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FALL YEAR 20X9
Millie and Vox sat by a fire they made in an abandoned park of a city. Scraps of paper and box sheets float around the area as if they were swimming through the filth of the air. Broken glass from windows and beer bottles can be seen on the sides of the roads and walkways, revealing the many people who have passed by the area. Broken doors, vandalized buildings, air that smelled of old sweat and used oil… it was a miracle the two demons found a sort of refuge for the night.
Millie was sitting on the dirt park ground, her knees brought up to her chest. She stared at the fire that was in between Vox and her, her eyes seeming grey even with her mouth half agaped. The girl looked tired, desperate, lost… and Vox could do nothing but watch.
“... Millie… talk to me, please,” the voice demon pleaded. He tried his best to speak in a soft tone, none too loud to alarm her in anyway. The witch however simply kept staring at the fire, as if it were the one talking to her.
“... it’s been weeks since Fulgur left us. I know it’s hard, but… damn it,” Vox cursed under his breath in exasperated defeat. He brought one of his knees up to his chest as he sat down on the ground as well. He rested his right arm on his knee as he looked up at the night sky. He couldn’t help but smirk a little as he could see stars pass the dark clouds.
“Aw, that’s kind of cute actually. The way the stars look tonight,” Vox looked down again, but saw that Millie wasn't interested in his comments. He sighed again to himself, then got up from his seat.
“... I’m going to walk around for a bit, maybe find some food and other survivors. Holler if you need anything.” Vox tried his best to comfort Millie, reassuring and reminding her of his presence. It was difficult though when you feel as if you’ve lost two of your loved ones this past month.
Vox finally walked away, keeping a hand on his lead pipe that he kept strapped on his suit belt. He started his journey down the street, thinking about the poor witch of calamity.
“... I’m sorry Millie… trust me… I know…”
Millie listened to everything Vox said these past just then. It’s just that her mind, her spirit, did not feel connected to her body. She felt like a husk, a walking corpse. She knew she was immortal, she knew she was magical, that she was different. However…
She pulled down her orange sweater collar - her clothes flooded with poor sewing work trying to keep the integrity of the outfit together. Pulling down her collar, she revealed Fulgur’s air filtration contraption. She gripped on it tight, wearing it as if it were a necklace.
…
SPRING YEAR 20X7
Millie happily skipped through the streets of the duo’s newly-raided town. She hummed to herself as she pointed out the silly grafiti she saw on the buildings around her and the cyborg.
“Fu-chan! Do you think there’s any food in the store over there?” Millie stopped, pointing to the store a block away from them. She turned back, and saw Fulgur slowly pacing himself.
“You just wanna go to that store ‘cause someone graffitied a dick on it,” Fulgur spoke to Millie as if he were a disappointed senpai - ironic since technically Millie was older than him.
“Hey! It’s better than nothing. Do you have any ideas?” Millie turned around, bouncing her direction to him as she stretched her arms.
“No, not really. Let’s go,” Fulgur decided to walk past the witch, trying to notice any escape routes or potential weapons they could use if ambushed. Millie stood behind the robot, and took out her wand in self defense.
“That’s not gonna help,” Fulgur said, rolling his eyes a bit.
“Yeah, but the enemy might not know that,” she swung her wand around in a circle, and barely a sparkle of gold flickered from the fork tips.
Fulgur chuckled at the attempt, mentally saying to himself how adorable her attempt to relearn magic was.
“Don’t worry, I’m here,” He said, adding a bit of his genuine care and protective nature in the comment.
“... I know,” Millie was caught off guard a bit at the sentiment. However, she simply smiled, and continued walking forward.
…
SPRING YEAR 20X8
Fulgur walked with a makeshift cane that he found in a public park. The long stick that broke from the bare tree proved useful as Fulgur’s metal limbs had recently become more stiff.
“Come on, old man!” Millie teasingly said. She tried putting on a smile to lighten the mood, but Fulgur saw right through the facade. He decided to play along though, knowing that arguing about his condition wouldn’t make the situation any better.
“You’re fucking older than me, damn it. Learn basic math, silly,” Fulgur walked over to Millie and bonked her on the head. Millie gives an exasperated “ah!” as she rubbed the part of her head he tapped.
“... is it really not feeling any better?” Millie asked, still absent mindedly rubbing her head. She continued to turn to face Fu chan’s back, as he was still trying to walk. The cyborg gave a sigh to her question, having been asked it multiple times before. He then gave the same answer:
“... no. My parts haven’t been replaced in a while. It’s probably not going to get better,” hearing this answer always made Millie upset, as it reminded her how powerless she was in easing Fulgur’s pain.
