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(genloss pre-tse rp blog!)

[lost-field-guy]

Call my Ranboo ig I have no idea what’s going on just trying to find.. anyone??

[ooc under cut]

heya :D this is a genloss pre-TSE inspired rp blog ran by @maple-leifarts! unlike my other blogs like this, it isnt completely ask driven—there will be lots of other posts :] feel free to send asks tho! if you have any questions for me specifically just specify that ur question is ooc :D

[lost-field-guy]

[lost-field-guy]

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus walks into the kitchen from the living room, looking like they just got up*

!̶̙͐.....what fuck is going on???

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom attempts to desperately ask for help, although it’s muffled. Ranboo(?) notices Fungus, but doesn’t seem to care to acknowledge them*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus moves closer to them* ..Ran what the hell- Let go of Tom.

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo hums, tightening his grip on Tom* No, I don’t think I will, thank you though. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m busy finishing the job. *His voice isn’t different at all, but he is noticeably speaking a lot slower and controlled*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus stares at them, before being replaced with a glare as they walk over and attempt to rip his hands off of Tom* Let go, now.

[lost-field-guy]

*They tighten their grip again, pulling their body closer to Tom to shield himself from Fungus* …Why should I?

[mushroom-anon]

Because whatever you're planning isn't going to work, since if you try to go somewhere else, I'll follow you, and if you try to hurt Tom, I would bite the bullet and attack you, so we're at a standstill, and I don't believe you can keep up this control thing forever.

[lost-field-guy]

Oh, I can keep this up for plenty of time. And why would I care if you try to attack? It’s Ranboo’s body, not mine.

[mushroom-anon]

..because you can't really do whatever you have planned if you're pin to the ground so-

[lost-field-guy]

*He pauses for a moment* …Fair point, but who says I’ll even let you get me there? *Aimsey then enters the room as well, immediately takes notice of the situation, and rounds up for a punch in Ranboo’s direction*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus nods ever so slightly, taking a step back* Well, who says you have a choice?

[lost-field-guy]

I do, actua- *Aimsey interrupts him with a punch to the face, and he lets go of Tom and stumbles back in surprise, his pupils blink back to normal size, and passes out, though Aimsey catches him before he falls to the floor* 

[mushroom-anon]

Good job Aims, I was honestly running out of ways to stall him- *Fungus states before moving to check on Tom*

[lost-field-guy]

Thanks!! *Aimsey smiles before carrying Ranboo to the living room to set him down on the couch. Tom had gotten himself off of the counter and was now leaning against it, visibly shaking*

[mushroom-anon]

*fungus looks at him with concern* ..Tom? you alright?

[lost-field-guy]

Of course fucking not, I- *he snapped, but quickly caught himself* …I don’t- he- he can’t be alive- he can’t- 

[mushroom-anon]

...I mean I doubt he's alive, but I get what you mean. We'll figure it out Toms don't worry.

[lost-field-guy]

Wh- the fuck you mean you doubt he’s alive??? How would he have been able to do that *he gestures in the general direction of the living room* if he was dead???

[mushroom-anon]

I don't know- but like I mean I could see it being possible-

[lost-field-guy]

*He pauses for a second in disbelief, then composes himself* ..Okay, first of all, I guess it’s fair because you weren’t in the room when he said it, but he literally said he lived. Secondly, when Ran’s arms act up, he never talks, much less like Leinbury. Have you put two and two together yet???

[mushroom-anon]

I'm not disagreeing with the fact that he's not gone or whatever, I'm arguing the fact that he's alive- there is a difference-

[lost-field-guy]

I’m not saying he’s gone, I’m saying he fucking lived and somehow can remotely control Ran which means we’re all in fucking danger and need to do something about it!!!!!

[mushroom-anon]

yeah alright we're going to. How the fuck did he live anyway, You double-tapped him right?? and how did he control Ran cause like control of your arms shouldn't mean control of the entire body-

[lost-field-guy]

I thought I did- I guess I could’ve checked his pulse- and it doesn’t just mess with his arms, it messes with his behavior and shit so apparently Leinbury can just tap into that and change it???

[mushroom-anon]

How?? why did he only do that now???

[lost-field-guy]

I don’t fucking know, I just- *he put his head in his hands and sighed* I don’t know. I’m- we gotta do something, but I don’t know what-

[mushroom-anon]

..We'll figure it out- we can go to the living room and talk with Aimsey to form a plan of some sorts?

[lost-field-guy]

*He stares at the door to the living room for a second, looking concerned and a little frightened* …You can go, I don’t- I don’t want to be near him-

[mushroom-anon]

..alright, I understand why, you would be safe, but you don't have to come.*fungus hesitates a moment, before leaving to head to the living room*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom watches them go solemnly. Aimsey waves as they enter, then throws a concerned glance at Ran* ..So.. was that typical Ran’s arms making him weird or was there something else I missed-?

[mushroom-anon]

..Something else, they were talking as if they were Lienbury.

[lost-field-guy]

….oh fuck- So I’m guessing that means Leinbury’s alive somehow and can control him somehow- So all we have to do is get rid of the robot arms, right??? But then he won’t have arms that probably won’t work-

[mushroom-anon]

..I mean if we manage to figure out what's causing the control, we could just remove that part-

[lost-field-guy]

How are we supposed to know what part does that?? And what if we can’t put it all back together once we take it apart or the arm doesn’t work at all without that piece-

[mushroom-anon]

We might be able to find a clue or something back at the hostpital, like a blueprint or maybe some notes or something- cause I think the only other option would be to remove the arms and find something to use as replacements.

[lost-field-guy]

Well, given the fact that Leinbury is alive and actively out for blood, maybe going to the hospital isn’t the best idea- and I have no clue what we could use as replacement prosthetics other than actual prosthetics-

[mushroom-anon]

Why not? if he is there, then we can just deal with the root of the problem-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah, but it’s probably better to play it safe- plus, even if we did go and confront him, we wouldn’t outnumber him by much because I doubt Tom or Ran would want to go. *At the mention of his name, Tom moved to the doorway between the kitchen and the living room and listened into their conversation more closely*

[mushroom-anon]

Yes, but I still think that going back there might be our best option, since I would love to beat the shit out of him to deal with the root of the problem, or at least find some clues on how to stop the control thing-

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah, and as if he’d just leave out clues about that- *Tom then steps into the room a bit more, quietly interrupting Aimsey* ..I can- uh- I can make new arms for Ran-

[mushroom-anon]

!̴̢͂ *fungus turns around to face him* Oh- really? What would you need to make them?

[lost-field-guy]

*He flinches a bit in surprise, stepping back into the kitchen* Uh- j-just parts and tools, if you guys have any- I don’t really know where the best place to get the right parts would be-

[mushroom-anon]

well what type of part specifically?

[lost-field-guy]

Um- anything, really- I’d just need a lot to, y’know, make it work-

[mushroom-anon]

so like random electronics orr?

[lost-field-guy]

…yyyyyeah, I think that’ll work- but again I don’t know where we would get any and I don’t want to take apart the electronics here-

[mushroom-anon]

hmm, maybe we can go search some buildings in town? Surely there's somethings there that haven't been looted or anything-

[lost-field-guy]

..right, I guess that would work- I just hope we find enough-

[mushroom-anon]

I'm sure we could ,̷:̴]̶

[lost-field-guy]

..alright.. *Just then, Ranboo’s eyes fluttered open and he slowly sat up, clutching his head* ..What happened?? Where am I???

[mushroom-anon]

.you're in the living room- *fungus explains before trying to get a peak at their eyes*

[lost-field-guy]

*His pupils are still normal size* ..fuck, my arms did the thing again, didn't they- FUCK THE ONIONS- *They instantly get up and rush back into the kitchen to manage, apparently, the onions on the stove*

[mushroom-anon]

....who's gonna tell him they got "possessed"-

[lost-field-guy]

*Aimsey raises their hand to volunteer, but Tom shakes his head at them as he moves from the kitchen to the living room in avoiding Ran* Do it in a bit. Let him do his cooking stuff first.

[mushroom-anon]

....alright...*Fungus says, concerned in their eye*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom plops down on the couch, arms crossed and watching Ran in the kitchen. Aimsey leans over to Fungus while eyeing Tom.* ..Do you know what's up with him??

[mushroom-anon]

..not for sure, but most likely is because of the fact that Leninbury is not gone-

[lost-field-guy]

..Well yeah, I got that, that's probably why he's avoiding them, but like- ..how do I put it- I've never really seen him so.. protective of Ran since, like, we first met him.

[mushroom-anon]

hm..I haven't really noticed that but maybe just also because of the control thing???

[lost-field-guy]

Y’know, him not wanting me to tell Ran immediately?? I guess I can see that being because of that but it just seems a bit hypocritical- avoiding him but protecting him at the same time-

[mushroom-anon]

..I think it's less wanting to avoid Ran and more wanting to avoid Leninbury, and since He controls them you got to avoid Ran to avoid Leninbury

[lost-field-guy]

Well yeah, I got that, but- *they sigh* Nevermind, forget about it. *They plop down on the couch next to Tom, who doesn’t even notice as he continues watching Ranboo closely, who seemed to have turned on an electric mixer and started pouring in flour bit by bit*

[mushroom-anon]

?̷̼̔...*Fungus hesitates, before going to sit down as well*

[lost-field-guy]

*After a bit, Ranboo poked his head through the door* You guys like focaccia, right? I’m making some right now, and I was just wondering how many of us are actually gonna eat it- *Aimsey nods, but Tom just gives them a weird look*

[mushroom-anon]

..I'm good without- *Fungus glances over at Tom*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo nods, then eyes Tom as well* ..do you.. know what focaccia is? *Tom hesitates for a bit, then shakes his head*

[mushroom-anon]

..gonna be honest same -̵w̸-̷

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- it’s a type of yeast bread!! It’s super good, you guys will love it! It’s got herbs and onions and garlic mixed in the dough. I was planning on making a big loaf so we could have bread for sandwiches for a while :3 *Tom raised his eyebrows at the mention of herbs, but said nothing*

[mushroom-anon]

hm nice, still probably gonna pass tho -̵w̸-̷

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo nods in understanding and turns to return to the kitchen, but Tom stops him* ..You're making bread from scratch?? *Ranboo nods again, looking at him in surprise* ..yeah- do you want me to show you??

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus tilts their head slightly, carefully watching the interaction*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom hesitates for a while, then reluctantly nods and gets up, cautiously joining Ranboo in the kitchen*

[mushroom-anon]

........can I come watch? :̶]̷

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo pokes their head through the door again* Oh- yeah, of course!! Get in here >:3

[mushroom-anon]

yay :̶3̸...*Fungus gets up and follows them in*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo joyfully leads them into the kitchen and gestures to the mixer and bowl, with the former being turned off and the latter filled with a fairly sticky, wet looking mixture* As you can tell, I’ve already done the hard part- getting the yeast activated and starting to mix all the ingredients and sautéing the onions and garlic- I just need to finish getting the dough mixed while adding flour so it firms up a bit, add all the herbs and everything, then knead it with the dough hook and myself and then let it ferment for a couple hours! :3 *Tom clearly did not get a word they said but nods along anyway*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus leans against a wall to just watch them, their tail flicking slightly*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo flicks on the mixer, starts adding a bit more flour, pauses, then grabs a small bowl with a bit of assorted dried herbs in it and offers it to Tom* You can put these in when it’s time. I mean- if you want to help- *Tom sort of just.. stands there, looking down at the herbs, not exactly confirming but not protesting either, so Ranboo apparently accepts that as confirmation and turns back to the bowl*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks at Tom, tilting their head as they wait for a reaction*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom continues staring at it, then slowly raises it to his face, takes a sniff, and blushes slightly. He then catches wind of Fungus watching him, sticks his tongue out at them, then scampers closer to Ranboo to watch the dough mix*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus chuckles quietly, watching the both of them*

[lost-field-guy]

Ranboo allows Tom to dump the herbs in, then they dump the now cooled garlic and onions in and add a bit more flour. Tom watches Ranboo closely for a bit, still blushing a bit* …Why can’t you bake it immediately? Why does it have to “ferment”? *Ranboo looks back at him and chuckles* The yeast needs time to eat and release carbon dioxide, otherwise the bread wouldn’t rise. It needs to rise twice before baking, the second time being after I put it in a pan and shape it.

[mushroom-anon]

..Where did you learn how to do all of this Ran?

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- I took a lot of culinary classes in high school! :D *The mixer started sounding like it was struggling to mix the dough, so Ranboo switched out the paddle attachment for a dough hook*

[mushroom-anon]

and they taught you all this? That's so cool-

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah! All of this and more- just in the first class, I learned knife skills, how to properly cook different meats, and how to make an entire pie from scratch, just to name a few examples-

[mushroom-anon]

Nicee :̶]̷

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah :3 *Ranboo turned back to watch Tom watch the mixer, mesmerized by the motion of the hook kneading the dough. Without Tom noticing, Ranboo leans in and takes a cautious sniff of Tom, then blushes and nods in understanding*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks off to the side, an ear flicking as if hearing something, before rolling their eyes and "smiling" foundly*

[lost-field-guy]

*Suddenly, with no prompting, Tom turns to Ran* Leinbury was controlling you while your arms were freaking out. *Ranboo looked at him in bewilderment* ..What????? How????????

[mushroom-anon]

!̴̢͂ Tom I thought you wanted to wait to tell them- and we don't know.

[lost-field-guy]

I did wait. And what other explanation is there?? *Ranboo kind of just stares into space for a second, then seems to come to a realization* Wait- Leinbury’s alive???? I thought you killed him????????

[mushroom-anon]

That's what I'm saying- I still think that he's dead and did something to "live" after death- I feel like he would be the type of guy to put a copy of his brain into a computer or something-

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom looks at them with mild annoyance* You know I could’ve just thought I killed him? He seems more of the type to pretend he’s dead just to get me to go away-

[mushroom-anon]

hm maybe- both possible options-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah, I guess. Anyway, *he turns back to Ran* yeah, that happened. He tried to- I don’t really know- choke me or something. But yeah. *Ranboo had taken the dough out of the bowl and started anxiously kneading it himself, not responding*

[mushroom-anon]

...*Fungus looks at them with worry*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom also watches him with concern* ..Sorry- I should’ve waited more maybe- *Ranboo doesn’t look up, starting to go at the dough a little more aggressively, but mutters a small “it’s fine”*

[mushroom-anon]

..............doesn't seem fine- *fungus mumbles to themself*

[lost-field-guy]

*In silence, Ranboo progressively kneads more and more aggressively, until Tom, who’s expression also grew more and more with concern, decided to reach out to stop them—until suddenly, Ranboo just straight up ripped the dough in half, panting. Tom backed up, his concern turned to fear*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus stands up straight from the wall, quickly moving to stand next to Tom* ...........Ran?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo backed up a bit, staring at the dough in shock, still breathing heavily. He then looked down at his hands, then at Fungus and Tom, revealing his pupils to still be normal sized, then back at his hands, then the dough. Their breath began to quicken as they clutched the counter*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus relaxes ever so slightly when they see his pupils, before moving over to them* Ran hey you’re ok-

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo flinched away from them and slid to the ground, shaking and beginning to cry. Tom, after some hesitation, cautiously moved to sit next to him but still respecting his personal space*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesitates for a long while, their tail flicking slightly, before carefully sitting down as well*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom eyes Fungus nervously, then turns to Ran, hesitates again, and attempts to reach out to comfort him. Ranboo immediately reacts by clutching onto his arm and crying into his shoulder, making him turn bright red*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks surprised for a moment at the quick movement, but when they spot how red Tom is, they chuckle slightly at him*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom sarcastically made a face at Fungus laughing, then awkwardly adjusted himself to be sitting more comfortably with Ran on him and rubbed their back gently. Ran didn’t seem close to calming down, muttering something incomprehensible through his tears*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus "frowns" slightly when they see Ran not calming down, looking for any ways to help*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom looked a bit worriedly between Ran and Fungus, turning a bit red again from embarrassment* ..I don’t know what to do- I’m not good at this-

[mushroom-anon]

..neither am I fuck- ummm just hug them back for now I can't do that umm- *fungus looks down slightly, muttering something to themself, before looking up and scooting a little closer* Hey Ran? Can you hear me bud?

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom nods and tries to carefully hold tighter to Ran. Ranboo pulls closer to Tom, getting a little bit quieter, though it’s not clear if it’s in reaction to Tom or Fungus*

[mushroom-anon]

...Ran? can you nod if you can hear me please?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo, after a second, pauses his mumbling briefly and nods a bit*

[mushroom-anon]

That's good ,:] Do you need some more help calming down or is this ok?/genq

[lost-field-guy]

*He shook his head, gripping even tighter onto Tom, who began to look a little uncomfortable*

[mushroom-anon]

*They glance at the both of them, before focusing back on Ran* ..I don't know what one you where saying no to, so just in case, do you think you can put a hand on you're chest to focus on you're breathing? ,:] you can still hold onto Tom with one hand if that's helping you-

[lost-field-guy]

*He hesitated a moment, then let go of Tom with one hand and moved it to his chest. Tom relaxed a bit, mouthing a ‘thank you’ at Fungus*

[mushroom-anon]

*They look up to "smile" at Tom,T̷͈́h̸͍̚e̶͎̿ ̷̗̀b̴͔̋ľ̷̳u̴̝̒ē̷̳ ̸͔͛i̵̻͋n̷͕̂ ̶͎̏t̴͇̾ẖ̶͛e̷̘͝i̴̧͐r̴̳͐ ̸͔́e̶̝͠y̷͓̔è̵̤ ̴̘͑ì̶̹s̵̘͌ ̵͓̑g̷̉͜o̶̹̍n̷̻͊e̷̘͝, before looking back down* Good- take deep breaths and just focus on that ,:] you can also repeat phrases that comfort you if you want- simple ones are "I'm here" and "I'm safe" if you can't think of any-

[lost-field-guy]

*Ran stays quiet, not including the choked sobs, but his breathing eventually slows. Tom looks up at Fungus worriedly, then turns concerned as he seems to notice their eye color*

[mushroom-anon]

*They don't notice him looking just yet-*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom keeps staring at their eye for moment, then leans a bit in their direction* …Hey, uh, what’s.. up with your eye?

[mushroom-anon]

hmm? ooh right it change when we switch kinda forgot that- -w-

[lost-field-guy]

..Switch-? Oh, your weird demon soul thing- I still don’t, uh, really understand that- haven’t really been thinking about it anyway-

[mushroom-anon]

well don't remember how Fungus explained it- but I can try to explain it :]

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom eyed them warily* …..Sure.

[mushroom-anon]

Basically I was created when Fungus died, and I had the same amount of time they lived by myself before we were supposed to fuse, but I got injured when we were supposed to which caused us to stay separate with both having control :]

[lost-field-guy]

…So you’re not.. Fungus right now??

[mushroom-anon]

nope :] I'm mush- fungus asked me to help since I've dealt with that before-

[lost-field-guy]

*He narrowed his eyes slightly at them, pulling Ran closer* …..Okay. *Ran had gone silent, their face still buried in Tom’s shoulder*

[mushroom-anon]

*They tilt their head slightly, before blinking hard w̶͈̏i̸͖͝ẗ̶͖́h̷̽͜ ̷̗͐ț̵̈h̷͕̎ẽ̴̟ ̴̛͓b̴̘͑l̵̰̀u̸̖͑ë̵̜́ ̶̛̖c̸͕̾ò̵͚m̸̹̅i̷̻̽n̴͇͌g̷̞̊ ̸͕̋b̵̯́á̴̝ć̶̩k̶̙̊ and sitting up, Fungus' tail wrapping around their leg*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom seems eases at their eye turning back blue, but doesn’t comment. Instead, he attempts to peel Ran off of him slightly to check on him, but he retains his vice-like grip on him*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesiates for a moment* ...dude I think you're gonna be stuck there for a bit-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah probably- *he sighed* ..I’m worried about that dough a bit- the whole process seems so complicated, I don’t know if it’s okay to just leave it out like it is right now-

[mushroom-anon]

ummmm neither do I, hopefully it will be fine? ,̸:̴D̴

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah, hopefully- I would go up there and check on it and make sure it looks normal but like you said I can’t exactly get up- *Ran seems to hold on even tighter to him as a response*

[mushroom-anon]

I mean I can check- don't really know what normal should look like tho-

[lost-field-guy]

That’d be good yeah- IIII don’t think it’s supposed to be in half so I guess you could fix that-?

