Chapter Text
Random Play, home To Belle and Wise, who are otherwise known as the infamous Proxy, Phaethon.
Inside their dwelling, the chill vibes of the store’s background music offered a cozy comfort to Belle and Ellen who were manning the store on this very slow and boring morning.
Behind the counter, Belle bopped her head to the music as she ranted to her best friend Ellen.
“I still can’t believe Wise wouldn’t play Reanimar with me! It’s the perfect sibling bonding game filled with spooky jump scares, rich story, and reliance on cooperation!” Belle complained.
Spending time with Wise had been rare the past few months for the female proxy as Wise had taken to spending a lot of time with various friends and agents the two have gotten into contact with.
“And of all people it had to be with Pulchra…” Belle slumped onto the counter.
“Is that a problem?” Ellen asked, clearly uninterested in the girl’s dilemma as she tapped away at her phone herself.
“No…she’s actually really good at games, but…” Belle replied. Afterwards she buried her head in her arms.
“Ahhh!!!” Wise’s scream penetrated the ceiling.
With her voice muffled by her arms, Belle said, “see? It would have been so fun playing with bro, he has the best reactions to horror related stuff.”
“Ah aha ah, Pulcha!” Wise screamed loud enough to shake the room.
Looking towards the stairs, Ellen didn’t show her face to Belle, but she was hiding a blush.
“Ahem, hey Belle, can I ask you a question?” Ellen asked.
Finally digging herself out of her arms, Belle turned her head to face her fishy friend.
“You already are, Ellen.” Belle replied.
“I-is Wise seeing anyone right now?” Ellen said hesitantly.
Truthfully she was trying to play it cool, but even she couldn’t hide her excitement and embarrassment from asking that question.
Dumbfounded, Belle sat straight up as she stared at Ellen with a blank look.
“Ellen, are you-” Belle tried to ask, surprised that the ever so cool shark has feelings for-
“No.” Ellen shot down immediately. Her eyes told everything. It wasn’t that.
“I’ve noticed your brother hanging out with a certain type of crowd lately and got curious.” Ellen explained.
With her interest picked, Belle found herself drawn to the idea.
“What do you mean? What kind of crowd is my brother hanging out with?” Belle asked.
Letting out a scoff, Ellen’s eyes rested over the ceiling where the voices of Wise and Pulchra could be heard.
“You know…it looks like he likes a certain type of woman,” Ellen hinted. B
“A certain type?” Belle replied.
Using her eyes, Ellen repeatedly glanced upwards.
“Like the woman upstairs.” Ellen spoke.
“Oh.” She replied again, this time with widened eyes.
Resting a hand on her chin, Belle did think of a couple scenarios that stood out, but-
“That’s going to be a problem,” Belle said.
“Why is that?” Ellen responded.
“If I understand the pattern here. Then, Pulchra isn’t the only one.” Belle announced.
Upon hearing the revelation, Ellen’s jaw dropped wide enough to almost drop her lollipop.
“Wait, you mean the loli from the Hares also likes Wise?”
“Oh Nekomata? Huh, for some reason I forgot about her. I don’t think I’ve seen her in a while actually.” Belle contemplated.
“But no, that’s not who I’m talking about, actually-“ Belle didn’t get to finish her sentence as two familiar faces entered the store.
Ding ding.
“Where is he?” One of them basically growled.
The other stood there silent, but was just as menacing.
“Senior Fufu and Nekomata, what a surprise. What brings you two here? And together?” Belle asked. A bead of sweat began forming on her temple.
Using her authority as a senior, Fufu placed her fists on her hips and asked Belle a question.
“Junior Belle, I have business with Junior Wise. But he’s not picking up my messages. So where is he?” Fufu hissed.
“He’s uh…kind of busy right now,” Belle said. Technically it was the truth, but she also could sense that their home could be jeopardy if things took a turn for the worse.
“He’s upstairs playing with another feline.” Ellen said flatly.
Snapping her head to Ellen with a face of horror, Belle rigidly looked back at the two feline thirens who had their tails standing on end.
Swiftly, but quietly, the two walked up the stairs. The lighting of the room seemed dimmer than usual.
“Ellen. What have you done Ellen? My brother is going to die!” Belle shook the girl.
Letting herself get rock with the motion, Ellen only had this to say.
“Isn’t a little drama more fun than sitting around an empty store?”
“…yes.” Belle said.
Turning off the open sign, she locked the door and snuck upstairs with Ellen to watch the drama unfold.
With Wise.
“It’s quiet. It’s been too quiet, Pulchra. There’s a jumpscare up ahead I just know it,” Wise said cowardly.
Lately, the man found himself hanging out with a certain feline from the Sons of Calydon.
And when he did so, they’d always found time to game it out together.
It was a nice change of pace from constantly being in danger.
