Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

   You woke up.  Again.

   Your heart began to race as you held yourself together tightly, breathing hitched and feeling a bit of sweat roll down your face.  Or maybe it was a tear?  Who cares right now.  The important matter is that you had another nightmare.  What about, you may ask?  Well, it was a little something of what you would call hell.... the Blacksite.  Even though you may have been able to physically escape one of the worst places to ever exist on earth, your mind and body still acted like it was there.  You couldn't really enjoy the simple things in your prison-free life without thinking that something was coming.  You had to turn around every time you entered into any building- even your own home.  You've been having those dreaded nightmares ever since you were able to make it out of there alive.  Some of them were about the encounters you faced in there and others were outside of the site.  'Maybe i should get that checked out,' you thought to yourself.

   You see, my dear reader, since the day you escaped and used that plane ticket to get back to wherever you were before, you decided to use the money that Urbanshade gave you to good use- buy a big house a bit away from your neighbors, buy a car so you can get to work, get a phone, and the most important of all... food.  You may have that much money to get all of those things, however, you knew the money wouldn't last for long.  Especially in this economy.  So, you went out to find a job and was able to get hired as part of a film crew for an upcoming movie since the last guy they had quitted for reasons that had to do with family stuff and were looking for someone to replace that person.  Lo and behold, you were the perfect candidate, since you did had a job similar to that before your arrest, and you knew the ropes around it.  During your time there, you were able to gain an acquaintance that had to do with the actor's clothes, so at least you were getting some social interactions in order instead of just being cooped up in the house all of the time.

   Now that we got that out of the way, back to the story.

  You were able to calm yourself down after a bit of reassuring that no one was getting you anytime soon.  You shifted yourself to the edge of your bed to grab your phone and turned it on, your lock screen appearing.  You groaned and muttered to yourself as you looked at the time.  2:15 a.m... about 4 hours and 45 minutes less than what you had intended to wake up.  But hey, things happen when you least expect it, am i right?  Speaking of which, you knew you weren't going back to bed now.  Two nightmares in a row tonight?  That's a new record...  You make a mental note on that thought.  So, you did what you always have been doing whenever you get a nightmare.  Get a "snack".

   Walking through the dark hallway, using your phone's flashlight, your mind started racing through the memories of accidentally using a light on one of those Squiddles and getting attacked, sending a shiver down your spine.  You quickly suppress those memories down as you were able to find the light switch and immediately turn them on.  You knew you were safe, so why feel worried?  You shove the feeling down at the back of your mind as you traversed further into your home, and later ending up in the kitchen.

   You expected nothing to happen when you turned on the lights, but what you didn't expect was hearing something shuffling and banging outside of your home, noting that the shuffling came from just outside the window.  You took a moment to process what had just occurred before you decided to rule out that it was probably just some raccoon scouting your house for some free food.  God, you needed to get your mind cleared up.  Too bad you can't really see a therapist about your issues, or else they might think you're going insane and in need to go to a mental hospital.  Last thing you want to deal with... so why not make a poor attempt at calming yourself down with watching a show!  That always seems to cheer you up in moments like these.  At least for temporary.

   You opened the pantry and started looking at what food could satisfy your hunger for a moment.  'Bread... mmmmmm not in the mood for it right now.  Cereal... maybe....?  Fuck it.'  You went to go grab a bowl and set it down on the counter while using your other hand to bring out whatever cereal caught your eye.  You went to the fridge as well to grab the milk, and set it down next to your very early breakfast.  You knew you weren't that much of a monster, as you put the cereal before the milk (very sorry if any of you do put milk before cereal.  No judgement here).  When you're finally done, you grabbed a spoon and placed it in the now ready-to-be-eaten cereal.  Just as you were about to take it to the table, something caught your eye at the very same window.

   For a very split second, you thought you could make out what appears to be light, almost bulb-shaped, illuminating what appears to be a face.  Almost like... the strange figure disappeared after.  'Ok, am i going insane or was that Sebastian i just saw out that window?' You thought to yourself.  At this point, you starting thinking that you might be going insane this time, because there is no way in hell that that tall and freaky looking fish guy just looked through that window.  It's just impossible.  He should be at the Blacksite right now, or better yet dead.  How the hell would he have escaped that as well?  If he's alive and out there, then that would mean that Urbanshade is out there trying to find him.  'Just for safety measure, maybe i should try looking out the window?  No, what if it really was just the figment of my imagination, and tonight was just the high of it.  Oh man, this is really complicated.  I should go ahead and eat this real quick.'

   Hurriedly, you fast walked over to the dinner table and set your cereal down.  You pulled a chair out, sat down, and pulled yourself towards the table, now ready to eat.  Every moment that you took a bite out of that sweet, sweet cereal was a moment of relief from the stress.  You made sure to eat slowly so that you don't accidentally choke on any of the bits or even the milk itself.  When you were done, you returned to the kitchen to wash it while occasionally looking out the window incase you saw that thing again.  After doing so, drying it off and setting it back to wherever it came from, you proceeded back into your room, shutting off all the lights each room you pasted by, while looking behind you as if danger was at the back of you.

   Finally making it to your room, you turn the light on and closed the door behind you.  On the same desk that you had grabbed your phone out of earlier had your remote for the tv in your room as well.  You grabbed the remote to turn on the tv before once again turning off your light switch for the room, and laid down on your bed.  You pulled your blanket over you and moved a bit to get more comfortable as you looked through whatever show you were either rewatching for an unhealthy amount of times or were in a middle of watching a brand new one.  Eventually, you settled down on something you were currently rewatching and shuffled a bit more to further enhance your comfort.

   During the episode you were watching, you couldn't help but let your mind wander off, hoping to let it slowly drift you to sleep, but one image your brain decided to flash was the figure in your window.  You will admit, it was very creepy to see something like that there, even if it was just either a figment of your imagination or actually Sebastian him fucking self.  Even the thought of him finding out where you live, which should be near impossible, made your heart stop for a split second.  The more you thought about him, though, the less you were focusing on the show and realizing how lonely Sebastian would be right now if he did find a way to escape.  You were sure he could hold off on his own, but how much longer would that take before he accidentally gets himself killed or Urbanshade finds him?  You cringe at the thought of what that organization would do if he was found.  As much as you didn't like the guy the same as him not liking you back, even if a bit more, you couldn't help but feel just a bit bad.  It did say in his document that he was to be 'killed on sight.'

   Speaking of documents, you remembered one that stood out to you.  One that made you somewhat relate to just a little too much, and maybe even gain a little sympathy for- p.AI.nter.  You honestly weren't sure how to pronounce his name, but you said it like 'painter', as it sounded more right.  Anyway, that computer's backstory sure was sad.  I mean, who in their right mind would kidnap the creator of that thing to get answers as to how and why they made it, only to 'accidentally' (you were convinced that the guard had full intentions on killing him) and steal an advanced AI, tear him apart after not complying, put him back together, and sending him to Urbanshade to crypto mine as a form of 'punishment'?  Definitely not you, that's for damn sure.  It for sure made you feel bad, but then you remembered what he did to you during your multiple attempts at retrieving that damn crystal.

   "Asshole..." you whispered to no one.  Those memories of feeling those bullets ripping threw your skin every time you were stupid enough to get spotted, getting locked in the room with Eyefestation when it got pissed at you for no reason for maybe fifteen seconds, and accidentally going through those mimic doors somewhat made your blood boil, but in a confusing way?  He did tell you that he was only doing it because of Sebastian making a request to delay the retrieval of the crystal so that they could get out of their shared prison, but then again, was the whole turret thing really necessary?  You knew that you wouldn't be forgiving him of his crimes anytime, not like you would be facing him on the surface anyway.  You can only hope it just stays that way.

   Wait... now that you think of it... would Sebastian have kept his promise?  You have also read in Sebastian's document that he the last time he was spotted on the CCTV exchanging those items he "found" for the documents the expendables would give him, basically what he was doing to you as well.  You knew he just wanted the documents.  That was all he cared about.  Would he have even cared about Painter in the first place?

   Your thoughts were cut short when you heard a loud crash from downstairs.  You immediately perk up from your bed as you snap your head towards the direction of the noise, your heart suddenly picking up pace.  Your breathing started to become unstable as your mind raced through multiple things as to what could have caused it.  'Who was that?  Why are they at my house?  Am i getting robbed?  Am i going to die?  Are they going to kill me?'  You thought back to the figure in your window again as you realized that whoever was there now knows about your existence.

   You wasted no time in getting out of your bed and opened a drawer to reveal a small handheld gun for emergencies like this.  You also checked the chamber to see that there were in fact still bullets inside of them, and made sure that the safety was on.  You decided to bring your phone with you just in case you had been spotted and/or were in hiding, and put it in your pocket.  Before reaching for the door, you made sure to turn off your tv so that no sound could lead over the house.  Slowly and Quietly, you creeped up towards the door and slowly turned the doorknob, allowing the door the swing open with caution.  Thankfully, luck on your side this time as the door made no sound as you tip toed out of your room and closed it behind you.  You sneaked your way over to the balcony and peered your head.  Huh.... you don't remember leaving any lights on downstairs.  You could have sworn you turned them off when you were on your way back to your room.

   Something took over you as you began to descend down the stairs, careful not to make any noises to alert whoever was in your house.  When you finally arrived at the bottom of the staircase, you noticed that the light seems to be coming from... the kitchen.  Why would the intruder go for there?  It doesn't matter right now.  You held your gun close to you as you made your way to the edge of the kitchen entrance.  Close to the entrance, you noticed that the shadow on the ground seems to be tall.  Like, taller than you assumed the intruder to be.  You also heard a bit of humming coming from the kitchen as well.  You decided to stick to the shadows as you heard a conversation take place.

   "Are you sure it's ok to break into this person's home like that?  I think we might owe them an apology..." One voice said.  It sounded a bit robotic?  You swear you've heard it somewhere, but you couldn't really place it...

   "Nahhh... besides, it's not like we're staying here for long.  I'm only here because I'm hungry and just so happened to see the kitchen.  They even have cereal!  I think we should thank them!"  A hint of sarcasm from the last sentence seeped through the second voice.  This one seemed to sound a little husky and low, definitely smooth.  You recognize that voice!  But where did you even hear it from...

   That's when it hit you.

   You recognize the voices because you knew who they were from.

   The ones you encountered at the Blacksite.

   Sebastian Solace and Painter.

Chapter Text

   You didn't want to believe it.  You just couldn't.

   Sebastian and Painter... in your home.

   This all felt like a dream.... scratch that.  It felt like a nightmare.  An all but too real nightmare that you needed to wake up from this instant.  But no matter how many times you told yourself it was a dream and you needed to wake up, nothing happened.  All of those times where you told the universe that you never wanted to deal with anything like what you had experienced at that wretched site was now a lie.  It was like whatever god or gods there was were mocking and laughing at you.

   "Hmmmm.... I still don't get the appeal of breaking into someone's home, though.  What if we get caught?" Painter said, a bit worried.  You heard a bit of rustling as well as munching noises, most likely Sebastian eating something from your pantry.

   "Yeah... *crunch* Uhhhhh.... You're going to have to... mmmm.... get used to this lifestyle from now until we- oh my god this cereal is so good.  Seriously, what have i missed during these past few years!  Hold on, i gotta try this with milk." You heard the door to your fridge open.  The humming from earlier continued as you heard something slide and the fridge door closing soon after.

   You didn't know what to do.  On one hand, you can just enter and probably get your ass kicked by Sebastian, and you DEFINITELY don't want to see what happens then.  On the other hand, you can just leave right now and call the police.  You found out who the intruders were.  You were also prepared in case if Sebastian tried to attack you, but it would be a matter of who can pull the trigger first.  You started to feel a little light headed as you tried to steady yourself so that you wouldn't get caught.

   "Damn... This is really good... Definitely gonna regret this decision later, but who cares about it when i can just... enjoy the moment for once..." A sigh could be heard from him.  The only thing that could be heard after those exchange of words was crunching and the occasional bit of coughing.

   "...Do you think the person is really asleep?" Painter asked.

   At that point, it all fell silent to the point where you could hear your own heartbeat inside your chest.  Your grip on your gun tightened as you heard something, most likely the bowl he was eating out of, being put down, as well as movement.

   "Oh shit, i kind of forgot about that.  Thanks for the reminder, Painter.  I'll be right back."  Yeah, that was your que to stop eaves dropping on them and get the hell out of there.

   As soon as you heard Sebastian start to move?  Slither?  You don't really know what to call it, but you've got more important things to think about other than movement right now.  Anyway, as soon as you heard him, you began to turn around and move as quickly and quietly as you can out of the way, hoping to find an open door where you can take refuge in so that Sebastian wouldn't see you.

   Luck seemed to have run out this time.

   Just when you were about to step away, you heard a loud creak underneath your foot, and your heart dropped to your stomach.  You mentally cursed yourself as you looked back, and the mere sight of him made you want to drop dead then and there.  You dropped to the floor as you crawled away from him, but stopped to take a good like at him.

   Hovering over you was Sebastian, but he looked... disheveled?  Like he hasn't seen better days.  His hair looked tangled, you can definitely see dark circles under his eyelids, and even his clothes looked like they've been through a lot.  Your mind started to compare his current state to that of a homeless person.  If it weren't for Sebastian giving you a cold glare, you would feel bad for him.  For a moment, you thought you could see a bit of surprise on his face before it was washed away with a grin.

   "Oh?  Look what we got here... a visitor who got just tooo curious.  How about you run along before i... wait..." He got closer to you as you backed away.  Your mind told you to run, scream, shoot him, anything.  Your body didn't respond.  You sat there, heart pounding so loud you thought it would burst out of your chest.  He tilted his head slightly before he eyes widened, almost as if realizing who you were at that moment.

