Chapter Text
Tenna isn't stupid, he knows Mike left years ago. It wasn't an immediate realization, but it was a quick one. The idea that Mike one day just decided to show himself after refusing to let anyone see any bit of him was too outlandish, even for him. Especially after the shitshow that was that little mailman.
Even so living in this made up reality that they created for him was much easier than confronting the reality that everyone who cared about him left him. So he continues to play along.
Tenna didn't know why they did it. For all he knew they could be taking advantage of him, use their position to steal from him, even just make fun of him behind his back. He should be angry, enraged, he should fire them all, banish them to the cliffs, crush them into the ground for daring to take advantage of his vulnerability. But he doesn't.
As time goes on Tenna can't find any good reasons why they would stick around this long. They've never asked for anything out of the ordinary from him. He's never noticed anything particularly concerning or valuable missing, or at all. And surely they would've gotten tired of him if this was all a joke, they've been at this for years!
In all that time Tenna has never noticed any suspicious behavior from any of them. Of course he can tell when they're lying about remembering something from back when the real Mike was around, or when they're trying to fish any information out of him about the real Mike (Especially the small one).
That used to anger Tenna, it'd break his illusion that Mike isn't actually gone. Slowly though, he started to find it amusing. Giving vague hints towards things and watching them squirm with questions they couldn't ask (ESPECIALLY the small one).
Either way, all their actions seemed to show genuine care, and that thought boggled Tenna for a long time. He didn't even know who they are and yet they've cared for him for so long. It made him think what was in it for them because he couldn't find a single reason himself.
Slowly but surely over the years Tenna had slowly stopped pretending they were all the same Mike and instead began to think of them as their own persons. The sting of Mike leaving hurt less and less as he got to know each of his little Mikes more. Their slip ups no longer hurt at some point, instead he held back his laughter if one did something particularly egregious. He slowly stopped thinking of them as Mike, and somehow that didn't make him mad, it made him happy.
Tall Mike was probably the easiest to figure out. It was pretty obvious from the get go considering their size and shape was exactly that of a Zappers. Though their demeanor was a bit different from one their kind. They seemed much softer then the rest, who characterized themselves by being tough body guards. They were gentle despite their strength and had an affinity for small cute creatures. They were always quite kind to him, if not a little dim, but that just added to their charm. Always the loyal yes man who encouraged Tenna to keep going.
Tenna couldn't be one hundred percent sure but he thinks he sees them out of costume sometimes. One particular zapper who he'd see in the green room or near Mike's room. They always seemed a little nervous whenever Tenna came around, though once he saw them interacting with a few mischievous Pippins, and the way they handled them was so reminiscent of Tall Mike he almost called out, but he thought better of it.
Cat Mike was only slightly harder to figure out since their suit covered up every little inch of them and they never talked much either. He figured it out pretty quickly after a few times of hearing little saxophone noises coming from them on occasion. A shadow guy, it fit their height and general demeanor too. Shadow guys did tend to have more animalistic traits afterall.
Shadow guys were a rowdy festive bunch, always ready for a party and were mostly apart of Tennas team as stuntmen, actors, and music performers. Though they also were good for backstage help. Their numbers and multiple talents always guaranteed there were enough to do anything he needed them to. Cat Mike was different though, they were much more mellow, still cheerful and fun but not quite as active. They enjoyed lounging around Tenna and being pet. Listening to his woes and comforting him without words.
Tenna tried looking for this particular shadow guy but he didn't have much luck at first. His first instinct was obviously to watch the cat type shadow guys to no avail. None of them seemed to stick out to him. It was possible that Cat Mike was simply just another normal shadow guy but Tenna refused to give up so quickly. He started to watch the shadow guys more generally, and at first it seemed like a lost cause. However, he caught a glimpse of a single shadow guy in the corner at a concert the others were holding. They seemed to be simply watching everyone dance and talk and play their melodies. Holding on to their hat tightly as if afraid it'd fall off.
Tenna only got a glimpse before they seemed to hear someone call to them from the door beside them and walked away. Tenna tried to follow but he only caught them slipping away around a corner before losing track of them. Though just before losing them he saw them walking alongside a familiar zapper.
The smallest Mike was, well, a conundrum. Tenna couldn't seem to figure him out. Of course, the costume also covered him up entirely but there weren't a lot of darkners of that stature in TV World. The problem is that Tenna could not wrap his head around the all work no play, strict, by-the-book Mike himself, being a PIPPINS of ALL things. Pippins weren't exactly hungry for work afterall, they were sneaky, mischievous, greedy, and obviously HATED their jobs. Using their cuteness to their advantage to steal some bucks off you just so they can gamble it away in a never ending cycle. Sometimes Tenna regretted ever hiring those little scammers, unfortunately they were more useful than not, no matter how much of a nuisance they were most of the time.
