smile. "We will be okay."
Y/n nodded and let Copia pull him into a hug. Y/n closed his eyes as he pressed his mouth into Copia's shoulder and clung onto him.
He was never close to Copia while Terzo was alive. They had only talked in short sentences and hellos. Sometimes Copia would put his hand onto Y/n's shoulder like he did to the others to make them feel better. It was never enough to feel the man's emotions and be connected.
But in this moment, Y/n wished that he had spent time with him. Maybe it would have stopped the crippling guilt he felt for blaming the man for everything. Y/n didn't know anything about him truly, and it made him feel like shit. He could feel the other ghouls lightly prodding him from wherever they were in the area, their concern pushing at the edge of his consciousness like they were trying to ask what was wrong.
Copia slowly let Y/n go and leveled their heads to the same level to look each other in the eyes.
"You look tired, my dear." Copia gave a soft smile to Y/n. "How about you get some sleep. We're leaving early in the morning."
Y/n just nodded and wiped his nose with the sleeve of his shirt. Copia nodded and patted his shoulders.
Y/n had turned around and left without another word, walking back to the hotel and up to his room. He was glad it was on the second floor so he didn't have to walk much. He unlocked his door and slipped inside, taking his outer garments off and throwing them onto the suitcase next to his bed.
Y/n stripped down to his boxers and a T-shirt before crawling into his bed.
He couldn't help but feel self pity and regret as he laid there, bundled in his blankets. He ignored the other ghouls and their prodding, opting to close his eyes and curl up instead.
It didn't take long for one of the others to slip into his room without knocking. He could smell freshly cut grass and leaves as the Ghoul moved throughout the room. His senses were finally sharpening up more since he wasn't a newly created ghoul.
Y/n knew it was Mountain. The man didn't speak as much and generally kept to himself or with Swiss, so it was surprising that the ghoul was in his room.
The bed dipped and Y/n cracked his eyes open to see that Mountain was wearing a sweatshirt and sweatpants as he got onto the bed. His mask was off like Y/n. He had a more concerned expression as he crawled to Y/n. Y/n blinked up at him, letting go of the blankets as Mountain pulled them up to crawl underneath.
Y/n shivered slightly as Mountain curled his body around Y/n. He was colder than Y/n was, which was to be expected since Y/n was a fire ghoul. The two didn't speak as Mountain finished wrapping himself around Y/n, pulling the blankets back over them and tucking his head into Y/n's neck.
Y/n could feel his worry and want to comfort Y/n. It made Y/n slowly smile as he closed his eyes. His negative emotions slowly metaled away as he enjoyed Mountain's presence. It made him feel safe and the man always had a calming energy to him.
"Are you feeling better?" Mountain's voice eventually grumbled and Y/n hummed in response.
"A bit, yeah." Y/n mumbled as he pressed his face into one of Mountain's hands.
"That's good, little Bonfire." Mountain placed a small kiss under Y/n's ear.
Y/n smiled and closed his eyes again.
-
Y/n stood next to Copia and Aether as some of the Brothers and Sisters who were assigned to the band crew rushed around them.
In front of them was a woman who was asking questions. She was a reporter who was doing an interview for a local paper. She was polite, but her questions were rather passive aggressive and she seemed like she would rather be anywhere else.
It was a shame that Phil had disappeared after the Papas died. Y/n found out after a while that the Special Ghoul was the one who normally did interviews. He was specifically created for that reason by Nihil, as the man preferred to not make public appearances directly.
Y/n could tell that Copia would prefer to be literally anywhere else right now. He was fidgeting. Y/n and Aether held their hands behind their backs like some sort of military pose. The lady sometimes glanced at them before finally asking about them.
"So, your Ghouls, as you have called them. Do they have any other jobs than being band mates?" The woman asked. "They look so diligent as they stand there. With Papa the Third they never talked."
