Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

As of recently, Astro had not been doing well. Even with him being known to be a loner, people had seen the dreamer even less than usual lately. The library’s door is constantly locked, and he refuses to come out except at midnight to go give everyone their dreams. Shelly's tried to stay up to catch him sneaking into her room at night, but she keeps falling asleep. Some toons have tried waiting by his door, trying to talk to him through it or camp out and wait for him to come out. It had yet to work as they always either fall asleep or aren't paying attention when Astro quickly sneaks out. 

Unsurprisingly, the mains have been the most worried about his absence, all trying to tempt him out in their own ways, yet none of them, not even Dandy was able to get but a single squeak out of the toon. It was obvious Dandy was getting agitated with Astro's behavior, lashing out at the other mains and sometimes standing at Astro's door for hours at a time. Eventually some of the other toons caught on and tried to keep Dandy away from the others door, not wanting Dandy to possibly hurt Astro when he eventually comes out, if he comes out that is.. 

It wasn't just the mains though that were worried, but everyone else too. Cosmo tried to tempt him out with pastries, even making creampuffs which he knew were his favorite, but weirdly enough, that didn't work either. Though things were still fairly normal and toons were able to live calmly and peacefully even with Astro's issue, there was still always an underlying sense of mystery and.. Dread when passing by Astro's room door. 

Little did anyone know, Astro had not been hiding just himself from everyone else, but someone else as well. 

Floor 7, projector room, he could do this. He was going solo, so he'd have to be careful. Astro carefully stepped around, observing his surroundings. No sign of footsteps, no sign of ichor spills on the ground, no unusual capsules. One by one he was marking down possible twisters on a mental checklist. It felt weird at first to think of replicas of his friends as nothing more than x's on a list, but you get used to it once you get back to the surface and see the real toons, your real friends' faces. 

It was becoming a little ominous with how deadly quiet it was. Astro had still not gotten a single glance at any twisted. He had never seen an empty floor before, maybe this was a lucky strike? No, that's thinking too overly positive, there had to be some catch. Nothing seemed off though, he didn't see anyone, didn't hear, didn't smell, it was completely abandoned. Astro spotted machines all around the place, should he start doing one? Maybe it was a Toodles who had thus far just blended very intensely with the dark atmosphere, maybe a Rodger he had yet to find the fake capsule of, maybe it was a Finn just waiting for him to finish a machine so he could come out from behind the corner and take away one of his only two precious hearts. 

As Astro kept walking, his paranoia was becoming worse. Who could it even be at this point? Completely barren rooms were seemingly impossible, there had to be at least one twisted, right? He kept turning corners, with the shock of a twisted suddenly spotting you getting replaced with.. Nothing. Complete silence. Somehow it was even worse. It felt like the buildup to a jumpscare in a horror movie, and he was just waiting, waiting with bated breath for that stupid jumpscare to just come already, but the uneasy void of it never coming simply left him even more afraid. His breath became shaky, and rapid, eyes slightly blurring, knees feeling much weaker than before. He stopped running, just trying to limp around. It almost felt like he was going in circles at this point, chasing an unknown prize at the end of a maze of confusion and anguish. Any second now, a twisted would come around the corner, come on, any second.. 

Astro’s descent into paranoia induced madness was only stopped once he tripped on a loose floorboard, faceplanting right into the harsh wooden ground. He simply laid there for a moment, hoping that the fall wouldn't give him a horrible migraine, though he eventually got up with enough effort, looking around, still nothing. It was agonizing, it was horrible, but with a still fearful mind and heavy heart, he went back out into the large main room to just do the machines already. If there really were no twisted's here he might as well be happy about it and hey, now he has a story to tell when he gets back! 

But as he walked out of the hallway, the only sound in the room was no longer just his feet lightly grazing the floors, but he immediately heard how on the other side of the large hall, up the few stairs, there was the sound of film rolling, with the calm hum of some random jazz beat playing. The change from dreadful quiet to what was like droning ambiance was both a relief and a nightmare at the same time. It was the simultaneous happiness and fear of knowing that someone else is in this godforsaken hellhole with him. But.. Who was it? He doubted twisted's could use stuff like cassette players or projectors, but a sudden toon appearing here made no sense either. 

It's as if Astro’s instincts and curiosity were fighting in his head, one telling him to go and carefully investigate whoever else was trapped here with him, and the other telling him to ignore, leave, run, run away from whatever monster was now definitely lurking here. It was conflicting, but eventually he at the very least let himself approach the direction of the sound. He could be plunging himself into imminent danger, but Astro wasn't really sure if he'd prefer that or the constant nagging of not knowing what was in the room with him. 

The further he walked into the large hall the more he could feel the texture of the floor.. Changing. It started to feel veiny in a weird way, kind of harsh and like tree bark almost. It was also becoming more uneven, floorboards placed into flat patterns now being replaced with bumps and mounds of the weird material covering the ground, making Astro have to almost jump around getting closer to the producer of the sound, most likely now being the projector, but with it having been broken many, many years ago, he wasn't sure how that could be possible. He looked up to the wall which the projector should be lighting up, but there was nothing, it was just blank and dark. 

He was almost at the couple of stairs leading up to the projector area, and the weird texture and material seemed to only get more and more bumpy. Even in the dim lighting he could kind of make it out to be some shade of red, and the material felt.. Fleshy, non artificial. It felt gross, it felt like stepping on blood veins, yet he still wasn't sure what was at the end of these weird vines, until he heard a shuffle. 

The moon quickly looked up, he saw a figure sitting down near the top of the stairs, staring at the blank wall. Wait.. Is that..? 

Astro woke to the sound of books being thrown against walls and falling down from their shelves, almost falling off his own bed, with it being built into a hole in the wall it could've been a nasty drop, so once he realized how close he was to the edge the moon quickly rolled back over to the window side, avoiding the plummet down. He looked out the large window next to his bed, and it seemed he actually woke up at a fairly normal hour as the sun had just gotten up into the sky, signaling morning. 

There wasn't really time to actually appreciate the beautiful morning sky as Astro had to instead quickly get out of bed to deal with the cause of his unneeded and unappreciated “alarm” in the first place. As he took the ladder down from his sleeping area, he listened in for any more noises. The scuffle of claws scraping the floors and wood was audible, but it sounded more distant. Ugh, seems it's time to play hide and seek, in the morning no less. 

Astro couldn't do more than let out an exhausted sigh and wrap his blanket right around himself. He simply started to take a random path through the library and walk around. His actual “room” was made more for guests of Gardenville, so his actual sleeping quarters were placed in a more secret location near the toon rooms. It was like a large library, with a little hole placed into one of the bookshelf filled walls for him to sleep in, including a little window for him to look out at the stars from. The library was like his safe haven, but lately, after the inclusion of a new roommate, it had turned into a frustrating maze, as even though Astro knew the entire library like the back of his hand, the new frustrating addition to the family was anything if predictable, so knowing the layout barely helped if they could be found hanging on a lamp the first day and in a hole they dug through the marble floors the next. 

Astro had been walking around the library for god knows how long now. He'd most likely already checked every single row of books. Astro simply put their hand to their face and let out a frustrated groan. 

“Don't tell me they're behind the shelves..”

The moon's annoyance was shut down quickly though as the sound of a random book falling off one of the shelves alerted Astro to the other's direction, only a row away. He quickly dashed over. There they were, caught red handed trying to rip a book in half. A novice's guide to classical orchestra, he was supposed to give that to Rodger next week! 

“That books expensive you!!-”

Astro practically pounced on the other, them letting out a shriek of shock sounding like a cat suddenly getting attacked by a stray while on a walk through the neighborhood. Astro could feel how they scratched his back, his blanket slightly protecting him at the very least. He wrestled the creature on the ground for a while, eventually prying the book away from them and standing up, leaving the other defeated on the ground. 

But wait, who was this “roommate” in the first place? Well, even if the inhuman and animalistic sounds they let out told you otherwise, it was no other than Dazzle, mask cracked right through the middle, constantly leaking ichor and other twin missing completely. They were anything but a pretty sight, with even their clothes being tattered and messy, attacking Astro if he ever tried to change them. 

“Honestly what is with you this morning!”

It was very very rare to hear Astro's voice be louder than a quiet mumble, but with Dazzle's recent antics he couldn't help but even get involved physically if he had to. They were just such a constant bother and annoyance that trying to beat the struggle with kind words and patience was useless, and he had had to learn that the hard way. 

Dazzle simply just stared back at Astro, eventually crawling back onto all fours and climbing up the shelves, leaving to most likely go sleep or scratch at the wood of the shelves. 

“Just don't break anything and I won't bother you!!”

Astro yelled back up but didn't get a response back, he never did. He almost started to debate in his mind if taking in that creature was a good idea in the first place, but he stopped himself. 

You've had this thought before. You're not such a monster that you wouldn't help your own friend in their time of need. Sure they're different now, but hey, they have shown signs of improvement compared to day one, so just keep going and keep hoping. Things will get better eventually. 

Astro just stood there for a while in thought, before eventually sighing and beginning to walk through the rows of shelves once again, now filling out the list of books the other toons had borrowed. Due to him being too anxious to leave the library, with the fear of others, especially Dandy finding out about Dazzle, he would just leave them by the door so no interaction or contact had to be done. He could also give them at night while he goes around giving dreams anyway, but any more time away from the library was scary, so he'd rather just have the toons come collect their books from the door than having to go give them himself.

He remembers Rodger trying to talk to him through the door a couple times when collecting his books, same with Brightney, but Astro never gave in. He wasn't even sure why he never said a single word to anyone through the door, maybe he was scared that it would give them more hope to try and get inside the library, possibly also finding Dazzle, but Astro also just never really knew what to say, how to respond. He couldn't get himself to tell anyone about Dazzle, not even the other mains. It always felt kind of stressful when they came by, as they always seemed the most affected by his silence, but one in particular terrified him. 

Dandy. 

The sound of three specific knocks always signaled his presence, and Astro couldn't help but stay by the door the entire time Dandy was there, as something in the back of his mind told him that if he didn't listen to every single word, the consequences would be dire. Dandy never sounded sad, still keeping his happy and energetic voice when he attempted to contact Astro through the door, but the moon could hear right through it, knowing the other well enough that he could sense the burning fury under the deceivingly happy tone. Astro didn't dare to say anything when Dandy came by, too scared to move a muscle, so he always just sat there, frozen in fear and silence, blanket wrapped harshly tight around himself as he listened to whatever words Dandy said to try and convince him to come out. Seemingly Dazzle, even with his new animalistic mind and instincts, could sense when Dandy was near, if it wasn't by his voice then how Astro was always sat on the ground by the large door, back turned to it, eyes not even blinking as they stared straight down at the ground in complete concentration. They always started to hiss and growl once realizing who it was on the other side, ichor-covered claws scraping the floors harshly. Astro still wasn't sure if they were ready to attack Dandy or simply scared or nervous, maybe a combination of the two. 

It was a little horrifying honestly, the thought of Dandy getting in. Who knows what he would do to Dazzle, with them being semi-twisted, and what he would do to him.. Astro preferred to not think about it, just quickly diverting his attention back to the list. 

“Book about strange pet animals for Toodles.. Arts and crafts manual for Scraps.. Classic fairytales for Flutter.. Classic music box notes for Boxt-”

Knock. 

Astro quickly dropped everything he was doing, turning back to the door not far away from the row he was by. 

Knock. 

He placed the list and books by a random shelf, not even caring if he was going to be able to find them later. Without so much as a second thought, he ran towards the door and quickly sat by it, like a robot following a command. 

Knock. 

He's here. 

Astro sat down, back facing the door, ready to hear that infamous, high pitched voice. 

Silence. Still nothing. Was Dandy even there? 

… Nothing yet. Astro couldn't even hear Dazzle around, so he simply continued to wait.

.. Not even a peep, should he get u-

“Heya moonie! It's the one and only, your best pal!”

Chapter Text

Dazzle was currently simply exploring the large library and whatever it had to offer, even if for Dazzle- at least in this state- it was not exactly a lot. Even with their new form, preferring to crawl on all fours and eat wood rather than actual food, the library upset them for whatever reason. It reminded them of something even if they could barely remember anything in the first place. They had essentially turned into nothing but a rabid animal, communication with them being practically impossible, preferring to rather just screech or caterwaul instead of actually speaking, and now their main hobby being knocking books around and trying to rip apart the entire shelves themselves. Their new claws made out of ichor seemed to come in handy with scratching and ripping things, even if they didn’t seem to notice how many stains they left on the floors. Astro seemed to usually openly dislike them, but with good reason, as Dazzle didn’t do much else than trash the library and try to attack him, but even their presence seemed to openly upset something within him, which even with Dazzle’s barely alive conscience and wild mind, they had noticed, and it somehow weirdly made them feel.. Bad, whenever they saw Astro just give them a melancholic, tired glance instead of a frustrated command to “put that down” or “stop doing that”. 

Dazzle quickly froze up. They were currently sitting on top of a bookshelf, but in an instant they jumped down and dashed toward the very distinct and familiar upbeat voice they had heard. An upbeat voice that they despised. They didn’t waste time moping around, their scatterbrain now focused on the task at hand. If the voice was there, then Astro was there, and Astro looked terrified, they despised when that voice made Astro so scared. As they got over to the entry door of the library, there he was, Astro sitting down as always, knees hugging his chest under the blanket, not moving, not blinking, maybe not even breathing, as still as a statue. 

Astro’s eye quickly diverted to stare down Dazzle, who had already begun hissing in anger at Dandy on the other side of the door. Astro so desperately wanted to tell them, even whisper for them to go away, but he couldn’t get so much as a peep out of his own mouth, too scared that Dandy could technically manage to get something out from him. He was already so below Dandy, and the flower had already made sure to keep him there, so he’s not going to lose this battle of perseverance and persistence, if not for the consequences of what would happen if he did finally respond, then just to finally have the upper hand on something instead of being beaten down back to obedience.

“So! I have been wondering when you’re gonna come out! I mean, we all really miss ya’ Moonie, especially me, since hey..”

Astro could hear how Dandy shifted to lean right against the door, his tone also changing completely from cheerful children’s mascot to a low, quiet and malicious voice, almost sounding sadistic in a way.

“We’re best pals, you and I, and I find it a little-”

Dandy shoved against the door, the motion making Astro jump in terror and quickly back away from the door, that being the first time he’s even moved ever since Dandy came by.

“-Rude that you’ve been neglecting me for so long, hm? C’mon, I know you agree. Now come out here before things get dire.”

Astro started visibly shaking, but still not giving out a single syllable. Dazzle only became more infuriated, their scarf up and wagging like the tail of a cat ready to attack. Behind Astro he could hear the faint and quiet repeated knocking, Dandy taunting him, making him scared for his life with a simple flick of his wrist. It felt almost embarrassing to be so terrified of a little flower, but he knew what Dandy was capable of, he knew it very well, as he had experienced his wrath many times before. 

“Knock knock Astro, come on out, what would a little ol’ flower like me do to you, huh..?~”

He just looked to Dazzle, very slowly etching forward. He wasn't sure if he wanted them to help them out of this hell or just go away and let him deal with this on his own, currently his mind was so conflicted that all he knew was that he just didn't want Dazzle to lunge at the door. 

So Astro just sat there, still trying to listen to Dandy, even if they were just vague taunts and whispers of his name, but he started to become more.. Distracted, just looking at Dazzle. They were the entire cause to any of this in the first place, the only reason as to why Astro had locked himself in. So while it was frustrating, and almost maddening as to how he simultaneously despised the strange twisted and was too attached to throw them away, somewhere inside him.. He felt weirdly thankful towards Dazzle. This had been the longest he'd ever gotten to be away from Dandy's possessive clutches, and it was all due to Dazzle, a secret that's need to stay safe and covert overpowered his forced will to always come crawling back to Dandy when asked. Even if it was stressful, and even if the creature themself was practically always a bother, it still felt weirdly freeing, ironic due to him being now trapped in the library. So as Astro watched Dazzle slowly approach him, still growling but much quieter now, his shaking surprisingly stopped instead of increased, and he reached a hand out towards them. He wasn't even sure why he did it, if it was to pet them or somehow try to gain their trust, but he knew that he somehow wanted to show that at least he trusted them, a thank you to them for getting Astro away from his problems back outside, away from Dandy. 

Astro did nothing to stop their approach, not shifting closer himself but still holding out his hand, as some sign of trust and acceptance. Dazzle simply walked over, still crouched down on all fours, growling, showing his teeth like a battle-ready animal. Astro didn't mind though, they had their weird quirks, but there was definitely still something inside the now separated twin that distinguished them from just a rabid animal, and he knew that Dazzle wouldn't attack him. But in his new more calmed mindset, Astro had practically completely forgotten about Dandy, but he came crashing back to reality as the ominous knocking ceased and was replaced with an audible wheeze of laughter. 

“HAH!!.. What?! So you growl now?? Pfft- Astro I didn't take you for the growling type!! Or do you have a cat or something in there? Awweee, is that what you've been hiding? Astro, dear, you know that's nothing to hide away from others about!”

Dandy's voice changed in an instant, back to his cheery and happy tone everyone knew him for. But for Astro, it just came off as even more ominous, it felt taunting, mocking in a way. It sounded like an insult to his weak defense against Dandy's control, his protest of silence now ruined. Yet still, Astro refused to say a word, just letting Dazzle growl as he watched them slowly sit down in front of him, the throaty noises eventually ceasing and everything going back to quiet, not even Dandy saying anything. 

“So.. Now that the issue seems to be dealt with, why don't ya’ let me in! It's all water under the bridge now, right?”

Astro felt as Dazzle seemingly nibbled a little on his outstretched hand, very lightly grabbing hold of it. Astro recognized that it wasn't supposed to come off as violent or aggressive, but simply the most gentle way Dazzle could grab his hand with their spiky teeth. Astro suddenly felt a little warmth envelop him, almost flustering at the sudden kind and affectionate gesture in contrast to Dazzle's usual demeanor. He completely ignored Dandy on purpose for the first time ever since he had started coming to the door, keeping his focus completely on Dazzle. 

The theater twin looked to slowly be getting up, so Astro moved along with it, but was utterly shocked when Dazzle got right on their two feet instead of the animalistic quadruped stance he was used to seeing from them. Astro hadn't gotten to see their standing form in so long that he couldn't help but stare at Dazzle for a moment after they had gotten up from the ground. Dazzle cocked their head to the side a little, confused at Astro's staring, but he simply waved his hand, gesturing for them to dismiss his accidental ogling. Dazzle then proceeded to turn right into the other direction, yanking Astro to their side instead of behind them. The moon couldn't help but blush at the sudden closeness, but just let it go and started to follow Dazzle who had started walking to an unknown location. At the back of his mind he could still hear the now somewhat tuned out Dandy speaking, seemingly not having even noticed that he had left, well, at least that's what Astro thought. 

“Astro. I can hear your steps walking away. Did something happen? Did I say something wrong? Come on dear, come back, I just wanna help.”

Even if the words seemed kind, Dandy's tone gave the exact opposite impression, being low and almost ‘seductive’ with him talking slowly and clearly. It was not meant as an honest question or request, but a threat, almost a command to come back here this instant, stop disobeying and do what he's told, but for the first time since Astro could remember, he refused. He just kept walking away, listening as the flower's voice got further and further away. Astro wasn't sure if he should be shaking in fear or letting out the largest sigh of relief of his life, as he felt both horrified and proud of his actions at the same time. He ended up just deciding to tune them out, think about it later, and focus on the toon right next to them for the time being. 

Dazzle looked focused, sure of wherever he was leading Astro. Something about that felt so nice and nostalgic. It reminded him of the person Dazzle used to be instead of who they are now. There were still so many mysteries, what had truly happened to them, where's Razzle, are they completely twisted, is there still a way to cure them? But currently, Astro felt calm and relaxed, the toon walking next to them wasn't some mysterious monster or annoying pest, but his old friend, old best friend, Dazzle. Sure they looked and acted different, but he could tell that behind all the ichor and aggression, there was still at least a little of the old sad theater-loving friend he knows and loves inside their new body.

They continued to walk for a long while, passing by different rows and reading areas left and right. Astro eventually started to get tired, his legs dragging on and on, but Dazzle seemed to still be fully focused on getting to their destination, teeth still latched onto Astro's arm with a light grip, trying to prevent any pain despite their fangs. The moon could feel their eyelids getting heavy, the idea of walking becoming more and more exhausting. Dazzle noticed Astro's fatigue and tried their best to help, grabbing his side and assisting him in moving forward. It almost felt like some type of hug and Astro couldn't help but lean into the touch, savoring this rare moment of affection. Dazzle just let Astro faze out of reality and proceeded to basically carry Astro in his arms, with the lunar toon having to put barely any effort into using his own legs. 

In his tired haze, Astro began to see things in his vision, stars and planets, making him feel at home. He could almost picture himself climbing into a comfy and soft bed in the middle of the stars. As he started to fall more and more into the comfortable familiarity of sleep, a quick nibble at his arm awoke him back to reality. He let out a tired whine, a little annoyed at how his dreaming was cut short. But as his eyes adjusted to the brightness of the library, he was met with the feeling of his hand finally getting let out of Dazzle's clutches, left with a very faint bite mark and a little bit of slobber Astro quickly wiped away with his blanket. As he was trying to get rid of the gross stain, he didn't notice Dazzle starting to climb up the ladder- wait, isn't that the ladder to his bed?? 

Astro was late to realize that they had made it to the ladder leading to his bed, somewhere where Dazzle was not allowed as it housed his favorite books and blankets, but I guess he can let it slide this once. The moon slowly got on the ladder, following the other up to his resting area, being careful to look to the side instead of right up, wanting to mind the others' privacy what with how they were.. Positioned, he even couldn't help but blush a bit out of embarrassment. As Dazzle got up he looked back down at Astro, with a rarely seen neutral and relaxed expression, not showing his fangs or hissing, but just calmly waiting without a word. 

