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Darkness filled the room, choking out any semblance of light. They reached out blindly for something, anything, to grab onto as their eyes desperately tried to adjust. Breathing softly, they tried to push down the rising sense of panic crawling up their throat. Everything was okay; the power was just out, or they needed to check the breaker. No big deal.
The small hedgehog-like monster sighed in relief, the once defensively raised pinecone scales on their back starting to lower, as their clawed hand found a light switch.
They flicked it on.
Darkness remained.
Swallowing thickly, they slowly padded to the kitchen, cringing internally as the hardwood floor creaked. In the day, this sound would be drowned out by the background noise of children laughing and bike bells ringing and birds singing into the grand open sky. But tonight, it was echoing off the walls and pointing the house to their exact location.
As the monster’s eyes adjusted to the encompassing darkness, they spotted the row of drawers attached to the counter. The tiled floor was merciful and muffled their hurrying footsteps across the kitchen floor. They shakily pulled a drawer open, cursing under their breath as they rummaged through a mess of coupons, pens, bag clips, and-
Oh thank God. They pulled their prize from the pile, a small flashlight. But would it work? The monster pointed it at the ground, pressing their thumb against the on button with a soft click. The tiles were immediately washed in a large white circle of light.
They pointed the light at the pantry door and opened it gently. The pantry was a small room with shelves of boxed food and cookware lining the wall. And at the back, obscured by a few cereal boxes that the monster pushed aside, was the breaker door. Holding the flashlight in their mouth, they tested the breaker switches.
Nothing. Must be a power outage. The monster sighed, closing the breaker door and wandering back to the living room at a leisurely pace. They approached the couch, ready to plop down and relax-
Creeeeeak.
They froze, gaze slowly tilting up towards the ceiling.
It was the house settling, they thought. It’s fine.
Creak.
Their back scales bristled. With a shaking hand, they pointed the flashlight all the way across the living room floor to the stairs leading to the second floor. The light slowly traveled up each step, stopping at the wall where the stairs made a turn.
CREAKCREAKCREAK.
They clicked the flashlight off, hand grabbing at their muzzle to suppress a scream, stepping back and trying to adjust again to the darkness.
Silence.
The house was silent. The monster was silent. The world outside held its breath in anticipation. The outlines of furniture in the darkness reappeared. The few steps of the staircase showed themselves again.
But there was no look of relief upon the monster’s face. Their fingers gripped tighter around their muzzle. The flashlight was held up not as a guiding beacon, but wielded as a weapon.
At the half-landing of the stairs, suspended high above it, were two pin-pricks of reflected light.
The monster swallowed-
And the pinpricks dropped to the floor as the creature crawled rapidly down the stairs at a tremendous speed toward the monster with a low wail-
The room was filled with three screams. One, from the monster on the screen fending off their attacker in the dark. Two, from you as the creature jumpscared you silly. And finally three, from the screen that jolted upward, smacking into the ceiling of your living room.
Before you could react your vision was filled with red and gold as huge arms engulfed you in a tight embrace. You could barely reach around your boyfriend but tried your best to return the hug, grabbing handfuls of the soft material surrounding you.
“Tenna.” Your voice was muffled, your face pressed against his chest. You gave his side a firm pat in both reassurance and a reminder that you needed some air.
The pressure on your body loosened slightly. You pushed against his chest that sported a red pajama shirt adorned with little golden TV Time logos, leaning back into the gloved hands that secured you. Tenna’s screen, now displaying his usual face instead of the horror movie, loomed above you with a wobbly frown.
Originally you were laying across your boyfriend’s lap for your horror movie marathon, a yearly tradition that you included him for the first time since your relationship began, and apparently his size grew as a fear response. Even hunched over, the top of his head brushed against the ceiling. You fit quite comfortably in both his hands as he lifted you closer to his screen.
“You good?” You asked, a breathy laugh bubbling from your throat.
“...Never better!” Tenna grinned just a little too big. “I’m…just great! Hunky-doody!”
“That was a pretty loud scream, bud.” You hummed, resting your cheek in your hand.
“Well, who wouldn’t scream?! Those practical effects were 
bad, folks! I know a low budget production when I see one!” He tilted his head knowingly, lowering his voice. “And I should know. Our first season of TV Time looked rough.”