"Oh, the Ghouls?" Copia glanced towards them and the two tilted their heads slightly. "They're my fellow bandmates. They're not the most talkative bunch, surprisingly. They're wonderful bandmates though."
"I remember years ago that there was a specific one for interviews. What happened to him? Unless he's just one of the ones we see performing on stage." She asked. Copia shifted again.
"He is taking a break. His personal life is having some bumps right now, and we're all human and need breaks." Copia's response was mild and if Y/n didn't know better he would believe it.
"Oh, well I hope his personal life gets better." The lady frowned at it, obviously disappointed she didn't get anything interesting.
The interview ended a few minutes later and Y/n visibly relaxed as the lady left. All of the Brothers and Sisters briefly paused as she walked out of the room. They all turned to Copia and the two Ghouls to see their reaction.
Copia sighed and turned towards the two.
"That could have gone better." Copia seemingly grumbled about it.
"She was a bitch." Aether shrugged. "She obviously didn't want to be here and was trying to bait you. I wouldn't sweat it."
Y/n watched as the Brothers and Sisters went back to their work. He wasn't paying much attention to the two as they discussed something. He was just watching the others work. Y/n was wondering if things had gone differently if he could have just become a Brother of Sin instead.
An odd feeling came over him at the thought. He didn't know how to feel about it. He loved being a Ghoul, but sometimes it was tiring.
Aether nudged Y/n out of his thoughts and he blinked towards the larger Ghoul. Aether was glancing at Y/n as Copia talked about preparations. Copia seemed to notice the movement and glanced to Y/n.
Y/n tried to pay attention now, listening to Copia talking about how they're going to have to learn new songs and choreography soon. It made Y/n feel slightly dread and he could feel Aether's slightly internal sigh. They had just learned new songs and choreography. Why were they changing it again?
Y/n knew why, he was just tired.
"Alrighty. That's all I have to say." Copia gave them a slight smile and patted them on their shoulders.
Y/n felt a light brush of a proud emotion and smiled. He could finally feel Copia.
-
The Ghouls were all piled up, sans Sunshine, inside a large pile of blankets and pillows they had all piled up on the floor of their tour bus. They were all lazily tangled in a pile and all half asleep.
It was raining outside and they had the rest of the night off due to the show being postponed by a day. It was pushed back because part of the ceiling fell in and it took a few lights with it. The repairman wouldn't be there until the morning. Thankfully it was the second to last stop and the final stop was a few days out.
So they got a night off. It was a nice change of pace and they felt bad for the fans, but they needed it.
The murder of Ghouls were happily dozing off together, a few making low grumbling noises that reminded Y/n of cats purring. He could feel their content and happiness, it was infecting him and making him feel warm on the inside.
The door to the tour bus opened and the more awake Ghouls all cracked a glowing eye open, slightly illuminating the dark room. They watched the door as Sunshine shuffled in with someone behind her.
"Be careful, it's dark." Sunshine softly told the person. Y/n noticed the lights were actually off and that it was just his eyesight making it dimly lit.
Y/n sniffled slightly and he could smell the scent of a soft cologne and feel someone on edge. Their emotions were distant and felt like an injured bird hopping around.
Copia.
Y/n opened both of his eyes and stretched slightly as Aether's arms adjusted around his waist. Y/n blinked and watched as Copia stood behind Sunshine, rubbing his eyes and squinting as he looked at the glowing eyes watching him.
"Oh, you're all in a pile." Copia spoke quietly.
"Mmhm. C'mon, they don't bite." Sunshine took his hand and led him over to the group. "He wants to join."
The Ghouls who didn't have their eyes open now opened their eyes and blinked sleepily at their leader and Sunshine. Slowly, they all shifted to make room for the two.
Sunshine smiled and climbed next to Rain and Cumulus; sliding between the two and humming as they wrapped their arms around her. She placed her head onto Cumulus's chest and looked up to Copia.
