Work Text:
It was cold.
Leafy already missed the sun’s bright glow, a stark contrast to the night sky above her. Despite being made of metal, having eaten more yoyleberries than she could count in just a few months, She felt colder than usual that night. As she stared up at the sky above her, she longed for the sunlight to shine over her once more, to reflect off of her sleek, metallic body, that was once painted a green hue. She was a leaf after all, though, she didn’t feel much like one anymore, not needing to brace herself for strong winds, not needing to photosynthesize in this form.
Photosynthesis… The sunlight. It reminded her of something. Someone.
Leafy fondled a stray yoyleberry in the palm of her hand, feeling sick to her stomach as she felt its cold purple skin against it. She despised the taste of these things, considering it was all she could eat for so long. Too scared to come out of hiding for stealing Dream Island, afraid to know what her friends (or rather, enemies) thought of her. Afraid to see.. Him. She tilted her head back against a nearby bush, staring up at the stars above her. She grimaced at the thought of him again. Why was she doing this to herself? Why couldn’t she move on and just accept her new life? She had her new friends! Her berries, and her knives! Wasn’t that enough? Wasn’t it better than that excuse of a flame? He’d burn her if she wasn’t metal anyway!
And yet..
He recovered her. It had been months, but she still thought about it almost daily. She knew it was him. That recognizable glow as he hurried away from the scene, hoping to not be caught by his group of fellow WTFers. She called out, wondering who was the culprit, but it was all too obvious. Leafy painfully muttered something under her breath as she clenched her fist, the yoyleberry squishing its contents onto her hands and splattering on her cheek. She felt her eyes burning with tears, blurring her vision as she slowly opened her palm to see the seeds and skin of the berry remaining on her skin. She was so.. Violent. It scared her. It felt like a reminder that she did something awful, when she wanted to be someone that was good. She was still a good person, right?
She missed him.
Why did she care so much? It had been almost four years, why was she still holding onto a friendship that couldn’t have ever lasted long anyway? Leafy clawed at her arms, holding herself as she tried to push back her tears as anger bubbled in her chest. She couldn’t take it. She missed his warmth, his stupid laugh, his stupid smile. She hated him for how he treated her, she couldn’t stand the flame, but for some reason she just wished he was there with her. The only thing that she could get close enough to him was the sun. And it would be hours before it was upon the horizon.
So Leafy held herself and cried, digging her nails into the sides of her arms, barely making dents due to her metallic form. She wished she could feel something but anger, pity for herself, sorrow… longing. But she couldn’t stand it. She didn’t know why she felt the way she did. Despite everything she had been through, those long four years, she wanted to be near him so badly. Leafy inhaled softly, breathing in the cold air of the night as she lowered her hands from her arms.
She needed to take a walk. Maybe she could blow off some steam, find something to do before everyone woke up and she had to hide in the bushes again? That.. might be for the best. And so, she went on her way, slowly rising to her feet as she grabbed one of her knives, shoving the rest of her collection into a nearby bush. Perhaps she could look for some other types of food on the way? She hadn’t been to the city in a week or so, and last time she was there, she heard talk of something called grotatoes, whatever those were. As Leafy trudged toward the ghost city in the distance, eerie, faint lights illuminating the sky, she continued to try and calm and console herself, clutching her knife carefully to her side. You never know when you need to defend yourself, after all. The cold air brushed past her body, stinging her teary eyes as she drew closer to the start of the city, carefully stepping onto the broken concrete. For a city that was supposed to be abandoned, aside from the few BFDIA contestants left in the game (was that thing still even going on?) The lights of a few buildings still being lit after all those years brought her a level of unease and discomfort she couldn’t really describe. She wondered what Yoyle City was like years ago, when its people still inhabited it…
Leafy looked around her, staring up at the tall buildings and the faint lights that flickered in the windows of each one, some buildings completely dark, which she wanted to stay away from as much as possible. Her first goal was to find those grotatoes, since she was sick of eating yoyleberries all the time. The sweet, yet bitter flavor with a metallic aftertaste wasn’t her thing. Perhaps she had just grown tired of eating them all the time, or being metal on a day-to-day basis made them taste different? Leafy didn’t care, she just wanted to find something else so she didn’t go completely mad.