You studied him for a moment. He was smiling, sure, but you could feel the slight tremble in his hands. As much as you enjoyed your seat in the world’s gloobiest massage chair, Tenna was clearly still freaked out from the movie. And honestly? So were you. You motioned for him to bring you a little closer and when he did, you sat on your knees and leaned in to wrap your arms around his head. Immediately you felt his hands readjust to gently press you closer to his screen, careful not to poke you with his nose.
“Tens?”
“Yes, Starlight?”
“That movie was fucking terrifying.”
He drew you back, staring silently. You watched in real time as your boyfriend tried to play it cool, only for his bravado to shatter to the floor as he brought you back in, pressing you against his shoulder in a shaky embrace.
“It WAS!” He wailed. “I thought it was going to be one of those 
Halloween flicks I played for the kids! Toriel would never let them watch that!”
Chuckling at his dramatics, you reached around to pat his back. You noticed that somehow your dvd player survived the ordeal, still dangling from its connection at the back of Tenna’s head. “Well, yeah. They were what, toddlers or something?” You felt him nod in response.
His fingers gave way as you pulled yourself up onto his shoulder. You heard a questioning noise from him as you reached out, managing to grab the dvd player in one hand, the other gripping his casing for stability. The connecting wires lightly smacked the back of his head as you disconnected the device. Tenna caught on, plucking them out of his ports and tossing them aside. You didn't need to look as you held the dvd player behind you and felt it being gingerly grabbed from you.
You turned around on your perch and hopped down into his receiving palms, then stood on your toes to give the corner of his screen a light kiss, causing it to turn slightly pink.
“Well, I'm glad we watched it.”
“Wh-” He sputtered, screen still pink. “Why?”
“Because it was scary! Gets my blood pumping, y'know? Plus… it’s a good way to get extra big hugs from my favorite TV.” Your lips twisted in a smirk.
Tenna stared at you blankly before lifting you in front of his face, tilting his palms to hook your arms under his hands, and held you up like a misbehaving cat. “You can just ASK me for hugs! Anytime! I love doing it!”
“Yeah.”
You poked his nose.
“That’s no fun, though.”
“But getting scared- and scaring ME is?”
“Yup.”
He gave you a look, leaving you dangling in his hands as his face disappeared, leaving a dark screen in its place. For a moment you wondered if you had upset him but then, slowly, he tilted his head to the side. “You want to see SCARY, huh? You want to feel a 
down your spine? Is that it?”
You had no idea where he was going with this, but you were into it. You nodded enthusiastically. “You think you can top that thing from the movie? I’d like to see you try, big guy.”
Your challenge was not unmet. His size remained the same, but when his face reappeared he grinned, revealing a set of large sharp fangs. The tips of his gloved fingers morphed into claws as they slowly curled around you in a firmer grip. The clawed thumbs pressing against your shoulders lightly poked at your body but were nowhere near harming you. Tenna brought you closer, his fangs so close to your restrained form.
“Are you scared? Frightened? Terrified?!” His lowered voice was accentuated with a growl. You shivered as his breath tickled your face. It felt like static.
Tearing your gaze away from his fangs, you slowly tilted your head up to stare at his screen, making direct ‘eye contact’. You wrapped your hand around one of his fingers. “Tenna…”
“Yes?” Your boyfriend bared his teeth, a gloating tone rising in his voice.
“This is the sexiest moment of my life.”
You two stared at each other.
“Aww.” He lowered his head, antennas drooping. Tenna quickly lost his fangs and claws. He dropped down to his regular size, leaving you to stand on his crossed legs, hands on his shoulders to steady yourself.
“Tenna…” You laughed, placing a hand on the side of his head. He pouted in response. You huffed, pressing a kiss to the corner of his mouth. “C’mon, Tens. You don’t like what I said about that?”
“I…” A colored bar blush appeared on his screen. “It’s not that I didn’t appreciate your- ahem- flattering review, but…” He trailed off.
“But I didn’t find it scary.” You offered.
He nodded in response, shrinking a few more inches.