   "...Expendable... You..." He softened his voice as he slowly raised himself up.  You couldn't quite tell what he was thinking about, whether it be him just realizing that he broke into the very house of one of the last expendables he came across or realizing that the reason you're here is because you were able to successfully escape with the crystal, the last thing he would have wanted anyone to do at that time.

   "Uhhhh... Hi...?  Sebastian?" You gave a sheepish smile and chuckled shyly as you felt a bit of sweat roll down you.  His response was a enraged snarl as he lunged at you with murderous intent, arms stretched out.  You yelped as you were forced to the floor, Sebastian towering over you as his hands were around your neck and using his third arm to snatch away your gun.  You did your best to try to pry his fingers away from your neck, but to no avail.

   "Don't you "Hi, Sebastian" me!  How dare you take the crystal before i had the chance to escape!!  Do you know how much harder it was for to get out of that prison!!?!?" He yelled, his grip getting tighter.  You struggled to breathe and made another attempt at getting his hands away from you, but you began to feel weaker the more you try to pry him away.  You started to use your legs to push him off, but you soon realized he wasn't letting go anytime.  You could see it on his face.  The way his teeth were showing, him growling at you like an angry beast... He wants you dead.  'Heh... i guess this is how i die... right in the hands of Sebastian.  Can i even come back now that I'm out of the Blacksite?' You thought.  You heard Sebastian talk more, yelling at you like all of this is your fault, but you couldn't care about that anymore.  His voice started to become muffled.

   Eventually, you just stopped fighting him as you slowly welcomed death once more.  That familiar nothingness began to envelope around you as you were starting to see nothing but darkness.  You closed your eyes, expecting to lose the feeling of being strangled, but something unexpected happened.  Reality snapped to you as you opened your eyes, realizing that Sebastian had let go of you.  You held onto your throat as you gasped for air, scooting away from him to prevent getting hurt again.  'That's definitely going to leave a mark on me for a couple of days.'  You could feel yourself start to shake from the fear.

   You looked over at Sebastian to find him kind of slumped on himself.  His head was focused on the floor as he huffed and puffed his frustration out.  You could see his hands shaking, obviously from the adrenaline from choking you.  He slowly raised his hands towards his face, almost as if examining them for anything out of the sorts.  For a moment, you thought you heard Sebastian mutter something to himself.

   "Even if i killed you... You would still probably come back...." He slowly lifted his head towards you.  His breath became more stable as he started to calm down a bit, though you could still see the bit of resentment in his eyes.  "It doesn't matter now... What happened in the past happened.  There's no changing it... We're here now, so..." he clasped his hands together and made the same pose like he did back at his "shop", and his expression softened.

   "How about we forget about that whole ordeal and start anew, new roomie!"

   ...what?

   Did he just call you... new roomie?

   Yeah, this night is starting to get weirder by the minute.

   You decide that it was time to get up, and despite your obvious shaking, the wall was able to sustain you for now.  You were about to ask him for your gun back, but then you started to feel an awful sensation slowly rising up your throat.  Oh no... You needed to find a bathroom.

   "Uhhhh... Sebastian?  I think i need to be... excused for a moment..." You start to make your way to the nearest bathroom.  "I'll be back, i promise!" You felt the cereal you ate earlier try to exit out your mouth early, but stopped it before it can come out.

   He hummed in response as you walked further away from him.  You hurried your way over to the bathroom while trying to keep it down for as long as you can take it.  When you finally make it in time, you slammed the door shut, locked it, and laid down on the ground next to the toilet as you began to spew out the early breakfast that was meant to satisfy your hunger.  If you weren't shaking like a leaf before, then it would definitely be noticeable by now.  You gripped onto the edges of the toilet as it kept going.  The burning sensation on your throat made your eyes swell up in tears.  Eventually, it slows down to where you were able to keep the rest in and don't have to hover over your own mess.  God, you were such a mess.  You didn't even have to look in the mirror to come to that conclusion.

   Let's recap what has happened tonight so far.

   Sooooo, you had a nightmare about the same thing two times during your time trying to sleep, which caused you to go down to your kitchen to get some cereal, and ended up seeing a face there for a split second.  You went back to your room to watch something in the hopes it can lead you to have a good dream for once, but started to think about Sebastian and Painter, to which something snapped you back to reality.  You thought it was an intruder, but instead found the aforementioned Sebastian and Painter in your kitchen.  You tried to leave so you could hide and probably call the cops on them, but accidentally alerted the fish man with the creak on the floorboards.  Sebastian then tries to strangle you to death and also took the only protection you had away, but soon realizes that you can come back and all that jazz, and now...

   You're here.  In a bathroom trying to calm yourself down.  Trying to convince yourself that this was another bad dream.

   You still didn't really want to believe that Sebastian and Painter are in your home.  It just felt so surreal to you.  But you knew the grip he had on you felt real, and the way your body reacted was real enough.  Usually, whenever the nightmares get this intense, you were able to just wake up before you found out what happens next.  But you knew this is reality.  A reality you just weren't quite ready to face yet.

   A few minutes go by with you sitting down and rethinking life as it is, you finally found the courage to get up again.  You could at least see how bad the mark that Sebastian's hands had been on you that you need to cover.  Your legs started to wobble a little and turned your head to the direction of the mirror.  It was then you realized how red your eyes were, not to mention the bags under them from all of those sleepless nights (including this one) manifesting.  While it is a concern that you need to get it looked at later down the rode, you know that it isn't important to the matter right now.  You tilted your head back so you could get a better look at your neck.  There seems to be a clear outline on where his hands were, as well as the points from his claws where he could have made you bleed.  'Maybe i can cover that up with one of my scarfs before i go to work?  That could work.  I just hope no one asks about it.' you thought.  Now with that out of the way, you turn on your sink and began to splash water in your face in hopes to wipe whatever leftover cereal was on your face.  When you were sure that none of it remains on your face, you turn off the sink and grab a small towel to dry your face off.

   Knock knock knock!

   You gasped as you put the towel close to you.  For what seemed to be the millionth time tonight, your heart started racing, but only for a bit when you heard Sebastian from the other side.

   "Hey uhhhhh... Expendable-" you cut him off, "I have a name."

   "Yeah yeah, I'm sure you do, but i don't bother with it right now," you roll your eyes, "Anyway, are you done in there?  Me and Painter want to talk to you about some things regarding if you would let us stay here and what not." Hm.  The mention of them staying with you made you want to say no, but you decided to hold your tongue until they can explain the situation to you, so you told him you were almost done and he left you be soon after.

  Him staying, huh?  You've never heard him asking you a favor, granted the only time he needed something from you was trading in those documents and other things for exchange for those items he had on his tail.  You can see what this is all about once you're done drying your face off.

   When you were finished with drying your face off, you put in the clothes bin and flushed the toilet.  You turned to the door, unlocked it, and promptly exited the bathroom.  You began to traverse around the dark hallway, your mind wondering not to the Squiddles this time, but to what Sebastian has said to you earlier ago.  "How about we forget about that whole ordeal and start anew, new roomie!"  It didn't really sit right with you, mostly because this is a really big, mutated fish guy and his trusty AI who was presumably going to be staying with you.  For how long?  You don't really know, but you do hope it isn't for a long time.  That would be a nightmare, and not the one where you can just easily wake up from.

   You spot the light when you made a turn, indicating there to be the unlikely duo, as well as a conversation being held between them.  It seemed like they were pretty into whatever conversation they were having, but you didn't pay much mind into what they were talking about as you made your presence known by stepping into view and clearing your throat.  They stopped to look at you for a moment before Sebastian uses his third arm to put a finger up, nonverbally telling you to hold on.

   "Sorry Painter, finish your sentence?" his attention turned back to the computer.

   Turning your focus to Painter, you were now able to get a look at him after so long.  He looked to be more dirty and maybe a few cracks then and there, but what caught your attention was the screen.  There were definitely cracks on it, possibly a piece or two missing.  He doesn't appear to have his digital tablet that seemed to be connected to him anymore, or at least what you're assuming of.  Whatever happened to him sure was rough to put it lightly.

   To be honest, you were kind of sad to see them in a state like this.  Sure, you were still terrified after what Sebastian has done to you, and just being in Painter's presence alone made you feel uneasy.  You knew they've been through a lot during the time you haven't seen each other, though.

   "Anyway, so... Once when my creator was done with his painting, he turned to see how far i was with mine and accidentally trips over a rock and started falling down the hill!" with that, they both started laughing.  You could tell that they had some sort of friendly vibe to them, almost like they had been very well acquainted during the time spending with each other.

   "Oh... Oh man!  Ahaha!  Ohhhh that must've hurt!  So what happened after that?  Did he like... had to go the hospital?  Did he fall into a hole?  Or was he able to make it out unscathed?  Minus a few cuts and bruises?" Sebastian questioned.

   "Uhhhhhh.... can i say it's none of these and he just kind of... rolled onto a couple's picnic, effectively ruining their date?" Painter said, a little sweat was drawing onto him.  Sebastian paused for a moment before giving a grin and chuckled under his breath.

   "Heh.  Even better.  Speaking of better, I've found someone who could help us out in our... predicament." He clicked his tongue when he said the last word.  He turned his head over to you.

   "Uhhhhh... Sebastian?  A little help here?" Sebastian turned him to your direction to you see you in your obvious not all right state.

   "Oh... it's you..." Seriously, how many times do they have to look at you in disgust as if you did something to hurt them?  Oh wait, you did kind of steal the only chance at their escape, so to put it in perspective, it was kind of all your fault... to some extent.

   You gave an awkward wave at Painter as he scowls at you, clearly disinterested in what you had to say.  "Seriously?!  You live here?!  And why do you look like that?!?  Sebastian, you should've just killed them." Wow... such a warm greeting.

   "Not apposed to that, actually.  However, i now realize that they can be of... use to us again.  If the Expendable is willing to of course-" You cut him off again, "I told you, i have a name." You were getting a little fed up with being called that.

   "And I told you that I'm not bothering with it!" Sebastian snapped back before regaining his composure, "Anyway... Dear Expendable-"

   "Why are you saying it like you're reading out a letter to me-"

   "CAN I FINISH MY SENTENCE??!!?" He screamed at you.  Your eyes widened as you nod your head profoundly.

   "ANYWAY... as i was saying... mhm... Dear, Expendable.  First of all, i would like to apologize for the... inconvenience of breaking and entering.  I know that is a serious crime, and i won't do it again... for a price obviously..." Oh great, lets see where this deal takes us.

   "As you are probably aware due to our current state you see before you, we are in dire need for a place to stay.  Sadly, none of the outside world would want anything to do with our existence, and seeing how you are the only one that we know of who have actually interacted with us and escaped... even though one of us were... kind of trying to kill you, i would like to make a deal!  You provide us with a roof over our heads and some food for me, and I... we'll... help with whatever you need around the house.  We'll also make sure not to interfere with whatever you have going on.  Well, not until we find a way to make our lives better... Simple enough, ya?" Sebastian looked at you, awaiting for your response.  You thought about it for a moment before deciding to ask a bit of questions concerning the deal that was being laid on the table for you.

   "What happens if i don't accept the deal?" You raised a brow.

   "Well, depending on how you respond to it, I'll either just leave you to your life and never have anything to deal with you again, or we'll see if you truly will come back after finishing the job." He said the last part coldly.  You gulped.

   "Well... Well, Uhhhhhh....If... if i do... accepted your deal... can i make a... small adjustment to it?" You asked.

   Sebastian kind of looked at you for a moment, like he's examining you for any sort of something he could label as not good, but he gives in.

   "Oh alright... what do you want?" He crossed his arms.

   "Well, since you guys, and by guys i mean you Sebastian, are always calling me Expendable, I'm going to have to ask you call me by my real name from now on.  We're not exactly back at the site now." You asked.  Sebastian seemed to not favor this request as he looked at you with an unamused stare as one of his angler fins flapped back in irritation.  At least that's what you interpreted.

   "Why would i agree to do something as stupid as that?  It seems you've got a thick skull there, kid.  Do you not get the memo?  I care not for your name, nor will i ever use it.  Expendable seems to be more suitable for you." He chuckled as he leaned on the wall.  Clearly he doesn't get the memo.

   "Well, excuse me!  If you're going to start living here, the first thing that is going to happen is saying my actual name!  I already have enough nicknames back at work, the last thing i need is to get confused on what my name is, got it pal?  And I'm not a kid!" You moved closer and tried to stand your ground.  You know you shouldn't be put up with his bullshit, so it would be a good time set up some boundaries.  He doesn't look like he's not taking it well, as he put his face up yours as if trying to show his dominance as well.

   "Guys?" you heard Painter call out to you guys, but it fell on deaf ears.

   "Why should I take it from someone who kept dying over and over like a noobie?!  Don't forget who put you in your place when you flashed me with that flash beacon of yours." his tone dropped dangerously as he started to show a bit of teeth.  You were obviously a little scared, but you know what?  If you were going to die now, let it be you trying to stand your ground.

   "Guuuysss?" Painter called out again.

   "Not now, Painter." Sebastian dismissed him.

   "This is my house, you're forgetting?" You started getting up all over his face.

   "Well, this is my deal, and you're making a fuss about it!" Sebastian snapped back.

   "You were the one who started whining about it in the first place!!!" You were beginning to yell.

   "OH YEAH!?  HOW ABOUT I-"

   A loud airhorn could be heard in Painter's speakers as you two jumped and looked at the direction it came from.  When it was done playing, he immediately closes the tab off and his digitalized face is shown, obviously displeased at the discourse you two were making.

   "Damn you guys yell a lot!  Now that I got you two's attention, i would like to point out something," He looked over at Sebastian, "Look... Sebastian... as much as i don't really like the Expendable as much as you for what they did, i don't think making an argument about names isn't the best choice.  Besides, we are going to live with them until we find a way to contact Innovation Inc. again.  Why not try to... y'know... get to know them a bit?  We are going to learn it eventually, so why not now?" Sebastian puts a finger under his chin and hums a bit to the question.