Copia stood there a moment before Swiss sighed and reached out a hand. Cirrus and Mountain inched away from where Swiss laid partially over Y/n and Aether, making room for Copia. Copia slowly took Swiss's hand and let the larger Ghoul pull him to be sitting next to Y/n and Aether.
Y/n held his arms out and slowly pulled Copia to be laying next to him so Cirrus and Swiss could lay across Copia. Y/n pressed his cheek against Copia's, which was clean from his Papal makeup. Y/n closed his eyes and let out a small rumble from his chest. Copia jumped slightly but when the others also started it he relaxed.
Y/n could feel his emotions almost clearly now. The stress was melting away into something akin to feeling at home. It made Y/n pleased to feel the man feel better.
Over the last few tour stops Copia had been getting closer to Y/n and relaxing more around the Ghouls. They were all now fully relaxed around him and were ready to accept the man.
Copia turned to glance at Y/n and Y/n opened his eyes slightly to peer at the man. Y/n could see the soft glow of his eyes on Copia's face, casting shadows across parts of it.
"What?" Y/n mumbled and felt Aether press his face into Y/n's hair, as if he was asking him to be quiet.
"It's just nice to see you all relax together." Copia answered quietly.
Y/n just smiled and pressed a small kiss to Copia's cheek before putting his face into Copia's neck. Y/n could feel Copia get flustered and the rest of the Ghouls become amused at the interaction. Y/n just closed his eyes and let himself drift back to sleep.
-
Y/n scrolled through the pictures on his phone, looking for a specific one.
It was him and Aether in casual clothing, glamored to look human again, outside of the venue with a few people dressed up in cool ghoul costumes. It was a past look for them and it was genuinely nice for them to see it, especially at the last stop of the tour.
Y/n added it to his post and captioned it with "I can't believe I got to see these cool Ghouls" before posting. He laughed at the small joke as he picked up his water bottle. In the background Y/n could hear one of the openers playing their set. Y/n always liked to scroll on social media before shows. It made him feel slightly better.
Y/n watched as his notifications spilled in, asking him many questions and saying how cool they were. Ever since Cumulus had posted him a while back with the masked Ghouls, people followed him and thought he was some cool rich fan who always got VIP tickets. He just ran with it, even if it was a lie and people could call him out on it.
"Are you having fun, Bonfire?" Rain asked as he stopped next to Y/n, looking at the phone as it was refreshed. " Are you posting Aether again? He doesn't even have social media anymore."
"Of course. He can't fight back." Y/n smiled and closed his phone. "How long until our set?"
"About twenty minutes. They should be finishing up in a bit." Rain rolled his shoulders and cracked his knuckles.
"Good. I'm getting antsy." Y/n nodded and stretched his arms up.
"Well, stop being antsy. We're close to going on." Rain patted his arm and walked off.
Y/n sighed and followed. They ended up rounding up with the others. They all were ready to go.
"Remember everybody, have fun." Copia cracked a smile.
The Ghouls all smiled and some clacked helmets. The shared emotions felt like a clusterfuck of excitement and glee. It felt nice to feel like this again.
The actual performance was a blast for them. The crowd was lively and Y/n bounced around the stage like he normally did. He messed around with Aether like his predecessor had done and it was all fun and games.
It wasn't until the end did everything come to a halt for Y/n.
Going towards Aether's side of the stage, he climbed the small steps that led to a platform that Aether kept standing on. He made it to the top and stood proudly as he played his part.
Looking out at the crowd, he saw people scream as he gave a small wave. He turned slightly to the right and paused for a moment. His old friend was standing at the barrier and was screaming along to the music. Y/n's heart skipped a beat as disbelief and slight worry filled him.
They hadn't posted about coming to the ritual. He made sure to check beforehand. He knew there was no way they'd recognize him, but he still worried.
His friend noticed that he was looking in their direction and got visibly excited. They waved at him and made a heart with their hand. Y/n froze up for a second but snapped out of it when Aether appeared next to him and nudged him.