Ever since you three started dating, Tenna was always trying his best to wow you both, whether it be from fancy dates on the town to insisting he find the perfect program for you both to watch at home. At first you thought it was all part of his showman personality, his own unique way of expressing his affection. But it wasn’t long into your relationship that you learned his need to keep you both entertained ran deeper than that.
You glanced at the movie’s dvd case haphazardly thrown to the floor after it was selected for your marathon.
The protagonist would be chased down by the creature on the stairs as long as the movie was watched and rewatched. A hellish existence, but an existence nonetheless. But when the viewer had seen enough of it, when the movie couldn’t do its job, when they got sick of watching? It would be placed back in the dvd case, left in storage…
And forgotten.
Tenna’s face started to dim. You frowned a little, reaching out to place a palm on the side of his head. Your fingers lightly scratched at his plastic skin, an odd feeling when you three first got together but nowadays brought you comfort.
“I didn’t want you to actually scare me.” You admitted.
“Really?” Despite his towering size, his voice was incredibly small.
“Really. I love being scared by fake shit, but I don’t want to be scared- legit scared- of my partners.” Pressing another kiss to his screen where his cheek would be, you smiled gently at him. “So, don’t worry, okay? I’m flattered that you humored me, even if I didn’t give you the… expected reaction.” You glanced away as you felt yourself blushing and muttered under your breath, “I sure enjoyed it, though.”
Tenna seemed to brighten up from your reassurance- then his lips formed a quiet oh as he noticed your reaction. And apparently he picked up on what you said as he leaned in, a big smirk appearing on his screen. Tenna cupped your face and turned it to face him. He tilted his head at an angle, giving your lips a loving peck. Then gingerly at first but soon moving with confidence, his hands began to roam your entire body, slowly mapping out every part of it. “And how about this…?”
“Mmm. Yeah, this is nice.” You hummed, fingers gripping the edge of his casing. His hands rested on your hips, his grasp firm enough that you weren’t going anywhere. It was a cool autumn night, but you could feel yourself quickly warming up as you took a moment to breathe between kisses, only to be pulled in again. It didn’t help that Tenna’s screen gradually got more heated as you two continued to make out sloppy style. You certainly weren’t complaining.
“How many stars would you give this?” He mumbled against your lips. The static from his screen softly danced across your skin. Your hair probably looked like a mess by now. You didn’t care.
“Tenna.”
“Or out of ten…”
“You know my answer.” You chided, but kissed him again regardless.
He drew back, tapping his fingers together. “Can you…still say it? Out loud?” Tenna waited expectantly, holding his affection hostage. Usually it wouldn’t take long for him to fold, but…
“Alright, alright.” You snorted, deciding to humor him this time. “Five stars! And a perfect five outta-“
Creak.
“Seevvveeeenwhat the hell was that?” You asked, inspecting Tenna’s screen. He still had his face, so this wasn’t a last ditch effort to turn the movie back on and scare you.
Creeeak.
“I don’t know.” Tenna whispered, his antennas pointing upward. You followed his gaze, then briefly side eyed him.
“Was that from the roof?” You whispered.
“I-I think so?”
“You aren’t fucking with me?”
“No!” Tenna whisper-yelled.
Creak.
You both hushed yourselves and listened. Your house was dead quiet. Even the cricketsong outside had come to a sudden halt. The only sounds in the house were your attempts to put a silencer on your breathing and the quiet wrrr of the internal fans in Tenna’s body.
The light switch was next to the stairs, all the way across the room. You had turned the lights off to enhance the spooky vibes but now you regretted it entirely as you were too terrified to move. Tenna seemed to share the sentiment as his arms encircled you, keeping you close as he hunched over to shield you.
The silence sat there, perched in the darkness out of sight, waiting patiently for someone- or something- to make a move.
And then you heard a noise. In your frightened delirium you almost couldn’t recognize it, but a pit dropped to your stomach when you realized what it was.
Your bedroom window was sliding open. It stopped, but was followed by the sound of something heavy dropping to the floor above with a dull thud.
“What the fuck what the fuck.” You frantically whispered.
Another pause. You gripped onto Tenna now, hands wrinkling his shirt. Your grip tightened as a series of slow thuds- of footsteps, creaked above you. Your gaze followed the sound, out the bedroom…through the hall…
And down the stairs.
