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Parrot stood solemnly at the glassless window, arched intricately in the cobblestone. He gazed out, hands resting on the stone sill. The dim, freshly risen moonlight kissed his face, and the stars speckled the night like holes poked into the sky to expose the heaven that lay behind it.
He had been standing like this, still as a stone, for a long while now—gawking out at the blackened terrain blanketed by the darkness of the night. Gazing out into the violent world made his mind wander through his past memories, and relive all that happened to him— his friends, and his enemies.
Luigi had gotten slaughtered in cold blood with that dreadful axe in a cold, hollow building, dying in the very place he was sentenced. He remembered how for a moment, for one, relieving moment, Coinmonke backed off, dropping his sword on the floor with a clatter, his face twisted in pain. Parrot truly thought there was a chance he could be saved. The suddenness of blood spewing from Luigi's chest and pooling onto the ground startled him to no end, and it took him a moment to even process what had happened. And that moment was the last moment he could ever know true relief.
The image of Dean faded it's way into his mind. His dark skin that had always felt warm from staying out in the sun for long periods of time, as if his skin had drunken the rays of the sun like a fine wine. His big, brown eyes that twinkled like stars in the night sky would send looks his way after he cracked a joke, or after something humorous had happened. Each time Parrot met it, it felt as if his stare were planting joyous kisses on each of his cheeks, and he couldn't help but stretch his lips wide and smile giddily. He could remember in great detail the emptiness he had felt when Dean was sucked into the frozen hell of the void—far too cold and far too violent for someone as happy and gentle as Dean. He remembered how when Dean blew the horn before his pearl had dropped, his heart felt as if it were ripped out from his chest, aware of what awaited him below the server.
And Wifies…
He could barely remember anything about that. He tuned out the blast of the explosions, and refused to look at the smoke arising from the obsidian cylinder, and refused to look back whilst climbing those stairs to his freedom. What he could remember, however, was the clank of the spyglass as he dropped it limply onto the pressure plate, and the clack of his boot as he feebly stepped off, gaze locked onto Wifies' dumbfounded face.
Parrot blinked his eyes shut, the cool, gentle breeze blowing kisses against his skin. He pictured Theo's face, alive and well, cheeks pink with joy and eyes bright.
He wondered how long it would be until he too would fall dead at Parrot's expense.
He lowered his head slightly, as if his maundering thoughts were physically weighing it down on his shoulders. Theo was so incredibly brave and talented in Parrot's eyes—every cart he placed and every arrow he reeled back in his bow were done with such skill and fueled by the urge to protect, that Parrot couldn't help but feel safe whenever he would see Theo wield a weapon in battle.
But, as talented and brave as he was, Parrot knew more than anyone that things had limits. If, goodness forbid, an accident were to happen—maybe he stood too close to a bursting cart, or slip on his feet whilst running—and he'd end up gravely injured, or possibly worse—dead, Parrot could barely think of how he'd live with himself. Maybe he couldn't
Theo was so full of energy and potential, the thought of sending him off to battle to have him die at the expense of protecting Parrot felt villainous in his eyes. Theo was beautifully manufactured, and talented in every way to Parrot. Expecting Theo to always fight alongside him would only end in the worst way possible.
Parrot was ripped away from his thoughts with the beat of a wing approaching close. He's heard it before, and knew exactly who it was.
"Yo, Parrot!" Theo smiled with glee, striding happily to wear Parrot resided near the windowsill.
A grin tugged gently on the corners of Parrot's mouth, and he glanced at Theo approaching him steadily.
"Theo," He smiled, shoulders tense.
Theo relaxed his flared wings as he approached, his arm swinging around Parrot's shoulders. "Everything's lookin' pretty good so far. I went around the whole place, like, four times."
Parrot blinked, looking up at Theo's eyes that curved into happy little crescents upon meeting his gaze. "Still can't believe you managed to make that whole army…" Theo trailed off, voice still slightly plagued with disbelief, as if he couldn't have ever imagined Parrot doing something that like. Parrot huffed a giggle, bumping Theo's shoulder with his own.
"Dude, of course I did it, bro." He grinned, though his eyes fell dull, a glimmer of hope sparkling in his half-lidded eyes. "We might actually have a chance, now."
Theo's wide grin faltered for a moment, face dulling in color. The vague, underlying mention of Cindercrest settled heavy in his chest. Parrot noticed immediately, and his face replicated the drooping frown now plastered on Theo's. "Yeah…" Theo mumbled, eyes drifting off to the gaze out through the window. "Wheres Reina?"
