Chapter Text
Inhale. Exhale. Inhale. Exhale.
That's all you could hear, your own panting breath.
The adrenaline pumping in your ears blocked out every other sound.
Your eyes stared firmly at the ground as you ran tirelessly, your feet already sore but there was nowhere to rest. You had to get to safety.
A roar, a massive one, rang out above you. It tore through your protection and threatened your safety. You didn’t look. Nope. No. You weren’t looking. Not at all.
Your legs felt like they were about to give out. You wanted to cry for help but you knew nobody was around to hear you. It was futile.
You glanced upwards and found it. Safety in the form of a hole underneath a tree. Immediately you hurled yourself at it, collapsing into the hole with a grunt and a groan. Finally, rest. You felt your body was on fire and you didn’t have the strength to get up.
Tears poked at the corner of your eyes as you looked up at the sky for the first time since you ended up in this strange place.
A massive, multi-armed all-black creature was chained in a white void, extending its many arms out as thousands of ghost-like multi-colored entities floated around it. You had no clue what was happening. You didn’t like it.
All you wanted to do was play hide and seek.
As you faded into an uncontrollable slumber, your young self’s last thoughts were if you were going to make it out of this void alive.
=====
You jolt awake in your bed, rubbing tears from your eyes.
Another nightmare about the void. These nightmares are constant and you get them nearly every single week.
You were five when that happened. You wanted to play a game of hide-and-seek with some of the other kids at the school, but when you went off to hide you found yourself… there.
It was nightmarish.
Luckily, you made it out, but of course nobody believed you.
Ever since then, you haven’t played many games. In fact, you really don’t do much nowadays. You’re just a boring old clerk. You sit alone at a desk in front of a backwater hotel, giving people their keys and calculating visitors.
Your job was boring, but boring was good, right?
Boring means everything is at peace. Boring means there’s no despair.
Boring means everything is okay and nobody is going to hurt you even though the thoughts get louder and louder every day about how worthless everything is and how much you just wanted to feel something again.
You’re only 21. You haven’t had many of the firsts that life has to offer. You like it that way.
You do your normal preparations: check the weather and traffic, brush your teeth, shower, comb your hair, get dressed in your uniform, yadda yadda yadda, you’re out the door.
The hotel isn’t that long of a drive. You chose that place to work because of its proximity. The commute would be easier.
As you get there, you clock on and work your boring job.
Nobody really comes here. It used to be this grand castle owned by a well-known historical figure, but it all faded away, its base is now used for a hotel that nobody ever really goes to. Nobody cares about the history of the place, only the present.
You sit there. Bored. Boredom boredom boredom. You tap your fingers to a beat you make up in your head. It’s fun. It’s a happy song. You’re happy for a bit.
It’s just another day. Every day is the same. You prefer it that way.
Your eyes glaze over, and before long… you have to go to the bathroom.
So you go.
And as you finished up, you stood in the mirror, looking at your tired reflection. You were perfectly manicured, everything was as you had expected. It was boring. No excitement. You preferred this, you say, you like this.
Why don’t you like this?
Why do you feel horrible? Why? Isn’t boredom what all living creatures strive for? Why don’t you feel satisfied?
A strand of hair fell out of line, and you took the time to fix it.
You’re so focused on getting this hair back in line that you don’t even notice what’s happening behind you until it forces you out of your bubble.
CRASH!
Your eyes widens and your body snaps to the stall it happened to. Fear creeps through your body as you slowly approach the stall. You can hear two voices scuffling, although you can’t make out what they were saying.
You’re about to reach for the door to push it open, but… all of a sudden your limbs scream at you to stop.
It wasn’t worth it.
You decide not to question what happened and walk away.
However, life has other plans, as the door to the bathroom stall bangs open. You turn around and bear witness to two of the strangest creatures in existence. They’re tall, almost like jesters, with one looking like the sun and the other looking like the moon. They seem almost mechanical, but their faces were expressive enough for them to be living creatures.
They barrel out of the stall, collapsing onto the row of sinks in front of the stalls. Your thoughts whispered to you. You had time, get out! But it was too late, both of their eyes were locked purely on you.
“New friend!” the sun-looking-one squeals, jumping up and down in place before bolting at you. His arms wrap around you, his smile wide, nuzzling against your face. “My name’s Sun! Oh, we’re going to have so much fun together!”