So when Pulchra showed up with the new hit co-op horror game Reanimar, he knew it was about to be a scary, but fun time.
“Ooo, a cosmetic item.” Wise said.
Forcing his character to put on an oversized bird head, he turned to Pulchra.
“Did you fall in love yet, Pulchra?” Wise leaned towards her with a charming smile.
In response, she nudged him away with her shoulder.
“The only thing I love is money, now come on. The next area is waiting for us.”
Arriving in the next area, the two worked together solving a series of puzzles. All the while Pulchra’s tail unintentionally swayed behind her like a metronome.
That is until it wrapped itself around Wise’s waist.
“Uh Pulchra?” Wise questions.
“Hm?” She replied, still focused on the game.
“I thought you hated it when someone touches your tail?” Wise commented.
Grabbing a key item, she was still focused on the game. “I do,” She replied.
“I know you let me pet it sometimes, but are you giving me permission right now?” He asked.
Turning to him with annoyance, Pulchra had no idea why he was bringing this up now until she saw her tail firmly wrapped around him.
Summoning it back to her side, she cradled it as if she was seconds away from losing it.
“No-no, no. I’m sorry, it has a mind of its own sometimes.” she said with a blush.
Looking away, she didn’t have her mask on so she didn’t want Wise to see her blushing face.
Not that he could with all of her fur anyways.
Understanding the struggles of a thiren, Wise didn’t joke around. He simply tried to be understanding.
“Ah, I understand. My friend in Waifei Peninsula is an octopus thiren so her tentacles sometimes wrap around me unconsciously as well,” Wise said with a chuckle.
But his words weren’t funny. Not to her at least.
“She what?” She whispered.
She didn’t know why, but she found herself annoyed by this new piece of information.
But Wise was none the Wiser, he was simply the guy that unintentionally threw oil on the fire.
“Oh yeah it was no big deal. Her tentacles just have a habit of grabbing me randomly and they wrap themselves around me pretty tightly. It’s actually not that bad, I thought it’d be slimy, but her tentacles were actually pretty dry and soft.” Wise explained.
But every detail he included only narrowed Pulchra’s brow even more.
“So you like being held close Proxy?” Pulchra leaned in, her hand resting right beside his hips as her face drew closer.
“Uh? I do have a preference for personal space, but I don’t mind if my friends or Belle get close.” He said with a disarming smile.
“Oh?” Pulchra questioned. Leaning in even closer, she left Wise with no choice but to lean backwards. But in doing so, his back landed on his bed.
Without even realizing, Pulchra began crawling towards him, her assets scraping over his body like bulldozers.
Face to face with the incredible view and sensations, Wise did everything in his power to avert his eyes to be a gentleman, but even he was not immune to the power of a woman’s body.
“H-hey! Pulchra, quit joking around. We’re kind of in a compromising position here. What if Belle walks in on us? There’s bound to be misunderstandings.” Wise said with ever increasing speed.
But Pulchra was barely listening.
For her instincts were now in control.
Her eyes turned into slits.
Her hair stood on ends.
Her breath ragged.
And her tail swaying from side to side. At one point, they may have even taken the shape of a heart.
Trying to stop her, Wise placed his hands on her shoulder to stop her progression.
But his years of being inactive really came back to bite him. Even with his mystic training and fishing experience, he’s only become more fit compared to an average guy.
In no way was he strong enough to contend with Hollow Raiders.
Or the overpowered women in his life.
So he did nothing to stop Pulchra’s advances.
“Proooxy~” Pulchra teased.
“P-p-pulchra, we need to stop. It could be really bad if we continue…” Wise begged bashfully.
Taking Wise’s hands off of her shoulders, Pulchra promptly pinned them above his head.
“We? Since when was there a we? I’m doing all the work so far.”
Her smirk was devilish, playful, and seductive. All of which was wrapped up in one fluffy orange body.
Overwhelmed by the stimulus, Wise closed his eyes and turned his head to the side, exposing his neck in the process.
The accidental display of submission provoked Pulchra’s feral instincts as a feline thiren and possessiveness as a woman.
She didn’t intend to go this far, she just wanted to tease.
But faced with the delicacy in front of her…
She had to leave her mark.
Parting her mouth, her pearly white fangs glistened in the sun’s rays.
As her fangs approached his neck, saliva began to pool up.
“Ahhhh ahahaha!” The excitement caused her to let out an uncontrollable giggle.
And then-
The door swung open with seismic force.
“Wise/Proxy!” Fufu and Nekomata exclaimed.
Behind them, Belle and Ellen could be seen lurking in the hallway.
Faster than human comprehension, Pulchra immediately sat upright next to Wise, slipped on her mask and held her controller in her hands as she carefully placed his controller on his chest.
It was a flawless maneuver that eluded the eyes of Belle.
But not for the thirens with her.