Aether pointed to his friend's area and made a motion like he was covering a gasp with his hand. Y/n laughed and did a swooning motion before turning away and fake stumbling down the steps.
He quickly moved away from that side of the stage and thanked Aether internally. Y/n went back to his side and watched as Copia approached him. He knew Copia would have noticed his flub and cursed internally.
Copia brushed his hand against Y/n's back and Y/n turned his head to lightly bump it against Copia when he got close enough. The man just stared back at him before sliding away, his hand slowly slipping from Y/n's back.
Y/n took a deep breath and looked back to the crowd. He was going to never hear the end of it later.
-
Y/n was right.
"You need to tell us what's wrong." Rain was sitting on the table, not caring if his boots were making scuff marks.
"No." Y/n grumbled as he stayed peering at his phone. He was going back and forth with his friend, who was spam texting him.
Apparently they looked for him and Aether, but couldn't find them. They were upset they missed him and his 'friend' and wanted to meet up with them. It was annoying Y/n more than the consistent poking from Rain.
The room was starting to feel tense as Rain's worry slowly turned into irritation and Y/n was getting more and more annoyed.
"I'm just worried about you." Rain frowned.
"He doesn't have to tell us if he doesn't want to." Cumulus sounded irritated at Rain and Y/n could feel her emotions flash for a second in a similar fashion.
"Yeah, but whatever it was threw him off." Rain pointed out and the Ghoulettes all loudly sighed.
"Drop it." Mountain spoke up and turned his head to Rain.
The two stared at each other before Rain grumbled and huffed.
"Fine. I'm sorry." Rain apologized begrudgingly and Y/n only nodded at him.
Y/n was trying to convince his friend that it was a bad idea to see him and Aether, but they kept insisting. Y/n rolled his eyes and finally gave in. The friend sent excited texts and Y/n stood up with a slam of his boots onto the ground.
"Aether, get dressed to go out." Y/n snatched up his drink that was on the table and turned to look at the Ghoul.
"Where are we going?" Aether looked like he didn't care as much as he stood up. The others looked disappointed they weren't invited.
"To see the bane of my existence." Y/n grumbled and Aether grinned.
Y/n was already stripped down to his black button up and uniform pants. He knew it was discreet enough to pass as something he changed into.
Aether had disappeared and appeared a few minutes later in a T-shirt. He looked human and Y/n forced himself to glamour again. The two said goodbye to the others and left before Copia could catch them.
The two ended up walking to the small restaurant that was close to the venue. Some mom and pop diner that Y/n thought was small enough that if Copia ended up looking for them he wouldn't look there.
"So what are you going to tell them your name is?" Y/n asked Aether as they walked down the street. "I've never heard your name."
"I'll tell them Quin. Like Quintessential." Aether shrugged and Y/n nodded.
"Not bad." Y/n fiddled with a wrapper that he had shoved in his pocket earlier.
"I don't remember my human name anymore, to be honest." Aether didn't look at Y/n and kept looking forward. "The others don't either."
"Really?" Y/n frowned.
"No one calls us by our names. You're the only one who gets called by it sometimes, besides Phil. It's probably because you came in later when social media was kicking. They have cover names, of course." Aether sighed. "But they're not their human names. They're dead now to the world. You'll eventually fall between the cracks as you get older. Look at Swiss and Mountain. They've been here since Papa Nihil was in power."
"I forget they're that old." Y/n mumbled.
"Them and Phil. The only reason why he took the role of interviews, other than us needing someone to, is because he didn't want to play anymore and Nihil is too soft on him." Aether smiled. "It's funny, actually. Him and Cowbell are only here still because Nihil has a soft spot."
"I thought Cowbell came in with Primo?" Y/n frowned. "Why does he care?"
"Well… he did. But he was the first one Primo brought in. Nihil is proud of him." Aether and Y/n stopped in front of the diner. "Ready?"