As the moon got up, he immediately felt the familiar claws of Dazzle hold onto his sides, pushing him down onto his back with Dazzle right on top of him. He gasped as he looked up at the others face, still not sprouting any emotion as he slowly got off of Astro, to the others…disappointment? No, he's not “disappointed” that they stopped, that'd be stupid! The moon looked towards the ceiling, still caught up on how they were positioned just a moment ago. Besides the obviously sexual label that could've been thrown on top of it, it also just felt.. Weirdly nice to get to be that close to Dazzle. He had always been very close with them even before their transformation, so it gave him a tinge of familiarity to feel Dazzle so close to him, he could feel their clothes, their scent, still all the same. It made Astro feel weirdly warm and soft inside, but he quickly disregarded those feelings. They were twisted, anything very affectionate could never truly work out between them, it was pointless, this was just a single rare moment that he wasn't sure was ever going to repeat again. Astro's sad thoughts were interrupted as he felt the coziness of a blanket being wrapped around himself. He looked back at Dazzle to see them going through their shelves of blankets and other bedding, picking out different types of pillows and quilts and then laying them on top of him. The sheer warmth and comfort of all the blankets and pillows being stacked on top of him made it hard not to fall asleep, but before his eyes could fully fall, Astro remembered he couldn't just leave Dazzle to run around awake while he's sleeping, what if they trash the entire library without his watchful eye making sure they fall asleep first! Even if his voice was quiet and tired, he still tried to somehow speak up under all the weariness. 

“...Hey.. I'm not supposed to go to sleep yet.. You're not allowed to be on your own…”

Dazzle simply glanced back at Astro, seemingly confused at his words. They stuck their tongue out a little, with the other not being sure if it was supposed to be a taunt or just some random instinct. It was hard to keep focus though with fatigue catching up to him. He will admit the moment felt nice, he had never seen Dazzle like this before after he had taken them in. It reminded him of how they used to tuck Astro in after spending time together while Razzle kept falling asleep out of boredom. Sometimes they even cuddled, which always managed to make Astro blush a little at the closeness. He wished he could just go back to that, but with Dazzle's new self, it was practically impossible.. or maybe.. 

As Dazzle starting climbing off of the bed, Astro thought fast and suddenly grabbed the end of Dazzle's ichor-stained scarf, yanking him back onto the bed, accidentally crushing himself a little under the twisted's weight but the only thing it caused was a little cough and a slight chuckle right after. Dazzle looked shocked, frozen in place on their back for a moment after the sudden pull backwards, acting like a paralyzed goat having just fallen down. They eventually turned their cracked mask to look over at Astro, confused at why he did that. 

“If I'm sleeping, then you're sleeping too..”

Astro didn't waste time as he reached out to grab Dazzle's shoulders and pulled them up right to his face, backing up a little so they didn't accidentally bump foreheads. He quickly shoved him over to the side, not wanting to stay that close, scared that the other would notice how his cheeks became a darker blue. He lifted the blankets, offering Dazzle to also dive into the fort of comforters and cushions. They sat there for a moment, contemplating the proposal, but eventually slid in next to Astro. They quickly dove over to him, grabbing his body tight under the covers. While Dazzle's claws were harsh against his back, he could tell that they didn't mean to hurt, and it was an honest attempt at a cuddle. He appreciated the effort, sliding his arms over to grab at the other as well. He looked over and chuckled slightly at Dazzle's clear shock at feeling a second pair of arms alongside the ones already there. Astro wasn't a big fan of showing his four appendages to people, but in this moment he felt secure and safe enough around Dazzle to also use the extra two limbs to cuddle with the other. Dazzle's shock quickly left their face though, with them instead just getting back into relaxation soon after. The short amount of time it took for them to adjust made Astro's heart flutter. So many toons made his arms such a big deal, but Dazzle didn't seem to care one bit, and it made Astro feel so much more normal using them, something he hadn't gotten to feel in so long. Those enjoyable thoughts soon though started to fade into different shades of dark blues, as Astro began to see stars around him. 

The planets glowed brightly in the distance, with stars illuminating their unique features and sizes. Astro was floating in space, a familiar sight to him, as he always had these same visions once sleep started to take over. It was like a way of calming down before fully diving into sweet slumber, but he will admit, it sometimes got a little lonely out in the middle of the universe, with only the constellations there for company, as everything else was too far away. He started to point at different stars with his finger, dragging bright white lines between them like a dot-to-dot puzzle, making up his own constellations, creating all sorts of different shapes. Eventually though, he only truly realized what shape he had formed after the final stars were connected together. Maybe it was his subconscious telling him to make that shape, he wasn't sure, but the toon was staring right at a recreation of Dazzle's mask, crack and all. It looked so.. Familiar. Not even to the Dazzle he used to know, being a part of a pair, sad and melancholic but truly sweet at heart. And it wasn't like the Dazzle he now knows either, aggressive and chaotic but seemingly still holding some of his past humanity, but something else entirely, something that started to flood his head with uncomfortable memories. Something about darkness, a black, viscous liquid similar to oil staining his digits black as he held something broken in his hands. Astro shut his eyes closed, not wanting to stare at that distressing reminder, but when he opened them, he-

“Dazzle?! Dazzle!!”

Astro couldn't help but feel a single tear go down his cheek as he held Dazzle's broken mask. It was barely still in one piece, with a huge crack going right through the middle. Dazzle's eyes were fully closed, not opening no matter how much Astro tried to shake them awake. 

“W-where is Razzle? Wake up! Please!!”

Astro hugged Razz-.. Dazzle's limp body in his arms, not wanting to let go as if it would break further the second stopped holding on. He cried onto their stomach, not able to bear staring at their broken face any longer. The projector room was completely silent now except for the muffled sobs and little inhales of breath that Astro took as he buried his tears into the others chest, staining their tattered shirt, still somehow keeping their scent of popcorn and old knitted clothes even after the ichor mutated their body so much. 

Astro didn't know what to do. What is he supposed to do? Dazzle is twisted but seemingly comatose, Razzle is gone, and there's no other twisted's here. It was horrifying, he didn't know if it was possible to bring Dazzle back, even wake them up. Astro was able to lift his head up to look back at their sleeping face, grabbing their cheeks and drawing over the cracked edges with his thumb. Ichor seemed to drop out of the harsh wound endlessly, dripping down onto the ground and creating a tiny black pool on the vine-filled surface. Even if their mouth was open just a little, ichor slowly flooded out of it too, their eyes were still shut tight, not daring to open despite Astro's incessant begging. Astro's thumb slowly touched their eyelid, before forcibly separating them, just to even get a look at those eyes, if not for comfort, then just for reassurance that they were still there in the first place. But when he did, he was met with a horrible sight. 

The entire eye had transformed, the sclera mutating from a pearly white to a bright, putrid red. The pupil and iris had transformed into a never ending spiral of black and red, completely unfocused up at the sky. Astro was disgusted, feeling as if he's about to gag at the sheer amount the ichor mutated his best friend. He felt bile rising close to his throat but he quickly let go of their eyelids, them snapping back shut and covering the eye again to Astro's relief. He took a deep breath and tried to calm himself down. He was going to find some way to help, but if he wanted to do that, he'd have to be calm. 

Astro eventually lifted his hand back to their eyelids to study their eye again. There were visible and strong blood veins even amidst the red sclera, making it look as if they hadn't slept in years. The iris had gone fully black with the pupil either being gone or just having transformed into that same shade of bright, shining red, though it was a little hard to tell due to the pupil being pointed upwards at nothing currently. Astro didn't like the idea of moving their eye manually, so he instead just got a little closer. But as soon as he did that, the eye rolled around frantically for a little bit, focusing on every single corner of the room for a millisecond like some sort of malfunctioning robot.

 Astro jumped and backed up out of fear, the sudden movement coming to him like a jumpscare, but after he let go of the eyelid, they didn't snap back down. Astro wasn't sure how he did it, but it seems he had awoken Dazzle, and that was especially evident when eventually, the eyes focused right on him, and stayed there. 

There were a couple seconds of silence, Astro just staring right back, wide-eyed from shock. He kept his eyes locked, not ending the eye contact with the other and he wasn't even sure if he was breathing, too terrified that if he moved a single muscle the creature would pounce right at him. 

Dazzle looked almost like an old doll, eyes wide open and never blinking, expression completely unreadable, emitting no noise, making no movement. Honestly it was more horrifying than them suddenly attacking the other. After what felt like an eternity holding a staring contest with the other, Astro's face becoming darker and darker shades of blue due to the breath he was still keeping in, he started to feel movement, not from Dazzle, but from the ground below him. The vines we're moving right below his kneeling legs. They stretched and swerved under him, slithering slowly on the ground like a giant snake. Astro knew he should run, he knew he should get away as fast as he could, but his legs weren't letting him, they were locked in place, frozen right on the spot. Astro just tried to keep staring right at Dazzle even as the vines below him moved around causing his whole body to shake in anticipation of what happens next. 

Astro started to feel them slithering up his leg, wrapping tightly around it, but he couldn't bring himself to do anything about it except let a couple beads of sweat release and finally let out a large inhale, broken and exhausted due to how long he was holding his breath. The toon started to breathe raggedly and heavily, trying to get all his missing air back. The movement seemed to trigger something in Dazzle, as the vines wrapped around his entire body in an instant and to his horror, Astro was lifted right off the ground. He could barely breathe, his lungs squeezing tight under the vines now wrapped around his chest unbearably tight. Tears started to swell in his eyes out of reflex, Astro's body not being made to handle such pressure. Through his foggy gaze he saw Dazzle had lifted their right hand up, fist clenched and shaking slightly. This had to be done by them. Dazzle looked up at them, gaze Baring right into the other's soul as they refused to blink. Astro was unable to even let out any tears, his body too crushed for it. The vines were still coiling around him, and he feared that they could get even tighter, possibly killing him with their pressure. He couldn't let that happen, he had to in some way make this stop, and he only had one thing he could do anymore. He knew it was dumb, he knew it could never work, but taking an agonizingly painful breath, he tried to speak up through his currently choking lungs. 

“D.. Daz-... zle.. Pleas-... Just.. Let m-.. e go..”

He could barely get a single word out without the vines making him stop and continue seconds later. He felt the pain of having to choke out every single syllable, it was unbearable. He felt the vines slowly slither up to wrap around his arms, squeezing them tight. Everything became a gray blur, his mouth possibly foaming as well, he wasn't even sure anymore, as his mind began going fuzzy. This was it, it was pointless. This is the way he's going to die, under the crushing pressure and weight of blood red vines wrapping around his entire body by his past best friend. Someone who he trusted, someone who he even loved, was going to be his murderer, his coffin welcoming him in with open arms. 

Astro's thoughts were cut short by his vision beginning to focus again, he became confused, and the first thing his eyes locked on was back at Dazzle, still sitting down in that same spot, still looking at him suspended in the air. Astro suddenly realized he could breathe again without issue, and immediately began gasping for air, not even being able to look Dazzle back in the eye as he hung his head low. His lungs stung like hell, it feeling like a piercing pain each time he took a breath in, but he didn't care, he kept breathing until he finally felt fine again. He was able to focus on Dazzle again. It looked like nothing had changed, the twisted's expression having not softened at all, but Astro looked back at their raised hand, and saw that instead of a fist, their thumb was now not clenched anymore. Astro had no idea how any of it worked, but he understood that Dazzle had allowed him to feel relief on purpose, did his words get to them? 

As the vines kept slithering, the toon realized that he was slowly being moved down towards the ground. He had never felt more relieved, and when his legs finally reached the viney floor they immediately gave up, his fall to his knees only being stopped by the vines still around his arms, not as tight as before but enough to still control his movements. Dazzle only had their pinky furled anymore, but once Astro seemed to look stable enough to stand on his own, they let it go straight too, the vines quickly slithering right off of the Moon's arms. Astro was still definitely terrified of the other, yes, what with their unchanged intense expression and complete silence, but they had spared him, decided not to kill him. Maybe his words worked? 

That was completely unheard of for twisteds. They were ruthless and soulless, giving no mercy or no grace to those they attacked and slaughtered, so something like this was supposed to be impossible. The thought that maybe this twisted was special, maybe Dazzle could be rehabilitated lit a spark in Astro's eyes, his fear slowly leaving as he started to carefully shuffle over towards them. 

While last time Astro got trapped due to his sudden movements, Dazzle seemed to not do anything, eyes still staring right at him but hand resting down on the ground, not looking as if it'd move anytime soon. As Astro got closer and closer, he lifted his hand over to the other. He wasn't expecting them to take it or anything, but it just kind of came naturally, and Dazzle didn't seem to mind, their eyes still staying locked in contact with his despite the hand. Astro was practically walking into certain doom, but the last interaction gave him too much hope for what would happen, that he didn't care if he was being incredibly foolish, he wanted to help his friend out of this sad fate. 

Dazzle used to be so kind and gentle, but confident when he needed to. They always came to Astro when he needed help, but tried their best to comfort the other in his times of need too. They always read together, spent time in the library, watched movies, always enjoying each other's company. Astro was devastated when they went missing, as it was inevitable they had turned into a twisted. But now, with the prospect of possibly getting all that back, getting his best friend back, someone who he trusted, someone who he loved was greater than the risk by far, so Astro didn't shake when he approached Dazzle, if he did die, he'd die a foolish death, but he'd do it with a smile on his face, because he knew he tried. 

“Dazzle, please, come back with me.”

Astro tried to keep his voice calm and collected, but Dazzle didn't seem to understand what he said, as they had no reaction, but one thing that did change was that for the first time since Astro had even encountered Dazzle, they blinked. It was slow and calm, eyes still peering right at the other during it. Astro was caught by surprise, as if reminded him of how cats show their trust, and wondered if it was trying to do the same. Astro cautiously sat down onto his knees right in front of Dazzle, offering his hand again. 

“Do you.. understand me..?”

Dazzle simply blinked again, not giving any sort of response. Astro started to get a little frustrated at what he could exactly do, and decided to take a big risk. He slowly approached closer, grabbing the twisted's sides. He quickly checked for a reaction, nothing. He couldn't help but whisper “please don't kill me please don't kill me” to himself as he carefully stood up, lifting Dazzle off the ground. Astro nervously looked down, checking for any sort of reaction. But instead of biting or screaming, Dazzle simply nuzzled themself in Astro's arms, getting comfortable. 

The toon didn't expect such a positive reaction, and was slightly taken aback, but eventually formed a small smile as he caressed Dazzle's broken mask in his arms. 

“Hope you don't mind me getting us out of here.”

Astro remembered an emergency button on the elevator, something you could use if you were done with the run and quickly retreat back to the surface with your life intact. It wasn't used often due to it only being able to bring one person up at a time and people not having the time to do that while getting chased by twisteds, but in this case, even if it was only made for one, Astro would use it for two. 

He looked back down at Dazzle in his arms. They had fallen asleep, eyes closed and claws slightly scratching his side. He knew that this creature was not allowed up, that he was going against the rules, maybe putting many in danger, but honestly, in that moment, he didn't care. Astro had always been a pushover, a doormat, mostly forced to be that way by Dandy, but this was going to be his way of rebelling, his first non-selfless act, selfish act. Dazzle was going to be his ticket out of his cowardice personality, out of this people pleaser box that Dandy had pushed him into by force. 

“... Thanks Dazzle.”

Chapter Text

Astro's eyes slowly opened, immediately shutting them right back to avoid the surprising harsh light coming through his window. He rolled over to his other side, and tried again, opening them faster and letting them adjust more. The first thing he felt was a sharp sensation of overheating like a computer on for too long. He felt how his legs began to sweat profusely, lower body soon joining in, and then upper body and- ok wow he had to get out of here. He quickly tried to shuffle upwards to get out of the mountain of blankets on top of him. 

Astro sat up on his bed, able to pull himself out from the warm prison, still keeping his main trusty blanket gripped tightly in his hold. He doesn't completely remember how all of this happened, but he did feel the absence of something important, something that was there when he fell asleep. 

“Hm..”

Astro scanned around his sleeping area, the blankets that weren't on the shelves were visible elsewhere on his bed, nothing seemed to be missing..

“.. Wait.”

It suddenly crossed his mind. Dazzle! They had been there when Astro went to bed, and most likely fell asleep too. They had presumably just woken up earlier and got out of bed to, well.. do whatever they usually do. Though the thought did calm Astro's mind and erase the mysterious feeling of confusion at losing something in his mind, he still felt like he might as well get to know about Dazzle's whereabouts, make sure they aren't trying to break the shelves or similar. 

Astro got down on the ladder, feet finally touching that familiar marble ground. As he looked around, there were no signs of Dazzle, no sound of claws scrambling against the floor, and no loose ribbons being dragged around. The silence slightly reminded him of their first encounter, sending a shiver down his spine. He'd rather not think about it anymore. Astro still had no answers to Dazzle's mysterious new form. Why were they alone with no other twisteds? Where was Razzle? Why had the ground twisted and turned so weird? None of it made any sense, but he couldn't exactly ask Rodger.. He doubted the detective would even do anything to Dazzle, or tell anyone, but something in Astro just refused to say a word. He felt the need to protect Dazzle from the outside world, it was mostly Dandy and his wrath that scared him, but the thought of someone else now knowing about a twisted lurking around the living quarters was terrifying. Call it paranoia, call it just a fear of Dandy that's escalated to a fear of everyone, Astro had decided to forever keep his voice silent for Dazzle's safety, and he was going to keep that promise. 

As Astro continued to simply walk around, he eventually got to the front door of the library, where he usually met with.. Dandy. He was reminded of yesterday, when he walked away from the door for the first time, ignoring Dandy. It was terrifying, yes, but he was still a little proud of himself for the bravery. Even at Dandy's ominous threat of hearing him walk away, Astro simply ignored him, something he had never done before. But he was honestly only really able to do it because of Dazzle. Having someone take your hand to guide you away from evil was something he never knew he wanted so badly. Hm, maybe if Dazzle comes to help him again, he could try to do it a second time, to show Dandy he's not gonna take his abuse anymore! 

Astro spotted Dazzle sitting down in front of the door, looking away from the rest of the room. He couldn't tell if they were simply studying the door or sitting in front of it like a dog waiting for its owner. He slowly approached Dazzle, keeping his body relaxed and walking speed slow, not wanting to spook them as their response would be very unpredictable. 

“Hey, uh, Dazzle?”

The twisted quickly turned around, slightly startled from the other's entrance. Their expression showcased worry, maybe stress? It was a little hard to tell, but they definitely looked upset. Dazzle started to run over to Astro on all fours, still seeming “feral” but it didn't seem like they'd pounce or attack him, yet Astro couldn't help but flinch a little and step back when he saw Dazzle approaching fast. They grabbed Astro's blanket and started tugging on it, Astro not being sure if they were just trying to get his attention or what it was they needed. 

“I-uh, can you say what you need?”

Dazzle simply screeched and quickly stood up, starting to jab at Astro's chest instead of tugging on his blanket. 

“What is it that you want??”

Astro was honestly getting a little frustrated with Dazzle's refusal to speak and incessance on just poking or jabbing at things with little screams or screeches mixed in. Dazzle just kept poking his front through the blanket, the jabbing becoming more aggressive, almost strong enough to actually start feeling slightly painful. 

“Okay okay I get it! Now stop poking me!”

Dazzle took their hands away as Astro uncovered their top half from the blanket. The twisted's eyes instantly diverted from his middle to his shoulder, them quickly grabbing their arm with both claws and yanking it forwards, pulling Astro right up close. Astro's cheeks darkened as soon as he realized how small their distance was, faces merely inches apart. It was embarrassing and sudden, but honestly he didn't want it to end, especially as fast as it did when Dazzle turned around and started walking away quickly, still holding Astro's arm, tugging him along. 

Astro was practically completely unaware of their sudden journey with him still processing what had just happened, blush still incredibly visible. It's like his brain had overheated in mere seconds and now had to boot back up, so when he finally came back to his senses, he realized they were right back at the ladder. Dazzle quickly climbed up, looking like they were in some sort of mysterious rush. 

“Dazzle, the floor isn't lava. Plus I just came back from bed, I don't need to sleep..”

Dazzle simply looked down, their worried expression only worsening. They let out a little screech and started climbing up again. As Dazzle reached the bed, they sat down to look back down at Astro still on the ground, eyes darting left and right from the bed to Astro, the bed, to Astro, and to the bed again. 

“Seriously I don't need more sleep! What is with you!”

Dazzle started to scratch the bed with his claws quietly, possibly being a stress reaction. Some black liquid dripping down from their forehead was visible, most likely ichor, but functioning as sweat at the moment. 

“I’m not gonna come up there again! Seriously, I'm fine!!”

Astro was done with Dazzle's strange and incessant behavior, just turning around and stomping away. This wasn't how he wanted to start his morning at all, with just more bugging from Dazzle. He had unfinished work to do anyway. He heard the sound of Dazzle behind him leaping off the bed and landing on top of some random bookshelf, but their confusing parkour skills didn't come as a surprise anymore, with Astro already having seen it a thousand times before. 

Well, the seeming stress in Dazzle's face was something new, something kind of.. concerning. Even if Astro was burned-out with their antics, he still had to admit it brought a little worry to see them so nervous. But there wasn't really time to worry about such things, as Astro had work to do, he went to sleep early yesterday right? 

The thought brought back memories of exactly how he went to sleep, which soon clouded his mind with hazy thoughts of Dazzle's weird but comforting warmth and his cheeks with that same darker shade of blue. No, now was not the time! The important thing is that he missed out on work and he has to do it all now. 