“... if you keep staying in power saving mode, we’ll eventually find a shop where you can repair yourself!” Millie’s optimism honestly hurt Fu chan’s heart, as if a needle were piercing through his chest. He felt like a ticking time bomb - any minute when his batteries finally turn off, he wouldn’t know how Millie’d react. Seeing this though, Millie took a minute to think of her next response. She knew Fulgur’s body - the pain, the parts breaking, creaking, his energy running low - was a sensitive topic to the both of them.
“... don’t worry! I got you!” Millie instantly stopped in her tracks, jumping in place a bit from her next comment. Fulgur stopped as well, raising his eyebrow in confusion and anticipation.
“I’m an immortal witch! So, when you start to shut down, I’ll take you to wonderful places! We can look for power supplies too! And new parts, food, whatever!” Fulgur’s eyes widened in awe at the imouto's sudden enthusiasm. He saw the new determination in her eyes, her smile pleading him to let her help him even. He could sense her shaking a bit from fear, the inevitability of Fulgur’s death. The both of them knew he would die before Millie. However, it shocked him to see his senpai so determined to prove him wrong - and perhaps prove herself wrong.
The cyborg chuckled to himself. He hadn’t felt this light in a while. “... can you help me a bit here?”
“Huh?”
“I need your shoulder. It’s a bit difficult to walk now…” Fulgur finally let himself show how out of breath he’d been as of recent- the past few weeks. Millie saw this, and immediately ran to his aid. She let him lean on her shoulder as she held his arm.
“Hehehe… it’s good you’re so tiny. The perfect height for an arm rest,” the snarky comment brought Millie into an angry frenzy. She stepped back and waved her arms in anger as if they were the ones doing the talking instead of that fast acting mouth she of hers. The both of them continued to argue for a while. It eventually ended though, with them continuing their walk and hunt, and Fulgur leaning on Millie often.
…
WINTER YEAR 20X8
Millie desperately tried to support Fu Chan as the both of them ran through the cold flurry air. An anti-human robot was chasing them, tracking down their movements and trying to eliminate them. Its heavy gray legs were stomping on the ground as it marched closer and closer to the two humanoids. With a red light flashing from its one bulb-head, it acted as a hunter towards its prey.
“I told you to watch where you were stepping when we arrived in this town!” Fulgur criticized Millie.
“Well how was I suppose to know one of those dumb ass robots were gonna be here?! I know you and Noctyx dealt with these guys in your timeline, right?!” Millie struggled to speak coherently through her shortened breath. She was practically holding Fulgur with his arms dangling off from her shoulders. She was afraid that any faster and she’s accidentally rip off his limb.
Fulgur scoffed under his breath, cursing himself for not being careful enough.
“It’s reckless shit like this that cost people their lives in the future,” Millie overheard his frustrated monologue and tried to look around for any stores to hide in.
“U-um… oh, there!” Millie saw a store already broken into, and shoved the both of them inside it. The display windows were broken, the shelves ransacked with many traces of dirt, footprints and scraps thrown and marked on the ground; snow was flying into it, as if nature was trying to freeze the man made building. Millie dragged the both of them inside, and carefully put Fulgur down behind the store counter.
“Here, take it easy,” Millie raised both her hands to steady Fulgur as if he were a dog. Fulgur, now finally sitting down, felt the knobs in his arms and legs scream out in pain as if each step was scratching metal against your teeth. His energy levels had only gotten lower than before, his body struggling to let him breathe in the extra oxygen needed from all that running. He grasped his chest, fearing his lungs would freeze up from the cold air.
“Fu chan, can you hear me? Hey! Fu chan,” Millie whispered loudly to the cyborg. She shook his shoulders a bit as he responded by giving a weak nod.
“Alright good,” Millie gave a weak smile, “I’m going to distract the robot, ok? It thinks I’m human. I’m going to go out there, and you're gonna run, ok?”
Fulgur’s eyes widen, trying to comprehend if Millie just said what he thinks she said.
“I-I’m sorry, are you trying to play the fucking hero?!” Fulgur loudly whispered back. He wasn’t so much worried, but more so mad at the witch for having such a ridiculous idea.
“Don’t be stupid! You can’t- ah!” Fulgur let out a cry of pain by accident. Trying to get up to assert his strength, he ended up inflaming the pain in his joints and bolts again. It felt like fire quickly spreading from multiple starting points of his body - the bottom of his spine, the top of his neck, the middle of his elbows, his knees and calves. Fulgur finally allowed his body to sit down and relax at the counter - His body was essentially screaming to let Fulgur rest.
