Chapter Text
[A scourge to purge, due diligence is all.]
Resident Mind tossed and turned in bed, folding his pillow behind his head so that it covered his ears. It, of course, could not keep out sounds that weren’t there. The memories of his former mockings of his fellow half. Those weren’t real sounds. It wasn’t logical to try and block them out this way, and yet, he did. His head pounded, a metaphorical axe being slammed against the middle of his skull repeatedly. He usually only got migraines this bad when he was upset, though he refused to admit it.
[And he falls inside a hole he dug for me.]
Mind remembers looking down upon Juno and laughing, laughing until his torn vocal cords went dry and chalky. Then, he turned, and left the ailing Heart in Apathy, blood pouring from their chest and their visage and their e-
He didn’t want to think about that.
But he did so anyway. His brain, having found something that made him feel even worse than before, hyperfixated on that graphic image. Tears mixed with violet blood, turning it watery. The mush of an organ, faint black and white. Mind felt bile rise in his throat. He couldn’t tell if it was the graphicness of the image, or the migraine itself. He decided he’d better get a container, should that get worse.
Standing up was the worst part. A wave of nausea caused him to sway forward, hardly feeling in control of his limbs. He stumbled to keep his balance. His thoughts shifted again.
[Dictate he never does as he’s told.]
In truth, the two had learned to look out from the other’s view (not literally. Heart couldn’t do that, anyway.). See things in a different perspective. Understand each other, for once. Apollo had never mentioned that it felt better than arguing. Heart wasn’t as whiny as before. He tended to do the things he was asked to do, as long as the other was kind-(ish) about it. In return, Mind did the same. It didn’t mean anything, it was just-
[An exercise in futility. They want to control you.]
Heart was awful at manipulation. Subtle manipulation, that is. Apollo would notice if Heart wanted control. That was Mind’s specialty, such quiet and slow poisoning of the well. Juno liked guilt tripping, though Mind hadn’t noticed them do it as of late. In return, of course, he didn’t manipulate them either. Again, it did not mean anything.
Resident Mind stumbled through the dark halls, seemingly going on forever, before suddenly the space in front of him shifted to be a kitchen. The portal was warbly and messy, as it often was when he was exhausted. At least the migraine was fading a little, as his thoughts moved to analyze his environment. No one else was up, which was to be expected. Soul slept like a log for half the day ever since the three had reached harmony. Lord knows she needed it.
[What if he never woke up?]
Could his brain shut up for a moment?
Mind sighed harshly, tried to stop his sudden bout of shivering, and did his best to brush those thoughts away. Another wave of nausea reminded him why he was here. He rummaged for a large bowl, but his clumsy metallic hands couldn’t seem to grab anything at all, causing mugs to clink together and plastic tupperware to tumble over. Sighing harshly, he decided to summon one instead. The reason he hadn’t already? It usually made his migraines worse.
Apollo decided to deal with it. The bowl appeared in his hands, and the third nausea wave caused him to spit up some disgusting black oil that coated his mouth and a mix of whatever he had consumed recently. Finally, for fuck’s sake. He began making his way back to the hall, holding his hand out to summon the portal again. Mind’s thoughts scrambled to find something to cling onto. As he summoned the way to the hall, his eyes lazily drifted to the counter. On it sat a brush, a pill bottle labeled in braille, and a tube of lipstick.
He quirked a brow. One of the other two must’ve left these things out here. He knew he wouldn’t let himself stray his belongings out like this. Judging by the medication and the brush, as he couldn’t tell the color of lipstick in the dark, he assumed Heart must’ve been requesting the help of Soul for personal hygiene and appearances. That was another new thing. Juno often let himself rot away for days or weeks in episodes of negativity, before finally trying to fix himself up. Now, they either asked Mind or Soul for assistance. The former just sighed, and strolled over, beginning to gather up the items before stopping at the lipstick.
[Maybe he should try it.]
Apollo shook his head wildly as a loud thrumming filled his chest, deafening him. What the fuck? Why was he being such a…degenerate? He felt awfully hot. Was he coming down with something? Quickly, he grabbed the lipstick too and rushed into the infinite hall, trying his best to ignore his brain.
Quietly, he knocked on Heart’s door, however, there was no reply. Then, as the loud thrumming faded into an odd, stomach-twisting feeling, he could hear snoring. Loud snoring. He sighed, and silently pushed open the door, setting the brush, medication, and offensive lipstick on the short dresser Juno owned. With that, Apollo brushed off his hands, and stumbled back into his room. Falling down onto his bed, a sudden thought came to him.
The bowl. He had left it when grabbing the objects.
He made a loud sound of anger, and shoved his face into his pillow.
He couldn’t be bothered to summon another one.