You and Tenna held onto each other for dear life, your boyfriend more so holding you as he grew, his hands surrounding you and cupping you to his chest. You heard a soft whimper from his screen above you.
The steps paused. You held your breath in anticipation, and that’s when the reality of the situation crashed into you like a tidal wave. There was something in your house. A real something that the both of you might- would need to confront! Was it someone trying to jack your stuff? A murderer? An honest to God creature?!
Okay, you needed a game plan here. Tenna could easily overwhelm whatever this was with his size alone, giving you a chance to grab a weapon from the kitchen. But should you grab the knife? Or would blunt damage from the fire extinguisher work better? Maybe you could blast this thing with the foam?
Before you could whisper your plan to Tenna, the footsteps resumed. Each slow, creaking, step brought you closer to your boyfriend’s chest. His gaze stayed fixated on the stairs as if it was the only thing keeping the threat at bay.
It did not.
From the darkness, a hand emerged. Clawed fingers braced against the wall, pushing a towering body into view that was obscured by shadow. The thing was hunched over to accommodate its height, exposing two folded over masses attached to its back. In the darkness, two lights flickered to life. The yellow and pink lights tilted as it angled its head to-
Wait.
You released a breath that you didn’t know you were holding as you squinted. The moonlight that managed to squeeze its way into your home just barely reflected against metallic arms. The masses on the creature's back finally registered in your mind as folded wings.
“Oh.” You alternated between laughing sheepishly and catching your breath. “It’s you. Oh thank God.”
A metallic cackle echoed down the stairs in response. “WHO ELSE WOULD IT [thinking bee]?”
“No one! No one else at all!” Tenna stammered, shrinking back to his standard height but still hugging you close.
After a few more creaking steps down the stairs, the figure reached out, one of its claws flicking the light switch on. You blinked a few times as your living room was bathed in light. After your eyes adjusted, you studied the ‘intruder’.
You both were greeted by the amused grin of your boyfriend. You didn’t miss, however, that his grin was more subdued than usual. And even though Spamton was easily twice your height in his Neo form, he could stretch to his full height without the ceiling noticing. But tonight, he remained in a slumped posture.
“Long day?” You asked.
“IT COULDN’T GO [Bye Bye Bye] FAST EN0UGH.” Spamton grunted. “NOT MANY [challenger approaches] AT THE [The first rule of Fight Club is]. AT LEAST THE [3 for 1 specil] SHOWED UP FOR [practice round].”
“You weren’t too harsh on my star contestants, were you?” Tenna tilted his head, one antenna raised higher than the other.
“NO [no], IT WASN’T [like and subscribe] THE [view cutscene] IN THE B4S3MENT.” He waved his hands dismissively. “THEY’RE [plus strength] NOW. THE KIDS [dodge roll]ED MY [bullet hell] EZPZ.“ Spamton paused. “AND THEN THEY [vote kicked] MY A$$.”
A while ago, Spamton decided that one of his side gigs would be taking part in a Boss Rush mode in the Party Dojo for anyone willing to challenge it. This often included the main trio of kids, though occasionally they would be joined by Noelle or Berdly (who insisted the dojo implement the Boss Rush in the first place). Your boyfriend would often come home with animated stories of who was fighting and who kicked who’s ass- especially if he won- as you and Tenna gave him your undivided attention.
Instead, Spamton just ran a hand through his hair, down to the base of his feathered neck with a long weary sigh. He glanced away from you both, pointing at the couch. “CAN I…CAN YOU [invite to party]?”
You glanced at said couch. Tenna and you had been sitting on the floor, and you were inwardly grateful for that because the couch would NOT have survived Tenna’s startled growth spurt had you both been laying on it. You weren’t sure all of you could fit on the couch while Spamton was still Neo…
“Yes, but… gimme a sec.” You wriggled out of Tenna’s grasp, making your way to the stairs. You reached up to give Spamton a drive-by chin scritch, earning a low hum from your boyfriend. “I’ll be right back!”
At first you rushed up the stairs, but found yourself slowing down as each step took you further up into the darkness. Your hand hovered over the railing hesitantly. You just had one step to go before you were on the second floor.