   "By the way, Expendable... I'm not speaking like this because i want to defend you and all, in fact, just because this is your house doesn't mean that you're the one making the deal right now.  I... just don't want to see you two fight is all." He assures you.

   "Yeah... What Painter says is right.  We shouldn't be fighting over that one.  I guess... I can give it a try.  But don't try and fix my mistake when i call you Expendable, alright?" He took out his hand for you to shake.

   "Uhhh... actually... can i make a request in the deal?" Painter asked sheepishly, almost as if whatever he might say would be embarrassing.

   "Huh?  Oh, go ahead." Painter gave out a sigh, or as much of a sigh as a computer like him can, and spoke.

   "Soooooo... Do you think during our time here... can you try and fix me up?  Oh!  And while you're at that, I at least want to be able to walk all on my own instead of having to be picked up around all of the time.  Could you maybe accomplish that as well?" If it weren't for the face he was making at you with pleading eyes (and maybe Sebastian giving you a cold glare), then maybe you would have said yes to the first one.

   "Yeah, Painter.  I'll... try to fix you up.  And maybe give you a body.  But I would have to call in on somebody to do that.  I'm not... exactly the best at making things... even if I'm familiar with stuff like that i guess." You were met with great enthusiasm from Painter.

   "Really?!  Awesome!  You don't know how much this means to me, really it does!" You could have swore you saw a little blush drawn on his face.

   "Ok, now that's out of the way... do we have a deal?" he stuck his hand out towards you.

   "...deal." And with that, your fate was sealed with him.  A part of you can't believe you made a stupid decision like that, but if it weren't for the possibility of you getting your ass kicked, then who know what would happen.  As soon as your hands parted ways, Sebastian looked at your figure once more before making a semi "ew" face and rubs his hand on his tattered coat.

   "Yeah, anyway... you should probably get some sleep.  You look like you haven't had any sleep recently." Sebastian points out.

   "I should say the same thing to you too.  Anyway-" you yawned a bit, realizing that sleep is starting to sound like a good idea, "My room is upstairs.  I don't know how you'll be able to go up, so just give me a holler if you need anything, alright?  If you're going to sleep, go to the couch as there's an extra blanket there.  Turn off the light in here when you're done using the kitchen.  And I have work in a few hours, so don't expect to see me until later in the afternoon.  Just a heads up."  You start to make your way out when you remembered something important that Sebastian has.

   "Oh, and while we're talking, it would be very appreciative if you give me my gun back." You smiled.

   "Mmmmmmmmmm.... not yet.  I think this would add greatly to my gun collection." he said, a bit of a chuckle came out of his mouth, and that kind of made you irritated.

   "I'm just kidding!  Here you go." He lifts his third arm at you to reveal the gun you had on you.  You snatch it out of his hand and rushed out of the area.  You heard a little "rude" come out of his mouth, but you were more focused about getting to your room as fast as possible, for sleep beckoned you.

   When you were back into your room, you noticed that the tv that was in the background was still playing the series you were in the middle rewatching the whole time, not onto the next episode.  You also took note of something as you pulled out your phone from your pocket and looked at the time.  2:50 a.m... Huh... You could have sworn it took longer than that.  Whatever, as long as it was over, you couldn't really care less.  You checked your gun to see that the safety was still on (thank goodness), and decided to put it back to where it came from.  You set your phone down onto the same desk as where you last found it and plugged it back into it's charger.  You crawled back into bed as you pulled the covers over you, feeling the comfort take over you.  You yawned again as you closed your eyes, waiting for your slumber to take you in with open arms.  'Hope i get a good dream tonight.' You thought.

   What a weird night you had.

Chapter Text

   "Hey."

   ...

   "Heeyyyyy, sleepy heaaadddd.  It's time to wake uuuupp." You felt something a bit sharp lightly poke your cheek.

   You groaned as you flipped to the other side, as you didn't want to be waken up by whoever was right beside you.  Wait a minute... You lived alone last time you checked.  You opened your eyes quickly as you flipped back to the side you were previously on and locked eyes with...

   "Good to see you're up-"

   "AHHHHHHHHH!!!!" You moved away from him, thinking for a split second you were back at the Hellsite, but ended up falling out of your bed.  You landed on the ground back first as the wind was knocked out of you.  Sebastian tilted his head a little as the sight seemed somewhat amusing.

   "Soooo... I take it you're not used to this?" Sebastian asked.

   Your mind began to race through multiple things like 'why am i seeing Sebastian?  How did he get in my house?  Is this a prank?  Am i truly going insane?', but was immediately cut short when you remembered the events of last night.  'Oh, right.  That deal i made.  Guess I got to get used to this if they're staying here for a while.'  You shake your head.

   "Huh... I thought you had a roommate or something.  Guess that answers some of my questions." He slithered his way over to you and took out his hand for you to take.  You hesitated for a minute before deciding to take it, and helped you up on your feet.  You faltered a little as you felt your body start to somewhat ache.

   "Also, if you're wondering how i got up here, well... it's a good thing the stairs didn't break.  I honestly thought they were going to for a moment." He laughed to himself.

   It fell silent for a moment.  The more silent it became, the more awkward it felt, so you decided to break the iceberg.

   "Uhhhh, Sebastian?  I just realized this, but... why are you in my room in the first place?  From what i remember, i said that if you needed me, just holler." Sebastian scoffs at you as he crossed his arms.

   "Well, for your information, I'm not exactly familiar with your name.  It was impossible trying to wake you up with "Expendable", so i figured i would have to come up here myself.  As for the reason i tried to call you, we ran out of that cereal i was eating last night.  Just couldn't get enough of it.  Oh, and while I'm at it," he pulls out your phone from behind him, "You missed a call~."

   At that point, you immediately snapped out of your sleepiness and tried to grab your phone.  Sebastian, however, thought it would be funny and held it over your head.  No matter how high you jumped, even when you got on your bed, Sebastian made sure to keep it out of your reach.  This made you huff in irritation.

   "Hey!  Give me my phone back, you... you jerk!" You yelled.

   "I'll give it back... If you tell me your name, of course." Sebastian gave you a smug look.

   "What?!  That's all?" You almost had to ask him to say that again.

   "Well, it was stated as part of the deal that we refer to you by your real name, and i was about to ask about it until you decided to sleep.  So, it would make sense to tell it now." He... makes a good point.  You let out a sigh before answering.

   "It's... (Y/N).  (Y/N) (L/N)." You looked down a bit, almost in shame when mentioning your last name.

   "(Y/N), huh?  I've heard better... but i haven't heard worse.  It's... ok i guess." You rolled your eyes.

   "Now that's out of the way, can i please have my phone back?" You put your hand out.  He obliged and put your phone in your hand.

   You turn on your phone to look at the time.  6:30 a.m.  'Overslept on the alarm again?  Maybe that's another reason why Sebastian came up here.'  You checked your notifications, and see that Sebastian was in fact not lying.  The missed call was from fifteen minutes ago, and it was from your acquaintance.  "Always at that time... wonder what she wants?" You whisper to yourself.  You unlocked the password on your phone, opened up your contacts, and looked over at the voicemails.  There was one from her around that time she called, and you decided to listen to whatever she talked about.

   "Hey, (Y/N)!  It seemed that you didn't pick up your phone today.  I'm guessing you overslept again?  Anyway, I wanted to ask if you're perhaps busy today?  I found this cool cafe place called "Cozy Cafe" that just opened over at the park, and it opens around 8 a.m., so i just wanted to know if you have time to swing over there by that time?  Would appreciate an answer from you!  Bye~!"

   Cozy... Cafe?  Huh... yeah, you've never heard of it.  Must be a nice place if she's talking about wanting to go with you.  Even though you had 30 more minutes of sleep then what you intended on having, you were sure you had enough time to get ready and try to wake yourself up before heading out.  Work doesn't start until around 10 a.m., so you had a bit of time to do plenty of other stuff.  Perhaps go to the store to get that brand of cereal Sebastian ate-

   "So... Is this a friend?" You jumped and screamed a bit once more.

   "Woah!  Take it easy!  You get so worked up over nothing." Sebastian looked at you, somewhat annoyed.

   "Well, if it weren't for Urbanshade and all of that, i wouldn't be like this in the first place." You retorted.

   "Whatever.  I'm heading downstairs.  See ya." He waves you goodbye as he starts making his exit out of your room.  You start to wonder how the hell he was able to get inside of your room in the first place.  Your answer was delivered in the form of him ducking his upper half to the point where he had to use his hand to guide him through the doorway.  He may have struggled a bit (especially with his tail), but he managed to squeeze himself out and continue on his way.  You didn't bother knowing how he gets around the stairs as you had more important matters in your hands.  You needed to get ready for the day.  You promptly shut the bedroom door and locked it so that Sebastian couldn't interrupt you.

   With thankfully no interruptions from Sebastian or Painter, you were able to take a shower, brush your teeth, brush your hair and dry it, and put on your clothes.  For clarity, you had on pants and shoes on, as well as a sweater and a jacket, with the scarf that you thought about wearing last night to hide the claw marks around your neck.  You wouldn't want your acquaintance to make a fuss about it.  It's also convenient to wear it because it was rather cold outside today.  It is still January.  You unlocked your door and made your way over to wherever Sebastian and Painter might have been.  While on the way, you couldn't help but smell... coffee?  Maybe Sebastian is making some?  You got an answer when you made it to the kitchen where both of them were.  Sebastian was pouring himself a cup of it while Painter was positioned to look out the window, presumably to take in the beautiful view from out the window thanks to the morning sun.

   "Oh, hey there.  Don't mind me, just getting some coffee.  Haven't really had the chance to get some since... y'know... the whole lockdown and escaping stuff." It's funny how he's acting like the events of last night didn't happen at all.

   "Morning, Painter." You waved.  It took a bit for him to tear his "eyes" away to look at you.  His once peaceful face turned to that of a scowl.

   "Eugh, what do YOU want?" You could tell he was annoyed just by your presence alone.

   "Just wanted to say morning is all.  Anyway, how did you... sleep?" You didn't know if he could even do that due to him being a computer.

   "Uhhhh... I don't know if you know this, but i can't... really sleep.  It's more like i power off for a bit and... wait, why am i talking to you?  Go away!" With that bit of conversation you could have with Painter, he put his focus back onto the window, admiring the view once more.

   You shrugged and rolled your eyes as you make your way over to where Sebastian is.  You grab a mug from the open cabinet that he forgot the close and started to pour the coffee from the pot into the mug.  When you were done, you put the coffee pot back to where it was, and decided to put whatever you like to do with your coffee in it, and began drinking it.  For what seemed like a good few minutes, you were able to start taking in your surrounding.  It felt peaceful, actually.  It almost felt like both Sebastian and Painter can finally take a little break from whatever they were doing before they got here.  You were almost about to take it all in when your phone started ringing.  You took it out and realized that it was from your acquaintance once more.

   "Hey guys, I'll be right back.  Need to take a call for a minute." You had no word from Painter while Sebastian simply waved at you as you made your way to the hallway.  From there, you answered the call.

   "Lori?  Is this you?" You asked as you took a sip of your coffee.

   "Of course it's me!  How are you?  Are you doing ok?  Sorry, I'm just a bit of a hurry at the moment." There was a bit of rustle from the other end.

   "Uhhhh, I'm doing ok... I guess.  It's about as normal as you can get!  Haha..." You felt a bit of sweat fall off your face.

   "Ok ok.... well, I just wanted to ask if you've heard my voicemail?  I know sometimes you don't, and that's ok.  I can explain it to you again if you didn't." She chuckled.  You put your back against a wall.

   "Yeah!  Yeah, i heard the voicemail!  I'm free to go..." You paused, "Uhhhh... can i get an address to the place?" You felt a bit embarrassed asking that.

   "Oh!  Yeah!  I'll send you it as soon as the call ends.  You have my word!  Just gotta... Grrrrrr!  Where did i put my keys?!" More rustling was heard.

   "Damn.  Couldn't be me." You joked.

   "Hey!  I just... I.... Ugghhhh!  Yeah, you're right... Oh!  Totally forgot to ask you this, but how did you sleep?"

   You fell silent for a moment, not exactly sure how to put what you're thinking of on friendly terms.  You took another swig of the warm coffee in your hands.

   "You... already know the answer to that." Your voice was softer when you spoke this time.

   "Oh... right, sorry.  I shouldn't have asked that.  My mistake!  If... you wouldn't mind... I would like to end the call right here.  We can talk more when we're at the cafe!  Take care, now!" You said your goodbye as well and the call ended.  You sighed as you put your phone back in your pocket and rested your head on the wall.  You mentally fought with yourself on whether or not you should go back into the kitchen, but decided to just go back.

   When you walked back into the kitchen, everything was still the same.  You looked over at Painter to see that of a blank canvas instead of his usual scribbled face.  'Wonder what he's planning on doing.' You thought.  You then focused on Sebastian, who just finished his coffee as he was setting the now clean cup he just washed back to wherever he found it.  Just as he was about to make his way to the hallway, he spotted you.

   "Oh, welcome back.  How did the call go?" Sebastian crossed his arms.

   "Uhhhhh, good...? I mean, all we talked about was the meetup.  Nothing special," With a few more sips, you manage to drink the rest of your coffee and went by your sink to clean it off, "If i have to ask... what is Painter doing exactly?"

   "Oh, Painter?  I... don't really have a clue as to what he is doing at the moment.  Maybe he's painting?  It's... something he's been wanting to do ever since we got out, but we haven't really had that much free time on our hands.  Except for that one time where he wouldn't stop pestering me about-"

   "You know i can hear you guys, right?  You don't have to tell them everything about me!" Even though Painter didn't present his face, as it was still a blank canvas with some lines added, the voice sounded displeased.  He went back to the painting as soon as he said that.  Sebastian looked at Painter before turning his attention back to you.