Astro had been collecting and cataloging books for a while now, reordering them if something was amiss. He kind of wished Brightney was also here to help, but he wouldn't break his promise to Dazzle. Oh Christ Dazzle. Astro put his palm to his forehead as his mind went back to Dazzle. He honestly wasn't able to stop worrying about them the entire time he'd been working. He had never seen them so worried before, and he was starting to regret brushing it off earlier, as it still swirled around his mind over and over. 

What were they trying to tell him? Were they trying to warn him of something? But.. Why back to the bed? 

Astro tried to somehow calm his thoughts by just repeating “they just thought you didn't get enough sleep” in his head, eventually managing to snuff out the worrying thoughts. Even if Dazzle continued to seem worried even after Astro explained himself, he just tried to kind of.. ignore that for now. 

Astro's work was getting a little interrupted with his mind constantly shifting to Dazzle. It was annoying, but it did eventually make him realize something, he had grown very attached to Dazzle. Sure they were an absolute disaster in the early days, but yesterday showed they still have some of that old Dazzle in them, the old one that Astro loved so dearly. They never dated, they were never together in that way, yet Astro couldn't help but be infatuated with the sad theater twin when they were still alive, still part of a pair. Their slight smile when you could tell they were truly happy for once, their warm touch when they tucked him into bed after overworking, their soft and quiet voice when narrating a part of whatever story they were reading together, it was all so nice and comforting, so familiar, and it had changed now, but there were still remnants of the old Dazzle he truly did adore. The smile turned into a crooked grin, but it still held the same genuine joy, the touch was brought by clawed hands, rough and brutal, but it still held that same warmth, and the voice was replaced with mangled and distorted noises and screeches, but it still kept some of that same calmness when they purred in the middle of the night, fast asleep. Everything had changed, but not fully, and honestly, Astro saw this as another chance. He never got to express his true feelings before the twins went missing. Everyone knew what happened anyway, it was obvious they got attacked. Astro didn't come out of his room for months after it happened, only coming out when Dandy asked. He prayed each and every night for his love to come back, wishing upon each shooting star in the whole night sky for them to return. In a way, he got what he wished for. He got another chance to confess. Dazzle didn't turn into an aggressive dog, or a rabid animal, but just a different version of the toon they already were, a toon that was worth loving, worth adoring, and Astro was going to do that. 

Dazzle just needed comfort, needed space, needed patience, love, the sort of things Astro used to give to them, and it could work out. Their mind was still capable of compassion, of intelligence, of humanity, and Astro would let them shine out, he would help them shine, like a star in the bright night sky. Dazzle could finally be his, and he could be Dazzles. It could happen, he could make it ha-

Astro's daydream was interrupted. He froze right on the spot. It was the door again. It wasn't a knocking sound this time. It was instead the sound of a key pressing right into a lock. The sound of the key turning. The sound of a lock unlocking. The sound of a door knob opening. The sound of the creaky large doors of the library opening right up. 

Astro's head turned around faster than ever before. Eyes wide open and unblinking. He looked behind him to see the doors of the library opened completely. There in the doorway stood Dandy, smile wide, eyes staring right at Astro's shaky and cowering frame. 

“Heya Moonie! Long time no see!”

Chapter Text

Astro froze right on the spot, hands gripping the bookshelf for dear life as his legs had already given out. He hadn't needed to look into those eyes for so so long he was actually starting to feel free, feel independent, but I guess not, I guess that was just a stupid pipedream and Dandy had come to remind him of that fact. He would never be free as long as Dandy wanted him not to be, he'd always come snatch him right back up and make his wishing for release from his prison seem idiotic. A prison that Dandy created, that Dandy controlled, and Dandy wouldn't let go of anytime soon. 

Dandy just stood at the doorway, not even moving forward, he didn't need to. It was obvious that even his presence alone, his eyes, his stance, his smile was able to make Astro's entire body stop working in running away. He was trained to not back away, not run away, but to stay, stay and take it, take the pain and b̶e̶ ̶o̶b̶e̶d̶i̶e̶n̶t not be a coward. Dandy couldn't help but laugh at Astro's cowardice, seeing him stand there, almost falling to the floor from fear, legs and entire body shaking violently, eyes completely focused on him out of pure fear gave him some sort of power high. The ability to make someone so scared, so terrified by just your presence alone was a power that Dandy held over Astro, and he loved it. He loved seeing Astro cower beneath him like a dog, it made him feel superior, made him feel powerful, so he couldn't contain his chuckles at Astro's horrible state. 

“Heh- oh Astro, what's got you all scared? I'm just a little flower! And I'm just here to talk.”

Dandy's tone dropped again in a split second, the act of a happy and bubbly cartoon character completely shattering as soon as he spoke up again, voice low and menacing. 

“Talk business that is.”

Dandy took one, single step forward, and the echoing collision of his shoe against the floor was enough to make Astro's grip falter and have him tumbling to the floor. Dandy had simply said a couple words and only had to take one step for Astro's confidence to crumble and shatter completely, instead just being at the mercy of Dandy. Astro knew what Dandy was capable of, and as he heard the steps continue, approaching closer and closer, he quickly looked up from the floor. Dandy was simply slowly strutting over, fake smile still plastered on his face like a perfect mask. The sight made Astro's instincts take over. He had been in this situation before, more times than he can count, so as his panic increased every millisecond, he simply resorted to what he always did. Begging. 

Astro tried to quickly stumble onto his knees, kneeling and looking up at Dandy still walking over as if he was praying to a god. It never truly worked, but there was always that thought at the back of his head that maybe, just maybe, this time, if he just begged hard enough, groveled enough and urged him to please just reconsider, he maybe wouldn't have to feel his wrath this time. 

“Dan-Dandy please just- just- please please please for-.. Forgive me Dandy just.. - I'm so sorry I'm so, so, so sorry please just don't- just don't hurt me I'm so sorry please just please please please forgive m-”

Astro's panicked ranting was interrupted by a sharp kick straight to the head. It was harsh and mean, hitting Astro straight in the forehead and making him fall onto his back. 

“Oh shut up will you? You're being pathetic.”

Astro couldn't even get a word out, simply breathing harshly in and out as he felt tears start to form. It was going to happen again, he'd have to deal with all of it, Dandy would never take pity or mercy on him, he's just stuck here until it end-

Astro suddenly felt himself unable to breathe, his oxygen circulation being cut off completely as he felt a crushing pressure on his neck. Dandy kept his shoe right on Astro's throat, not letting him get a second of relief. He simply looked down at Astro, expression cold and emotionless, with a visible red tint in his eye. 

“Did you honestly think I wouldn't find some sort of key to this place? I mean come on Astro I'm the fucking boss of this place for gods sake.”

Dandy pressed down harder, Astro not even being able to gasp for air. He felt as if he was going to faint any second, the pressure unrelenting and ruthless. 

“Oh what, you're gonna faint? Gonna run away again huh? From your own mistakes? From me Astro? You wanna run away?”

Dandy leaned in closer to his face, staring right into his soul as he wiped away one of his tears, the action feeling less comforting and more humiliating, like he's making fun of Astro for crying over something like this. 

“You wanna run away from me Moonie? I take great offense to that, you know. I can stand on your neck as long as I need to, so you don't run away, you get that right? Do you wanna run away now, huh?”

Astro could barely comprehend what Dandy was saying at this point, mind going foggy and his vision failing, but he knew that he had to answer or things would only get worse. 

“.... N.. N-o…”

It was practically impossible to talk, yet with the last of his breath he managed to whisper a response, the pain in his lungs immeasurable. 

“Good.”

Dandy suddenly lifted his shoe from Astro's neck, the other immediately gasping for air. It hurt to even take a single breath in, but Astro didn't care, and just kept struggling for air and writhing on the ground. He didn't even notice Dandy standing right by him, looking down at him with those same emotionless eyes, but a little smirk was now planted on his face, getting some kind of malicious enjoyment from seeing Astro's pain. 

“There, that looks better on you. That's where you're supposed to be, on the ground, below me, unable to be a brat and fight back.”

Astro didn't want to listen to Dandy's words, his taunts, his insults, but he had no choice. Even through the sound of his own ragged and pained breathing he could hear each and every syllable perfectly. And honestly, they all got to him. The thought of freedom, of getting to live happily with Dazzle by his side was completely forgotten, it sounded stupid and idiotic, completely unimaginable as long as Dandy was here to hold him down and put him in his place. 

Astro felt himself getting lifted up off of the ground by the scruff of his blanket, completely face to face with Dandy. This is what he had to pay for his actions, and there was no way to end it, to end all of this, so he didn't fight back and just let Dandy lift him up as if he's just an object. He was terrified as he looked right into the tiny red circles in Dandy's eyes. He almost felt as if they were hypnotizing him further, telling him to obey, to just do whatever Dandy asked like every other time. He'd never be nothing more than a sad dog, a toy that Dandy could discard whenever and which had to be beaten if they acted out, because hey, dogs can become too weak to keep disobeying if you hit it hard enough, right? 

“But with this whole ‘locking yourself in the library’ trick, it's obvious you don't think the same.”

Astro was too busy staring into Dandy's eyes and wallowing in his own miserable thoughts to even realize Dandy was speaking, and the other noticed this as he watched Astro snap back to reality. Dandy used his other arm, not holding Astro up to grab onto the side of his face, grabbing his eyelids and forcing his one eye open. 

“Hey, look at me while I'm talking. See, this is the problem. You're being real disobedient. That's unusual from you Astro, I still remember hearing you walking away.”

Suddenly, Dandy threw Astro by his neck, sending him backwards and making the back of his head collide with the bookshelf. He simply fell down onto the ground, staining the floors with the ichor coming from the back of his head. Dandy didn't even react to the blood, just walking right back up to his limp body lying on the ground. 

“This is your fault, you know. You could've just listened to me and come out of the library when I asked you to, but it seems I gotta beat some sense into you so you understand that.”

Dandy lifted Astro's head up from the ground with the tip of his shoe, just looking down with a blank expression at the other's bloodied and bruised face. He kicked him square in the face, making the back of his head collide again with the same bookshelf as before. As Astro fell to the ground again, looking like a lifeless corpse, Dandy kicked him in the stomach, and he kicked again, and again, and again, and again and again and again-

But he stopped. Astro had stopped breathing loudly a little while ago, and Dandy just looked back down at his body, simply waiting for any movement, when he saw none, he spoke up. 

“Are you still breathing?”

He obviously didn't get a verbal response, Astro's vocal cords and lungs being way too damaged to get a single word out at the moment. Instead, the best he could do was a single movement of a finger, his body being in too much pain to do anything else. Dandy just crouched down, observing the finger. 

“Hm, alright.”

Everything went quiet. Astro started to come back to reality, realizing just how terribly his head hurt. He was losing ichor fast, his hat not being enough to cover the wound or the rivers of ichor flooding out of the wound right onto the clean floors. His stomach was damaged horribly, most likely having broken one or more ribs. His lungs were barely functioning, but his throat hurt too much to even get all of his missing oxygen back, so all he could do was silently breathe and try to get it all back, slowly and painfully. He hadn't screamed or yelled a single time during the entire time, his body having learned to not do that around Dandy a long time ago, as he wasn't a big fan of screamers, and would make sure to teach those who are to cut it out in fear of even worse punishment. 

Astro felt a sensation around his hand. It had gone numb some time ago but he felt the touch of it getting grabbed, the touch of Dandy's hand, grabbing onto that one finger he had moved to signal he was still alive. Astro couldn't even look up at Dandy to see what he was doing, and could only shut his eyes tight and try to ignore the feeling of the other grabbing his wrist and starting to pull his one finger to the left. Astro had realized what was going to happen, but he was too weak to stop it, so he could only try to somehow silence the sound of flesh and bone slowly twisting under Dandy's grip. 

“Any sign of life can be used as a sign of rebellion later. You have to squash it out before it can come back to bite you.”

It was hard not to scream, not to cry and wail as Astro felt his finger twist and crack, bone breaking, the finger immediately falling limp when Dandy let go of it. But he had to stay quiet, had to not make a sound, the only thing not being silenced being a light, high whimper of pain. Dandy heard the sound but didn't react, simply looking back at Astro's body lying on the ground, finger broken and covered in ichor, only slightly shaking due to higher vibrations requiring too much energy, energy that Astro didn't have. 

Dandy grabbed the top of Astro's head, pulling it back to reveal his face again. Astro's eyes were completely unfocused, mouth dripping ichor into another pool on the ground, tears slowly streaming down idly. He practically looked like a corpse, mind shutting down from the abuse. Even if Astro obviously wasn't properly actually looking at Dandy, it was the thought that counted, because even if his eyes didn't show it, Dandy knew that Astro would listen to every word, he had never failed at that even in states like these. 

“Listen here. I'm giving you one day to get back to your senses and leave. I'll come get you tomorrow, so I suggest cooperating and getting over this weird tantrum, because I will drag you out of here crying and screaming if I have to.”

Dandy didn't wait for a response, as he knew Astro couldn't vocalize at the moment, and simply let his face fall right back onto the ground. Dandy began walking away, knowing that his business was done here. Astro had stepped out of line, and it was his job to correct that, albeit using his own more violent methods, but hey, it had trained Astro to be very obedient, so Dandy saw the bruises and wounds as a worthy sacrifice. Astro just tried to listen to Dandy's footsteps getting further and further away until he heard the familiar sound of the library door opening and closing. He was safe again, well, until tomorrow, where as Dandy said, he'd come back to get him no matter if he complied or not. 

Astro felt his eyes beginning to be able to form tears again, his still aching lungs forcing themselves to hiccup and breathe as he quietly sobbed. Why did he think he would be safe, of course Dandy could get access to a key. He was so idiotic, he should've never hid himself in the library with Dazzle, or even hidden Dazzle in the library, maybe he should've never even gotten Dazzle back in the first place. 

Astro got his body to roll around, now facing away from the bookshelf and instead looking to the rest of the book aisle where he had just gotten beaten. He glanced down at the ichor pooling down onto the floor. He'd have to clean that up later, or maybe not, because with him having to come back now, then just Tisha could come clean it better than he ever could. 

Astro stayed there, laying beaten down on the floor for what felt like hours, but was simply mere minutes before eventually struggling to get up. Most would have to wait hours to be able to recover enough without healing to be able to stand up, but Astro had been in this situation many times before, he was used to it, though usually he could just go to Sprout to heal him with the same excuse of “falling down the stairs”. As he started to get up, his legs immediately started shaking, and he almost fell right back down into the ground, but he was able to keep his balance. He had to heal, he had to think this through, about Dandy's words, but not right now, because right now the only thing he wanted was to go to bed and stay there for a year straight. 

As Astro stumbled down the halls, breath starting to get more and more heavy, he started to feel fatigue come over him, as well as finally beginning to properly feel the pain all around his body. It was excruciating, but it at least showed him that he was starting to come back to sense. Astro had a tendency to “shut off” during his beatings, body and mind shutting down until Dandy stops. It was always horrible when he came back to sense, everything around his body beginning to hurt and legs exhausted to move after shutting down, but it was better than having to deal with that while Dandy was there to witness it, to further show how much power the flower had over him. He now began to feel the aching in his head, his legs, his arms, practically everywhere. He was pretty sure Dandy had heavily damaged something in his insides because it felt like his stomach was going to start bleeding ichor soon enough, his lungs were hurt and not functioning correctly, letting him gulp just about enough air to stay conscious, and of course there was the broken finger. It was maybe the worst, even if it was such a minor injury, because Astro still remembered the crunching sound of it twisting out of place, Dandy meticulously doing it slowly, ensuring Astro feels it all. 

He didn't want to think about it anymore, the thought of his finger brought back such painful memories that he just wanted to go to bed. Who cares if it was midday, might as well be evening because there's no way he's getting out of bed for the rest of the day after this. 

Astro struggles up the ladder to his bed, completely collapsing onto the mattress once he reaches it. He grabs onto the curtains and aggressively pulls them to cover the window, just frustrated he even has to do anything before going to sleep, causing himself to cry a little more in the process. It's difficult to get under the covers, much less find a position that doesn't hurt, but eventually, after much trial and error, he found something that was definitely a little uncomfortable, but good enough to let him rest his mind. He felt his eyes finally close, being able to let all of this go, and just rest forevermore. 

He awoke in space. Everything was mostly the same, the planets still too far away to even think of traveling to, still as calming, yes, but still as lonely as well. One thing has changed though, because as Astro glanced back up at the constellations, that pattern of Dazzle's mask had changed, twisted into a flower, with 6 petals, a large middle, it was obvious, that was Dandy. The only thing missing was that deceptively innocent face and it would've been like Astro's staring right at him. As he kept staring up towards the constellation, Astro didn't even realize that his breathing started spiking harshly, turning into hyperventilation. He felt panic settle in at having to see that shape again, as his legs began to tremble under his own weight. Astro wasn't sure if he was seeing things, but in his eyes, the constellation was creeping closer, the stars approaching at fast speeds. There wasn't anywhere for Astro to escape to, everything being too far away to be able to hide from it. It was intensely distressing, and Astro had a hard time calming himself down at all, each breath just giving away for more gasps of air. He watched it approach closer and closer, unable to do anything with its astronomical size, but just brace for impact and shut his eyes tight. Well, until he felt the sensation of falling down, far far down. Wait, but space doesn't even have gravity? But lo and behold, when he opened his eyes, he saw the constellation getting further and further away, and the planets too. He was falling, falling somewhere he didn't know, as this was supposed to be impossible in the first place, and there was no way to end it, no way to stop the continuous plummet down into nothing. Astro was a little terrified, but as he watched the constellation get further and further away, getting out of Dandy's grasp, he felt a weird sense of relaxation wash over him, simply just closing his eyes and seeing where the falling took him. It was impossible to know beforehand, but he'd get to figure it out soon enough, because sooner or later, he'd reach the ground. 

And well, eventually he did. Astro wasn't sure if he had fallen asleep or something else, but after some time, he realized that the falling sensation had stopped and that around him he smelled the distinct scent of prairie and meadow grass and flowers, yet he still felt like he didn't want to open his eyes. He still felt so sleepy, the grass and flora around him helping him rest comfortably. It was a very relaxing feeling, Astro already forgetting all the pain in his body, it's like they left with the wind as soon as he laid downointo the field. But eventually, something woke him up, something he hadn't heard in a long, long time. 

“(Hehe.. Oh Astro, you look just like Razzle..!)”

Astro's eyes darted open at the sound of the unmistakable voice of Dazzle. He sat right up and well, there he was, sitting down on the grass right next to him, mask uncracked, eyes sclera nice and white, Razzle still connected on, just taking a nap in the flowers while Dazzle was still awake, looking right at Astro. Simply getting to see their restored face again made Astro's heart jump. He hadn't gotten to gaze at their kind eyes, their intact grey mask with white tears perfectly painted on, and that rare smile that was only ever frequently seen around Astro. 

“(Oh.. Did I ruin it or something..? Sorry.. I didn't mean to make you cry..)”

Astro got confused at Dazzle's words, upset when he saw their smile fade before realizing that tears were rolling down right from his eyes down to his chin. But he wasn't sad, he was the happiest he'd been in a long, long time. He had to say something, had to finally interact with Dazzle after so, so long of having to accept him being gone. He had to hear their voice, had to feel their touch, anything possible. 

“No it-.. was a nightmare, I can actually thank you for waking me up from that.”

Dazzle only seemed to get more worried and grabbed Astro's sides, not being able to grab his arms due to his blanket. Astro couldn't help but blush despite Dazzle obviously doing it out of nervousness. He hadn't gotten to feel how Dazzle's hands felt non-clawed and soft in a while, and the closeness was so missed that it came practically automatically when Dazzle got closer. 

“(A nightmare? Here? What was it about if you don't mind me telling..?)”

Astro went quiet, simply staring into Dazzle's face. His mind almost short circuited, until in an instant, the tears came right back, and he desperately grabbed at Dazzle, starting to sob into their chest. He had never felt more relieved in his life, he couldn't keep his emotions stable upon getting to talk to Dazzle again, hearing that voice, seeing that face, seeing how much Dazzle truly cares and worries about him, it was all too much and Astro couldn't keep it all in when he was faced with Dazzle, the old one, the familiar one, and he had to realize just how much he truly did miss them. 

Dazzle looked worried and confused up in seeing Astro's intense reaction, wanting to somehow help with the seemingly very bad dream. They had no idea why Astro was truly crying, and just wanted to help their best friend.. friend..? Hmm, no, partner sounded nicer. 

“(Astro..?? What is it? I'm getting worried..)”

Astro slowly lifted his head up from Dazzle's chest, looking right up at Dazzle as he wanted to just gaze at his face as much as possible now that he could. 

“Oh Dazzle, it was a bad, bad dream. You were different and.. Dandy was there and it just felt so so so long, like I'd never wake up.”

Dazzle looked so upset to hear about how terrible the dream was, but still, Astro began to smile, his tears slowly fading away into nothing, further confusing Dazzle, but he spoke up again soon enough. 

“But.. I'm glad you woke me up, and that I can be back here with you now.”

Astro saw how Dazzle's face quickly changed from concern to shock, them blushing a little, resembling the dark cheeks painted onto Razzle. It soon faded though as they wrapped Astro into a tight hug, wanting to try and somehow comfort the other. 

Astro almost teared up again then & there, the hug feeling just like the world's coziest blanket was wrapped tight around him. Dazzle was always great at hugs, Astro even debated that they're better at it than Goob, but nobody ever listened. Dazzle was never appreciated enough for their kindness and generosity, but Astro made sure to always be there, to give them every bit of love and affection they deserved. He truly loved Dazzle, he loved every single thing about them, and just simply getting to see them again felt better than any nap ever could. 