So why couldn’t you move- oh fuck.
That movie got to you more than you thought. You knew it was only a movie. Things didn’t appear from the dark and attack- okay, yes, there were Darkners that did that exact thing but they were nice after the kids recruited them. Besides, people never attacked each other from the dark in the Light World except, yes, they did all the time in those true crime documentaries and Oh God you needed to get out of this panicked animal mindset right now.
You steeled your nerves and marched through the darkness to your room. Sliding the window closed was your first task and it was done swiftly, efficiently, and all without looking into the darkness outside. You were so brave right now. Your second task was simple. After gathering up the multitude of pillows onto your bed, you bundled the duvet around the pile and pulled it off your bed.
Then, with the power of an amateur Olympian throwing the best worst Hammer Throw of all time, you spun in place and threw the pillow bundle down the stairs. It smacked into the wall, immediately opening and spilling its contents down the steps like a freshly mauled piñata.
“…I meant to do that!” You yelled.
“[ORLY?]” Came an amused response from downstairs.
“Yeeeeeah.” You responded oh so confidently. Walking down the steps, you gathered up some pillows in your arms while kicking the others down the stairs.
Spamton was watching you from his sideways seat across Tenna’s lap as he leaned against his shoulder.
“YOU [shore] TOOK UR SWEET [time share] UP TO [Floor 2]. WHAT H4PPENED?”
You could admit that a scary movie made you too frightened to ascend the stairs at a normal speed because a fictional creature might kill your ass dead. Instead you lobbed a TV Time All-Star Cast Throw Pillow™ at his face. “I was making sure I didn’t trip in the dark, doofus-“
You stumbled back as the smiling star pillow rocketed into your face. Spamton threw his head back, letting out a loud bitcrushed laugh. Arming the pillow, you stalked forward. Your boyfriend lowered his head, teeth clacking in a menacing grin and neck feathers puffing up.
“You know what I’m gonna do now!?” You challenged your boyfriend.
“WHAT. WHAT R YOU [gonna do about all that ]?” He cackled, reaching to grab for a pillow. Tenna did too, but he held it up in a defensive position as he would inevitably be caught in the crossfire.
“I’m gonna make a pillow nest and cuddle you so much.” You pointed at him. MENACINGLY.
“[Oh yeah?]”
“Yeah!”
“[Buy one get two] CAN PLAY AT THAT [select game mode].” He pointed back, launching himself from Tenna’s lap with an oof from the TV. Spamton was quick to start rearranging the pillows in a circle, each one placed meticulously. If he could manage to make a dumpster comfortable, the living room stood no chance.
You followed suit, grabbing the couch cushions and setting them in the middle of the circle. You considered grabbing your mattress, but that sounded like a pain in the ass and NOT because you didn’t want to go back up there. You were practical and NOT a coward, no siree. Sending the upstairs a wary glare, you returned to your task.
After the pillows and cushions were placed, Tenna grabbed the throw blankets you kept around the living room. Years of buying blankets you didn’t need through multiple ‘essentials only’ shopping trips paid off as the nest was filled with soft fabrics of varying colors, the predominant one being warm autumnal colors of the fall themed blankets you brought out for the season. The other seasonal blankets were in storage and no, you did not have a problem, thank you very much.
The three of you stood (well, you two stood. Tenna had to sit on his knees) at the edge of the nest that practically covered the entire living room floor, admiring your shared efforts.
“This nest…” Tenna pointed at the ceiling. “Gets a T-rank!” The sound of an audience clapping sounded from his head’s speakers. Spamton folded his arms, nodding in approval.
“Oooh.” You sucked in air through your teeth, prompting your boyfriends to stare at you with slight concern. “There’s a problem, though. Pretty big one, actually.”
“WHAT’S THE [has this happened to you]?”
“We’re not cuddling in it.” Bringing a hand up to rub your chin thoughtfully, you sideeyed them. “Not sure how we’re gonna solve this one, guys.”
You sighed wistfully, looking away from them, mentally counting down.
Three.
Two.