Sun’s cuddles are unrelenting, no matter how hard you try to pull away from him, his grip tightens. His cuddles made you feel weird inside, and you didn’t like that. Yet you have no other option but to wait for someone… or something… to help you out of this pickle you’ve ended up in.
And… after a little while… something does break you apart.
It’s the moon one.
“Sun! No overwhelming mortals with love!” The moon scolds.
“Oh~! But just look at them~!” whines Sun, “They look desperate for cuddles!”
The two end up in a very heated argument once more, and so you decide to back up a bit. Slowly, steadily, in order to not end up in another cuddle pile, or involved in their interpersonal drama.
Yet the argument resolves quickly.
“Excuse Sun, he just loves mortals,” says the moon one, “My name is Moon, I come from another dimension. Puhuhuhu~, it’s a pleasure to meet you~,”
Moon gives a polite bow before staring at you, as if waiting for something.
“Nice to meet you,” you say in a shakened customer service voice, “I have a job to go back to-”
“Not so fast, friend!” Sun said, “We still haven’t learned your name!”
“It’s none of your business,” you say, “My business is back out front,”
“It is absolutely our business,” Moon replies, “We need to know the names of all of our friends,”
“I’m not your friend, okay?” you snap, but this doesn’t deter them.
“You absolutely are our friend! You’re friend shaped!” Sun interjects, running up to you and giving you scratches on your head. Moon gets close and leans himself onto your shoulder.
“If I say my name,” I ask, “Will you leave me alone?”
“Depends…” Moon coos into your ear, causing you to shiver, “We’re looking for someone, and you might be that someone. If you’re not that someone, you’re gonna help us find that someone,”
You roll your eyes. It’s basically no use. There’s no way you’ll get back to your boredom, and you can tell that they’re… probably crazy strong.
“Fine…” you say.
You told them your name, and suddenly you start to regret ever coming into that bathroom at that specific time, as both of their faces light up.
“It’s them!” they say to each other, “It’s you! You’re the mortal who can move Earths!”
A silence washed over the room, as you stared blankly at the excited immortal… entities.
“Move… earths?” you ask.
“Yesyesyes!” Sun ecstatically exclaims, “Hop dimensions, travel through the multiverse, go anywhere in existence! Whatever you want to call it, we call it earth-moving, and you’re the fabled only mortal earth-mover ever!”
They’re met with another blank stare.
“What…?” you ask once more.
“Nevermind the what, let’s get to the how!” Moon begins, “We have to figure out how to break out of this place, get to an open space, and then move to another Earth! You seem to know this place, help us get out of here!”
A third blank stare.
“The… the front door is unlocked,” you say, “Why don’t you jus-”
“No no no!” Sun interrupts, “You don’t know the first rule of adventuring with us! We are always locked in, even if the front door is unlocked!”
“Huh?”
“It’s very fun to break out of places,” Moon says, “You have to try it!”
“No, I’m not-”
“Come on! It’ll be exciting! Fun!” Sun pesters, “You seem like you need a lot of fun… that’s a face of boredom, and-”
“SHUT UP!” you shout, “I’m not going to break out of this place, which I WORK at! I’m on the CLOCK! Not to mention, that I like being bored! Boredom is what all living humans strive for, after all! I don’t like excitement!”
It was Sun and Moon’s turn to blankly stare at you, before turning to each other, and turning back to you.
“Have you ever felt truly happy?” Sun asked.
“What-?”
“Have you ever felt warm fuzzy feelings in your heart for someone, or something, before?” asked Moon.
“Have you ever created a perfect piece of art?” asked Sun.
“Had a good night’s sleep, recently?” Moon asked.
They kept bombarding you with personal questions, and it overwhelmed you.
“No!” you said firmly, “I answer no to most of those,”
They looked at each other, a look of knowing on both of their faces.
“Well that’s not a life worth living, isn’t it?” said Moon, “Come on, let us whisk you away to worlds of magic and whimsy!”
“Mermaids! Magic! Gods! Royals!” Sun rattled off, “Let’s go! Adventures!”
“No! No! NO!” you shout, “I am not going on an adventure with you! I’m going back to work!”
And with that, you slammed the door on them, leaving them and their promise of adventure.
=====
The rest of the day wasn’t as eventful as that one moment in the bathroom. Just the same old same old. Your thoughts occasionally wandered back to the adventurous promises that were made by Sun and Moon, but you quickly scrubbed those thoughts out of your mind.
