Chapter 1: Sleepy Sandwich
Chapter Text
The hotel was relatively quiet. Rush and Ambush were asleep, Screech was with Guiding Light, and Seek felt like he could relax for once. Reading was a hobby of his, better than nothing and at least somewhat entertaining. Unfortunately, he reached the end of his book, setting it down on the table next to him. Hmph. Slowly, Seek dragged himself upright, annoyance flickering through him. His claws clamped around the book, and he took two steps full of irritation before another thought occurred to him. Going to the library meant seeing Figure. Seeing Figure meant… Seek brushes that thought away. He’s just a friend. Not like anyone would like Seek anyways, right? He growled to himself, trying to ignore the odd buzzing in his chest. It wasn’t new. Seek had known Figure for a while, and he was always just there. Always just, well, Figure. But now it was making Seek feel nervous, like he was about to perform on a stage for the would to see. “Focus,” he hissed to himself, forcing his claws to move and walk, trying to conceal the energy that he was feeling inside. Why couldn’t this just be simple? In and out, just return the book… Seek stopped by the kitchen, slightly surprised to see Glitch there. “Oh, hey Glitch. You making something?” Seek spoke before he thought about it, slipping into one of the chairs. Glitch nodded. “O̴̼͖̦̫̫͕͋h̶̢̢̪̔,̶̟̣̪̒͛̓͆̅̕ ̷̛͔̖́͋͐͐̕y̵̺̓̈́̍̔̐e̴̗̣̬̓̔̀ą̵̮̀͠h̵̙̯̿̅.̴̣̜́͑̋̈́ ̷̲̊̐ͅÝ̷̱͇̕o̸͕̎̓̃ȗ̴̖̲̣̱̙̏̾͝ ̸̡̱͇͌̈́̉͜͠w̶͕̳͗ͅa̵̧̭̣̺̟̚n̷̳̍̀͌͐̒͘t̶̞̫͕̒ ̴̬̗̱̫̌͌o̷̝̅̒͋n̵͍̥̩̹̲͉̿̂͂͆͝e̷͔͙̩̝̽?” They hummed, and Seek nodded hesitantly. “Sure,” he sighed, “Why the hell not.” Glitch made a quick noise of mischievous contentment, asking in their best innocent tone, “A̵̡̽͑̄͆̈͐ȑ̷̡̠̣̕͜ę̵̮͊͜͝ ̴͔͈̣͊̔̈́͑͘y̷̢͚̠͂͊̃͊̈́̽o̷̯̓̇͛u̴̧͓͈̖͉̖̅͆̊̅̀̆ ̸̹̘͉̥͈̿̎ő̷̡̻͖͚̰̪n̵͖͓̰̾̓̔ ̴̡̼̹̲̦̔͂́̈̓y̵̜̤̠̐͌̎͊̕ò̵̤̹̭̟͍̻̀͠u̶̓̓̐͛̄͜r̵̮̉̑̊ ̵̧͉̰̄͒͌̓͑ͅw̵͍̪̾͛̍̀̋á̸̡̛ý̵̦̙͚̘͑̓͋̉ ̵̠͙̩͆̃̃̚ͅṭ̵̒͑̑̈͐ͅo̸̯̫̰̮͔̭̽͂͐͊͝͝ ̸͕̦̳̮͝t̴̛̝̻̙̜̫̯̔̔̅h̵̡̭̞͆̈́͆ḛ̵̢̤͋ ̶̹́͆̕l̶̡̺̻̪͇̤̀i̵̡̨̗̞̽̽̚͘͝b̸̬͊̈̕͝r̸̞̯̰̩̃̅a̷̲̗̼̝̻̅͑̅̌̈́͋r̶̭͈͉̘̬͐̃͌̃͘y?”Seek huffed. “I am, actually.” Glitch smiled as best they could, assembling the sandwich. An extra flick of the wrist, a dash of flavorless spice, and the trap was sent. Glitch finished it, handing it to Seek. “Ḩ̶̰̠̞͂̑͌͊̑̈́e̷̼̥̹͂͊͊̂͆r̴̯̿̾͒̀ë̸̥̖́̂͒͒͜ ̷̧̧̮̮̖̓̄͜y̴̬̫̾͜͝o̶̖̗̿u̶̢̢̠̟͛ ̵̼̙̳͈̘͖͋̒̅g̵̨̗͚̯̉ö̶̲́̔̎͑͝͝~̸͕̈̈́͠ ̷̜̘̜͓̄E̸̢̤̼̦͖̔n̷̠̊̀̓͑j̸͉̓͝ọ̶͖͋̀͊ȳ̵̭͇̪̥̅͌̎͗͝!̶̡̮̫͈̅͆́͝͝” Seek shrugged slightly, saying “Thanks, Glitch. It’s not often someone does something for me.” He didn’t notice anything odd about it, just a normal sandwich. What Seek did notice, however, was Glitch’s expression. But he waved it off as a little joke, finishing the sandwich. He could take toothpaste or soap or whatever it was, no problem. But Seek was unaware of Glitch’s plans, and stood up, book in his claws. “See you later, I guess.” he sighed, slipping out of the kitchen. Glitch grinned at his departure- they knew he would never confess on his own, so why not speed things up a little?