"I think she went to sleep. She needed the rest." Parrot replied, index picking at the skin on his thumb. Theo nodded, a comfortable silence settling onto the two as they both gazed into the dark beyond through the window.
Parrot slowly turned his head, staring directly at Theo's face. He remained locked onto something in the distance, eyes fixed, as if something was eating away at his conscience. Dark moons lay embedded beneath his eyes, sinking them low into his skull. He must've not been getting enough sleep lately—which was understandable, Parrot had also laid awake these past nights, tossing and turning. Now that he thought about it, he couldn't even remember how long it'd been since he had gotten a restful sleep. He wondered if Theo thought the same.
The closer Parrot stared, the more fatigued Theo began to look. Parrot noticed the cracked skin on his lips, and his sunkissed skin that had grown pale and afraid. Parrot could hear his heart throb like an engine in his ears, gaze fixed on Theo, who didn't seem to notice. He looked exhausted, like he might slump over at any moment.
Parrot was too indulged in his melancholic gaze to notice Theo's head turn, looking straight back at him, half of his face shaded from the darkness of the indoors and the other half illuminated in a pale blue light from the newly fallen moon. Parrot turned away slowly, his eyes retreating back to the stars in the sky.
Theo shifted slightly, voice a bit low with uncertainty. "Y'know, Parrot…"
Parrot turned his head back, eyes meeting back with Theo's gentle gaze. "Yeah?" He muttered.
Theo gently gazed to his side, guilt plaguing his heart with whatever he was about to say. "Parrot I don't really think that…" He paused, chest tightening, swallowing hard against his throat. "I don't think giving people the options of either joining your army or dying is like… a good idea."
Parrot paused, and Theo froze in fear at his cold silence, feathers flared, afraid as though he had spoken about something incomprehensible. "Like—I don't know, man, I just don't think giving bandits and stuff the choice of either joining our army or getting killed is fair."He stammered, voice growing, as if to give off the impression he was speaking with confidence, but Parrot could tell with every faltering word that he was nervous.
"What do you mean?" Parrot asked, voice soft, just as it always sounded like.
Theo relaxed a bit, fingers still fidgeting.
"I don't wanna like be obtuse or anything but it's… kinda immoral, y'know? Like, there's other ways you could handle that instead of giving the two choices that put people at rock bottom despite whichever one they choose."
Parrot remained silent for a moment, eyes fogged against the horizon he stared hard at. Perhaps he wished he could fly through that horizon, safely housed in the heavens from any turmoil taking place on the ground. He imagined himself soaring through the dark clouds at night with Theo and Reina by his side, three joyous figures so high in the sky that they could be mistaken for one of the many stars that freckled the face of the night.
He breathed in, sighing softly before replying. "Well, I'm not proud of what I did," He paused, eyes filled with confusion. "But like, what other choice do we have? If Cindercrest wins against us, then everybody dies."
Theo nibbled on the inside of his cheek, anxiousness finding it's escape route through his trembling fingers. "And I get that," He nodded. "But I feel like nothing is ever drastic enough to the point of forcing people to join an army or be killed."
Parrot listened to Theo's words closely, as if he were reciting a holy text.
"Like—you remember how the L.A.W soldiers threatened to kill us if we refused to join them?"
The sudden mention of law left Parrot dumbfounded, confused at Theo's comparison.
"It just… kinda feels like it's just a repackaged version of whatever Lettuce was trying to formulate."
The silence after deafened Theo's ears. He shot a glance next to him, eyes barely catching glimpse of Parrot's stiff figure. He pressed down against his molars, afraid of what was going to come next.
"So you're comparing this to L.A.W?" Parrot asked, voice full of sincere bemusement—but Theo could hear the fuel of anger behind his mask of confusion.
"Wha—No, Parrot, never! It's just—"
"What are you trying to say right now, Theo?" Parrot's voice grew in hostility, his whole body, which had been nervously faced towards the moon in the sky had now fully turned to look at him, reading into every stammer and every tremor his voice produced.
"I'm not saying anything, Parrot! I'm just saying, like, if you actually think this is the best way to go about doing things, then—"
Theo could barely get a sentence in, Parrot's fury raising in his voice like the tightened notes of a violin. The sharp edge in Parrot's voice loudly shot through the quietness like a bullet to glass.