“See? Can’t even get up now without breaking a hip or whatever,” Millie’s ears perked up like a cat as she heard the metallic stomping of a machine outside the store. She quickly squeezed next to Fulgur, sitting next to him, as they both hid from the creature.
“Human’s detected. Human’s spotted. Human’s detected-” the robot kept repeating the same statement over and over as it pointed its gun around the room, a red laser pointing inspecting the outside of the store.
Millie felt her heart pulsing as if a hammer was pounding her chest from the inside out. The pain of her anxiety was bruising her chest as her stomach was slowly tightening itself, threatening all the “food” she’d been forced to eat the past days to expel. Looking back at Fulgur though out of habit for comfort, she noticed his situation was much worse. The cyborg typically hid his pain and problems from those around him, worried about burdening his loved ones to care for him. The fact that Millie could see the sweat pouring from his forehead, and blood dripping out of the corner of his mouth in suppressing his pain, she knew she had to take control of the situation.
“... R-run and find a place to hide, Fu chan.”
“What?”
“You’ll know when. Just.. know that I’m doing this for me, and because of… idk…” Millie struggled to articulate her genuine need to protect her friend here. She was worried that Fulgur would take this as an act of pity, but at this point - putting it bluntly - she didn’t care. Despite this, she couldn’t hide her hands shaking as she held his hand one last time. She didn’t want to let go of them - cold, rough, stiff. Eventually, though, she let go.
“... take care, Fulgur…” Millie leaned into the cyborg’s ears and whispered into his ears. Trying to hold back tears, she quickly got up, and immediately screamed “hey! Over here, asshole!” Millie waved her arms in the air, making sure that her presence was noticed by the assassin.
“SPOTTED. SPOTTED,” The robot’s eyes immediately turn a threatening tone of red, quickly turning its gun towards Millie. That was when Millie began to run the opposite direction from the counter.
Millie! God fucking damn it, no! Fulgur thought, trying not to let his reaction attract the assassin.
Seeing her run away out of his sight, he thought about how much Millie’s been struggling to support and help Fulgur. He thought about how much Millie had forced herself to change and act as his caretaker of sorts. It damaged the man’s ego and pride greatly, feeling that he’d failed in protecting Millie - his friend, his little imouto, his…
It shouldn't have to be her. It shouldn’t be her. It should be me! What the fuck am I doing? I… I… I… with each I, his determination grew more and more, his anger and protective nature screaming at him.
… I’m sorry, Millie…
Fulgur shutted his eyes tight, focusing on his metal limbs and eyes, turning off his power-saving mode. He could feel his arms and legs tighten, like when a runner’s leg muscles suddenly tighten due to lack of stretching and fatigue. It was this feeling… but it was his entire body - even his senses.
Then suddenly… SHWING!
“AHHH!” Fulgur suddenly heard a high pitched yelp, one he didn’t quite know how to decipher as fear, adrenaline, or pain. This was the last straw that finally led Fulgur to quickly stand up from behind the counter.
What he saw however, after essentially cracking his robot joints after moving his body too quickly, saw something he thought he’d never see in a hundred years.
Good news…
“V-Voxxy?!”
“Mister Milooorrrrrd!”
Through Fulgur’s perspective, it was a male, dark haired, red-dressed demon with a lead pipe in his hand. His stance was as if he had slashed the robot with a katana, when in reality he swung his pipe with such strength and velocity that he hit the robot’s head off clean like a mannequin.
Vox kept his stance, ready in case the robot broke from his paralyzed broken pose. Then suddenly, the robot toppled over like a broken metal-wire statue. Vox’s heavy breathing finally steadied itself, as he brought his arms back to his sides and looked up to give himself a chance to breathe.
“I… I could hear you guys running… and panicking from… a mile away, I swear,” Vox spoke through short tired huffs. Despite his need to relax, Millie rushed in to give Vox a big hug.
“Thank you,” she mumbled in his chest, “thank you thank you thank you…” Millie began to tear up on the dark red hoodie that Vox was wearing - obviously dirty and tattered. You could see some of the dirt from the top rub off on Millie’s face, but she didn’t care. She was just glad that there was hope and another person they could travel and work with - one that was their friend, nonetheless.
Fulgur gave a smirk to the man, feeling safety, hope, and relief for the first time in months.
“Took you… long… enough…” Fulgur instinctively brought his body back to power-saving mode, his muscles finally being given a chance to rest after running and panicking for an hour.
The cyborg’s eyes slowly began to flutter close, his smirk turning into a genuine smile.
“Fu chan? FU CHAN!” Millie noticed this, and quickly ran to her friend trying to catch him.