That's why Tenna tried to make sense of Small Mike being literally any other type of darkner, because otherwise it just wouldn't make ANY amount of sense. Though through all the theories he thought of none of them could possibly be right. He was way too small for a zapper, he talked normally so not a shadow guy, too clean to be a Ribbick, too dry to be a Mizzle.
He could ONLY be a Pippins but Tenna had NEVER seen ANY Pippins like him and it was INFURIATING that he couldn't figure it out. Sure the other two were different in their own ways but they weren't complete opposites. Small Mike seemed to defy everything he knew about Pippins.
Its not like Tenna hadn't tried to find a Pippins matching what he knew about Small Mike, he searched for ages to find just one who didn't fit the mold like the others. Unfortunately Pippins liked to make themselves scarce when Tenna was around (for good reason) so he could never get too much of a look at them. Even with those limitations he should have found one eventually but every Pippins he encountered was the same.
Its been ages now and Tenna was on the verge of giving up. He'd thought once or twice about just asking him, but that would give away that he knew all along. He was comfortable in the routine that the three Mikes brought him, he didn't know what would happen if he disrupted it. If they realized he didn't need Mike anymore, what if they think he didn't need them either. What if they did this out of some sort of obligation and him knowing would break that.
No, asking directly is out of the picture.
Its back to searching the Pippins then, even though that yielded no luck. They're unfortunately excellent at sneaking around.
Perhaps he could set up an event in hopes of dragging out as many as possible with the promise of food and festivities… that might work… But then again it also might be an awful idea because-
"TENNA"
Mikes voice snapped Tenna out of his deep thoughts. His attention snapping over to the very subject of his thoughts.
Small Mike stood across from his desk, his hands on his hips impatiently, and a deep frown marring his face.
"Did you hear ANYTHING I said???"
"Why of course I did Mike! Every word." Tenna smiled unconvincingly
"Then what was the last thing I said" Mikes foot tapped on the ground rapidly, he was clearly agitated.
"Um… You asked me if I heard you?"
Mikes frown deepened.
"Y'know what boss? It doesn't matter." Mike composed himself and his signature smile returned. "Listen just go over the script one last time alright? You're on in an hour and you need to start getting ready. You've got some new outfits to try but they'll be ready in around 20 minutes so you've got that time to review the script."
Mike handed Tenna some papers that were in his hand. Tenna took them and skimmed through quickly, it was indeed the script for tonights show, gone through many revisions and edits until it was in what he deemed acceptable form. Mike continued talking.
"I'll be helping out the stage crew so just holler if you need something. However just letting you know I'll probably be… Taller… for some extra power."
Tenna nodded, he wasn't really listening but he caught onto the fact that Mike was switching. He's losing time to talk to him, he needed to ask something…
"Say Mike, what do you do in your free time."
Mike froze in place
"Why do you ask…"
"Oh I just wanted to know y'know?"
Mike deliberated for a second. Tenna could see he was deep in thought.
"Does this gotta do with why you were so spaced out earlier?"
Tenna did a so-so motion.
Mike looked nervous, seriously the guy could not hide his emotions to save his life.
"C'mon Mike, you gotta do SOMETHING after work."
If a costume could sweat it would be doing so profusely
"Um uhh um… Research???"
"Oh? What kind?"
"Look boss I'd love to keep chatting but were wasting time here you almost gotta get on stage! I gotta make sure everything's running smoothly so I'm gonna godothatnowbye."
Mike bolted out of Tennas office door before he ever could get another word in.
What the hell does research mean???
Whatever he can think about this later when he's less busy. For now he's got a script to read and some suits to try on in a bit.
Tenna walked into his personal dressing room. Checking the time he was right on the minute he had to be there. Looking around though, there was no one there with new suits for him to try.
Irritation welled up slightly. He sat down on the couch and waited, resolving to only wait for a minute or two before "bringing up" his issues with the first person he could find.
Before any issues arose though the door suddenly burst open and a clothing rack full of newly tailored suits rushed in with a panicked looking Shuttah stopping right as it was right in front of him.
"Tenna! Sorry for the brief hold-up darling there was a small wait over in the clothing department but none of that matters now!" Shuttah gave the rack a little kick to orient it to face Tenna. "Now then we really must get started, can't keep your lovely fans waiting!"
Shuttah was Tennas camerathing of course, always ensuring that only the most perfect shots of Tenna were shown out to the public. Because of this though it also had an eye for fashion so it also served as Tennas second opinion for his outfits.