Chapter 2: Center of Attention?
Summary:
Eyes tries to pressure Figure into confessing, and gets kicked from the library. It does manage to shake Figure up a bit, though…
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
The library was quiet. Figure paced around, tired of the invading humans and pestering of the other entities. A huff interrupted his pacing, as Eyes said, “You should just talk to him. It’s not like it’ll kill you.” Figure growled “…ugh…leave me alone…about it…”, his throat failing to articulate the words smoothly, but that’s nothing new. His claws brushed along the bookshelf, each cover familiar and comforting. The library was the one place he had control over, and the only place he knew where he was going. That tended to make Figure rather territorial, but he ignored it. Eyes sighed. “We both know you’ve got a crush on him. Just go for it.” Their claws rested on Figure’s arm before he swatted them away, hissing “…Go away. I’m…fine…” Figure staggered away, digging his claws into the carpet as he paced to the other side of the library. Eyes followed, to Figure’s irritation, and they hummed “Come on, you’re terrible at hiding it. You get all mushy around Seek, it’s honestly adorable!” Eyes giggled. Figure shivered slightly, trying to ignore the way that the thought of Seek was making his heart do weird floppy shit in his chest. He growled, low and threatening, and to Eyes he said, “…Leave. Get out…of my library…” His class dug into the railing he was holding onto, and Eyes sputtered “wha- you- huh- you can’t mean that!” but Figure only snapped. “…Get out!…” His roar echoed around the room, and Eyes hissed, “You’ll thank me later for what I do. Dumbass.” They vanished with a whisper and the library was plunged into comforting silence. Figure tried to ignore the lingering feeling of irritation and… he didn’t want to think about it. He didn’t want to think about him, because it was almost painful. Figure didn’t even know why, but something about Seek just made things more complicated but so much simpler. He growled, running his claws over each book, biting back a warble and trying to focus on his annoyance. Anger was safer than whatever he was feeling now. At least, Figure hoped it was safer. Rage and confusion were familiar, worn into the floorboards of the library, the claw marks on the walls, the broken wires in the electrical room. It was woven into the bodies of every wandering human who was reduced to a red splatter, just another meal. Figure abruptly pitched forward, landing face down in his nest. He was so deep in his tangled thoughts that he managed to trip over his own nest. Figure sighed, pulling himself back upright. That never happens… he’s too familiar with the library to stumble like that. He huffs, annoyed with himself for being so clumsy, claws loosely dragging on the floor. It was embarrassing, almost, even if he was alone. Forgetting the layout of his own library, because of a stupid friend. Eyes didn’t have any control over him, so why was Figure lost in his own mind like that? He sighed, moving to pace the library again. It was at least something, because standing still was worse than moving when he was trying to ignore his thoughts.
Notes:
yes i gave figure a nest
he deserves one
it’s just, like, a pile of blankets and books. and one stuffed animal but that’s a future plot issue
Chapter 3: Taken Down
Summary:
The effects of Glitch’s tampering fully kick in, and Seek discovers emotions he isn’t used to feeling.
