Chapter Text
The wind howled as the black car slowly rolled along the partially snow covered road. The snow covered the entire area around the domicile and as far as Mort could see, all he saw was white. The snowfall had gotten more intense these past few days and Mort had to say that while he didn’t mind snow, they were getting too much of it for his liking.
It wasn't too bad in the city, at least. But out here in the countryside, the snow was a real hindrance. But thankfully Mort had managed to drive out to Sin’s home just fine. He hadn’t visited for a few weeks at this point, but he’d sent Sin a few letters – even using some more festive cards to go with the season!
Blaine ‘n Simple was Mort’s primary time-sink these days, though of course, he hadn't been able to avoid being called in by Mr. Sweet to attend a part or two… a week. Mort was more or less fine with attending parties at Marigold by now, even if his boss’ shenanigans did get old very quickly . It was the same thing over and over, Mort being paraded around like a trophy, but at the very least Mr. Sweet wasn't introducing him to as many new people by now. Mort was starting to recognize names and faces among his associates.
The most terrifying experience, however, was meeting with Mr. Sweet’s bosses, the people he answered to. Mort shuddered as he got out of the car, both from the cold and from remembering meeting those intimidating men for the first time. All dressed sharply, staring at him with cold, judgmental eyes and all carrying themselves with a presence that Mort found utterly terrifying.
Wearing a big, warm coat at least kept Mort somewhat shielded from the bitter cold outside. The icy winds that blew by gripped Mort’s tail and ears and he was eager to get inside. He opened the left backdoor of the car after he got out and closed the front door. Stashed inside were a couple of fabric bags that Mort had packed along with a single suitcase . He smiled, his little heart fluttering slightly as he closed and locked the car.
He moved towards Sin’s house, hurrying along the snowy ground, his winter boots sinking into the cold snow with a crunch for each step he took . It was the middle of the day, but already the sky seemed to be darkening. Mort stepped right up to the door and shifted one of the bags to his right hand and knocked upon the door with his left one.
M ercifully, Mort didn’t have to wait out in the cold for long as the door soon swung open. Sin peered down at him, the most subtle hint of a smile on his white-furred face. “Ah, Mort. C ome in, come in.”
The smaller cat hurried inside. He made sure to shake the snow off his boots before he did properly enter, bringing his stuff with him. “Ah, phew… it sure is cold today, I hope we won’t get a big blizzard or anything like that…”
“What’s all this stuff?” Sin asked immediately as he glanced curiously at the bags and the suitcase, icy blue eyes looking them over in an almost suspicious manner.
“Oh, I’ll be leaving for the station first thing tomorrow – so I just wanted to bring everything inside,” the Siamese cat replied casually as he got his coat and his boots off. He chuckled. “I’m bringing presents for my family, after all.”
Sin didn’t seem entirely convinced, but he didn’t press the matter any further as he walked Mort inside. This wasn't the first time the young cat had been inside the Chezk home, nor was it the first time he was going to spend the night there. Sin beckoned for him to follow, before the older cat ascended the stairs that led to the upper floor.
“I’ve prepared the guest room for you, Mort, so you can just place all your stuff up there,” the Oriental Longhair said as Mort followed him. The younger cat’s blue eyes wandered over the pictures on the wall, though he did a double-take and stopped.
He had seen the family portrait of Sin and his parents before. Even with how strange it was to think that the unassuming little boy with long ears (one of which was looking rather floppy) would turn out to be the man Mort knew today, this wasn't what drew the Siamese cat’s eye.
“What happened?” Mort stopped to stare at the picture frame, the glass around young Sin’s face cracked into a cobweb of sharp glass. And was that… was that blood on the glass? “Sin…?”
The older cat stopped, but didn’t look back. He said nothing for a while, before he continued up the stairs. “Don’t worry, I just… stumbled and fell against the picture. Don’t you worry about me, I’m fine…”
Mort couldn’t say he was entirely convinced, but he also didn’t choose to pursue it any further. He cast a last concerned look at young Sin’s completely obscured face, before he continued up the stairs. Mort was taking Sin’s old childhood bedroom, just like last time. It had gone mostly unoccupied until the last time when Mort had used it, and as such it had very little furniture aside from a bed, a chair and a desk. There was a single large, wooden chest in the room, though Mort hadn’t looked inside to see what it held – after all, he didn’t want to be nosy.