The last thing he saw before hitting the floor, passing out for two days, was Voxxy running to him as well.
…
SPRING YEAR 20X9
Millie and Vox sat by each other as the fire pit in front of them warmed them up from the cold night’s residual air. Millie had tucked her arms into her yellow sweater, her knees up to her chest as to act cocooned by her clothing. Her black beanie sat snug on her head as she stared at the fire.
Vox allowed himself to breathe and zone out as he didn’t sense any robots or thieves around the area. He instinctively though kept his hand gripped on his lead pipe. Moving a bit, he felt the weight of his backpack on him, feeling a bump hit against him as he tried to adjust his position.
“Oh! I almost forgot!” Vox excitedly took off his backpack, and swung it around him to sit it on his lap. He crossed his leg and opened his bag. With all eyes on him, he unzipped it, and rummaged through his belongings: canned foods, bandages, water bottles, but most importantly…
“I got… this bad boy,” Vox chuckled to himself, mouth wide open revealing his demon fangs. His gremlin laugh put a smile on Millie’s face… and even Fulgur.
“Rum, Really? And… is that Bacardi?” Fulgur was leaning back with a metal barrel behind him as his back couldn’t support him sitting down for too long. He leaned back further as he tried carefully not to emote with his body too much. The trio had found Fulgur a generic gray sweatshirt and black sweatpants, in an attempt to keep him comfortable and warm - the gesture helped him quite a bit.
“It’s Spring now… I think March? Isn’t that when Fulgur’s birthday is?” The embarrassed cyborg blushed and looked away from the two. He pouted, trying not to show his discomfort on the two’s attention.
“Fu chan, it’s your birthday? Why didn’t you tell me?!” Millie pushed both her arms out of her sweater, wiggling them in shock like an inflatable tube man.
“Because, Millie, I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but we’re in a robot apocalypse. I am in no mood to celebrate knowing that an army of toasters want to fucking hunt us down,” Fulgur couldn’t hide his genuine annoyance at the question. He’s always hated his birthday, never wanting anyone to care for it, let alone him.
“Fulgur, listen. I don’t know what you’ve been going through lately-”
“-the end of the world,” Fulgur rolled his eyes at the demon.
“... but, listen… um… I’ve been wanting an excuse to drink this, and your birthday seemed like a good one.”
“VOX!” Millie smacked Milord's arm at his blunt confession to the robot.
“What?! I just want to be honest. Plus, Millie, when was the last time you two let loose?” Millie looked down at the ground, really pondering at the ground. Struggling to find an answer, this realization caused Fulgur to frown.
We’ve been on the run for so long… I don’t even remember how long… it wasn’t until Vox joined us that Millie smiled and laughed so genuinely again…
Sensing the desperation the two had for escaping their current situation - any reason to party really - the cyborg sighed and decided to sacrifice his comfort for his family.
“Ugh… fine,” Millie and Vox stopped arguing, and turned to face Fulgur.
“... we can celebrate my birthday and drink.”
“Yay!!!!” Millie jumped up from her spot, springing her arms up in celebration. This was the brightest smile Fulgur has seen from her in years. That alone was enough reason to let the trio drink for the night.
“Alright,” Vox started to twist the cap off the bottle of the gold rum he just took out.
“Where’d you even get that stuff?” Fulgur asked.
“Broke into a liquor store a few months ago. Struck gold by finding this underneath the shelves. Looters must’ve missed it,” mostly off, Vox brought up his right hand and flicked off the cap as if it were a bug.
“Tonight… we drink like kings,” he raised the bottle up, then took a deep swig of the golden rum. His face contorted, having the strong bitterness of the drink hit his mouth all at once. Bringing the drink down, he shook off the discomfort, letting out a loud “AHK!” from his mouth.
“Ugh, fucking delicious. Liquid gold,” Vox snarled at the drink, then passed the bottle to the witch herself.
The lady gladly grabbed the drink, bowing her head in courtesy to the man.
“Mister Milord,” she took the bottle, and held it up in a cheer to him. She then turned to face Fulgur, who was gladly watching the two entertain themselves with the drink.
“Cheers to… Fu chan! Happy birthday!” Millie’s smile widened looking at her friend. He responded however with a scoff and embarrassed blush. She quickly placed the drink in her mouth, making sure her first gulp was her biggest one.
Her reaction to the initial shock and aftertaste of the edible piss-drink caused the girl to let out an exacerbated cry of disgust. Instinctively, she covered her mouth with her other hand.