Astro very slightly released from the hug, just to grab at Dazzle's cheek. The toon leaned into the touch, nuzzling against the hand with a smile on their face as they closed their eyes. Astro didn't close his though, as he wanted to see Dazzle's beautiful face for as long as possible. This felt like heaven, a breath of fresh air from the torment he had gone through, he wished to never let go from the hug, to always hold on tight until his arms couldn't anymore, Dazzle would be his and he would be Dazzle's an unbreakably close bond, tied together foreve-

Astro's thoughts stopped as everything went dark. 

Everything around him turned black, the flower field was no more, the birds chirping happily from far away were gone, the sky was gone. 

Dazzle was gone, Astro's arms grasping at nothing. 

Astro didn't have even time to realize what happened before he heard a distinct and earbleedingly loud sound right in front of him. 

The sound of porcelain shattering completely, like it was blown into a million pieces. 

What happened? Where was he? Where did Dazzle go? Where did his heaven go? What-

Astro darted awake. He was back in his bed. His bed in the library. He felt the pain return immediately, in his head, his throat, his stomach, his whole body. He never escaped, this never was a dream, he was right back at square one. How stupid was he? Thinking he could just stay in dreamland forever? An idiot, he's truly an idiot. 

Chapter Text

Hi everyone!! Sorry if you got excited when you saw this updated and was met with this, I'm not THAT fast at writing I'm not no rianwritezzz updating twice a day yk LOL (no shade to rianwritezzz I actually fw you so hard I'm #1 severe regret fan. I mean. Ok maybe not anymore allat much but the fake dating era was SIIICCCKKK GET COSMO AND DANDY SOME POSITIVE INTERACTION HELL YEAHHH U GO KING!!!) 

okok so to the actual thing. I kind of came here to just maybe clear a couple things up. 

1: ohhh my god THANK YOUUUU TO ALL OF YOU FOR THE COMMENTS!!!! Dude whenever I see a new pop-up in my inbox I get SO EXCITED and when I learnt that ppl genuinely REFRESH EVERY DAY??? I?? THANK YOU?????? Writing is like recently been even more important to me than drawing so seeing so much support for my writing is INSANE and I'm SO glad that you are all actually enjoying the story n such!! There's so few long midnight tragedy fics I felt like feeding u all a little yk? 

2: So as some of you know, my upload schedule is... A little unpredictableeee... Now I'd kinda like to explain why that is. First of all I could actually write these a lot faster but I don't because actually, I don't even write these at home at all, it's all at school, recess especially. Now idk how recesses work in other countries but here in Finland we get a lot of recess time so I usually have about an hour total a day to write, and that's even if I use ALL my recess time that day to write. It's a little awkward but I make it work, and I'm just bad at writing at home anyways sooo.. 

3: what the fuck is going on in the fic. Ummm so I REALLLYYY hope I've not been TOO vague with my writing, so lemme just make a very quick recap of already revealed stuff. Astro went on a mission alone and found Dazzle, becoming a twisted. Now even though technically they have been "fully" twisted and it's just this weird contrived thing that I came up with where the process malfunctioned and instead of going to both Dazzle and Dazzle equally, the ichor went way too much into Razzle and made them literally explode, just leaving Dazzle, still hostile but a little more sane than your usual twisted, like a Glisten. So then Astro took them away and back to the library where he sleeps, and locked both Dazzle and himself in the library. 

Ok and Astro and Dandy are in an abusive relationship, platonically not romantically. I hope I made it obvious that when Dandy beat Astro it wasn't the first time that had happened and that it's an ongoing issue. The reason why Astro kept always sitting by the door was paranoia that Dandy would somehow get him for leaving him and walking away (which did end up happening.. Whoops) because of very long-tern conditioning to always obey Dandy's every word and listen very clearly every single time he's nearby. 

Uhhhhh class started so I'll have to leave it here sorryyyy but uhh just know I rlly rlly appreciate all the comments like they literally make me squeal irl (＾ω＾)

Bye and luv y'all!! :]

Chapter Text

What hour was it? Astro wasn't sure. Maybe midday, maybe midnight, it honestly didn't really matter, the outcome would be the same anyway. What's he even supposed to do anymore? Astro doesn't want to hurt Dandy, he knows he's too weak for that, ugh, this is all just so overwhelming. 

Astro had been rotting in bed ever since the incident, completely miserable and hopeless. Everything hurt just a little less, but the pain was far from gone, it was still just as torturous as ever. The whole area was dark, so it made it hard to tell if it was day or night, Dandy was gonna come and take him back anyway, so it doesn't really matter, he can't fight back even if he had the courage to. The toon had fallen asleep multiple times, but didn't remember any of his dreams after the one in the flower field. Astro still remembers it so vividly, Dazzle's voice, face, demeanor, worry, it was all so accurate, so realistic, so familiar that in that moment, he truly thought it was all real, that all of this had just been a bad dream, and he could go on to live with his beloved forevermore, but it seems the world had different plans. Soon this nice little “vacation” will end and he'll go back to the same things he was used to, having to comply to Dandy's every need and request in fear of punishment, still getting to hang out with the other toons yes, but also having to hide all the bruises again, and all the makeup and concealer took so long to apply.. 

Astro simply rolled around in bed, trying to somehow get even further into the mountain of blankets, hiding away from everything, all his mistakes, his responsibilities, just wanting to fall back into the dark, bottomless pit of sleep and not be pulled back out. It was his one safe place at this point. The library felt secure but now, that was all gone. Dandy could now just come and go as he pleases due to getting a key. God how did he not think of that. Of-fucking-course he'd have a key at least somewhere, he was the boss for gods sake, he can't be “locked out” of places that easy. His own dreaming mind was now his only type of escape, only chance to get away, hm, but maybe, Dandy would eventually find his way there too.. 

As Astro felt a single tear shed, he started to feel his eyes get heavy again, literally crying himself to sleep. But, that was stopped, and his eyelids opened back up when he heard shuffling near him, coming towards him. He immediately became terrified. Huh? Was it morning already? Is that Dandy? His eyes opened wide and his hands began to shake when he heard the sound of the ladder creaking. Someone was coming right up to his bed. He hadn't even paid attention to what time it is, maybe it really is morning. He felt the blankets on top of him shift, and with a deep, shaky sigh, Astro turned around, ready to face his abuser once again. 

But it was not Dandy, it was Dazzle. He had completely forgotten about Dazzle still being here. Dazzle simply sat there, on the edge of the bed looking down at him. They looked a little worried, but Astro, Astro looked lost in his mind. The toon's eyes were blown wide open, not taking their attention off of Dazzle's face, mouth slightly agape. How did he forget about Dazzle? He'd have to throw them out, make them run away and leave for good. Dazzle… Dazzle.. Dazzle. 

Dazzle.. Was the cause of all this. They're the reason he's here, they're the reason they haven't gotten out, they're the reason why Dandy got mad, they're the reason all of this happened.. 

Even staring at their oblivious face made shivers of rage wash over him. How was he so blind? It's Dazzle's fault. They made him stay here, they kept destroying the library and never paid him back in any way, and when Dandy came over, Dazzle was nowhere to be seen, they left, they abandoned him when it was most crucial. 

Astro had never let his emotions control his actions, but before he even realized it, he had sat up from bed to push them to the other side, getting them as far away from him as possible. Dazzle looked shocked at the sudden aggressive action, and was very worried upon seeing Astro's enraged face. 

“You..”

Astro's voice was quiet, almost whispering, sounding like he could barely get the words out over his emotions. Dazzle didn't know what to do, so they simply sat there like a dog, looking on in worry at Astro's unusual state. 

“It's you who did this.”

Dazzle got more and more concerned, eventually trying to approach Astro to hopefully help him calm down somehow, but was obviously started after getting a harsh slap to the face upon trying to come closer. 

“DON'T TOUCH ME.”

Astro yelled at Dazzle as he slapped them away, the twisted cowering back into the corner, trying to make themself look small and harmless, but Astro's rage didn't fade even a bit. His movements were jagged and flinchy as he spoke, looking as if he'd break down any second, as if he hadn't already. 

“It's YOU! It-it's always BEEN YOU! WHY-WHY did I EVER think this was a G-GOOD IDEA?!” 

Astro kept moving sporadically, each movement hurting so much, making tears well up in his eyes and his words become even more shaky and stuttered, but he didn't care, he was too enraged to even do anything about it. He'd had to endure such pain and suffering and it was all because of Dazzle, Dazzle who kept breaking things which he then had to clean up, Dazzle who bit him whenever they felt like it, Dazzle who showed kindness only once before going back to being strange and annoying, Dazzle who had left him behind right at the most painful moment.. 

“WH-WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO DO DAZZLE?! I-IM COMPLETELY HELPLESS! WHY.. WHY Di-didn't.. why didn't you.. Come do anything.”

Astro's screaming stopped abruptly as the tears took over, his voice turning quiet and pained in a heartbeat. He didn't even try to wipe away his tears, instead just intently staring at Dazzle, who was cowering in the corner. The sudden change of tone calmed Dazzle down a slight bit, approaching out of the corner but not too close towards Astro since he seemed to want nothing to do with them. Dazzle could only hear the sniffles and sobs of the other as he hid his face in his blanket, quietly muttering something. The scene made Dazzle very upset, yet they couldn't do anything, as Astro kept pushing them away. They weren't sure what they did, but the thought of Astro not even wanting them to get close hurt them, and it hurt deep. They weren't sure what to do, just sitting there and looking deeply at Astro's face when it peeked through the blanket. 

“Ugh.. I'm such a mess. I'm completely hopeless..”

Dazzle had a hard time understanding his words, but the tone told them enough, and they became upset at the self demeaning language, but once again, they couldn't come closer, as Astro simply shifted away, even further from Dazzle the second they tried to take a single step forward. 

“Just… just leave me alone..”

Astro slowly shifted their palm up and down in front of Dazzle, politely shooing them away, but to be fair, if Astro just wasn't so drained of energy from the crying, he would've practically screamed at Dazzle to get the fuck out. 

Dazzle looked on in confusion and sadness as they understood the command, and quietly jumped off the bed, wanting to give Astro their privacy. Astro simply slowly rolled back into bed, exhausted from his emotional blowout. He hadn't gotten to do that in so long, but honestly, it didn't feel refreshing or reliving in the slightest, and instead just made him further upset. He just yelled at his current only sense of support, but they deserved it, right? Or was that only what Astro was telling himself to justify his actions? He really was hopeless, not even being able to stand up to Dandy when it mattered, and driving away his one only friend in the situation right after. He's not even surprised why Dandy treats him the way he does, what with how useless he is for everything else. Whenever he thinks for himself, it always ends up going horribly, and this was no different. This sucks, he sucks, everything sucks, Dandy sucks, Dazzle sucks- wait- no, Dazzle doesn't, but Dandy does? He does at least, but what about Dandy? Ugh. 

Astro audibly grunted in frustration of his confused thoughts, just simply shutting his eyes tight and waiting for sleep to come. It was annoying and his body hurt, but he just wished to stop thinking and simply drift off, away from the world, away from his stupid and conflicting mind. 

It wasn't long until he opened his eyes and was met with space once again. But this time, as he looked up, there was not a single star, but only deep, all-consuming black. No more bright spots of light, no more constellations, simply Astro and the planets too far to reach. But as Astro looked into the distance for any sign of other planets or asteroids, once again, there was nothing.

A sense of dread started to overcome the toon as he realized how truly alone he was. The moon was floating in a black, endless void, without a single sign of life nearby. He had been forgotten, left alone, into deadspace, where nothing thrived, and nothing lived, but only him. Right when Astro wanted to get away, escape the troubling mistakes and issues that kept occurring everywhere he appeared, he was left in the void, left alone with only those exact thoughts to accompany him. It was horrifying. 

Astro started to sweat as the reality of the situation weighed in on him. Sure he was just dreaming, but how does he exactly.. wake up from this..? Pinching didn't work, shutting his eyes didn't work, simply just thinking of waking up did nothing. He was practically trapped in this endless void, and there was no known escape route. Would he have to stay here until he woke up naturally? Just floating here in darkness for hours and hours? The thought felt daunting, and the paranoia of maybe him having to stay here even longer haunted the back of his mind. 

Astro didn't know what to do, so he simply shut his eyes tight and tried to calm down. He didn't wish to open them as being met with the neverending black once again sounded horrible. He tried to think of other things to calm him down, things that always made him feel better. Creampuffs, books, the starry night sky, Neptune his favorite planet, winter's snow, icicles, tragic poetry, operatic singing, Dazzle-

The simple misplaced name caused his mind to swirl immediately into the recent incident, how angry he had gotten at Dazzle, when there was no way for them to control anything that happened. Could they really have helped in the first place when Dandy appeared, were they just hiding out of fear? Were they somehow trying to help him? Even if simply thinking of the twisted at the moment brought Astro pain, his mind didn't stop spiraling in theories of what happened. He remembered how Dazzle had been acting weird not long before Dandy came in, and was urging him to go back to bed for unknown reasons. Was that Dazzle trying to get him to hide away from Dandy? Astro began to get more and more confused, and the urge to open his eyes increased every second he kept thinking about Dazzle, so eventually, his eyelids opened back up, but the void had left, the darkness had been replaced with something very different. 

The first thing he realized is that he felt stuck, frozen in place. His eyelids wouldn't close anymore, he couldn't move a single muscle if he wanted to, and his mouth was stuck closed. It felt as if his body wasn't his own, as if he was simply seeing through the eyes of someone else. It felt the exact same as when he went to look at a different toons dreams, seeing through their eyes but otherwise not being able to control anything, so the strange feeling didn't cause too much panic, though he wasn't sure exactly how he had traveled to someone else's dream at a time like this. 

The next thing Astro noticed is that the environment felt very, very familiar. He was sitting down in a chair, pretty comfortable and cozying his arms on the tiny armrests. In front of him sat many toons on identical chairs next to each other. He recognized the craft siblings sitting right in front of him, Goob idly sitting and fidgeting with his paws as Scraps was chatting with Tisha sitting next to her. Astro heard the unmistakable voice of Finn behind him cracking another horrid fish pun to most likely Glisten, who he heard doing a dramatic scoff followed by some grumbling from Rodger to “get off of him”. Astro could perfectly picture Glisten dramatically falling on top of the magnifying glass to avoid Finn's “frightfully horrendous antics” to the others annoyance.

 It felt nice and comfortable to finally be surrounded by all his own friends after so long, even if he was never all that close to them. Astro couldn't even move his eyes, but the body he inhabited kindly moved their head around for him. They seemed to be in some sort of tiny stage area, actual theater seats exchanged for basic chairs lined up in two rows and a proper stage instead just being a large wooden platform with props scattered around. It was very low budget but felt kind of cozy, Astro remembered this place, how they'd sometimes have art showcases or tinier lower budget shows held here for the kids before GardenView closed down, but he wasn't sure why they were here now, with all the toons in the seats instead of children. 

Astro suddenly felt a tap on his shoulder, and as the body turned, Astro suddenly saw a very familiar face. It was Vee, he remembered how they used to hang out more before Dazzle showed up. Vee had a snarky expression as usual, looking on in amusement at the others' antics before some type of show seemingly started. 

“I've seen you asking around about that new sad guy that's coming out from their cave, you excited to finally meet em’?”

Astro felt a weird wave of nostalgia hit him at that line, as if he had heard Vee ask that exact question a long time ago. But suddenly, the body he was trapped in spoke up and- oh, that was his own voice. 

“Hey don't say that..! They've been gone ever since the place shut down and I never got to know them.. Plus apparently one of them likes reading…”

Astro started to realize what was going on as he heard his own body speak words without his command. Words that he remembers clearly saying. This wasn't just a normal dream, this was a memory, a very important one at that, and he was simply looking through his own eyes at what exactly was going on. 

Vee couldn't help but chuckle a little at the last comment, still keeping that teasing tone but obviously not being genuinely mean-spirited, and more a playful jab at Astro's excitement at finding a potential fellow bookworm besides just him and Brightney. 

“Wow, excited to find another nerd to talk with? Must be a special day for you.”

Astro scoffed at Vee's comment, trying to fire back himself. 

“Oh yeah, well aren't you like the ultimate nerd yourself? You're a literal machine!”

Astro and Vee slightly chuckled to themselves, and in Astro's mind he was so, so sure he had been here before, he could even predict what was going to happen next. Any second Shelly would speak up from beside Vee to reassure Astro about all this, and well, would you know it, it came true, because right after Astro finished thinking about it, Shelly popped her head out from behind Vee. 

“Oh and Astro, please don't worry too much about all this. We know how you are with public events and all, but hey, tonight the spotlight is going to be completely on that new toon, so no need to worry about it. And with even just coming out here, you're doing a lot of improvement.. so you should be proud of yourself for that!”

Shelly gave a bright, warm smile as usual for her, and even Vee's expression turned unusually genuine and happy, showing her support of the Fossil's words. Astro had not gone out much at the time, so with Shelly's bright and positive personality, she was already proud of Astro for doing the simple action of coming out to an activity for once, and that couldn't help but brighten the mood of even the Astro currently just watching all this back. 

The lights soon shut off, the room being left in darkness, and with that the chatter of the toons quickly stopped, with Vee turning her screen brightness darker and Astro turning to look back at the dark stage, suddenly remembering what's going to happen. A creeping feeling of dread overcame him as footsteps were heard colliding with the wooden platform, with Astro just desperately wanting to close his eyes, but the dream not allowing for it, making him have to come face to face once again, with none other than that certain colorful flower. 

Dandy was dressed for the occasion, mic in hand and bowtie placed neatly around his neck, but currently practically none of that mattered, as simply looking at his joyful grin brought fear coursing through his system. Even the Astro in the dream flinched back once the spotlights turned on to reveal his form, trying to keep his calm due to being next to so many people. Dandy's actions had started even before this event, so it was impossible for Astro to see him as the happy host and boss everyone else perceived him as even from all the way this back into his memory. 

Dandy tapped the mic a couple times, mirroring Vee's mic tests, Astro glancing towards Vee to see if that got a reaction out of her, using any excuse to look away at something else. Vee simply seemed amused at the gesture, the reaction making Astro feel more alone in his unease with Dandy being here. He knew that Vee and Dandy weren't the greatest of friends so hopefully her distaste could've made him feel like there was someone else that felt his distrust of Dandy, someone who he could maybe even one day tell his abuse at the hands of him to, but even a single amused look towards the flowers way made him regret his thoughts. 

“Hello to all toons present, it's me, the one and only! But don't worry, as I won't bother you for too long, since today I'm not the star of the show, but instead, I'm pleased to introduce you to someone new! They had been a scrapped character but we were able to bring them back with a lot of ichor, aaand a lot of help from our local scientific smartypants, Poppy!”

Dandy pointed to a seat in the audience, the spotlight suddenly shining on to Poppy sitting down next to Boxten and Flutter. She seemed nervous about her suddenly being in the limelight, but quickly gave a smile as Dandy said to “give her a hand” and all the other toons, Dandy included, began clapping for her large efforts in bringing back the scrapped toon, Flutter simply flapping her wings joyously due to not being able to clap. As the clapping stopped, the toons turned their heads back to the stage, and the spotlight was pinned back onto Dandy, getting ready to speak into the microphone once again. 

“So, you might be wondering, what exactly are we going to use this stage for? Well, this new toon just happens to be one for the theatrics! And thus their introduction will be in the form of a performance! So get ready to be amazed, and give a very special and warm welcome tooooo-..”

As Dandy kept speaking, footsteps could be heard on the stage, but due to the spotlight still being on Dandy, their body and face was unseen. Until suddenly, the spotlight shifted to shine brightly onto the toons. Astro was suddenly reminded of exactly how pretty Dazzle looked that day.. 

“Razzle and Dazzle!!”

Razzle looked very excited to be here, shining a bright grin to the audience as they clapped and wooed loudly, but Dazzle was more nervous, slightly hiding his face. Astro's body jumped back in shock, as at the time he had never seen a toon similar to them, and didn't think conjoined twins were possible biologically to work on a toon, but it was fair to say that he was quickly transfixed on the sadder one, who he didn't at the time know was named Dazzle. 

Astro couldn't help but begin to stare at the sad toon as he clapped. Both twins had special makeup on that day to make their introduction and performance all the better, one of Razzle's cheeks being painted red and their eyes having a diamond and heart perfectly drawn on, one being white and the other red. Meanwhile Dazzle had a nicely contrasting look, one of their tears instead being black, and a spade and club being painted on their eyes instead, one black and one white. Their outfit was exquisite, holding so many patterns, ribbons and lace all around, with the large red scarf laying on their upper body with a large bow right on the middle of it being the most eye-catching part. It was a lie to say that Astro wasn't absolutely enamored with their presence as soon as the light shined upon them. Vee spotting Astro's completely transfixed expression as she was clapping, and deciding not to say anything and only laugh to herself about it and maybe tease him about it later. 

Razzle & Dazzle gave a nice little twirl for the audience, before excitedly running over to the mic and holding it up to Razzle's face. Astro now realizes that it was definitely Razzle who was mainly in control of the body at the time, as Dazzle would practically never have such a bouncy walk. Razzle tapped the mic a couple times before speaking up, voice immediately loud and booming, demanding an audience, perfect for a theater actor. 

“Hellooooo everyone!!~ I am so excited to meet all of you! So my name is Razzle, and this is my amazing sibling Dazzle. We will both be showcasing our individual talents today, as while we both may have a knack for theatrics, we're both better at much different things, ain't that right!”

Razzle suddenly lifted the mic over to Dazzle, who was obviously not ready for it, as they flinched and stuttered as they were handed the mic. With a shaky grip they took it and spoke up, voice immediately very different from Razzle's booming tone, instead being very soft and quiet, stuttering every now and then most likely from the pressure. 

“(Um.. Yeah. S-so, Razzle's going to show their abilities at clowning and acrobatics, and then AH-)”

The microphone was quickly yanked away from Dazzle, being brought back to the others face. It was clear Dazzle wasn't done speaking, but they didn't complain at all, simply just looking back off to the side as Razzle finished their sentence for him. 