The bedroom in question was small, even smaller than Mort’s living space back in his radio tower. The floor was made of hard wood and the walls had an old, faded wallpaper with a pattern of small flower-like shapes. There was a single window overlooking the area outside where Mort could see the snowy, white world, the road he’d come from and the surrounding area.
“Fancy a snowball fight?” Mort asked casually as he glanced out the window. When he turned to look at Sin, he noticed the older cat was scowling at him. He chuckled. “What? I’m just kidding, Sin – besides, the last one didn’t go quite to plan…”
“You really shouldn’t pick fights you can’t win,” Sin noted calmly as he watched Mort put his suitcase and the bags down near the bed. The young cat smiled up at the Oriental Longhair. It was hard for Sin to keep scowling when he peered down into those deep blue eyes.
“That’s why I’m not. Now then… since we’ve got the day to ourselves, what shall we do? What do you usually do around this time of year?”
“Sleep,” Sin simply responded in a deadpan manner that had Mort blinking in surprise. The old grave-keeper chuckled lightly in his deep voice. “Well, I can’t do too much to keep the cemetery orderly with all this snow. So winter is the one time of year where I don’t do much. What would you like to do?”
Mort glanced out the window again, thinking his options over. Snow was starting to fall outside, which would no doubt result in even more snow to shovel. The sky was already darkening a considerable amount and based on the density of the falling, white flakes of frozen water, Mort had a feeling they were better off staying inside.
“We could play a game… No, I mean, something like… chess or a card game,” Mort hastily added when Sin initially snorted at the suggestion. He smiled and walked closer to the older male, Mort barely coming up to his shoulders. “You do know how to play chess, right?”
“That I do…” Sin confirmed with a nod, icy blue eyes boring into Mort’s. Even despite how cold those eyes seemed, Mort was so used to them by now. And in the winter time, Mort almost thought they appeared warmer, darker than normal, at least slightly so. Could people’s eye color change? Mort didn’t know, but he thought it might be the case for Sin.
The younger cat smiled up at Sin. “Well, in that case, consider yourself challenged! In chess, I mean…”
Although Mort could tell that Sin was hesitant, he watched the older cat moving towards the door, gesturing for him to follow. Mort eagerly did so, making his way down the stairs right behind Sin. His blue eyes once more lingered on the shattered glass over the picture frame. He felt a need to inquire further, but for Sin’s sake, Mort restrained himself.
The living room was decently big, certainly large enough for a family to comfortably occupy. Sin moved towards the kitchen, leaving Mort by himself for a moment. The young cat glanced around, taking in the surroundings. It wasn’t his first time being in Sin’s living room, of course, and it wasn't like things had changed all that much since the last time Mort was there. Looking out the nearest window, Mort noticed that the snowfall seemed to be getting more and more intense, the windows getting pelted with thick, fluffy snowflakes every second.
After sparing a moment to worry about how bad the roads were going to be once he was leaving the next day, Mort turned back to watch as Sin made a reappearance. He was carrying with him a small box and a wooden chess board. The hunched, older cat set the board down and Mort moved on over to help place each chess piece on it.
The board itself was clearly rather old, having seen quite some wear with age. Mort could see scuffs and scratches on the otherwise smooth, wooden surface. The chess pieces too looked rather worn; one half had a light beige color as a stand-in for white, the other a dark brown as a stand-in for black. As he placed each one down on the designated square, Mort looked them over. They were quite finely made, clearly hand-crafted and similarly worn with age, much like the board itself. Perhaps they had been in Sin’s family for quite some time.
“These all belonged to my grandfather,” Sin said calmly, as if reading Mort’s mind. The young cat smiled and nodded quietly as the two of them got the board set up. “I haven’t had much of a chance to play since-”
Sin’s trailing off had Mort looking up for a moment, knowing what the implication was. When their eyes met, Sin just nodded quietly once he saw the small frown on Mort’s face. The older cat stood up and moved towards the armchair nearby, but much to Sin’s surprise, Mort sat down in front of the coffee table, his back towards the fireplace. Legs crossed, he looked quite relaxed as he smiled at Sin.