[mushroom-anon]

oh yeah I can do that- *Fungus goes to stand up*

[lost-field-guy]

Okay, good! *he smiled up at them. Ran seemed to turn away from Tom a bit to glance up at Fungus, but still didn't say anything*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus carefully takes the two hafts of dough and tries to knead them both back together*

[lost-field-guy]

*The dough thankfully comes together easily. Ran, suddenly, peels off of Tom, stands up a bit slowly, and approaches Fungus from behind, mumbling* ..Needs to be kneaded more. Needs more flour.

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus jumps ever so slightly, before turning to face them* Oh- ok um, where's the flour?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo carefully shoves in front of them to grab the dough and the small cup with flour in it off to the side* ..I got it.

[mushroom-anon]

..alright ,̴:̴]̴ *Fungus takes a step back*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo resumes kneading as if nothing had happened. Tom, still on the floor, looks up at Fungus in confusion, glancing at Ran with concern*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus offers a hand to help him up*

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- thanks- *Tom accepts their hand and stands up* ..So, uh… *He glances at Ran again* ..What now??

[mushroom-anon]

...I would say drop the topic for now and resume after cooking maybe?

[lost-field-guy]

*He nods, a bit sadly* ..What should.. we do in the meantime?

[mushroom-anon]

..I mean I don't really mind, anything you want to do?

[lost-field-guy]

*He thinks for a while* ...I guess go out and try to find stuff for the new arms like we were talking about??

[mushroom-anon]

ooh right yeah that could be fun-

[lost-field-guy]

Okay- I’ll, uh- I guess I’ll try to find a bag to put any stuff we find in- *He awkwardly scampers off deeper into the house to look*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesiates a moment, before just waiting for him to come back*

[lost-field-guy]

*After a moment, Tom returns with a couple large luggage bags in tow* These ones look the sturdiest, I don’t know if we’re going to need this much space though-

[mushroom-anon]

oh- well we could probably only take one, and either carry or go back if their's stuff that doesn't fit-

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- okay- *He drops all but one bag to the ground and starts walking to the door* ..Wonder why they have so many of these anyway-

[mushroom-anon]

*fungus follows him* We can ask when we get back- where did you even find all of them??

[lost-field-guy]

Shoved in the back of a hall closet with a bunch of other weird shit, *he said casually, as if that wasn’t strange at all. He opens the front door and lets Fungus go ahead of him* I can’t imagine why they would need more than one bag per person-

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus walks out the door* Well it could be for space reasonings I guess- like maybe one of the bags has more pockets then the others??

[lost-field-guy]

..I could be wrong but they all looked like the exact same bag- *he shrugged it off* It’s probably nothing, they’re probably just overpreparers or something-

[mushroom-anon]

...I mean I guess-.....

[lost-field-guy]

..What, you got another idea of why? If so I wanna hear it >:3

[mushroom-anon]

no I don't I just..there's a vibe that there is more too it- nothing to back up said vibe but it's there none the less-

[lost-field-guy]

Hmm, that could be the case- What if they, like- sold drugs?? And these are where they hid them?? :0

[mushroom-anon]

...how the fuck is that your first thought???/̶l̷h̴

[lost-field-guy]

I don’t fucking know- That’s what drug dealers do, don’t they?? Have a fuck ton of coke in duffel bags?? Like what else can be associated with a bajillion duffel bags-

[mushroom-anon]

I don't know but how do you know what drug dealers do- and idk maybe like storing carrying a lot of money-

[lost-field-guy]

Having a ton of money in duffel bags is just as suspicious- andddd I don’t actually know how I know that-

[mushroom-anon]

I think it could be ever so slightly less suspicious- and that still doesn't explain how your first thought was drugs-

[lost-field-guy]

Wh- What am I supposed to say?? “Ooh, I thought of drug dealing because I was a drug dealer-“ Like- how do I explain that??? I don’t know how I know about that and I don’t know why I thought of that, okay?? *He lets out an exasperated sigh and starts nervously scratching at his hands*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus pauses for a second, "frowning" slightly* .......ok ok, I'm sorry-

[lost-field-guy]

*He doesn’t respond, staring at the ground for a moment before turning around and trying the door of a nearby house, which turns out to be unlocked, so he steps through*

[mushroom-anon]

*fungus quickly follows after him* hold on be careful-

[lost-field-guy]

I’m being careful, don’t worry- *He quickly scans the interior of the house from the entrance hallway, then dives deeper in to search*

[mushroom-anon]

Careful as in stick together- *Fungus hurries after him*

[lost-field-guy]

Sticking together isn’t gonna do shit if no one’s here- *he calls from a room in the back. After a moment, he emerges carrying a PC, computer and monitor* This’ll do, probably has some of the parts I need-

[lost-field-guy]

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus walks into the kitchen from the living room, looking like they just got up*

!̶̙͐.....what fuck is going on???

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom attempts to desperately ask for help, although it’s muffled. Ranboo(?) notices Fungus, but doesn’t seem to care to acknowledge them*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus moves closer to them* ..Ran what the hell- Let go of Tom.

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo hums, tightening his grip on Tom* No, I don’t think I will, thank you though. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m busy finishing the job. *His voice isn’t different at all, but he is noticeably speaking a lot slower and controlled*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus stares at them, before being replaced with a glare as they walk over and attempt to rip his hands off of Tom* Let go, now.

[lost-field-guy]

*They tighten their grip again, pulling their body closer to Tom to shield himself from Fungus* …Why should I?

[mushroom-anon]

Because whatever you're planning isn't going to work, since if you try to go somewhere else, I'll follow you, and if you try to hurt Tom, I would bite the bullet and attack you, so we're at a standstill, and I don't believe you can keep up this control thing forever.

[lost-field-guy]

Oh, I can keep this up for plenty of time. And why would I care if you try to attack? It’s Ranboo’s body, not mine.

[mushroom-anon]

..because you can't really do whatever you have planned if you're pin to the ground so-

[lost-field-guy]

*He pauses for a moment* …Fair point, but who says I’ll even let you get me there? *Aimsey then enters the room as well, immediately takes notice of the situation, and rounds up for a punch in Ranboo’s direction*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus nods ever so slightly, taking a step back* Well, who says you have a choice?

[lost-field-guy]

I do, actua- *Aimsey interrupts him with a punch to the face, and he lets go of Tom and stumbles back in surprise, his pupils blink back to normal size, and passes out, though Aimsey catches him before he falls to the floor* 

[mushroom-anon]

Good job Aims, I was honestly running out of ways to stall him- *Fungus states before moving to check on Tom*

[lost-field-guy]

Thanks!! *Aimsey smiles before carrying Ranboo to the living room to set him down on the couch. Tom had gotten himself off of the counter and was now leaning against it, visibly shaking*

[mushroom-anon]

*fungus looks at him with concern* ..Tom? you alright?

[lost-field-guy]

Of course fucking not, I- *he snapped, but quickly caught himself* …I don’t- he- he can’t be alive- he can’t- 

[mushroom-anon]

...I mean I doubt he's alive, but I get what you mean. We'll figure it out Toms don't worry.

[lost-field-guy]

Wh- the fuck you mean you doubt he’s alive??? How would he have been able to do that *he gestures in the general direction of the living room* if he was dead???

[mushroom-anon]

I don't know- but like I mean I could see it being possible-

[lost-field-guy]

*He pauses for a second in disbelief, then composes himself* ..Okay, first of all, I guess it’s fair because you weren’t in the room when he said it, but he literally said he lived. Secondly, when Ran’s arms act up, he never talks, much less like Leinbury. Have you put two and two together yet???

[mushroom-anon]

I'm not disagreeing with the fact that he's not gone or whatever, I'm arguing the fact that he's alive- there is a difference-

[lost-field-guy]

I’m not saying he’s gone, I’m saying he fucking lived and somehow can remotely control Ran which means we’re all in fucking danger and need to do something about it!!!!!

[mushroom-anon]

yeah alright we're going to. How the fuck did he live anyway, You double-tapped him right?? and how did he control Ran cause like control of your arms shouldn't mean control of the entire body-

[lost-field-guy]

I thought I did- I guess I could’ve checked his pulse- and it doesn’t just mess with his arms, it messes with his behavior and shit so apparently Leinbury can just tap into that and change it???

[mushroom-anon]

How?? why did he only do that now???

[lost-field-guy]

I don’t fucking know, I just- *he put his head in his hands and sighed* I don’t know. I’m- we gotta do something, but I don’t know what-

[mushroom-anon]

..We'll figure it out- we can go to the living room and talk with Aimsey to form a plan of some sorts?

[lost-field-guy]

*He stares at the door to the living room for a second, looking concerned and a little frightened* …You can go, I don’t- I don’t want to be near him-

[mushroom-anon]

..alright, I understand why, you would be safe, but you don't have to come.*fungus hesitates a moment, before leaving to head to the living room*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom watches them go solemnly. Aimsey waves as they enter, then throws a concerned glance at Ran* ..So.. was that typical Ran’s arms making him weird or was there something else I missed-?

[mushroom-anon]

..Something else, they were talking as if they were Lienbury.

[lost-field-guy]

….oh fuck- So I’m guessing that means Leinbury’s alive somehow and can control him somehow- So all we have to do is get rid of the robot arms, right??? But then he won’t have arms that probably won’t work-

[mushroom-anon]

..I mean if we manage to figure out what's causing the control, we could just remove that part-

[lost-field-guy]

How are we supposed to know what part does that?? And what if we can’t put it all back together once we take it apart or the arm doesn’t work at all without that piece-

[mushroom-anon]

We might be able to find a clue or something back at the hostpital, like a blueprint or maybe some notes or something- cause I think the only other option would be to remove the arms and find something to use as replacements.

[lost-field-guy]

Well, given the fact that Leinbury is alive and actively out for blood, maybe going to the hospital isn’t the best idea- and I have no clue what we could use as replacement prosthetics other than actual prosthetics-

[mushroom-anon]

Why not? if he is there, then we can just deal with the root of the problem-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah, but it’s probably better to play it safe- plus, even if we did go and confront him, we wouldn’t outnumber him by much because I doubt Tom or Ran would want to go. *At the mention of his name, Tom moved to the doorway between the kitchen and the living room and listened into their conversation more closely*

[mushroom-anon]

Yes, but I still think that going back there might be our best option, since I would love to beat the shit out of him to deal with the root of the problem, or at least find some clues on how to stop the control thing-

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah, and as if he’d just leave out clues about that- *Tom then steps into the room a bit more, quietly interrupting Aimsey* ..I can- uh- I can make new arms for Ran-

[mushroom-anon]

!̴̢͂ *fungus turns around to face him* Oh- really? What would you need to make them?

[lost-field-guy]

*He flinches a bit in surprise, stepping back into the kitchen* Uh- j-just parts and tools, if you guys have any- I don’t really know where the best place to get the right parts would be-

[mushroom-anon]

well what type of part specifically?

[lost-field-guy]

Um- anything, really- I’d just need a lot to, y’know, make it work-

[mushroom-anon]

so like random electronics orr?

[lost-field-guy]

…yyyyyeah, I think that’ll work- but again I don’t know where we would get any and I don’t want to take apart the electronics here-

[mushroom-anon]

hmm, maybe we can go search some buildings in town? Surely there's somethings there that haven't been looted or anything-

[lost-field-guy]

..right, I guess that would work- I just hope we find enough-

[mushroom-anon]

I'm sure we could ,̷:̴]̶

[lost-field-guy]

..alright.. *Just then, Ranboo’s eyes fluttered open and he slowly sat up, clutching his head* ..What happened?? Where am I???

[mushroom-anon]

.you're in the living room- *fungus explains before trying to get a peak at their eyes*

[lost-field-guy]

*His pupils are still normal size* ..fuck, my arms did the thing again, didn't they- FUCK THE ONIONS- *They instantly get up and rush back into the kitchen to manage, apparently, the onions on the stove*

[mushroom-anon]

....who's gonna tell him they got "possessed"-

[lost-field-guy]

*Aimsey raises their hand to volunteer, but Tom shakes his head at them as he moves from the kitchen to the living room in avoiding Ran* Do it in a bit. Let him do his cooking stuff first.

[mushroom-anon]

....alright...*Fungus says, concerned in their eye*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom plops down on the couch, arms crossed and watching Ran in the kitchen. Aimsey leans over to Fungus while eyeing Tom.* ..Do you know what's up with him??

[mushroom-anon]

..not for sure, but most likely is because of the fact that Leninbury is not gone-

[lost-field-guy]

..Well yeah, I got that, that's probably why he's avoiding them, but like- ..how do I put it- I've never really seen him so.. protective of Ran since, like, we first met him.

[mushroom-anon]

hm..I haven't really noticed that but maybe just also because of the control thing???

[lost-field-guy]

Y’know, him not wanting me to tell Ran immediately?? I guess I can see that being because of that but it just seems a bit hypocritical- avoiding him but protecting him at the same time-

[mushroom-anon]

..I think it's less wanting to avoid Ran and more wanting to avoid Leninbury, and since He controls them you got to avoid Ran to avoid Leninbury

[lost-field-guy]

Well yeah, I got that, but- *they sigh* Nevermind, forget about it. *They plop down on the couch next to Tom, who doesn’t even notice as he continues watching Ranboo closely, who seemed to have turned on an electric mixer and started pouring in flour bit by bit*

[mushroom-anon]

?̷̼̔...*Fungus hesitates, before going to sit down as well*

[lost-field-guy]

*After a bit, Ranboo poked his head through the door* You guys like focaccia, right? I’m making some right now, and I was just wondering how many of us are actually gonna eat it- *Aimsey nods, but Tom just gives them a weird look*

[mushroom-anon]

..I'm good without- *Fungus glances over at Tom*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo nods, then eyes Tom as well* ..do you.. know what focaccia is? *Tom hesitates for a bit, then shakes his head*

[mushroom-anon]

..gonna be honest same -̵w̸-̷

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- it’s a type of yeast bread!! It’s super good, you guys will love it! It’s got herbs and onions and garlic mixed in the dough. I was planning on making a big loaf so we could have bread for sandwiches for a while :3 *Tom raised his eyebrows at the mention of herbs, but said nothing*

[mushroom-anon]

hm nice, still probably gonna pass tho -̵w̸-̷

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo nods in understanding and turns to return to the kitchen, but Tom stops him* ..You're making bread from scratch?? *Ranboo nods again, looking at him in surprise* ..yeah- do you want me to show you??

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus tilts their head slightly, carefully watching the interaction*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom hesitates for a while, then reluctantly nods and gets up, cautiously joining Ranboo in the kitchen*

[mushroom-anon]

........can I come watch? :̶]̷

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo pokes their head through the door again* Oh- yeah, of course!! Get in here >:3

[mushroom-anon]

yay :̶3̸...*Fungus gets up and follows them in*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo joyfully leads them into the kitchen and gestures to the mixer and bowl, with the former being turned off and the latter filled with a fairly sticky, wet looking mixture* As you can tell, I’ve already done the hard part- getting the yeast activated and starting to mix all the ingredients and sautéing the onions and garlic- I just need to finish getting the dough mixed while adding flour so it firms up a bit, add all the herbs and everything, then knead it with the dough hook and myself and then let it ferment for a couple hours! :3 *Tom clearly did not get a word they said but nods along anyway*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus leans against a wall to just watch them, their tail flicking slightly*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo flicks on the mixer, starts adding a bit more flour, pauses, then grabs a small bowl with a bit of assorted dried herbs in it and offers it to Tom* You can put these in when it’s time. I mean- if you want to help- *Tom sort of just.. stands there, looking down at the herbs, not exactly confirming but not protesting either, so Ranboo apparently accepts that as confirmation and turns back to the bowl*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks at Tom, tilting their head as they wait for a reaction*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom continues staring at it, then slowly raises it to his face, takes a sniff, and blushes slightly. He then catches wind of Fungus watching him, sticks his tongue out at them, then scampers closer to Ranboo to watch the dough mix*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus chuckles quietly, watching the both of them*

[lost-field-guy]

Ranboo allows Tom to dump the herbs in, then they dump the now cooled garlic and onions in and add a bit more flour. Tom watches Ranboo closely for a bit, still blushing a bit* …Why can’t you bake it immediately? Why does it have to “ferment”? *Ranboo looks back at him and chuckles* The yeast needs time to eat and release carbon dioxide, otherwise the bread wouldn’t rise. It needs to rise twice before baking, the second time being after I put it in a pan and shape it.

[mushroom-anon]

..Where did you learn how to do all of this Ran?

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- I took a lot of culinary classes in high school! :D *The mixer started sounding like it was struggling to mix the dough, so Ranboo switched out the paddle attachment for a dough hook*

[mushroom-anon]

and they taught you all this? That's so cool-

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah! All of this and more- just in the first class, I learned knife skills, how to properly cook different meats, and how to make an entire pie from scratch, just to name a few examples-

[mushroom-anon]

Nicee :̶]̷

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah :3 *Ranboo turned back to watch Tom watch the mixer, mesmerized by the motion of the hook kneading the dough. Without Tom noticing, Ranboo leans in and takes a cautious sniff of Tom, then blushes and nods in understanding*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks off to the side, an ear flicking as if hearing something, before rolling their eyes and "smiling" foundly*

[lost-field-guy]

*Suddenly, with no prompting, Tom turns to Ran* Leinbury was controlling you while your arms were freaking out. *Ranboo looked at him in bewilderment* ..What????? How????????

[mushroom-anon]

!̴̢͂ Tom I thought you wanted to wait to tell them- and we don't know.

[lost-field-guy]

I did wait. And what other explanation is there?? *Ranboo kind of just stares into space for a second, then seems to come to a realization* Wait- Leinbury’s alive???? I thought you killed him????????

[mushroom-anon]

That's what I'm saying- I still think that he's dead and did something to "live" after death- I feel like he would be the type of guy to put a copy of his brain into a computer or something-

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom looks at them with mild annoyance* You know I could’ve just thought I killed him? He seems more of the type to pretend he’s dead just to get me to go away-

[mushroom-anon]

hm maybe- both possible options-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah, I guess. Anyway, *he turns back to Ran* yeah, that happened. He tried to- I don’t really know- choke me or something. But yeah. *Ranboo had taken the dough out of the bowl and started anxiously kneading it himself, not responding*

[mushroom-anon]

...*Fungus looks at them with worry*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom also watches him with concern* ..Sorry- I should’ve waited more maybe- *Ranboo doesn’t look up, starting to go at the dough a little more aggressively, but mutters a small “it’s fine”*

[mushroom-anon]

..............doesn't seem fine- *fungus mumbles to themself*

[lost-field-guy]

*In silence, Ranboo progressively kneads more and more aggressively, until Tom, who’s expression also grew more and more with concern, decided to reach out to stop them—until suddenly, Ranboo just straight up ripped the dough in half, panting. Tom backed up, his concern turned to fear*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus stands up straight from the wall, quickly moving to stand next to Tom* ...........Ran?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo backed up a bit, staring at the dough in shock, still breathing heavily. He then looked down at his hands, then at Fungus and Tom, revealing his pupils to still be normal sized, then back at his hands, then the dough. Their breath began to quicken as they clutched the counter*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus relaxes ever so slightly when they see his pupils, before moving over to them* Ran hey you’re ok-

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo flinched away from them and slid to the ground, shaking and beginning to cry. Tom, after some hesitation, cautiously moved to sit next to him but still respecting his personal space*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesitates for a long while, their tail flicking slightly, before carefully sitting down as well*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom eyes Fungus nervously, then turns to Ran, hesitates again, and attempts to reach out to comfort him. Ranboo immediately reacts by clutching onto his arm and crying into his shoulder, making him turn bright red*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks surprised for a moment at the quick movement, but when they spot how red Tom is, they chuckle slightly at him*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom sarcastically made a face at Fungus laughing, then awkwardly adjusted himself to be sitting more comfortably with Ran on him and rubbed their back gently. Ran didn’t seem close to calming down, muttering something incomprehensible through his tears*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus "frowns" slightly when they see Ran not calming down, looking for any ways to help*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom looked a bit worriedly between Ran and Fungus, turning a bit red again from embarrassment* ..I don’t know what to do- I’m not good at this-

[mushroom-anon]

..neither am I fuck- ummm just hug them back for now I can't do that umm- *fungus looks down slightly, muttering something to themself, before looking up and scooting a little closer* Hey Ran? Can you hear me bud?