Shuttah pointed out which suits would compliment him the most, going on about stuff Tenna barely understood. He just stood flipping through each suit hoping one would catch his eye. Luckily, that didn't take too long. A navy suit with golden accents embroidered along the seams and edges in star shaped patterns. He didn't typically wear Blue, preferring warmer colors, especially red. However something about this suit seemed to call to him. He pulled it off the rack to get a better look at it.
"Oh my Tenna, now that's a different look then usual. It is a pretty one though. You could absolutely pull it off!"
Tenna flipped the suit around in his hands, it was elegant without being too obnoxious or loud. The material felt comfortable in his hands and the craftsmanship looked stellar. It looked perfect for a late night special. He took off his current suit jacket and put on the navy one, buttoning it up all the way and turned over to Shuttah to gather it's reaction.
"Well, what do you think?" Tenna asked, nervously.
Shuttah examined him silently, scrutinizing every part of how the suit fit on him. Circling around him to find every angle. After almost an unbearably long silence Shuttah suddenly Brightened up and started taking multitudes of photos.
"Oh I LOVE it you are WORKING that suit. Now give me a little more confidence in your posture and it'll be perfect! Absolutely fabulous just give me a few poses and we'll be GOLDEN!"
Shuttahs energy was infectious. Tennas mood (and ego) skyrocketed. His smile large and bright as he modeled for Shuttahs spontaneous photo shoot. Tenna was on cloud nine, surely this would get him the attention he deserved.
"Thank you Shuttah, I just felt like this suit was perfect the second I saw it."
"Now now Tenna if theres anyone you should be thanking, its whoever made it."
Now wasn't that just an idea.
"Could I?"
"Could you what?"
"Thank them, personally."
That stopped Shuttah in its tracks. It looked up at Tenna inquisitively.
"Why, yes I suppose you could. Nothing stopping you afterall! You're the big boss 'round here. May I ask why though."
"Well I just feel so grateful for this suit, I just wanted to express that gratitude." Tenna smirked. "Perhaps we could discuss a small promotion as well." Tenna continued to marvel at himself, this time in a mirror.
"Well Tenna, its almost time for you to get on stage, so right now might not be the best ti-"
"Afterwards then! Ensure that after the show the designer of this suit goes straight to my office if you please."
"Alright! Will do, for now though we've got to get you up on stage, the audience can't be left waiting!"
Shuttah motions for the door, and Tenna feeling all the confidence of the TV show host he was, strides right out of his changing room and towards the stage.
The show was spectacular, Tenna felt like he was glowing the whole way through. Toriel even sat down on the couch to watch it for some time, it'd been so long since she'd even glanced at him. Tenna was so happy he could shout it from all the rooftops of TV world. If he kept this up then maybe Kris could watch too, and then Asriel and Asgore…
Tenna felt electric, and he made sure everyone knew it with how he strode down the hall. Everything in him felt giddy and joyful. The overwhelming happiness just seemed to overflow out of him and infect the people around him too because they all seemed just as happy as he was. Even the Pippins weren't being as much of a bother as they usually were!
Tennas wonderful little parade came to a stop outside of his office door, he turned to all of his employees looking up at him.
"Thank you once again to everyone here! You're reason this show is possible (even if it's mostly me) Everyone take the rest of the night off! you've all deserved it!"
The crowd cheered! The excitement was palpable, Tenna basked in it all, the glory, the fame, the joy. Yes… he missed this so much.
When the crowd started to get sparser as people made their ways back home Tenna entered his office. Basically flopping down in his chair and melting into it with a sigh. It truly has been way too long since he had a day this good. Usually the day would end with him being a bit glooby and needing Mike to comfort him through it. There was no need for that today though!
Still a little visit to Mike wouldn't hurt right?
A knock rang out across his office. Tenna straightened up in his seat. Right, he'd almost forgotten he had someone he had to give some credit to!
"Come in~" He sung out.
The door opened slowly revealing… Nothing.
"You called for me… Mr. Tenna?"
Tenna leaned over his desk and craned his neck down towards the source of the voice.
Tenna couldn't possibly remember every Pippins he had under his employment. There were a lot of them afterall, and they all looked very similar on purpose. (Made it harder to reprimand them individually)
Even with all that in mind, Tenna had definitely never seen this specific Pippins before.
And he could say that with certainty for one simple reason.
He was Green.
The Green Pippins was stood halfway through his doorway, his head peeking in nervously. Obviously posed to make a quick getaway if he needs to.
"Mr. Tenna?"
Tenna broke himself out of his stupor and motioned for the Pippins to come closer.
"Don't be scared come right in!"