That was when she saw it; A potato patch centered in the square of the city. These must be those grotatoes she heard about… Her eyes lit up slightly as she quickened her walking, hoping there was at least one potato fully grown for her to take. The wind rushed past her as she quickly rushed to the patch, leaping over the gates that surrounded it, not even bothering to go through the gate’s door. Her hands were shaking as she looked around at the sprouts that had begun to release themselves from the earth. She patted the top layer of soil, feeling that it was slightly moist. Fries was still caring for them. She sometimes snuck around during the day and got all of this information from overhearing conversation. But were the potatoes even grown enough to take? Leafy carefully pulled away some dirt from the plant, careful not to damage it’s roots, she dug fairly deep, just enough to see the head of the potato, the sprout protruding from it.
“Yes!” Leafy cheered quietly to herself as she quickly pulled the potato from its spot.
It wasn’t fully grown, that was for sure, these things probably got much bigger (considering their name), but it was mature enough for her to eat. Her stomach growled at the thought of eating something aside from yoyleberries, smiling in content as she cut off the stem with her knife and put it back in the dirt, making it seem as if a potato was still growing there. Though as she rose to her feet once more, wiping some dirt and debris off of her knees, she felt a growing sense of guilt as she stared at the potato in her hands, her soft smile curling into a frown.
She was stealing something. That wasn’t something good people did, right? She was stealing. Again.
Guilt plagued Leafy as she stepped back, practically holding the potato close to her for comfort. She tried to tell herself that what she was doing was okay; She was starving, she was begging to eat something that wasn’t berries, but she couldn’t help but feel terrible. Fries needed these, right? He needed them to stay alive. And she was taking something away from him. Leafy stared at the other sprouts. There were at least twenty planted… But she remembered Fries having six of his own. So he only needed five, right? Despite not knowing the object personally, she still watched closely after being recovered. Leafy sighed as she held the potato in front of her, feeling its weight in her hands.
“It’s.. okay. They have more than enough. Just taking one won’t hurt you.”
Leafy chose to walk out from the gate doors, quietly closing it behind her as she held the large potato in her arms. She felt guilty, sure, but also silly for lugging such a thing around with her. She reassured herself once more as she went on her way, gently rubbing some dirt off of her knife the best she could with one of her free hands. She continued to walk, getting closer to the Yoyle Needy, the enormous landmark of the city. For how iconic it was, she didn’t understand why it was abandoned. She’d have to be careful around here. For all she knew, there could be people nearby.
As she continued on her way, she looked up at the tower, a gentle smile coming across her face. It was hard to see the top, considering how tall it was, but it was still gorgeous at night even from below. Its faint multi-colored lights flickered in the dark, and a soft orange hue could be seen from behind. The orange was… familiar. Yet out of place. Leafy grew nervous as she carefully walked to the other side of the tower, her stomach churning. As she approached the front of the tower, her eyes widened, her breath hitching as she nearly stumbled back, almost dropping her cargo.
“No…”
There he was. Up above near the top of the Yoyle Needy, imprisoned in a cage that looked to be made of a fireproof material.
Firey.
Leafy stared up at the cage in horror. What did he do to get in there? Was it because he recovered her? How would the others have known in the first place? Wasn’t he afraid of heights?
She felt sick. Yet part of her was… curious.
The metallic leaf carefully approached the entrance, looking behind her, as if worried someone else was watching, before opening the gate, passing through the entrance and making her way up the steps. It would be a while, but she knew she had to see him. Firey seemed to be asleep, as she noticed how his orange glow was dimmer than usual. She thought of the worst possible scenarios. What if he fell from the tower and got killed? What if he was extinguished in the rain? What if he was mocked daily by whomever locked him in there? She knew that she shouldn’t have cared so much, she still hated Firey for what he did to her... And yet… She wanted to see him. She wanted to make sure he was okay. She wanted to give him a silent thank you for recovering her.
Leafy continued to think to herself as she drew closer to the top of the tower, not even realizing how close she was, her quiet footsteps making little noise as she walked. She held the potato in her arms closer to her, inhaling softly as she got closer to the door leading to the entrance of the observation tower. She felt a slight sense of regret as she hesitantly used one of her hands to turn the doorknob, wincing at the quiet creaking of the door as it slowly swung open, leaving her to look at the city from below, her eyes widening, her mouth agape in awe. As Leafy tried to process how high up she truly was, she then remembered why she was there in the first place, feeling a bit nauseous as she stared at a chain that was latched onto the edge of the tower’s observation area, inching closer to it. Leafy carefully placed her potato down, along with her knife, leaning against the railing as she looked down below at Firey, resting in his cage, his soft orange glow illuminating her metallic body from where she stood. Leafy frowned as she carefully sat by the edge, dangling one of her legs through the bars of the railing. She admired Firey’s soft glow not far from her, a tiny smile crawling across her lips as she watched him sleep.