One-
Your stomach dropped slightly but you smiled giddily as you were lifted up by the back of your shirt. You accepted your fate, letting yourself ragdoll as you looked down at the nest a few feet below. Tenna shuffled on his knees to the center, making sure you didn’t sway too much in his grasp, before laying back and depositing you onto his chest. Like always, you made yourself comfortable, scooting up to lay down closer to his face as you sprawled out.
You opened an eye, peering at Spamton. He was standing just outside the nest, fiddling with his hands. It was one of his tells that he was unsure about something, but what?
“Everything okay, Spam?”
“YEAH, JUST.” He looked at his hands. “NEED TO SWITCH TO [default settings].”
“Aw, are you sure?” You pouted. It wasn’t that you were disappointed with Spamton’s puppet form. No, far from it as you loved holding him. But you didn’t get many opportunities to interact with him as Neo. Normally he wouldn’t stay in the form too long before he reverted back, his excuse being that it was only around for a ‘[limited time offer]’. But if that was the case, how could he use it in the dojo for so long?
“D0N’T [Think, , think!] EITHER OF U YOU WOULD [want it and more], ESPECILY NOW.”
“What are you talking about, Spammy?” Tenna frowned. “We love you in any form.”
He shook his head adamantly. “NOPE. I ALREADY [jumpscare compilation] YOU B0TH.”
“What? Spam, I was relieved it was you.” You countered.
“THEN Y WERE YOU 2 [scurred]?”
“We…may have watched a horror movie while you were at work.” Tenna chuckled nervously. “And our Starlight was so scared-“
“Hey! I wasn’t the one growing into the ceiling!”
“It was to protect you!”
“Which is why you screamed?”
“To ward off the 
!”
Spamton raised a clawed hand, waving it dismissively. “[Alrightalrightalright]. I GET IT. BUT [...would]N’T YOU R4THER [to have and hold] ME IN MY [marketable] FORM?”
“No way. If something really crawls down the stairs, I want you to Neo all over the place.” You sat up on Tenna’s chest. “Plus…I barely get to see you like this for long. I can’t help but wonder why?”
You expected the same excuse, already locked and loaded. But instead, Spamton glanced away, wings folding in closer to himself like a shield. “I’M ALREADY [freaky deaky] AS A [dummy], BUT. WAY [discounted] IF YOU [compare prices] [Peggle...TWO!] THIS [bless this mess].”
His words chained to your heart like an anchor, sinking it down into your stomach.
You had assured him over and over that you loved how he looked in his puppet form, but he was never Neo long enough for you to give him that same assurance.
The first time he showed you this form, you weren’t put off by it. You were more concerned about your neck getting sore looking up at him. And even when Spamton explained how he got Kris to transfer him into the Neo armor, only to betray them and try to take their SOUL, that didn’t deter you or Tenna. After all, the kids gave him a chance. Tenna seemed to trust their judgement, and so would you.
And now, you had the real reason he avoided staying in this form for long, straight from the source. Did he really think he scared you two like this? That he couldn’t be loved as Neo? That either of your affections were conditional like that?
That wouldn’t do. Swinging your legs over Tenna’s chest and slipping off, you marched right up to your boyfriend, hands resting on your hips. “Spamton, I’m gonna make a deal with you.”
“WHAT [one of a kind] DEAL?” He tilted his head, giving you a cautious look.
“I’m gonna tell you exactly what I think about you and in exchange, you’re gonna listen.” You pointed at his face.
“…OK. [Proceed].” He braced himself.
“First off, you are not freaky. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. You’re…” You felt your face heating up, but you pushed through it, denying your flustered mind trying to silence you. “You’re handsome, okay? I love your hair, your glasses, your little suit. I love looking at you.”
You reached up, cupping the side of his face with your hand, thumb rubbing the emerging red circle mark on his cheek. “And I love how you look like this. Your armor is kickass and-“ Moving your hand down, you ran your fingers through the plumage surrounding his neck. “I adore how soft your feathers are.”
Said feathers puffed out around your fingers. Spamton looked unsure, then slightly startled as Tenna sat up and reached over to stroke the other side of his feathered neck.
“It is soft…” He murmured, an almost reverent tone to his voice. His screen and antennas pointed in Spamton’s direction. “They’re right, you know. We love you no matter what form you take. You always look amazing under the spotlight, Big Shot.”