   "Anyway, you should probably get going now.  You wouldn't want to keep your friend waiting, huh?" Sebastian mentions.

   You sighed a bit and spoke, "She's not... exactly my friend.  More of an acquaintance to me than anything."

   "Really?  Don't you have anyone else to talk to?  No friends before prison?  No family?" The mention of your past friends and family made you shudder.  You finish cleaning off your mug and quickly, and quite violently, put it back to the cabinet and closed it.  You snapped your head to his direction with a cold stare.

   "Why are you being so friendly this morning, huh?  You nearly choked me to death the first time we interacted, and when you realized i can just come back, you quickly switched up your attitude.  Good thing Painter is somewhat the same last time we spoke." Sebastian was taken aback at what you just spat out.  'This shit again...'

   "Ooooooo... getting all worked up over a simple question, are we?  Well, I'm going to go exploring since I'm deciding not to answer that." He moves right past you, and out the kitchen, "Have fun with your little friend!" You flip him off when he got out of your view.

   "Such a pain..." You heard Painter mutter to himself.  You sigh as you move your way to the living room, hopefully to not see Sebastian there as well.  Luckily, he wasn't there, and you made your way to the front door.

   What you didn't expect when you reached there was the doorknob being smashed in, making it completely useless to use, and a note that was written in a surprisingly neat handwriting that wrote 'Sorry about the door.  You should get that fixed.  -Sebastian Solace'.  You groaned and rolled your eyes as you make a mental note to head on over to the hardware store while you were out.  You took your keys and wallet from the desk next the front door and opened the door into the cold air, but before you left, you yelled out to the two anomalies in your home.

   "Don't make a mess while I'm gone, ok?" You heard Sebastian respond with, "I won't!  Try not the die, yeah?"

   "I promise!" And with that last exchange, you closed the door behind you.

   You made sure you didn't leave anything behind while you made your way to your car.  'Keys... check.  Wallet containing my identity and money... check.  Phone... Check.  Ok, i think I'm ready to head out.'  You used your car keys to unlock the doors, and as soon as you sat in the driver seat, you heard your notification sound playing.  You took out your phone and saw that Lori had sent you the address for the Cafe she mentioned.  When you unlocked the password and put the address into maps, you found out it was indeed at the park, which was 20 minutes away from you.  You turned on your car, used the GPS that your car had, and started to drive.

   The drive itself wasn't that bad.  With only yourself in the car, and music from your Spotify playlist you were currently listening to, the ride was enjoyable.  Or, as enjoyable as you allowed it to be.

   After some time has passed, you made it to the park, and began to search around the area for any building that you may have not noticed before.  You heard your GPS say something about turning right to your destination, and when you did, you were able to finally spot the place.  The place wasn't really big, and it looked like your average Cafe.  It did look nice, though.

   You looked at the time to find that you were here a little early by 10 minutes.  You decided to pull out your phone and wait for that amount of time.  It serves as a good distraction, as when you looked at the time, it was already 8:03, and you saw a couple of cars start to come in.  You put your phone back into your pocket and opened your door.  Stepping out into the cold air once more, you couldn't help but notice the nice smell of your typical cafe, and you took in the aroma.  If it smelled this nice, hopefully the smell when you walk inside is even better.

   Before reaching to the entrance of the building, you notice a dark blue vehicle pulling up, and instantly you knew who it belonged to.  You decided to wait a bit for the car to park.  The car, unsurprisingly, parked right next to your car, and a few moments later, she stepped out.

   Lori had on a long, white coat with a light brown long sleeved shirt, dark pants, and heels.  She also had a brown checkered scarf on with her purse being at her side.  You were a bit surprised when you saw she didn't have a skirt on this time around, but you figured her favorite pair had been dirtied.  She walked up to you and greeted you with a warm smile.

   "Hey, Omori!  Good to see you here!" You froze when you heard that nickname.

   "I told you to stop calling me that." You crossed your arms and let out a slightly annoyed sigh.

   "What, I can't help it!~  You always have that same face he made!" She teased a little.  You looked away in embarrassment.

   Lori was the one to introduce you to the game a month ago.  You remembered in one of your hang outs that she mentioned about it and wouldn't stop talking about it, even as far as to compare you to the main character.  Eventually, you caved in and decided to play it for yourself to see if it was anything worth your time, and to your surprise.... let's just say you hadn't touched the game in weeks.  Yeah, you realized in that moment why she decided to call you that, and when she found out you stopped playing it she just kept on using that name.  It's not like you didn't like it, though.  It was starting to grow on you, even if just a little.

   "So, should we go inside?" You pointed your thumb towards the cafe.  She nods and walks by your side as you both made your way inside the place.

   Stepping inside, the place looked... pretty calm.  It took you a moment to take in the soothing area.  The walls was a calming white with pots with the same color around the place.  Some of them were hanging from the ceiling while others were scattered on tables.  Each pot had a different flower, and some of them you could identify almost immediately.  What made the building even more relaxing is the aroma of freshly brewed coffee tickling at the nostrils.  It took a bit out of you to not go up to the counter and buy yourself a cup of whatever they have.  There was a bit of calming music playing in the background, and you couldn't help but get taken in by the mesmerizing beat.  You looked up at the ceiling to see very comforting lights illuminating the inside of the cafe.  Turning your gaze over at the counter, it looked just as calming as the rest of the building.  You felt a bit of drool try and escape your mouth, but caught it in time for anyone around you to not get suspicious.  You took a quick glance over at the wall behind you.  Old habits die hard, huh?

   Unexpectedly, the aroma as well as seeing some food being displayed at the counter made your stomach growl, pleading to give it the nutrients it deserves.  You held your hand on your stomach as you looked away in slight embarrassment.

   "You haven't eaten anything this morning?" Lori voiced her concern.

   "No... I didn't really have much time to make something for myself.  Considering what happened... last night." You stopped yourself when you mentioned it.  Fuck...

   "Oh?  What happened?" You said too much already.

   "Uhhhh... forget what I said.  Must be from the little sleep i had." You awkwardly chuckled to yourself as you walked over to the counter with Lori following behind.  As you walked over to the area, you saw a person from the corner of your eyes making their way over to you both, a pleasing and warm smile stretched across their face.

   "Good morning, and welcome to the Cozy Cafe!  What could I get for you two today?" The person greeted.

   It took a bit for you to think of what you could get, as anything could suit your needs, but you decided to go with pancakes and a classic chocolate chip cookie while your friend got an expresso with a muffin and a donut.  You two promptly walked to a nearby table at the window as to not block others.  As both of you waited for your order to be ready, she decided to strike a conversation with you.

   "I love that scarf you got rocking!  It's not everyday you wear one." She comments, in return making you a little conscious about the claw marks Sebastian made on you and adjusted it.

   "Ummmm... thank you.  I thought that since today was pretty cold, i might as well dress warm." You swore you saw a glint of suspicion in her eyes, but was replaced by acceptance.

   "Ok, ok.  You should wear it more often.  That one fits you better than the others you have in your house." You hummed in agreement.

   It fell into an awkward silence for a moment as that bit of the conversation ended.  As much as you enjoyed it, you noticed that Lori wanted to say something, but can't quite figure out how to put it to words.  For all you know, it could be about her abusive boyfriend again.  She always talked about him whenever she had the time to get away from him.  You've seen him one time, and just by the looks of it alone made you want to slap him.  He didn't deserve her after the shit he's done.  Have you grown attached to her in some way?  Probably.  She's pretty much the only one after the Blacksite bullshit that is willing to talk to you.  You just don't really see what she's sees in you that makes her attached to you like a dog, and that is what made you think of her as an acquaintance.  But in recent events, you were starting to warm up to her, and thus making you share a bit of your past life.  You sigh as you leaned on the table.

   "Is this about your boyfriend again?  I can see the look in your eye." She snapped out of some sort of trance she was in and hesitantly nod.

   "Yeah... he was apart of the reason why my keys went missing.  He says that I don't spend as much time with him as we used to, and I've tried to convince him so many times, but.. uhh... he just wouldn't listen.  I guess I have to tell you this, but... we won't be seeing each other outside of work for a while.  He's pretty much going to be occupying my free time." Your eyes narrowed the longer she explained her situation.

   "Seriously, why don't you just break up with him?  He's obviously causing you a lot of issues... even at work.  He's not worth your time!  I'm telling you!" She looked at you with eyes telling you she wanted to take that advice.

   "I know, but... I don't really have anywhere else to go if i do.  He was so nice in offering a place for me to stay and..." She lets out a pained chuckle, "Honestly, if i were to try and move out, he would find me in a heart beat.  That, and I don't really have anywhere else to bring my cat with.  Every time I look at different places i could stay until i have at least something to work out, they usually don't allow animals.  I would rather not put my poor baby in an animal shelter." In a way, it made you feel sad for her.

   "What about your parents?  Can't they take you in?" You ask.

   She sighs, "Unfortunately, they're not really fond of Cally.  Plus, I don't really want to interrupt their time alone, but I guess i could give it a try.  If it all goes to shit then... well I guess I wouldn't have anywhere else to go.  Unless I get an Airbnb, but then that would just be me on the run from that crazy dude."

   Before any of you could speak more into the matter, both of your orders were called and quickly went to grab it.  You made your way back to the table and began to eat.  Your food does look and smell delicious, and taking a small bite out of it one confirmed your theory.  You can feel the hungry side of you take over as you began to dig into this yummy breakfast.  Perhaps one of the best ones you've had in a long time.  Just as quickly as your mind wandered off to food, you noticed that Lori is looking at her expresso, almost lost in thought.

   You have to admit, hearing about her situation makes you pity her.  She doesn't deserve to go through it.  You wish you could at least offer something to make it a little easier for her.  And that... is when you got a horrible idea.  Very bad indeed.  You couldn't even believe what came out of your mouth by the time you said it.

   "Well... if anything does go wrong in that time and you have nowhere else to go... why not stay at my place?" You mentally palmed yourself on the head.  You could see the eyes sparkle up when you mentioned it.

   "Really??  You really mean that?!" Yeah, you've fucked up.

   "Uhhhh- I mean... I-I kind of have someone over right now, and... uhhh... I think they might be a little too much for you, and I don't know if i have enough room for you to stay and-"

   "You have someone at your house?  I thought you said you lived alone?" She tilted her head at the mention of someone living with you.

   "Well- uhhh- i... I....." You tried to think of ways to not make it seem like you were hiding something, but your efforts fail as you could tell she was getting suspicious of you.  You sigh as you lowered your head to the table, thinking that you might have lost the battle, but as soon as you were to give up, something crossed your mind, and you took action.

   "I... guess i didn't tell about it last night, then." You hoped to whoever was out there that this would work.

   "Oh?  Didn't tell me?  Did you perhaps... forget?" She questioned.

   "Yeah!  Yeah, uhhh... you see... ummm... I-I was in a bit of a... a hurry.  It just happened so sudden that i... didn't have time to text you because i was a bit busy.  I wish i would have told you sooner." You felt yourself getting warmer the more you told the half truth.  You shift a little in your seat.

   "Oh... well, i hope the situation gets sorted out!" Good, she believed it.

   The rest of the time you both spent there was a relatively normal conversation containing work.  Once when you two were done, you walked out of the cafe, waving at the kind person running the counter a goodbye.  You pulled out your phone and looked at the time.  8:55 a.m.  Let's hope you can make it to work on time.  You got in your car, and made your exit out of the parking lot.  Next stop: Work.

   The drive there wasn't really that bad, and although the great tunes you had on your Spotify playlist goes on, your mind wandered to the few slip ups you had back at the cafe.  'Hopefully I won't have to slip up like that again.' you thought.

   The rest of the day seemed to go by a little slow, but nothing out of the ordinary at that.  Of course, you just had to be a tad bit late, but it was excusable... to some degree.  During break times, Lori made sure to spend as much time with you as possible instead of the costumes considering the fact that she won't be able to spend as much time with you.  When work was all well and done, you clocked out and made your way to the car.  During the time you were trying to get back home, you were able to squeeze in enough time to grab the cereal that Big Back- I-I mean Sebastian so rudely ate, a replacement of your now broken doorknob, and some dinner for yourself.

   When you finally came home, you parked your car in the driveway, turned it off, grabbed your things, and got out.  You promptly locked your car with the car keys and made your way to the front entrance, being a bit slow due to you being a little tired.  You opened the door, and called out, "I'm home!  Hope you didn't break anything while i was away!"

   No response.

   You thought it was a little weird that neither Sebastian nor Painter responded, but you figured they're somewhere where they can't hear you.  You brushed it off and walked over to the kitchen.  Passing by the living room, you caught a glance of Sebastian... sleeping.  His once tall figure that always seemed to loom over you every moment you could lay your eyes on him was now washed down to the fish man curling himself up like a snake would do and a blanket over him.  Never once had you seen him so... vulnerable like this.  You let out a silent awww sound before carefully making your way to the kitchen to deliver the cereal and eat the food that you got.  When you were done, you yawned and thought that it was time to hit the hay.  You began to turn off all the lights, but before doing so looking back at you.  You may never know if Sebastian unexpectedly let one of those fuckers in your home.

   You reached the living room- the last light that you had to turn off before heading upstairs.  You reached your hand out and-

   "Good to see you around!  Why did you take so long?" You jumped and snapped your head towards the direction the voice came from, and to your surprise, it was Painter.  He was on the couch next to the sleeping fish snake guy.

   "Oh... It's just you." You let out a sigh of relief and held your hand against your chest.