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom nods and tries to carefully hold tighter to Ran. Ranboo pulls closer to Tom, getting a little bit quieter, though it’s not clear if it’s in reaction to Tom or Fungus*

[mushroom-anon]

...Ran? can you nod if you can hear me please?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo, after a second, pauses his mumbling briefly and nods a bit*

[mushroom-anon]

That's good ,:] Do you need some more help calming down or is this ok?/genq

[lost-field-guy]

*He shook his head, gripping even tighter onto Tom, who began to look a little uncomfortable*

[mushroom-anon]

*They glance at the both of them, before focusing back on Ran* ..I don't know what one you where saying no to, so just in case, do you think you can put a hand on you're chest to focus on you're breathing? ,:] you can still hold onto Tom with one hand if that's helping you-

[lost-field-guy]

*He hesitated a moment, then let go of Tom with one hand and moved it to his chest. Tom relaxed a bit, mouthing a ‘thank you’ at Fungus*

[mushroom-anon]

*They look up to "smile" at Tom,T̷͈́h̸͍̚e̶͎̿ ̷̗̀b̴͔̋ľ̷̳u̴̝̒ē̷̳ ̸͔͛i̵̻͋n̷͕̂ ̶͎̏t̴͇̾ẖ̶͛e̷̘͝i̴̧͐r̴̳͐ ̸͔́e̶̝͠y̷͓̔è̵̤ ̴̘͑ì̶̹s̵̘͌ ̵͓̑g̷̉͜o̶̹̍n̷̻͊e̷̘͝, before looking back down* Good- take deep breaths and just focus on that ,:] you can also repeat phrases that comfort you if you want- simple ones are "I'm here" and "I'm safe" if you can't think of any-

[lost-field-guy]

*Ran stays quiet, not including the choked sobs, but his breathing eventually slows. Tom looks up at Fungus worriedly, then turns concerned as he seems to notice their eye color*

[mushroom-anon]

*They don't notice him looking just yet-*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom keeps staring at their eye for moment, then leans a bit in their direction* …Hey, uh, what’s.. up with your eye?

[mushroom-anon]

hmm? ooh right it change when we switch kinda forgot that- -w-

[lost-field-guy]

..Switch-? Oh, your weird demon soul thing- I still don’t, uh, really understand that- haven’t really been thinking about it anyway-

[mushroom-anon]

well don't remember how Fungus explained it- but I can try to explain it :]

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom eyed them warily* …..Sure.

[mushroom-anon]

Basically I was created when Fungus died, and I had the same amount of time they lived by myself before we were supposed to fuse, but I got injured when we were supposed to which caused us to stay separate with both having control :]

[lost-field-guy]

…So you’re not.. Fungus right now??

[mushroom-anon]

nope :] I'm mush- fungus asked me to help since I've dealt with that before-

[lost-field-guy]

*He narrowed his eyes slightly at them, pulling Ran closer* …..Okay. *Ran had gone silent, their face still buried in Tom’s shoulder*

[mushroom-anon]

*They tilt their head slightly, before blinking hard w̶͈̏i̸͖͝ẗ̶͖́h̷̽͜ ̷̗͐ț̵̈h̷͕̎ẽ̴̟ ̴̛͓b̴̘͑l̵̰̀u̸̖͑ë̵̜́ ̶̛̖c̸͕̾ò̵͚m̸̹̅i̷̻̽n̴͇͌g̷̞̊ ̸͕̋b̵̯́á̴̝ć̶̩k̶̙̊ and sitting up, Fungus' tail wrapping around their leg*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom seems eases at their eye turning back blue, but doesn’t comment. Instead, he attempts to peel Ran off of him slightly to check on him, but he retains his vice-like grip on him*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesiates for a moment* ...dude I think you're gonna be stuck there for a bit-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah probably- *he sighed* ..I’m worried about that dough a bit- the whole process seems so complicated, I don’t know if it’s okay to just leave it out like it is right now-

[mushroom-anon]

ummmm neither do I, hopefully it will be fine? ,̸:̴D̴

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah, hopefully- I would go up there and check on it and make sure it looks normal but like you said I can’t exactly get up- *Ran seems to hold on even tighter to him as a response*

[mushroom-anon]

I mean I can check- don't really know what normal should look like tho-

[lost-field-guy]

That’d be good yeah- IIII don’t think it’s supposed to be in half so I guess you could fix that-?

[mushroom-anon]

oh yeah I can do that- *Fungus goes to stand up*

[lost-field-guy]

Okay, good! *he smiled up at them. Ran seemed to turn away from Tom a bit to glance up at Fungus, but still didn't say anything*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus carefully takes the two hafts of dough and tries to knead them both back together*

[lost-field-guy]

*The dough thankfully comes together easily. Ran, suddenly, peels off of Tom, stands up a bit slowly, and approaches Fungus from behind, mumbling* ..Needs to be kneaded more. Needs more flour.

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus jumps ever so slightly, before turning to face them* Oh- ok um, where's the flour?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo carefully shoves in front of them to grab the dough and the small cup with flour in it off to the side* ..I got it.

[mushroom-anon]

..alright ,̴:̴]̴ *Fungus takes a step back*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo resumes kneading as if nothing had happened. Tom, still on the floor, looks up at Fungus in confusion, glancing at Ran with concern*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus offers a hand to help him up*

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- thanks- *Tom accepts their hand and stands up* ..So, uh… *He glances at Ran again* ..What now??

[mushroom-anon]

...I would say drop the topic for now and resume after cooking maybe?

[lost-field-guy]

*He nods, a bit sadly* ..What should.. we do in the meantime?

[mushroom-anon]

..I mean I don't really mind, anything you want to do?

[lost-field-guy]

*He thinks for a while* ...I guess go out and try to find stuff for the new arms like we were talking about??

[mushroom-anon]

ooh right yeah that could be fun-

[lost-field-guy]

Okay- I’ll, uh- I guess I’ll try to find a bag to put any stuff we find in- *He awkwardly scampers off deeper into the house to look*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesiates a moment, before just waiting for him to come back*

[lost-field-guy]

*After a moment, Tom returns with a couple large luggage bags in tow* These ones look the sturdiest, I don’t know if we’re going to need this much space though-

[mushroom-anon]

oh- well we could probably only take one, and either carry or go back if their's stuff that doesn't fit-

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- okay- *He drops all but one bag to the ground and starts walking to the door* ..Wonder why they have so many of these anyway-

[mushroom-anon]

*fungus follows him* We can ask when we get back- where did you even find all of them??

[lost-field-guy]

Shoved in the back of a hall closet with a bunch of other weird shit, *he said casually, as if that wasn’t strange at all. He opens the front door and lets Fungus go ahead of him* I can’t imagine why they would need more than one bag per person-

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus walks out the door* Well it could be for space reasonings I guess- like maybe one of the bags has more pockets then the others??

[lost-field-guy]

..I could be wrong but they all looked like the exact same bag- *he shrugged it off* It’s probably nothing, they’re probably just overpreparers or something-

[mushroom-anon]

...I mean I guess-.....

[lost-field-guy]

..What, you got another idea of why? If so I wanna hear it >:3

[mushroom-anon]

no I don't I just..there's a vibe that there is more too it- nothing to back up said vibe but it's there none the less-

[lost-field-guy]

Hmm, that could be the case- What if they, like- sold drugs?? And these are where they hid them?? :0

[mushroom-anon]

...how the fuck is that your first thought???/̶l̷h̴

[lost-field-guy]

I don’t fucking know- That’s what drug dealers do, don’t they?? Have a fuck ton of coke in duffel bags?? Like what else can be associated with a bajillion duffel bags-

[mushroom-anon]

I don't know but how do you know what drug dealers do- and idk maybe like storing carrying a lot of money-

[lost-field-guy]

Having a ton of money in duffel bags is just as suspicious- andddd I don’t actually know how I know that-

[mushroom-anon]

I think it could be ever so slightly less suspicious- and that still doesn't explain how your first thought was drugs-

[lost-field-guy]

Wh- What am I supposed to say?? “Ooh, I thought of drug dealing because I was a drug dealer-“ Like- how do I explain that??? I don’t know how I know about that and I don’t know why I thought of that, okay?? *He lets out an exasperated sigh and starts nervously scratching at his hands*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus pauses for a second, "frowning" slightly* .......ok ok, I'm sorry-

[lost-field-guy]

*He doesn’t respond, staring at the ground for a moment before turning around and trying the door of a nearby house, which turns out to be unlocked, so he steps through*

[mushroom-anon]

*fungus quickly follows after him* hold on be careful-

[lost-field-guy]

I’m being careful, don’t worry- *He quickly scans the interior of the house from the entrance hallway, then dives deeper in to search*

[lost-field-guy]

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus walks into the kitchen from the living room, looking like they just got up*

!̶̙͐.....what fuck is going on???

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom attempts to desperately ask for help, although it’s muffled. Ranboo(?) notices Fungus, but doesn’t seem to care to acknowledge them*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus moves closer to them* ..Ran what the hell- Let go of Tom.

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo hums, tightening his grip on Tom* No, I don’t think I will, thank you though. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m busy finishing the job. *His voice isn’t different at all, but he is noticeably speaking a lot slower and controlled*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus stares at them, before being replaced with a glare as they walk over and attempt to rip his hands off of Tom* Let go, now.

[lost-field-guy]

*They tighten their grip again, pulling their body closer to Tom to shield himself from Fungus* …Why should I?

[mushroom-anon]

Because whatever you're planning isn't going to work, since if you try to go somewhere else, I'll follow you, and if you try to hurt Tom, I would bite the bullet and attack you, so we're at a standstill, and I don't believe you can keep up this control thing forever.

[lost-field-guy]

Oh, I can keep this up for plenty of time. And why would I care if you try to attack? It’s Ranboo’s body, not mine.

[mushroom-anon]

..because you can't really do whatever you have planned if you're pin to the ground so-

[lost-field-guy]

*He pauses for a moment* …Fair point, but who says I’ll even let you get me there? *Aimsey then enters the room as well, immediately takes notice of the situation, and rounds up for a punch in Ranboo’s direction*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus nods ever so slightly, taking a step back* Well, who says you have a choice?

[lost-field-guy]

I do, actua- *Aimsey interrupts him with a punch to the face, and he lets go of Tom and stumbles back in surprise, his pupils blink back to normal size, and passes out, though Aimsey catches him before he falls to the floor* 

[mushroom-anon]

Good job Aims, I was honestly running out of ways to stall him- *Fungus states before moving to check on Tom*

[lost-field-guy]

Thanks!! *Aimsey smiles before carrying Ranboo to the living room to set him down on the couch. Tom had gotten himself off of the counter and was now leaning against it, visibly shaking*

[mushroom-anon]

*fungus looks at him with concern* ..Tom? you alright?

[lost-field-guy]

Of course fucking not, I- *he snapped, but quickly caught himself* …I don’t- he- he can’t be alive- he can’t- 

[mushroom-anon]

...I mean I doubt he's alive, but I get what you mean. We'll figure it out Toms don't worry.

[lost-field-guy]

Wh- the fuck you mean you doubt he’s alive??? How would he have been able to do that *he gestures in the general direction of the living room* if he was dead???

[mushroom-anon]

I don't know- but like I mean I could see it being possible-

[lost-field-guy]

*He pauses for a second in disbelief, then composes himself* ..Okay, first of all, I guess it’s fair because you weren’t in the room when he said it, but he literally said he lived. Secondly, when Ran’s arms act up, he never talks, much less like Leinbury. Have you put two and two together yet???

[mushroom-anon]

I'm not disagreeing with the fact that he's not gone or whatever, I'm arguing the fact that he's alive- there is a difference-

[lost-field-guy]

I’m not saying he’s gone, I’m saying he fucking lived and somehow can remotely control Ran which means we’re all in fucking danger and need to do something about it!!!!!

[mushroom-anon]

yeah alright we're going to. How the fuck did he live anyway, You double-tapped him right?? and how did he control Ran cause like control of your arms shouldn't mean control of the entire body-

[lost-field-guy]

I thought I did- I guess I could’ve checked his pulse- and it doesn’t just mess with his arms, it messes with his behavior and shit so apparently Leinbury can just tap into that and change it???

[mushroom-anon]

How?? why did he only do that now???

[lost-field-guy]

I don’t fucking know, I just- *he put his head in his hands and sighed* I don’t know. I’m- we gotta do something, but I don’t know what-

[mushroom-anon]

..We'll figure it out- we can go to the living room and talk with Aimsey to form a plan of some sorts?

[lost-field-guy]

*He stares at the door to the living room for a second, looking concerned and a little frightened* …You can go, I don’t- I don’t want to be near him-

[mushroom-anon]

..alright, I understand why, you would be safe, but you don't have to come.*fungus hesitates a moment, before leaving to head to the living room*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom watches them go solemnly. Aimsey waves as they enter, then throws a concerned glance at Ran* ..So.. was that typical Ran’s arms making him weird or was there something else I missed-?

[mushroom-anon]

..Something else, they were talking as if they were Lienbury.

[lost-field-guy]

….oh fuck- So I’m guessing that means Leinbury’s alive somehow and can control him somehow- So all we have to do is get rid of the robot arms, right??? But then he won’t have arms that probably won’t work-

[mushroom-anon]

..I mean if we manage to figure out what's causing the control, we could just remove that part-

[lost-field-guy]

How are we supposed to know what part does that?? And what if we can’t put it all back together once we take it apart or the arm doesn’t work at all without that piece-

[mushroom-anon]

We might be able to find a clue or something back at the hostpital, like a blueprint or maybe some notes or something- cause I think the only other option would be to remove the arms and find something to use as replacements.

[lost-field-guy]

Well, given the fact that Leinbury is alive and actively out for blood, maybe going to the hospital isn’t the best idea- and I have no clue what we could use as replacement prosthetics other than actual prosthetics-

[mushroom-anon]

Why not? if he is there, then we can just deal with the root of the problem-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah, but it’s probably better to play it safe- plus, even if we did go and confront him, we wouldn’t outnumber him by much because I doubt Tom or Ran would want to go. *At the mention of his name, Tom moved to the doorway between the kitchen and the living room and listened into their conversation more closely*

[mushroom-anon]

Yes, but I still think that going back there might be our best option, since I would love to beat the shit out of him to deal with the root of the problem, or at least find some clues on how to stop the control thing-

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah, and as if he’d just leave out clues about that- *Tom then steps into the room a bit more, quietly interrupting Aimsey* ..I can- uh- I can make new arms for Ran-

[mushroom-anon]

!̴̢͂ *fungus turns around to face him* Oh- really? What would you need to make them?

[lost-field-guy]

*He flinches a bit in surprise, stepping back into the kitchen* Uh- j-just parts and tools, if you guys have any- I don’t really know where the best place to get the right parts would be-

[mushroom-anon]

well what type of part specifically?

[lost-field-guy]

Um- anything, really- I’d just need a lot to, y’know, make it work-

[mushroom-anon]

so like random electronics orr?

[lost-field-guy]

…yyyyyeah, I think that’ll work- but again I don’t know where we would get any and I don’t want to take apart the electronics here-

[mushroom-anon]

hmm, maybe we can go search some buildings in town? Surely there's somethings there that haven't been looted or anything-

[lost-field-guy]

..right, I guess that would work- I just hope we find enough-

[mushroom-anon]

I'm sure we could ,̷:̴]̶

[lost-field-guy]

..alright.. *Just then, Ranboo’s eyes fluttered open and he slowly sat up, clutching his head* ..What happened?? Where am I???

[mushroom-anon]

.you're in the living room- *fungus explains before trying to get a peak at their eyes*

[lost-field-guy]

*His pupils are still normal size* ..fuck, my arms did the thing again, didn't they- FUCK THE ONIONS- *They instantly get up and rush back into the kitchen to manage, apparently, the onions on the stove*

[mushroom-anon]

....who's gonna tell him they got "possessed"-

[lost-field-guy]

*Aimsey raises their hand to volunteer, but Tom shakes his head at them as he moves from the kitchen to the living room in avoiding Ran* Do it in a bit. Let him do his cooking stuff first.

[mushroom-anon]

....alright...*Fungus says, concerned in their eye*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom plops down on the couch, arms crossed and watching Ran in the kitchen. Aimsey leans over to Fungus while eyeing Tom.* ..Do you know what's up with him??

[mushroom-anon]

..not for sure, but most likely is because of the fact that Leninbury is not gone-

[lost-field-guy]

..Well yeah, I got that, that's probably why he's avoiding them, but like- ..how do I put it- I've never really seen him so.. protective of Ran since, like, we first met him.

[mushroom-anon]

hm..I haven't really noticed that but maybe just also because of the control thing???

[lost-field-guy]

Y’know, him not wanting me to tell Ran immediately?? I guess I can see that being because of that but it just seems a bit hypocritical- avoiding him but protecting him at the same time-

[mushroom-anon]

..I think it's less wanting to avoid Ran and more wanting to avoid Leninbury, and since He controls them you got to avoid Ran to avoid Leninbury

[lost-field-guy]

Well yeah, I got that, but- *they sigh* Nevermind, forget about it. *They plop down on the couch next to Tom, who doesn’t even notice as he continues watching Ranboo closely, who seemed to have turned on an electric mixer and started pouring in flour bit by bit*

[mushroom-anon]

?̷̼̔...*Fungus hesitates, before going to sit down as well*

[lost-field-guy]

*After a bit, Ranboo poked his head through the door* You guys like focaccia, right? I’m making some right now, and I was just wondering how many of us are actually gonna eat it- *Aimsey nods, but Tom just gives them a weird look*

[mushroom-anon]

..I'm good without- *Fungus glances over at Tom*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo nods, then eyes Tom as well* ..do you.. know what focaccia is? *Tom hesitates for a bit, then shakes his head*

[mushroom-anon]

..gonna be honest same -̵w̸-̷

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- it’s a type of yeast bread!! It’s super good, you guys will love it! It’s got herbs and onions and garlic mixed in the dough. I was planning on making a big loaf so we could have bread for sandwiches for a while :3 *Tom raised his eyebrows at the mention of herbs, but said nothing*

[mushroom-anon]

hm nice, still probably gonna pass tho -̵w̸-̷

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo nods in understanding and turns to return to the kitchen, but Tom stops him* ..You're making bread from scratch?? *Ranboo nods again, looking at him in surprise* ..yeah- do you want me to show you??

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus tilts their head slightly, carefully watching the interaction*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom hesitates for a while, then reluctantly nods and gets up, cautiously joining Ranboo in the kitchen*

[mushroom-anon]

........can I come watch? :̶]̷

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo pokes their head through the door again* Oh- yeah, of course!! Get in here >:3

[mushroom-anon]

yay :̶3̸...*Fungus gets up and follows them in*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo joyfully leads them into the kitchen and gestures to the mixer and bowl, with the former being turned off and the latter filled with a fairly sticky, wet looking mixture* As you can tell, I’ve already done the hard part- getting the yeast activated and starting to mix all the ingredients and sautéing the onions and garlic- I just need to finish getting the dough mixed while adding flour so it firms up a bit, add all the herbs and everything, then knead it with the dough hook and myself and then let it ferment for a couple hours! :3 *Tom clearly did not get a word they said but nods along anyway*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus leans against a wall to just watch them, their tail flicking slightly*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo flicks on the mixer, starts adding a bit more flour, pauses, then grabs a small bowl with a bit of assorted dried herbs in it and offers it to Tom* You can put these in when it’s time. I mean- if you want to help- *Tom sort of just.. stands there, looking down at the herbs, not exactly confirming but not protesting either, so Ranboo apparently accepts that as confirmation and turns back to the bowl*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks at Tom, tilting their head as they wait for a reaction*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom continues staring at it, then slowly raises it to his face, takes a sniff, and blushes slightly. He then catches wind of Fungus watching him, sticks his tongue out at them, then scampers closer to Ranboo to watch the dough mix*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus chuckles quietly, watching the both of them*

[lost-field-guy]

Ranboo allows Tom to dump the herbs in, then they dump the now cooled garlic and onions in and add a bit more flour. Tom watches Ranboo closely for a bit, still blushing a bit* …Why can’t you bake it immediately? Why does it have to “ferment”? *Ranboo looks back at him and chuckles* The yeast needs time to eat and release carbon dioxide, otherwise the bread wouldn’t rise. It needs to rise twice before baking, the second time being after I put it in a pan and shape it.

[mushroom-anon]

..Where did you learn how to do all of this Ran?