As you drove home, your thoughts returned, and you wondered if it really was the right decision to turn them down.
You got home, had your dinner at your table with only one chair, and started your exercises, and while you were doing your evening routine, you heard a knock at the door.
You turned off your treadmill and approached the door with a “Coming!”
And yet, you didn’t expect to see what you saw on the front doorstep.
Right there was a third, somehow even taller, version of Sun and Moon. He looked like a fusion of the two, yet his eyes, rays, mouth, hands, shoes, and sleeves glowed in the dark. In his right hand he held a black bag with a black and red sun theme on it.
“Hello, darling~,” he greeted in a deep baritone voice, giving you a bow and kissing you on the back of your hand, “I am Eclipse, and I assume you had a run-in with my… compatriots… back at the hotel?”
You nod silently.
“I think you deserve a better explanation, then,” he says, “May I come in, darling~?”
Every time he calls you “darling”, a shiver runs down your spine. It didn’t show on your face, though. You calmly looked at Eclipse and smiled.
“I’m afraid I’m not open to visitors right now,” you say in a customer service voice, “Thanks for the visit, though!”
As you try to shut the door, Eclipse grabs the corner of the door and holds it open.
“And I’m afraid that this visit isn’t optional…” said Eclipse, making his way inside, “I’m sorry to invite myself in like this, darling, but it’s necessary,”
Eclipse walks further into your apartment with poise and elegance, his smirk never leaving his face as walks up to your table, snapping his fingers and summoning a red and black sun… well, perhaps it’s an eclipse themed chair, and opens his bag, pulling out… a tea set.
He sets two cups and saucers and puts them at each side of the table, and then pulls out a teapot. These cups had the same eclipse theme as the rest of him.
“Have a seat, darling~,” Eclipse insists, pointing at the one seat you had at your table, “Drink! You sure look like you need some tea~,”
Eclipse pours the tea into his cup and yours, before sipping his cup.
“Chamomile~!” Eclipse exclaims, as if he was excited to taste what was in his own teapot.
You hesitantly sit down and shakily take the cup, taking a sip. It was… sweet? You didn’t expect that. Smacking your lips, you take another sip. It was good, and that got you staring at the cup.
Eclipse lets out a low chuckle. “All of that confusion for chamomile tea? You really haven’t experienced much, have you, darling~?”
You shook your head “I prefer things to be boring, so I stick to what I know,”
“Well that’s no fun, is it?” Eclipse chuckles, setting down his tea before leaning back in his seat.
You drink the tea until it’s empty, not wanting to respond to that. Eclipse looks at you with a wide smile.
“What do you do for fun?” Eclipse says, leaning in.
Your gaze locks with his.
“Nothing, I prefer to be pure business,” you say.
Eclipse chuckles, taking another sip of his tea, “Well, darling, I can tell that you’re lying through your teeth,”
You looked at him with an incredulous look. What did he mean by that? Eclipse caught on and chuckled, sipping his tea.
“You don’t want to keep it all business, I can tell you that,” Eclipse started, “But… that’s absolutely besides the point, I came here to tell you what’s going to happen,”
He leans in closer, a chill running down your spine as his gaze turns sharp.
“You are the only mortal who can travel worlds, like myself, Sun, and Moon,” Eclipse spoke, his words spilling out like honey, “We don’t know how, but you can. Your power has laid dormant for sixteen years, and now it’s time for it to awaken. My… associates… wish to ask you to take you on adventures to help with that,”
“But, why? Why me? What makes me so important?” you ask.
Eclipse leans back and sips his tea, “Because… we’d like one more to join us on our adventures,”
You knew there was something more to that, but you also knew, just from Eclipse’s smug expression, that he wasn’t going to reveal that information.
“What’s your deal, though?” you ask, “Why do you care so much about adventure?”
“Adventure’s fun!” Eclipse says, “And my… associates… won’t take no for an answer. They’ll be coming later tonight, to break you out,”
“B-but wait!” you stammer, “I genuinely don’t want to go! What can I do to stop them?”
Eclipse finishes his tea and sets down the cup, “I’m afraid you’ll have to go, there’s no way of stopping them. Besides, I think you’ll be more into it than you’d think. My… associates… are a very fun pair,”
“Why do you keep saying associates like that?” you ask, getting fed up with him, “What’s your relationship with them?”