   "Of course it's me!  What were you expecting?" He slightly teased.  You hummed a bit as you reached for the light and turned it off.  You got a little curious about him and decided to ask him something.

   "Hey, Painter," you started, "How come you are able to stay on without having to be plugged into anything?" You walked up to Painter and leaned against the top of the couch.

   "...Why do you want to know?" He grew suspicious of you.

   "Well, If I'm going to get you a body that you always wanted, i figured that getting to know at least a bit of how you function would be a start.... and maybe get to know you better." you explained.

   Painter paused for a moment before deciding to answer you, "Well, I guess there's a battery thing inside of me that let's me on for a good while.  There's a port at the back of me that's used for charging me." 

   "Soooooo... In a way, you're like a laptop?" You questioned.

   "You can think of it that way, if that is what you prefer." He responded.

   "Then... how are you able to stay on for that time you two were out there?" You tilt your head in curiosity.

   "Well... Sebastian usually breaks into either homes or buildings like that and "borrows" the things for a bit just for me to survive for a while longer.  It's a good thing he still has one of the wires!  I'm even plugged into it as we speak." You didn't really see it at first when you tried to search for it, but when you able to focus on it at last, it trails down to one the ports on your wall.

   "Hey Painter?  One more question before i go to bed."

   "...what is it?" Painter inquires.

   "Did Sebastian ever try to fix you up?" Painter paused before answering.

   "He... tried.  When he took a look inside me, he realized that some of the parts that I had needed a new change.  I was told that unless we get really lucky and come across those parts, I wouldn't be able to go back to myself for a long while.  That's why I added the stuff I said in the deal.  I really do hope you find someone to help me soon.  I just want to go back to the way I was." Even though he's a computer, you could still hear the hurt in his voice.

   The silence the two of you was a bit comforting, although a hint of somber.  You wanted to enjoy the silence for a bit longer, but Painter interfered with it, telling you to go away, and you did just that, telling him goodnight as you went off to your bed.

   You noticed how basically nothing was touched in your room while you were away, although Sebastian could have very well touched some things and you just haven't spotted it yet.  You quickly took a shower, brushed your hair and teeth, and changed into some night clothes before turning off the lights in your bedroom.  You slumped onto your bed face first, and crawled your way over to the usual spot.  You plugged in the charger for your phone and grabbed the remote, turning the tv on.  You figured to put on some lofi to help you fall asleep, and maybe hope to just have a good dream for once.  You felt your mind drift off to sleep, the last thought being on how you were able to talk to Painter without him immediately pushing you away today.

Chapter Text

   It was cold.  So cold.

   The water that engulfed part of the worn down and ravaged Blacksite made you shiver with each passing moment.  The site was already cold enough, and the jumpsuit the operatives gave you didn't really help with that feeling either.  The only thing that's preventing your demise is the mask they provided you and your swimming skills... even if they're not the best.  Your body ached with the pain that you had endorsed from the claws of the Good People and a Squiddle, and you desperately needed a med kit.  As you moved, the cold water that surrounded you stung at your somewhat fresh wounds, and you only hoped that the water wouldn't make them infected or something like that.  You looked at the door number for the next room- 46.

   You wasted no time to let the door swing open, revealing that the other side had the green marked path.  You sighed in relief as you followed the trail, hoping that when you reach the surface you could have a chance at meeting the big fish himself.  Unfortunately, nothing seemed to have answered as when you finally reached the surface, you were met with a room that didn't resemble Sebastian's shop.  You were slightly disappointed, but you remained hopeful.  It's pretty much all you could do at this point.  You took off your scuba mask and tried to shake off any water that cling onto your jumpsuit and hair, but to little success.  You decided to leave it be and press on, as you tried to not think about how cold you are.

   Traversing though the rooms, collecting data along the way, and lets not forget limping and hurting like crazy, your mind started to speed through so many thoughts.  One of them included why the hell you decided to sign up to get that crystal in the first place.  Was it to see your family again?  Or was it to prove that you didn't even commit those murders and arson at all?  That you were an innocent person that was wrongfully accused?  Worst of all, you didn't even have a good lawyer.  Sure, he was an okay guy, but... it was clear he was really bad at what he did, and in turn, fucked you over in the long run.  But what had happened in the past happened, and you can't change it.  For now, all you have to do is keep pressing forward, hoping that whatever comes your way would have a better outcome.

   You shake off those nasty thoughts as you heard the door open in front of you, followed by a pop from the vent on the left side of the room.  Light from the... being completely honest, you had no idea what they were called and you didn't bother to know what they were, but yeah.  The light thing shone onto that specific area, almost as if calling you to go into the vent.  You heard a low and soothing voice call out from the other side, and you knew exactly who that was.

   "Got something for ya, come here."

   Your heart jumped in joy as you couldn't help but let a small smile spread across your lips.  You forgot all about your worries as you rushed down the vent like as if a reward was waiting for you at the other side.  However, the pain began to seep through your body, causing you become a bit slower.  When you made it to the other side, you saw the familiar lights from his lure flicker on as his soothing voice reverberated the room.  "Come take a look, somethings bound to catch your eye!  Could be yours, for a small fee."  He motioned over to his wares, and finishing his sentence, he glanced over at your small and injured form eyeing the items- specifically the med kit at the far end of him.

   You scrambled to reach for the med kit, but was reminded by Sebastian that you couldn't just get it for free, so you threw two hundred worth of data into his hands and grabbed the thing you needed, leaned onto Sebastian's tail to sort of relieve some of your pain and possibly relax for a bit, and immediately started to apply it to yourself, although a bit sloppy, as the shaky hands from the cold water and the pain coursing through your body prevented you of doing your "best."  You had to unzip the top of your jumpsuit and lift a bit of the tank top when it was starting to become a problem.  You could see Sebastian avert his gaze to the documents you traded and opened one up, hearing a small grunt from him while doing so.

   It only took a few minutes of your poor attempt to patch yourself up that Sebastian decided to put the document down and tap you on the shoulder.  You turned towards the direction of the half-annoyed fish man looking down at you.

   "Jeez, you really suck at that.  What the hell happened that got you this shaken up?" Sebastian lowered himself to your height, and in response, you backed away a bit, letting go the bottom of the tank top.

   "Well... uhhhh... what does it look like to you?" You motioned over to your wounds you tried to cover along with your wet hair.  Sebastian looked you over for a bit before sighing and rolling his eyes.

   "You reeeallyyy need to start taking care of yourself.  You know that's ocean water, right?  Not to mention the water here probably have some unknown stuff in it.  Your wound could seriously get infected.  Here, let me just..." He moved closer to you and grabbed the med kit from the floor with his third arm.  This kind of startled you as you moved further away from him.

   "Woah, woah, woah!  Sebastian, what are you planning on doing??"  Sebastian tilted his head at you as he continues to stare at you, not sure if he would laugh at you or just straight up kick you out of his shop.  Instead, he just crossed his main arms and gives out a slightly disappointing growl.

   "Well, i was offering to help you, but i guess you wouldn't mind getting an infection.  You're so ungrateful!" When he was about to turn away to his usual spot, you called out to him, wincing a bit at the pain you forced your body to make.

   "W-wait!" To your surprise, he slowly turned his head to you with a smug look on his face as he clasped his hands together and tilted his upper half as if wanting to hear the magic words.  He let out a quiet "hmmmm?" as he stares at you, awaiting your response.

   "Well..." you sighed, " Look, i was just surprised you were offering to help me is all.  You're usually just... in that corner and reading the stuff i give you.  And you usually mock me whenever i die, soooo..." A bit of sweat formed at the side of you, not sure how Sebastian would take that information.  He gave it a thought before coming back up to you and switched his smug face to that of his usual demeanor.

   "Well... i suppose that can't be helped.  Are you gonna let me help you or not?" You gave it a bit of thought before nodding.

   Sebastian wasted no time and scooted you over to him.  He signaled you to lift up your tank top, and you did just that, shivering a bit from the cold you felt from Sebastian's hands as he started to take a look.  You watched as he inspected your injuries, using his claw-like fingers to graze over your cuts, making you wince in pain.  He looked at his finger for a moment before turning his attention back to you.

   "It's probably a good thing that it's healing already.  But enough of that, how long ago did this occur?" He asked.

   "Uhhhh... i don't know... maybe- like- at door 40 maybe?  A-an  Angler passed by while i w-was in a safe room, and... and- ah fuck-" You felt Sebastian jab a bit at your wound.  He tensed a bit at your sudden reaction.

   "Sorry, was just checking something.  Continue what you were saying." He insisted, and you just sighed as you did what he said.

   "Anyway... an Angler passed by, and while i was... uuugghhh, i guess i was in a hurry, because next thing i knew... i-i was... attacked.  I didn't even notice the number on the door i was at didn't turn off until that very moment." You winced a bit more from the pain your body emitted plus Sebastian starting to apply the stuff that you failed to do on your own.

   "Mhmmm, keep going." God, if you didn't feel so sleepy right now, you would have just fallen asleep right then and there.  However, you probably knew that Sebastian wouldn't let you do that in his shop anytime.  For all you know, he would put you outside to let whatever feast upon you.  He said it himself one time.

   You sighed as you kept recounting the memory, "In that daze i was having... i realized that a Squiddle was right there... but i didn't even... even get out of i-it's way in time, a-and... and... that's how I came up like this.  I couldn't even find a med kit anywhere!  I just had to take refugee in the safe room for a bit to collect myself and try to stop the bleeding the best i could... I-I think it was starting to close up right when i came across the flooded rooms... which was the next door over." You chuckled, but abruptly was cut off by another surge of pain.

   "Hmmmm...  you should've waited longer.  Maybe instead of just rushing through things like a mad person you are, how about trying to calm down a bit before you do something stupid like this?  Maybe it could save you a couple of minutes before your eventual demise.  Just be smarter about what you do is all I'm saying." He chuckled to himself, and within a few seconds later, he was able to apply the disinfected stuff the right way.

   You watched as Sebastian put the stuff back into the med kit and bring out the bandages.  None of you have said a word when Sebastian started to wrap you up, noting that his focus was now solely on fixing you up.  You could see a bit of his tongue start to stick out the more he worked on you, to which you couldn't help but find that cute... cute?  Nevermind that word being used.  With each wrap that he made around your wounds, the pain you felt started to lessen, but you had to kind of take deeper breaths just you could breathe.  When he was done with bandaging you up, he stood up and put his hands on his hips while adorning a smile, as if he's admiring his work.  This reaction was short lived, however, as he sighed and brushed you away from him.

   "Ok, time's up.  Get what you need in here and be on your way." With those last words, he grabbed the document he was reading earlier and focused his attention to that.  You couldn't help but feel a little disappointed at that sudden rejection, but this is Sebastian you're talking about.  He's not exactly the best at really showing his kindness towards another, or at least you think.

   You promptly zipped up your jumpsuit and went on your usual behavior, buying a code breacher and a lantern off of him and five batteries from his desk, with Sebastian making comments about each purchase.  You grabbed the keycard on the table, noting that the radio sounds on it was pretty much all the same from all of the other times you tried to listen to it.  You could hear the morse code from the messed up radio, although you couldn't really decipher it.  Not really big on morse code anyway.  You began to make your way back out into the death site when a question entered your mind.  You turned your head to the fish man as you decided to ask him.

   "Ummmm... Sebastian?" His attention didn't leave the document, but hums like he's all ears for your question.

   "Quick question, but... was there a reason as to why... you helped me?" You fidgeted a bit with your fingers as his head swiftly turned to you.  You couldn't help but shiver a little at his sudden reaction, his eyes gazing into yours.  There was a bit of silence between the two of you before sighing once more and answering your question.

   "Well, I wouldn't really want blood being spilled on the grounds of my shop.  Would probably raise suspicion from my fellow customers..." He paused, "...And maybe because, like i said earlier, I didn't want to see your pathetic attempt at healing yourself.  And I've seen you do it plenty of times." You chuckled a bit to yourself at that last comment.

   "Well, i think it's good enough that you decided to help me today... i guess." You smiled at Sebastian.

   "Don't mention it.  Literally.  If this happens again, It'll cost ya." He grinned at you.

   "...how much?"

   "...All of the data you have on you."

   You rolled your eyes as you heard him giggling to himself.  You waved at him before diving into the vent and making your way to the other side.

   "Be careful now."

Chapter Text

   Throughout the rest of the week that you worked, nothing major at your house seemed to happen, as it was mainly just Sebastian and Painter trying to adjust to their living conditions.  During the little times you spent with the two, you made sure to establish duties around the house, like make Sebastian fix the doorknob the next day, as he was the one who decided to break it in the first place.  Sebastian also mentioned that he should at least have his own room- one where it is rather a bit hidden in case some unsuspecting person saw him in the living room through the window.  You almost wanted to say that rarely anyone visited your home, but the memory of Sebastian mentioning the fact that Urbanshade is up their asses make you think otherwise.  You decided to let him and Painter have one of the guest bedrooms downstairs.  There were some issues that you realized later, but it's not like you can solve them.  You've also noticed that the claw marks that Sebastian oh so graciously gave you were almost gone, but just in case someone noticed the fading marks that thought that you had a scuffle with a robber (well, kind of the case with what had gone down that night), you kept wearing the scarf.

   For work, well... let's just say that Lori's "boyfriend" has been picking her up and dropping her off at work using his car now, and she's been acting rather strange, like how she's not as bubbly as she used to be, and she isn't talking to you all that much.  You have been a bit worried about her and have been meaning to talk to her for a while.  You figured that since today is Saturday, maybe this time you can finally talk to her, and maybe suggest a place to hang out, like what Lori had done to you with the cafe a few days back.  But for now, you have to deal with the oversized fish and his computer lackey.