“And then Dazzle is going to sing a looovely song for you all!! Trust me you won't wanna miss it, as my bro's got the best chords I've ever heard!! Their singing voice is very dazzling, hehe, get it!!”

Even if the joke was corny, most laughed, as Razzle's genuinely happy and pure delivery made such a bad pun more enjoyable, truly fitting for someone with such a carny atmosphere such as the happy twin. 

As the crowd cheered, Dazzle clearly got bashful, angling their mask away from the crowd to hide their reddening face. Astro only found it all the more charming, not being able to get his eyes off of them as he uncharacteristically loudly cheered, excited to see them, especially Dazzle perform. It was most likely due to that, that for just a split second, Dazzle looked over and they looked right at each other for just a second, and even if Astro had already lived through all of this before, that single glance his way got his heart to flutter. Dazzle had acknowledged him, had noticed him specifically from the crowd before going back to looking at the side. It felt so special to Astro. He at the time didn't even know practically anything about the toon, just their name and a couple rumors, but the second he laid his eyes upon them, he knew they were truly someone special. The one thing Astro wished to do in that moment is just to get to talk to them, maybe just after the performance he could try.. I mean, he didn't want to ruin their big debut just to talk to them, he could wait as long as he needed to. 

After the cheering ended, the toon did a large twirl, and when they stopped, Dazzle's eyes were closed. They looked calm, almost asleep, which confused some toons, but Astro figured it out pretty quickly, as when the toon was given some props by someone backstage, even the movement of picking up the large bouncy ball and hula hoops was energetic and fast, most likely meaning that the happier twin, Razzle, was now fully in control of the body. 

Razzle & Dazzle quickly climbed onto the ball, rolling around slightly but with their history of theatrics it was easy to keep balance on it without any trouble. They soon took one leg into the air and pointed it high up into the air, the crowd amazed at their expert balancing skills. They switched from one leg in the air to two, now holding themselves steady with only their two arms, quickly switching to only one instead. This continued for a while, with Razzle changing from pose to pose on the ball effortlessly, the audience amazed every single time. They eventually got off of the ball to crap the hula hoops, climbing back onto the ball with the hula hoops now looped around their arms like wristbands. As soon as they got back on it, they threw one hula hoop into the air and bounced up on the ball, going right through the hula hoop mid-air like a dolphin at a show. The audience wowed once again. It wasn't known if a single other toon knew how to do anything similar to circus tricks, so it was something new to all the other toons to see someone so proficient and talented in very demanding and showy arts. 

The act continued for some time, with Razzle trying to do even harder tricks every time, going from hula hoops to juggling clubs to finally fragile plates suspended on thin sticks, throwing them from hand to hand and even balancing them on their face and legs, all while still steadying on the large ball, the crowd cheering louder and louder each time Razzle pulled out the next and even more difficult item. The act ended with an amazing finisher, with Razzle throwing all of the items used throughout the show into the air, and jumping up on the ball to collect and balance them on top of a different body part, hula hoops on their leg, juggling clubs on their arms, and the plates balanced right on the top of their mask, with only one leg on the ground, keeping their entire body standing. The crowd cheered for a final time, wooing and clapping as Razzle slowly took all of the fragile items into their arms and carried them offstage, but not before giving a bow to the audience, even that action done with a level of professionalism and experience almost no other toon had. 

After the twins walked away from the spotlight to go put away the items, Astro heard whispering start around him. Some toons were excitingly discussing the wonderful performance they had seen, with Astro hearing Glisten behind him immediately rushing to talk about Razzle's makeup not smudging a single time during the entire show. Astro was simply just sitting there, trying to listen in on the others thoughts of the show to pass the time, until he felt a tap at his shoulder. It was Vee again, with Shelly also tilting her head over to join in on the conversation. 

“Hey Moonboy, what did you think of it?”

Astro scoffed at the nickname, but thought about it for a bit while Shelly gave her opinion. 

“I thought it was super! Razzle really knows how to be the star of the show, just wish I could do that.”

Vee looked over at Shelly after her subtly melancholic comment, looking genuinely sympathetic. She didn't say anything, but just put a hand on her shoulder, which already seemed to spring her right back to happiness, Vee giving a warm smile upon seeing her happy once again. The nice moment ended as Astro finally spoke up. 

“It was very nice, and expertly done I guess it's just.. Those types of performances aren't exactly my thing. I'm not saying it wasn't enjoyable though.”

Vee laughed a little and elbowed Astro after his response, taunting him a little more. 

“Well don't you worry, cause we're gonna get to see your true love taking center stage real soon.”

Astro blushed at the comment, embarrassed at even the thought that he'd fall for someone so fast, wanting to bite back with his own comment, but both of them we're interrupted as the sound of a mic being tested came from the crowd. 

Astro knew what was coming next. Even if he didn't know it yet at the time, Vee ended up being true. Dazzle had easily become his best friend, his companion, his partner in what felt like the blink of an eye. He loved Dazzle dearly, and that love was about to take its first form soon enough as the twins walked back onto the stage, Razzle's mask now having it's eyes closed and Dazzle being awake. Astro went back to fully paying attention to the show as soon as he saw Dazzle's eyes, living up to their namesake and practically glittering in the spotlight. 

Astro was simply happy to get to see this performance all over again, even if it was through a memory. He hadn't gotten to see Dazzle dressed up so pretty in a long time. Dazzle was never a fan of costumes, unlike their sibling, and Astro never pressured them into trying any pretty outfits, so seeing something like this, which was so rare, made it especially eye-catching now after knowing Dazzle for a while. 

The sad theater twin looked really nervous as they held the mic to their mouth, trying to set it up on the little mic stand. 

“(Uh.. Hello everyone. So um.. Yeah.. I'll be singing a song for you all. It will have the assistance of a piano. Um.. What was your name.. Rodger..? Could you please, I'd appreciate it.)”

Astro didn't want to take their eyes off of Dazzle for even a second, so he only heard as Rodger quickly sat up from his seat and shuffled through the crowd to the stage with a cacophony of “excuse me”‘s. He quickly went over to the back and started dragging out a heavy piano, bringing it to the side as Astro heard a pleased sigh from Glisten and a “Hehe, that's my strong Rodgie-boo~” and a slight “yuck!” from Finn meanwhile Rodger sat onto the piano seat and stretched his hands, preparing to play. The magnifying glass looked over to Dazzle, who gave him a thumbs up, and Rodger did the same. 

A couple seconds of silence followed, with everyone waiting in anticipation. Soon enough, a piano tune began to play, sounding sad but still beautiful and melodic. Dazzle took a heavy and deep breath, and immediately the crowd was taken aback at their still soft but booming voice, making themselves heard clearly and loudly. 

“(The wind howls its feathers.. Until now and forevermore.)”

Astro was immediately completely transfixed. Dazzle's voice still kept its polite and light, soft tones while simultaneously having the bravado of a loud emotional lament. Astro swore there was something ethereal about their singing voice, like a siren's call from the rocks leading his ship straight to its doom. Dazzle closed their eyes as they sang, wanting to block out the idea of an audience as they simply sung their heart out. 

“(As its shattered wings.. Are dragged across the moor.)”

Everything else around Astro blurred into nothingness as he completely focused on Dazzle. Even the words of the song became a blend of vowels and consonants simply dragging him further into his newfound infatuation with Dazzle's melodic singing. Astro wanted to thank Dazzle, talk to Dazzle, hold them, hug them, kiss them. Astro would've snapped out of it at this point, but the thought of kissing someone you had just met didn't even seem stupid, not if it was Dazzle.

Even if it was just his memory, and he had already seen all of this before, Astro was practically still as amazed as he was the first time he saw this. Dazzle truly was an amazing singer, one with so much emotion and booming sound. It was sad they showed it so rarely, as every single song they sang practically hypnotized Astro into just loving them even more. 

Right now, it felt as if nothing else existed than Dazzle, singing their heart out for the enjoyment of others. Astro felt so blessed to get to see something like this, like he had won the biggest lottery in the world to even get to see a second of this. He didn't deserve Dazzle's grace and wonder. Dazzle was so unbelievably perfect. They were kind, smart, sympathetic, polite, beautiful, funny, responsible, skilled, simply someone who's perfect in every way imaginable. He hoped he could get to spend the rest of his life with someone so  amazing by his side. 

Astro felt a shift of weight somewhere near him, but he simply didn't care. The entire audience, Vee, and everyone else there had ceased to exist. Astro could barely hear the piano anymore as well. It was obvious the dream was ending and he was soon going to wake up, but for once Astro wasn't sad, he was ready to come back, as Dazzle was still there. Sure they were different, but Astro knew they had to still be just as perfect as before, and nothing could change that. He can't believe he had thought such bad things about Dazzle, tried to get them away, tried to make them leave forever. Dazzle would've never done anything to truly hurt Astro, and Astro now fully believed that. So as the dream started getting foggier and foggier, and the pressure near him increased, with a smile he closed his eyes. He truly did need this, he needed to be reminded of who Dazzle truly was to get over his anger. They weren't a backstabber or a traitor or anything of the sort, but perfect, a perfect friend, a perfect partner, and a perfect lover. And as Astro eventually opened his eyes he-

Was met with Dazzle. He was back in his bed, with the entire library being pitch black, only Astro's stars illuminating Dazzle sitting at the other end of the bed. They looked worried, sad, but tried to make no noise and just sat there, waiting to see what Astro would do. 

The toon slowly tried to sit up in bed, Dazzle already getting alarmed at the movement. They remembered what happened last time, so a single move made them flinch in alarm of possible aggression. But instead, as Astro sat up, he simply brightly smiled at the other and suddenly pulled them into a hug, gripping tight and not daring to let go. Dazzle didn't know what to do. They were completely frozen in shock as Astro stayed there, holding on tight, beginning to quietly say something to the other. 

“I'm so sorry, Dazzle. I never should've done any of those things. You never deserved to be yelled at or hurt by me.”

Astro remembered how he had slapped Dazzle away from him, and he could only be reminded of Dandy, how he hurt him, bruised him, abused him, and Astro never wished to be anything even remotely similar to that. He wouldn't let Dandy get to him, he swore to never lay a single violent hand on Dazzle again, and instead use those hands to hug them, hold them, massage them, pet them, anything they wished. A single tear came from Astro's eye as he kept speaking, Dazzle not doing more than listening. 

“I'm so, so, so sorry Dazzle. Please I'll never do it again, I promise, I just hope you don't see me differently after this. I don't want to ever lose you, not ever. I was so, so wrong to think or do anything bad to you, and I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me.”

Astro didn't know if Dazzle even understood his words, but he honestly didn't care, he just had to let it out, apologize to Dazzle with his soul as otherwise the guilt would eat at his heart for the rest of his life. 

Dazzle sat there, looking into nothingness as Astro's words repeated in their mind. Slowly, their hands lifted up to grab back at Astro, reciprocating the hug. They had no way of telling their forgiveness, but the hug didn't feel like enough, not nearly enough in the slightest. They had wanted to do this for a while, but I guess now was the time, they just desperately hoped Astro wanted it too. Dazzle nervously grabbed at Astro's cheek and distanced from the hug, instead looking straight at Astro. The moon had a single tear rolling down his side, his eye solely focused back on Dazzle's calm face. Dazzle took a moment to simply admire Astro's beautiful face, before eventually closing their distance in the form of a kiss. 

Astro was completely taken aback. The kiss was not deep, it was soft and light, but at the same time so passionate and genuine, that he completely stopped moving, stopped breathing for a couple seconds in shock. Astro never thought he would really get to experience this, especially this soon, but as soon as his limbs could move, he shuffled to get even closer, not letting the sweet moment end early. He grabbed at Dazzle's mask, wanting to grip onto it for dear life but also not wanting to hurt the fragile porcelain. He didn't deepen the kiss, it didn't feel like he needed to. This was all he needed, all he wanted, all he desired, so it felt wrong to move at all from the moment. The kiss was like a sign that Dazzle forgave him completely, and still loved him, their own way of saying “I love you”, ditching simple verbal words for something much deeper and personal. Astro felt so fulfilled in the moment, as there wasn't anything more he would want in the world than knowing that Dazzle shared his love, and this was as clear of a sign as he could dream of. He loved Dazzle, and Dazzle loved him, he was Dazzle's, and Dazzle was his. 

Eventually, they had to seperate from the kiss due to losing breath, Astro gasping heavily for air while Dazzle panted off to the side. As Dazzle tried to regain their air, Astro collapsed back onto the bed, spooking the other on accident. Astro couldn't help but chuckle a little as the rolled back under the sheets. 

“Heh, sorry Dazzy..”

Without even thinking about it, he had brought back the nickname he used for Dazzle back before they went missing. Dazzle quickly reacted to the familiar word, turning to Astro and laying on top of him, eyes staring straight down at the other, pupils dilated. It felt kind of intimidating in a weird way, but at the same time Astro liked the closeness. His embarrassment had left and he could just appreciate the comforting presence of the twisted. Dazzle made a little noise, similar to a cat failing to meow, and just made themselves comfortable on top of the blanket. 

“Oh, hey Dazzy, uhh.. What time is it?”

Dazzle instantly reacted to the words due to the familiar nickname, immediately leaping up from their spot to gently try and open the curtains without tearing them. Astro was met with the night sky, moon shining bright in the night sky. It was most likely around midnight. Midnight before.. Dandy. 

He didn't want to think about tomorrow yet, he just wanted to enjoy Dazzle's company, and thus after Dazzle closed the curtain back up, the toon held out his arms, looking as if he's asking for a hug, but due to him being comfortably in bed, it was more a suggest at cuddling. Dazzle quickly accepted the request, hugging Astro as he helped them get under the covers. Dazzle held on tight, being careful with their claws as Astro adjusted to get more comfortable. The twisted held tightly onto his upper body as they closed their eyes and began to quietly purr. Astro found the action absolutely adorable and simply held on tighter as he gently closed his eyes too, joining Dazzle in sleep. 

He didn't know what would happen tomorrow, but honestly, right now, he didn't care. At the very least, he had gotten to share this peaceful moment with Dazzle, a hug, a kiss, and falling asleep together. Even if he could never see his beloved again, if they would have to be ripped apart from each other, this moment would be in Astro's mind forever, he would carry it with him till death, and Dandy couldn't tear it away from him no matter how hard he'd try. He might be under Dandy's rule and subjugation, but if there was one thing he wouldn't get from Astro, it was this simple moment, this memory of comfort and love. 

Astro would never let Dazzle go, if not physically, then in his memory. Dazzle would always stay with him, even if only in his mind, and he'll make sure it stays that way, no matter how hard he gets beat down. 

Chapter Text

Chapter Text

Astro awoke in peace and calm. He did not remember his dream, as he had nothing to dream about. His mood was mild, basic, non-specific. His face harbored no visible emotions on his features. Maybe there was some feeling of melancholy at the back of his mind, but it was dulled out by the grayness in his fuzzy head. It was morning, and Astro knew what that meant, so he might as well empty out his emotions so Dandy can't take advantage of them. He was still simply laying in bed, and didn't even wish to look next to him to see Dazzle, not being able to face the reality of them having to leave yet. But, Dandy hadn't given a specific time, so he could come any minute.. And.. 

Astro sighed and turned around, looking at Dazzle's face comfortably sleeping right next to him. It was such a pretty sight, he wished he didn't need to let go of it. The toon reached out their hand to gently tap the side of their mask, Dazzle slowly perking up with a sound similar to a coo. Astro didn't want to say what he had to, he didn't wish to do anything and instead just let Dazzle lay with him in bed, safe and comfortable, but there was no way to stop this, so as the twisted looked at him, curious as to what he wanted to say, Astro silently spoke up, voice still tired from just sleeping. 

“Dazzy.. You have to go.”

Dazzle looked understandably confused, slightly shifting up from bed to instead sit up, looking down at the other. Seems they were much more of a morning person. 

“It's.. It's Dandy, he's coming back to collect me today, and he can't see you.”

Dazzle immediately recognized the name, and let out a frustrated growl, immediately switching from calm and curious to aggressive and ready to attack, but they were quickly silenced by Astro's hand being placed on their leg in hopes of calming them down, and it worked as they reluctantly went quiet again. 

“I know, I know, but it has to be done.”

Astro really hoped that Dazzle knew that when he said they had to go, he meant forever, so he wouldn't have to explain, as it would hurt to even attempt to say it out loud. And Dazzle might've, as they scratched the blanket, seeming frustrated and nervous, seemingly outright refusing the request. 

“Dazzle, you have to. I don't want-.. I don't want anything happening to you.”

Astro was trying to keep all his emotions in check, and to not start crying, but it was hard to keep it together as he watched how Dazzle got more and more stressed, claws gripping the blanket tight as they began to look around nervously, possibly looking for somewhere they could stay while still being able to be in the library, but they were suddenly grabbed by the side of the face by Astro again, who had sat up while Dazzle was distracted. 

“It-.. I know it hurts, but just, please, do this for me.”

Astro looked in horror as Dazzle's eyes began to blink rapidly, a single tear of ichor dropping down. He had made his beloved cry, what a monster he truly was for this. But.. it had to be done, right? He was simply protecting both of them, and sometimes doing that can be painful, it takes sacrifice, sacrifice that will have to be done in some way or another. Astro got shaken up as he realized how similar his thoughts sounded to Dandy's. Isn't.. isn't this how Dandy justifies his actions? How is this any different? He's doing the same thing, hurting others and then making up excuses for it later to make them seem better. How could he? He had made Dazzle cry and was somehow trying to justify it to himself. Dandy really had gotten to him in the end-

Astro's thoughts were completely silenced as he felt the familiar sensation of Dazzle giving him another kiss, still light and soft, but still just as real as before. He quickly leaned into it, wanting to somehow stop his thoughts as Dazzle graciously gave him the opportunity to do so. 

The kiss was much shorter than the last one, them breaking apart quickly, before Dazzle leaned back in to pepper a cacophony of little pecks to Astro's face, the toon becoming bright blue at the action. Astro was simultaneously very appreciative of the affection, but also confused, as Dazzle should be practically doing the exact opposite at the moment, right? I mean, he had just hurt Dazzle practically more than ever, and they seemed completely heartbroken, but seemed to already be alright now? 

Well, Astro's confusion was answered when Dazzle stopped, and the toon saw how sad the other looked. Tears kept coming out of their eyes, constantly blinking to somehow try and quell them. Their mouth portrayed a pained smile, trying to somehow keep it together. Astro felt how their claws shook with emotion as they gripped onto his shoulders. The pressure could almost be described as “painful” but Astro didn't care, not one bit, and simply grabbed Dazzle's face to kiss them back, not sure what else to even do except to try and feel that comfort of their lips again. It was sad, it was melancholic, but maybe, just maybe, if Astro kissed them over and over, it wouldn't hurt as much once he couldn't anymore. 

Right as they broke off, they shared another kiss, then another, then another, then a hug, and then one more. Astro felt like he'd never get tired, like every single touch of their lips against one another was just as exciting and wonderful as the first. But all good things must come to an end sooner or later, as eventually they broke off, and didn't go back for another. Astro was still pitifully trying to suppress his emotions, but couldn't help but shed tears looking at Dazzle's face, slightly calmer but still obviously pained to oblivion due to the oncoming separation. Dazzle didn't do more than simply capture Astro in a quick hug before they eventually distanced themself away, and began to open the window next to Astro's bed. 

Astro had a hard time even getting himself to look over at Dazzle, now seeing them slowly leaving being like a brutal stab to the heart, but at the same time, he didn't want to keep his eyes away from them for even a second, as this is the last time he'd see them, so he wanted to at least get an eyeful, until that wouldn't be possible anymore. 

The window opened with a creak, and immediately the cold air outside hit the both of them hard. The only thing that awaited outside was a cliff, a large unclimbable gate, and a long, unending sea. There was no proper escape from Gardenview, but Astro knew and hoped that Dazzle had some way of leaving, not being trapped here like he is. Dazzle looked outside to the vast ocean, and one more time back at Astro before leaping right out of the window, down into god knows where. Astro didn't want to move, not a single bit, but he forced himself to crawl over to the window and close it, signaling Dazzle truly being gone forever. That was it, they had left, and their one entrance back was now shut. He was back on his own, and soon, he'd be back with Dandy, back stuck with Dandy at that, and just have to bear it. Well, at the very least, Dazzle was if nothing more, than a wonderful, amazing experience. Astro doesn't think he'll ever feel the same way about someone again. Dazzle was truly someone incredibly special, someone so perfect their existence was a miracle, and the thought of meeting someone else like that was practically impossible in Astro's mind. They tried their best to save the toon from his painful life in the hands of Dandy, but they couldn't, and now they were gone, and things would go right back to how they used to. 

What does Astro do now? Does he leave on his own? No. That'd be giving in to Dandy even more than he already is, he has to still keep his ground, even if it was completely useless. He didn't want to busy himself with work, he didn't want to do anything at all, what was worth doing with Dazzle not being there by his side. So instead, Astro did what he always did, and simply went back to sleep. He shuffled under the covers, a little awkwardly and slowly since even moving felt annoying and pointless. Astro tried to get comfortable, but how was one supposed to be comfortable when feeling like this? He simply shut his eyes tight and wanted to practically knock himself out with a hammer if needed, just something to get him away from reality. 

Astro awoke in nothing, that same pitch black. The space he was so used to, so comfortable in, was now gone, and would be gone forever. This was his new normal, so there was no panic, no stress, simply boredom, as he floated around in the endless void until he eventually felt sleepy enough to close his eyes again. That space, the stars, the planets, the constellations, they would most likely never come back.. just like Dazzle. They had taken everything nice with them, Astro wasn't sure why to go on anymore. They were honestly the one thing keeping him from cracking under the unrelenting, burning pressure of Dandy's abuse. They were a reason to keep going, to keep trying, to bear the pain just to see their face one more time, but now that was gone. Dazzle was gone. Such a large part of his joy was gone. What would he do now?

