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You had talked to just about every single object in your house at this point. Every single object except for one.
Ever since the magic dateviators came into your life, you’ve been surrounded by wonderful people (with some exceptions)
You enjoyed meeting each object and getting to know them, but there was one in particular you were avoiding.
See, you had this… interest.
None of the objects had brought it up to you yet with the exception of some words of reassurance from Betty and Phoenicia.
It would make sense those two knew about it, seeing as you consumed most of your fanfic and clips on your phone in bed.
Well, you were a little… maybe… obsessed with the idea of tickling.
It had always been something you kept close to your chest. Especially with how isolated you were from living organic humans, you never had a real chance to indulge in it.
You had been so focused on interacting with your new household acquaintances, you had almost forgotten about this interest.
Until this little mood of yours reared its head and oozed into the corners of your mind, centering all your thoughts around tickling fingers and laughter and teasing words of affection.
Months ago, before all this had happened, you had a little browse on a tickle centric website and ordered… this.
A bag of multi-colored feathers of various textures.
You were going to try self-tickling but were so embarrassed about it you couldn’t even do that much.
So here they sat in the drawer below Ben-wha.
But now, with your mind craving and yearning for laughter in ways you hadn’t experienced before, you aimed your dateviators at the bag and activated them.
Then, standing in front of the drawer, was the new dateable.
They were tall, androgynous, and exuded an air of confidence. Their build was lean but strong underneath their oddly cut crop top and skirt.
They smirked with narrow yellow eyes.
“I was wondering when you were going to talk to me. I was feeling a bit left out.” Their tone was smooth and teasing.
“Sorry.” You stammered. After a moment you opened your mouth to say… something, but it instantly left your mind.
They cocked their head and looked you up and down. “I have a question for you.”
You cleared your throat. “Um, okay.”
“Why did you buy me?”
Of all the questions you had to answer in your life, this one was one of the strangest.
You stuttered for a bit, dreading having to speak your interest aloud.
"I, uh, wanted to, um, use you, I guess... but got embarrassed so I, uh, never did." You avoided eye contact as if it would blind you and just ended up staring at the floor.
"Use me..." They echoed. After a pause their words resumed. "And what do you mean by use?"
Your jaw tightened. God you were really going to have to admit it, huh?
"I wanted to..." You unconsciously lowered your voice. "Tickle myself."
The room was quiet.
They were quiet.
You eventually dared a glance up to their face.
They had a chillingly confident smirk with tight gaze gripping your attention and not letting go.
"If you want someone to tickle you the least you can do is learn their name."
Your face flushed and your heart rate picked up.
They gave a slight bow with a raised eyebrow. "My name is Fenix. I'm your tickling feathers."
You played aimlessly with the hem of your shirt. "Hi, Fenix. I'm (Y/N)."
"So quiet. So shy. Is the idea of being tickled really that terrifying?"
You couldn't figure out if they were teasing or if they genuinely thought your behavior was from a fear of being tickled.
You took a quick breath and steadied yourself. This was just a person. You know how to talk to people, at least, furniture-people, you'd been doing it all month.
"Sorry, Fenix. Just, nervous, I guess." You met and held their gaze, which, honestly, you were proud of getting that far.
Their smirk grew to show teeth, and- were those fangs?
You hated that the first thing that came to mind was how badly those fangs would tickle if they nibbled your worst spots.
"Well, you were honest in telling me why you purchased me. I guess I should be honest with you too."
You didn't like that gleam in their eyes. You didn't like it at all.
"You're not the first one I've talked to in this house. I've gotten around the house, chatting with other objects here and there."
They started walking towards you. Rather, around you, circling you like prey, though their expression and tone was so aloof and casual.
"I had a rather long talk with Betty, actually."
You stiffened. Oh, you didn't like how this was going.
"Could you blame me? I just wanted to get to know you better and you certainly weren't coming to me. So we talked... and talked. About many things, really."
Their eyes never left you as they continued their circling.
"The thing I found most interesting were these nights where, instead of sleeping at the usual time, you'd be on Phoenicia reading stories and watching little clips."
Your heart was hammering in your chest and your face was warming up every second.
"And the audio of these clips, they'd sound like, laughing? Laughing, giggling, teasing, sometimes the sounds of handcuffs or ropes straining on bed frames."
You immediately hid your scorching face in your hands and squeezed your eyes shut with a barely held back whine.
"And you'd watch with a smile and a blushing face, sometimes squirming or giggling to yourself. How adorable."
You made a mental note to kill Betty later.
Suddenly Fenix's voice was right in front of you.
"Sounds like fun."
You startled and jumped back a bit, arms waving at your sides to keep you balanced and upright.
"And when I think about all that information, and the fact that you, apparently, bought me so you could tickle yourself..." They put a finger to their chin as if thinking to theirself. "It makes me think that, maybe, you came here today because you desperately want to be tickled."
You felt like you were going to die from a heart attack.
"So, tell me, am I wrong? Or did I pin you exactly for what you are?"
You could barely speak coherently after all this. Sure, you've dealt with your fair share of flirty objects, but this was on another level.
You swallowed and steadied yourself. "You're... not wrong."
They giggled, a light and playful sound. "I know. I'm just thrilled to see you admit it."
You returned to playing with the edge of your shirt. Eventually, after too long a pause, you spoke up with what little bravery you had. "So what now?"
"Now?" Fenix reached into their skirt and pulled out a long thin feather. "You tell me your boundaries, your safeword, and we have some fun right here, right now."