"No, but let's get this over with." Y/n grumbled and opened the door.
Walking in, Y/n could see his friend and some random girl sitting with them. The two were still in their ritual outfits and they looked out of place in the old diner. Y/n sighed and walked towards them with Aether. As they approached, his friend perked up.
"Y/n!" His friend waved. Y/n's eye twitched and he waved back.
"Hey, long time no see." Y/n and Aether sat down across from them. "This is Quin, by the way."
"Hello." Aether politely smiled.
"Hi. You're the one in all of the posts." The friend tilted their head, squinting their eyes slightly as their smile became slightly strained.
"Yup. Me and Y/n have fun chasing the band." Aether threw an arm around Y/n's shoulders. Y/n could feel Aether's amusement.
"I've seen." The friend turned to Y/n and pointed to the girl. "This is Jenn. I met her at the ritual. She was in the M&G with Papa."
"Oh! That's cool!" Y/n smiled. "How was he to you? He's normally pretty nice to us."
"He was really nice! I wish the Ghouls were there though." Jenn looked genuinely happy to be there. "It's also cool to meet you. People talk about you a lot online."
"I've seen." Y/n shrugged. "I had to fight my friend over that first post. It's funny how easily things go around, but it's tiring to be in attention. Especially by that specific group of people."
"Oh I totally get that." Jenn nodded.
The friend blinked at the two as Aether watched them. Y/n could feel how Aether didn't trust them. Y/n felt slightly uneased by them today. They've never acted like this unless something was wrong.
"So… how are you doing?" His friend spoke up. "Y'know, with your boyfriend, or was he your friend, dying?"
Y/n blinked and felt shocked. Everyone at the table turned to their friend.
"I'm sorry?" Y/n couldn't help but feel a bit betrayed.
"That guy you posted about on your private Instagram. You said the guy who helped save you died." They tilted their head. "Who was that anyways?"
Aether's mouth opened slightly as he glanced between the two. Y/n could feel how uncomfortable Aether was.
Y/n couldn't help but feel angry.
"He saved me from getting killed when I moved." Y/n frowned. "He was the closest thing I had to love since college."
"Why didn't you post him, then?" The friend crossed their arms. "You suddenly dropped everyone, moved to a new city, got with some dude, and replaced all of us. Plus you started to band chase. You show up and get the best tickets. What's up with that? Weren't you broke? Did you date some rich geezer for money and he died?"
"Hey…" Jenn whispered and nudged them.
"Dude, what the fuck is up with you tonight? You're the one who begged for us to come out here." Y/n sat up straight and the friend mirrored it.
"I'm just pissed. You didn't even care about the band until that ritual. What the fuck happened? You got attention from Papa and you suddenly have to chase him?" The friend waved a hand in the air and Y/n realized they were jealous. "He's gone anyways so it's not like it matters. Get over it."
That part kick-started Y/n's anger.
He stood up and grabbed the friend by the front of their shirt and yanked them up. Jenn and Aether moved back in shock as Y/n basically half dragged them across the table to be face to face.
"Fuck you." Y/n grit out between clenched teeth. He was seething. "You don't fucking know what I've been through the last two years. You fucking try dying and coming back to life and then having the person who saved you ripped away from you."
Y/n was shaking and Aether grabbed onto his wrists. Y/n watched as the friend's face went through twenty different expressions, all a mixture of fear and shock.
"You don't fucking get to tell me how to cope with my life." Y/n shook the hand gripping the shirt; half trying to get Aether to let go and the other half of the effort to just shake them for exaggeration. "It's not my fucking fault that you'll never be happy in life and take it out on others."
"Y/n." Aether's voice was low and only he could hear the demonic undertones as Aether gripped his wrist. "Let go. You're making a scene."
Y/n let the friend go and they caught themself on the table. Jenn pulled them back into the seat, staring in shock with wide eyes.