"No, Theo, I thought you knew that I was serious about defending this kingdom," Parrot stared daggers at the same face he had looked at with such gentleness only a few moments ago. Parrot's nails dug against his palms, his knuckles as white as they could get against his pallid skin.
"I am too, Parrot!" Theo backed up, his voice now matching Parrot's intensity. "I am! But I'm more serious about defending you, I don't care." Theo trembled at his words, and his jumbled tone often occurring only when he desperately wanted somebody to listen to his perspective, and see the situation as he did. Parrot often heard that tone from him. "Like, I get that you feel like this is a last resort, but if you could—I could help you find another way to go about this!"
"Theo," Parrot began, voice low and threatening. "I don't know if you can't comprehend what kind of situation we're in right now, but this is a last resort."
"Okay, it might be, but Parrot—you can't just force people into your military and threaten them with death if they don't join!" Theo stuttered, trying to get his point across to Parrot's stubborn mind. His voice had evolved into a shout, and Parrot was absolutely going to reciprocate. Parrot's jaw ticked. Through Theo's worried eyes, he was looking at his own—yellow and angered.
"You wouldn't understand stuff like this, Theo!"
"Parrot, I understand it perfectly! You're just—"
"No, Theo, you can't understand stuff like this!" Parrot's voice cracked, looking at his own eyes through Theo's. "You're too dumb to understand that I'm doing this to save us!"
Theo was once again, talked over by Parrot's raging shouts, not even being able to get a single word in.
"No, Theo!" He yelled. "You're just so, so stupid! You'll never get it! I can never explain it to you because you'll just never get it!"
Theo's eyes visibilly twisted in Pain, but Parrot could hardly notice—too absolved in the reflection of his own hollow, yellow gaze that surged panic through his friend's veins.
"You're just—God, you're so fucking stupid!" Parrot scorned, rage seething in his chest the longer he stared at his own yellow refraction in his friend's soft gaze.
"Of course you wouldn't get it," Parrot snapped, spewing each word with his chest. "You don't care if anybody in this kingdom lives or dies—you only care about yourself. You're just a clone of Billy."
Silence settled on the two like a gloomy fog, consuming all in it's path. The only thing ripping Parrot away from his sharp stare at his own eyes were the dullness settling onto Theo's. Only then did he realize what he had said.
Theo looked at him blankly. He didn't even look hurt. He looked as if through Parrot's sentences, something worse was going to come out of it—as if he were anticipating something.
Parrot's sharp and furious gaze melted in fear, soft stuttering incoherently escaping his dry mouth.
All Parrot could imagine right now were how Theo's eyes, only a few moments ago, were joyful little crescents against his skull, cheeks pink with his wide grin. Guilt surged through Parrot's entire body immediately, and he instinctively reached out to Theo's arms, mumbling repeated apologies, and that he didn't mean it.
Theo remained hauntingly stoic, eyes watering with how rarely he was blinking—empty and gazing off into the darkness behind Parrot. Parrot took his silence personally, trying to be as gentle as possible with his fingers curled around Theo's arm.
"No—Theo, I'm sorry, please…" He muttered. "I'm sorry, Theo, I didn't mean that."
Guilt infected the blood Parrot's heart sent coursing all throughout his limbs. His knees buckled slightly, and he tightly wrapped his arms around Theo's frozen figure.
Parrot clung to Theo viciously, his nails plowing into his back like picks anchored into ice. Every breath and every tear strained into his clothes like a tea bag in hot water, his heart pounding against Theo's chest. Instinctively, Theo's arms sank into Parrot's back, although, he stood stiff, face empty against the dim moonlight.
Blankly, he rubbed circles against Parrots scapula, his grip tightening infinitely against his shoulders. Theo flickered for moment before he opened his mouth, the words clogging his throat before spilling out of him like a river. "I'm… sorry." he croaked. Before he could say more, the muffled voice of Parrot shivered into his chest, arms drowning into his shoulders.
"No, no, Theo, I didn't mean it," he puled, "I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have said that..."
Theo's hands absentmindedly combed through Parrot's hair, fingers threading aimlessly through each soft strand. Though, as busy as his hands were, his mind were the opposite. He stood frozen like a statue, his gaze widening through the darkness that carved ominously around each piece of furniture, somtimes casting shadows across the walls that he would do double takes on to make sure someone weren't standing there, awaiting for him to let his guard down and harm his friend.
