Chapter Text
You would think (would have thought) that second sight would prevent you from making bad decisions. That it would show you your futures and guide you towards the one that was best, the one that was happiest and paved with more cobblestones than nails. That it would help you move forward, instead of letting you fall down holes.
You were extremely wrong.
***
You wake up drowning. This is alarming, despite the fact that this is how you have woken up for the last 27 consecutive days.
Your eyes open wide and you gasp for air, drawing a giant mouthful of saltwater down your throat, burning its ways into your lungs. Your chest is tight and full and you are coughing and it hurts, it feels like your whole body is being pounded on and you are tearing yourself apart from inside. You can see clearly that all this is impossible, that you are in your room, in your bed, and there is nothing around but air, no leaks or spontaneous indoor thunderstorms and you do not even live by a waterfall any more but it doesn’t matter because you are drowning. You are dying. You cough some more and brackish water spills from your mouth onto your sheets. Something gets caught in your mouth and you spit out seaweed, black and tangled, foot after foot of it choking you up and you still can’t breathe and you think you are on fire, you are starting to black out and you are dying –
The doorbell rings. You do not so much wake as you do snap out of it.
There is no water on your bed, or seaweed in your lap, or salt in your lungs. You cannot hear the ocean calling to you in the back of your brain, the waves and squelching or any of the noises beneath that you try to tune out. You look around and double check that you are still in your room (you are) before taking a shaky breath in. No water. You’re safe, for now.
Still shaking, you rise from your bed and check your reflection in the mirror. You are the color of paper, and it does not look nearly as radiant on you as it does on Kanaya. Your hair is flying off of your head like gravity has stopped working and is made of nothing but split ends, and your lips are so cracked and dry it looks as if you have actually been drinking nothing but saltwater for a month. To say you are a wreck would be putting it mildly.
You find all of this extremely ironic, or perhaps just fitting, when you stumble over to the door and peek through to see who it is. You undo the locks as quickly as you can despite your shaking hands and open it wide.
“What are you doing here, Terezi.” You ask.
You can see her toothy smile underneath the shadows of her large hood even before she takes it off and stares right at you with bright yellow eyes. “I’m here to help you!” She says, and then pauses. “You look like shit, Rose.”
A while ago, Terezi would have been the first person you’d choose to see you like this. As bad as you might look, you are certain she has smelled worse in your time. Now, it matters less, except insofar as that she is not John, Jade, Dirk, or (god forbid) Roxy, Kanaya, or Dave.
“I’m flattered.” You say. “And not in need of help, so be on your way, wouldn’t you please?”
“Right.” Terezi says drolly, and steps past you through the doorway and into the house before you can say another word. “You sure do seem okay, what with the way you broke it off with Kanaya, kicked her out, put five locks on the door and bars on the windows, and then dropped out of contact for a month. Definitely the behavior of a perfectly fine person as far as my experience goes!”
You realize that she is not leaving and reluctantly close the front door behind you as you follow her into the living room and kitchen.
“Alright.” You say. “So you caught me. Still, I’m not sure that this is a problem that you are qualified to help out with, and I am actually tempted to believe that your presence here is more of an impediment to me than anything. And as such, I’m afraid I’m going to have to ask you to leave. Again.”
She just ignores you, exploring the living space with her hands behind her back and her nose first, sharp and grey and flaring as she sniffs. It has been a long time since Terezi used anything other than her eyes to see, and her nose hasn’t been as powerful ever since. Nonetheless, the habit has stayed, and you (and everyone else) got used to it a long time ago.
“So,” she says, “is it Horrorterrors, or sudden onset alcoholism relapse?”
It occurs to you at this point that there is nothing you can do to get rid of her.
You sigh and gesture towards the kitchen and (more specifically) the completely empty wine rack. She notes it, but goes to check the freezer (she knows your old habits better than you’d have expected). When she turns around upon closing it, her expression indicates satisfaction.
“So it’s Horrorterrors, then.” She says.
In a last ditch effort, you tell her “It’s none of your business.” What you mean, what you know she’ll hear, is yes.
“Right.” She says. “Well, do you have a spare room then?”
You blink. “Excuse me?”
“I can sleep on the couch, I guess.” She says. “But I’d really rather have a recuperacoon, no reason we should both be having nightmares, and also it’ll significantly reduce our risk of killing each other!”
“No.” You say. “No, I’m drawing the line. Visit if you must, check up on me and deliver news, but this is too much.”
“You don’t need to worry about resources.” She says. “I’m going to have it taken care of tomorrow, if this interaction goes well. Which it did, I think, so it’s all good!”
“Terezi, you know that is not what I meant. Please. I am dangerous. You cannot be near me like this, things happen around me when I’m like this and I will not be held responsible for killing my brother’s girlfriend.”
You are cut off by a cackle as she throws her head back laughing. “Okay, first of all, the fact that you think you could kill me, grimdark or not, is adorable. You might be my boyfriend’s sister, sure, but I can promise you right now that if you come at me I will not hesitate a second before slitting your fucking neck. Second of all, you are being completely absurd and I think you know it. Seriously Rose, you know me. You think I can’t talk when it comes to getting out of things that are over my head? You think I don’t understand, I can’t help? Jeez, and I always thought you were smart.”
If there was more blood in your body right now, you would have flushed at that, but the embarrassment and anger shows on your face anyway. “I didn’t say that.” You insist.
“Then let me stay.” She says. “Come on, you’ve got nothing to lose! And from what I’ve seen so far, that’s really not the case if you don’t.”
You don’t say anything, so she continues. “You don’t want to die, right?”
“… No.”
She claps her hands “Then it’s settled! I’ll contact Dave and let him know. So, what have you got to eat?”