"You don't understand that Dante was my world." Y/n pushed Aether off of him as he stood up straight. He then turned to Jenn. "I'm sorry you had to see that. They're a fucking asshole and have been since college. I've been nothing but nice to them and I hope you don't hold that against me."
"No… you're fine." Jenn's voice was quiet as she looked between the three.
Aether was standing close to Y/n, his hands hovering over him.
"Let's get back. He'll blow a gasket if he finds out you threw punches." Aether tried to say it quietly. Y/n could feel his concern as Y/n shook next to him. Y/n knew he meant Copia.
"Who is 'he'?" The friend asked, finally regaining their composure.
"My fucking therapist. Some of us have one." Y/n turned away and pulled out cash.
He stalked to the counter, where the poor waitress was watching from, and slammed money down on it. He didn't buy anything but he felt bad for her. She and the others in the back were the only souls inside and they had to witness it all.
Aether mumbled a small apology to the waitress before running to catch up with Y/n. He was already out the door and stomping down the street.
"Hey, wait up." Aether called after Y/n, who just ignored him and kept going.
Aether caught up and paced Y/n. He could feel the unpleasant emotions rolling off of Y/n and was smart enough to not say anything.
When they got back to the tour bus, Y/n and Aether walked inside. The others looked up and all moved to get up and ask what was wrong. Y/n just ignored them and moved towards the back, where the private bunks were. He climbed into his and slammed the curtain closed.
Y/n felt the anger, shame, and newly ripped open grief swirl around in his chest. It washed out the other Ghoul's worried emotions that kept creeping into his consciousness.
Y/n grabbed his pillow and pressed it into his face. He had dropped his glamour and bit his sharp teeth into the pillow to muffle the guttural growl he let out. He felt just like when Terzo had died, but more angry.
He couldn't believe they had said that to him. He thought they were decent friends. They kept tabs on him and he made sure to keep up a presence. He guessed they hid it from him and slowly started to hate him for it. Y/n finally let himself wallow in the grief and shame of the situation. He started to cry into the pillow.
To the side of him, the curtain drew back and someone placed their hand on his shoulder.
It was Copia.
Y/n opened his eyes to see the man, sans makeup, frowning at him. He was wearing a simple black T-shirt and red sweats from what Y/n could see.
"Oh, you poor thing." Copia whispered. "Aether said you got into a fight about our dearest Terzo?"
Y/n nodded and sniffled. He didn't trust himself to speak.
"Can I join you, friend?" Copia asked.
Y/n nodded and Copia climbed into the bunk. He maneuvered behind Y/n and wrapped his arms around his waist. Copia tucked his nose behind Y/n's ear and Y/n could feel himself relax slightly.
"I'm sorry they did that to you. I know grieving is hard." Copia whispered to Y/n after they had settled for a few minutes.
"It's not fair. They have no idea what I've been through." Y/n squeezed his eyes shut.
"It isn't fair, Bonfire." Copia responded and threaded their fingers together. "But you cannot let them get to you."
"I just miss him. And the things they said…" Y/n's shoulders shook slightly as he caught another cry.
"I know. Aether told me." Copia pressed a small kiss under Y/n's ear. "You'll be okay, I promise."
Y/n and Copia laid like that for the rest of the night, until they fell asleep.
In the morning, Y/n opened his eyes to see that Rain had somehow crawled his way on top of Copia and him. He could see in the bunk across him Swiss, Cirrus, and Cumulus piled together. Underneath that bunk he could see Mountain, Sunshine, and Aether tangled up.
Y/n blinked to see that everyone was still asleep. He was the first to wake for once and it felt odd.
Y/n turned in Copia's arms to come face to face with Copia and Rain. Rain's mouth was open and he was drooling into Copia's hair, which was definitely going to make the hair stick up awkwardly.
Y/n smiled at this and moved closer again. He closed his eyes as Rain grumbled and clawed to have a better grip on him.
He may miss Terzo, but Y/n was glad he had the others to fill the void Terzo had left.