Theo's gaze refused to settle down, and only sharpened as he forced himself to not notice the way that the casted shadows that stretched across the floor and crawled up the walls swayed gently, as if the darkness had shaped itself like clay into a lanky creature too tall for the already massive room, and began to arise from wherever it had been sitting—patiently awaiting for Theo to notice it. And he did, but he refused to show his awareness of it on his face.
His eyes stayed glued to the black ink that painted the corners of the room, his fingers still gently threading through the soft, messy strands. His movements seemed almost robotic, as if he was mimicking a human through stiff movements. The longer he stared against the darkness, phosphenes clouded his vision like a mist had laid upon a cold sea. Every few moments, his eyes would shift, and the afterimages of whatever they had been locked on had begun to distort against his eyes.
Billy's yellow eyes flashed across his retnas as he blinked against the darkness, superimposing itself onto the canvas of black in front of him.
Upon seeing the image of yellow in the shadows, a cold shiver shot it's way through Theo's aching bones and an instant surge of adrenaline spiked his muscles. Arms tense, and viciously pulled from his trance of gazing into the obscurity in the distance, he tightened his hold onto Parrot, pressing the conure close against his chest. All that had been rushing like a river through his head were the images of Billy's blood-splattered face and wide, terrifying grin as he stared back into Theo's eyes. Theo felt as if he might puke, the churning of his stomach teasing up his throat. He shut his eyes and quickly dipped his head into the comfort of Parrot's shoulder, desperately trying to ignore the figure his mind had conjured up in the dark.
Theo knew what these strange tangles of movement he saw in the shadows meant. This had happened a million times before, ever since he and Billy parted ways. The figments of Billy that plagued Theo's imagination always found it's way back to torment him during the worst of moments. Soon, it would evolve from a simple flicker in the dark, and flashes of yellow eyes shooting glances at him to fully-fledged sentences, the mirage Billy's awful voice whispering dread into his ringing ears.
As Theo tightened his hold, so did Parrot, as if each breath he took sunk him deeper into the ocean of Theo's warmth. "I'm sorry, Theo," he shivered, voice cloaked into the layers of the cockatiel's clothes. "I'm so sorry, Theo, please don't go." Parrot's pleads solidified in Theo's head, weighing down in his skull and into the darkness of Parrot's shuddering shoulders. The conure's fingers etched themselves around Theo's back. He appeared much slimmer than before. Parrot's heart coiled in on itself. Ever since Theo had the misfortune of seeing Billy and Flame together on the same blimp, stress consumed him whole. He would pluck at his feathers, and forget to drink water. Had he also begun skip meals as well? Was Parrot too roped in his own responsibilities to take notice?
After a long moment of Theo awaiting for words to come tumbling out of his dry mouth, he was met with silence, unable to formulate a reply to Parrot's sorrowful pleas, throat tightening as the darkness of the room began to feel dense, pressing hard against his lungs to where it was difficult to breathe.
Theo froze suddenly, faint incoherent whispering hushed into his ears.
"It's okay, Parrot. I forgive you." Theo blurted, hurried words masking the familiar voice beginning to mumble within Theo's ears. "I promise, it's okay. It's gonna be okay." The way Theo's words jumbled together by the time he reached the end of his sentence seemed as if he was talking to himself, calming his own frenzied nerves.
Parrot's fingers threaded into Theo's hair, twitching sometimes as he gently pressed the strands in between the tips of his fingers. Theo's breathing came in quiet, shallow inhales. A cold, patient voice whispered sharply into his ears, shivers shooting down his spine.
"Theo…?" It spoke, mimicking the the quiet whistle of the breeze from the open window.
Theo tensed up, hands clutching hard on Parrot's back. Incoherent mumbling belonging to a familiar voice shifting throughout the dark corners of the room Theo refused to look at.
"No… not right now…" He whispered to himself, barely audible, only leaving his lips in a short breath. He clung so tightly to his friend, nails plowing into his back, as if it was the only thing anchoring himself from floating away. Parrot's ears perked up, sharpening his hearing against Theo's ragged breaths. Theo shuddered, daring not to look up at the murmuring shadow looming over him.
A frigid, gentle breeze chilled the tip of his ear. "Don't you think it's odd how he clearly had no hesitation whilst insulting you?" It driveled in his ear, blood running cold. Theo froze, remaining silent. The familiarity had grown in the voice's tone, and Theo could now accurately paint a face to go along with it. It was Billy. It always had been Billy. "I've been telling you since the beginning. He doesn't see you as a friend—and he never will." He rumbled, sending sharp waves of cold through Theo's bones. "You'll always be some annoying, pestering person that he's stuck dealing with."
