[Bad End/Good End Crossover] Words keep tightening the cord around my neck
[There's too much noise.
That's the first thing Hero realizes when he wakes up. It's never this loud when he drifts back into consciousness. His family knows better than to enter his room. Even Kel has stopped trying.
Kel's probably still furious at him, really. He'd have every right to be. So... why can he hear his snoring? And even more breathing, quiet mumbling, a 30 second piece of music playing on repeat...
He opens his eyes. He's on a couch. His friends are curled up on the floor in front of the flickering TV, showing the DVD menu for some cartoon. Kel is sprawled out like a starfish despite Aubrey's knee in his gut. Next to them is a tuft of blonde hair... and he remembers how Basil would wrap himself up in a cocoon every time he slept over, running just a little colder than everyone else and needing to hide himself away until his metamorphosis next morning.
It can't be... but he sees the lump next to him, curled up in a ball like a little cat, looking so peaceful and gentle with a soft smile on his face.
His face is still intact. He remembers cradling the pieces of his skull, but here, he's unbroken.
He's going to be sick. He presses himself into the back of the couch, inching himself as far away from the others as he can. He tries to slow his breathing as he pinches himself, over and over, and scrubs his eyes, hoping the illusions fade.
He needs... to take his mind off it. Work on something. He never does any work lately. He slides off of the couch and pads into the kitchen, turning the hot water handle all the way to one side and leaving the cold handle untouched. He loads the dishes into the sink, squeezes dish soap over them in a lazy spiral, and then starts scrubbing, ignoring the way his hands scald in the water, and the way the plates clack together from his trembling.]
That's the first thing Hero realizes when he wakes up. It's never this loud when he drifts back into consciousness. His family knows better than to enter his room. Even Kel has stopped trying.
Kel's probably still furious at him, really. He'd have every right to be. So... why can he hear his snoring? And even more breathing, quiet mumbling, a 30 second piece of music playing on repeat...
He opens his eyes. He's on a couch. His friends are curled up on the floor in front of the flickering TV, showing the DVD menu for some cartoon. Kel is sprawled out like a starfish despite Aubrey's knee in his gut. Next to them is a tuft of blonde hair... and he remembers how Basil would wrap himself up in a cocoon every time he slept over, running just a little colder than everyone else and needing to hide himself away until his metamorphosis next morning.
It can't be... but he sees the lump next to him, curled up in a ball like a little cat, looking so peaceful and gentle with a soft smile on his face.
His face is still intact. He remembers cradling the pieces of his skull, but here, he's unbroken.
He's going to be sick. He presses himself into the back of the couch, inching himself as far away from the others as he can. He tries to slow his breathing as he pinches himself, over and over, and scrubs his eyes, hoping the illusions fade.
He needs... to take his mind off it. Work on something. He never does any work lately. He slides off of the couch and pads into the kitchen, turning the hot water handle all the way to one side and leaving the cold handle untouched. He loads the dishes into the sink, squeezes dish soap over them in a lazy spiral, and then starts scrubbing, ignoring the way his hands scald in the water, and the way the plates clack together from his trembling.]