Work Text:
It's been maybe a bit too long since he had spoken to Bad. To play an act of forgetfulness, the King couldn't just seek out his enemy on a whim, or he would be found out easily. But he waited long enough, never seeing his old rival come by in days, more than a week it has been since they've spoken.
Not that Foolish was worried, hell no, but it was strange. He was just too curious about what could be occupying the demon so much that he didn't come by like usual. Usually it's Bad seeking out the totem, now Foolish was willing to switch it up.
Cathedral was the first place he decided to go. As far as the King knew, Bad was currently building it. He didn't pay much attention to the piles of bottles at the gates, just walking into a magnificent building. The totem had to give credit to the fucker, it was coming along nicely.
But the demon wasn't here.
He spared just a glance towards Pangi's old house, the corruption didn't seem to grow any more, maybe it was getting better.
Foolish then walked a path to the green fortress. Not a long walk, good scenery, even if the tent in front associated with his own executioner. He stopped for a moment to look at even more bottles on the bridge, someone really was littering, and Bad didn't even bother to clean it up!
The King would laugh and tease him about it, if he wasn't trying to keep up the act… If it wasn't so damn empty and silent as he entered. Yes, some animals were making noises, but the courtyard was so big, yet not a soul in sight. And the corruption on Pangi's face in the wall made Foolish wince just a little out of sympathy.
Though maybe bottles and corruption on the way became the least of his worries when he entered the enchanting room the demon always hangs out at.
“The fucking bottles-!”
He almost tripped over empty bottles, balancing himself before seeing a form of the demon, laying almost breathlessly on the ground, covered in bottles, hugging a few of them close as he slept. It smells rather rancid, who knows how much alcohol has been spilled in this room. The amount of bottles around could kill any mortal.
So much for the act. His old friend looked like a mess. Foolish didn't even know how much alcohol had been drunk in the past week, but Bad had a history of drinking before, when things got really bad.
He observed just for a moment, a sigh leaving him eventually, as he moved the bottles away from the figure on the ground, dropping on his knees, before gently bringing the figure closer, holding the sleeping- no, most likely a passed out demon tightly against his chest.
They were enemies, rivals, and, yes, screw Badboyhalo, but it still runs deeper than that, he could leave the guy here on his own, but that state is a screaming timeout in the game.
“Yet another thing for me to clean up, and you best know - you owe me for this.”
He spoke to nobody, really, Bad would not hear him, the idiot was too far gone in the drunken slumber, the smell of alcohol would probably stain some of Foolish's robes, but he would care about it later.
As he sat there, holding his rival close, he spared a look at a sign in the room. Pangi clearly was not doing too great, maybe that was the reason. Foolish doubted that his own little jest would cause so much distress that Bad would need to once again result in drinking himself nearly to death just to fall asleep. Maybe it was. But it wasn't the only reason.
The demon slightly murmured in his sleep, shifting a little in Foolish's hold, his hands grasping at the King's clothes tightly, as his expression turned into a slight frown. Totem couldn't say or do anything, could only hold him to provide that little comfort. He's done it before, back in the desert. He knew it all too well.
“Well, I guess we can put the game on pause, this once.”
Only until he figures out the issue and how to get over it. It's not fun playing tennis while your opposition isn't trying to hit the ball.