It took Theo a moment to process what Billy—no—what his hallucination had said. It felt strange to use the word hallucination, although that's exactly what it was. Calling it what it was solidified something in Theo's chest. Maybe saying that pointed at the truth—that something was wrong with him, and something has always been wrong with him ever since he and Billy parted ways, or maybe something has always been wrong with him, ever since he had the misfortune of walking this server. Theo ignored Billy's belittling whispers, keeping his face buried in Parrot's shoulder.
"When have I ever taught you to let yourself be brought down by others?" Billy asked, and for a moment, Theo almost seriously considered his words before the hallucination began to whisper once again. "When have I ever taught you to have friends in the first place?"
Theo swallowed, taking a sharp breath to mask the devilish chattering Billy mumbled into his sensitive ears, ignoring the dreadful sentences leaving his tongue. "Maybe he was right, then. Maybe you are just something that everyone has to deal with because they had the misfortune of running into you." He muttered, so close to Theo's ear that a cold shiver crawled itself down his back.
Theo finally had the power to move his mouth, and extremely quietly, barely above a whisper, he responded. "Shut up." Is all he could force out from his throat. Parrot, despite how low Theo had croaked, vaguely heard the muffled words against his shoulder.
"Theo?" He asked, voice quiet. "Are you fine?"
"So idiotic of you to think he truly treasures you as a friend."
"Theo, are you listening?"
"He only puts up with you because he has to. Not because he wants to."
"Can you hear me?"
Theo's mouth ran dry, his fingers shuddering against Parrot's frigid skin. He opened his mouth, dislodging the broken words from his throat. "I'm okay."
Those simple words leapt off his tongue in a way that felt less like reassurance and more like he was trying to convince himself. In an effort to get a view of Theo's face, Parrot pulled away slightly, and in doing so, Theo kept his eyes tightly shut, pulling himself closer to keep his face hidden away in Parrot's shoulder, afraid of what he might see if he raised his head. Parrot kept his arms wrapped tight around Theo's back, fingers rubbing gentle circles into his scapula. Occasionally, his fingers would run across old scars peppered across his traps.
"You should just kill him right here. He can't do anything about it, you'd be doing us both a favor."
Theo shuddered, nails digging into Parrot's skin. "Shut up." He said once again, voice teetering on the edge of a shout. He swallowed hard against the lump in his throat, breath shaky.
Parrot tried to pull away again, the vicious grasp Theo had on him keeping him from inching away. "Theo, who are you talking to right now?"
The beds of Theo's nails plowed deep into the feathered skin on Parrot's back, holding him as close as possible, his eyes shut tight. "Cart him until he's unrecognizable. I trained you well, Theo, don't let my good teachings go to waste."
Theo barely noticed how frantic his breaths had gotten, too busy trying to distract himself from the ghastly maundering in his cold ears. His heart pounded violently against his sternum, rattling his ribs. Parrot squirmed a bit, the sharp indents of Theo's nails burrowing into his back providing it's discomfort. He swallowed, trying to inch himself away from his friend's piercing grasp.
The cockatiel held back the tears that pricked the corners of his eyes.
"Cart him, Theo. Cart him until he's groveling at your feet, unable to even plead for his life because of how awfully he's been disfigured."
Theo whimpered, uneven breaths leaving and entering his lungs faster than he could process. His heart beat ferociously in his chest as though it would burst. He shoved himself further in Parrot's shoulder, desperately shielding his eyes from the familiar figure whispering in his exposed ears. His fingers tensed, nails shoveling deeper into Parrot's back without realizing, skin turning red, and blood scooped in the underside of his nails.
Parrot huffed, the sharp stabbing in his back making itself more apparent in his discomfort. He squirmed against Theo's clasp, paranoia settling it's fog in his mind. "Theo, it's starting to hurt, let go…" He mumbled, swallowing against his dry throat. Theo could barely make out what Parrot had said, voice cloaked with the facade of ghastly chatter overwhelming his hearing. He clung on tighter.
"Kill him, Theo."
Parrot could barely move, the razor sharp nails clawing into his skin had now evolved from mild discomfort to actual pain. He struggled hard against Theo's hold, heart beating a million miles an hour. "Theo, I said let me go!" He commanded, voice cracking into a shout. Theo couldn't hear a word he said. The voices of thousands overlapping in his ears.
All that repeated in his strained eardrums were the demand to kill.
"Kill, Kill, Kill," The voices spoke, a gravely throb in their commands that only proved one thing.