“AHK!” Shutting her eyes, wiping her mouth with her dirty sweater - not the best idea in the world. Finally opening her eyes again, she began bringing the drink to Fulgur. She got up, and handed him the bottle. Taking it from her, hesitant, Fulgur let out a tired sigh, questioning why he allowed the three of them to be so reckless for the night. Grabbing the drink, he leaned back on the metal barrel, and wondered in his head what his cheer should be to.
“A drink, to…” Vox and Millie comically leaned in, giggling at how flustered Fulgur was feeling with the attention on him.
“Ugh, I hate you guys,” Fu chan chuckled to himself, and to his relief heard the two chuckle back.
“Cheers to… a brighter past, present, and future,” Fulgur took the biggest swig from the liquid gold at hand, determined now to make sure the three of them had the time of their lives.
…
FALL YEAR 20X9
The cool Fall air punctured through the cloth of the trio’s clothing as they try to walk through the city - snow flying through the rips and holes. The sky was gray with dead clouds that looked more concrete than fluffy. The trio tried not to step on the broken glass on the side of the road, or let the flying trash in the air hit them along their journey.
“Um… are you still ok carrying Fu chan like that?” Millie gripped onto the straps of Vox’s backpack, given to her by the demon as he offered to carry Fulgur on his back.
“I’m… *hup* ok!” The man adjusted his friend’s position on his back to more comfortably carry him across the city. Milord’s shortness of breath revealed how tired he truly felt, lugging the cyborg on his back for hours on end. He asked for the witch to hold his backpack in return for this act, but her support didn’t make the process of carrying a hunk of metal any easier for the demon.
“O-ok…” Millie gripped the straps of the backpack even harder, staring at Fulgur. On Vox’s back.
“... Fulgur, can you still hear me?” the girl leaned in to better get a look at the man’s face.
The color on his face has drained significantly the past few months of traveling. Instead of a grayish light olive, it was now a white-sheet. His eye lids could barely keep itself open, as he could physically feel the nerves screaming to let him sleep. He was afraid, however, of the luxury of rest. He was afraid of never waking up again, understanding his body’s desires more than anyone else. He felt bad about having Vox carry him the past few days. However, his muscles didn’t allow him to lie to his friends about his condition any more. He remembered quivering from his legs, shaking with his walking stick as he no longer felt the pain of his muscles, but more so more disconnected he began to feel from his limbs - as if they gave up being a part of his body, and simply stopped… functioning. On Milord's back, he simply looked back into the distance, not wanting to waste energy in talking or complaining about letting Voxxy carry him - he was too physically broken to allow his pride any points here.
However, in hearing Millie’s question, he cracked open his eyes to look back at hers, and attempted to move his head - to nod. However, this attempt of his to respond back resulted in his throat clogging itself with his neck muscles.
“HN!” his neck muscles felt as if a needle stabbed through the front of his face - moving his head up too fast must’ve pulled something. Feeling this sudden twitch, however, Vox panicked and accidentally tripped. Vox trying to save himself, Fulgur accidently fell off of Vox’s back, landing on the side of the road.
“Shit!” Vox cursed under his breath, quickly turning around to see his friend on the ground, his body laying on its side. He quickly walked over to kneel down and check the damage.
“Fu chan!” Millie yelled out and ran to join the demon.
“I’ll, um…” struggling to act as the leader, Vox looked at both Millie and then back at Fulgur.
“... Millie, give me my backpack, stay with Fu chan,” Vox quickly stood up, and reached out his hand towards the witch. Millie, hearing this, jumped a bit, and shivering gave him his bag.
“I’m going to try looking for food and water for him. Stay here!” Vox swung his bag around him, having it perfectly land on his back. He began to jog backwards, hesitant to take his eyes off of the cyborg. He then made the decision to turn around, and ran as fast as he could towards the shops that were finally within eyesight. The trio hadn’t been eating for the past few days, having run out of food recently. Although the two immortals still felt hunger, they weren’t too worried about their own well being. However, it was an unspoken somber note that Fulgur was in constant pain - suffering - this past year.
“H-hey! Fu chan! Please wake up!” Milie shook Fulgur in an attempt to bring his attention back to her. His eyes were shut tight, however, aching over the pain of falling off of the demon. Feeling the witch’s touch though, he opened his eyes again. The incident in a way woke him up a bit. Through a grunt, he simply opened his eyes again to look at Millie, welcomed with big eyes shining with tears threatening to flood the poor girl’s face. Her mouth went from a frown to a smile however when she noticed the robot was making eye contact with her.
“Oh, thank fuck,” Millie nervously chuckled at her comment, still smiling and trying to comfort Fulgur even a little bit.