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- I took a lot of culinary classes in high school! :D *The mixer started sounding like it was struggling to mix the dough, so Ranboo switched out the paddle attachment for a dough hook*

[mushroom-anon]

and they taught you all this? That's so cool-

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah! All of this and more- just in the first class, I learned knife skills, how to properly cook different meats, and how to make an entire pie from scratch, just to name a few examples-

[mushroom-anon]

Nicee :̶]̷

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah :3 *Ranboo turned back to watch Tom watch the mixer, mesmerized by the motion of the hook kneading the dough. Without Tom noticing, Ranboo leans in and takes a cautious sniff of Tom, then blushes and nods in understanding*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks off to the side, an ear flicking as if hearing something, before rolling their eyes and "smiling" foundly*

[lost-field-guy]

*Suddenly, with no prompting, Tom turns to Ran* Leinbury was controlling you while your arms were freaking out. *Ranboo looked at him in bewilderment* ..What????? How????????

[mushroom-anon]

!̴̢͂ Tom I thought you wanted to wait to tell them- and we don't know.

[lost-field-guy]

I did wait. And what other explanation is there?? *Ranboo kind of just stares into space for a second, then seems to come to a realization* Wait- Leinbury’s alive???? I thought you killed him????????

[mushroom-anon]

That's what I'm saying- I still think that he's dead and did something to "live" after death- I feel like he would be the type of guy to put a copy of his brain into a computer or something-

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom looks at them with mild annoyance* You know I could’ve just thought I killed him? He seems more of the type to pretend he’s dead just to get me to go away-

[mushroom-anon]

hm maybe- both possible options-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah, I guess. Anyway, *he turns back to Ran* yeah, that happened. He tried to- I don’t really know- choke me or something. But yeah. *Ranboo had taken the dough out of the bowl and started anxiously kneading it himself, not responding*

[mushroom-anon]

...*Fungus looks at them with worry*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom also watches him with concern* ..Sorry- I should’ve waited more maybe- *Ranboo doesn’t look up, starting to go at the dough a little more aggressively, but mutters a small “it’s fine”*

[mushroom-anon]

..............doesn't seem fine- *fungus mumbles to themself*

[lost-field-guy]

*In silence, Ranboo progressively kneads more and more aggressively, until Tom, who’s expression also grew more and more with concern, decided to reach out to stop them—until suddenly, Ranboo just straight up ripped the dough in half, panting. Tom backed up, his concern turned to fear*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus stands up straight from the wall, quickly moving to stand next to Tom* ...........Ran?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo backed up a bit, staring at the dough in shock, still breathing heavily. He then looked down at his hands, then at Fungus and Tom, revealing his pupils to still be normal sized, then back at his hands, then the dough. Their breath began to quicken as they clutched the counter*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus relaxes ever so slightly when they see his pupils, before moving over to them* Ran hey you’re ok-

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo flinched away from them and slid to the ground, shaking and beginning to cry. Tom, after some hesitation, cautiously moved to sit next to him but still respecting his personal space*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesitates for a long while, their tail flicking slightly, before carefully sitting down as well*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom eyes Fungus nervously, then turns to Ran, hesitates again, and attempts to reach out to comfort him. Ranboo immediately reacts by clutching onto his arm and crying into his shoulder, making him turn bright red*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks surprised for a moment at the quick movement, but when they spot how red Tom is, they chuckle slightly at him*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom sarcastically made a face at Fungus laughing, then awkwardly adjusted himself to be sitting more comfortably with Ran on him and rubbed their back gently. Ran didn’t seem close to calming down, muttering something incomprehensible through his tears*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus "frowns" slightly when they see Ran not calming down, looking for any ways to help*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom looked a bit worriedly between Ran and Fungus, turning a bit red again from embarrassment* ..I don’t know what to do- I’m not good at this-

[mushroom-anon]

..neither am I fuck- ummm just hug them back for now I can't do that umm- *fungus looks down slightly, muttering something to themself, before looking up and scooting a little closer* Hey Ran? Can you hear me bud?

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom nods and tries to carefully hold tighter to Ran. Ranboo pulls closer to Tom, getting a little bit quieter, though it’s not clear if it’s in reaction to Tom or Fungus*

[mushroom-anon]

...Ran? can you nod if you can hear me please?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo, after a second, pauses his mumbling briefly and nods a bit*

[mushroom-anon]

That's good ,:] Do you need some more help calming down or is this ok?/genq

[lost-field-guy]

*He shook his head, gripping even tighter onto Tom, who began to look a little uncomfortable*

[mushroom-anon]

*They glance at the both of them, before focusing back on Ran* ..I don't know what one you where saying no to, so just in case, do you think you can put a hand on you're chest to focus on you're breathing? ,:] you can still hold onto Tom with one hand if that's helping you-

[lost-field-guy]

*He hesitated a moment, then let go of Tom with one hand and moved it to his chest. Tom relaxed a bit, mouthing a ‘thank you’ at Fungus*

[mushroom-anon]

*They look up to "smile" at Tom,T̷͈́h̸͍̚e̶͎̿ ̷̗̀b̴͔̋ľ̷̳u̴̝̒ē̷̳ ̸͔͛i̵̻͋n̷͕̂ ̶͎̏t̴͇̾ẖ̶͛e̷̘͝i̴̧͐r̴̳͐ ̸͔́e̶̝͠y̷͓̔è̵̤ ̴̘͑ì̶̹s̵̘͌ ̵͓̑g̷̉͜o̶̹̍n̷̻͊e̷̘͝, before looking back down* Good- take deep breaths and just focus on that ,:] you can also repeat phrases that comfort you if you want- simple ones are "I'm here" and "I'm safe" if you can't think of any-

[lost-field-guy]

*Ran stays quiet, not including the choked sobs, but his breathing eventually slows. Tom looks up at Fungus worriedly, then turns concerned as he seems to notice their eye color*

[mushroom-anon]

*They don't notice him looking just yet-*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom keeps staring at their eye for moment, then leans a bit in their direction* …Hey, uh, what’s.. up with your eye?

[mushroom-anon]

hmm? ooh right it change when we switch kinda forgot that- -w-

[lost-field-guy]

..Switch-? Oh, your weird demon soul thing- I still don’t, uh, really understand that- haven’t really been thinking about it anyway-

[mushroom-anon]

well don't remember how Fungus explained it- but I can try to explain it :]

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom eyed them warily* …..Sure.

[mushroom-anon]

Basically I was created when Fungus died, and I had the same amount of time they lived by myself before we were supposed to fuse, but I got injured when we were supposed to which caused us to stay separate with both having control :]

[lost-field-guy]

…So you’re not.. Fungus right now??

[mushroom-anon]

nope :] I'm mush- fungus asked me to help since I've dealt with that before-

[lost-field-guy]

*He narrowed his eyes slightly at them, pulling Ran closer* …..Okay. *Ran had gone silent, their face still buried in Tom’s shoulder*

[mushroom-anon]

*They tilt their head slightly, before blinking hard w̶͈̏i̸͖͝ẗ̶͖́h̷̽͜ ̷̗͐ț̵̈h̷͕̎ẽ̴̟ ̴̛͓b̴̘͑l̵̰̀u̸̖͑ë̵̜́ ̶̛̖c̸͕̾ò̵͚m̸̹̅i̷̻̽n̴͇͌g̷̞̊ ̸͕̋b̵̯́á̴̝ć̶̩k̶̙̊ and sitting up, Fungus' tail wrapping around their leg*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom seems eases at their eye turning back blue, but doesn’t comment. Instead, he attempts to peel Ran off of him slightly to check on him, but he retains his vice-like grip on him*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesiates for a moment* ...dude I think you're gonna be stuck there for a bit-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah probably- *he sighed* ..I’m worried about that dough a bit- the whole process seems so complicated, I don’t know if it’s okay to just leave it out like it is right now-

[mushroom-anon]

ummmm neither do I, hopefully it will be fine? ,̸:̴D̴

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah, hopefully- I would go up there and check on it and make sure it looks normal but like you said I can’t exactly get up- *Ran seems to hold on even tighter to him as a response*

[mushroom-anon]

I mean I can check- don't really know what normal should look like tho-

[lost-field-guy]

That’d be good yeah- IIII don’t think it’s supposed to be in half so I guess you could fix that-?

[mushroom-anon]

oh yeah I can do that- *Fungus goes to stand up*

[lost-field-guy]

Okay, good! *he smiled up at them. Ran seemed to turn away from Tom a bit to glance up at Fungus, but still didn't say anything*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus carefully takes the two hafts of dough and tries to knead them both back together*

[lost-field-guy]

*The dough thankfully comes together easily. Ran, suddenly, peels off of Tom, stands up a bit slowly, and approaches Fungus from behind, mumbling* ..Needs to be kneaded more. Needs more flour.

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus jumps ever so slightly, before turning to face them* Oh- ok um, where's the flour?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo carefully shoves in front of them to grab the dough and the small cup with flour in it off to the side* ..I got it.

[mushroom-anon]

..alright ,̴:̴]̴ *Fungus takes a step back*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo resumes kneading as if nothing had happened. Tom, still on the floor, looks up at Fungus in confusion, glancing at Ran with concern*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus offers a hand to help him up*

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- thanks- *Tom accepts their hand and stands up* ..So, uh… *He glances at Ran again* ..What now??

[mushroom-anon]

...I would say drop the topic for now and resume after cooking maybe?

[lost-field-guy]

*He nods, a bit sadly* ..What should.. we do in the meantime?

[mushroom-anon]

..I mean I don't really mind, anything you want to do?

[lost-field-guy]

*He thinks for a while* ...I guess go out and try to find stuff for the new arms like we were talking about??

[mushroom-anon]

ooh right yeah that could be fun-

[lost-field-guy]

Okay- I’ll, uh- I guess I’ll try to find a bag to put any stuff we find in- *He awkwardly scampers off deeper into the house to look*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesiates a moment, before just waiting for him to come back*

[lost-field-guy]

*After a moment, Tom returns with a couple large luggage bags in tow* These ones look the sturdiest, I don’t know if we’re going to need this much space though-

[mushroom-anon]

oh- well we could probably only take one, and either carry or go back if their's stuff that doesn't fit-

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- okay- *He drops all but one bag to the ground and starts walking to the door* ..Wonder why they have so many of these anyway-

[mushroom-anon]

*fungus follows him* We can ask when we get back- where did you even find all of them??

[lost-field-guy]

Shoved in the back of a hall closet with a bunch of other weird shit, *he said casually, as if that wasn’t strange at all. He opens the front door and lets Fungus go ahead of him* I can’t imagine why they would need more than one bag per person-

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus walks out the door* Well it could be for space reasonings I guess- like maybe one of the bags has more pockets then the others??

[lost-field-guy]

..I could be wrong but they all looked like the exact same bag- *he shrugged it off* It’s probably nothing, they’re probably just overpreparers or something-

[mushroom-anon]

...I mean I guess-.....

[lost-field-guy]

..What, you got another idea of why? If so I wanna hear it >:3

[mushroom-anon]

no I don't I just..there's a vibe that there is more too it- nothing to back up said vibe but it's there none the less-

[lost-field-guy]

Hmm, that could be the case- What if they, like- sold drugs?? And these are where they hid them?? :0

[mushroom-anon]

...how the fuck is that your first thought???/̶l̷h̴

[lost-field-guy]

I don’t fucking know- That’s what drug dealers do, don’t they?? Have a fuck ton of coke in duffel bags?? Like what else can be associated with a bajillion duffel bags-

[mushroom-anon]

I don't know but how do you know what drug dealers do- and idk maybe like storing carrying a lot of money-

[lost-field-guy]

Having a ton of money in duffel bags is just as suspicious- andddd I don’t actually know how I know that-

[mushroom-anon]

I think it could be ever so slightly less suspicious- and that still doesn't explain how your first thought was drugs-

[lost-field-guy]

Wh- What am I supposed to say?? “Ooh, I thought of drug dealing because I was a drug dealer-“ Like- how do I explain that??? I don’t know how I know about that and I don’t know why I thought of that, okay?? *He lets out an exasperated sigh and starts nervously scratching at his hands*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus pauses for a second, "frowning" slightly* .......ok ok, I'm sorry-

[lost-field-guy]

*He doesn’t respond, staring at the ground for a moment before turning around and trying the door of a nearby house, which turns out to be unlocked, so he steps through*

[lost-field-guy]

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus walks into the kitchen from the living room, looking like they just got up*

!̶̙͐.....what fuck is going on???

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom attempts to desperately ask for help, although it’s muffled. Ranboo(?) notices Fungus, but doesn’t seem to care to acknowledge them*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus moves closer to them* ..Ran what the hell- Let go of Tom.

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo hums, tightening his grip on Tom* No, I don’t think I will, thank you though. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m busy finishing the job. *His voice isn’t different at all, but he is noticeably speaking a lot slower and controlled*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus stares at them, before being replaced with a glare as they walk over and attempt to rip his hands off of Tom* Let go, now.

[lost-field-guy]

*They tighten their grip again, pulling their body closer to Tom to shield himself from Fungus* …Why should I?

[mushroom-anon]

Because whatever you're planning isn't going to work, since if you try to go somewhere else, I'll follow you, and if you try to hurt Tom, I would bite the bullet and attack you, so we're at a standstill, and I don't believe you can keep up this control thing forever.

[lost-field-guy]

Oh, I can keep this up for plenty of time. And why would I care if you try to attack? It’s Ranboo’s body, not mine.

[mushroom-anon]

..because you can't really do whatever you have planned if you're pin to the ground so-

[lost-field-guy]

*He pauses for a moment* …Fair point, but who says I’ll even let you get me there? *Aimsey then enters the room as well, immediately takes notice of the situation, and rounds up for a punch in Ranboo’s direction*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus nods ever so slightly, taking a step back* Well, who says you have a choice?

[lost-field-guy]

I do, actua- *Aimsey interrupts him with a punch to the face, and he lets go of Tom and stumbles back in surprise, his pupils blink back to normal size, and passes out, though Aimsey catches him before he falls to the floor* 

[mushroom-anon]

Good job Aims, I was honestly running out of ways to stall him- *Fungus states before moving to check on Tom*

[lost-field-guy]

Thanks!! *Aimsey smiles before carrying Ranboo to the living room to set him down on the couch. Tom had gotten himself off of the counter and was now leaning against it, visibly shaking*

[mushroom-anon]

*fungus looks at him with concern* ..Tom? you alright?

[lost-field-guy]

Of course fucking not, I- *he snapped, but quickly caught himself* …I don’t- he- he can’t be alive- he can’t- 

[mushroom-anon]

...I mean I doubt he's alive, but I get what you mean. We'll figure it out Toms don't worry.

[lost-field-guy]

Wh- the fuck you mean you doubt he’s alive??? How would he have been able to do that *he gestures in the general direction of the living room* if he was dead???

[mushroom-anon]

I don't know- but like I mean I could see it being possible-

[lost-field-guy]

*He pauses for a second in disbelief, then composes himself* ..Okay, first of all, I guess it’s fair because you weren’t in the room when he said it, but he literally said he lived. Secondly, when Ran’s arms act up, he never talks, much less like Leinbury. Have you put two and two together yet???

[mushroom-anon]

I'm not disagreeing with the fact that he's not gone or whatever, I'm arguing the fact that he's alive- there is a difference-

[lost-field-guy]

I’m not saying he’s gone, I’m saying he fucking lived and somehow can remotely control Ran which means we’re all in fucking danger and need to do something about it!!!!!

[mushroom-anon]

yeah alright we're going to. How the fuck did he live anyway, You double-tapped him right?? and how did he control Ran cause like control of your arms shouldn't mean control of the entire body-

[lost-field-guy]

I thought I did- I guess I could’ve checked his pulse- and it doesn’t just mess with his arms, it messes with his behavior and shit so apparently Leinbury can just tap into that and change it???

[mushroom-anon]

How?? why did he only do that now???

[lost-field-guy]

I don’t fucking know, I just- *he put his head in his hands and sighed* I don’t know. I’m- we gotta do something, but I don’t know what-

[mushroom-anon]

..We'll figure it out- we can go to the living room and talk with Aimsey to form a plan of some sorts?

[lost-field-guy]

*He stares at the door to the living room for a second, looking concerned and a little frightened* …You can go, I don’t- I don’t want to be near him-

[mushroom-anon]

..alright, I understand why, you would be safe, but you don't have to come.*fungus hesitates a moment, before leaving to head to the living room*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom watches them go solemnly. Aimsey waves as they enter, then throws a concerned glance at Ran* ..So.. was that typical Ran’s arms making him weird or was there something else I missed-?

[mushroom-anon]

..Something else, they were talking as if they were Lienbury.

[lost-field-guy]

….oh fuck- So I’m guessing that means Leinbury’s alive somehow and can control him somehow- So all we have to do is get rid of the robot arms, right??? But then he won’t have arms that probably won’t work-

[mushroom-anon]

..I mean if we manage to figure out what's causing the control, we could just remove that part-

[lost-field-guy]

How are we supposed to know what part does that?? And what if we can’t put it all back together once we take it apart or the arm doesn’t work at all without that piece-

[mushroom-anon]

We might be able to find a clue or something back at the hostpital, like a blueprint or maybe some notes or something- cause I think the only other option would be to remove the arms and find something to use as replacements.

[lost-field-guy]

Well, given the fact that Leinbury is alive and actively out for blood, maybe going to the hospital isn’t the best idea- and I have no clue what we could use as replacement prosthetics other than actual prosthetics-

[mushroom-anon]

Why not? if he is there, then we can just deal with the root of the problem-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah, but it’s probably better to play it safe- plus, even if we did go and confront him, we wouldn’t outnumber him by much because I doubt Tom or Ran would want to go. *At the mention of his name, Tom moved to the doorway between the kitchen and the living room and listened into their conversation more closely*

[mushroom-anon]

Yes, but I still think that going back there might be our best option, since I would love to beat the shit out of him to deal with the root of the problem, or at least find some clues on how to stop the control thing-

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah, and as if he’d just leave out clues about that- *Tom then steps into the room a bit more, quietly interrupting Aimsey* ..I can- uh- I can make new arms for Ran-

[mushroom-anon]

!̴̢͂ *fungus turns around to face him* Oh- really? What would you need to make them?

[lost-field-guy]

*He flinches a bit in surprise, stepping back into the kitchen* Uh- j-just parts and tools, if you guys have any- I don’t really know where the best place to get the right parts would be-

[mushroom-anon]

well what type of part specifically?

[lost-field-guy]

Um- anything, really- I’d just need a lot to, y’know, make it work-

[mushroom-anon]

so like random electronics orr?

[lost-field-guy]

…yyyyyeah, I think that’ll work- but again I don’t know where we would get any and I don’t want to take apart the electronics here-

[mushroom-anon]

hmm, maybe we can go search some buildings in town? Surely there's somethings there that haven't been looted or anything-

[lost-field-guy]

..right, I guess that would work- I just hope we find enough-

[mushroom-anon]

I'm sure we could ,̷:̴]̶

[lost-field-guy]

..alright.. *Just then, Ranboo’s eyes fluttered open and he slowly sat up, clutching his head* ..What happened?? Where am I???

[mushroom-anon]

.you're in the living room- *fungus explains before trying to get a peak at their eyes*

[lost-field-guy]

*His pupils are still normal size* ..fuck, my arms did the thing again, didn't they- FUCK THE ONIONS- *They instantly get up and rush back into the kitchen to manage, apparently, the onions on the stove*

[mushroom-anon]

....who's gonna tell him they got "possessed"-

[lost-field-guy]

*Aimsey raises their hand to volunteer, but Tom shakes his head at them as he moves from the kitchen to the living room in avoiding Ran* Do it in a bit. Let him do his cooking stuff first.

[mushroom-anon]

....alright...*Fungus says, concerned in their eye*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom plops down on the couch, arms crossed and watching Ran in the kitchen. Aimsey leans over to Fungus while eyeing Tom.* ..Do you know what's up with him??

[mushroom-anon]

..not for sure, but most likely is because of the fact that Leninbury is not gone-

[lost-field-guy]

..Well yeah, I got that, that's probably why he's avoiding them, but like- ..how do I put it- I've never really seen him so.. protective of Ran since, like, we first met him.

[mushroom-anon]

hm..I haven't really noticed that but maybe just also because of the control thing???

