Chapter Text
MK hesitates at their bed.
The place of comfort shouldn’t be intimidating: he has plenty of memories here relaxing, hanging out with Mei, getting read bedtime stories by Tang. They've loved their room since they were a little kid!
Yet.
Rather than relaxation washing over him, trepidation does. They look at the old photos of themself and their friends, at the colorful Monkey King posters and drawings, at their Monkey Cop collection and feel… cold. Numb.
(Cold?)
(Almost like the Lady Bone Demon is back.)
She isn’t! She isn’t… She isn’t. He knows this, he’d known it since the first time he came home from the battle. It doesn’t mean they don't feel this way, still, though. At first he made an effort to ignore, to throw himself in bed and back into routine, anyway. But then Azure happened. And now, the last time they fell asleep here they were kidnapped in their sleep… and nearly didn’t come back from it.
The thought twists his stomach.
They try to force another step forward, but they can’t seem to move. MK sighs. Throwing his hands up, he complains to the universe or destiny or something, “Ok! Ok, no bed right now. You win, guy, you win!”
Grabbing a pillow, they try to lay on the ground. It isn’t too bad. But as he falls asleep, he can’t stop his mind or his hypervigilance. Every shadow, every piece of furniture sends spikes of fear, forcing their heart to pound quicker and quicker. He clenches his body, trying to force the sensations away. But they only grow stronger.
Jumping up, they find themself hyperventilating.
He’s hot and cold all over and his body feels like it’s been shocked with an electric current, now running through him. The world feels like one big buzz.
Panicked buzzing lashes through his system, pure adrenaline blares through him, heightening the pure buzz of everything. They can’t think, can’t see, can only panic. The buzzing seems to never end. A part of MK believes he’ll be here forever, that he’ll die like this. Is this what death’s like?
They don’t know how long they stay like that, but slowly they begin to feel their hands again, their feet. He flexes his claws, feeling them stretch out. They’re still buzzing, but it begins to dip in intensity. Exhaustion comes over him. They reach out and find themself on the ground, hardwood flooring cool against their paw pads and wonderfully tensile against their claws, stretching their fingers out nicely.
Thoughts begin to trickle in. He can’t tell up or down, can barely process the fact that apparently sleeping in his room is a no go, can only focus on the floor below him. It keeps them feeling sane. He vaguely wonders what to do now.
All he knows is that he’s not staying in his room tonight.
MK breathes in, breathes out. Thinks of Sandy and his calming breathing techniques, of his tea, of all of his little happy cats. MK could probably use a cat, right now.
They begin to feel the rest of their body- their arms, chest, abdomen, and legs. There’s still a buzz, but it’s more background noise now. MK feels… better. Carefully, he stands, his body still reeling from the loud buzzing he experienced. Like a newborn deer, they struggle to their desk, grabbing their sketchbook and backpack.
If he can’t stay in his room or wake his parents up, he can go have an outlet somewhere else. And honestly? Drawing on the roof doesn’t sound too bad. There's a full moon out tonight. It’s kind of perfect, actually, and MK feels a bit of excitement light up in themself.
He plops on his headphones, clicking a comfort playlist.
And all of a sudden, their night just got a lot better. The cool air calms him and the moon shines bright against the light of Megapolis. Music and city mix together in a comforting cacophony, and though the buzzing stays shaking in his fingers, MK feels relaxed. Good. Safe, even. They love their city.
It’s a surprise when a spike of familiar energy pops up. He turns to see Macaque approaching from the shadows, a concerned look on his face. MK waits for him to make some snippy comment. It doesn’t come.
MK’s surprised to see the once antagonist there for him, but he also isn’t. The shadow has always been there in a I-clearly-have-a-soft-spot-for-you-but-won’t-actually-trust-you-and-also-I-hate-your-mentor kind of way.
“Hi Macaque!” They greet, a garble of a chirp almost making its way up their throat.
“Hey kiddo, what’re you doing up here so late?”
MK holds up the sketch he’s working on, “This.”
Macaque’s eyes study their sketch of the city, the bright moon they’re trying to make pop above it.
“That’s not bad.” He replies, sounding almost impressed. MK’ll take it.
“Thanks!” This time the chirping sensation makes an actual sound, a little pop at the tip of their tongue. It’s a pitch, feeling exactly like that sense of gratitude and apprehension bubbling inside of them. Happy! It seems to say.