Astro awoke his eyes to be met with the bright blue sky. The place seemed familiar. It quickly dawned on him. This was the field he had dreamt of with Dazzle, but some things were.. different. The bird's chirping was gone, the breeze wasn't as nice, and well, he heard or saw no sign of Dazzle, or Razzle either. His awakening wasn't as nice, but Astro suspected no awakening would ever be as nice anymore, so he didn't mind and simply sat up. The flowers and meadow grass were still exactly where he remembered, the sky clear and beautiful, but no sign of active life was there. He still felt alone, even in the comfort of the tall grass. Why was he here? Sure this was nicer than inside Gardenview's stuffy walls, but it didn't help his mood. The meadow felt empty, so much more fake now that he was there alone. 

Astro almost laid right back down into the ground to hopefully wake up, but he was stopped when he felt something touch his arm. It was cold and liquidy and he immediately darted his hand away out of surprise. The toon looked down at the fields to see a strange, inky substance flowing through the fields from an unknown source. That must be ichor. But did it come from a machine? Or... 

Astro didn't waste time as he stood up and began walking in the direction the ichor seemed to be coming from. The environment didn't change, the fields and meadows looking as if they'd continue endlessly, their pretty looks now being poisoned by the pitch black liquid flowing around like toxic oil spills polluting a beautiful ocean. 

Astro kept walking and walking endlessly forward, until he saw that the ichor stopped in the distance. He had gotten to the source, but it was hard to find it through how tall the grass was, almost even reaching his neck. Astro had to shift through the grass like pulling away vines at a jungle to eventually see what was causing the large spill. 

Astro felt like he was going to vomit. It was Dazzle's mask, paint chipped and completely cracked through the middle. The eyes were lifeless, pupils gone and replaced with dark empty pits. The mask was completely torn in half, the two pieces laying next to each other, ichor waterfalling out of the large gash in the middle. Astro could barely get himself to approach it once he saw how truly broken it was without gagging or similar, so disgusted at the sight and thought of this basically being Dazzle's head. 

Eventually, he grabbed onto both pieces, feeling the numerous cracks along the originally smooth and tender porcelain. Along the disgust at seeing something so brutal and raw, there was also a deep, gaping etch of sorrow. This was his mind's way of saying “Dazzle is gone, you can't get them back” and making him face that fact, even in his sleep. He couldn't escape the truth of the situation by simply going into dreamland like usual, he was forced to face it head on. 

As Astro began to slowly cry, tears staining the little rivers of flowing ichor on the prairies, his face beginning to resemble the makeup of his beloved, he began to feel almost lightheaded in a way. It seems this dream wouldn't last too long anymore. The toon clutched the mask into something resembling a hug, wanting to bid it a proper farewell. Dazzle was gone. And they will be gone forever. They can't be brought back. They can't be put back together. He's alone now. 

And suddenly, him being surrounded by a field of flowers started to make sense. They're his one source of company now. 

Astro tried to look over at the fields, but they were disappearing from his vision in the distance, the whole dreamscape collapsing slowly. Colors began to swirl and plants blur into each other. He was waking up, and he better prepare himself, because he's going to have to go right back to Dandy and the others. Led right back into his cage. Thank you Dazzle, for the effort, and the comfort, and affection, and love, and belief that you could get me out of this. But you couldn't, and I don't blame you. I don't know what you could've done without resorting to violence. But still, thank you, for everything you did in an attempt to just get me a better life. 

Astro looked down at the mask, practically the only thing not yet destroyed by his mind waking up, and held it close, whispering it something. It was stupid, he was just talking to himself, but really, he just wanted to give a proper goodbye to even a fictional version of Dazzle. 

“.. Goodbye Dazzle.. And thank you..”

He heard his voice begin to disorientate the more words he spit out, all slurring together into indistinguishable slop disguising itself as proper words and sentences. His eyelids weighed heavy like stone boulders on top of his eyes, his whole body experiencing a sensation similar to non-painful cramps, so he simply shut his eyes and-

When he opened them again, it was the familiar sight of the ceiling above his bed. It was time. Dandy said he'd come today, and it was most likely already mid-day, but he'd wait the entire time until Dandy had to come get him himself, he wouldn't give in. So Astro simply stayed put in bed, not falling back into sleep but not giving Dandy what he wanted, an easy win, to see Astro come out on his own accord with no input needed from the flower. He wanted to make sure Dandy knows that he wants to stay here, and not come back, if that wasn't already obvious. 

Some time passed, Astro wasn't sure how long. Was it like 10 minutes? Was it 5 hours? Who cares, what was important is the clear sound of the library door lock clicking echoing throughout the completely quiet halls. Astro didn't do more than just roll over and wait quietly, still not getting out of bed as the door opened and closed. Footsteps were coming closer and closer, the distinct sound of Dandy's leather shoes clacking against the marble flooring, almost sounding like heels. It was ominous, sure, and Astro would be lying if he said he wasn't a little nervous, but honestly, with Dazzle gone, most his emotions had left right with them. 

“Ohhh Mooniieee!!~You remember what we talked about, right? Now ya’ better come out before.. well..”

Dandy sounded happy as usual, his cheerful voice echoing all the way to Astro's bed. It was daunting, like a countdown to his death, but he still didn't want to comply. Astro wanted to make Dandy walk all the way over here, then he'd obey. At least get him a little ticked off, but not enough to get violent. Dandy called him a brat, so he might as well be one. 

Dandy never finished his sentence, thinking cutting it off was enough of a warning, but the lack of response, lack of anything was very unusual from Astro, so it was fair to say the flower was already getting a little annoyed with the attitude. 

“Oh man, I thought that'd be enough to get you over here already! But hm, maybe being trapped here for so long made ya’ lose some of your manners!”

Astro still didn't respond, and just listened as Dandy walked closer and closer. This was completely unseen, as Astro always came running at the first request, but losing Dazzle truly made his cares fly away with the wind, and he wanted to test Dandy's limits of a nice persona. 

Dandy stopped walking. He was in front of the ladder to Astro's bed, and honestly he was close to blowing a fuse at the sheer disobedience in show. His pupils showcased a tiny red glint as he stared right up the ladder. 

“Astro.”

His facade was completely gone, happy voice completely dropping to a monotone but clearly aggravated and commanding tone. Astro heard the very simple mention of his name and decided he had pushed the flowers buttons enough for now, as he'd most likely get violent if he disobeyed again. Astro sat up on the bed, dipping his head up from all the blankets and quietly staring down at Dandy. Dandy absolutely hated having to look up at Astro, it was humiliating. Who does he think he is? Up in that tall tower like some monarch, making Dandy crane his neck just to be able to look at him. He was supposed to be higher, more powerful, so a sight like this, seeing Astro look down at him, like he was some sort of pitiful little insignificant creature was humiliating, and he decided it's going to end immediately. 

“Astro. I'm going to count to ten. And in that time you'll be down here right in front of me, got that?”

Oh, seems he might've been a little too rebellious. Dandy rarely pulled out counting, only really doing it when Astro had accidentally ghosted him. He had never gotten to the end of the counter, but honestly he didn't want to, not even now, so Astro did as he was told, quickly shuffling out of the blankets and climbing down the ladder. 

He almost ran to Dandy, not wanting to possibly get to the end of the counter before he was there, as he wasn't sure how many seconds had passed due to Dandy counting very quietly, most likely on purpose. 

The moon didn't do much more than just look into the other's eyes, hoping that would be enough to quell his anger. And it seemed to work, as Dandy quickly smiled once more, but he put a hand to his chin, as if in deep thought, and quickly perked back up with an idea, the movement making Astro afraid of what's to come, as an idea from Dandy never goes well for him. 

“I knew something was off!”

Dandy’s tone switched back to a happy and cheerful one like the flip of a coin. Astro became confused, but his questioning was soon answered with a sharp kick to the stomach straight with the heel of Dandy's shoe, making him fall onto the ground and knocking the air out of him, leading to Astro writhing on the floor on his knees, sputtering gasps for air and dry coughs while Dandy watched in amusement, bright smile on his face. 

“There we go, that's much better.”

Dandy's tone was calm and collected, but not angry. It sounded like genuine happiness instead of a plastered on childish joy, somehow making it all the more ominous as Astro was finally starting to recollect his lost oxygen. 

“Alright, now get up.”

Astro was supposed to obey every command given to him, but not even counting his inability to properly move without struggle, he also just didn't want to obey. Dandy would have to put at least a little effort into it and not have Astro acting like some sort of obedient loyal dog who would jump off a cliff if he just requested it. 

“Oh don't be a brat, c'mon it was just a kick, you've had worse.”

Although it was just to undermine Astro's struggle, Dandy was right, he's had much, much worse, so his recovery period was almost miraculous, but still, he did not get up. Instead, Astro just sat on the ground on his knees, looking down at the floor instead of the other, clearly commanding his attention, snapping his fingers a couple times to try and catch the others eye. Astro did not care, not one bit, and just stayed put. Dandy let out a scoff and forcefully grabbed one of Astro's arms and lifted it high up into the sky, painfully dragging the rest of the toon's body with it, getting them face to face with each other. It's only as Dandy reeled back his other arm in a fist, seemingly preparing to punch the other square in the face, that Astro quickly looked up right at him, Dandy giving a pleased smile and putting his hand back down. 

“Welcome back to reality Moonie! Have a nice little nap there or something? Glad I could wake you up!”

Dandy was mocking Astro's refusal to look at him at first, his gesture of protest being silenced by the threat of violence. Astro didn't say a word, simply staring at the other with a blank and emotionless expression. He was holding onto everything he had left, and Dandy was getting tired of this continuous game. So he decided he should get Astro to obey again, using his own creative methods of course, as they always seemed to work so well on the other toon. 

Dandy used his free hand to instead grab at Astro's neck, letting go of his arm. He squeezed the other's throat, watching as panic started to settle in Astro's eyes. Oh how he missed that look. Dandy just stared at Astro's horrified expression in bliss, as a grin formed on his face and he casually put his other hand in his pocket, relaxing himself like he wasn't currently choking someone. 

“So, how long are we gonna have to do this for until you start going back to normal? Because I'll stand here holding you up for as long as we need. Ten minutes, an hour, five hours, it's all up to you, Moonie. And don't worry, as soon as you begin passing out, I'll lighten my grip and then we can go back to where we were!”

Astro was horrified at Dandy's determination to get him back to normal, he didn't even hear the shuffling near them which got Dandy's grip to slightly lighten out of getting a little distracted. But it was still enough to mostly stop his breathing, only letting him barely get enough to stay conscious. 

“Was that your cat or something? Oh, I should meet him!”

The happy words absolutely horrified Astro to his core, but he was able to calm his nerves when he remembered that Dazzle had left. It was a painful decision, but it seems Dandy confirmed it that it was a good idea in the end, and that he had in fact done the right thing, making them leave before anyone could hurt them. 

Astro hesitated to say anything, as he knew that'd end the whole situation and make Dandy let him go, but at the same time, he had never gotten this far before, and most likely wouldn't ever again, plus he could get just enough air to sustain himself. He wasn't going to say anything, at least yet, no, he was gonna hold out for just a little longer, show his strength in resilience to Dandy. 

“Astro, don't be a bitch and just speak up. You know I'll stop if you do, and I could meet your nice little cat! Wouldn't that be great?”

Astro didn't utter anything, instead just breathing painfully and closing his eyes, not even giving Dandy the gift of looking at him. 

“Astro. Open your eyes.”

Astro didn't do anything. He felt the grip tighten once again, his breathing now stopping. He felt as if his throat would snap under the pressure, but he wouldn't give in, not like this, he'd wait for however long he needs to until Dandy's finally the one to give up instead. 

“Astro.”

There was not a single lick of amusement in his voice, he was dead serious. Such stubbornness from Astro was completely unacceptable, he'd choke him out, he'd kick him, hit him burn him kill him- anything to get Astro to go back to normal. 

“This library really fucked you up, huh? Well don't worry, because I'll make sure yo-”

Dandy was cut off. 

Astro opened his eyes once he felt the ability to breathe come back to him. His vision was terrible, and his eyelids refused to open completely, but he didn't see anything else than the ceiling. Though, he didn't need to, as the sounds he heard were enough to alert him that something had happened. Now that Astro thinks about it, he thinks he'd never heard Dandy yell in pain before now. 

“AGH- What the fu- OW- GET OFF ME DAMN BITCH!-”

Huh. 

“What the fuck- UGH- EVEN ARE YOU? STOP- I SAID STOP.”

Astro didn't waste time, not even a second. It's as if he was a sleeper agent who's code word had just been said into an earpiece. He bolted quickly up from the ground and looked around in a hurry. He had never, ever, ever had an opportunity like this, and the second the thought even so much as grazed his mind, his impulses took over. 

Astro glanced to his right, and saw what he thought he did. Dandy was trying not to fall to the ground as he struggled against a very familiar toon, well, twisted. Dazzle screeched and screamed in anger as they used every opening they could to scratch and claw at the other, acting like a feral cat protecting its young. 

Astro needed to intervene somehow, and he knew the exact way. He'd never get to do this in any other situation. He felt almost lightheaded, like he wasn't in control of his own body. It kind of reminded him of being in other people's dreams as he simply couldn't do more than watch as his legs ran to one of the bookshelves. Books are too lightweight, and he can't just pick up the whole shelf. There's no stools around, and the emergency fire axe is on the other side of the library. Astro's eyes darted around at lightspeed, thinking of what he could use, until they landed on the edge of the bookshelf. The bookshelves were made of old wood, and were held together on the sides by 4x4’s. That could work. 

Astro gripped onto the piece with his four arms, leaving his blanket behind on the ground. He was weak, he couldn't rip it off, but as he desperately tried, things began flooding his mind, memories, painful memories. 

Astro wept on the floor as Dandy stood over him, tall and proud. 

“So.. What do we say when we do something wrong?”

Astro's grip strengthened, and he felt a before unseen harshness in his muscles. In the distance he could hear Dandy still struggling with Dazzle. He didn't have much time, so he began to try and pull it out somehow. 

The second Astro screamed, Dandy grabbed his throat and slammed him onto the floor, silencing him immediately by cutting his air flow. 

“No-no, none of that.”

Astro's adrenaline kept rising and rising, the anger coursing through him and the need to help his beloved in such a desperate time. He was too lost in his thoughts that he didn't hear the sound of the wood beginning to crack. 

He kept on kicking Astro's already limp body. Why would he not let him get a single break? Astro swore through all the pain he heard chuckling coming from Dandy as he kept kicking him square in the stomach. 

“Come on.. It's not that bad.”

The thought, the memory of that line made Astro's eyes widen, and his adrenaline spike like never before. He was out of it, completely dazed and drunk on vengeance as he completely ripped out the side of the bookshelf, carrying the large piece like it was nothing. He began walking back to the other two, an emotion before completely unseen from him now filling his veins. 

Dazzle got a square hit to the chest, causing them to flinch back and get grabbed by the neck by Dandy, who quickly began to choke them. But Dandy wasn't used to their confusing ribbony neck, and struggled to properly hold them down, Dazzle taking the chance to bite down hard on the other's arm, most likely breaking skin with his deep fangs. Dandy screamed in pain at the horrid pain, feeling like multiple stabs right next to each other. 

“OW-FFFFUCK!”

The words came out elongated and broken, with Dandy biting his lip in pain as he blurted them out. He shook his hand around, trying to get the other to let go. 

“GET.. THE-FFFFUCK-”

Dandy swung his hand forward as hard as he could, finally getting Dazzle to let go and send them flying into a bookshelf. The twisted crashed chest-first into the hard wood, almost sending the whole humongous shelf falling with them. They fell down onto the floor, just barely avoiding their mask colliding with the floor, definitely shattering it. They couldn't get back up, instead only look at Dandy as he quickly recovered, looking at the wound and scoffing, still obviously in pain, but the initial horror already fading.

“Ugh.. You really did a number on me.. Well, time to end this little scuffle.”

Dandy began slowly walking over to Dazzle, seeing there was no rush as they were clearly immobile from the crash, only giving out quiet whimpers of pain. 

“Finally seems you let go of those screeches. Don't worry, you won't have to do them ever again.”

Dandy was too focused on the pride of winning the fight to listen in for the sound of wood being dragged through the floors behind him. 

“Oh come on, there's no need to cry, it's just a minor bruise.”

Astro could've never had the strength for something like this, but the adrenaline coursing through every part of him gave him practically inhuman strength, strength which he used to lift up the large wooden block, almost as long as he is, and even wider than his arm. 

“Remember to cover these up, we don't want anyone seeing these, now do we?”

He'd silence Dandy from saying words like those ever again, he'd silence him forever. 

CRASH

“You're overreacting, now shut up.”

CRASH

“Dear, please, come out, I promise I'll do nothing.”

CRASH

“Moonie, don't be like that, it's not like you to scream.”

CRAsh

“I'm not afraid of continuing on if you don't shut your mouth.”

CRaaash

“I said cancel the plans. Aren't I much more important? Now tell them you're not going.”

Craaasshh… 

“When I'm back you better have this all cleaned up.”

crash. 

And eventually, Astro could control his actions once more, immediately dropping the wooden block. He breathed heavily, chest heaving and entire body exhausted. The sight in front of him was grizzly, so he averted his eyes to Dazzle, laying down, leaning on the bookshelf. They looked shocked, almost like they'd pass out. Astro felt a need to come to them, help them out somehow, just get close to them in any way possible, but as he took a single step, he tripped on the fresh body and collapsed onto the floor. 

The crash scared Dazzle, who immediately got up and ran over to Astro lying on the ground, disregarding their injuries and the body right next to Astro. They nuzzled Astro's side, hoping he'd get up somehow, but when they realized it wasn't going to happen, they instead carefully lifted him up by grabbing under his armpits, watching out for their claws. As Astro got slowly lifted up, he lazily opened his eye, seeing Dazzle right in front of him, looking more worried than ever. 

“I.. Dazzle..?”

In his blind rage, the thought of Dazzle being here wasn't strange at all, but now, he was confused. He watched Dazzle leave, right? But now they were back. Honestly, a lot of things were coming back to his mind. How completely exhausted his body felt, the discarded large wooden 4x4 in the near distance, and the smell of.. a corpse. 

Astro looked down and was met with the back of Dandy's head, bloodied and having a giant gash in the middle, going all the way into his brain. Astro gagged at the sight, and quickly averted his eyes, but the smell didn't leave. He just killed someone without even being fully there when he did it. He had just killed Dandy with nothing but a large wooden pole and adrenaline fueled thwacks and stabs to practically every fatal artary. You could see all the way to his insides due to how deep and large the hits were. You could see his bashed brain, his heart with a large hole in the middle, and how completely twisted around his stomach was. And he was lying in all of it. But he was too exhausted to move out of it. Instead, all Astro could do was reach out for Dazzle, hugging them tightly and starting to slowly sob into their chest. 

Dazzle didn't know how to feel. They had helped get rid of the largest problem in Astro's life, but at the cost of seeing Astro like this. They never knew that nice, sweet toon would be capable of such brutality, and weren't sure if they should be either terrified or proud of his actions. He didn't feel bad for Dandy, not one bit, but for Astro, for having to deal with the thought of actually killing someone. So for now, they just held on as Astro couldn't stop the tears from flowing, staining Dazzle's shirt. 

But no matter what, they had to get through this somehow. They had gotten this far, there's no turning back now. 

Chapter Text

Hi everyone! Yep you have to listen to my yapping again... But I've just come here to announce something about the future chapters. 

So uhhh, we're coming to the end of the fic! Yep, we're almost at the home run!! There's only about 1 or 2 chapters after this, depending on where I put the smut because uhh.. Yeahhhh.. About that!! Okay so time to admit something. At first, I decided I'd put smut into this just so it would get more attention since, well, if you take a look at the analytics of especially Dandy's World fics, smut genuinely gets like 5 TIMES MORE ATTENTION, and I didn't want my writing and effort to go to waste cuz nobody would look at it. But don't worry, I'm not like scamming you all or anything, the smut is still coming, just might.. take a bit.. cuz I've never actually written any before.. 

Anyway, yeah, the smut might be it's own bonus chapter, meaning there's 2 chapters still coming, OR it's included in the finale chapter, which would mean the next one is the last one??? Huh??? Yeah I can't rly believe it either.. 

Also, about last chapter. Dazzle's return will be explained next chapter, don't worry, and yep, Astro killed Dandy! I genuinely am unable to tell if my writing is TOO vague and weirdly written so I kinda feel the need to make sure that we all know that yep, Astro killed Dandy by beating him to death with a large wooden 4x4 taken from one of the bookshelves, and he had an adrenaline rush from rage at Dandy building up in a climactic moment, and memories of his abuse flooding his mind, similar to how someone's life would flash before their eyes. 

Uhhh yeah, I gotta go now, but once again, thank you SSSOOOOO much for the support!! I'll leave my straw.page in the end notes if you wanna ask me stuff anonymously or draw little thingies related to the fic or just anything in general!!! That would be awesomeeee!! :D I'll answer them on a seperate page there if there's need for that, orrr would you just prefer a different straw.page altogether for the fic? Pls lemme know!! :] anyway, yeah, thanks for staying with me for so long through this, and I wish you all a wonderful day and patience waiting for the next chapter, luv y'all!!! <3 

Chapter Text

Yep, sorry to dissapoint but this isn't the new chapter :[ I'm still trying to work on it but for some reason I've had a little less energy to do it during this week, so you might even have to wait till next week, but HOPEFULLY though unlikely, I might be able to get it out by this week. But for the time being, I wanna ask some things. So uhh,,, would you like to see something more from this fic? Would y'all like art? A playlist (I like making them :3)? Some type of sequel? I've been thinking that if I still have the motivation to write for this after I finish it, I can make a sequel with less plot but more character interaction and maybe some more smut too?? Kinda like a oneshot collection but with this au's version of midnighttragedy. Once again I'm really sorry to keep you waiting for so long and then come back with this instead of actual content, but trust me when I say I'm trying my best!! 

