Chapter Text
Thump. Thump. Thump.
Ralsei’s careful footsteps trace the dark path toward Castle Town. It’s a long way from the church to home, but the journey provides the first bit of guaranteed safety all day. The road is nothing but pure darkness and gives him a lot of time to just think, which is both a blessing and a curse. Ralsei had spent his entire life worrying about Kris and Susie, and regrettably he’s thrown himself into the mix. He hoped the feeling of blood crusting into his fur would be a distraction, but to no avail. It’s Susie’s blood, he mutters to himself, she shouldn’t have seen the end of the Prophecy. Ralsei did his best to run ahead, to shatter any tapestries with the haunting words, but nothing worked. She knows. Kris probably knows. Ralsei curses himself at his inability to comfort his friends in the Light World, but he would be just as powerless out there as he is on his home turf. He doesn’t even have the wherewithal to cry.
The sparkling lights of Castle Town come into view, and Ralsei prepares to sprint into the castle as quickly as possible so nobody sees the state he’s in. The residents have grown to appreciate him as one of the three heroes, typically greeting him with a smile and a request for a story of the day’s adventure. He can’t do that this time. He can’t let his people know just how brutal the Prophecy is. Ralsei used to think every Darkner knew the story, but if Queen herself wasn’t aware, there was no way to be sure if this was true. Furthermore, Tenna stood quite proudly for a TV about to be cleaved red by blade. Oh well, more secrets to keep.
His quick tread morphs into a steady float as he approaches the castle door, successfully passing through the town square with no notices. The cauldron sits politely at the entrance as it always does, still smelling like fresh cake from earlier. Ralsei remembers the tea party just hours ago, how Susie’s fingers curled up against the teacup’s handle. Now her hands are all bloody. He traverses up the stairs, stopping at Kris and Susie’s combined rooms. With the small flick of a fuzzy wrist, the rooms are separated again; and with that done, it’s time to clean up his own mess.
Ralsei tiptoes back to the entryway and grabs a bowl of water from the cauldron, successfully sneaking up to his room with no witnesses in the process. He’s never had to clean blood off of anything before, so his best guess is to take the water with some soap and a rag and hope for the best.
After several minutes of scrubbing, Ralsei puts a hand to his cheek and can only feel wet fur. It’s not like he has a mirror, so the feeling will have to do.
Bedtime. Ralsei takes the plushie of himself and curls up in the corner of his bedroom, sandwiched between the wall and the gray furry block with an unsettling face. He still has no idea why that thing was put into a Dark World in the first place, but at least it’s soft. Weird, but soft, and a good surface for his glasses during the night. He hums the first song that comes to his brain, Pushing Buddies, until he drifts off to sleep.
♡♡♡
Ralsei sits atop a tower of gold, overlooking his very first sunrise. He feels a hand brush the top of his own and looks to his left to find Kris accompanying him. They smile and point out clouds shaped like different foods, describing to Ralsei what the foods taste like and how they’re all so much better in the Light World because the food actually “feeds you.” Ralsei turns to ask Kris about how he got out of the Dark World in the first place, but is interrupted when they smile, lean forward, and…
♡♡♡
“Ralsei,” a voice pierces through the quiet, “Ralsei,” The voice pokes his arm, “Ralsei.”
“Hmm? What is it?” Ralsei rubs one of his eyes and instinctually feels around for his glasses on the floor. Oh yeah. Fuzzy block. His arm reaches up to grab the glasses but taps the voice’s knee instead. He scans upward with blurry vision to see Kris themself waking him up from his dream. Alarm bells ring in his head, forcing Ralsei to stand up at the speed of, well, something. His voice raises an octave, “Kris! Hello! I’m surprised to see you here so late, but it’s a nice surprise.”
Kris’s expression is stoic as always, “You missed a spot,” They take the rag still on the floor and wipe off a few stray bits of blood on Ralsei’s cheek. Warmth rushes to his face. Blushes always shine through white fur, but hopefully Kris is too busy spot-treating instead of noticing that. Kris’s face is usually so unreadable, but lately their eyes have gotten a certain glimmer.
Ralsei originally approached Kris with caution, only knowing a “Human Cage” from the Prophecy that he was supposed to serve, but the inexplicable desire to be near them at all times was unforeseen. After all, the Prophecy had only presented the two Lightners as silhouettes. In reality, Kris and Susie, like the other two Lightners Ralsei had encountered, have a faint glow when their health is full. It’s pretty on all of them, but Kris is a special type of radiant. Their light makes them warm, and the heat from their wrist radiates onto Ralsei’s face. The combination of blush and body heat creates a pool in Ralsei’s stomach. He grins, “Thank you, Kris, um, why are you here so late?”
Kris shrugs, “Couldn’t sleep.”
“Well,” Ralsei takes a step back to smooth himself out, “It’s nice to know you feel safe enough to visit whenever you want. I’m always happy to see you,” His glasses fog up, “But you don’t have to come here just for me, this place is designed for you and Susie.”
“But I’m in your room, not mine.”
“Did you want me to escort you to your room? I can do that if you’d like.”
“Okay,” Kris pivots toward the door, “We can go.”
The two travel downstairs to Kris’s blue bedroom. Kris had mentioned the color was “sky blue” but Ralsei had never seen the sky, so he politely nodded along. Even his dream had a warped perception of a sunset– various greens and reds adorning the clouds he’s heard so much about. He’s sure it’s inaccurate, but his mind still created something beautiful. When they arrive, Kris flops onto the perfectly-made bed.
“Ralsei or bust,” They whisper, “I have an idea. Sit down.”
Ralsei tenses up, “There aren’t any chairs, but I can sit on the floor.”
“Bed,” Kris pats the empty space beside them, “Sit here.”
“Are you sure? It’s your bed.”