“Um, Mister Milord went to find some food and water for us! Don’t worry, Fu chan. You’ll be able to eat again in no time. Hell, maybe we’ll find a Radioshack or something for batteries, haha…” Millie’s eyes shifted left and right, her lips practicing quivering at her trying not to let herself cry from how much she was panicking.
Millie shifted her arms under Fulgur’s back, slowly bringing it up so he would be sitting up and facing the city they were at.
“... ah,” Fulgur let out a cry, trying to signal Millie of something, “... there,” through his raspy dry voice, sounding like bone on muscles at that point. Milie looked forward, and saw a park a half mile down the road.
“O-oh! You wanna go to the park? Um, ok!” Millie tried to calm herself down - steadying her breathing, looking off in panic a bit, clenching her fists.
“Y-you got it! Maybe there’s a water fountain there. Or maybe a park bench you can rest on while waiting for Vox,” Millie got up while chanting her fake-optimistic monologue. She shifted her stance to be in front of Fu chan, her back facing his face, and kneeled down with her hands grabbing onto Fulgur’s arms and bringing them around her shoulders. She then tried to bring Fulgur to lay on her back, lifting him with her leg muscles, and barely managed to have him fit on her while having his feet drag on the ground. The witch then began to carry the man by herself, and staggered forward with shaky legs.
“Don’t worry, Fu chan…” Millie smiled. She already felt her heart beating fast, the ping in her empty stomach stretching itself, “Mister Milord… will be back… soon… with stuff… it’s going to be fine!” In between words, Millie would puff out air from her lungs, squeezing them in desperation as to squeeze out every last drop of oxygen to best support her.
“You see… huff… I’m an immortal witch! And you, being a toaster, haha…” Millie’s attempt to make a joke proved to damage her psyche a bit. However, her natural defense mechanism of humor in high tense situations couldn’t be resisted here.
“... when you really… start to shut down… huff… I’ll take you to wonderful places! We can look for power supplies together - you’ll walk again soon! So…” Millie began to choke on her words, her throat feeling more closed and tight. Tears started to trickle down her face, even - her body shaking due to carrying her friend… and keeping her emotions in check. Despite this, however… she was still trying to smile.
“... sing…” Fulgur mumbled. Talking while on Millie’s back proved taxing for him, with the constant up and down motion of his torso and head hitting against her back. Luckily, Millie heard the man somehow.
“Huh?!” In shock, Millie’s confusion broke through her sorrows and anxiety for that moment. She turned her head a bit to face Fu chan.
“... please… sing…” Fu chan mustered all the energy he had left to speak coherent words. It was easy for him to continue mumbling in slurs. However, he wanted to make sure Millie understood him then.
“Oh? Uh, o-ok! See, you’re feeling better already… huff…” Millie looked forward again, trying to cling onto this one hopeful sign of Fulgur’s health as if it were a spec of water in a desert.
“Um… oh! I know a song. I haven’t sung this in a while. Not since Nijisanji was still together before this whole shit show, haha,” Millie, trying to make light hearted comments, was flooded with memories of her old friends - specifically a blue sky dragon, a songbird from heaven, a lost ghost, and a fox god of luck. Her nervous chuckle made the witch shake a bit, embarrassed at her weak attempts of positivity, and decided to bite the bullet and sing.
“Sana ako na lang… huff… bat kase nandun ka sa kanya!” Millie’s tears were still falling down her face, but the memories of her with her past friends were comforting her - it felt as if she was receiving hugs from them, telling her it was going to be alright.
“... bat kase nan…”
“Huh?!” Millie heard something she wouldn’t have thought she’d hear in years - never, even, “Y-yeah, Fu chan! Sing! Like that!” Hearing Millie’s relieved cry, Fulgur let out a small smile with the corner of his mouth. Millie continued to struggle forward to the park.
We’re almost there. Come on, Fu chan! Stay with me!
“Come on, you know the lyrics, Fu chan! Huff… nandun ka sa kanya! Sana-”
“-ako no lang…-”
“Kasi mas bagay tayong dalawa!”
Millie continued to sing the next verse, feeling more and more energized with each line. It felt to Fulgur as if the song and memories themselves were empowering Millie, supporting her as she carried him slowly to the park bench - he could’ve sworn he felt a skip to her step at one point. Feeling this, however, he began to slowly close his eyes - forgetting about the world for just a second with the help of his imouto’s voice.
She… truly is magical…
His eyes half opened, hearing the witch’s song still, he let his mind wander through the memories he had with Nijisanji: going through the portal and nearly falling off the Nijisanji building, being rudely greeted by Vox, listening to Yugo’s music, talking with Uki about stories and writing, hearing Sonny’s voice acting impressions, being angrily called big brother by Alban…
… Millie and Enna being some of the closest people he’d ever known in his life.