They were hungry.
Hungry for the lives Theo could take, barely satiated by the ones he had taken in the past. And it wasn't just them.
Theo himself was hungrier than ever. A constant black hole in his stomach, eager to act on the urge of killing, and even more eager to feast on the sight of those he killed. The pit in Theo's stomach was an eternal hunger that could only be temporarily satisfied with the sight of a taken life. Billy made him aware that hunger was present.
Billy had a much more impatient appetite for death than Theo could possibly imagine. Constantly being fed the sight of players he killed with his own hands only made his hunger grow larger and more difficult to satisfy. Introducing Theo to the act of killing the innocent birthed the inevitable craving for death.
Theo desperately tried to ignore it, to forgive himself, to leave it all in his bloodied past, but that violent hunger always followed him wherever he went. The more it went unfed, the more restless it got.
Maybe some day, his hunger for death will grow so large and insatiable that the only way it could finally remain full was if he took his own life.
Theo's eyes were so tightly shut and his muscles were so unbelievably tense that his entire body began to numb out, the non-stop chattering in his ears growing louder, his hyperventilating lungs pierced with the cold air rapidly entering and exiting his chest.
He was terrified to even think of lifting his head, and bearing witness to the most awful sight imaginable—maybe he'd see Billy's gore-ridden face, and hollow yellow pupils staring back at him, looking in his own eyes through Theo's petrified tears. Maybe he'd be grinning widely, and Theo would have to ask himself if he always had that many rows of teeth. Maybe it'd be a new hallucination entirely, completely unfamiliar and even more terrifying than he could imagine.
Suddenly, his head went quiet.
His muscles went limp, and his breathing suddenly evened.
Parrot shoved him off, stumbling back a bit, wincing at the deep scratches on his back.
For a split second, Theo caught glimpse of Parrot's delicate yellow eyes. His bones settled, as if his body expected to meet the venomous glare of Billy's dead, saffron gawk. Theo could see. And nothing was there to meet his gaze except a frazzled Parrot. His fast breathing began to even out, his vision adjusting to the darkness. The fog that settled across his mind began to clear, and he caught notice of the pained expression plastered on his friend's face.
He stepped forward, hands trembling. "Parrot…I'm sor—" Parrot backed away instinctively before straightening up, feathers flared. Theo pulled his hand away, taking a few steps back to create distance between him and his friend. He swallowed hard against the painful lump in his throat, his eyes welling.
Parrot didn't even seem scared, or angry. He looked pitiful, like he was staring into the eyes of a wounded animal. His fingers wrapped around his own arms, as if pulling himself into a hug. He looked even more slimmer than before. The stress of Cindercrest must be getting to him. Theo's heart ached.
"I'm sorry, Parrot." He muttered —an unspoken I'm sorry I'm such a burden hanging heavy in the silence before he backed away, turning around and slowly making his way down the hallway. Each feeble step he took made it feel as if he were walking to his own execution, a sharp sting in his eyes pooled in his waterline as he quickened his pace. He felt as if a chain were tightly wrapped around his throat. He shot a brief glance behind him to see Parrot doing the same, back turned against him, treading softly towards the opposite end of the hallway. Theo caught a short glimpse of Parrot's back, red indents left where his nails had dug into his sensitive flesh. He turned away immediately.
He stopped behind a turn of the corridor, and instantly melted into the darkness that cloaked him like a blanket. A sob tore itself free from his throat, muffled by the density of the night. He pressed himself into the cold wall, burrowing his face in his hands, bottom lip trembling. What an idiot he was. Maybe all those things Parrot said were true. All this time, he thought it was just a low standard he saw himself at, but now that his friend… his best friend had expressed that he truly was at that standard…
A sharp sigh left his lungs, releasing into the cold air. He coiled in on himself, back pressed against the cold wall. He wiped the heel of his palm against his eyes, brows pulled together and cheeks flushed. He sniveled quietly, tears threatening to fall down his cheeks. Crest flat against his head, he covered his face with his hands—the heels of his palms pressed into his forehead.
He refused to stare into the blackness of the extended hallway next to him, afraid as though a pair of yellow eyes would be staring back. The glimpse of Parrot's scratched and scuffed back made his stomach twist. How could he do that to his best friend? The one who he promised to protect? The one that proved that he was more than a bloodthirsty monster? How did he not even realize he was doing it? Theo examined his fingers, small pieces of torn skin settled in his nail, dried smudges of blood stuck to his fingertips. He grimaced, burrowing his face deep in his palms.