“I suppose that works… Are you sure you’ll be comfortable sitting like that?” Sin inquired, looking mildly concerned.
The younger cat grinned and nodded, waving Sin closer, before gesturing towards the couch opposite of where he sat. His dark gray tail even gave an excited little swish. “Oh, quite sure! Now, let’s play!”
Still looking rather hesitant, Sin moved over to take a seat on the couch, sitting right across from Mort. With the pieces arranged in the way they were, Mort was given the white pieces, meaning he had to start. The Siamese cat rubbed his chin for a moment as he looked over the entire board, before he made his first move with one of his knights.
Sin raised an eyebrow, seemingly curious. He himself took considerably longer than Mort, the younger cat leaning on his hands, elbows against the table as he watched and waited. The older cat made his move and thereafter soon Mort made his second one.
“So, I don’t actually know how to play, fun fact,” Mort casually said as he moved a pawn one space forward. The older cat stared at Mort and blinked in surprise, the Siamese cat just smiling back at him.
“You don’t know how- you seem to know what you’re allowed to do just fine,” Sin noted, sounding rather skeptical. He looked at the young cat, trying to figure out if he was being serious or not.
Mort just gave a light chuckle and shrugged as he resumed resting his head on his hands. “I- well, I know what the pieces can do, but I don’t really know much else – don’t know any of those fancy strategies ‘n all that.”
As he moved one of his own pawns forward, Sin offered a shrug. “Well, if you know how to move the pieces, you know how to play. I was never as good as my grandfather – he taught me how to play – but I know enough to get by. It really is the first time in a while that I’ve played, however…”
However, as the game carried on, it became increasingly clear that Mort was very much out of his depth. The Siamese cat managed to lose piece after piece to Sin, soon leaving it down to a rook, a bishop, a few pawns and his king. Meanwhile, Sin had managed to hold onto his queen, the most versatile piece.
But just being at a disadvantage didn’t mean that Mort was going to give up so easily. Although that of course didn’t stop Sin from putting him into a checkmate quite easily. The younger cat had to admit defeat as there were no more options left, but he didn’t seem particularly disappointed. If anything, Sin noticed that he seemed quite pleased to have lost – or at least to just have played.
“Actually… I did want to ask you some things,” the Oriental Longhair said as he and Mort put the pieces back into position, Sin playing white this time. “Did you bring your Marigold pin?”
“My-? No, I didn’t,” Mort responded, quite surprised by the sudden question as he looked up at Sin inquisitively. His expression changed, looking… Sin wasn’t sure if Mort looked nervous or hopeful. “Why, did you want to go to a party with me toni-”
“No. Good God, no. I don’t want to set foot in that place more than necessary,” Sin practically spat as he cut in, a displeased look on the ghostly, white cat’s face. “If you brought it, we could’ve burnt it.”
Staring at Sin for a moment, Mort wasn't quite sure what to say. He let out a nervous chuckle that quickly trailed off when he saw the look on Sin’s face. “Oh… you- uh… you were serious…?”
The old grave-keeper nodded slowly once the pieces were all in position, making the first move with a pawn. “I am. It’s no secret that my disdain for Marigold is only outweighed by my disdain for Sweet. But more than that… I’d rather you left Marigold behind. You… You deserve better.”
“I-… You really think I deserve better?” Mort had picked up one of his own knights, but had stopped in the middle of placing it down. He stared at the white cat. Sin stared back at the younger male for a moment, astounded that he seemed to completely miss the point he was trying to make. Sin sighed and returned his attention towards the chessboard momentarily as Mort continued. “I’d love to, honestly, but… I can’t.”
“Who or what did Mr. Sweet threaten you with?” Sin asked calmly as he made his move, sending his left-side bishop out onto the field now that his pawn had been moved to clear the way.
Mort didn’t give an answer right away as he too made a move, taking considerably less time to think before he did. The young Siamese was silent for a moment, before he looked back up at Sin. “I just can’t, Sin. He’s got too much on me. Can’t we talk about something else-”
“What is it exactly he’s got on you then?”