Huffing her chest and cheeks, Ju Fufu stomped forward as she pointed an accusatory finger towards the much taller woman.
“You! You!!! What are you doing to my Junior!?”
“Tried to get a jump on us nya?” Nekomata accused.
Crossing her arms, Pulchra glared at the two felines in response.
“I don’t know what you two are talking about. We’re just playing video games,” she responded.
“Grrrr.” Letting out a growl, Fufu took one more step forward before replying.
“Video games huh? What kind of video game involves you on top of him!?”
Adding onto that, Nekomata stood before the two.
“Yeah Nya! Don’t think we were too slow to notice what you were doing. Trying to hog Wise all to yourself and use your womanly charms to claim him for yourself!”
Finally having enough of the slander, Pulchra rose to her feet. Her much taller frame towered over the two petite felines.
“You say I’m hogging Wise, but in reality, he chose to hang out with me instead of you two. Jealous much?” Pulchra taunted.
Truthfully, they didn’t know how to respond to that considering she was right. They were jealous and Wise chose to hang out with her instead of them.
So there was only one thing to do. Gain backup from the source.
“Junior disciple!” Fufu exclaimed.
Initially embarrassed, Wise sat up straight in response to his senior.
“Yes Senior Fufu!”
A dark aura resonated from the smol feline.
“You…you know how rare it is for me to get the chance to visit New Eridu? And when I finally get the chance to do so, you say you’re busy.”
Tightening her fist into a ball, her knuckles grew white.
“So when I come by to say hi and I find you here playing around…do you know what that makes me think!?” Fufu raised her voice.
Everyone was tense. They held their breaths less they gained the girl’s ire.
If a raging tiger Thiren trained in the mystic arts goes on a rampage now, its game over.
Her shoulders shook and so did her fists.
Wise found himself tensing up, his life flashing before his eyes.
“Hic!”
But then the dams fell and tears began pouring down Fufu’s cheeks.
There was no one in that room who wasn’t caught off guard.
“Do you not like me anymore Junior Wise?” Fufu whimpered.
Getting up from the bed, Wise rushed to her side to comfort her.
“N-no way Senior Fufu! It’s not like that! Really.” Wise said immediately.
“I’ve already made plans with Pulchra and it would be rude of me and to her if I suddenly bailed and hung out with someone else.”
Seeing that she was mistaken, Fufu calmed down a little.
“Really? Do you still like me?” Fufu asked.
With her wide eyes and small body, she resembled that of a small creature that needed to be protected.
It was something she had mistaken for her own sex appeal.
“Y-yes really. I still like you a lot! To make it up to you, how about we hang out next time I drop by Suibuin Temple?” Wise offered.
Lighting up as if she were never sad, Fufu leaned forward with both of her fists resting beneath her chin and her tail wagging like crazy.
“Really!? You really mean it!?” She exclaimed excitedly.
“Definitely.” He responded.
Outside the room, Belle and Ellen watched the scene unfold with a mixture of amusement and awe.
“Whoa, Senior Fufu’s destructive power is off the charts. We might have a winner here,” Belle whispered to her buddy.
“Shush!” Ellen reprimanded.
“It’s not over yet, it seems the brat from the hares is about to make her move.”
As she said, Nekomata who couldn’t get an inch word wise in this conversation did the only thing she knew how to do.
She played dirty.
If there was anything she learned from being on the streets, it was to take advantage of any opportunity.
And following fufu’s example, she got one.
Grabbing Wise by the arm, she used her innocent looking face and eyes to seduce her prey.
“Wiiiise,” she fawned.
“Don’t forget about me Nya. I know we didn’t have plans, but it’s been soooo long since we hung out together. Can we play proxy? Like old times?” She said, clutching his hand in hers, she looked up at him with big eyes.
‘She’s playing the long time friend card, not bad Nekomata, not bad.’ Belle mentally approved.
‘But that’s not enough!’ Narrowing her eyes, she watched as Fufu sprung into action as the Tiger Thiren latched onto his other arm.
“Hey! No fair! I was making plans with Wise first!” Fufu exclaimed fiercely.
“And you got your chance! Now it’s my turn to make plans with Wise!” Nekomata responded just as fiercely.
Both of their tails and ears stood on ends as they hissed at one another.
“Grrrr/Meeeeow!” The two were seconds from a literal cat fight, but the presence of the male between them stopped them in their tracks.
“Guys! Guys!!! I don’t know what’s going on, but it’s alright. We can all just hang out together if you two would just stop fighting!” Wise said in an attempt to remedy the situation.
A situation that grew silent as the ladies looked at him with exasperation.
“That, you see that Belle? That’s why I don’t have feelings for your brother anymore. Yeah, he’s cute, but he’s denser than a brick.” Ellen stated flatly.
“No arguments there…” Belle agreed unanimously.