“YOU’RE JUST- JUST- JUST-“ He stammered on repeat, wings twitching.
“Telling you how we feel? How we love you for you? I never did tell you, back when we were on stage together all those years ago. I think that was the only time I had stage fright.” His thumb gently smoothed his feathers down. “I won’t make the same mistake again.”
“We’ll never stop letting you know you’re loved, no matter what.” You smiled, reaching up to scritch at the side of his face.
Spamton took a shuddering breath as his wings drooped, his feathers brushing against the floor. He finally allowed himself to lean into Tenna’s touch, then yours, then-Tenna’s. Spamton paused, looking between you both, teeth set in a frown. Before either of you could ask him what was wrong, he jabbed a finger in Tenna’s direction.
“LAY [down, down, down by the ].”
“Okay?” Tenna chuckled, following his command. He laid back, screen tilted to peer at him.
You were suddenly lifted under the arms. You started to notice a pattern.
“AND [yooooooooou].” Spamton narrowed his eyes, studying your dangling form.
You rested your face in your palms, batting your eyes at him innocently. “Meeee?”
He brought you closer, your faces inches apart. Puffs of steam escaped the corners of his mouth. His teeth set together with a soft click before he opened his mouth to speak. “YOU RLY [think, think, think!] I’M N0T [creepypasta] LIEK [this summer…]?”
You stared him in the eyes through his duo toned glasses. They searched yours, as if trying to expose any doubts you had about him.
“You don’t scare me, Spam. If anything… you make me feel safe.” You admitted, feeling your face slightly flush. Being manhandled like this on the same night twice was definitely awakening something within you, but that was something to address later.
Spamton said nothing in return. For once in his life, he was speechless. Instead, he let his actions take hold of the conversation as he lowered you to the ground, then immediately knelt down and wrapped his arms around you.
Slipping your arms under his, you pulled him closer. You felt a pressure on your back not only from the firm embrace of his arms, but the wings that he folded around you. Then on your shoulder as he leaned his neck down to rest his head against you.
“Thank you.” He murmured in a rare moment of his speech being untouched by glitching and adspeak. You could count on your fingers how many times it happened since you first met him.
“You’re welcome.” You hummed, pressing a kiss to his teeth. He eagerly returned the gesture as his plumage puffed. When you both separated, Spamton looked behind you.
“T3NNA, [catch ‘em all!].”
“Wuh-”
Spamton hauled you up and proceeded to toss you at Tenna like a sack of potatoes. You cursed loudly, waving your arms about, only to be caught in the arms of your TV. He gave your forehead a smooch and laid back again, setting you down on his chest.
“You ass!” You jutted a finger at Spamton, a smirk spreading across your face. “I won’t forget this. I’m gonna slam dunk you the next time you change forms and that’s a promise.”
His mechanical laughter filled the room. “I’LL [hold me close] YOU TO THAT.”
“Then come over here.” You said, patting Tenna’s chest. A gloved hand ruffled your hair in response.
Spamton snorted. “YOU CAN’T [dunkeroo] ME WHILE I’M [too tall to ride].” He pointed a finger accusingly. “AND DON’T EVEN THINK ABOUT USING [CRT] TO [DIY] FOR YOU. THAT’S [top five cheat codes].”
“Noooo.” You drawled smugly with a relaxed gaze. “I caught what you asked there, Spam.” As he processed what you meant, you held out your arms.
After a moment, a microwave ding played from his mouth. “OH.”
Slowly, Spamton stepped into the nest and hesitated, as if waiting for either of you to change your minds about his inclusion. When that rejection didn’t come, he waded through the pillows and blankets, stepping between Tenna’s legs and looming over you both. His head cocked to the side, as if the angle would help him think this through better. You laid on your back, using Tenna’s shoulder as a makeshift pillow. Spamton could easily curl up on Tenna’s other side while giving you ample room. This level of person-tetris should have been easy for him to solve.