Mort didn’t look at Sin, his eyes fixated on the nearby window, which was almost entirely covered by snow, somehow. But he didn’t give that fact much thought. “Everything. I basically signed away my rights and-”
“You did what?!” Mort gave a start and turned back to look at Sin, the younger cat looking quite alarmed. He'd never had Sin raise his voice at him like that before. Mort gave another start when he saw how angry Sin looked.
“I just signed a contract, isn’t that what all Marigolds-”
“No,” Sin interrupted angrily, almost glaring at Mort as he did. The old grave-keeper seemed to finally notice how startled Mort looked as his expression softened considerably. He shook his head, before continuing in a gentler tone. “If Sweet made you sign a contract, it means he really wants to keep you around. He’s hired people under far more casual circumstances…”
Sin’s words didn’t exactly make Mort feel any better about it, the younger cat’s dark gray ears laid flat against his head. “I told you, I’m not going anywhere, even if I want to…”
Staring at Mort in silence for a moment, Sin seemed to be considering quite a few things. Mort hadn't the faintest clue what these things might entail, but from the look on his face, he also wasn't entirely sure it was something good.
“Please, don’t do anything drastic,” Mort pleaded in a voice so pitiful that Sin looked quite surprised. “I don’t want to trouble you with it. As long as I do what he says, everything will be fine…”
Sin continued staring at the younger cat, before averting his gaze finally. “If I can find a way to get you out, I’m not going to hesitate – you’re not cut out for this sort of life. And I don’t want you to end up like me.”
The older cat held up his injured hand to show Mort the spot where his third finger was missing. Their eyes met again as Mort raised a hand, but moved it towards the chessboard after a brief bit of hesitation. A gentle nudge of his dark gray finger and his own king fell over. Sin just stared at him.
“Here, have some tea.” Mort glanced up as Sin handed him a steaming cup of tea. Mort took the beautiful piece of china into his hands gently, smiling at the older cat. The tea smelled quite pleasant, though Mort couldn’t quite place it. It definitely smelled like some kind of herb, though. The two had taken a break from their chess game and Sin had made them tea.
In the comfort of Sin’s home, the two could hear the howling winds outside as they rattled the windows, which were almost completely obscured by the snow. The snow constantly pelted the windows and it didn’t seem to be letting up anytime soon. They did indeed seem to have been caught in a blizzard, though at least neither of them had to leave until morning.
“Some weather we’re havin’, eh?” Mort asked Sin, playfully using his radio voice for once. It was fortunate that Mort didn’t have to worry about broadcasting for a few days – otherwise, he would have to drive back to his home in the evening and he’d rather not in such hazardous weather.
Being unfamiliar with his radio voice, Sin just simply stared at Mort when he spoke, looking rather puzzled. “Uh… indeed. Now then… What say you we resume discussing your Sweet predicament, Mort?”
“No.” Mort responded in what was likely the most firm and resolute tone Sin had ever heard him using, so much so that the older cat looked momentarily stunned. Sin’s icy blue eyes were boring into his, but Mort held his gaze.
The young cat took a sip of tea, savoring the herbal taste. It didn’t taste like any herb or plant Mort was familiar with, but he supposed he also didn’t drink that many different kinds of tea anyway. “I’d rather talk about you, actually.”
“Me? I don’t see why you would, but… I suppose we could,” the Oriental Longhair said somewhat hesitantly. He watched Mort for a moment, before raising his own tea cup to take a sip. “Ask away, my boy.”
“Can I see your hand for a moment?” Mort asked immediately, holding up one of his own dark gray ones, palm facing upwards.
Their eyes meeting for a moment, Sin’s expression was quite hard to read, but the older cat soon extended a white-furred hand towards Mort – his left one. He was no fool – he of course knew that Mort had meant his right one, but for now, this was what he was getting. The younger cat did indeed seem surprised, almost disappointed, but nevertheless he took a hold of Sin’s left hand.
“Are you cold?” Sin asked suddenly.
“Wha- me? No, why?”
“Your hand is shaking,” the older cat calmly noted, taking Mort by surprise. The younger cat swiftly let go and shook his hand, as if that’d make it stop shaking by itself.
“Sorry, I guess- I don’t know,” Mort said, before awkwardly clearing his throat. He reached for his cup and took another sip of tea, before reaching for Sin again, though he was surprised to find that he had extended his right hand instead.