Before Nijisanji, he was but a simple archivist. He traveled through time, wrote stories, read stories, talked to people, and listened to their own experiences. He honestly thought that his end purpose was to be forgotten in time, to rust and die alone - in a vast universe that had no beginning or future. However… his family at Nijisanji… Millie… they all taught him…
Fulgur simply kept a smile on his face, chuckling a bit at how wrong those people proved him - proved to him that he was loved…
… and so, he decided to close his eyes.
“Huh, Fu chan did you laugh? Come on, I haven’t sung the song in a while! Come on, we’re at the chorus again. Huff…” Millie adjusted Fu chan’s position on her back again, better carrying him more efficiently to the park bench.
Huh… did Fu chan just get lighter?
“Sana ako na lang… huff… ang kausap mo tuwing hatinngabi… oh!” Millie, only a few steps away from the bench, let out a small victory cry.
“Yay! Fu chan, we made it!” Millie gently let Fulgur off her shoulder, placing him on the ground in front of the bench.
“Don’t worry, Fu chan, I’ll help you up. One, two…” as Millie moved in front of the cyborg to help him from the front, she then quickly noticed his expression…
“... F-Fu chan…” Millie’s semi smile was still on her face, still a bit on the high of singing again and hearing Fulgur chuckle. However, after a moment, reality hit, grabbing her by the heart and crushing it.
“... Fu.. chan…?” Millie’s smile started to quiver on her face, tears beginning to form in her eyes again as her body had struggled to contain them these past few days. Seeing her worst fear in front of her though… she didn’t have a reason to keep them at bay… to stay strong. She still wanted to smile though, with her next line.
“... Sana… ako na long… bat kase nandun ka sa kanya…” it was then that the tears wouldn’t stop flooding out of the girl’s eyes, her body shivering from sorrow, sadness, frustration. She physically couldn’t keep her smile on her face any more. But…
“... Sana ako no lang…” her voice jittery, her hands grabbing Fulgur’s shoulders, she slowly brought his body close to hers as he was now in Milie’s embrace, hugging him tightly.
“... meron ka nang iba sana’y masaya ka sa pilling niya…” the witch whispered through shaky words.
Moments later, an anxious demon would be running to these two with found food and water in his bag. The first thing he’d see, however, would be a little girl in yellow hugging a red cyborg tightly in her arms, crying loudly into his shoulders, as he smiled peacefully, looking as if he were comforting her one last time.
…
FALL YEAR 20X9
Millie sat by a fire they made in an abandoned park of the city. Scraps of paper and box sheets floated around the area as if they were swimming through the filth of the air. Broken glass from windows and beer bottles can be seen on the sides of the roads and walkways, revealing the many people who have passed by the area. Broken doors, vandalized buildings, air that smelled of old sweat and used oil… it was a miracle the two demons found a sort of refuge for the night.
Millie was sitting on the dirt park ground, her knees brought up to her chest. She stared at the fire, her eyes appearing gray and swollen with her mouth half agaped. The girl looked tired, desperate, and lost. Vox on the other hand…
“... I noticed he was smiling…” Vox came back to Millie, arriving with some clean washcloths, and empty jars that could be used to organize stuff in his bag - or a weapon if broken right. He stood in his spot, and sat down again on the other side of the fire from Millie. The witch didn’t even notice the man coming back until that comment.
“... I’m… I’m…” Vox’s voice sounded nervous, soft,, talking about his feelings towards his friend’s death for the first time in weeks. He wanted to give Millie her space and time to grieve for the man. However, they hadn’t left the city that he had passed away in for weeks. If this was the way for Millie to finally speak to Vox again, then…
“... I’m so sorry…” Vox’s words surprised Millie. She brought her head up instead of simply moving her eyes, and looked straight at Vox in confusion.
“W-what?”
“I’m…” Vox’s voice is still unstable, the man still struggling to allow himself to admit his feelings about Fulgur’s death. He’d been helping and supporting Millie throughout the past few weeks, trying his best to distract himself from the grief of their loss. However, he began to think about Millie’s situation… and thought that perhaps this was the best way to talk to her - meeting her where she was.
“... I’m sorry I didn’t come back fast enough…” his eyes started to sting, something threatening to escape from them.
“W-what? But… you didn’t-”
“I know. I know I didn’t do anything wrong, but I felt I could’ve done more. I… I could’ve been faster? Smarter? Stronger? I could’ve been…” It was then that Vox’s tears finally started to draw out of him. His voice wasn’t as shaky now, his body perhaps allowing itself a cathartic release of all the anxiety and guilt in him.