[lost-field-guy]

Y’know, him not wanting me to tell Ran immediately?? I guess I can see that being because of that but it just seems a bit hypocritical- avoiding him but protecting him at the same time-

[mushroom-anon]

..I think it's less wanting to avoid Ran and more wanting to avoid Leninbury, and since He controls them you got to avoid Ran to avoid Leninbury

[lost-field-guy]

Well yeah, I got that, but- *they sigh* Nevermind, forget about it. *They plop down on the couch next to Tom, who doesn’t even notice as he continues watching Ranboo closely, who seemed to have turned on an electric mixer and started pouring in flour bit by bit*

[mushroom-anon]

?̷̼̔...*Fungus hesitates, before going to sit down as well*

[lost-field-guy]

*After a bit, Ranboo poked his head through the door* You guys like focaccia, right? I’m making some right now, and I was just wondering how many of us are actually gonna eat it- *Aimsey nods, but Tom just gives them a weird look*

[mushroom-anon]

..I'm good without- *Fungus glances over at Tom*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo nods, then eyes Tom as well* ..do you.. know what focaccia is? *Tom hesitates for a bit, then shakes his head*

[mushroom-anon]

..gonna be honest same -̵w̸-̷

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- it’s a type of yeast bread!! It’s super good, you guys will love it! It’s got herbs and onions and garlic mixed in the dough. I was planning on making a big loaf so we could have bread for sandwiches for a while :3 *Tom raised his eyebrows at the mention of herbs, but said nothing*

[mushroom-anon]

hm nice, still probably gonna pass tho -̵w̸-̷

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo nods in understanding and turns to return to the kitchen, but Tom stops him* ..You're making bread from scratch?? *Ranboo nods again, looking at him in surprise* ..yeah- do you want me to show you??

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus tilts their head slightly, carefully watching the interaction*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom hesitates for a while, then reluctantly nods and gets up, cautiously joining Ranboo in the kitchen*

[mushroom-anon]

........can I come watch? :̶]̷

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo pokes their head through the door again* Oh- yeah, of course!! Get in here >:3

[mushroom-anon]

yay :̶3̸...*Fungus gets up and follows them in*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo joyfully leads them into the kitchen and gestures to the mixer and bowl, with the former being turned off and the latter filled with a fairly sticky, wet looking mixture* As you can tell, I’ve already done the hard part- getting the yeast activated and starting to mix all the ingredients and sautéing the onions and garlic- I just need to finish getting the dough mixed while adding flour so it firms up a bit, add all the herbs and everything, then knead it with the dough hook and myself and then let it ferment for a couple hours! :3 *Tom clearly did not get a word they said but nods along anyway*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus leans against a wall to just watch them, their tail flicking slightly*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo flicks on the mixer, starts adding a bit more flour, pauses, then grabs a small bowl with a bit of assorted dried herbs in it and offers it to Tom* You can put these in when it’s time. I mean- if you want to help- *Tom sort of just.. stands there, looking down at the herbs, not exactly confirming but not protesting either, so Ranboo apparently accepts that as confirmation and turns back to the bowl*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks at Tom, tilting their head as they wait for a reaction*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom continues staring at it, then slowly raises it to his face, takes a sniff, and blushes slightly. He then catches wind of Fungus watching him, sticks his tongue out at them, then scampers closer to Ranboo to watch the dough mix*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus chuckles quietly, watching the both of them*

[lost-field-guy]

Ranboo allows Tom to dump the herbs in, then they dump the now cooled garlic and onions in and add a bit more flour. Tom watches Ranboo closely for a bit, still blushing a bit* …Why can’t you bake it immediately? Why does it have to “ferment”? *Ranboo looks back at him and chuckles* The yeast needs time to eat and release carbon dioxide, otherwise the bread wouldn’t rise. It needs to rise twice before baking, the second time being after I put it in a pan and shape it.

[mushroom-anon]

..Where did you learn how to do all of this Ran?

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- I took a lot of culinary classes in high school! :D *The mixer started sounding like it was struggling to mix the dough, so Ranboo switched out the paddle attachment for a dough hook*

[mushroom-anon]

and they taught you all this? That's so cool-

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah! All of this and more- just in the first class, I learned knife skills, how to properly cook different meats, and how to make an entire pie from scratch, just to name a few examples-

[mushroom-anon]

Nicee :̶]̷

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah :3 *Ranboo turned back to watch Tom watch the mixer, mesmerized by the motion of the hook kneading the dough. Without Tom noticing, Ranboo leans in and takes a cautious sniff of Tom, then blushes and nods in understanding*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks off to the side, an ear flicking as if hearing something, before rolling their eyes and "smiling" foundly*

[lost-field-guy]

*Suddenly, with no prompting, Tom turns to Ran* Leinbury was controlling you while your arms were freaking out. *Ranboo looked at him in bewilderment* ..What????? How????????

[mushroom-anon]

!̴̢͂ Tom I thought you wanted to wait to tell them- and we don't know.

[lost-field-guy]

I did wait. And what other explanation is there?? *Ranboo kind of just stares into space for a second, then seems to come to a realization* Wait- Leinbury’s alive???? I thought you killed him????????

[mushroom-anon]

That's what I'm saying- I still think that he's dead and did something to "live" after death- I feel like he would be the type of guy to put a copy of his brain into a computer or something-

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom looks at them with mild annoyance* You know I could’ve just thought I killed him? He seems more of the type to pretend he’s dead just to get me to go away-

[mushroom-anon]

hm maybe- both possible options-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah, I guess. Anyway, *he turns back to Ran* yeah, that happened. He tried to- I don’t really know- choke me or something. But yeah. *Ranboo had taken the dough out of the bowl and started anxiously kneading it himself, not responding*

[mushroom-anon]

...*Fungus looks at them with worry*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom also watches him with concern* ..Sorry- I should’ve waited more maybe- *Ranboo doesn’t look up, starting to go at the dough a little more aggressively, but mutters a small “it’s fine”*

[mushroom-anon]

..............doesn't seem fine- *fungus mumbles to themself*

[lost-field-guy]

*In silence, Ranboo progressively kneads more and more aggressively, until Tom, who’s expression also grew more and more with concern, decided to reach out to stop them—until suddenly, Ranboo just straight up ripped the dough in half, panting. Tom backed up, his concern turned to fear*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus stands up straight from the wall, quickly moving to stand next to Tom* ...........Ran?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo backed up a bit, staring at the dough in shock, still breathing heavily. He then looked down at his hands, then at Fungus and Tom, revealing his pupils to still be normal sized, then back at his hands, then the dough. Their breath began to quicken as they clutched the counter*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus relaxes ever so slightly when they see his pupils, before moving over to them* Ran hey you’re ok-

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo flinched away from them and slid to the ground, shaking and beginning to cry. Tom, after some hesitation, cautiously moved to sit next to him but still respecting his personal space*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesitates for a long while, their tail flicking slightly, before carefully sitting down as well*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom eyes Fungus nervously, then turns to Ran, hesitates again, and attempts to reach out to comfort him. Ranboo immediately reacts by clutching onto his arm and crying into his shoulder, making him turn bright red*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks surprised for a moment at the quick movement, but when they spot how red Tom is, they chuckle slightly at him*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom sarcastically made a face at Fungus laughing, then awkwardly adjusted himself to be sitting more comfortably with Ran on him and rubbed their back gently. Ran didn’t seem close to calming down, muttering something incomprehensible through his tears*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus "frowns" slightly when they see Ran not calming down, looking for any ways to help*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom looked a bit worriedly between Ran and Fungus, turning a bit red again from embarrassment* ..I don’t know what to do- I’m not good at this-

[mushroom-anon]

..neither am I fuck- ummm just hug them back for now I can't do that umm- *fungus looks down slightly, muttering something to themself, before looking up and scooting a little closer* Hey Ran? Can you hear me bud?

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom nods and tries to carefully hold tighter to Ran. Ranboo pulls closer to Tom, getting a little bit quieter, though it’s not clear if it’s in reaction to Tom or Fungus*

[mushroom-anon]

...Ran? can you nod if you can hear me please?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo, after a second, pauses his mumbling briefly and nods a bit*

[mushroom-anon]

That's good ,:] Do you need some more help calming down or is this ok?/genq

[lost-field-guy]

*He shook his head, gripping even tighter onto Tom, who began to look a little uncomfortable*

[mushroom-anon]

*They glance at the both of them, before focusing back on Ran* ..I don't know what one you where saying no to, so just in case, do you think you can put a hand on you're chest to focus on you're breathing? ,:] you can still hold onto Tom with one hand if that's helping you-

[lost-field-guy]

*He hesitated a moment, then let go of Tom with one hand and moved it to his chest. Tom relaxed a bit, mouthing a ‘thank you’ at Fungus*

[mushroom-anon]

*They look up to "smile" at Tom,T̷͈́h̸͍̚e̶͎̿ ̷̗̀b̴͔̋ľ̷̳u̴̝̒ē̷̳ ̸͔͛i̵̻͋n̷͕̂ ̶͎̏t̴͇̾ẖ̶͛e̷̘͝i̴̧͐r̴̳͐ ̸͔́e̶̝͠y̷͓̔è̵̤ ̴̘͑ì̶̹s̵̘͌ ̵͓̑g̷̉͜o̶̹̍n̷̻͊e̷̘͝, before looking back down* Good- take deep breaths and just focus on that ,:] you can also repeat phrases that comfort you if you want- simple ones are "I'm here" and "I'm safe" if you can't think of any-

[lost-field-guy]

*Ran stays quiet, not including the choked sobs, but his breathing eventually slows. Tom looks up at Fungus worriedly, then turns concerned as he seems to notice their eye color*

[mushroom-anon]

*They don't notice him looking just yet-*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom keeps staring at their eye for moment, then leans a bit in their direction* …Hey, uh, what’s.. up with your eye?

[mushroom-anon]

hmm? ooh right it change when we switch kinda forgot that- -w-

[lost-field-guy]

..Switch-? Oh, your weird demon soul thing- I still don’t, uh, really understand that- haven’t really been thinking about it anyway-

[mushroom-anon]

well don't remember how Fungus explained it- but I can try to explain it :]

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom eyed them warily* …..Sure.

[mushroom-anon]

Basically I was created when Fungus died, and I had the same amount of time they lived by myself before we were supposed to fuse, but I got injured when we were supposed to which caused us to stay separate with both having control :]

[lost-field-guy]

…So you’re not.. Fungus right now??

[mushroom-anon]

nope :] I'm mush- fungus asked me to help since I've dealt with that before-

[lost-field-guy]

*He narrowed his eyes slightly at them, pulling Ran closer* …..Okay. *Ran had gone silent, their face still buried in Tom’s shoulder*

[mushroom-anon]

*They tilt their head slightly, before blinking hard w̶͈̏i̸͖͝ẗ̶͖́h̷̽͜ ̷̗͐ț̵̈h̷͕̎ẽ̴̟ ̴̛͓b̴̘͑l̵̰̀u̸̖͑ë̵̜́ ̶̛̖c̸͕̾ò̵͚m̸̹̅i̷̻̽n̴͇͌g̷̞̊ ̸͕̋b̵̯́á̴̝ć̶̩k̶̙̊ and sitting up, Fungus' tail wrapping around their leg*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom seems eases at their eye turning back blue, but doesn’t comment. Instead, he attempts to peel Ran off of him slightly to check on him, but he retains his vice-like grip on him*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesiates for a moment* ...dude I think you're gonna be stuck there for a bit-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah probably- *he sighed* ..I’m worried about that dough a bit- the whole process seems so complicated, I don’t know if it’s okay to just leave it out like it is right now-

[mushroom-anon]

ummmm neither do I, hopefully it will be fine? ,̸:̴D̴

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah, hopefully- I would go up there and check on it and make sure it looks normal but like you said I can’t exactly get up- *Ran seems to hold on even tighter to him as a response*

[mushroom-anon]

I mean I can check- don't really know what normal should look like tho-

[lost-field-guy]

That’d be good yeah- IIII don’t think it’s supposed to be in half so I guess you could fix that-?

[mushroom-anon]

oh yeah I can do that- *Fungus goes to stand up*

[lost-field-guy]

Okay, good! *he smiled up at them. Ran seemed to turn away from Tom a bit to glance up at Fungus, but still didn't say anything*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus carefully takes the two hafts of dough and tries to knead them both back together*

[lost-field-guy]

*The dough thankfully comes together easily. Ran, suddenly, peels off of Tom, stands up a bit slowly, and approaches Fungus from behind, mumbling* ..Needs to be kneaded more. Needs more flour.

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus jumps ever so slightly, before turning to face them* Oh- ok um, where's the flour?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo carefully shoves in front of them to grab the dough and the small cup with flour in it off to the side* ..I got it.

[mushroom-anon]

..alright ,̴:̴]̴ *Fungus takes a step back*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo resumes kneading as if nothing had happened. Tom, still on the floor, looks up at Fungus in confusion, glancing at Ran with concern*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus offers a hand to help him up*

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- thanks- *Tom accepts their hand and stands up* ..So, uh… *He glances at Ran again* ..What now??

[mushroom-anon]

...I would say drop the topic for now and resume after cooking maybe?

[lost-field-guy]

*He nods, a bit sadly* ..What should.. we do in the meantime?

[mushroom-anon]

..I mean I don't really mind, anything you want to do?

[lost-field-guy]

*He thinks for a while* ...I guess go out and try to find stuff for the new arms like we were talking about??

[mushroom-anon]

ooh right yeah that could be fun-

[lost-field-guy]

Okay- I’ll, uh- I guess I’ll try to find a bag to put any stuff we find in- *He awkwardly scampers off deeper into the house to look*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesiates a moment, before just waiting for him to come back*

[lost-field-guy]

*After a moment, Tom returns with a couple large luggage bags in tow* These ones look the sturdiest, I don’t know if we’re going to need this much space though-

[mushroom-anon]

oh- well we could probably only take one, and either carry or go back if their's stuff that doesn't fit-

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- okay- *He drops all but one bag to the ground and starts walking to the door* ..Wonder why they have so many of these anyway-

[mushroom-anon]

*fungus follows him* We can ask when we get back- where did you even find all of them??

[lost-field-guy]

Shoved in the back of a hall closet with a bunch of other weird shit, *he said casually, as if that wasn’t strange at all. He opens the front door and lets Fungus go ahead of him* I can’t imagine why they would need more than one bag per person-

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus walks out the door* Well it could be for space reasonings I guess- like maybe one of the bags has more pockets then the others??

[lost-field-guy]

..I could be wrong but they all looked like the exact same bag- *he shrugged it off* It’s probably nothing, they’re probably just overpreparers or something-

[mushroom-anon]

...I mean I guess-.....

[lost-field-guy]

..What, you got another idea of why? If so I wanna hear it >:3

[mushroom-anon]

no I don't I just..there's a vibe that there is more too it- nothing to back up said vibe but it's there none the less-

[lost-field-guy]

Hmm, that could be the case- What if they, like- sold drugs?? And these are where they hid them?? :0

[mushroom-anon]

...how the fuck is that your first thought???/̶l̷h̴

[lost-field-guy]

I don’t fucking know- That’s what drug dealers do, don’t they?? Have a fuck ton of coke in duffel bags?? Like what else can be associated with a bajillion duffel bags-

[mushroom-anon]

I don't know but how do you know what drug dealers do- and idk maybe like storing carrying a lot of money-

[lost-field-guy]

Having a ton of money in duffel bags is just as suspicious- andddd I don’t actually know how I know that-

[mushroom-anon]

I think it could be ever so slightly less suspicious- and that still doesn't explain how your first thought was drugs-

[lost-field-guy]

Wh- What am I supposed to say?? “Ooh, I thought of drug dealing because I was a drug dealer-“ Like- how do I explain that??? I don’t know how I know about that and I don’t know why I thought of that, okay?? *He lets out an exasperated sigh and starts nervously scratching at his hands*

[lost-field-guy]

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus walks into the kitchen from the living room, looking like they just got up*

!̶̙͐.....what fuck is going on???

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom attempts to desperately ask for help, although it’s muffled. Ranboo(?) notices Fungus, but doesn’t seem to care to acknowledge them*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus moves closer to them* ..Ran what the hell- Let go of Tom.

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo hums, tightening his grip on Tom* No, I don’t think I will, thank you though. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m busy finishing the job. *His voice isn’t different at all, but he is noticeably speaking a lot slower and controlled*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus stares at them, before being replaced with a glare as they walk over and attempt to rip his hands off of Tom* Let go, now.

[lost-field-guy]

*They tighten their grip again, pulling their body closer to Tom to shield himself from Fungus* …Why should I?

[mushroom-anon]

Because whatever you're planning isn't going to work, since if you try to go somewhere else, I'll follow you, and if you try to hurt Tom, I would bite the bullet and attack you, so we're at a standstill, and I don't believe you can keep up this control thing forever.

[lost-field-guy]

Oh, I can keep this up for plenty of time. And why would I care if you try to attack? It’s Ranboo’s body, not mine.

[mushroom-anon]

..because you can't really do whatever you have planned if you're pin to the ground so-

[lost-field-guy]

*He pauses for a moment* …Fair point, but who says I’ll even let you get me there? *Aimsey then enters the room as well, immediately takes notice of the situation, and rounds up for a punch in Ranboo’s direction*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus nods ever so slightly, taking a step back* Well, who says you have a choice?

[lost-field-guy]

I do, actua- *Aimsey interrupts him with a punch to the face, and he lets go of Tom and stumbles back in surprise, his pupils blink back to normal size, and passes out, though Aimsey catches him before he falls to the floor* 

[mushroom-anon]

Good job Aims, I was honestly running out of ways to stall him- *Fungus states before moving to check on Tom*

[lost-field-guy]

Thanks!! *Aimsey smiles before carrying Ranboo to the living room to set him down on the couch. Tom had gotten himself off of the counter and was now leaning against it, visibly shaking*

[mushroom-anon]

*fungus looks at him with concern* ..Tom? you alright?

[lost-field-guy]

Of course fucking not, I- *he snapped, but quickly caught himself* …I don’t- he- he can’t be alive- he can’t- 

[mushroom-anon]

...I mean I doubt he's alive, but I get what you mean. We'll figure it out Toms don't worry.

[lost-field-guy]

Wh- the fuck you mean you doubt he’s alive??? How would he have been able to do that *he gestures in the general direction of the living room* if he was dead???

[mushroom-anon]

I don't know- but like I mean I could see it being possible-

[lost-field-guy]

*He pauses for a second in disbelief, then composes himself* ..Okay, first of all, I guess it’s fair because you weren’t in the room when he said it, but he literally said he lived. Secondly, when Ran’s arms act up, he never talks, much less like Leinbury. Have you put two and two together yet???

[mushroom-anon]

I'm not disagreeing with the fact that he's not gone or whatever, I'm arguing the fact that he's alive- there is a difference-

[lost-field-guy]

I’m not saying he’s gone, I’m saying he fucking lived and somehow can remotely control Ran which means we’re all in fucking danger and need to do something about it!!!!!

[mushroom-anon]

yeah alright we're going to. How the fuck did he live anyway, You double-tapped him right?? and how did he control Ran cause like control of your arms shouldn't mean control of the entire body-

[lost-field-guy]

I thought I did- I guess I could’ve checked his pulse- and it doesn’t just mess with his arms, it messes with his behavior and shit so apparently Leinbury can just tap into that and change it???

[mushroom-anon]

How?? why did he only do that now???

[lost-field-guy]

I don’t fucking know, I just- *he put his head in his hands and sighed* I don’t know. I’m- we gotta do something, but I don’t know what-

[mushroom-anon]

..We'll figure it out- we can go to the living room and talk with Aimsey to form a plan of some sorts?

[lost-field-guy]

*He stares at the door to the living room for a second, looking concerned and a little frightened* …You can go, I don’t- I don’t want to be near him-

[mushroom-anon]

..alright, I understand why, you would be safe, but you don't have to come.*fungus hesitates a moment, before leaving to head to the living room*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom watches them go solemnly. Aimsey waves as they enter, then throws a concerned glance at Ran* ..So.. was that typical Ran’s arms making him weird or was there something else I missed-?

[mushroom-anon]

..Something else, they were talking as if they were Lienbury.

[lost-field-guy]

….oh fuck- So I’m guessing that means Leinbury’s alive somehow and can control him somehow- So all we have to do is get rid of the robot arms, right??? But then he won’t have arms that probably won’t work-

[mushroom-anon]

..I mean if we manage to figure out what's causing the control, we could just remove that part-

[lost-field-guy]

How are we supposed to know what part does that?? And what if we can’t put it all back together once we take it apart or the arm doesn’t work at all without that piece-

[mushroom-anon]

We might be able to find a clue or something back at the hostpital, like a blueprint or maybe some notes or something- cause I think the only other option would be to remove the arms and find something to use as replacements.