Eclipse chuckles, “Well it’ll be no fun to reveal everything at once, darling,”
Eclipse takes your hand and gives your fingers a kiss before getting up and picking up his tea set, putting it in his bag and snapping his fingers, the chair disappearing.
“I’m afraid I’ll have to go, darling~,” Eclipse says, leaning down once more and giving your hand one more kiss, “I’ll be seeing you,”
With a wink, Eclipse leaves your apartment. His words linger in your mind as you trace the back of your hand, the ghosts of his kisses still haunting the skin.
=====
You can’t sleep. Your eyes are trained on the window, the blue hue seeping into every corner of your bedroom.
You’re waiting, waiting to turn them down. All three of them, Sun, Moon, and Eclipse, have not left your mind since you’ve met them. Wandering, waiting, whispering. It's too much. Every time you close your eyes you can see Moon’s eyes, feel Sun’s embrace, hear Eclipse’s words.
Your heart pounds too fast, your eyes widen too wide. This is too much excitement. Too much! Too much!
You cling onto your pajama pants, squeezing your eyes shut to try and block out the thoughts, but they keep coming. All three of their odd gazes. Everything that happened today is replaying in your mind.
This never happens. You made sure it never happens. Why is it happening?
This is too much, you just wish for someone… something… to save you from this predicament. To save you from these emotions, to hug you and tell you everything’s okay. To whisk you away to a world of…
No… you don’t want to go on an adventure. Absolutely not. Nope! Nuh-uh! Not gonna happen.
You think back to when you passed out in the hole under the tree in that weird void. Wherever it was.
It was sixteen years ago when that happened. You don’t like that. It scares you. The thought of running into whatever happened there scares you like no other.
Yet, you get jolted out of your thoughts when a loud BANG reverberates through your bedroom, and the window opens.
It’s Sun and Moon. Both of them have shocked looks on their faces.
“Have you been getting enough sleep?” asked Moon, crawling into your bedroom. Sun follows shortly after.
“Sun?” you ask, pretending you weren’t expecting them, “Moon? What’s happening? I thought I told you no,”
Both Sun and Moon looked at each other, and both had displeased looks on their faces.
“Ugh! Eclipse!” Sun groaned, “Always ruining our plans!”
“We wanted to surprise you,” Moon said, “But… dammit!”
“Then you probably understand I don’t want to go on an adventure with you?” You say. Yet, with that, their smiles creep back on their faces.
“Oh~? Do you think we were just going to… ask you to come with us?” Moon says, chuckling, “Well… I guess we do still have one surprise left for you, then,”
With that, Sun wraps his hands around your body and slings you over his shoulder.
“We’re not asking!” Sun says.
Before you can even react, Sun and Moon, with you in tow, step out of the window and begin to fly off.
“HEY!” you shout “PUT ME DOWN! STOP! STOP KIDNAPPING ME!”
“Quiet, now~,” Moon says, taking you from Sun’s arms, “Why don’t you have a nice rest floating on clouds?”
You’re soon dropped onto the softest surface you’ve ever been on, a blue cloud with floating moons and stars inside of it.
The cloud carries you alongside Sun and Moon, but the cloud… it’s too soft for you to even care. It’s so comfy, comfier than even your own bed.
You hear a loud CRACK as a portal opens up in front of Sun and Moon, and as you enter the portal, you notice that Sun and Moon’s appearances change.
Sun’s radiant and yellow, his legs are engulfed in billowing fabric that flowed with every movement. His rays are larger and more angular. His chest is wrapped in fabric, making it almost like a dress.
Moon’s also more billowy than before, his nightcap now five times longer than it normally is. He’s dressed in a fancy suit and tie, yet instead of legs it’s just large, billowing clouds.
Their smiles stay planted on their faces as they float your cloud down on top of a whole pile of multi-colored clouds.
“Go ahead and get some rest,” Moon says, joining you on the clouds and wrapping his arms around you, “When you wake up, we’ll go on an adventure,”
Sun joins in next to you as well, squeezing you and nuzzling into your neck. Moon’s grip tightens as both of their faces rub up against yours. Their embraces are comfy, alongside the cloud.
It’s… cozy here… wherever “here” even is.
You feel…safe?
As you wonder what you were feeling, you feel sleep crawl over you, and soon… you drifted off.