Anyway, luv y'all and baaiii!! :]

Chapter Text

 “Do we just…”

Astro crouched down on the marble floor, hands by the still fresh body's legs. He didn't wish to be near its face, as even the sight of it brought bile rising up in his stomach fast. Instead, he looked over at Dazzle, sitting down next to the other side of the body, simply observing the cuts and bruises. Though their attention was quickly caught on Astro as he spoke up. In all honesty, Dazzle had no idea what to do, and Astro seemingly didn't either, I mean, they had never done anything like this, Astro never even wishing to in the first place. It was a spur of the moment decision escalated by rage built up over many years. Astro wasn't sure if it was still justified, meanwhile Dazzle thought their beloved was completely in the right. Dandy had been a complete monster to Astro for many, many years, so he was simply meeting the consequences of his actions, his death being practically poetic, killed by the hands of his victim. 

“I mean, what do we do with it..?”

Dazzle looked on in thought at the question, closing their eyes in the process, before eventually opening them back up as an idea came to mind. They pointed to the body's legs before suddenly getting up and picking its arms up. Astro understood the basic idea of carrying the body somewhere, but where? Dazzle had a determined smile plastered on their face, to hopefully give comfort in the stressful and unusual situation. It was falling apart at the seams, but Astro still seemed to slightly lighten up at it, meaning Dazzle fulfilled their mission. It was a little scary how nonchalantly they were dealing with this, I mean, Astro thought he would still be crying and screaming into Dazzle's chest, and sure, he cried for a while, but eventually they faded. I guess you can't stay upset at killing someone so evil for too long. Honestly, Astro felt a little relieved, but he doesn't think he's ready to face that fact, instead, he's just going to focus on somehow taking care of this situation since his emotions have drained back to normal mostly. 

Astro, with a bit of effort, eventually lifted up Dandy's legs with the help of all his four arms. Dandy was much bulkier and some bit bigger than Astro, but I guess his four arms did eventually have use for something, which he was happy about. He wasn't a big fan of them, hiding them usually under his blanket, but Dazzle seemed to find them nice and comforting, so he wanted to maybe.. maybe hide them just a little less. 

Wait- back to reality. Astro didn't even realize he had closed his eyes in daydreams of how Dazzle seemed to appreciate his arms, but he quickly snapped back and lifted the legs up, the body getting taken off the ground due to their mutual effort. It was a little heavy, but Dazzle seemed to have a plan they could set in motion, so hopefully that means he won't have to carry it around for too long. 

“So uhh... where to, Dazzy?”

Dazzle gave an actually genuine smile at the nickname, and motioned for them to go forward, bumping the body forward which caused Astro to jump just a little, but quickly get the memo and start walking backwards. The twisted seemed to be leading them to the back of the library where not much except more old books and Astro's sleeping area was located, which kind of unnerved the toon, thinking of maybe hiding the body somewhere at the back of the library. Astro soon realized that the body left a thick and viscous residue behind as they walked the halls, most likely ichor.. they’d definitely have to clean this up before anyone else finds it, but the thought of having to touch it.. Astro tried not to loosen the grip on the body's legs as he thought about it, almost gagging out of disgust. He was never a clean freak per se, but still a bit fearful of blood and other gory things, so this whole situation was making his gag reflexes activate constantly. But he had to brave it out somehow, I mean, they couldn't just leave the body out, right? How would the others feel if they find out that Astro is a murderer now? I mean.. wasn't it justified though? Ugh, Astro didn't know, and he had to somehow stop thinking about it because it feels like it'll make his head explode. 

The two kept waking for a while, until they eventually reached the end of the library. Astro kept getting more and more anxious as they approached the ladder leading to his bed. What even was Dazzle planning? 

“Um, Dazzle, we're not putting him in my bed, right...?” 

Dazzle quickly shook his head, looking even shocked at the idea they'd do something like that, which thankfully alleviated some of Astro's worry, at least his bed would be safe. Astro was caught off guard as Dazzle suddenly dropped the other side of the body, it crashing onto the ground, somehow destroying it even more. Astro tried to ignore the fleshy splotch sound of it hitting the floor, but his attention was quickly taken completely away from it as he watched in confusion as Dazzle positioned themselves on all fours, backwards on the ladder. Astro was initially confused as to how Dazzle had managed to pull such a trick in the first place, but it got even weirder as Dazzle then proceeded to grab the back of dandy's neck with their teeth, start to walk up on the ladder.. backwards??? Astro had no idea becoming a semi-feral twisted would give a toon such acrobatic prowise, but maybe because of their twin working in theatrics before, it was a little easier for them. Astro tried his best to still somehow assist, slowly getting up on the ladder too as he held Dandy's legs. It was strange to be face to face with Dazzle as they were climbing up a ladder, but Astro wouldn't complain seeing more of their face. 

Astro wasn't sure what he was even expecting, since well, the ladder only really leads to his bed. But.. he trusted Dazzle, yeah it would be gross to leave the body at the bed, but he's sure Dazzle had a plan for it. But.. surprisingly enough, Dazzle lightly shook his head to signal a no. Where were they even going then?? Astro didn't exactly want to bother the other's very difficult looking task, but his curiosity and confusion overwhelmed him, and he asked another question. 

“Oh, uh, where then..???”

The slight anxiety in Astro's voice was evident, and Dazzle would've wished to respond better, but they couldn't do much, and instead just gave a tug upwards at the body, trying to go even faster. Astro jumped at the switch in pace, but quickly followed, not wanting to hinder the progress. 

After a minute or two, Dazzle's shoe, instead of touching another step on the ladder, stepped onto a fluffy bedding. They felt the shift and thus immediately kept backing up excitedly as the rest of the body was pulled up onto the bed and practically snatched from Astro's arms, who still stood on the ladder simply confused at Dazzle's jaws strength to pull an entire body up with just it's grip, but quickly ascended the rest of the ladder too. He was met with Dazzle positioning the body into a straight line, which grossed Astro out heavily due to the gross, fleshy sound that occurred whenever they touched near the stomach. As he glanced a little more up he realized that the window was-

“WHAT?! Dazzle why is the WINDOW BROKEN?”

Dazzle looked over in surprise at Astro's sudden screaming, but quickly understood what all of it was for. Oh yeah, the window. There were shards of glass around the bedsheets all leading to the window, which seemed to be completely shattered to the point it looked like there was never a glass in the first place. Oh god, how would they clean this up?? What happened in the first place??? He never heard any glass shattering. Oh this would take forever to take care of, and he would be so- wait. It dawned on him that even in such a confusing situation, one of his main fears was now gone. The one thought that would've gotten him to truly panic at something like this was “It's not going to be long until Dandy finds out” but now that was gone. 

Their time limit was gone, Dandy was gone. Who was there to be scared of now? Who was going to kick him to the curb for a simple shattered window? And more importantly, who was stopping him from becoming more confident and just showing Dazzle to everyone? Shrimpo? Astro couldn't help but crack up at even the thought. But the more he thought about it, the more the amusement started to fade, and a weird, adrenaline-like excitement set in. Dandy was gone, Dazzle was here, and he still had practically everything. They of course still had to take care of the window, but there wasn't a terrifying rush like before, and he definitely needed some time to recover from the actions he's committed, but he was justified? Right?.. Right. 

It locked in Astro's mind finally. Yes, he was justified. The conflict of the violent action faded slowly, oh so slowly, yet surely, into acceptance. He was protecting another toon, and giving his revenge for years of torment, and honestly also protecting himself in the situation from future conflict and-

Astro didn't realize he had completely zoned out as Dazzle touched his cheek to get him back to reality, which worked, as Astro's eye blinked rapidly and eventually it got in focus again, specifically at Dazzle's hand as it caressed his cheek. Astro wasn't ready for the sudden affection, especially at such an inappropriate time for something like this, but he couldn't help but lean into the touch, practically nuzzling the hand as it pressed against him. Astro almost began to be lost in another world of haziness and daydreaming, but he stopped himself this time, eventually begrudgingly getting his head away from Dazzle's hand, looking at the broken window.

 Then it finally dawned on him. It's as if a lightbulb flickered to light in his head, and the first thing he felt was stupidity at not realizing it earlier. He let out an audible “oh” as he finally understood what Dazzle was trying to do this whole time. Still a little unnerved by the sudden broken window, he tried to push that to the side for now mentally, instead to physically start pushing Dandy forward. Dazzle's claws and teeth were able to get a much better hold of him, and they definitely did have a lot of strength from the theatrics, but Astro's four arms made him a little stronger than the average toon so with a little effort, the body started to move slowly out of the window.

Dazzle was surprised that Astro had decided to just do it himself, as the twisted had seen his reactions to the earlier interactions with the body, but they heavily appreciated the help, and just sat back and watched as Astro did the work. Something about watching him use his strength was a little.. exhilarating. He always had his arms behind that blanket, but now, they were in full show, the blanket being discarded god knows where. They were kind of fascinated by Astro's arms, but honestly, also just found them attractive in a way. Wait, fuck, we're supposed to be disposing of a body, not thinking all lovey dovey about each other. Get back to the mission Dazzle, he's gonna need you soon anyway. 

And Dazzle was right, as only a couple seconds later, the body fell right down out of the window, an audible splat being heard far down below outside just a little later. Astro went right back to a nauseated feeling after hearing the sound, that sudden confidence gone, but Dazzle didn't mind, and simply crawled over to give him a pat on the shoulder for the help. Astro couldn't help but smile at the gesture, and soon forget all about the sound. It was crazy how in such a gross and uncomfortable situation, a simple action can make him forget all about his worries. Though, Astro doubted that he would feel nearly as okay if someone else was the one helping him through it. Dazzle really just did something to him, and honestly, he needed someone exactly like that because of Dandy.

Dazzle crawled right over to the window, smelling the cool air. It was already almost midnight, time going a lot faster than they expected. Lucky enough for them, it was the start of summer, meaning an open window wasn't the end of the world and instead was kind of just like a nice free air conditioner. Astro was a little puzzled though. The library window was on the second story, being even higher due to the buildings foundation, so he would definitely break his legs jumping down, and he wasn't any sort of great climber, so the toon just watched on as Dazzle began to slowly exit the window too, turning around and starting to scale the wall right down with ease. Most of Astro's worry was gone, since he'd gotten used to Dazzle's antics, and knew that they could easily survive something like this, but it was in his nature to worry about his friends, especially his partners, so he couldn't help but peek his head out the window to keep a closer eye on Dazzle as they climbed down the wall, the task being pretty easy due to their claws being able to grip nicely into the scratchy texture of the outside stone wall. 

“Uh.. You okay down there?”

Dazzle looked up at Astro and gave him a confident nod, before continuing to look down as the ground got closer and closer. Eventually Dazzle was close enough to the ground to jump down without any scare of injury, and as their legs hit the ground, so did their arms. I guess some of their animalistic instincts were still intact. Astro wasn't sure what exactly made them change out of their rabid nature into something closer to the original Dazzle, but he was happy for it nonetheless. Maybe he should ask about that.. 

Astro's attention was caught by Dazzle, now looking much smaller as he stood all the way down at the ground below. They gave him a large smile and held out their hands, as if asking for a hug. Astro understood what Dazzle was implying, and immediately began to get second thoughts. 

“I.. You think you're going to catch me??”

Dazzle was strong, sure, but Astro was incredibly skeptical they could catch and stop him from landing down onto the harsh concrete ground if he leaped down from such a height. But.. What other choice was there? Even if he was stupidly brave enough to try and climb down, he wasn't nearly good enough at it to succeed in something like this. There wasn't any sort of ladder or other entrance down there, it was practically a completely closed off area. This was a stupid idea, completely idiotic, but.. Astro trusts Dazzle. So the toon slowly sat on the windowsill, and in a shaky whisper, counted to three.. two.. O-onneee.. 

Astro closed his eyes fully as he felt the familiar sensation of falling. He tried to suppress his terror, instead just thinking back to that dream he had which was similar enough to this. He felt his clothes press onto his body, gravity and wind affecting their placement. He felt the sudden rush of wind on his face, the way his arms began to flail with the air as he didn't bother trying to move them. It reminded him exactly of when he fell far, far away from the constellation of Dandy, but instead of waking up in a field of flowers, he was met with some pain, a shock, and the feeling of arms holding him up. 

Astro's eyes darted open, and he was met with Dazzle's pained face right above him. They looked completely exhausted, which made Astro try to somehow help and just fall right out of their arms. It seemed the catch had worked, but not completely flawlessly. Astro scrambled off the ground to hug their body, trying to help in any way they can. Dazzle seemed out of it from the overexertion in their strength, but seemed to slowly hug back, enjoying the comfort Astro gave them. It seemed to be a genuinely large help as they leaned in more and more, looking as if they'd almost fall asleep right in his arms. Astro simply kept hold in the hug, not wanting to let go at all, instead just giving Dazzle time to regain their strength and energy. 

“Oh Dazzy... I'm sorry.. I promise you you won't have to do that again. But also..”

Dazzle was taken aback as Astro lightly let go of the hug to instead give them a peck on the cheek, staring right at their now dumbfounded face. 

“.. Thanks for the help. You didn't need to do all that.”

Dazzle lit right back up from the kiss, looking like it had given them a magical boost of energy. They gave him a peck right back, then nuzzled their head down near his neck. Astro loved the feeling, but he knew they shouldn't do this for too long, so with a sad sigh he spoke up. 

“Dazzle.. we can continue later I promise, but we have to get rid of this first.”

Astro shifted to stare at the body laying on the ground. They kept forgetting about it in pursuit of each other, but this definitely did deserve their attention too. Dazzle grumbled as they let go, instead walking back over to the body and gazing at the ocean. Even if they were outside now, they were still technically stuck. GardenView is mostly deep underground, but some of it you can find up on the surface, but each and every single one of those is surrounded by miles and miles of ocean. The entrances were also blocked a long, long time ago, so there was basically zero escape. The closest thing they had to an outside was a very tiny forested area near one of these tiny concrete spots by the ocean, and Astro was hoping that Dazzle would go and live there, at least get to pretend that they aren't trapped here too, but it was evident that they had instead decided to come right back. Hm.. He should ask about that too.. 

He focused his attention back to the body, and then to the ocean. It was an obvious option, but one thing stood in their way. A large and very tall chain-link fence stood over the freedom of the sea, possibly even being electric, though nobody had ever even touched it to test it out. Honestly, Astro wasn't sure if they were the first people ever to visit this area. The spot had practically nothing in it except the concrete they stood on and that view to the ocean guarded by a fence. It was nicely closed off, making it one of the very few places in GardenView you could find peace in. He heard nothing except the sound of waves crashing against each other, painted purple and indigo by the night sky. It was honestly a very pretty sight- wait, back to the task at hand. 

Astro looked the fence back up and down. He didn't want either of them to get possibly electrocuted, so climbing it was out of the question. Hm.. I mean, both him and Dazzle were pretty strong, they could try to.. Astro looked to Dazzle, who in turn stared back. The toon gave one nervous look to the other's body, trying to see if they were strong enough for something like this. Astro trusted them. 

“Hey so.. Do we try to, um..”

Dazzle looked just as nervous as Astro, but they nodded, and slowly walked to the body and dragged it near the gate. Astro bent down and grabbed the legs, meanwhile Dazzle held the shoulders. It's fair to say they were both skeptical this would work, but with their shared strength, they might be able to pull it off. Astro looked off towards the gate. A determination filled his hands as they gripped the legs harder. 

“Okay, on the count of three. One..”

If they did this, he'd be gone forever. No more worrying about Dandy after doing practically anything. He could finally be free, be confident, not so timid and shy. He could show his true self, a more confident, self-appreciative form that only Dazzle had ever gotten to see. 

“Two..”

Astro braced his shoulders and crouched down, Dazzle following his rhythm. This was it, he could finally be unapologetically himself. No more worrying to death about a single broken plate or an accidental bump of the shoulder. There wasn't someone anymore to punish and brutalize him for even the tiniest mistake. Not someone to keep him away from his friends and social gatherings to only stay with them and listen to their issues daily. Not someone to beat him down for not obeying their every word. Dazzle saw the flicker of light in Astro's eye as the two of them prepared for the final count. Seeing how hopeful Astro was gave the twisted a jolt of energy too, becoming more confident. 

“Three!!”

And right as Astro said it, they both practically jumped up from crouching and hurled the body up into the sky. The gate was tall and unforgiving, but it seems that their shared determination was able to come through in the end, as they both watched the body just barely make it over the clearing of the gate, and fall down into the ocean, creating a huge splashing sound and a slight wave. Though the water soon went back to its original state, becoming a beautiful mirror of the night sky once more. The sound of flowing seawater splashing against rocks was the only sound the two could hear, soothing their souls from the actions they had just committed. Astro kept his head facing forward, through the metallic gates stopping his escape to freedom, and right at the beautiful sea. He had only ever watched it through his window before, he never thought it’d be this beautiful without the barrier of glass. Dazzle looked forward as well, not wanting to bother the other in such a serene moment, so instead they just stared forward, brain conflicted on if they should feel at peace or the complete opposite.

They were frightened though as they suddenly saw Astro collapse to the ground. Their legs almost started to run to go and help the other, but they stopped as soon as they realized that Astro seemed just fine. He wasn’t in any sort of danger, but had just sat down on the concrete. Dazzle wasn’t sure what to do, so they followed suit, plopping their body onto the ground, still keeping a distance from the other as to not disrupt his flow of mind. Dazzle began to feel an emotion they weren’t used to, and before they even realized, a single tear dropped down from their eye as their mind was full of old memories. They remembered a specific scene so vividly..

Floor 7, projector room. Only two machines left. The twins had decided to go on their first ever solo run, mostly due to Razzle’s persuasion. It was weird to think that they’d be good at something like this, with Razzle taking forever to finish floors and Dazzle’s life being threatened if seen by even a single Shrimpo, but weirdly enough, they were doing just fine. They had lost one heart to a Flutter earlier, but Dandy mercifully had bandages in stock, so they were still at a full three hearts! In Razzle’s mind, everything was going practically perfectly! But maybe it was their naivety or inability to really listen well to others' problems that they seemed completely unaware of how their twin looked to be doing much, much worse. 

As the valve turned round’ and round’ at a slow pace while Razzle tried their best to focus on improving their less than stellar extracting skills, Dazzle finally spoke up for once after being silent almost the entire round. 

“(I.. Hey Razz’.. I-)”

“Sh, I’m tryna’ focus.”

“(Um.. but this is kind of.. i-important..)”

Razzle was usually very enthusiastic for conversation, but they were currently trying their best to figure out the functions of the machine that confused them so much, and even copying some of their twin’s movements of the valve, so they for once wanted to stay quiet. They didn’t mean to be rude as they told their twin to shush it, but with Dazzle already being very nervous, Razzle brushing off and rejecting their first proper attempt to say something the entire round felt like a very heavy blow. But this was important, they had to at least somehow stand their ground, right?

“Oookay in just a minute I just gotta finish this darn thi-”

“(Razzle!)”

It was basically unheard of for Dazzle to raise their voice louder than a barely audible whisper, so Razzle immediately jumped up in surprise, attention now fully on the other. They looked shocked, but not annoyed, while Dazzle was the exact opposite, frustration clearly pictured on their face.

“(Razzle, seriously, listen to me.)”

“Uhhh.. alright.”

Razzle wasn’t sure whether to apologize or what, so they simply complied, attention now fully off the machine. Little did either of them know, a skill check had just appeared right as they looked back at their twin.

“(I want to leave.)”

“WHAT?!”

And right on cue, as Razzle yelled out in confusion, the loud alarm of a failed skill check rung out on the machine, alerting any twisteds nearby. Both of the twins quickly shut up at the sudden sound, turning their heads back to look at the machine. Dazzle was about to tell the other to start running, as with Razzle’s speed they should be just fine, but they were stopped as Razzle instead suddenly screamed at the other.

“LOOK WHAT YOU FUCKING DID!”

Dazzle was caught off guard by the sudden rage in the other’s movement and voice, and tried to somehow diffuse the situation.

“(I-I UH-.. R-Razzle it really isn’t that big of a d-deal! With your speed we can just run away and come b-)”

“NO!! JUST- just..S-SHUT UP!!”

Dazzle was very confused at Razzle’s sudden show of unbridled anger. I mean, it was just one machine, right? The tragic wasn’t sure if they had ever before seen their twin this angry before, and all over one single machine??

“(I..Razzle...?)

Razzle tried their best to heave out a heavy sigh to calm themself down, but it came out broken and distorted, rage still clearly flowing through their veins, a simple deep breath not being nearly enough to let them talk peacefully.

“I was doing SO good for once.. I could finally be good at something else than just speed.. AND YOU RUINED IT!”

“(Because I was trying to tell you something important!)”

“YEAH AND THAT! WHY do you wanna leave IN THE FIRST PLACE?!”

“(Because I’m getting uncomfortable! I don’t want to be here anymore without the help of someone else!)”

“Oh my GOD…. SERIOUSLY?! What is there to even be SCARED ABOUT? I mean for Christ's sake Dazzle, you need someone to CONSTANTLY hold your hand or something?!”

“(Why are.. Why are you getting so upset about this? You're not usually like this, Razzle.)”

Dazzle's voice calmed down significantly, trying to not let their fear of the others anger show by instead calmly confronting them, hoping that the other would follow suit. And Razzle did calm down, just a little. 