The pippins inched closer carefully, slowly letting the door behind him close shut fully.
"Please take a seat little guy!"
At that the nervousness on the Pippins face hardened into slight annoyance. He eyed the chair for a moment before slowly walking over to it and sitting on the edge.
"Look sir if this is about the delay in getting the suits out I swear I'll do better I just got caught up in the details and didn't have enough time to-"
"Enough of that, don't worry about it all is forgiven."
The Pippins stared at him disbelievingly (He never tolerated mistakes, especially not recently)
"Now then, what's your name?"
"M- My name???"
"Yes! The thing you go by! What people call you! What is it?"
The pippins looked down, seemingly deep in thought, his expression went through many different emotions, though they all seemed to be some variety of confusion and disdain.
Eventually his expression came to a sort of reluctant acceptance. He let out a long suffering sigh and looked back up at Tenna.
"Its Battat, my name is Batatt."
Battat huh? Wonder why it took so long for him to figure that out.
"Right! Anyways you were responsible for this suit I'm wearing correct?"
Battat looked down at the suit and then quickly looked off to the side, a light bit of green dusting his cheeks slightly.
"Yes sir I am."
"Well then Battat." At hearing his name, Battat jumped in his seat slightly. His cheeks deepened in color a little. "I brought you in here today to thank you for the lovely suit you've made me AND to offer you a deal!"
"Thank me?!?" Battat looked up at him with wide eyes.
"Of course! This suit is absolutely incredible. Its comfortable, elegant, and makes me shine brightly! You did an absolutely stellar job!"
The green creeping up onto Battats face was starting to overtake it. Was he ill or something, this must all be a bit overwhelming.
"I- um- Thank you Mr. Tenna."
"Tell me Battat do you usually work on my suits?"
"No sir, I um, this one was more of a personal project to me. I typically work on the extra actor's costumes… My manager just let me put this one on the rack this time."
"Well then Battat, I have a proposal for you! How would you like to be promoted to one of my personal Costume designers! it's quite the small team but I'm sure you'll fit in just perfectly."
Battat went slack-jawed.
"Are you serious???"
"Never been more serious than now! I've been looking for talent like you for a while. Your skills are exactly what I've been looking for! You'd work tirelessly on my next looks for the show, always making sure I look fresh and new! As well as making sure everyone else is working smoothly. That coupled with the honor of working directly for me! …and a raise I guess. You just have to take the deal won't you."
Tenna extended his hand for a handshake. Battat stared at it starstruck, he discreetly pinched himself.
Battat reached out to take Tennas hand.
"Why, Mr. Tenna it'd be an Honor-" Battat suddenly stopped talking. The twinkling in his eyes quickly died and he yanked his hand back. "I- I mean. Um."
Tenna was taken aback, he'd given him the most perfect offer ever, there weren't even that many strings attached! What could this possibly be about. Tenna frowned and waited for him to continue.
"Its um, It would be an honor sir, but um" Battat stumbled over his words, avoiding eye contact with Tenna who he could feel was displeased with him. "It'd just be, too much responsibility sir."
"Nonsense! You've done great so far! What's the point in quitting before you even try!"
"Well sir, it's just, I'm already so busy with things. This would be putting too much more work on top of all that…"
"If you're also doing other work elsewhere surely I can find some replacements for you, it wouldn't be that hard."
Battat looked panicked at that.
"NO!" He yelled, maybe a tad bit too loud. He slapped his hands over his mouth, shocked at himself. "I mean, um no need sir. I think it'd be better if I kept doing what I'm good at. Thank you sincerely for the amazing offer, but I just can't take it." Battat started to hop down from the seat.
"Can't you reconsider? If you need something else to sweeten the deal I can provide it? Some Glooby slime perhaps? As long as its not unreasonable I can do it!" Tenna was getting a terrible sense of Deja-vu from this situation.
Battat seemed conflicted, looking at Tenna, only getting gloobier by the second. He looked like he wanted to say something, like he wanted to do something.
Yet it seemed his better sense got a hold of him.
"I'm sorry Mr. Tenna, this means a lot to me but, I've got to go. Bye."
Battat bolted out the door.
Tenna stood above his desk staring at the door, as if he was waiting for something to happen, for him to come back and say all that before was a mistake. After a few minutes though, Tenna realized that wouldn't be happening.
What the HELL was that.
Tenna offers up this little Pippins the PROMOTION OF A LIFETIME and he just RUNS AWAY??? Is this what he gets for being nice to those little UNGRATEFUL PIPPINS??? Tenna felt a familiar anger burning in him. It was HUMILIATING for him to be rejected this way. He shouldn't have to take this. He should go hunt that Pippins down and make him see the DISRESPECT that he made him go through-
The door swung open, Tenna suddenly realized he was growing a bit too big for his office.