“Sit,” Their expression, or lack thereof, is still unreadable.
Ralsei does as he’s told. He fiddles with the end of his sleeve, a pesky habit picked up somewhere in TV World. He matches Kris’s low voice, “What’s your idea?”
Kris sits up, leaning on their elbows, “Do you know what instant photos are?”
Ralsei’s ears fall down in embarrassment, “Haha, I do not.”
“The camera takes the picture, and it’s attached to something that prints the picture out. I can take pictures of the festival…”
Oh. Ralsei gets the concept, but it seems a little daunting. If Light World pictures are formed out of light, what’s to say they won’t affect a Dark World? Why have fun in the first place when everyone is doomed? On the other hand, however, Kris came up with this because they care enough about Ralsei’s presence at the festival. Everything in his brain is screaming to be logical, but Ralsei recently discovered he has preferences; and they’re begging for him to say yes.
He gulps, “Okay, we can try.”
Kris sits up and yawns, “I’m tired. What are you gonna do?”
“I should sleep too.” Ralsei stands, trying not to get upset at himself for impeding Kris's space.
“Ralsei?”
“Oh! Is there anything else you need?”
“Goodnight.”
The blush returns and Ralsei can feel his heart pumping, “Goodnight, Kris!”
Ralsei curls up in his room once more, and before he drifts off again, he stops with a panic. He’s developed a heart, and it’s growing.
Kris is gone when Ralsei wakes up. It makes sense, he concludes, they have a mom waiting at home. If Ralsei is going to be a little selfish today, he needs to be extremely selfless first. After all, he’s still a Darkner. That’s his job. Ralsei snatches up his glasses and blinks a few times to adjust to the improved eyesight. His duty as Prince of Castle Town is letting everyone know a festival might be happening in a few hours.
♡♡♡
Kris stares at the Soul with discontent. They never asked to be in the situation they’re in, but it happened regardless. Kris and the Soul seem to have reached a “Cold War” state, existing in careful symbiosis until the next disagreement. Shared trauma from a Titan fight brought them closer, whether Kris liked it or not. It’s not like they can ask the Soul for input, all it knows is control…or, at least it did until their tiff at Noelle’s house. Kris whipped that thing into shape, instilled fear into it. They let that damn thing know Kris can fight back, even for a little while. Ever since then, the Soul has softened to allow Kris some freedom for compassion. They got to accept two lumps in their tea, wander alone in the dark, and give Ralsei the hug they both so desperately needed. At the moment, however, the Soul isn’t their biggest issue.
Petrichor wafts through the open window with Susie’s voice accompanying it. She speaks to the wind, “We aren’t gonna let that happen, right?”
It feels like forever ago when Kris promised undying loyalty to the Knight for… it doesn’t even matter. Screw loyalty. If everyone is doomed to a stupid Prophecy, they deserve a minute to breathe. Nobody’s happy with this. Not Kris, not Susie, not Ralsei, and especially not the Soul who fought the hardest to see that fated tapestry. Kris didn’t see what it said, neither did they want to. Ralsei had never been so strict about something before, and Kris values the prince more than a story.
Damn it. Ralsei. At least Kris knows where he is. They reluctantly open the Soul’s birdcage and plunge the red heart into their chest. Kris needs a way into the Dark World that doesn’t involve ripping themself open, but that’s an issue for a later date. Thankfully, Kris and the Soul have the same idea to head to Castle Town. Apparently neither of them want to be stuck with a drunk mom and her freaky store-clerk situation.
If only Azzy was here, he’d know what to say. Well, maybe not.
A tiny beam of moonlight shines through the window, highlighting a square, red piece of plastic with a black circle. Upon further inspection, Kris realizes their brother never took his instant camera to college. It’s been here the whole time. The Soul sends a thought through their head: Take the camera? Yes. Kris takes it and places it on their bed but goes no further. They have a mission first.
The window is still open and the sound of rain absorbs into the walls. Kris leans on the windowsill, taking the raindrops onto their nose. Hopefully things clear up for the festival. They scrunch up their face and wonder when they began to care so much about the event. It’s just a party full of people Kris doesn’t want to converse with.
But they could shake the ferris wheel.
And violently play the games until they “accidentally” break.
And eat overpriced, over-fried food.
And somehow find a way to get Ralsei some ice cream.
They’ll never know if they don’t try.
A rare moment of peace between Kris and the Soul was when it made them say, “Ralsei or bust” when asked who they’re taking to the festival. There has to be a way to follow through on that.
Take the camera?
Again, that might be a good idea for later, but for now, Kris is going to leave it here in case the thing turns into a Darkner. It happened to Shuttah.
Kris slides out of the window, sharply inhaling as the rain pierces through their thin sweater. They relax their limbs and take the backseat as the Soul guides them across town to the school.
The portal to Castle Town has a certain warmth to it, morphing Kris’s damp clothes into dry metal armor but leaving their hair wavy. Their dripping tan skin turns a neon blue with no trace of water in sight. Free blow dryer. Nice. Kris stretches their arms and makes their way to Ralsei’s room, prepared to share their instant photo idea.
Ralsei, for lack of a better word, looks like shit. He’s got a patch of wet fur with bloody speckles around it, and the rest of him is disheveled from tossing and turning in the terrible corner he sleeps in. Kris needs to fix this mess, it’s not like Ralsei cares enough about himself to do it first. Kris and the Soul have enough care to keep him afloat for now. If Susie were here, she’d do the same.
The Soul speaks first. Wake him up?
No. Let him sleep.
Wake. Him. Up.
Kris rolls their eyes, they don’t have a choice here. They stick out their finger and poke his shoulder.
“Ralsei. Ralsei. Ralsei.”
It’s a rude awakening, but it works.
“You missed a spot.”