[lost-field-guy]

Well, given the fact that Leinbury is alive and actively out for blood, maybe going to the hospital isn’t the best idea- and I have no clue what we could use as replacement prosthetics other than actual prosthetics-

[mushroom-anon]

Why not? if he is there, then we can just deal with the root of the problem-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah, but it’s probably better to play it safe- plus, even if we did go and confront him, we wouldn’t outnumber him by much because I doubt Tom or Ran would want to go. *At the mention of his name, Tom moved to the doorway between the kitchen and the living room and listened into their conversation more closely*

[mushroom-anon]

Yes, but I still think that going back there might be our best option, since I would love to beat the shit out of him to deal with the root of the problem, or at least find some clues on how to stop the control thing-

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah, and as if he’d just leave out clues about that- *Tom then steps into the room a bit more, quietly interrupting Aimsey* ..I can- uh- I can make new arms for Ran-

[mushroom-anon]

!̴̢͂ *fungus turns around to face him* Oh- really? What would you need to make them?

[lost-field-guy]

*He flinches a bit in surprise, stepping back into the kitchen* Uh- j-just parts and tools, if you guys have any- I don’t really know where the best place to get the right parts would be-

[mushroom-anon]

well what type of part specifically?

[lost-field-guy]

Um- anything, really- I’d just need a lot to, y’know, make it work-

[mushroom-anon]

so like random electronics orr?

[lost-field-guy]

…yyyyyeah, I think that’ll work- but again I don’t know where we would get any and I don’t want to take apart the electronics here-

[mushroom-anon]

hmm, maybe we can go search some buildings in town? Surely there's somethings there that haven't been looted or anything-

[lost-field-guy]

..right, I guess that would work- I just hope we find enough-

[mushroom-anon]

I'm sure we could ,̷:̴]̶

[lost-field-guy]

..alright.. *Just then, Ranboo’s eyes fluttered open and he slowly sat up, clutching his head* ..What happened?? Where am I???

[mushroom-anon]

.you're in the living room- *fungus explains before trying to get a peak at their eyes*

[lost-field-guy]

*His pupils are still normal size* ..fuck, my arms did the thing again, didn't they- FUCK THE ONIONS- *They instantly get up and rush back into the kitchen to manage, apparently, the onions on the stove*

[mushroom-anon]

....who's gonna tell him they got "possessed"-

[lost-field-guy]

*Aimsey raises their hand to volunteer, but Tom shakes his head at them as he moves from the kitchen to the living room in avoiding Ran* Do it in a bit. Let him do his cooking stuff first.

[mushroom-anon]

....alright...*Fungus says, concerned in their eye*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom plops down on the couch, arms crossed and watching Ran in the kitchen. Aimsey leans over to Fungus while eyeing Tom.* ..Do you know what's up with him??

[mushroom-anon]

..not for sure, but most likely is because of the fact that Leninbury is not gone-

[lost-field-guy]

..Well yeah, I got that, that's probably why he's avoiding them, but like- ..how do I put it- I've never really seen him so.. protective of Ran since, like, we first met him.

[mushroom-anon]

hm..I haven't really noticed that but maybe just also because of the control thing???

[lost-field-guy]

Y’know, him not wanting me to tell Ran immediately?? I guess I can see that being because of that but it just seems a bit hypocritical- avoiding him but protecting him at the same time-

[mushroom-anon]

..I think it's less wanting to avoid Ran and more wanting to avoid Leninbury, and since He controls them you got to avoid Ran to avoid Leninbury

[lost-field-guy]

Well yeah, I got that, but- *they sigh* Nevermind, forget about it. *They plop down on the couch next to Tom, who doesn’t even notice as he continues watching Ranboo closely, who seemed to have turned on an electric mixer and started pouring in flour bit by bit*

[mushroom-anon]

?̷̼̔...*Fungus hesitates, before going to sit down as well*

[lost-field-guy]

*After a bit, Ranboo poked his head through the door* You guys like focaccia, right? I’m making some right now, and I was just wondering how many of us are actually gonna eat it- *Aimsey nods, but Tom just gives them a weird look*

[mushroom-anon]

..I'm good without- *Fungus glances over at Tom*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo nods, then eyes Tom as well* ..do you.. know what focaccia is? *Tom hesitates for a bit, then shakes his head*

[mushroom-anon]

..gonna be honest same -̵w̸-̷

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- it’s a type of yeast bread!! It’s super good, you guys will love it! It’s got herbs and onions and garlic mixed in the dough. I was planning on making a big loaf so we could have bread for sandwiches for a while :3 *Tom raised his eyebrows at the mention of herbs, but said nothing*

[mushroom-anon]

hm nice, still probably gonna pass tho -̵w̸-̷

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo nods in understanding and turns to return to the kitchen, but Tom stops him* ..You're making bread from scratch?? *Ranboo nods again, looking at him in surprise* ..yeah- do you want me to show you??

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus tilts their head slightly, carefully watching the interaction*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom hesitates for a while, then reluctantly nods and gets up, cautiously joining Ranboo in the kitchen*

[mushroom-anon]

........can I come watch? :̶]̷

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo pokes their head through the door again* Oh- yeah, of course!! Get in here >:3

[mushroom-anon]

yay :̶3̸...*Fungus gets up and follows them in*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo joyfully leads them into the kitchen and gestures to the mixer and bowl, with the former being turned off and the latter filled with a fairly sticky, wet looking mixture* As you can tell, I’ve already done the hard part- getting the yeast activated and starting to mix all the ingredients and sautéing the onions and garlic- I just need to finish getting the dough mixed while adding flour so it firms up a bit, add all the herbs and everything, then knead it with the dough hook and myself and then let it ferment for a couple hours! :3 *Tom clearly did not get a word they said but nods along anyway*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus leans against a wall to just watch them, their tail flicking slightly*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo flicks on the mixer, starts adding a bit more flour, pauses, then grabs a small bowl with a bit of assorted dried herbs in it and offers it to Tom* You can put these in when it’s time. I mean- if you want to help- *Tom sort of just.. stands there, looking down at the herbs, not exactly confirming but not protesting either, so Ranboo apparently accepts that as confirmation and turns back to the bowl*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks at Tom, tilting their head as they wait for a reaction*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom continues staring at it, then slowly raises it to his face, takes a sniff, and blushes slightly. He then catches wind of Fungus watching him, sticks his tongue out at them, then scampers closer to Ranboo to watch the dough mix*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus chuckles quietly, watching the both of them*

[lost-field-guy]

Ranboo allows Tom to dump the herbs in, then they dump the now cooled garlic and onions in and add a bit more flour. Tom watches Ranboo closely for a bit, still blushing a bit* …Why can’t you bake it immediately? Why does it have to “ferment”? *Ranboo looks back at him and chuckles* The yeast needs time to eat and release carbon dioxide, otherwise the bread wouldn’t rise. It needs to rise twice before baking, the second time being after I put it in a pan and shape it.

[mushroom-anon]

..Where did you learn how to do all of this Ran?

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- I took a lot of culinary classes in high school! :D *The mixer started sounding like it was struggling to mix the dough, so Ranboo switched out the paddle attachment for a dough hook*

[mushroom-anon]

and they taught you all this? That's so cool-

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah! All of this and more- just in the first class, I learned knife skills, how to properly cook different meats, and how to make an entire pie from scratch, just to name a few examples-

[mushroom-anon]

Nicee :̶]̷

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah :3 *Ranboo turned back to watch Tom watch the mixer, mesmerized by the motion of the hook kneading the dough. Without Tom noticing, Ranboo leans in and takes a cautious sniff of Tom, then blushes and nods in understanding*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks off to the side, an ear flicking as if hearing something, before rolling their eyes and "smiling" foundly*

[lost-field-guy]

*Suddenly, with no prompting, Tom turns to Ran* Leinbury was controlling you while your arms were freaking out. *Ranboo looked at him in bewilderment* ..What????? How????????

[mushroom-anon]

!̴̢͂ Tom I thought you wanted to wait to tell them- and we don't know.

[lost-field-guy]

I did wait. And what other explanation is there?? *Ranboo kind of just stares into space for a second, then seems to come to a realization* Wait- Leinbury’s alive???? I thought you killed him????????

[mushroom-anon]

That's what I'm saying- I still think that he's dead and did something to "live" after death- I feel like he would be the type of guy to put a copy of his brain into a computer or something-

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom looks at them with mild annoyance* You know I could’ve just thought I killed him? He seems more of the type to pretend he’s dead just to get me to go away-

[mushroom-anon]

hm maybe- both possible options-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah, I guess. Anyway, *he turns back to Ran* yeah, that happened. He tried to- I don’t really know- choke me or something. But yeah. *Ranboo had taken the dough out of the bowl and started anxiously kneading it himself, not responding*

[mushroom-anon]

...*Fungus looks at them with worry*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom also watches him with concern* ..Sorry- I should’ve waited more maybe- *Ranboo doesn’t look up, starting to go at the dough a little more aggressively, but mutters a small “it’s fine”*

[mushroom-anon]

..............doesn't seem fine- *fungus mumbles to themself*

[lost-field-guy]

*In silence, Ranboo progressively kneads more and more aggressively, until Tom, who’s expression also grew more and more with concern, decided to reach out to stop them—until suddenly, Ranboo just straight up ripped the dough in half, panting. Tom backed up, his concern turned to fear*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus stands up straight from the wall, quickly moving to stand next to Tom* ...........Ran?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo backed up a bit, staring at the dough in shock, still breathing heavily. He then looked down at his hands, then at Fungus and Tom, revealing his pupils to still be normal sized, then back at his hands, then the dough. Their breath began to quicken as they clutched the counter*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus relaxes ever so slightly when they see his pupils, before moving over to them* Ran hey you’re ok-

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo flinched away from them and slid to the ground, shaking and beginning to cry. Tom, after some hesitation, cautiously moved to sit next to him but still respecting his personal space*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesitates for a long while, their tail flicking slightly, before carefully sitting down as well*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom eyes Fungus nervously, then turns to Ran, hesitates again, and attempts to reach out to comfort him. Ranboo immediately reacts by clutching onto his arm and crying into his shoulder, making him turn bright red*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks surprised for a moment at the quick movement, but when they spot how red Tom is, they chuckle slightly at him*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom sarcastically made a face at Fungus laughing, then awkwardly adjusted himself to be sitting more comfortably with Ran on him and rubbed their back gently. Ran didn’t seem close to calming down, muttering something incomprehensible through his tears*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus "frowns" slightly when they see Ran not calming down, looking for any ways to help*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom looked a bit worriedly between Ran and Fungus, turning a bit red again from embarrassment* ..I don’t know what to do- I’m not good at this-

[mushroom-anon]

..neither am I fuck- ummm just hug them back for now I can't do that umm- *fungus looks down slightly, muttering something to themself, before looking up and scooting a little closer* Hey Ran? Can you hear me bud?

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom nods and tries to carefully hold tighter to Ran. Ranboo pulls closer to Tom, getting a little bit quieter, though it’s not clear if it’s in reaction to Tom or Fungus*

[mushroom-anon]

...Ran? can you nod if you can hear me please?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo, after a second, pauses his mumbling briefly and nods a bit*

[mushroom-anon]

That's good ,:] Do you need some more help calming down or is this ok?/genq

[lost-field-guy]

*He shook his head, gripping even tighter onto Tom, who began to look a little uncomfortable*

[mushroom-anon]

*They glance at the both of them, before focusing back on Ran* ..I don't know what one you where saying no to, so just in case, do you think you can put a hand on you're chest to focus on you're breathing? ,:] you can still hold onto Tom with one hand if that's helping you-

[lost-field-guy]

*He hesitated a moment, then let go of Tom with one hand and moved it to his chest. Tom relaxed a bit, mouthing a ‘thank you’ at Fungus*

[mushroom-anon]

*They look up to "smile" at Tom,T̷͈́h̸͍̚e̶͎̿ ̷̗̀b̴͔̋ľ̷̳u̴̝̒ē̷̳ ̸͔͛i̵̻͋n̷͕̂ ̶͎̏t̴͇̾ẖ̶͛e̷̘͝i̴̧͐r̴̳͐ ̸͔́e̶̝͠y̷͓̔è̵̤ ̴̘͑ì̶̹s̵̘͌ ̵͓̑g̷̉͜o̶̹̍n̷̻͊e̷̘͝, before looking back down* Good- take deep breaths and just focus on that ,:] you can also repeat phrases that comfort you if you want- simple ones are "I'm here" and "I'm safe" if you can't think of any-

[lost-field-guy]

*Ran stays quiet, not including the choked sobs, but his breathing eventually slows. Tom looks up at Fungus worriedly, then turns concerned as he seems to notice their eye color*

[mushroom-anon]

*They don't notice him looking just yet-*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom keeps staring at their eye for moment, then leans a bit in their direction* …Hey, uh, what’s.. up with your eye?

[mushroom-anon]

hmm? ooh right it change when we switch kinda forgot that- -w-

[lost-field-guy]

..Switch-? Oh, your weird demon soul thing- I still don’t, uh, really understand that- haven’t really been thinking about it anyway-

[mushroom-anon]

well don't remember how Fungus explained it- but I can try to explain it :]

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom eyed them warily* …..Sure.

[mushroom-anon]

Basically I was created when Fungus died, and I had the same amount of time they lived by myself before we were supposed to fuse, but I got injured when we were supposed to which caused us to stay separate with both having control :]

[lost-field-guy]

…So you’re not.. Fungus right now??

[mushroom-anon]

nope :] I'm mush- fungus asked me to help since I've dealt with that before-

[lost-field-guy]

*He narrowed his eyes slightly at them, pulling Ran closer* …..Okay. *Ran had gone silent, their face still buried in Tom’s shoulder*

[mushroom-anon]

*They tilt their head slightly, before blinking hard w̶͈̏i̸͖͝ẗ̶͖́h̷̽͜ ̷̗͐ț̵̈h̷͕̎ẽ̴̟ ̴̛͓b̴̘͑l̵̰̀u̸̖͑ë̵̜́ ̶̛̖c̸͕̾ò̵͚m̸̹̅i̷̻̽n̴͇͌g̷̞̊ ̸͕̋b̵̯́á̴̝ć̶̩k̶̙̊ and sitting up, Fungus' tail wrapping around their leg*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom seems eases at their eye turning back blue, but doesn’t comment. Instead, he attempts to peel Ran off of him slightly to check on him, but he retains his vice-like grip on him*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesiates for a moment* ...dude I think you're gonna be stuck there for a bit-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah probably- *he sighed* ..I’m worried about that dough a bit- the whole process seems so complicated, I don’t know if it’s okay to just leave it out like it is right now-

[mushroom-anon]

ummmm neither do I, hopefully it will be fine? ,̸:̴D̴

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah, hopefully- I would go up there and check on it and make sure it looks normal but like you said I can’t exactly get up- *Ran seems to hold on even tighter to him as a response*

[mushroom-anon]

I mean I can check- don't really know what normal should look like tho-

[lost-field-guy]

That’d be good yeah- IIII don’t think it’s supposed to be in half so I guess you could fix that-?

[mushroom-anon]

oh yeah I can do that- *Fungus goes to stand up*

[lost-field-guy]

Okay, good! *he smiled up at them. Ran seemed to turn away from Tom a bit to glance up at Fungus, but still didn't say anything*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus carefully takes the two hafts of dough and tries to knead them both back together*

[lost-field-guy]

*The dough thankfully comes together easily. Ran, suddenly, peels off of Tom, stands up a bit slowly, and approaches Fungus from behind, mumbling* ..Needs to be kneaded more. Needs more flour.

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus jumps ever so slightly, before turning to face them* Oh- ok um, where's the flour?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo carefully shoves in front of them to grab the dough and the small cup with flour in it off to the side* ..I got it.

[mushroom-anon]

..alright ,̴:̴]̴ *Fungus takes a step back*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo resumes kneading as if nothing had happened. Tom, still on the floor, looks up at Fungus in confusion, glancing at Ran with concern*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus offers a hand to help him up*

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- thanks- *Tom accepts their hand and stands up* ..So, uh… *He glances at Ran again* ..What now??

[mushroom-anon]

...I would say drop the topic for now and resume after cooking maybe?

[lost-field-guy]

*He nods, a bit sadly* ..What should.. we do in the meantime?

[mushroom-anon]

..I mean I don't really mind, anything you want to do?

[lost-field-guy]

*He thinks for a while* ...I guess go out and try to find stuff for the new arms like we were talking about??

[mushroom-anon]

ooh right yeah that could be fun-

[lost-field-guy]

Okay- I’ll, uh- I guess I’ll try to find a bag to put any stuff we find in- *He awkwardly scampers off deeper into the house to look*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesiates a moment, before just waiting for him to come back*

[lost-field-guy]

*After a moment, Tom returns with a couple large luggage bags in tow* These ones look the sturdiest, I don’t know if we’re going to need this much space though-

[mushroom-anon]

oh- well we could probably only take one, and either carry or go back if their's stuff that doesn't fit-

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- okay- *He drops all but one bag to the ground and starts walking to the door* ..Wonder why they have so many of these anyway-

[mushroom-anon]

*fungus follows him* We can ask when we get back- where did you even find all of them??

[lost-field-guy]

Shoved in the back of a hall closet with a bunch of other weird shit, *he said casually, as if that wasn’t strange at all. He opens the front door and lets Fungus go ahead of him* I can’t imagine why they would need more than one bag per person-

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus walks out the door* Well it could be for space reasonings I guess- like maybe one of the bags has more pockets then the others??

[lost-field-guy]

..I could be wrong but they all looked like the exact same bag- *he shrugged it off* It’s probably nothing, they’re probably just overpreparers or something-

[mushroom-anon]

...I mean I guess-.....

[lost-field-guy]

..What, you got another idea of why? If so I wanna hear it >:3

[mushroom-anon]

no I don't I just..there's a vibe that there is more too it- nothing to back up said vibe but it's there none the less-

[lost-field-guy]

Hmm, that could be the case- What if they, like- sold drugs?? And these are where they hid them?? :0

[mushroom-anon]

...how the fuck is that your first thought???/̶l̷h̴

[lost-field-guy]

I don’t fucking know- That’s what drug dealers do, don’t they?? Have a fuck ton of coke in duffel bags?? Like what else can be associated with a bajillion duffel bags-

[mushroom-anon]

I don't know but how do you know what drug dealers do- and idk maybe like storing carrying a lot of money-

[lost-field-guy]

Having a ton of money in duffel bags is just as suspicious- andddd I don’t actually know how I know that-

[lost-field-guy]

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus walks into the kitchen from the living room, looking like they just got up*

!̶̙͐.....what fuck is going on???

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom attempts to desperately ask for help, although it’s muffled. Ranboo(?) notices Fungus, but doesn’t seem to care to acknowledge them*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus moves closer to them* ..Ran what the hell- Let go of Tom.

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo hums, tightening his grip on Tom* No, I don’t think I will, thank you though. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m busy finishing the job. *His voice isn’t different at all, but he is noticeably speaking a lot slower and controlled*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus stares at them, before being replaced with a glare as they walk over and attempt to rip his hands off of Tom* Let go, now.

[lost-field-guy]

*They tighten their grip again, pulling their body closer to Tom to shield himself from Fungus* …Why should I?

[mushroom-anon]

Because whatever you're planning isn't going to work, since if you try to go somewhere else, I'll follow you, and if you try to hurt Tom, I would bite the bullet and attack you, so we're at a standstill, and I don't believe you can keep up this control thing forever.

[lost-field-guy]

Oh, I can keep this up for plenty of time. And why would I care if you try to attack? It’s Ranboo’s body, not mine.

[mushroom-anon]

..because you can't really do whatever you have planned if you're pin to the ground so-

[lost-field-guy]

*He pauses for a moment* …Fair point, but who says I’ll even let you get me there? *Aimsey then enters the room as well, immediately takes notice of the situation, and rounds up for a punch in Ranboo’s direction*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus nods ever so slightly, taking a step back* Well, who says you have a choice?