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
Seek noticed something was wrong around door 45. It was subtle at first: details out of focus, not quite thinking clearly, a little wobbling. But it just got worse, and by the time he reached the library doors, Seek could hardly stand up straight. His claws were holding onto the book still, to his surprise, and everything was clouded in a haze of tiredness. He leaned on the door to open it- nothing happened. Seek just stood there, leaning on the door, head against the cool wood, sluggishly tracing the panels with his free claw. Eventually, he managed the strength to push the doors open, staggering into the library. Seek looked around for anyone, half-hoping he was alone. That thought was quickly forgotten when a familiar warble greeted him, and the reddish smudge in his vision got close enough to be identified as Figure. “…Seek!…hi…” Seek tried to hold the book out, almost dropping it. It was passed from claw to claw and Figure quickly reshelved it, humming “…you seem…unwell.” Seek tried to form a coherent response, but Figure didn’t wait that long, simply opting to pull him over to a couch. “Uh- am I?-“ Seek managed to spit out the words, his motor control abandoning him soon after. He reached for any sort of purpose as he tried not to fall off the couch, but gentle warmth caught him, Figure’s claws steadying Seek’s shaking ones. “…sit still…” he huffed, and Seek couldn’t object in time before Figure got up and wandered off. There was a rather alarming spike of anxiety at that, for no reason as far as Seek could tell. He blinked, trying to get his thoughts back in order before he noticed, because it was weirdly nerve wracking to have Figure helping him like this. Seek put a claw loosely to his chest, the goop there rippling and pulsing in his version of a heartbeat, but it was faster than normal, pushing back against his claws. What was happening with him?.. he was interrupted from his thoughts by Figure coming back and practically throwing a blanket into him. “…take. Think better…once you’re warm…” he huffed. Seek tried to comply, but his motor control failed him again. He couldn’t tell if it was the dizzy fatigue or the strange warmth that was gathering in his chest and cheeks suffocating him as he choked out “Can’t- too dizzy-“ and was given an annoyed sigh from Figure. Seek looked down, thinking Figure was going to run off or something, but instead there were brushes of warmth and the subtle smell of bloodstained paper as Figure wrapped the blanket around him. Seek looked up at the entity sitting next to him, blinking to try and clear his vision. Staying upright was more complicated than he remembered… gravity worked against him, and there was a surprised noise from Figure as Seek fell over onto him. To Seek’s surprise and relief, Figure didn’t seem to mind, instead pulling Seek closer to him. “…what’s going on?…” he tilted his head slightly, and Seek mumbled a shaky “mm- dunno-“ despite the fact that he was fighting to stay in one shape, let alone think coherently. It didn’t help that he could feel Figure’s claws on his shoulder, sharp and deadly but so, so gentle. Seek tried to remember what could have happened, but there wasn’t much. He’d spent most of the day reading and talking to Halt, so what could have- Glitch. Seek’s eye shot open, and he managed to growl, “Glitch- that bastard-“ Figure tilted his head, trying to keep Seek upright. “…what did they…do?…” His voice was quiet, almost raspy, but Seek could understand it. His melting form was proving difficult, and in trying to drag himself upright managed to end up right next to Figure. Seek hissed, “fucked with my- food- ugh- knew they- were up to- something…” He felt like he was spinning. Vertigo dragged at him, but he barely noticed in his current condition. It was so hard to stay awake; Seek wanted desperately to sink into unconsciousness, to deal with all this when he could control his own body. Staying upright was too much, and he gave up on sitting normally. Figure caught him before he fell off the couch, pulling him into a hug. It took a second for Seek to register what happened, but when he realized that he was being held and that his head was against Figure’s chest- if his previous symptoms weren’t bad enough, Seek couldn’t think properly anymore. He tried to remain at least somewhat like his usual caustic self, mumbling, “ugh- what are you- doing?- dumbass-“ Figure huffed “…keeping you…upright…since you can’t.”, not noticing the way Seek almost melted from the embrace. He scolded himself internally, irritated by his own vulnerability. He- he couldn’t take care of himself, right? So why did this feel so comforting? Figure adjusted the blanket, and Seek leaned against him, betraying his annoyed thoughts. He could feel Figure’s heartbeat, steady against his own fluttering one. He felt warm, and he didn’t know why, but it only got worse when Figure’s pulse jumped to match his, and Seek moved a little closer, if that was even possible. He couldn’t think straight, everything was fuzzy and hot and he was flustered for some reason. Why was this happening to him? Why now, of all times, when he couldn’t stand on his own, let alone try to fight? Seek tried to blink away the buzzing and the flushed feeling but he slowed, until his eye shut completely. He was mildly aware of his predicament, but it was drowned in the tide of sleep that closed over him. Seek tried to stay aware, stay conscious, stay alert, but the dizzy exhaustion won, and everything melted away into darkness.
Notes:
seek is still in denial, but it’s fiiiine
also where the fuck did glitch get enough ketamine to knock seek out?? it is ket btw the entities are all just really resistant to being drugged so that’s why it took so long for seek to go down
Chapter 4: Friends (?)