Macaque’s widen in surprise. MK feels themself flinching back in embarrassment and a nervous laugh bubbles out of him. “Sorry… I guess I’m still getting used to,” They wave their hands over their monke-ified body, “This.”
He only now realizes his form had switched over after the bed buzz incident. Somehow, they don’t feel as upset as they thought they would.
The form still feels weird, but it feels like… him. Sitting with his feelings during the whole save the world trial kind of helped, and although MK still feels uncomfortable in his monkie form… he’s okay enough right now. Just letting themself sit in it and sketch brings an odd kind of peace. It’s not something he wants to actively think about, but it’s there. And maybe he’s okay with that.
Macaque seems to want to talk about it, though.
“You doing okay with all that?”
“Yeah… Yeah I think I am.” MK’s voice softens at the end, vulnerable honesty leaking through their confession. He hopes sharing it with Macaque was the right choice. Macaque grins at him and MK finds himself sharing a grin back. The other monkie approaches their side and brings out a sketchbook of his own.
Together, they draw in the peace of the night. Silently, MK’s glad they did make the right choice and that Macaque somehow found them during this late hour. Maybe MK should think more about self acceptance or something. That moment of it kind of helped.
They go to thank him, “Hey, thanks for finding me out here, I- Wait!” MK jumps up with a realization, “How did you find me?!”
“Uhhhh…” The older monkie looks to the side, tail swishing.
“Oh no, you’re like Monkey King!” MK exclaims, slapping a hand over his head. He dramatically falls back onto the concrete, whining. They guess they have to look out for not just 1 but 2 kinds of weirdly colored bugs in their room, now. What is it with celestial monkies and stalking MK?! He’s two for two in that area!
(It’s actually kind of sweet that they’re just probably trying to look out for him… if in a more invasive way. MK isn’t stupid. He’s noticed his mentor appear now and then, especially after a bad fight happens.)
((They’re all seriously going to need to have a talk about his privacy, though.))
(((Double though… a more instinctual part of their brain isn’t entirely opposed to having some light stalking, the powerful forces watching over them bring a sense of protection and comfort. But they seriously can't enter his room without permission!!)))
Macaque breathes in to respond, but the two are interrupted by a familiar voice, “Who’s like Monkey King?”
MK sits up to find his mentor proudly standing behind them, wearing some cool armor! It’s battle ready and shiny, bright gold with a white pearl-like trim. It’s so fancy! And while MK’s excited, something also hits them, something really off. Macaque seems to think so, too, as he moves in front of MK.
“Wukong?” He asks his voice soft yet questioning.
“Hey Monkey King what, uh, what are you doing here?” MK joins in, nervous. He peeks out from behind Macaque to see the monkie’s smile grow larger, almost too large. It brings a shiver down MK’s spine.
… And when did it get so cold?
MK grips his furry arms, trying to find some warmth. Surprisingly, it doesn’t work. Even his new, fluffy fur can’t stop the weird coldness. They let a gasp out and white air is breathed into the supposedly summer night.
Uh oh.
“Mon-” MK goes to speak up, but the king's smile stretches up like a horror movie, shutting them up in fear. Nevermind. This is not his beloved mentor.
Macaque's arm fly’s against them like a seatbelt and MK finds themself settling their paws into his arm, gently gripping the fabric of his sleeve for comfort. Scooching to his shady teacher’s side, he peers out as the lookalike belts out a bout of terrifying laughter. MK meets Macaque’s eyes for a second, feeling reassured at the confused yet determined look on the fellow celestial primate’s face. This is weird, but they’ll get out of it. They always do.
Macaque slowly steps both himself and MK back, MK makes sure to carefully move with him.
“Oh, how I’ve missed this! C’mere, you two!” The lookalike exclaims, suddenly hugging the pair close to him. It’s so cold! It’s like being hugged by an iceberg! Both Macaque and them struggle in it, but the cold being only grips them harder, his strength worse than most blows MK’s ever felt. His chest feels like it’s on fire.
White smoke surrounds them, burning MK’s lungs. Macaque doesn’t seem to be faring much better, coughing it up.
“It’s okay my dear ones, sleep now.” The creature mutters, and MK can’t help but fall into sleep’s strong, blue tinged pull.