Firey was curled up into a ball, hugging his knees, his eyes gently closed as he slept. The metal surrounding him was dark, but his glow illuminated their reflective surfaces. His lips were parted slightly as he slept, only the quiet sounds of breathing and an occasional snore escaping from his mouth. He looked oddly beautiful like this, just sleeping soundly despite his current predicament...
This wasn’t creepy, was it? It.. probably was, but that didn’t matter at the moment. There he was. Her flame. Her sunshine… Her…
No.
This was wrong. She was watching someone sleep. She was watching Firey sleep. Wasn’t that at least a bit creepy? Wrong? Outright disturbing? He probably didn’t even know she was there, and wouldn’t enjoy it if he saw her whatsoever. Yet she was almost entranced by his dancing flame, the quiet crackling of his fiery body being the only thing she could hear. It was like music to her ears… She inched a little closer, almost wishing she could touch him. She was metal… maybe she’d be safe? She wanted to feel his warmth.. She wanted to hold his hand. She wanted to get him out of there… To do him a favor for him recovering her months ago.
Leafy crouched by the bars, reaching one of her hands out, trying to feel as much warmth from Firey as she could, her body pressed up against the metal as she stretched her arm out. That was until she heard a quiet, creaking noise. She paused for a moment, staring down at Firey, then remembering she was quite literally on top of the tallest tower in all of Goiky. Her eyes widened as she felt her stomach sink, her eyes focused on the blurred view of the ground below. As she moved her hand further away from the bars, the creaking almost grated her ears as she pushed her weight off of the bars slightly. Leafy then gasped as the railing she was leaning against was beginning to bend forward, watching as it nearly collapsed and detached from the concrete floor of the skyview. She quickly pulled herself away, scrambling to her feet, staring at the railing, which was now bent at an angle, potentially able to fall at any minute.
She forgot how old this tower was.. Realizing that it wasn’t a good idea to be so reckless. So selfish. Her heart pounded in her chest as she tried to compose herself, afraid of what would have happened if she fell over the edge. Would she have fallen on top of Firey’s cage? Or would she have plummeted to her untimely demise, her lifeless, metallic body found the next morning? Leafy tried to calm down, her hand shaking as she quickly picked up her potato and knife, turning to the door of the observation tower. She couldn’t be here any longer, she couldn't stand to even think about Firey right now.
Leafy rushed to open the door, hurrying down the steps as fast as she could, tears obscuring her vision as she tried to make it out of the tower, hopefully without getting caught. She wasn’t sure why she was getting so emotional. Why did she care about Firey so much in the first place? But that didn’t matter now. She needed to get out, at least in one piece. Who knows what would happen if someone saw her? The one who stole Dream Island… now stealing one of their potatoes. What if they saw her on the top of the tower, accusing her of trying to kill Firey? She didn’t want to think of all of the worst scenarios. The most important thing to her was getting out of there, panting as she opened the door at the bottom of the tower, hurrying into the streets.
Leafy’s heart was still racing as she thought about what had happened on top of the tower. Part of her almost wished she’d stayed longer, but she knew if she didn’t get back to her bush before sunrise, she’d be toast. As Leafy drew further and further away from the tower, she looked back up at Firey, still peacefully resting in his cage. His orange hue seemed duller than the last time she checked. She frowned as she turned back around, hurrying down the empty and disheveled street, spotting her usual spot. She looked back behind her, as a last measure, before throwing her potato by the bush, watching as it was cushioned by the leaves, before making her way there herself, catching her breath and holding her knees as she tried to normalize her breathing. She glanced at the potato in the bush, then the knife she still held in her hand, collapsing onto the floor and laying with her back against the lush, purple grass of Yoyleland beneath her.
She stared up at the sky, which was a little brighter than it was before she left, sighing gently. Leafy was content with her find, hoping that she could find something to do with the grotato she stole, trying not to feel so awful about it. She needed to survive on more than Yoyleberries, after all. She still found herself thinking about Firey, the cage he was in, and why he was there in the first place, closing her eyes as she imagined the image of him peacefully sleeping with his eyes closed in the cage, curled into a ball like a cat. Her heart hurt for him, hoping she wasn’t the cause of his situation. He was almost like a caged bird, trapped and unable to be free.
Leafy sighed gently as she laid on her side, picking at the grass with her hands. Leafy was exhausted… She needed some rest before she could decide on what to do with that potato. So she turned over, resting her head by her bush, opposite of her knife stash (and potato stash, considering her new find), keeping her eyes closed as she tried to let sleep overcome her.
It was still cold.