Summary:
Figure decides that Seek should have to sleep on the couch, and tries to ignore his own thoughts and feelings in the name of “keeping him safe”. But why does he even care?…
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
This was not how Figure was expecting to spend the night. But when Seek stumbled into the library, slurring his words and struggling to stand up, Figure helped him. He didn’t mean to get himself into this, but something about him made Figure pause. He sighed, gently running his claws along Seek’s back, not quite sure what was going on. All he knew was that Seek had staggered in, hissed about Glitch, and passed out in Figure’s arms. He paused, claws resting between where Seek’s shoulder blades would be, if he had any, feeling the cadence of his pulse, rippling in time with Figure’s heartbeat. Why was he even checking Seek’s pulse? He wasn’t sure, but something in his chest buzzed from the synchronized movement, heated and fuzzy. The scent of ink was caught in the back of Figure’s throat, and he huffed, trying to clear it. Cool darkness stuck to him as Seek shifted slightly in his incapacitated state, making a sad noise as he moved. God, why did he have to be so stupid and cute? Figure wrapped his arms around his melting friend as best he could, trying to ignore the way his heartbeat sped up as Seek wrapped his arms around Figure’s chest, unaware of his sleepy actions. He couldn’t leave him stuck to the couch, could he? Figure clumsily stood, trying not to trip while holding the unconscious entity in his arms. Red claws rested on Seek’s chest, warm and sharp against his cold surface. Figure could feel his heart scraping at the inside of his chest. Using the memorized layout of the library to his advantage to avoid any… accidents, he made it to his nest without any injury, dropping Seek unceremoniously onto the pile. Figure made sure he was still in one piece, wrapped him up in a blanket, and collapsed beside him. Exhaustion dragged at him, and without thinking he pulled Seek over to where he was sprawled, tucking his friend close to him. Just keeping him safe, right? After all, Seek was vulnerable like this, so wasn’t it acceptable to take care of him? It didn’t matter that the claws resting against his chest were making Figure’s heart rate spike, that he couldn’t seem to keep himself from leaning closer, that the warmth around them just made it more comforting, it was all just to stop Seek from getting hurt. The embrace of sleep slowly pooled around them, until Figure was passed out with his arms around his unconscious friend.
Notes:
fuck yeah, gay idiots
seek is gonna wake up to a gay panic and figure is currently trying not to admit that he likes seek (even to himself)
Chapter 5: Daydreaming
Summary:
Seek wakes up from his unfortunate nap, and a visit from Dupe accidentally wakes up Figure. Seek isn’t too annoyed by it- but he’s not going to say that out loud
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
Seek felt like he should wake up. For one, the couch in his hall that he normally slept on felt weirdly soft. And there was someone next to him. He opened his eye, blinking back the tiredness, and realized he was wrapped in a blanket. Figure was next to him, still asleep. Wait, was he in the library? Seek sat there in silence for a second before he uncovered the hazy scattering of last night’s memories, remembering what had happened. Glitch’s sandwich, sitting on the couch, falling asleep in Figure’s arms. He didn’t remember the pile of blankets, though. Figure must have carried Seek over here while he was unconscious. It was oddly cute, knowing that someone cared about him enough to make sure he was comfortable. It didn’t help that Figure still had Seek wrapped up in a hug, and that his claws were resting on Seek’s neck. The serrations gently pressed against his tarry surface, and the warmth didn’t help his confusion. The coldness that Seek normally consisted of was heating up, and he felt almost fluttery. Why was this making him feel so vulnerable? He could easily slip out of Figure’s grasp, exit the library, and go back to his hall like nothing happened. But he couldn’t get his body to move, stuck in this flustered, weakened state and he didn’t know why. Maybe it was a side effect from being drugged. It wasn’t- it couldn’t be- Seek refused to entertain the idea that this was somehow linked to Figure. Even if the quiet noises he made in his sleep were making Seek’s cheeks burn. The cute dumbass wasn’t the issue here. Wait, when did Seek start thinking of Figure as cute?