Instead, Spamton fished out a large pillow from the pile. He leaned over and nudged you so you laid in the center of Tenna’s chest, your head resting just below the casing of your boyfriend’s head. He placed the long pillow (which did NOT and never DID have any...special order pillow cases on it) atop your body, covering you from the chest down. Then he lowered himself, crawling atop Tenna, his hands braced on his shoulders and head hovering above your chest. Spamton gave you a questioning look, his smile slightly faltering.
Ah, that’s what the pillow was for. You were no coward, so you reached your arms up in invitation. Immediately his big grin returned as he laid down, his head resting on your chest and upper body covering your pillow-armored legs. He wasn’t too heavy, considering his Neo body was meant to fly, but it was still armored by less than comfortable metal.
“IS THIS TOO [weighted blankets 39.99] FOR YOU?” He tilted his head to look at you.
“Nah, I’m good. Good call with the pillow.” You assured him as you ran your fingers through his hair. His reaction was immediate as a low rumble sounded from his throat. Spamton pushed his head against your hands, a silent plea for more attention even though you were just beginning. You snorted softly, keeping one hand in his hair and the other in his neck fluff. The rumble intensified enough that you could feel it sinking through the pillow into your chest.
That wasn’t all the attention Spamton would receive. Tenna’s hand trailed down his spine where the armor opened up around his wings, exposing his feather coated back. The plumes rose at his touch as first, but eventually settled in place as Tenna repeated the motion over and over. You could feel your boyfriend’s deep purr through your arms and legs now.
“Is this good?” You asked, as if you didn’t know the answer already.
“Mmn...” Spamton hummed. He glanced at you, eyes half-lidded behind his glasses. You swore his pupils were shaped like little hearts. It took all your self control to reign in the cuteness aggression and not hug his head to your chest as tight as possible.
You were a little disappointed when Spamton pushed himself off you. He curled up on his side atop Tenna’s chest, wings splayed out behind him. Before you could bother to find another comfortable position, Spamton reached out, hugging you against his chest. You beamed, hooking your arms around him and pulling closer with a happy sigh.
You felt a light pressure on your side and glanced over to see one of Tenna’s hands resting on you like a blanket. The other rubbed circles in Spamton’s back just between his shoulders. A change of lighting in your peripheral guided your gaze upward at the ceiling, which was bathed in pink light. Tilting your gaze down, you couldn’t help but smile at the sight of a red flower blooming from Tenna’s nose.
“So...” You hummed. “We’re resuming the movie, right?”
Immediately you felt Tenna tense up beneath you. You laughed, releasing an arm from Spamton to pat the TV host’s chest. “Just kidding. I don’t think I’ll sleep if we do.”
“IT WAS THAT [how b-ad-ad-ad-ad can I ]?” Spamton asked.
“It was awful, Spammy! I can never look at stairs the same way again!” Tenna shook his head slightly, then paused. “Mike-”
“If you make Mike tear down my stairs, you’re sleeping on the couch.” You warned. Jokingly. Sort of.
“Nevermind.” He replied quickly. Another pause. “I could just lift you to the second floor from-”
“No.”
“Okay.”
You scritched at Spamton’s jaw. “I am with Tenna on this one- not the ‘removing the stairs’ part. I was afraid I was gonna get jumped by a stairwell creature. That’s, uh, why I took my time up there, as dumb as it sounds.” A sheepish laughter escaped your throat.
“DON’T [worry-free]. IF THERE’S A [creature feature] IN [our house, in the middle of our ], I’LL [Jeff the Kill] THEM.” Spamton said matter-of-factly. You didn’t doubt him.
“You’re our hero, Big Shot.” You shuffled up in his grasp to press a kiss against his jawline. You snickered as the red blush marks on his face began to glow softly, a small bit of steam puffing out the corner of his mouth.
He became even more flustered as Tenna moved his hands under Spamton’s arms, briefly lifting him up above his screen. You heard the sound of static-laden kissing and motor-like purring before Tenna set Spamton back down in his original position, leaving his face entirely red, steam pooling through his teeth. When he cooled down he curled around you, pressing his forehead against Tenna’s casing, mumbling a quiet ‘thank you’.
You three laid there in the pillow nest, you sprawled out, Spamton curled around you, and Tenna holding you both close, listening to the returning cricksong outside and reveling in each other's company.
Maybe this could be your new fall tradition.