"Tenna! you alright?"
Small Mike stood at his door, it looked like he ran here.
"MIKE. NOT RIGHT NOW." Tenna bared his fangs at Mike, too angry to deal with Mikes shit right now.
"Oh c'mon Tenna. Why don't you just sit down and tell me what happened. And then after that we can figure it out together."
Tenna glared at Mike, he wanted so badly to just shove Mike aside and go on a rampage through the halls. But he couldn't do that to Mike. He was always there for him afterall, through it all. He was Tennas closest friend and he couldn't risk pushing him away now.
Tenna shrunk a small bit.
"That's it big guy, come down here and tell me what's wrong."
Tenna slowly sat down on the floor, it was a bit of a tight fit cause of his size but he made it work.
Mike looked at Tenna expectantly across from him. Tenna took a second to gather his thoughts in a coherent way, then he just began ranting.
"I OFFER THIS PIPPINS THE DEAL OF A LIFETIME! AND HE JUST RUNS AWAY! I DON'T UNDERSTAND IT, HE OBVIOUSLY HAS THE SKILL AND TALENT WHY DIDN'T HE TAKE THE DEAL??? THERE WERE LITERALLY NO DOWNSIDES, I EVEN OFFERED TO GIVE HIM WHATEVER HE WANTED AFTER THE FIRST REFUSAL BUT INSTEAD HE JUST LEAVES. WHO GAVE HIM THE RIGHT TO DISRESPECT ME. I GIVE THOSE PIPPINS A SLIVER OF KINDNESS AND THEY JUST THROW IT BACK IN MY FACE, I SWEAR IF I EVER SEE HIM AGAIN I'LL… I'LL… I…"
As Tenna yelled he slowly shrunk and shrunk, letting out all his emotions until he was around half the size of Mike. He didn't really have it in him to be angry anymore. This was all just too reminiscent of another incident.
"I just don't get it Mike, why do they leave."
Mike was silent for a while, longer then he usually is during these conversations. Like he wasn't sure what to say. Eventually, he sighed a low, sad sigh and held Tenna closer to himself.
"Look Tenna, sometimes some people just aren't worth all the extra effort. You could give them everything in the world and… it still won't matter."
Mike looked off to the side, opposite from Tenna.
"I think it'll be best if you just forget about that guy, he ain't worth getting all worked up over. He's just another nobody in crowd. There's always gonna be bad ones in a group. Soon enough you'll find someone else who's even better! So what's the point in dwelling on it."
Tenna looked up at Mike, he was smiling down at him on that last sentence. Though listening to his voice it sounded a little strained.
"Maybe you're right, what's the point in getting mad. I've gotten this far without him." Tenna grew a small bit.
"Exactly you got it! He was never good enou-" Mike chokes on his words a small bit "ahem, never good enough for you in the first place, so just FORGET about him ok? It was… never meant to be"
Tenna smiled at Mike and grew back to his normal size, holding Mike in his hands lifting him up into the air.
"OH MIKE, you ALWAYS know what to say! I don't even feel glooby anymore!"
Mike smiles at him.
"Why of course! I'm always here for you big guy, you can always count on me unlike some other people heh."
Tenna set Mike back down on the ground which he seemed thankful for. Tenna then preformed an exaggerated stretch and yawned dramatically.
"Well Mike, it's getting late now and I'm feeling quite sleepy, all that chaos really tuckers you out."
Mike immediately understands and goes to the door.
"Of course Tenna! You go get ready for bed and I'll be right there with the story for tonight!
"Thank you Mike, I really can always depend on you!"
Mike beams at him and leaves, closing the door behind him.
Tennas smile immediately drops. Its not that Mikes consoling didn't help, of course it did! It always did. But something about that whole interaction just felt off. Mike felt oddly subdued the entire time. Looking anywhere but at Tenna himself. Something wasn't adding up here.
But Tenna was tired, he wasn't really faking that. He could try to decipher all this tomorrow instead. For right now, all he wanted to do is get in bed and listen to the dulcet tones of Mikes voice slowly carrying him to sleep.
It was 2am now. Mike had long since left to go sleep, yet here was Tenna lying awake in bed. This actually happened pretty often, when Tenna wanted to think about something. Like a new idea for a segment on the show, or a part of the script he really wanted to edit.
This time however, something else kept him awake, it was a sudden realization that came to him just moments ago. One that he could not let go of.
A strange pippins he'd never seen before.
Combined with how oddly Mike was behaving afterwards…
He may be solving more then one question with one answer.