   You're eyes felt heavy as you looked through your window to see the early signs of sunrise.  You could practically feel your head throbbing with pain and your eyes heavy, a painful reminder of what you had endured that night.  You briefly tossed and turned in your bed, thinking that at this point you should really see a therapist.  Your nightmares seemed to have only increased in tensity when they arrived.  Not the greatest given your current mental state.  But hey, at least you have the weekend to sleep in as much as you want, and that is what you shall do.

  You tried to think of other things to keep your mind occupied from the nightmare as you made sure that you were comfortable enough to take back those lost hours of sleep.  As you closed your eyes, the soft music escaping from your TV lulling you to sleep, you could only hope for at least a dreamless sleep.

   ...

   That would be the case if you weren't constantly tossing and turning... and maybe thinking about that nightmare you just had.  Why did you think it would work?  You tried to do that exact thing multiple times during the first few weeks out of that hellsite.  What made you think it would work now?  Whatever, enough beating yourself up, it's the weekend, you have plenty of other opportunities to sleep in.  So, knowing this fact, you got out of bed.  You did your usual routine of cleaning yourself for the day and getting dressed.  You weren't really going out (for now at least), so you put on some casual wear.  You kind of wanted to just walk around with your night clothes, but you didn't want to hear it from Sebastian.  You looked at the door, and as much as you would like to stay in your room for a while longer, you had to make sure they don't do something stupid like set your house ablaze.

   Stepping out of your room, you noticed that the lights downstairs aren't on yet, an indicator that Sebastian hasn't done his morning routine- or what little he had- yet.  You began to make your way to the kitchen, also making sure that nothing was following you, and making sure to turn on the lights.  Again, can never be too careful if he brought along some unwanted visitors.  When you finally reached the kitchen, you noted that neither Sebastian nor Painter was in there.  Yep, definitely still in his room.   You didn't want to dwell too much on what or where he could be doing right now, so you focused on finding the perfect thing to eat.

   There were definitely good options to enjoy, like cereal, but you weren't feeling up for it today.  Eggs... not in the mood for it either.  You could toast some bread, butter it, and call it breakfast.  You could do the simplest thing and call it a day... orrrrr ... you could make some pancakes.  You have enough ingredients to do so, plus, you have syrup.  You thought about it for a bit longer before deciding that you should make some.  You zoomed around your pantry for the required ingredients, darted around the kitchen for the utensils and whatnot you need, and quickly got to work.

   This honestly felt like it was second nature as you mixed and stirred.  For a moment, it felt like you were back at the house, helping your mom out with making breakfast for the family.  Your brother would intervene and mess with you for a bit before your mom would catch him and send him elsewhere.  Your mom would be almost done mixing the batter to completion when she would get a call at the worst of times and says that she would be back, but you wouldn't believe her.  Work always seems to be on her mind, especially since your father was trying to find a new job at the time.  You would tell her that you would handle the rest by yourself.  This continued on until you were basically handling breakfast by yourself, your brother helping from time to time.  But even if you eventually had to do that part by yourself, it wouldn't bring your mood down.  You felt something building up in your eyes, breaking you out of the memories to wipe your eyes and continue on.

   By the time you were on to the cooking part of the pancakes, you looked out of the window to see the sun to now be visible.  You pulled out your phone to see that it is currently 6 in the morning.  "Only three hours of sleep, huh?" You muttered.  You put your phone back into your pocket and turned your focus on the pancakes that need to be made.  You can't help but feel your mouth water a bit at the aroma the pancakes have made.  You heard a door open followed by movement that sounded like sliding, and you knew who that was.

   "Morning."  You turned to see Sebastian making his way next to you.  "What are you making this time?"  He tilts his head, hoping for an answer.

   "Pancakes." You simply answered.  You didn't feel the need to go into further detail.

   Sebastian let out an amused "hm." and made his way to the coffee pot, setting Painter on the counter top next to him (which you didn't realize that he was carrying Painter the whole time) and began preparing the coffee.  You looked over to Painter to greet him, but was met with the usual annoyed demeanor.  You paid no mind to the duo as you continued on with the making of the pancakes.

   A bit after your little interaction with Sebastian, you finished making them with a total count of... 8.  That's a lot.  You are splitting it up between you and Sebastian, though, so it's not like you're going to be eating all of that.  You opened one of the cabinets, pulled out another plate, and began to split them up.  He gets five and you get three.  He's a big fella, so giving him that amount felt right.  Sebastian was in the middle of making coffee when you notified him that the pancakes are done, to which he responded with only a nod.  You made sure to grab the syrup out of the fridge before grabbing your own plate, grabbing a fork, and making your way to the table.

   You made sure to break down the pancake into little-but-not-so-little pieces before putting syrup on them.  You made sure not to pour too much, as you know that Sebastian has dishes duties for today and didn't want to hear it from him.  Now ready to be consumed, you started to munch down on the handmade breakfast.  A bit after you started eating, Sebastian made his way- with Painter in between his third arm- to the table and sat down both Painter and the pancakes on the table.  Seeing him bring Painter to wherever he went reminded you of a child carrying around their favorite stuffed animal, and a tiny chuckle escaped your lips.

   "Something funny?" Sebastian asked, maybe out of annoyance or curiosity.

   You waved your hand at him, "Nothing, just thought of something is all." He looks at you for a second before turning his attention back onto his pancakes.

   You watched as he took one of the pancakes and held it up to his face, almost like he's observing it.  Did he think you poisoned his food?  Well, a part of you wished you did, but then you wouldn't know what to do with a giant fish corpse, let alone get him out of the house.  You could see it on his face, trying to figure out if it was edible or not, but then shrugging and taking a bite.  You felt your heart race for a moment, trying to guess what he's thinking about as he chewed.  You tried to play it cool by continuing to eat, but when you looked over to him a moment later, he'd already finish the first one.  You really tried to pay no mind to him, but that was thrown out the window when he decided to speak up.

   "Didn't know you can make pancakes this decent.  Good job, I guess." You didn't really know how to take that.  You assumed it was a compliment, though.

   "Thanks, I guess." You shrugged.

   For the rest of the time that you two ate, words weren't exchanged much, other than a few words between you and Painter.  When you were done with your pancakes, Sebastian informed you that he would take care of it, not like you already knew that he is, and set the plate in the sink.  Feeling like there isn't all that much to do (besides trying to figure out more about their situation), you decided to occupy the couch for a little while and chill... and maybe catch a few zs.  You grabbed the remote for the tv, turned it on, and switched to the weather channel.  Apparently within a few days, temperatures were going to drop again and this time there might be some snow.  You sighed and just continued to listen, but was caught off guard when you heard Sebastian speak just inches away from you.

   "Looks like it's going to be pretty bad, huh?  Good thing I won't be outside for that this time." You could hear the relief in his voice.

   "What's that supposed to mean?" Sebastian deadpanned you as it then clicked inside your head that he was talking about when he was on the run from Urbanshade.  Well, he still is, just now inside and away from the public view.

   "Anyway," Sebastian slumped his body onto the couch, "don't you have work today?  Or are you off?" He pushed some of hair out of his face.  He looked a little tired.  Did he get any sleep?

   "I'm... off for today.  And tomorrow...  And i think Monday last I checked my schedule...?  With the snow coming, and depending on how much snow we're going to get... Might be more.  Who knows." He hummed as a response and stayed quiet for a while, but was cut short when Painter called out to him.

   You watched as Sebastian moaned a bit before getting up and slithering over to the computer, leaving you alone with your thoughts.  You cared not for their conversation they were having, as you pulled out your phone and decided to check on Lori.

   "Morning, how are you?" You typed.  You felt a little weird being the one to talk to her first... she usually starts the conversation off.  You waited for a bit before you saw the text bubble show, and saw her reply.

   "Good morning to you, too!  I'm doing fine.  How about you? :D" You smiled a bit.

   "I'm doing the best I can.  Are you doing anything right now?"

   "Currently?  Not right now.  My boyfriend is heading to work in a few minutes.  Should give me plenty of time to relax from him.  Why do you ask?"

   It took a moment for you to respond, as you admittedly was thinking of a few things to say.

   "I was thinking if we could go to the park later today?  Just to get your mind off of a few things."

   It was now Lori's turn to take a bit to respond to you.

   "Sure!  Only problem is that he took the keys from me.  Again.  You're going to have to pick me up.  Sorry.  :("

   The nerve of that guy.

   "It's no problem.  What time do you want me to pick you up?"

   "Around 9 a.m..  Is that ok with you?"

   You felt something slump back on the couch, but you paid no mind to it.

   "Yeah.  Gives me enough time to take a quick nap."

   "Ok, Omori.  I'll be waiting for you!" You rolled your eyes at the mention of the nickname.  You didn't want to argue about that name right now, so you just turned off your phone and put it back in your pocket.

   You looked over at the big mass over on the edge of the couch, his eyes fixated on you.  You knew what he was about to ask.

   "Before you ask, yes, that was my acquaintance.  Her name is Lori, by the way." Sebastian had a confused expression.

   "Didn't want to know her name, but uhhhh... mind sharing with us what you're doing with your friend today?" Sebastian asked.

   "Ummm... we're going over to the park today.  I do have enough time to chill out here before I go ready myself.  I'm supposed to go pick her up at 9." You answered.

   "So that leaves time to talk more about our current situation, right?" Sebastian grinned at you, showing his sharp teeth (which probably haven't been brushed in a while), to which you responded with a sigh.

   "Yeah, sure.  How far have you gotten into contacting that one organization?" You asked.

   "Not really far, I can tell you that.  Without some of the equipment we had before, it's hard to even get in touch with them!" Painter had his scribbled sad expression on his screen.

   "That's... sad to hear, but why are you bringing this up all of the sudden?" Sebastian perks up, almost as if on cue.

   "Well," he starts, "I've been meaning to ask you if you would be willing to assist us.  I've seen how nice of a house you've got here.  Where did you even get the money to buy all this stuff, anyway?" He flicks some hair out of his face.

   "Well," You shuffled in your seat a bit, "When I returned to the surface, Urbanshade was able to put a buttload of cash in my bank account to where I could retire if i wanted to as well as clear my name and gave me plane tickets.  If that other stuff is of any use to you."

   "And how much do you have left over?"

   "Still enough for me to retire."

   Sebastian hummed.  He laid there in silence for a few seconds, wondering how it could fit into his puzzle.  His light flickered on when he came to his conclusion.

   "How about this... If you let me use your card-" you intervened.

   "Not happening."

   Sebastian huffed, "You didn't let me finish."

   "Trust you with my credit card?!  I can't even trust you with my life half of the time!  And you just... expect me to freely hand out my credit card to you?!" You could see Sebastian trying to hold back his own anger, but you know all too well that he's horrible at that.

   " Jeez, you are really insufferable sometimes... " He pinched his nose bridge, "If you would have let me finish, I would've suggested that under your supervision, I would get the items I need to have better communication with Innovation Inc... and maybe get some parts for Painter's end of the deal."

   "And what if I go buy something that would make me instantly regret it?  What if it attracts Urbanshade's attention?" You crossed your arms, which in turn made Sebastian scratch his head a little.

   "Well..." He paused for a bit, "What if you got someone else involved?  Like your "acquaintance," Lori?"

   You shook your head, "I'm not dragging her into this, and I really don't want to attract unwanted attention."

   "And by us staying here for longer, you could also attract unwanted attention!  What if Urbanshade decides to drop in and ask "Hey!  How are you?  Have you seen any fish people or sentient computers around lately?", and would probably torture you the moment they deem you as acting suspicious!  They could even kill you in the process!" You could hear his fans whirring at a worrying pace and the little cracks in his voice as he quickly scribbled out him about to cry.  Sebastian sees this and instantly gets up to comfort the computer.

   For a moment, you thought about Painter's document, specifically the little section about the unfortunate demise of his creator.  You wanted to at least give a little pat on the top of him, but you weren't sure how Sebastian would even react to you getting closer to him.

   "Painter, calm down for a bit.  You might accidentally overclock yourself again.  Just... breathe... or- the best you can do." It took Painter a bit to calm down a little before continuing.

  "I-... I'm sorry.  I know you just want to try to be careful and all, but... we've already wasted enough time.  The faster that we get the things we need to contact Innovation Inc., the faster we can leave you alone.  Can you please at least consider his offer?"

   You stayed silent for a bit.  You've never really heard or seen Painter this upset since the Blacksite.  Hearing him almost break down in front of you and then pleading for you to help them... it kind of made you realize that Painter was right.  They're still in danger.  You're still in danger.  No matter how much you can run away, they will still have a way to find you.  It... scared you.  You just wanted a quiet life.  You wanted to get away from all of this Urbanshade business.  You wanted to be normal.

   You slowly made your way towards Painter, not caring about the glare that Sebastian was giving you at this current moment, and placed your hand on the side of him.  You offered him a sincere look.  "Painter, I..." You glanced over at Sebastian and back to Painter, "I'll... consider it.  I'll see what I could possibly do.  And you're right.  The more time that we stall, the better that Urbanshade will find us." You saw Painter smile, seeing a little bit of hope as much as a computer can have in his eyes.  You looked over at Sebastian again, "But I'm still not going to bring Lori into this.  This is between us."

   "Yeah, of course.  I'm glad that this is all settled, so... shall we get to work?"  Sebastian clasped his hands together, but didn't have his usual smile plastered on his face.

   "Not right now, though.  I do want to take a little nap before I go out.  Only got like... three hours of sleep?" You held up three fingers, and saw Sebastian shake his head in response.

   "Three??  Heh, That's light work... why the hell are you staying up that late anyway?" You sent him a cold stare.

   "Wouldn't you like to know, weather boy." Painter butted in with a mischievous smirk on his screen, to which Sebastian shot him a glare, causing Painter to apologize soon after.

   You pulled out your phone to see that the time was almost 6:45 a.m., and proceeded to lay down on the couch.  "Wake me up when it's about... 8, ok?" You yawned.