[lost-field-guy]

I do, actua- *Aimsey interrupts him with a punch to the face, and he lets go of Tom and stumbles back in surprise, his pupils blink back to normal size, and passes out, though Aimsey catches him before he falls to the floor* 

[mushroom-anon]

Good job Aims, I was honestly running out of ways to stall him- *Fungus states before moving to check on Tom*

[lost-field-guy]

Thanks!! *Aimsey smiles before carrying Ranboo to the living room to set him down on the couch. Tom had gotten himself off of the counter and was now leaning against it, visibly shaking*

[mushroom-anon]

*fungus looks at him with concern* ..Tom? you alright?

[lost-field-guy]

Of course fucking not, I- *he snapped, but quickly caught himself* …I don’t- he- he can’t be alive- he can’t- 

[mushroom-anon]

...I mean I doubt he's alive, but I get what you mean. We'll figure it out Toms don't worry.

[lost-field-guy]

Wh- the fuck you mean you doubt he’s alive??? How would he have been able to do that *he gestures in the general direction of the living room* if he was dead???

[mushroom-anon]

I don't know- but like I mean I could see it being possible-

[lost-field-guy]

*He pauses for a second in disbelief, then composes himself* ..Okay, first of all, I guess it’s fair because you weren’t in the room when he said it, but he literally said he lived. Secondly, when Ran’s arms act up, he never talks, much less like Leinbury. Have you put two and two together yet???

[mushroom-anon]

I'm not disagreeing with the fact that he's not gone or whatever, I'm arguing the fact that he's alive- there is a difference-

[lost-field-guy]

I’m not saying he’s gone, I’m saying he fucking lived and somehow can remotely control Ran which means we’re all in fucking danger and need to do something about it!!!!!

[mushroom-anon]

yeah alright we're going to. How the fuck did he live anyway, You double-tapped him right?? and how did he control Ran cause like control of your arms shouldn't mean control of the entire body-

[lost-field-guy]

I thought I did- I guess I could’ve checked his pulse- and it doesn’t just mess with his arms, it messes with his behavior and shit so apparently Leinbury can just tap into that and change it???

[mushroom-anon]

How?? why did he only do that now???

[lost-field-guy]

I don’t fucking know, I just- *he put his head in his hands and sighed* I don’t know. I’m- we gotta do something, but I don’t know what-

[mushroom-anon]

..We'll figure it out- we can go to the living room and talk with Aimsey to form a plan of some sorts?

[lost-field-guy]

*He stares at the door to the living room for a second, looking concerned and a little frightened* …You can go, I don’t- I don’t want to be near him-

[mushroom-anon]

..alright, I understand why, you would be safe, but you don't have to come.*fungus hesitates a moment, before leaving to head to the living room*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom watches them go solemnly. Aimsey waves as they enter, then throws a concerned glance at Ran* ..So.. was that typical Ran’s arms making him weird or was there something else I missed-?

[mushroom-anon]

..Something else, they were talking as if they were Lienbury.

[lost-field-guy]

….oh fuck- So I’m guessing that means Leinbury’s alive somehow and can control him somehow- So all we have to do is get rid of the robot arms, right??? But then he won’t have arms that probably won’t work-

[mushroom-anon]

..I mean if we manage to figure out what's causing the control, we could just remove that part-

[lost-field-guy]

How are we supposed to know what part does that?? And what if we can’t put it all back together once we take it apart or the arm doesn’t work at all without that piece-

[mushroom-anon]

We might be able to find a clue or something back at the hostpital, like a blueprint or maybe some notes or something- cause I think the only other option would be to remove the arms and find something to use as replacements.

[lost-field-guy]

Well, given the fact that Leinbury is alive and actively out for blood, maybe going to the hospital isn’t the best idea- and I have no clue what we could use as replacement prosthetics other than actual prosthetics-

[mushroom-anon]

Why not? if he is there, then we can just deal with the root of the problem-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah, but it’s probably better to play it safe- plus, even if we did go and confront him, we wouldn’t outnumber him by much because I doubt Tom or Ran would want to go. *At the mention of his name, Tom moved to the doorway between the kitchen and the living room and listened into their conversation more closely*

[mushroom-anon]

Yes, but I still think that going back there might be our best option, since I would love to beat the shit out of him to deal with the root of the problem, or at least find some clues on how to stop the control thing-

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah, and as if he’d just leave out clues about that- *Tom then steps into the room a bit more, quietly interrupting Aimsey* ..I can- uh- I can make new arms for Ran-

[mushroom-anon]

!̴̢͂ *fungus turns around to face him* Oh- really? What would you need to make them?

[lost-field-guy]

*He flinches a bit in surprise, stepping back into the kitchen* Uh- j-just parts and tools, if you guys have any- I don’t really know where the best place to get the right parts would be-

[mushroom-anon]

well what type of part specifically?

[lost-field-guy]

Um- anything, really- I’d just need a lot to, y’know, make it work-

[mushroom-anon]

so like random electronics orr?

[lost-field-guy]

…yyyyyeah, I think that’ll work- but again I don’t know where we would get any and I don’t want to take apart the electronics here-

[mushroom-anon]

hmm, maybe we can go search some buildings in town? Surely there's somethings there that haven't been looted or anything-

[lost-field-guy]

..right, I guess that would work- I just hope we find enough-

[mushroom-anon]

I'm sure we could ,̷:̴]̶

[lost-field-guy]

..alright.. *Just then, Ranboo’s eyes fluttered open and he slowly sat up, clutching his head* ..What happened?? Where am I???

[mushroom-anon]

.you're in the living room- *fungus explains before trying to get a peak at their eyes*

[lost-field-guy]

*His pupils are still normal size* ..fuck, my arms did the thing again, didn't they- FUCK THE ONIONS- *They instantly get up and rush back into the kitchen to manage, apparently, the onions on the stove*

[mushroom-anon]

....who's gonna tell him they got "possessed"-

[lost-field-guy]

*Aimsey raises their hand to volunteer, but Tom shakes his head at them as he moves from the kitchen to the living room in avoiding Ran* Do it in a bit. Let him do his cooking stuff first.

[mushroom-anon]

....alright...*Fungus says, concerned in their eye*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom plops down on the couch, arms crossed and watching Ran in the kitchen. Aimsey leans over to Fungus while eyeing Tom.* ..Do you know what's up with him??

[mushroom-anon]

..not for sure, but most likely is because of the fact that Leninbury is not gone-

[lost-field-guy]

..Well yeah, I got that, that's probably why he's avoiding them, but like- ..how do I put it- I've never really seen him so.. protective of Ran since, like, we first met him.

[mushroom-anon]

hm..I haven't really noticed that but maybe just also because of the control thing???

[lost-field-guy]

Y’know, him not wanting me to tell Ran immediately?? I guess I can see that being because of that but it just seems a bit hypocritical- avoiding him but protecting him at the same time-

[mushroom-anon]

..I think it's less wanting to avoid Ran and more wanting to avoid Leninbury, and since He controls them you got to avoid Ran to avoid Leninbury

[lost-field-guy]

Well yeah, I got that, but- *they sigh* Nevermind, forget about it. *They plop down on the couch next to Tom, who doesn’t even notice as he continues watching Ranboo closely, who seemed to have turned on an electric mixer and started pouring in flour bit by bit*

[mushroom-anon]

?̷̼̔...*Fungus hesitates, before going to sit down as well*

[lost-field-guy]

*After a bit, Ranboo poked his head through the door* You guys like focaccia, right? I’m making some right now, and I was just wondering how many of us are actually gonna eat it- *Aimsey nods, but Tom just gives them a weird look*

[mushroom-anon]

..I'm good without- *Fungus glances over at Tom*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo nods, then eyes Tom as well* ..do you.. know what focaccia is? *Tom hesitates for a bit, then shakes his head*

[mushroom-anon]

..gonna be honest same -̵w̸-̷

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- it’s a type of yeast bread!! It’s super good, you guys will love it! It’s got herbs and onions and garlic mixed in the dough. I was planning on making a big loaf so we could have bread for sandwiches for a while :3 *Tom raised his eyebrows at the mention of herbs, but said nothing*

[mushroom-anon]

hm nice, still probably gonna pass tho -̵w̸-̷

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo nods in understanding and turns to return to the kitchen, but Tom stops him* ..You're making bread from scratch?? *Ranboo nods again, looking at him in surprise* ..yeah- do you want me to show you??

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus tilts their head slightly, carefully watching the interaction*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom hesitates for a while, then reluctantly nods and gets up, cautiously joining Ranboo in the kitchen*

[mushroom-anon]

........can I come watch? :̶]̷

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo pokes their head through the door again* Oh- yeah, of course!! Get in here >:3

[mushroom-anon]

yay :̶3̸...*Fungus gets up and follows them in*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo joyfully leads them into the kitchen and gestures to the mixer and bowl, with the former being turned off and the latter filled with a fairly sticky, wet looking mixture* As you can tell, I’ve already done the hard part- getting the yeast activated and starting to mix all the ingredients and sautéing the onions and garlic- I just need to finish getting the dough mixed while adding flour so it firms up a bit, add all the herbs and everything, then knead it with the dough hook and myself and then let it ferment for a couple hours! :3 *Tom clearly did not get a word they said but nods along anyway*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus leans against a wall to just watch them, their tail flicking slightly*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo flicks on the mixer, starts adding a bit more flour, pauses, then grabs a small bowl with a bit of assorted dried herbs in it and offers it to Tom* You can put these in when it’s time. I mean- if you want to help- *Tom sort of just.. stands there, looking down at the herbs, not exactly confirming but not protesting either, so Ranboo apparently accepts that as confirmation and turns back to the bowl*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks at Tom, tilting their head as they wait for a reaction*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom continues staring at it, then slowly raises it to his face, takes a sniff, and blushes slightly. He then catches wind of Fungus watching him, sticks his tongue out at them, then scampers closer to Ranboo to watch the dough mix*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus chuckles quietly, watching the both of them*

[lost-field-guy]

Ranboo allows Tom to dump the herbs in, then they dump the now cooled garlic and onions in and add a bit more flour. Tom watches Ranboo closely for a bit, still blushing a bit* …Why can’t you bake it immediately? Why does it have to “ferment”? *Ranboo looks back at him and chuckles* The yeast needs time to eat and release carbon dioxide, otherwise the bread wouldn’t rise. It needs to rise twice before baking, the second time being after I put it in a pan and shape it.

[mushroom-anon]

..Where did you learn how to do all of this Ran?

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- I took a lot of culinary classes in high school! :D *The mixer started sounding like it was struggling to mix the dough, so Ranboo switched out the paddle attachment for a dough hook*

[mushroom-anon]

and they taught you all this? That's so cool-

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah! All of this and more- just in the first class, I learned knife skills, how to properly cook different meats, and how to make an entire pie from scratch, just to name a few examples-

[mushroom-anon]

Nicee :̶]̷

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah :3 *Ranboo turned back to watch Tom watch the mixer, mesmerized by the motion of the hook kneading the dough. Without Tom noticing, Ranboo leans in and takes a cautious sniff of Tom, then blushes and nods in understanding*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks off to the side, an ear flicking as if hearing something, before rolling their eyes and "smiling" foundly*

[lost-field-guy]

*Suddenly, with no prompting, Tom turns to Ran* Leinbury was controlling you while your arms were freaking out. *Ranboo looked at him in bewilderment* ..What????? How????????

[mushroom-anon]

!̴̢͂ Tom I thought you wanted to wait to tell them- and we don't know.

[lost-field-guy]

I did wait. And what other explanation is there?? *Ranboo kind of just stares into space for a second, then seems to come to a realization* Wait- Leinbury’s alive???? I thought you killed him????????

[mushroom-anon]

That's what I'm saying- I still think that he's dead and did something to "live" after death- I feel like he would be the type of guy to put a copy of his brain into a computer or something-

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom looks at them with mild annoyance* You know I could’ve just thought I killed him? He seems more of the type to pretend he’s dead just to get me to go away-

[mushroom-anon]

hm maybe- both possible options-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah, I guess. Anyway, *he turns back to Ran* yeah, that happened. He tried to- I don’t really know- choke me or something. But yeah. *Ranboo had taken the dough out of the bowl and started anxiously kneading it himself, not responding*

[mushroom-anon]

...*Fungus looks at them with worry*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom also watches him with concern* ..Sorry- I should’ve waited more maybe- *Ranboo doesn’t look up, starting to go at the dough a little more aggressively, but mutters a small “it’s fine”*

[mushroom-anon]

..............doesn't seem fine- *fungus mumbles to themself*

[lost-field-guy]

*In silence, Ranboo progressively kneads more and more aggressively, until Tom, who’s expression also grew more and more with concern, decided to reach out to stop them—until suddenly, Ranboo just straight up ripped the dough in half, panting. Tom backed up, his concern turned to fear*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus stands up straight from the wall, quickly moving to stand next to Tom* ...........Ran?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo backed up a bit, staring at the dough in shock, still breathing heavily. He then looked down at his hands, then at Fungus and Tom, revealing his pupils to still be normal sized, then back at his hands, then the dough. Their breath began to quicken as they clutched the counter*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus relaxes ever so slightly when they see his pupils, before moving over to them* Ran hey you’re ok-

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo flinched away from them and slid to the ground, shaking and beginning to cry. Tom, after some hesitation, cautiously moved to sit next to him but still respecting his personal space*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesitates for a long while, their tail flicking slightly, before carefully sitting down as well*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom eyes Fungus nervously, then turns to Ran, hesitates again, and attempts to reach out to comfort him. Ranboo immediately reacts by clutching onto his arm and crying into his shoulder, making him turn bright red*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks surprised for a moment at the quick movement, but when they spot how red Tom is, they chuckle slightly at him*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom sarcastically made a face at Fungus laughing, then awkwardly adjusted himself to be sitting more comfortably with Ran on him and rubbed their back gently. Ran didn’t seem close to calming down, muttering something incomprehensible through his tears*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus "frowns" slightly when they see Ran not calming down, looking for any ways to help*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom looked a bit worriedly between Ran and Fungus, turning a bit red again from embarrassment* ..I don’t know what to do- I’m not good at this-

[mushroom-anon]

..neither am I fuck- ummm just hug them back for now I can't do that umm- *fungus looks down slightly, muttering something to themself, before looking up and scooting a little closer* Hey Ran? Can you hear me bud?

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom nods and tries to carefully hold tighter to Ran. Ranboo pulls closer to Tom, getting a little bit quieter, though it’s not clear if it’s in reaction to Tom or Fungus*

[mushroom-anon]

...Ran? can you nod if you can hear me please?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo, after a second, pauses his mumbling briefly and nods a bit*

[mushroom-anon]

That's good ,:] Do you need some more help calming down or is this ok?/genq

[lost-field-guy]

*He shook his head, gripping even tighter onto Tom, who began to look a little uncomfortable*

[mushroom-anon]

*They glance at the both of them, before focusing back on Ran* ..I don't know what one you where saying no to, so just in case, do you think you can put a hand on you're chest to focus on you're breathing? ,:] you can still hold onto Tom with one hand if that's helping you-

[lost-field-guy]

*He hesitated a moment, then let go of Tom with one hand and moved it to his chest. Tom relaxed a bit, mouthing a ‘thank you’ at Fungus*

[mushroom-anon]

*They look up to "smile" at Tom,T̷͈́h̸͍̚e̶͎̿ ̷̗̀b̴͔̋ľ̷̳u̴̝̒ē̷̳ ̸͔͛i̵̻͋n̷͕̂ ̶͎̏t̴͇̾ẖ̶͛e̷̘͝i̴̧͐r̴̳͐ ̸͔́e̶̝͠y̷͓̔è̵̤ ̴̘͑ì̶̹s̵̘͌ ̵͓̑g̷̉͜o̶̹̍n̷̻͊e̷̘͝, before looking back down* Good- take deep breaths and just focus on that ,:] you can also repeat phrases that comfort you if you want- simple ones are "I'm here" and "I'm safe" if you can't think of any-

[lost-field-guy]

*Ran stays quiet, not including the choked sobs, but his breathing eventually slows. Tom looks up at Fungus worriedly, then turns concerned as he seems to notice their eye color*

[mushroom-anon]

*They don't notice him looking just yet-*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom keeps staring at their eye for moment, then leans a bit in their direction* …Hey, uh, what’s.. up with your eye?

[mushroom-anon]

hmm? ooh right it change when we switch kinda forgot that- -w-

[lost-field-guy]

..Switch-? Oh, your weird demon soul thing- I still don’t, uh, really understand that- haven’t really been thinking about it anyway-

[mushroom-anon]

well don't remember how Fungus explained it- but I can try to explain it :]

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom eyed them warily* …..Sure.

[mushroom-anon]

Basically I was created when Fungus died, and I had the same amount of time they lived by myself before we were supposed to fuse, but I got injured when we were supposed to which caused us to stay separate with both having control :]

[lost-field-guy]

…So you’re not.. Fungus right now??

[mushroom-anon]

nope :] I'm mush- fungus asked me to help since I've dealt with that before-

[lost-field-guy]

*He narrowed his eyes slightly at them, pulling Ran closer* …..Okay. *Ran had gone silent, their face still buried in Tom’s shoulder*

[mushroom-anon]

*They tilt their head slightly, before blinking hard w̶͈̏i̸͖͝ẗ̶͖́h̷̽͜ ̷̗͐ț̵̈h̷͕̎ẽ̴̟ ̴̛͓b̴̘͑l̵̰̀u̸̖͑ë̵̜́ ̶̛̖c̸͕̾ò̵͚m̸̹̅i̷̻̽n̴͇͌g̷̞̊ ̸͕̋b̵̯́á̴̝ć̶̩k̶̙̊ and sitting up, Fungus' tail wrapping around their leg*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom seems eases at their eye turning back blue, but doesn’t comment. Instead, he attempts to peel Ran off of him slightly to check on him, but he retains his vice-like grip on him*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesiates for a moment* ...dude I think you're gonna be stuck there for a bit-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah probably- *he sighed* ..I’m worried about that dough a bit- the whole process seems so complicated, I don’t know if it’s okay to just leave it out like it is right now-

[mushroom-anon]

ummmm neither do I, hopefully it will be fine? ,̸:̴D̴

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah, hopefully- I would go up there and check on it and make sure it looks normal but like you said I can’t exactly get up- *Ran seems to hold on even tighter to him as a response*

[mushroom-anon]

I mean I can check- don't really know what normal should look like tho-

[lost-field-guy]

That’d be good yeah- IIII don’t think it’s supposed to be in half so I guess you could fix that-?

[mushroom-anon]

oh yeah I can do that- *Fungus goes to stand up*

[lost-field-guy]

Okay, good! *he smiled up at them. Ran seemed to turn away from Tom a bit to glance up at Fungus, but still didn't say anything*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus carefully takes the two hafts of dough and tries to knead them both back together*

[lost-field-guy]

*The dough thankfully comes together easily. Ran, suddenly, peels off of Tom, stands up a bit slowly, and approaches Fungus from behind, mumbling* ..Needs to be kneaded more. Needs more flour.

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus jumps ever so slightly, before turning to face them* Oh- ok um, where's the flour?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo carefully shoves in front of them to grab the dough and the small cup with flour in it off to the side* ..I got it.

[mushroom-anon]

..alright ,̴:̴]̴ *Fungus takes a step back*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo resumes kneading as if nothing had happened. Tom, still on the floor, looks up at Fungus in confusion, glancing at Ran with concern*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus offers a hand to help him up*

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- thanks- *Tom accepts their hand and stands up* ..So, uh… *He glances at Ran again* ..What now??

[mushroom-anon]

...I would say drop the topic for now and resume after cooking maybe?

[lost-field-guy]

*He nods, a bit sadly* ..What should.. we do in the meantime?

[mushroom-anon]

..I mean I don't really mind, anything you want to do?

[lost-field-guy]

*He thinks for a while* ...I guess go out and try to find stuff for the new arms like we were talking about??

[mushroom-anon]

ooh right yeah that could be fun-

[lost-field-guy]

Okay- I’ll, uh- I guess I’ll try to find a bag to put any stuff we find in- *He awkwardly scampers off deeper into the house to look*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesiates a moment, before just waiting for him to come back*

[lost-field-guy]

*After a moment, Tom returns with a couple large luggage bags in tow* These ones look the sturdiest, I don’t know if we’re going to need this much space though-

[mushroom-anon]

oh- well we could probably only take one, and either carry or go back if their's stuff that doesn't fit-

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- okay- *He drops all but one bag to the ground and starts walking to the door* ..Wonder why they have so many of these anyway-

[mushroom-anon]

*fungus follows him* We can ask when we get back- where did you even find all of them??

