Work Text:
“At least keep them contained, for fuck’s sake, Gam,” Eridan scolds, picking up a few horns and chucking them back into the pile with an irritated huff.
Gamzee slinks around the computer room, finding it much easier without everyone crammed into it. There are just about 4 people in there, Gamzee included, and it’s rather quiet, silence broken only by an angry key mash here and there.
“Man,” Gamzee slurs, “didn’t mean to all up and upset a fishy motherfucker,” he lightly scratches his lax arm, walking with a sloppy gait that leads him to nearly trip quite often.
Eridan snaps his eyes over to Gamzee as the taller troll comes up next to him.
“It’s-“ he pauses for a moment before scoffing and crossing his arms, “It’s alright. It’s not like I’m dying or whatever. It’s just mildly annoying, if anything,” he backtracks, not having expected the positive response from the purpleblood and not wanting to ruin the mood for now.
Gamzee grins, shoves his hands in his pants, and chuckles lowly in his scratchy, pubescent tone, “I appreciate the talking all chill n’ shit, brother.”
Eridan makes a small click of confusion, tilting his head. Gamzee tends to save the “brother” term for people he’s much closer to. Brushing it off, Eridan turns and exits the room, off to, probably, self-loathe some more.
———
Eridan is walking back to the room he has claimed for himself when he feels something warm and wet touch his fin. He turns around swiftly only to see Gamzee leaned over with his tongue just barely sticking out. When he catches up with the fact that Eridan now notices him, he cracks a wide smile, tongue still peeking from the cleft in the middle of his top lip.
“What’s all up and good with my awesome fishbro?”
Eridan quite literally is frozen in confusion, clicking in a slow rhythm, before he blinks his large eyes and lets out a sigh, “Gam, I’ll be honest here, I almost just murdered you. You should know better than to sneak up on another highblood. Especially not by…licking…Whatever it was you were just doing? Never do it again.”
Gamzee straightens his back, standing a little under a foot taller than Eridan and still growing. He itches his head through his tangled mess of loose curls and lets his smile falter, if just barely.
“Aww shit, I’m real sorry fishbro, I was just being silly n’ all, man,” he drawls, “Just got myself a big ass question for ya, brother.”
The violetblood raises one short eyebrow before nodding hesitantly, “Go on…?”
“Now, you see, I’ve been thinking, n’ I realized that, bro, we could make miracles together,” he grins wider, his eyes squinting.
“We could make miracles,” Eridan parrots in a monotonous voice.
“Exactly,” Gamzee slurs, “I’m thinkin’ you, me, some piles, n’ motherfuckin’…Miracles.”
Eridan’s eyes damn near pop out of his head, “Piles?! You’re asking to be pale?!”
After acting so shocked, Eridan very quickly remembers that he should simply be grateful, and not question at all if he wants a moirail. “I mean, yeah, you’re asking to be pale, so…uhm, let’s go have a feelings jam.”
Gamzee doesn’t exactly recognize Eridan’s anxiety, but he does know the troll to be desperate, so he figures he doesn’t have much to lose. He takes the other’s wrist with surprising gentleness and continues toward Eridan’s room.
——
After a while of being pale with Gamzee, Eridan has, for the most part, learned his ways. Though Gamzee is a very odd creature, he can be predictable. In their time together, Eridan has washed, conditioned, and brushed the taller troll’s hair, as well as put some of his hydrating product in it. The residents of the meteor noticed instantly, especially Karkat, who made it a point to thank them both whenever he saw them.
Gamzee has begun to figure out that Eridan, despite accepting any and all forms of physical contact, doesn’t like being touched directly. He will be all over Gamzee, but the second a bony hand is placed on his waist, he falters. He does, however, love his face and head touched. Gamzee finds out quickly that a steady scratch on the nape of his neck, right where the hair stops, earns him a low, grumbling purr. He also learns that if he dares to touch anywhere around his gills, he’ll most definitely get scratched and hissed at.
Eridan has made some discoveries as well. Like how Gamzee hates his horns being touched, and his eyes will close in contentment if a cold hand is placed on his chest or stomach. The landdweller also is very hard to cuddle with, given his long and bony body, but if they place a thick blanket between them, in negates most of the discomfort. It comes into consideration that Eridan should get a pair of shorts, or even a skirt if he can sneak one from somebody, for when they cuddle because Gamzee is the number one fan of the thick, toned legs that Eridan perches on.
Overall, they add something to each other’s lives that creates a stable pair. They understand each other in the most primitive ways, but they are both willing to learn no matter what. Their moirallegiance is strong,