   "Setting an alarm for 8 a.m.!" Painter mused.

   You felt the weight at the other end of the couch shift.  "While you're doing that... I'm checking on the coffee.  See ya."  Sebastian waved off and slithered over to the kitchen, leaving you alone with the computer.  Not like you minded.  You shuffled a little, just to get comfortable, and closed your eyes.  You let the sounds of the Weather Channel and Painter to slowly lull you back to sleep.  You might have thought of a memory from the Blacksite.  A fairly pleasant one at that.

   You were abruptly taken out of your sleep state by the sudden feeling of being violently shaken, followed by a loud blaring sound.

   "Hey, wake up!  It's almost 12!" You heard Sebastian shout.

   Upon hearing those words, you immediately sat straight up.  You felt disoriented as you tried to wrap your head around the event that's currently surrounding you, and heard the alarm end as if it realized that you were awake.  Your sensed came back shortly after and frantically looked around the area for your phone.  You immediately spotted it, as it was on the ground, and picked it up only for the screen to flash the time for you.  Your heart dropped when it revealed to you.

   8:10 a.m.

   You slammed your phone next to you and yelled at Sebastian.  "God damnit, Sebastian!!  Fuck you!" His only response was cackling at you, and all you could do to show to him that you were even more pissed was to flip him off.

   "Ahaha!  Aaaahahahaaa!!!  Oh my- GOD!  HAHAHahaahaaaa... Ooohhh man, did I get you GOOD!" His continued laughter only made your cheeks flush in embarrasment, and to put the cream on top of it, you could hear Painter laugh a little as well.

   "Fuck you both, you guys are assholes!" You quickly got up and stormed off to your room, the last thing you heard was the manic laughter the duo made before slamming your bedroom door shut.

   It took nearly all of your being to not hit something out of frustration as you had to remind yourself that you need to get ready for your meetup with Lori.  All you really had to do was add some extra clothes on you and get your hair straightened out a little.  The little slams and the ever so present use of curse words escaped you during the process.  "Fucking assholes," you would catch yourself saying.  The worst part was that you felt like you slept relatively well, something that you haven't really had the pleasure of feeling in a while.  You really wanted to slap Sebastian's stupid little face right now, but knew that it would be going too far.  It would still be satisfying, though.

   When you got done, you made sure to check for everything that you needed.  You nodded once you had everything, and made your way out of your room.  You noticed that the laughter had died down and was now reduced to only the sound of the TV playing in the living room, causing you to sigh with relief and leave with maybe a mild irritation.  When you made it downstairs, you realized that you had left your phone on the couch and Painter not on the little table anymore.  You shrugged it off, thinking that Sebastian must've taken him somewhere and swiftly snatched your phone, and also the fact that if you see him again you would guarantee get angry all over again..  Your phone percentage was alright, but it was the least of your concerns.

   When you made it out of the house, you yelled loud enough to hopefully have Sebastian hear you to not fuck up the house while you were gone, getting a response from Sebastian telling you to stay safe.  Now out in the cold air, you tugged on your jacket a little in an attempt to keep yourself from shivering, and walked over to your car.  You started your car, put Lori's address in (she gave it to you about a month ago when she was too drunk that night and her boyfriend was unable to pick her up because he was at a meeting), and before getting on the road, informed her that you were on your way.  You enjoyed as much time as you can with your music, sucking in the feeling of each song that played within your playlist.  Time seemed to fly by, as when you noticed the difference with the area, you knew you were almost there.

   When you arrived at her house, you looked at the stark contrast between that and your house.  Lori and her boyfriend's house was a simple red, one story building, but the lawn and front porch was vibrant with all sorts of ornaments and decorations to where heads could turn.  There were a few flowers around a corner of the house, but nothing really note worthy.  It kind of looked like a grandma's house in your opinion, but you did your best to not call it that in front of her.  Your house, on the other hand, was boring and stale like bread that gets left out for a few days.  The color of your house was a bleak gray, you never bothered to put up any decorations or even chairs outside, and it was overall not the best thing to look at.  You didn't even like looking at the front of your house sometimes, as the colors and the overall atmosphere would remind you of Urbanshade's walls.  You wish you could put just a little bit of effort to your home like Lori's.

   You get pulled out of your thoughts when you told yourself to text her that you were here, and did just that.  It took about a minute to see the one and only peep her head out of the door, and when she locked eyes with your car, she smiled and hurried over to the car.  She made sure to lock the door before going further, as well as being careful not to knock anything over while walking to the car.  You couldn't help but let a small smile escape your lips seeing her struggle to not touch anything that could indicate that she was off somewhere.  You unlocked the car door when she finally reached your car, and proceeded to swing the door open and hopped right onto her seat.  She closed the door with a bit of a thud, and looked at you with a smile.

   "Hey, Omori!  Did you take that nap like you said you were?" Lori asked.

   "Uhhh... yeah.  I guess.  It was a nice little nap." You wanted to say more, but kept it to yourself.

   Lori buckled herself in.  "I'm guessing you didn't have much sleep, huh?"

   "I guess you could say that." You started to pull out of the driveway.

   The rest of the drive to the park was filled with bits of conversation about work and other nonsense, like how a particular dress is white and gold and not black and blue.  Lori now had the aux privilege, and started playing a bit of mainstream music.  She did try to sneak in an Omori OST in there, but it was thankfully a happy tune.  You were a bit on edge, though, so you kept your guard up in case she tried to play one of the sadder ones.  It was quite a fun ride, and by the time you were finished with that discussion, you both were already at the park.  You parked your car near where the coffee shop was and made your way out into the winter breeze.

   As you locked your car, Lori came over to you and smiled.  "Shall we get going?"  You nodded.

   The park was pretty decent.  There were a mix of people either getting a little jog in and others sitting on a bench and enjoying each other's company.  The park itself looked like a typical winter look, with most of the trees around having little to no leaves on them and the grass looking as you would put it "dead".  It was quite beautiful in it's own way.  You used to admire a lot about nature when you were younger, and you would roll around in the grass for a limited time before your mother would intervene.  It was a good time, you thought.  Things changed, and before you knew it, you were learning how to operate a camera in high school.  Speaking of which, you pulled your phone out to take a few pictures.  You know.  To show the troublemakers at home.

   Eventually, you both collectively decided to sit near a bench that was beneath a leafless tree.  The scene was more stunning with the sun casting it's rays between the branches, creating a sense a nostalgia and relaxation.  You both kept talking a bit about random things until it felt like a good opportunity for Lori to ask about something that had been on her mind.

   "Sooooooo.... were you able to sort it out with the person that was at your house?" Your heart nearly skipped a beat.

   "What?!" Your eyes widened and you could feel sweat fall down your face.

   "Remember when we were at the coffee shop and you mentioned how someone came into your house unexpected?  How did that even happen in the first place?  Who is this person anyway?  How long are they going to-" You held up your finger towards her.

   "Woah woah.  Slow down... too many questions," You put your finger down and shifted a little, "To answer your first question... yeah, I kind of did sort it out.  It's complicated, though.  Not really sure how long they're going to stay."

   "Well, that's good.  But, who even was the person that came to visit you?" Lori rested her head on her hand.

   Your mind went blank.  Sebastian and Painter, you could've answered.  But then would come the assault of questions.  There could be multiple answers to that, but all you would see is her asking her endless questions.  After a bit of thinking, your mind landed on something you could possibly fabricate.

   "Just..." You paused a bit, "...An old friend of mine.  Yeah.  Just a friend that wanted to stop by.  See how I was doing.  That's all." Please believe it.  Please believe it.  Please believe it.

   "...You're pretty bad at lying, huh?  But I'll let it slide.  Just this once," You let out a sigh you didn't know you were holding in, "But!  If there is any trouble happening, call me.  Okay?" You were caught a little off-guard by this, but nodded.  Something clicked in your head, and you just couldn't let this one go.

   "Wait," You started, "Why did you bring it up?"

   "Oh..." Lori looked away in slight embarrassment, "I just wanted to get updated with whatever was happening at your house, you know?"

   "...You're not telling me everything.  What's going on?" You gently put your hand on her shoulder.

   She jumped a little at this simple gesture, but quickly calmed down and let out a heavy sigh.

   "It's just...." She struggled to find the words for a moment, "Remember a few days ago that you suggested that I could stay at your house if I were to... move out of my boyfriend's house?"

   You raised a brow.  "Yeah?"

   "I-... well... I know you got someone else at your house right now, but... could you save some extra room for me?"

   You froze.

   You knew it.  You knew it from the moment you suggested for her to stay that you would fuck yourself over.  You're not going to lie, you were concerned for the situation that Lori got herself in, but you were also concerned about what Sebastian would think when you tell him this.  You needed to act.

   "You did talk with your parents about letting you stay with them, right?" She looked at you, a bit disappointed.

   "Yeah, I did.  They said that I would be able to stay with them, but only for about a week or two.  I did kind of argue with them, but at this point... I'd rather just stay with them.  At least they'll accept Cally." She smiled, but you could tell it was forced.

   "But, why do you even want to stay with me?"

   There was a bit of a pause between you and Lori.

   "...Because after that one or two weeks is up... I don't have anywhere else to go.  And, like I said... he would find me in a heartbeat, and I know he would do something bad to me the moment he finds me.  I just.... I just need someone there to protect me until he's gone from my life." You could see the tears forming in her eyes, in turn making her wipe them.

   Protect her?  What makes her think that you can protect her?  Then again, after the Blacksite stuff, you have been more diligent and making sure the people at your work were ok when something bad happens.  Honestly, probably more as a trauma response.  Plus, if that fucko tried to break into your house, Sebastian could just scare him off.  That's if he'd stay in your house that long.  Hm...  maybe you did have the upper hand here?

   "How about this: You should stay at your parents house for a while.  I have to get things sorted out with my visitor at my house first.  However, if you feel as though he's close to finding out where you are, head straight to my house.  You should be safe from there.  While you're at your parent's house, you should definitely file a restraining order against him if I know what you're going to be doing."

   "Wha-?  How did you know-" You gave her a knowing look.

   "It was very obvious from the way you were talking about living somewhere other than your soon-to-be ex boyfriend.  Looks like you're finally taking my advise.  By the way..." You frowned a little, "What was the final straw?  What did he do to you?"

   "Ummmm.... he... he tried to hurt me last night.  When he tried to touch me after our failed attempt of a date, I just kind of told him 'no' and shoved him off of me.  We got into an argument after that, and he proceeds to slap me.  Across the face.  Still hurts like hell, although not as much.  But anyway- He then basically makes me sleep on the couch that night as well!  That's when I decided that this incident was the final straw.  I should've listened to you sooner.  I'm sorry." She explained.

   "Lori," You patted her shoulder, "I'm happy that you're doing this now.  While I would have preferred you to have done this sooner, it's better to do it now than later.  You don't deserve to go through this, alright?" You could see her eyes shimmer with something and nods.  Her smile seemed to have sparked some hope within you.

   She wraps her arms around you and pulls you into a tight hug.  You were caught a bit off-guard, but hesitantly accepted the hug.  You could tell this was very beneficial for both of your well being.  You silently sighed to yourself, mostly being glad that she's getting out of that abusive relationship.  When she broke the hug, you could still feel the lingering feeling of her warmth.

   "Thank you, (Y/N).  I really needed that." She smiled.

   "Anytime." You returned the smile.

   Eventually, with a bit of silence between you two, it was collectively decided to head to Cozy Cafe to have something to eat and drink, as well as chat some more.  Some of the conversation led back to the situation, but the rest of it was overall chill.  You both had a great time there like before, and later decided that it was time to bring her back.  The ride back to her house was peaceful, but you could feel the tension in the air, even when you arrived at her house.  You had a few sentimental exchanges with her, and when she went to her house, you pulled out of her driveway and back to your house.

   On your way back, the situation seemed to settle in on you as you started to realize three things.  One, you now have two situations to deal with.  Two, when Lori lives with you, she would inevitably meet Sebastian and Painter.  Three, you have to tell Sebastian all of this.  The rest of the day isn't going to be fun.  You took a deep breath and out to try and mentally prepare yourself.  Ooooo, Sebastian is going to kick your ass for this.

   When you made it back to your house, you made sure that everything was in order.  With a bit of hesitation, you headed inside.  You were met with the sight of both Sebastian and Painter on the couch watching a movie on your TV.  It was a kid friendly movie, nothing too graphic.  It looked like it was getting to the climax of it.  Were you really gone for that long?  It wasn't night, yet.  Sebastian Immediately notices your presence and jerked his head.

   "Oh, welcome back." He used his third arm to wave at you.

   "Hey, Sebastian.  Hey, Painter." Painter didn't respond, possibly trying to focus more on the movie.

   ...Maybe you could tell them another time.

   You took a seat next to Painter, noticing that he has, in fact, became engrossed with the movie.  Sebastian observed this and lets out an amused chuckle.

   "Just showing him what a movie is like, that's all." Sebastian explained.

   You nodded and turned your focus towards the movie the duo were watching.  It was fairly interesting, with the movie being one of the classic Disney movies back when it was peak.  This was one of the few movies you've watched that you really liked.  The Little Mermaid.  You glanced to Sebastian and giggled to yourself.

   "Don't.  Get any.  Ideas." Sebastian threatened.

   "Too late, Ariel." You forced yourself to not bust out laughing.

   Sebastian huffed and rolled his eyes in response and continued on with the movie.  Little did both of you know, Painter was acting on that idea.

   The rest of the movie was very enjoyable.  You got to see the raw reaction out of the computer when the whole battle happened.  It made you beg the question of whether or not Painter ever got to see a movie before.  If so, then at least now he get's to see what humanity was able to create, and you smiled at the thought.  When the movie ended, you actually felt relieved that you guys got to at least spend time with each other.  It's honestly a good change of pace that you guys are not actively trying to cause trouble.  Actually, you think this was the first time all of you had a nice moment like this.  That's... pretty sad.  You agreed to yourself that there should be more bonding times, even if you and Sebastian aren't on the best terms.