He ran his fingers through his hair, smoothing his soft crest and slicking back loose strands of hair before stubbornly falling back into place. He leaned his head back against the wall, a shaky sigh melting into a sob tore itself from his throat. His chest tightened, heart hammering violently against his sternum. His vision blurred, tears pooling in his waterline. He blinked, and his eyesight cleared, the water spilling over and gently streaking down his cheeks. He sniffled, swallowing painfully against the sore lump in his throat.
His fingers trembled. "I'm such an idiot…" He sobbed, voice hoarse as he slumped against the wall. His tears slipped past his vibrant cheeks, beading at his chin like the morning dew pooling on the petals of a gentle flower. Exhaustion nipped away at his eyelids, hanging them low across his pupils. His feathers flared, and he curled in on himself against the wall, legs pulled close to his chest.
𖤓
Flakes fell soundly on the snow that blanketed the extensive ground, expanding eternally into the forever-setting horizon. The sun's blaring glow shined garishly in Parrot's eyes, lifting his hand up to shield his vision from the glare. He turned to the right, a radiating figure who's grin was brighter than the sun met his eyes.
Brown hair curled at the ends, falling loose in front of a pallid face, a violet bandana strapped across his forehead, blowing wildly in the frigid breeze. Parrot squinted, the refracting light casting a rainbow in between his lashes.
The gentle wind hummed in his ears, masking the chirping of the birds. Wifies mumbled something incoherent, like gibberish, and Parrot could barely make out if the voice belonged to Wifies at all, or if it was just the quiet whispers of the wind traveling through his tired ears.
"Parrot I — He wants —"
The voice hummed, gently soothing his ringing ears. Although, the full sentences were jumbled, and incoherent, and Parrot couldn't quite decipher what had been said. The radiating warmth from the figure beside him lulled him into extending his arms out, and clinging to the blazing being that wished to communicate. Upon contact, Parrot felt as if all that were around him had disappeared, and maybe it did. The gentle, golden glow enveloped around his body, and silence fell upon the two. He inhaled deeply, the blinding glow etched itself into his skin, as if he were laying on the sand, drinking in as much of the sunlight as he could until the moon fell.
He longed deeply to remain like this forever, held by a familiar presence, and drowning in a warm light. However, the love and comfort that surrounded pressed into him only added more grief to too much of his own.
As parrot shifted slightly, the radiating glow the seeped through his closed eyelids had begun to dim, and the comforting warmth had begun to cool. He grimaced, trying to cling on tighter, yet his muscles seemed limp, as if he were paralyzed and were only being held upright by the familiar presence.
His vision darkened, and everything went cold.
𖤓
Parrot's eyes fluttered open, his barely conscious mind meeting the dark ceiling, heart hammering against his chest, and limbs numb. He blinked against the darkness and hauled his body to the left, hand reaching out over the mattress, expecting to meet Theo's warm, soothing body slumbering soundly, chest rising and falling evenly in the midst of the night.
To his dismay, Parrot was met with a flat, cold end of the bed, as if someone hadn't warmed it in a long while. He sighed disappointedly, shuffling slowly beneath the duvet and into the frigid area of the mattress. He sunk into the refreshing cold, eyes squinting out through the closed window, gazing at the glaring moon, who's glow refracted through the crisp glass, gently dawning it's light into the room like a blanket.
Parrot's mouth had grown dry, and his throat craved for the heavenly taste of water to quench it's thirst. Parrot groaned, and sighed through his aching body. He dreaded having to get up, but the restless itch in his mouth kicking and crying like a child disrupted his attempt to fall back to slumber. Parrot breathed in before gently kicking off the duvet, and hauling his body upright like a corpse back from the dead. He swung his feet off the bed, and his soles met the cold stone floors. He shuddered, a spike of cold rushing down his spine. His eyes drifted to the foot of the bed, a neatly folded stack of quilts stared back.
"…I should take one of those," He whispered.
He reached across the mattress, dragging an undone quilt to his side and wrapping it over his shoulders. The warmth it brought settled in his bones, giving him the strength to stand and make his way to the closed door.
He stepped out, the short, thin blanket draping down his back and shielding his frigid skin from the glow of the moonlight through the glassless windows etched in the cobblestone. He strided, swaying slightly from sleepiness.
A thought crossed his mind as he slowly strided his way down the hall. Where had Theo even gone?