… It wasn’t important. He just needed to get himself together and leave. Staying was just going to delay the inevitable. Even if it was comfortable here. Seek sighed, moving away from the blind entity, cursing his shaky pulse. Expecting maybe a warble, Seek was surprised when Figure pulled him back into a hug, face lightly pressed against the top of his head. Warmth cracked through Seek as the scent of old paper and blood filled his senses, thoughts suddenly stuttering to a halt. Once he shook off the surprise and the sparks that seemed to fizz against his nonexistent heart, Seek tried to think of a way out. He could melt his way out, but that risked being caught or making Figure upset. And, to his own bewilderment, Seek didn’t want to leave. It drew him in like iron to a magnet, and, begrudgingly, he leaned against Figure. Maybe he could stay for now… it’s not like he had anywhere urgent to be. As he lay there, trying not to think about what he was doing, Seek tried to puzzle out last night’s events. Glitch had done something to his food, but he wasn’t sure what. It didn’t taste any different, it didn’t feel any different, but it definitely wasn’t nothing. He stared blankly at the ceiling, unfocused. Why was this so hard to understand? He was just a friend, but his heart refused to believe it, and Seek had to resist the temptation to melt into Figure and forget this was happening. This was a mess… Seek was supposed to be independent and aggressive, and yet he was laying there like a defenseless child, trying to ignore the comfort that seemed to only exist here, with Figu- “Hello?” A voice rang out, and the tapping of many insectoid legs echoed off the library walls. Figure shifted slightly due to the sound, and Seek froze. “Hey, is anyone here?” The scuttling came closer, and he recognized who it was. Dupe swung around the corner, stopping dead in their tracks at the sight before them. The large centipede-like entity stammered for a second, staring at the two still tangled together. Seek hissed, “Don’t you dare tell anyone about this.”, causing Dupe to step back slightly. “Hey, calm down. I just wanted to see if Figure knew where Hide is. I can’t find them.” Dupe said, gesturing with their forelegs to try and keep things calm. “Hide’s with Ambush, I’m pretty sure.” Seek sighed, and made a noise of surprise as Figure sat up, still half asleep. “…mmh?..whats going on?…” he mumbled tiredly. Seek didn’t have time to answer before Figure pulled him closer again, huffing “…leave us alone…” in Dupe’s general direction. Dupe stepped backwards, forelimbs raised in surrender. “Hey, didn’t mean any harm. I’ll go.” They turned rather quickly, slipping off with their usual agility. Seek realized his head was currently pressed against the side of Figure’s chest, and that he was currently being held rather close to him. Exhaling shakily, Figure hummed “…sorry…got a little…upset…”, moving to release Seek from the hug. Warmth flooded Seek’s face, pouring down into his chest. Before he could think about it, his claws were already reaching out, and he stopped Figure’s arm gently. Their pulses sped up, matching each other again. Seek know this wasn’t supposed to happen; they were entities, not humans! Love- or whatever this is- wasn’t something they had. But Seek certainly felt something, even if it was weird and sweet and foggy and making it hard to focus. Figure tilted his head, curious. He made a little questioning noise, before simply pulling Seek back into the hug. Gooey claws latched onto Figure’s shoulder as Seek tucked against him. What was he doing? Seek couldn’t understand why he felt like this, why he wanted to be so close to Figure, why his heartbeat was so fast, why he could feel heat in his chest, but he couldn’t pull himself away. It was pathetic to him, that he could be so vulnerable like this. Figure, trying to break the awkward silence, sighed “…uh…sorry about Dupe…I thought that…it was…an intruder…” he struggled with the words, but that was nothing new. Seek thought it was cute, even if he didn’t want to admit that. Figure continued, “…whenever…i have something…that’s important…i always get…defensive…about it…” He turned his head away slightly, flustered about his reaction. Seek was focused on his words- did Figure think he was important? At least important enough to protect? The thought made his cheeks burn, and Seek huffed thoughtlessly “It’s fine. You’re kinda cute when you do that, anyways. Makes you look like a grumpy cat.” Figure laughed slightly, a rough noise like a wood saw. Seek felt his pulse speed up again, but it wasn’t painful. If anything, it was enjoyable. Maybe he’d stay a little longer. Not because of anything, just because he wanted to, of course. He liked spending time with Figure, anyways.
Notes:
sorry this took so long to make, it’s been sitting in my drafts but my brain is really weird and wouldn’t let me write. enjoy the gay entities
queletz on Chapter 2 Fri 01 Nov 2024 07:39PM UTC
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InsaneInsomniac on Chapter 2 Sat 02 Nov 2024 04:49AM UTC
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queletz on Chapter 2 Sat 02 Nov 2024 08:22AM UTC
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InsaneInsomniac on Chapter 2 Sun 03 Nov 2024 05:11AM UTC
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BeesKneesMacandCheese on Chapter 4 Mon 09 Dec 2024 02:48AM UTC
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InsaneInsomniac on Chapter 4 Mon 09 Dec 2024 08:05AM UTC
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BeesKneesMacandCheese on Chapter 4 Mon 09 Dec 2024 11:22AM UTC
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BeesKneesMacandCheese on Chapter 5 Sun 29 Dec 2024 07:54PM UTC
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InsaneInsomniac on Chapter 5 Sun 29 Dec 2024 08:32PM UTC
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