Mort carefully took a hold of Sin’s hand again, this time holding on as if it were made of glass as he looked over the scar where Sin’s third finger used to be. As Mort looked, Sin watched him silently, not saying a word as the younger cat’s dainty fingers brushed his. Sin did however tense up, his fingers giving a light twitch. Mort looked up at him, a worried look on the young cat’s face.
“What’s wrong?” he wondered out loud. “Does it hurt when I touch it?”
“No, no, it’s-… Excuse me for a moment.” Sin rose quickly, his tail almost knocking over his and Mort’s tea cups as he left the couch where they’d been seated together. The tall, slender cat made his way to the kitchen where he stopped.
Was he getting sick? No… No, it couldn’t be that… and yet he felt strange, his heart was racing and he felt strangely out of breath. He looked down at his right hand.
Putting his left hand over his chest, Sin waited till he felt his heartbeat return to normal. Strange… he wasn't getting a heart condition, was he? He hoped not, he still had unfinished business before his time came…
Returning to the living room, Sin stopped in the doorway and stared at Mort for a moment. The young cat stared back at him, those remarkably bright blue eyes framed in by the dark gray pentagon of fur on his face. “Is everything alright? I didn’t make you uncomfortable, did I?”
“I’m fine,” the older cat lied as he made his way over to sit down beside Mort again. The younger cat pulled his legs up off the floor and hugged them against his chest. “Now then… Tell me about your radio… thing.”
Mort’s ears perked right up as a smile spread across his face, a smile Sin couldn’t help but begrudgingly find incredibly endearing. It even made the corners of his own mouth start to move upwards ever so slightly.
“Really? Oh, well… Let’s see, I started doing radio two years ago and only in the morning at first,” Mort explained slowly, seemingly eager, but not quite used to talking about his job. The young cat still hugged his legs against him with one arm as he reached for his tea cup with his left one. He took a sip. “I talk about, well, at first I just covered the news of the day, and I did it for just a few days… but now it’s daily.”
“What do you talk about now?” the older cat inquired as he too reached for his own tea cup.
“Oh, everything… news, sports ball games and all that… Oh, and I like to read aloud what people write about me in the papers, it’s fun,” Mort said with a grin. When Sin raised an eyebrow, Mort chuckled and shook his head. “Oh, don’t worry, they don’t write anything nasty about me. It’s sometimes just people talking about what they think of my show.”
Sin didn’t say a word, he just simply raised his cup to take another sip. He glanced over at Mort in silence, before asking, “What do they say about you?”
The younger cat smiled and took another sip of his own tea, before he shrugged. “Oh, this and that… Usually they just talk about if they think I’m funny or not. Do you think I’m funny, Sin?”
Raising an eyebrow, the old cat looked curiously at Mort, but a small smile spread across his face nevertheless. “Hmmm, on occasion. You do have your moments.”
Sin reached over for Mort and stroked his head with a slender, white-furred hand. And there it was again, shortness of breath, as Sin stared at the younger cat. He removed his hand swiftly and cleared his throat.
“You sure you ain’t getting’ sick?” Mort asked, tone worried as he looked at Sin, who immediately gave a dismissive wave of his hand.
“No need to worry, I’m just fine. Now, perhaps we ought to start preparing for dinner,” Sin said, immediately changing the subject.
“Sure, what’re we having?” Mort used a more upbeat tone as he asked, but the way he looked at Sin was still a look of worry. As much as it annoyed Sin to be pitied, he didn’t say anything about it. Sin had never liked being pitied for any reason whatsoever, but he supposed it came from a good place…
“Well, I made sure to have something nice since you were coming over,” Sin said as he rose from the couch. He finished his tea and picked up the pot along with his cup. Mort followed suit and walked into the kitchen with Sin.
It was a nice kitchen, the wooden floor tidy and clean and it had windows that overlooked the area behind the house. Or at least it would have, had it not been for the snow that had stuck to the window, blocking their view for the most part. Mort was quite pleased to see that despite Sin’s dislike of some modern technology, he at least had appliances that would make their life easier; a stove, an oven and even a fridge.
Sin shot Mort a cautious sort of look, their blue eyes meeting momentarily. “I didn’t know if a turkey would be too much, but I suppose you don’t mind, do you?”