The deep scratches on his back still irritated him from earlier that night, and would probably scab for a few days. Parrot was so caught up in Theo's tight grip and digging nails that he could barely even realize Theo seemed…distressed, in some way. He remembered he had whispered incoherent pleads, or commands to "stop". He obviously wasn't talking to Parrot, so who was he talking to?
Theo simply walked off that night, and Parrot hadn't seen him since. He hadn't even come back to their room to sleep. It was incredibly late, and Parrot was too disoriented to properly negate the time. It must've been around three—he occasionally woke up around that time, either from nightmares or just from thirst. He hoped Theo would come back soon. Maybe he'd be able to apologize the next time he saw him, before Theo apologized first.
Parrot kept his slow pace, his eyes fixed on the darkness at the end of the hallway.
What if he wouldn't have the time to see Theo for the next few days? Or maybe weeks? Months? Parrot didn't even want to think about how he would handle that.
Finally, he reached the end of hallway that seemed to stretch on forever, and he turned the corner.
He gasped softly, clearly not expecting see Theo, temple resting on his knees, legs tugged close to his chest, slumped gently against the turning corner of the hall.
The sudden fright woke Parrot up immediately, stumbling on his feet before grounding himself. He gazed down at Theo's slumbering form, his back rising and falling gently, the moonlight shaped on every sharp edge and soft curve his body had.
Parrot blinked, and simply stood there, taking in the sight in front of him. It looked as if the darkness had encased him in a blanket, the closed curtain of the night hiding him away from the rest of the world. Parrot felt as if he were intruding in on a personal moment between him and the moon, which rounded perfectly through the glassless windows.
Parrot chewed on the inside of his cheeks, and he knelt down beside his slumbering friend, hand hovering over Theo's shoulder to wake him. He stopped, eyes traveling to gawk at his gentle face.
Parrot gazed, eyes refusing to break from the tender sight. Theo's eyes we're closed, and his face was relaxed. The streaks of salted tears stained his cheeks, and his nose was slightly red. Parrot's hand hesitantly rested on Theo's shoulder, taking in the frost of his skin before gently shaking it.
"Theo?" He whispered, as if afraid to wake him. "What are you doing? It's cold, we need to go to sleep."
Upon seeing Theo's relaxed and serene eyebrows pull together, and his nose slightly scrunch at being awakened, he regretted it. Maybe he could've let him rest a while longer. Maybe he could've seen him in such bliss a while longer.
"… Parrot?" He blinked, squinting through the darkness. He could barely keep his head upright, and his eyes seemed swollen.
Parrot sighed quietly, his thumb rubbing against Theo's skin. "Dude, get up, let's go to bed. What are you even doing out here?"
Theo mumbled a barely audible "I don't know." Before his eyes almost fell shut again, and his head perked up to stop it from lulling back onto his knees.
Parrot could barely realize through his quiet, jumbled sentences that a wave of relief had sunken into his bones. He slipped off the quilt from his back and draped it over Theo's cold shoulders, it's warmth dragging him back under the ocean of slumber.
"Theo, don't fall asleep yet, let's go back to our room."
Parrot tugged softly onto Theo's arm, and he reluctantly stood, eyes half closed, stumbling beneath his own weight before leaning against the wall for support, his vision shrouded in darkness. Parrot's hands kept the quilt from slipping off, guiding Theo's sleepy fingers up to his neck to hold the ends of it together.
Theo looked as fatigued as ever, and he slumped close against Parrot's arm. Parrot wrapped him close, beginning to maneuver their way beneath the moonlight back to their room. Theo's exhaustion ate away at him as he stumbled through the eternally long hallway, Parrot's hand on his back to stabilize his balance.
Theo's eyes remained closed, his body only knowing when and wear to move because of Parrot's support. Guilt ate away at his heart. After what he'd done, he should be the one helping Parrot, certainly not the other way around.
The two made their way to the half-closed door, and Parrot creaked it open. The hallway was dark, but the moonlight shined gently through the arched windows and through Theo's eyelids. The room, however blanketed Theo in such a comforting darkness he nearly passed out upon entering.
Parrot laid him down onto the bed, and Theo didn't even get the chance to adjust himself before slipping unconscious, the jaws of sleep swallowing him whole, digesting him in peaceful slumber.
Parrot pulled the duvet up to Theo's chest, smoothing back loose strands of hair before they stubbornly fell back into place, and watching Theo's face drift back into the gentle state he had found him in.
He supposed he wasn't getting water this time around.