   "Welp," Sebastian stretched, "That was pretty good, if I do say so myself!"

   "Probably because you related to the main character, Ariel." You smirked.

   "That's not funny." Sebastian gave you an unamused stare, his eyes dilating as well.  It's kind of terrifying, now that you think about it.

   "You wanna know what is, though~?" Painter chimed in, wearing that mischievous smirk.

   Sebastian tilted his head a little as he looked at the screen.  You took a look as well.

   ...

   "PPSSHHHH- AHAHAHAHHAAAAAHAAHAA!!!!!!!" You rolled on the ground, laughing your ass away.

   "Wha- PAINTER!!!  WHAT THE FUCK?!!?" Sebastian's cheeks flushed with embarrassment, creating an odd blue tint.

   "Whaaaattt?  Couldn't help myself~!" Painter teased.

   "OH MY FUCKING GOD!  AHAHAHAHAA!!" You started to gasp for air a bit.  Laughing that hard takes a little toll on the body, you know?

   "Painter, for the love of god, can you please delete it?!" Painter giggled.

   "Awwww, but it looks so good!  You look just like the movie!" You tried to compose yourself, but the more you looked at it, the more it made you want to keep laughing.

   "Painter!!!"

   "Fine!  Fine!" He promptly deleted the image.

   It took a while for you to finally compose yourself.  But jeez, that image will forever be engraved within your mind.  Just the thought of it alone made you giggle.

   "Now that... whatever that was is done with, we should start getting those items.  The faster that we get them, the faster that we can contact Innovation Inc.  But first... I'm going to go take a quick piss.  I'll be back." With that, he slithered off to the bathroom.

   You quietly pondered on the thought of how Sebastian would even need to do that in the first place, but was quickly cut off by the sound of Painter talking.

   "Soooooo... What do we do while we wait on him?" You thought about it for a moment, then the pictures you took back at the park crossed your mind.

   "Oh yeah.  Got something I want to show you."

Chapter Text

   Sebastian's eyes felt heavy, yet he refused to close them.  In a rather desperate attempt at keeping his mind awake, he focuses his attention to his surroundings.

    The room he was temporarily staying in was your typical guest room.  The wall color was a blandish gray, there was barely anything hung on them, and the overall setup felt like it was poorly planned out.  The bed that he was laying flat on felt too small for him, and he didn't really like the sound of creaking every time he moved.  The closet barely had anything in it... not like it needed to have anything in the first place.  The room itself felt too small for him.  He turned his head over to the side to see Painter with his monitor off, most likely "sleeping".  The desk that Painter is on wasn't too boring or anything, but it also felt a little generic.  At least it's one of the only things giving color to an otherwise bleak room.  If he didn't know any better, it felt more like a prison rather than a room.  He shudders at the thought.  'Maybe I should've stayed in the living room,' he thought.

   As if the world seemed to hate his existence even more, memories back from when he was imprisoned almost half of his life suddenly assaulted his mind.  The painful, long nights he had to endure, the dread that he felt when he was first put in prison while awaiting an execution he didn't deserve.  He remembers during visiting hours, he would plea to his mom and siblings that he didn't do such a heinous crime.  That they should speak out about this.  They couldn't do anything about it, though.

   A small growl escaped from Sebastian's lips, a burning memory of the day of his execution playing in his mind like a distorted mantra.  He could feel the anxiety coursing through his veins, and he could have sworn he threw up a little as well.  He could feel the clock ticking, almost as if mocking him about his end drawing near.  He thought he was going to die.  Alone.  Scared.  Helpless.  Not at all how he would imagine going out.  But, it seemed like fate had other plans for him when he saw people he'd never seen before escorting him out of his cell and into an area that was definitely not something he was expecting.  There was a person in a lab coat with some papers on the table in front of them.  Sebastian does admit that he doesn't exactly know how the conversation went, as this memory happened about a decade ago.  He does, however, remember the key words that danced around his head when he first heard them.

   Work for them.  Won't be executed.  Won't die.

   That's all that mattered to him when he took the opportunity.  He was scared to death.  He was scared of death.  As long as it meant that he could live, he was happy.  He was very upset when they told him that they would have to put out a fake execution report to keep him under the radar, but at the end of the day, he was foolish enough to take the offer.  He didn't want to die after all.

   At that moment, a thought appeared before him.  If his past self would of had the ability to see into the future... would he have even taken the offer?  Death was something he wanted to avoid at all costs, but with what he is now... it kind of doesn't seem like a bad way to go.  It wouldn't matter in the end, anyway.  An execution report would be sent out to the public either way.  His family would be struck with grief.  Everything would be the same as it did when the fake report was out.  He wouldn't be the person he is now if he were to die sooner.

   Sebastian's gaze towards Painter faltered as he lets his eyes trail to the floor, his thoughts relentlessly invading his mind.  He wanted them to stop.  It doesn't matter how long he's been thinking like that, he just wants them to go away for once.  For once in a while, he felt like he couldn't do anything to combat these feelings.  He wanted to cry.  Out of desperation, depression, and frustration.  But his body did not obey his command.  It's been like that for a couple of years now.  He wanted to close his eyes, to maybe finally be able get some peaceful rest, but the trauma of the horrible experiments that were done on him left a bitter taste on the subject of resting.

   "Sebastian?" A voice all too familiar cuts through the large man, catching him off guard.

   Sebastian immediately perks up at the mention of his name, pulling him away from the dreadful thoughts.  He puts his gaze back on the computer.  "Huh?  What is it?" His voice sounded raspier than usual.

   "I-... are you alright?  You look... a little down." Painter asked with a bit of confused but saddened "look" on his face.

   Upon hearing his concern, Sebastian made an effort to slowly lift himself up from the so called "bed", making sure not to bump his head on the ceiling.  He sighed, "Yeah, Kid.  Just uhhmm... J-just thinking about some stuff.  Stuff you already know about, at least."

   "Oh." Painter simply said.

   Silence filled the room for a solid minute or two.  It felt like every time Sebastian wanted to speak, there was something that was keeping him from doing so.  He just didn't really know what that something was.  Sebastian was about to lie back down on the bed when Painter finally broke the long and rather uncomfortable stillness of the room with a simple question.

   "Do you think this plan might actually work?" Painter sounded a bit hesitant.

   "I hope it does.  I know I might just be taking a shot in the dark, but at least it's better than nothing.  We'll get somewhere, eventually." Sebastian tried to bring a smile to his face, wanting to at least ease Painter of any doubts on the plan.

   "B-but..." Painter paused for a bit, "Don't you remember last time you had a plan like this?  We... we almost got caught.  It took almost a week to get them off our tail!  I don't want to risk that again." Sebastian glanced over at the crack at the corner of Painter's screen and frowned.  As a way to comfort the computer, he scooted closer to him and placed a hand on the top of the casing.

   "Don't worry," Sebastian started, "I'm not going to slip up like last time.  You can count on that.  If anything, if something were to try and jeopardize the plan... then I guess throwing the expendab- I-I mean, (Y/N), under the bus would probably do us a bit of good." He chuckled to himself.

   "In the short-run, sure.  I don't know about the long-run, though.  I don't want to keep running away any longer.  I just want to be safe." His voiced faltered, and for a moment, Sebastian almost thought he heard Painter whimper a bit.

   Sebastian patted Painter some more, sighing as he slumped a bit more to the computer's height.  He gave his friend a sincere look.  "Hopefully we won't have to run any longer.  Once when we get in contact with Innovation Inc., it'll be smooth sailing from there.  Just... Just trust me on this, ok?" A smile spreads across his face, Painter following soon after.

   "Ok, Seb.  I'll try." Sebastian's smile widened as he patted the computer one more time before letting his hand fall back to his side, and slowly turned to the window.  It was still night time.  He straightened himself up the best that he could.

   "Hey, Paint.  Mind telling me the time?" Sebastian requested.

   "Sure!  My system tells me.... it is 1:28 a.m.!" Painter happily replied.

   Sebastian cursed under his breath, putting his attention to the bed he laid on not too long ago.  He felt oh so tired, with his eyes begging to close, but the memories of being on that operation table and being forced to sleep before running those terrible shit on him would further haunt his mind unless he did something to keep his mind in check.  There was little to do around the house, though!  Sure, he can indeed keep talking to Painter, but eventually they're going to get tired of it.  Plus, the kid was... "sleeping" a while ago.  Might be better for him to keep doing that.  He thought of many ways to keep himself up for as long as he can before the exhaustion closed in on him, until he thought of something that he hasn't had in a while.  He smiled.

   "Painter, I'm going to bug our "lovely" host for a moment.  Might be gone for a little while.  You think you can handle yourself?"  Sebastian asked.

   "Oh, uhmmm.... sure!  Was just about to power myself off for the night anyway.  What do you need to talk to them for, though?" Painter tilted his face, a question mark beside him as if curious.

   "Just need them to get me something is all.... and possibly have a word with them." He simply responded.

   "Okay!  Be safe while you're out there, Seb!" Painter added an animation of a hand waving, to which Sebastian waved back and chuckled.

   "See ya, kid."

   Painter responded back to him, and as quickly as he can, Sebastian left the room.  It was a good thing that Painter was starting to get a little accustomed to his surroundings, but Sebastian... he still couldn't trust it.  He shook his head as an attempt to push his thoughts down and swiftly made his way over to your room.

   He got down your routine already.  Wake up in the middle of the night, go down to the kitchen to get something to eat while looking very worried and looking back for some reason, occasionally attempting to make small talk with him, and rushing upstairs while hurriedly turning off all the lights and then spending the rest of the night in your room  until the morning comes.  He tried to think of ways to figure out why you do things the way you do.  At one point, he even considered wanting to talk to you about that, but later deciding that it's none of his concerns and chalking it up as you just being an odd ball.  You were already weird in his eyes.  If he had to guess... You would probably be up around this hour, or maybe in a few hours.  He'll just have to check and see.

Chapter Text

WARNING!!!  WHAT YOU ARE ABOUT TO READ IS NOT CANON TO THE ACTUAL STORY!!!

THIS IS MEANT TO BE GOOFY!!!!!  BEWARE!! (i'm slenderman, find my pages!!!1!)

(also i just wanted to have fun with this)

   Today was going well so far.  You actually had a fairly pleasant dream that night for once, you had a fresh start to your morning, and work wasn't actually that bad.  There were obviously some slip ups here and there, but you've had a good day so far.  What can go wrong?

   "Hey guys, I'm home.  Hope you didn't cause too much trouble while I was gone." You called out.

   Nothing.

   You called out again... and received silence.

   You shook your head and dismissed it as Sebastian and Painter in their room, probably plotting something stupid, and walked further into your house, turning back as best as you could.  The more you spent inside, though, the more you've begun to feel like everything felt so... still.  You figured that since their arrival, the home has been a bit more lively.  You could feel the shivers run down your back as you sneaked through the area.  When you passed the kitchen and looked over at the dinner table... you couldn't believe your eyes.

   For one, the lights were strangely dimmed.  There was somehow soft music playing in the background.  You couldn't tell where it was coming from, which was kind of pissing you off.  The table itself was clothed with something you've never quite seen before.  There was some utensils on napkins on either side of the table, as well as a glass cup and... some food on the plate.  While the scene was bizarre enough, the one on the other side of the table made your head start spinning with so many questions... Sebastian.  He 

   First of all, how did he get some of this stuff?  You can't recall at all getting any of this fancy shit.  It looks so well placed to just be some set up or something like that.  Why would Sebastian even go out of his way to pull this stuff just for you?  And another thing, where the absolute hell is that music coming from-

   "Ahh, Expendable!  Good to see you're doing ok.  Why don't you take a seat?" He suggested towards the chair right in front of you.  You jumped a little as you could feel your heart spike for a bit.  You stared at his face for a bit, hoping to see if this was the real Sebastian, before sighing and acceptingly pulling the chair out.  Seeing the plate in front of you more clearly, you could tell that this was... steak?  It seems to be well made, which made you pretty impressed... in a weird way.

   "You can go ahead and eat it if you want." Sebastian grabbed the bigger steak that he had with his hands and began to devour it.  ew...

   Hesitantly, you grabbed your fork and knife, and slowly started to eat as well.  Just... not to the extent of the beast in front of you.  You couldn't help but not really trust the steak.  What if he poisoned it?  You and him aren't exactly on best terms, but he wouldn't go out of his way to attempt murder, right?  Well... he did kill a guy to start that lockdown...

   "So... I've got a question for you, if you don't mind." You cautiously looked up at him.  You were surprised (and weirded out) to see that he finished his steak before you could even make it half way.

   "...y-yeah?" You swallowed.

   he leans over the table, making his face hover over yours.

   ...

   "How much licks would it take to get to the center of the tootsie pop?"

   ...what?

   ...WHAT?!!

   "wh.... what are you talking about?  I-I don't fucking know... W-Why are you asking me that in the first place?" You were truly stunned.  You don't think it can get worse than that.

   "Are you the expendable because you are Urbanshade's finest, or are you Urbanshade's finest because you are the expendable?" WHAT THE FUCK IS HE SAYING!??

   You pushed yourself away from him, stumbling back a little while your mind raced through so many shit.

   "WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU EVEN SAYING?!!?" You yelled.

   It took a bit for Sebastian to take in what is just happening before he stood up.

   "Damn, guess we gotta go with plan b," he inhaled, "RELEASE THE PANDEMONIUM!!!!!"

   "wha-"

   The next thing that you knew, you were waking up in a cold sweat.

   It was just another random nightmare.  What the fuck.  You're gonna need something to drink after what your mind just put you through.