“I.. It's just-.. Ugh I.. I wanna be able to do something other than distract sometimes, y'know? Everyone treats you like such a delicate and fragile thing that needs to be protected, but I never get ANY of that! Instead, they depend on ME to protect THEM! It's frustrating and so, so stressfu-”

Razzle couldn't even finish their sentence, as with both of their attention caught completely on each other, neither of them noticed the twisted Cosmo running towards them, quickly using its clawed hand to try and bash Razzle's mask right in from the top. It didn't work, only instead causing a large crack to form, going from their forehead to their mouth. Dazzle only looked in horror at their now incredibly wounded sibling, eyes dashing from the recovering twisted and Razzle, still in shock from what had happened, not yet even feeling the pain of the blow. 

Dazzle didn't know at all what to do, so they just reached with their neck, pointed tips of their head aimed straight towards the twisted, and knocked it down to the ground like a bull would a man with its horns. As the twisted was still in its short state of paralysis, Dazzle quickly turned to their sibling, who seemed to slowly be realizing what was happening. 

“(Razzle- RAZZLE! RUN! SOMEWHERE, ANYWHERE!)”

Razzle obeyed the command without a second thought, running away as fast as their body could handle. Dazzle had no control of the body this floor, so they could only rotate their neck to check for any other twisteds, but they seemed to be the least of their issues, as they kept almost tripping. Razzle had always been expert at maneuvering the floors with speed, but also careful expertise, so the constant stumbling on nothing but their own weight was very, very unusual, which only seemed to spur on the stress of the situation more and more. 

They quickly ran up the stairs, over to the projector, but on the final step, their body tripped, and the twins came crashing down to the floor. The blow hurt, and it was intensely dangerous at a time like this, with Razzle already being intensely fragile and weak. 

“(Fuck fuck fuck- okay, okay, no we can do this, just sit down for a minute. Trust me we can get throu-)”

Dazzle's frantic half-assed reassurance was silenced by Razzle coughing painfully, ichor choking out from their throat and onto the cold hard wooden floor. Dazzle just looked on in horror as their twins' crack grew, not focused on how a little one also formed on their own mask as well. 

“No.. No we won't.”

Razzle kept looking at the ground as ichor slowly dropped out of their mouth and fell to the ground like a string of saliva. Their eyes felt heavy, their whole entire body did. The crack kept worsening and worsening, Dazzle's also slowly growing in size. 

“(W..What..?)”

“We.. We won't make it Dazz’. Or at least.. I won't...”

Dazzle's eyes widened at their twins' words, not wanting to believe a single thing they said. No, no this wasn't happening. Not here, not now. They tried to look for something, anything to help, but instead just saw vines beginning to circle around them, wrapping around their wrists and ankles, trapping them in the spot. In their panic, the cracks began to form at a faster and faster pace, almost completely halfing Dazzle's face into two. They took one more glance at their sibling, and saw them barely even keeping their neck up, ichor pooling down to the ground from inside all the numerous cracks. Why was this happening? Had they done something wrong? Why was Razzle even so mad in the first place? Oh god no no no they couldn't leave this here with so many unanswered questions. At least give them a little more time. 

“(RAZZLE.. please-please-please-please just tell me why you were so mad- I-I can't just leave without knowing what made you upset please please at least t-tell that to me please please oh please ple-)”

Dazzle didn't even notice how hard they were rambling and repeating themselves, their tears taking over. But they immediately shut up as Razzle tried to speak, wanting to intently listen to every single word they could muster. 

“I-.. I already felt weird.. Before I even got-.. Hit.”

Oh. Did they.. do something wrong on the machine? How did this even happen? God, was it their own fault? Maybe while they were distracting Razzle some ichor got onto their ungloved hand? Oh fuck oh fuck it's their fault it's completely their fault- no, no, they have to say sorry, they have to apologize for ever doing any of this. 

Dazzle stared right at Razzle's shaking and breaking form as they uttered pleas’ and apologies over and over in hopes of somehow getting the others forgiveness for how much of a fuck-up they were. This was truly an unforgivable action, accident or not, and they should never be shown mercy and empathy for something like this, but maybe, just maybe, their brother could understand. 

“(Razz, Razz please please forgive me please please please please please please Razz I beg of you I need you to forgive me please please plEASE WAI-)”

Dazzle ended up never getting a response, as instead of giving an answer, Razzle just flinched before their mask exploded, ichor splashing everywhere. The floors, their body, Dazzle's face, even the faraway walls got some ichor on them from how far it spewed. Dazzle just froze on the spot, looking at the now empty bit of ribbon on the ground, the one that was supposed to be their siblings neck. Their crack only worsened, but they didn't care. They had just watched their brother explode from too much contact with contaminated ichor. The ichor on their face, that was Razzle's blood, their sweat, their tears. They only picked off a little piece of it from their face with their thumb, staring intently at it. 

Did that really just.. Happen? They weren't seeing things or anything. This wasn't just some stupid nightmare. No this was.. real. Definitely real. That ribbon was Razzle's neck, the shards of glass on the floor were Razzle's face, and the ichor on their thumb was Razzle's blood. What do they do now? What do they do ever? 

Dazzle only held the ribbon in their hands, not daring to ever let go. It could break in mere seconds, and they didn't want to lose any more of their sibling, so they clutched onto it for dear life. Their brother truly was always as delicate as they themself, and now Dazzle had learnt that, the hard way. A single drop of ichor to an unprotected hand was enough to derail everything into, well.. this.

They'd hold onto it for as long as they could. Silently, Dazzle's tears streamed down their face. There was no sound of sobs, as Dazzle didn't dare make a sound as they silently sobbed because of the loss of their dear sibling. They didn't deserve to get to cry, they should've honestly been the one to die. If they just were never here in the first place, none of this would've ever happened. But their cowardice took over again, and they just had to go and fuck it all up by interrupting their siblings important work to ask to leave. Oh how were they ever so stupid as to think they could call the shots and call for the both of them to leave just because they were a little uneasy being alone for once. Ugh how idiotic, how completely stupid, they should've never lived through this, just died with their twin inste-

Dazzle's internal self-demeaning monologue was stopped as they heard a shuffle. It was a twisted Tisha, the other on the floor with Cosmo. Dazzle had always been especially afraid of twisteds, what with their lackluster speed even something like a common was a nightmare as running away was especially difficult, even if they used the ribbon spool to their advantage. But now? Now Dazzle didn't feel an ounce of fear, but instead, red blood hot rage. How dare something so miniscule interrupt such an important moment? Dazzle had only a second ago been focusing completely on only they themselves being the sole enemy in this whole situation, but even so much as seeing a single twisted made that bubble burst. Now every single ounce, every iota of anger and hatred built up in their system was directed at the one Tisha who appeared in the wrong place at the wrong time. 

Without even thinking of it, Dazzle used the growing vines around them to fully impale the Tisha through the stomach with just a lift of a finger. They had no idea how they just did that, but they didn't stop to ponder for ever a second, and instead used said vine to hurl the Tisha straight towards a wall, anything to just get it to stop disrupting their grieving. They didn't look back as they heard an audible loud splat of ichor splashing against the wall, nothing really fazed them anymore, not even as they felt the ichor pooling out of their own cracks. I mean, why would you feel much of anything after witnessing your own sibling's head explode right in front of you? Instead, Dazzle just retracted their hand, and curled into a ball on the ground, hugging the piece of string tight as they slowly, very slowly, started to fall asleep. 

It was clear they were getting infected too. But that didn't feel important. It would be almost insulting to survive something like this after causing the death of the other, right? This was simply their punishment, and they'd have to deal with it. Who knows if anyone would ever find them, hopefully not, they don't deserve to be found after doing something like that. Instead, leave them to rot, to fester and mold in their own despair and consequences until some rats come by and eat the remains. They don't deserve much more than that. Sure they never meant for it to happen, not in their wildest dreams! But still, it was their fault, and they'd have to pay the price. 

“Uh.. Dazzy, you good?”

Dazzle instantly came back to reality as Astro seemed to become worried with the other’s feelings. Dazzle didn't even realize they zoned out in the first place, it felt too real to just be a memory.. Right? 

“You were crying..”

Dazzle grabbed at their own cheek to be met with, well, like Astro had said, tears. Since when were they crying? They don't remember doing something like that.. Ugh, is this how Astro felt when he cried? Their face felt dirty and sticky, they hated the feeling, it was new and unusual. They tried their best to wipe away all the tears, but they kept coming, and it stained their face darker, ironically almost completely covering their painted on tear stains. 

They didn't want to ruin the moment for Astro, but even the desperate attempt at covering up all of the ichor was only staining the rest of their face and hands further. It was annoying, and it at the same time had the issue of making them feel guilty. This was supposed to be a nice moment for Astro, but for some reason these.. memories flooded in and ruined everything. 

Those guilty thoughts kept flooding their mind, well, until they stopped, or more were stopped. They were silenced, not by force, but by the comfort of familiar arms wrapping around them in a side hug. Dazzle looked at Astro in confusion. They thought they ruined the moment, but now they're getting awarded for it?

“You're fine, you're fine, you're just here with me, don't worry.”

Dazzle kept telling themself that they didn't deserve this kindness for their misdeeds, but those words kept getting quieter, and quieter, until eventually their mind was empty and calm. Astro just closed their eyes in contempt as they kept their hold on Dazzle, the twisted eventually closing theirs too. 

The two sat there for a while, in the nice presence of the midnight ocean, together. For once, both their minds were quiet, and undisturbed. It was so relieving to finally live without a worry always at the back of your head. If it wasn't for Astro, Dazzle would still be stuck on that floor, wallowing in misery and self-hatred, and if it wasn't for Dazzle, Astro would still be in Dandy's inescapable clutches, never able to leave or even rebel in the first place, as it was the twisted who gave him the bravery fight against that monster. 

“.. You feel any better?”

Astro slowly opened his eyes once he felt some type of rumble come from the other, eventually hearing audible low purrs. Dazzle slowly shook their head, almost getting sleepy in the other's hold because of how comforting it was. 

“Well I'm glad to hear it.”

Dazzle saw a smile form on Astro's face, and was glad to see how they were able to make the other happy. His joy gave them joy, it was as simple as that. Though they did silently hope that Astro still wouldn't let go, and to their luck, he didn't move a single inch, deciding to instead stick to hugging Dazzle and not move back away. He didn't want to in the slightest, so if anything, the hold increased in strength. 

“Hey Dazzy.”

Dazzle simply tilted their head to show they were listening. 

“Uh.. Why did come back to save me?”

Dazzle opened their eyes in surprise and looked up at Astro, the other keeping his face calm and composed, even if honestly Astro was somebit nervous to ask something like that. 

“I mean, when I was getting taken out of the library. I thought you had left.”

Dazzle closed their eyes in thought at how exactly they should explain themselves. Eventually going over to grab Astro's hand. The toon was confused at the action, especially as Dazzle lifted his hand up and then looked at him. 

“Um.. What do you want me to do..?”

Dazzle made a shaky ‘s’ sound, similar to a cicada call, but for some reason it sounded a little broken and quiet. They then fidgeted with their hand, making a motion similar to.. A bubble popping??? Astro just looked at the other dumbfounded, until eventually he put all the puzzle pieces together. 

“Ooohh! Okay yeah wait.”

Astro clenched his hand into a fist, and then slowly unclenched it right back open, and as soon as he did, a tiny blue twinkly star appeared floating slightly above his hand. It was beautiful to Dazzle. They remembered how Astro used to make them for the other back before they went missing, back before this new form.. But weirdly, that unease from the memory didn't last more than a couple seconds, the comfort of Astro and the ocean getting them right back to normal. Once Dazzle was focused again, they grabbed the star from Astro's hand, and began to draw shapes and patterns onto its surface, using it like some type of drawing tablet. Astro didn't get why Dazzle refused to talk, but didn't mind if this was what the other felt more comfortable with, and instead just looked at whatever they were trying to convey through visuals instead. 

Dazzle drew a stick figure with some type of upside down triangle head, representing themself. Astro found it weirdly endearing in a way.. Dazzle then drew grass and land around the stick figure. 

“Oh, so you were here before?”

Dazzle only nodded their head and kept going. They drew lines coming from the corner. 

“Uhh.. What's that..?”

Dazzle tried to do some sort of quiet screech to better convey the meaning of a couple lines, eventually Astro got it. 

“Oh, like it means sound?”

Dazzle nodded. 

“So you heard something?”

Dazzle nodded once again, but Astro saw how a smile slowly formed on their mouth. The twisted was impressed by how easily Astro was understanding the simple drawings, it only made them adore him more, always so understanding.. Wait- no time. 

Dazzle focused back on the task at hand, scribbling the whole drawing away and beginning to draw some type of flower, eventually leaving it with six petals. 

“Oh, Dandy?”

Dazzle didn't nod, instead continuing the drawing, adding a malicious looking grin to the flower, and those same lines to convey noise. 

“Ok, yeah, Dandy. And you heard him from outside?”

Dazzle's smile grew wider as they nodded once again, and started a new drawing. This time drawing the upside down triangle stick figure looking angry. Astro didn't say anything, as he knew what that meant, and he only blushed a bit at the thought of Dazzle upset because of Dandy talking to him. And then as quickly as the drawing had been made, it got scribbled away for a new one, now depicting the stick figure in a weird.. Pose? Astro just squinted at it until Dazzle drew a square surrounding the stick figure, Astro visually showing the exact moment he realized what it meant by his eye widening. 

“OOOooohh! You climbed up??”

Dazzle looked at Astro amazed and nodded excitedly, super happy that the other understood the drawing. Astro found the others' excitement amusing, almost cute in a way, and giggled a little before letting out a deep sigh. 

“Okay, so, let me get this straight. You were outside, but you were able to hear Dandy talking to me, and climbed up that wall to come help?”

Dazzle gave a bright smile and nuzzled their face into the other's side, giving a much more affectionate form of a yes than just a nod or two. Astro wasn't ready for the sudden cuddling and was slightly flustered, but soon leaned right back into it, gratefully accepting such a precious gift of tenderness and devotion. 

“I'm guessing that's how the window, well, yknow..”

Dazzle just very quietly chuckled at the sentiment, neither of them even concerned by the window anymore. Wait, speaking of that, Astro began to remember something. It was a strange feeling, a little unnerving, but he had the desire to tell his beloved about it, so he interrupted the nice and peaceful silence, still keeping his voice quiet and soothing. 

“Hey Dazzy.. About that broken window.”

Dazzle seemed to grimace at the mention of it in such a way, sounding like they'd have to end the nice moment here to go fix it, but that didn't happen, as instead Astro began to talk about something very different. 

“Yeah.. It's um, well.. it confuses me. I don't think I've ever gotten over an accident like that so fast. I mean, I've practically already mostly forgot about it.. It's just, I'm not used to being this carefree. There was always that voice at the back of my head, yknow? Dandys voice to be specific..”

Dazzle let out a quiet growl at the name, but Astro simply pet their back to console them and kept going. 

“I had always freaked out at even the most minor inconvenience. It was horrifying whenever a single plate shattered or a shirt got ripped. It sent me into some.. Form of panic, and nobody could really console me. And well, there was a reason for that..”

Dazzle looked up at the other confused and worried at his words. They cocked their head as to ask “why?”. They didn't understand why something so small seemed like the end of the world. Their interest only continued as Astro rolled up one of their sleeves, showing their bare arm. Dazzle still did not understand what the toon was trying to show them, well, until Astro began to harshly rub at his own hand, uncovering something that made Dazzle's eyes widen in shock. 

Astro's arm was covered from top to bottom in wounds, cuts, bruises, scabs, all types of injuries imaginable. Some spots even looked burnt. Some wounds especially looked old and huge, as if they had been there for years but never fully healed due to how bad the damage was. Some even looked.. Fresh. 

“I was told to cover them up. I didn't know what would happen if I didn't, so.. I obliged.”

Dazzle didn't know what to do. They wanted to grab the hand, see them closer, somehow make them all go away, but there was nothing they could do, so instead, they only hugged Astro tighter than they had ever before. Clutching onto their chest and back for dear life. If only they still had their vines, as those would currently be giving a death grip all around his body. 

Why would someone do this? Inflict such pain? There was no way that was the only hand with such damage, maybe even other body parts too. It was horrid to think about. Was this really why Astro always wore long sleeves? Why he frequently said he's busy doing skincare? It was all just to hide the horrid abuse he had dealt with for how many years? It was completely inexcusable, horrid, soulless. Dazzle only wished to somehow hold the other tighter, to never let them go. Make sure they're safe forever. But at the same time, they wished to absolutely maul that flowers face off, somehow bring him back just to deal worse pain and kill him again, and repeat that over and over. 

But those violent thoughts were silenced by Astro hugging them back. All four arms clutching on just as tight. A little sniff was heard from Astro, as the emotions of having someone like Dazzle began to dwell on him. Having someone like Dazzle to not just protect him, but care for him, cherish him, appreciate him. It was all just a little too much,and soon enough, tears began flowing. But Astro didn't wish to stop talking, so through the emotions, he kept going. 

“S-..so I'm really..g-glad you've helped me through..all of t-that. Helped me..become a..real..p-person...” 

With a shaky hand, Astro grabbed the side of Dazzle's face, making them look up at his tear stricken eye. Dazzle only looked up in grief, but at the same time, adoration, at their lover, their beloved, their everything. Astro's one eye was squinting as tears streamed down from it, all his four arms much too busy clutching onto Dazzle for dear life to wipe them away. And that star on his face, oh how it twinkled so beautifully. It was blindingly gorgeous, but Dazzle didn't care, and only kept staring, wishing to never stop looking at Astro's gorgeous face. 

“S-... So.. Thank you, Dazzle..”

And slowly, Astro leaned in, and so did the other. They shared a kiss in the moonlight, neither of them ending it. They could make it through this, together. Sure it'd be difficult to get the others to trust a monster like Dazzle, but even if everyone hates them, everyone shuns their existence, there will always be Astro, who will never ever see them as anything like a monster, but a friend, a lover, a soulmate. Someone who's always there to hold you after a long day, someone to cuddle with when it gets dark, someone to enjoy a good movie or show with, someone to kiss when you need closeness. He'd make sure everyone sees Dazzle for what they are, a beautiful soul trapped in this mute body. He'd make sure everyone accepts them, and cherishes them just as much as they deserve. And if they didn't? Well ignore them then, as Astro wasn't going to let go of this anytime soon. The hug, the kiss, and just Dazzle as a person. He'd never wish to let go of them ever, not again, never again. Instead, they'd get to enjoy each other's presence, and comfort, and affection forevermore. Now, then, always. 

Chapter Text

Yep so uhh, hi everyone!! Now you might be wondering, hey Worm or whatever you're called, why're you making an author's note the same day you posted the finale? Well, dear reader, I'd like to address a couple things as I feel like I've left a lot of things unclear. 

Okay, first and foremost, if you have any questions about the fic, plotwise, character wise, more in-depth questions about the worldbuilding or future of the fic, or maybe even requests for what I could do with this au in the future like a sequel or more drawings or similar, then good news, if I get enough of them, I might do a qna! BUT!!! Instead of commenting them on the fic itself, please leave them in my askbox on my straw.page! 

https://razberriezzz.straw.page/

That way they'll be easier to categorize.. But yeah!! Also, to all you people staring hungrily at that "eventual smut" tag, don't worry, as I'm trying my best to hold up on that promise! It'll come out as a bonus chapter, but I haven't really even gotten started on it yet, and with me having never written smut before it's a little daunting.. So please be patient!!! 

And since I've been getting a surprising amount of people saying they might make fanart, please tag me on either my tiktok or Twitter linked below! 

https://x.com/G0r3w0rm?t=nUJAKdGrqAIdENcf7p9yGA&s=09

https://www.tiktok.com/@batteriezzz_?_t=8sAC7ehLSvG&_r=1

These are also linked on my straw.page, along with my other less used socials, and my discord if you wanna talk to me in dms! But I will admit my straw.page is a little confusing to navigate through so hopefully these can come in handy instead of having to trudge through that maze! 

Oh and don't think I'd leave you COMPLETELY empty handed, as you can have some little doodles I've made in school while working on the last chapter! 

Btw these are not in chronological order cuz adding images to ao3 chapters on mobile is HAAARRDDDD so I just gotta bare with me. But anyway, yeah, bye everyone, and once again thank you for all the wonderful support!! 

Chapter Text

Uhh.. Yeah, betcha didn't think you'd see me again! 

Over a month of radio silence, promising a couple new bonus chapters, and now I finally appear once again, and what do I have to give? Well uh... Not much of anything! 

Yeah, after my 2 week break, I kinda just have... Not been able to get back into writing at all. I've been trying to get back into it every now and then, but it just kinda never works. So, what's gonna happen in the future for waistd? 

Well, don't worry, the fic isn't exactly going on an "indefinite hiatus", more like.. " sort-of hiatus where I try to work on it but don't get much of anything done until a miracle occurs one day", so don't exactly get your hopes up for any new content appearing soon, except maybe a playlist? 

But outside of waistd, I might start another fic? It's of a very different subject matter, and is much more sexual and.. Disturbing? Kind of. Sadly it's not midnighttragedy centered, sorry to all of you, though it does include a different rnd-related pairing. Though I will publish it under a different alias, as I don't exactly want people to know I would publish such a thing.. 

Now, when will this new mysterious fic be coming out? No clue! Not even sure if I'll ever write it! But I feel I finally have the motivation for something, a motivation that I currently simply just do NOT have for waistd. But uh.. Look out for some RnD fics with... Brainwashing included??? That's the only hint I'm giving if I do end up making it. 

Anyway yeah, very sorry to the waistd crowd, I am still trying, though my attempts thus far have been futile. I'm very proud I've touched so many people with this stupid little fic, and I hope I can maybe do the same sometime in the future. I wish you all a wonderful day!