‘Wait anymore?’
With a Cheshire grin, Belle slowly turned her head to her best friend.
“Anymoreee~” she repeated for Ellen who now realized her slip up.
With a blushing, she pushed Belle away with the palm of her hand.
“Don’t be annoying. Look, player three is about to join the battle.” Ellen commented.
Now it was Pulchra’s turn to stand before Wise, the narrow brows and tapping of her finger on her crossed arms were a clear indicator that she was not happy.
“Proooxxyy! Youuuu!” Pulchra’s drawn out voice sent shivers down Wise’s spine.
‘Oh god what did I do now!?’ He thought.
“Uh, yes Pulchra? What’s the matter?” He said innocently.
But his innocence did nothing to quell her rage.
“You’re not planning on abandoning our hangout to go out with these two are you?” She said accusingly.
Feeling sweat develop on his forehead, he did his best to reason with the mercenary.
Unlike Fufu or Nekomata, Pulchra is almost always level headed.
Always calculating, thinking of the best move, and most importantly of all, she doesn’t let her emotions get to her.
Normally.
The sight of the two felines in both of Wise’s hands stirred some ugly emotions in her.
Emotions that she wasn’t too familiar with.
“I’m sorry Pulchra, but I can’t just say no to these two. They’re my friends too.”
Grabbing him by the shirt, she pulled the man closer to her.
“Yeah, and you promised to hang out with them later! Right now you’re with me and we haven’t even gotten to the boss level yet!” Pulchra motioned to the computer screens.
Sitting on the bed, eating snacks, and joking around with each other over something in the game was something Wise did truly enjoy, but-
The tightening of the grip on both sides increased, reminding him of the two fragile hearts in his hands.
“Pulchra, we can continue playing another time. Our hangout doesn’t even have to end. You can come join us.” Wise said with a smile.
Big mistake.
Instead of refusing or arguing back.
Pulchra turned to leave the room with a grunt.
But not before she called him a “stupid idiot.”
Walking out of the room, Pulchra glared at the two girls spying on them, but didn’t say a word.
Instead the sound of her car’s engine coming alive before tires tearing away at the asphalt could be heard driving away.
Seeing that the mood had taken a turn and that the two felines may have strained the relationship between Wise and one of his agents, Nekomata and Fufu didn’t know whether they should celebrate one less rival or feel bad for crashing a potentially normal hangout session.
‘Wait no! She was literally all over him. There’s no way she doesn’t like him!’ The two shared this thought.
On this matter, they were convinced Pulchra was definitely a rival.
But now the question remains. Who is Wise going to hang out first?
“So uhh…looks like i’m free for the rest of the day girls. What do you two want to do?” Wise asked in hopes of them knowing what they want to do.
“Spend time with you alone!” Fufu/Nekomata said in unison.
Glaring at each other, sparks flew due to their rivalry.
Obviously the two wanted to monopolize his attention, but choosing outright was difficult. Right now, he needed a reason that would convince the two.
Thinking about it, he then thought about Fufu’s situation.
“Fufu,” Wise said.
“Senior.” Fufu corrected.
“Right. Senior Fufu, you’re just visiting New Eridu right? How long do you have before you have to go?” Wise asked.
“N-not until later tonight!” Fufu responded.
“I see…then, how about we spend the day doing what you want to do, Senior Fufu?” Wise suggested.
“Ah. I didn’t think that far ahead.” Fufu revealed.
“Oh! In that case nya. How about we all do a game of hide and seek around Port Elpis?” Nekomata suggested.
“Sure, but why Port Elpis?” Wise asked.
“Because if we get bored of playing, we can go fishing and that means we can go grilling and fill our stomachs!” Nekomata explained with a wave of her finger.
“Grill! Fish! Food!?” Fufu exclaimed with drool escaping her mouth.
“Yes, let's do that! I want to do that Junior disciple! Let’s go eat- I mean go play and if we happen to get bored, we can switch things up ahahaha…” Fufu agreed.
“Ok, with our plans settled. Let’s head out shall we?” Wise said.
Grabbing his jacket from a chair, he walked out of his room followed by his two feline friends.
Upon reaching the main store, he found Belle and Ellen chilling behind the counter, a slight bead of sweat dropping off their temple.
Giving them a look, Wise turned to head through the backroom to access the parking lot.
Once the room was clear, Belle and Ellen collapsed onto the desk.
“Did you think he noticed?” Belle asked.
“If he didn’t notice the open sign being turned off, then no, I think we’re good.” Ellen replied.
“So about you liking my brother…” Belle trailed off.
“Did I ever mention that I just sharpened my scissors? I could use some help testing them out.” Ellen replied with her glowing red eyes.
Raising her hands, Belle backed off immediately.
But there was still romance on her mind.
‘Now what are you going to do, oh brother of mine?’