“... I could’ve helped you guys more. I’m so sorry Millie…” Seeing the demon cry in front of her, Millie began to cry again as well. She bit the bottom of her lip, trying to control herself.
“N-no! It wasn’t your fault he left. He… he was an old man, haha,” Millie’s awkward attempt at humor fell on deaf ears again. She quickly got up though, and brought herself to sit next to Vox who was wiping his eyes.
“He was getting rusty and old and…” still crying, she tried to calm down her throat as it felt like it wanted to jump out of her neck, “... it was a matter of time he would shut down. I’m immortal, he’s mortal, so…” being reminded of this lonely reality of theirs, she leaned in to hug Vox. Vox, surprised at the gesture, was stunned for a good few seconds, having his arms up in the air as if under attack. After the initial shock, however, he then finally dropped his arms around Millie, holding her tight.
“... We’ll get through this… together…” Vox said through tears. Millie simply shut her eyes tight, nodding her head.
“... Mhm! We’ll find the others, we’ll survive this shit hole, and we’ll find a way to be happy again. We… we…” for the rest of the night, the witch of calamity and voice demon cried and held onto each other as the night continued on without them. The fire in the middle kept sparking as if trying to communicate something, fighting off the cold in the air.
…
SPRING YEAR 20X9
It was late at night, and the fire in front of the trio and the alcohol flowing through their systems kept them warm throughout the gentle Spring air. Millie fell asleep before the boys, her head resting on Fulgur’s shoulder. The cyborg didn’t mind, however. Admittedly, he quite enjoyed how adorable the girl was.
“... Voxxy…” Fulgur softly called out to him. Vox was simply in a tipsy daze, staring at the fire, sitting in the comfort of the silence between the two. Hearing his call, however, the demon looked up.
“Hm?”
“... when I die… could you please promise me one thing?” The sudden somber topic of death shocked the demon. He wasn’t prepared to have this conversation yet with Fulgur. He decided to be silent, however, to test Fulgur and see if he himself was ready to have this conversation. He wanted to make sure it wasn’t the alcohol talking, afterall.
“... Voxxy, I’m serious,” the stern tone in his voice, his narrow eyebrows with his flat expression… that was all Vox needed to know that the robot himself was serious.
“... what is it? I can’t promise I will do it, but I’ll try.” Hearing this, Fulgur wanted to protest. He wanted the demon to cross his heart - do demons have hearts? - in assuring him that he would try his absolute best to achieve what the man’s request was. Hearing his response, however, the robot simply sighed, and gave his promise a shot.
“Call it what you will - a deal with the devil, I suppose,” Fulgur said. Vox chuckled to himself, hearing the man joke around with him. He was glad that after all of these years, these two were still brothers.
“... when I die, protect Millie with all that you got. Find Elira and the others. You guys are fucking immortal beings with powers and shit. Take Millie, and work with her to find the others.” Vox’s eyes widened in shock, surprised at the cyborg’s request. He decided to let this request sink in, not giving an immediate answer. When he agreed on a promise, Vox was the type to walk across the world and back in ensuring that his promises were kept. He was the type to never forget or break a promise with a friend, especially one as close as Fulgur.
With this in mind…
“... I don’t know, Fulgur. I just… I don’t know if we’ll see-”
“-then make it happen,” his voice stern, and cold here, Vox was shocked at how serious the cyborg was with his plea here.
“I…” he could feel daggers from the robot’s eyes. The demon felt as if he were at knifepoint with this man, the lump in his throat catching at his larynx.
“... Yes… I will protect Millie. I… I will take us to Elira and the others… I can feel that they’re alive, too. Gods know though where they are…” hearing this, Fulgur visibly softened his expression and relaxed chest. He shut his eyes, and slowly breathed in and out to calm himself from the tense conversation.
“... Thanks, Voxxy… sorry. Thank you, Vox.”
Vox smiled at the man, remembering all the good times they had at Nijisanji HQ.
“Hey man… you were the one always there for us… the least I can do is help you for once.” Fulgur chuckled at the man’s self deprecating comment.
“... Thanks for everything, Vox,” the man nodded to his brother, and the demon laid on his side on the dirt, slowly shutting his eyes while looking at the fire. Seeing Vox slowly fall asleep finally, Fulgur looked down on his side to see the witch still fully asleep.
She hasn’t slept this well in months…
Fulgur leaned back on the metal barrel behind them to better support his back. Letting his body relax, he shut his eyes, and slowly his head shifted to Millie’s side.
The cyborg fell asleep, as his forehead touched the tip of Millie’s head as if he were telling her goodnight.