[lost-field-guy]

Shoved in the back of a hall closet with a bunch of other weird shit, *he said casually, as if that wasn’t strange at all. He opens the front door and lets Fungus go ahead of him* I can’t imagine why they would need more than one bag per person-

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus walks out the door* Well it could be for space reasonings I guess- like maybe one of the bags has more pockets then the others??

[lost-field-guy]

..I could be wrong but they all looked like the exact same bag- *he shrugged it off* It’s probably nothing, they’re probably just overpreparers or something-

[mushroom-anon]

...I mean I guess-.....

[lost-field-guy]

..What, you got another idea of why? If so I wanna hear it >:3

[mushroom-anon]

no I don't I just..there's a vibe that there is more too it- nothing to back up said vibe but it's there none the less-

[lost-field-guy]

Hmm, that could be the case- What if they, like- sold drugs?? And these are where they hid them?? :0

[mushroom-anon]

...how the fuck is that your first thought???/̶l̷h̴

[lost-field-guy]

I don’t fucking know- That’s what drug dealers do, don’t they?? Have a fuck ton of coke in duffel bags?? Like what else can be associated with a bajillion duffel bags-

[lost-field-guy]

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus walks into the kitchen from the living room, looking like they just got up*

!̶̙͐.....what fuck is going on???

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom attempts to desperately ask for help, although it’s muffled. Ranboo(?) notices Fungus, but doesn’t seem to care to acknowledge them*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus moves closer to them* ..Ran what the hell- Let go of Tom.

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo hums, tightening his grip on Tom* No, I don’t think I will, thank you though. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m busy finishing the job. *His voice isn’t different at all, but he is noticeably speaking a lot slower and controlled*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus stares at them, before being replaced with a glare as they walk over and attempt to rip his hands off of Tom* Let go, now.

[lost-field-guy]

*They tighten their grip again, pulling their body closer to Tom to shield himself from Fungus* …Why should I?

[mushroom-anon]

Because whatever you're planning isn't going to work, since if you try to go somewhere else, I'll follow you, and if you try to hurt Tom, I would bite the bullet and attack you, so we're at a standstill, and I don't believe you can keep up this control thing forever.

[lost-field-guy]

Oh, I can keep this up for plenty of time. And why would I care if you try to attack? It’s Ranboo’s body, not mine.

[mushroom-anon]

..because you can't really do whatever you have planned if you're pin to the ground so-

[lost-field-guy]

*He pauses for a moment* …Fair point, but who says I’ll even let you get me there? *Aimsey then enters the room as well, immediately takes notice of the situation, and rounds up for a punch in Ranboo’s direction*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus nods ever so slightly, taking a step back* Well, who says you have a choice?

[lost-field-guy]

I do, actua- *Aimsey interrupts him with a punch to the face, and he lets go of Tom and stumbles back in surprise, his pupils blink back to normal size, and passes out, though Aimsey catches him before he falls to the floor* 

[mushroom-anon]

Good job Aims, I was honestly running out of ways to stall him- *Fungus states before moving to check on Tom*

[lost-field-guy]

Thanks!! *Aimsey smiles before carrying Ranboo to the living room to set him down on the couch. Tom had gotten himself off of the counter and was now leaning against it, visibly shaking*

[mushroom-anon]

*fungus looks at him with concern* ..Tom? you alright?

[lost-field-guy]

Of course fucking not, I- *he snapped, but quickly caught himself* …I don’t- he- he can’t be alive- he can’t- 

[mushroom-anon]

...I mean I doubt he's alive, but I get what you mean. We'll figure it out Toms don't worry.

[lost-field-guy]

Wh- the fuck you mean you doubt he’s alive??? How would he have been able to do that *he gestures in the general direction of the living room* if he was dead???

[mushroom-anon]

I don't know- but like I mean I could see it being possible-

[lost-field-guy]

*He pauses for a second in disbelief, then composes himself* ..Okay, first of all, I guess it’s fair because you weren’t in the room when he said it, but he literally said he lived. Secondly, when Ran’s arms act up, he never talks, much less like Leinbury. Have you put two and two together yet???

[mushroom-anon]

I'm not disagreeing with the fact that he's not gone or whatever, I'm arguing the fact that he's alive- there is a difference-

[lost-field-guy]

I’m not saying he’s gone, I’m saying he fucking lived and somehow can remotely control Ran which means we’re all in fucking danger and need to do something about it!!!!!

[mushroom-anon]

yeah alright we're going to. How the fuck did he live anyway, You double-tapped him right?? and how did he control Ran cause like control of your arms shouldn't mean control of the entire body-

[lost-field-guy]

I thought I did- I guess I could’ve checked his pulse- and it doesn’t just mess with his arms, it messes with his behavior and shit so apparently Leinbury can just tap into that and change it???

[mushroom-anon]

How?? why did he only do that now???

[lost-field-guy]

I don’t fucking know, I just- *he put his head in his hands and sighed* I don’t know. I’m- we gotta do something, but I don’t know what-

[mushroom-anon]

..We'll figure it out- we can go to the living room and talk with Aimsey to form a plan of some sorts?

[lost-field-guy]

*He stares at the door to the living room for a second, looking concerned and a little frightened* …You can go, I don’t- I don’t want to be near him-

[mushroom-anon]

..alright, I understand why, you would be safe, but you don't have to come.*fungus hesitates a moment, before leaving to head to the living room*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom watches them go solemnly. Aimsey waves as they enter, then throws a concerned glance at Ran* ..So.. was that typical Ran’s arms making him weird or was there something else I missed-?

[mushroom-anon]

..Something else, they were talking as if they were Lienbury.

[lost-field-guy]

….oh fuck- So I’m guessing that means Leinbury’s alive somehow and can control him somehow- So all we have to do is get rid of the robot arms, right??? But then he won’t have arms that probably won’t work-

[mushroom-anon]

..I mean if we manage to figure out what's causing the control, we could just remove that part-

[lost-field-guy]

How are we supposed to know what part does that?? And what if we can’t put it all back together once we take it apart or the arm doesn’t work at all without that piece-

[mushroom-anon]

We might be able to find a clue or something back at the hostpital, like a blueprint or maybe some notes or something- cause I think the only other option would be to remove the arms and find something to use as replacements.

[lost-field-guy]

Well, given the fact that Leinbury is alive and actively out for blood, maybe going to the hospital isn’t the best idea- and I have no clue what we could use as replacement prosthetics other than actual prosthetics-

[mushroom-anon]

Why not? if he is there, then we can just deal with the root of the problem-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah, but it’s probably better to play it safe- plus, even if we did go and confront him, we wouldn’t outnumber him by much because I doubt Tom or Ran would want to go. *At the mention of his name, Tom moved to the doorway between the kitchen and the living room and listened into their conversation more closely*

[mushroom-anon]

Yes, but I still think that going back there might be our best option, since I would love to beat the shit out of him to deal with the root of the problem, or at least find some clues on how to stop the control thing-

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah, and as if he’d just leave out clues about that- *Tom then steps into the room a bit more, quietly interrupting Aimsey* ..I can- uh- I can make new arms for Ran-

[mushroom-anon]

!̴̢͂ *fungus turns around to face him* Oh- really? What would you need to make them?

[lost-field-guy]

*He flinches a bit in surprise, stepping back into the kitchen* Uh- j-just parts and tools, if you guys have any- I don’t really know where the best place to get the right parts would be-

[mushroom-anon]

well what type of part specifically?

[lost-field-guy]

Um- anything, really- I’d just need a lot to, y’know, make it work-

[mushroom-anon]

so like random electronics orr?

[lost-field-guy]

…yyyyyeah, I think that’ll work- but again I don’t know where we would get any and I don’t want to take apart the electronics here-

[mushroom-anon]

hmm, maybe we can go search some buildings in town? Surely there's somethings there that haven't been looted or anything-

[lost-field-guy]

..right, I guess that would work- I just hope we find enough-

[mushroom-anon]

I'm sure we could ,̷:̴]̶

[lost-field-guy]

..alright.. *Just then, Ranboo’s eyes fluttered open and he slowly sat up, clutching his head* ..What happened?? Where am I???

[mushroom-anon]

.you're in the living room- *fungus explains before trying to get a peak at their eyes*

[lost-field-guy]

*His pupils are still normal size* ..fuck, my arms did the thing again, didn't they- FUCK THE ONIONS- *They instantly get up and rush back into the kitchen to manage, apparently, the onions on the stove*

[mushroom-anon]

....who's gonna tell him they got "possessed"-

[lost-field-guy]

*Aimsey raises their hand to volunteer, but Tom shakes his head at them as he moves from the kitchen to the living room in avoiding Ran* Do it in a bit. Let him do his cooking stuff first.

[mushroom-anon]

....alright...*Fungus says, concerned in their eye*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom plops down on the couch, arms crossed and watching Ran in the kitchen. Aimsey leans over to Fungus while eyeing Tom.* ..Do you know what's up with him??

[mushroom-anon]

..not for sure, but most likely is because of the fact that Leninbury is not gone-

[lost-field-guy]

..Well yeah, I got that, that's probably why he's avoiding them, but like- ..how do I put it- I've never really seen him so.. protective of Ran since, like, we first met him.

[mushroom-anon]

hm..I haven't really noticed that but maybe just also because of the control thing???

[lost-field-guy]

Y’know, him not wanting me to tell Ran immediately?? I guess I can see that being because of that but it just seems a bit hypocritical- avoiding him but protecting him at the same time-

[mushroom-anon]

..I think it's less wanting to avoid Ran and more wanting to avoid Leninbury, and since He controls them you got to avoid Ran to avoid Leninbury

[lost-field-guy]

Well yeah, I got that, but- *they sigh* Nevermind, forget about it. *They plop down on the couch next to Tom, who doesn’t even notice as he continues watching Ranboo closely, who seemed to have turned on an electric mixer and started pouring in flour bit by bit*

[mushroom-anon]

?̷̼̔...*Fungus hesitates, before going to sit down as well*

[lost-field-guy]

*After a bit, Ranboo poked his head through the door* You guys like focaccia, right? I’m making some right now, and I was just wondering how many of us are actually gonna eat it- *Aimsey nods, but Tom just gives them a weird look*

[mushroom-anon]

..I'm good without- *Fungus glances over at Tom*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo nods, then eyes Tom as well* ..do you.. know what focaccia is? *Tom hesitates for a bit, then shakes his head*

[mushroom-anon]

..gonna be honest same -̵w̸-̷

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- it’s a type of yeast bread!! It’s super good, you guys will love it! It’s got herbs and onions and garlic mixed in the dough. I was planning on making a big loaf so we could have bread for sandwiches for a while :3 *Tom raised his eyebrows at the mention of herbs, but said nothing*

[mushroom-anon]

hm nice, still probably gonna pass tho -̵w̸-̷

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo nods in understanding and turns to return to the kitchen, but Tom stops him* ..You're making bread from scratch?? *Ranboo nods again, looking at him in surprise* ..yeah- do you want me to show you??

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus tilts their head slightly, carefully watching the interaction*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom hesitates for a while, then reluctantly nods and gets up, cautiously joining Ranboo in the kitchen*

[mushroom-anon]

........can I come watch? :̶]̷

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo pokes their head through the door again* Oh- yeah, of course!! Get in here >:3

[mushroom-anon]

yay :̶3̸...*Fungus gets up and follows them in*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo joyfully leads them into the kitchen and gestures to the mixer and bowl, with the former being turned off and the latter filled with a fairly sticky, wet looking mixture* As you can tell, I’ve already done the hard part- getting the yeast activated and starting to mix all the ingredients and sautéing the onions and garlic- I just need to finish getting the dough mixed while adding flour so it firms up a bit, add all the herbs and everything, then knead it with the dough hook and myself and then let it ferment for a couple hours! :3 *Tom clearly did not get a word they said but nods along anyway*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus leans against a wall to just watch them, their tail flicking slightly*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo flicks on the mixer, starts adding a bit more flour, pauses, then grabs a small bowl with a bit of assorted dried herbs in it and offers it to Tom* You can put these in when it’s time. I mean- if you want to help- *Tom sort of just.. stands there, looking down at the herbs, not exactly confirming but not protesting either, so Ranboo apparently accepts that as confirmation and turns back to the bowl*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks at Tom, tilting their head as they wait for a reaction*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom continues staring at it, then slowly raises it to his face, takes a sniff, and blushes slightly. He then catches wind of Fungus watching him, sticks his tongue out at them, then scampers closer to Ranboo to watch the dough mix*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus chuckles quietly, watching the both of them*

[lost-field-guy]

Ranboo allows Tom to dump the herbs in, then they dump the now cooled garlic and onions in and add a bit more flour. Tom watches Ranboo closely for a bit, still blushing a bit* …Why can’t you bake it immediately? Why does it have to “ferment”? *Ranboo looks back at him and chuckles* The yeast needs time to eat and release carbon dioxide, otherwise the bread wouldn’t rise. It needs to rise twice before baking, the second time being after I put it in a pan and shape it.

[mushroom-anon]

..Where did you learn how to do all of this Ran?

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- I took a lot of culinary classes in high school! :D *The mixer started sounding like it was struggling to mix the dough, so Ranboo switched out the paddle attachment for a dough hook*

[mushroom-anon]

and they taught you all this? That's so cool-

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah! All of this and more- just in the first class, I learned knife skills, how to properly cook different meats, and how to make an entire pie from scratch, just to name a few examples-

[mushroom-anon]

Nicee :̶]̷

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah :3 *Ranboo turned back to watch Tom watch the mixer, mesmerized by the motion of the hook kneading the dough. Without Tom noticing, Ranboo leans in and takes a cautious sniff of Tom, then blushes and nods in understanding*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks off to the side, an ear flicking as if hearing something, before rolling their eyes and "smiling" foundly*

[lost-field-guy]

*Suddenly, with no prompting, Tom turns to Ran* Leinbury was controlling you while your arms were freaking out. *Ranboo looked at him in bewilderment* ..What????? How????????

[mushroom-anon]

!̴̢͂ Tom I thought you wanted to wait to tell them- and we don't know.

[lost-field-guy]

I did wait. And what other explanation is there?? *Ranboo kind of just stares into space for a second, then seems to come to a realization* Wait- Leinbury’s alive???? I thought you killed him????????

[mushroom-anon]

That's what I'm saying- I still think that he's dead and did something to "live" after death- I feel like he would be the type of guy to put a copy of his brain into a computer or something-

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom looks at them with mild annoyance* You know I could’ve just thought I killed him? He seems more of the type to pretend he’s dead just to get me to go away-

[mushroom-anon]

hm maybe- both possible options-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah, I guess. Anyway, *he turns back to Ran* yeah, that happened. He tried to- I don’t really know- choke me or something. But yeah. *Ranboo had taken the dough out of the bowl and started anxiously kneading it himself, not responding*

[mushroom-anon]

...*Fungus looks at them with worry*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom also watches him with concern* ..Sorry- I should’ve waited more maybe- *Ranboo doesn’t look up, starting to go at the dough a little more aggressively, but mutters a small “it’s fine”*

[mushroom-anon]

..............doesn't seem fine- *fungus mumbles to themself*

[lost-field-guy]

*In silence, Ranboo progressively kneads more and more aggressively, until Tom, who’s expression also grew more and more with concern, decided to reach out to stop them—until suddenly, Ranboo just straight up ripped the dough in half, panting. Tom backed up, his concern turned to fear*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus stands up straight from the wall, quickly moving to stand next to Tom* ...........Ran?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo backed up a bit, staring at the dough in shock, still breathing heavily. He then looked down at his hands, then at Fungus and Tom, revealing his pupils to still be normal sized, then back at his hands, then the dough. Their breath began to quicken as they clutched the counter*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus relaxes ever so slightly when they see his pupils, before moving over to them* Ran hey you’re ok-

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo flinched away from them and slid to the ground, shaking and beginning to cry. Tom, after some hesitation, cautiously moved to sit next to him but still respecting his personal space*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesitates for a long while, their tail flicking slightly, before carefully sitting down as well*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom eyes Fungus nervously, then turns to Ran, hesitates again, and attempts to reach out to comfort him. Ranboo immediately reacts by clutching onto his arm and crying into his shoulder, making him turn bright red*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks surprised for a moment at the quick movement, but when they spot how red Tom is, they chuckle slightly at him*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom sarcastically made a face at Fungus laughing, then awkwardly adjusted himself to be sitting more comfortably with Ran on him and rubbed their back gently. Ran didn’t seem close to calming down, muttering something incomprehensible through his tears*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus "frowns" slightly when they see Ran not calming down, looking for any ways to help*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom looked a bit worriedly between Ran and Fungus, turning a bit red again from embarrassment* ..I don’t know what to do- I’m not good at this-

[mushroom-anon]

..neither am I fuck- ummm just hug them back for now I can't do that umm- *fungus looks down slightly, muttering something to themself, before looking up and scooting a little closer* Hey Ran? Can you hear me bud?

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom nods and tries to carefully hold tighter to Ran. Ranboo pulls closer to Tom, getting a little bit quieter, though it’s not clear if it’s in reaction to Tom or Fungus*

[mushroom-anon]

...Ran? can you nod if you can hear me please?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo, after a second, pauses his mumbling briefly and nods a bit*

[mushroom-anon]

That's good ,:] Do you need some more help calming down or is this ok?/genq

[lost-field-guy]

*He shook his head, gripping even tighter onto Tom, who began to look a little uncomfortable*

[mushroom-anon]

*They glance at the both of them, before focusing back on Ran* ..I don't know what one you where saying no to, so just in case, do you think you can put a hand on you're chest to focus on you're breathing? ,:] you can still hold onto Tom with one hand if that's helping you-

[lost-field-guy]

*He hesitated a moment, then let go of Tom with one hand and moved it to his chest. Tom relaxed a bit, mouthing a ‘thank you’ at Fungus*

[mushroom-anon]

*They look up to "smile" at Tom,T̷͈́h̸͍̚e̶͎̿ ̷̗̀b̴͔̋ľ̷̳u̴̝̒ē̷̳ ̸͔͛i̵̻͋n̷͕̂ ̶͎̏t̴͇̾ẖ̶͛e̷̘͝i̴̧͐r̴̳͐ ̸͔́e̶̝͠y̷͓̔è̵̤ ̴̘͑ì̶̹s̵̘͌ ̵͓̑g̷̉͜o̶̹̍n̷̻͊e̷̘͝, before looking back down* Good- take deep breaths and just focus on that ,:] you can also repeat phrases that comfort you if you want- simple ones are "I'm here" and "I'm safe" if you can't think of any-

[lost-field-guy]

*Ran stays quiet, not including the choked sobs, but his breathing eventually slows. Tom looks up at Fungus worriedly, then turns concerned as he seems to notice their eye color*

[mushroom-anon]

*They don't notice him looking just yet-*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom keeps staring at their eye for moment, then leans a bit in their direction* …Hey, uh, what’s.. up with your eye?

[mushroom-anon]

hmm? ooh right it change when we switch kinda forgot that- -w-

[lost-field-guy]

..Switch-? Oh, your weird demon soul thing- I still don’t, uh, really understand that- haven’t really been thinking about it anyway-

[mushroom-anon]

well don't remember how Fungus explained it- but I can try to explain it :]

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom eyed them warily* …..Sure.

[mushroom-anon]

Basically I was created when Fungus died, and I had the same amount of time they lived by myself before we were supposed to fuse, but I got injured when we were supposed to which caused us to stay separate with both having control :]

[lost-field-guy]

…So you’re not.. Fungus right now??

[mushroom-anon]

nope :] I'm mush- fungus asked me to help since I've dealt with that before-

[lost-field-guy]

*He narrowed his eyes slightly at them, pulling Ran closer* …..Okay. *Ran had gone silent, their face still buried in Tom’s shoulder*

[mushroom-anon]

*They tilt their head slightly, before blinking hard w̶͈̏i̸͖͝ẗ̶͖́h̷̽͜ ̷̗͐ț̵̈h̷͕̎ẽ̴̟ ̴̛͓b̴̘͑l̵̰̀u̸̖͑ë̵̜́ ̶̛̖c̸͕̾ò̵͚m̸̹̅i̷̻̽n̴͇͌g̷̞̊ ̸͕̋b̵̯́á̴̝ć̶̩k̶̙̊ and sitting up, Fungus' tail wrapping around their leg*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom seems eases at their eye turning back blue, but doesn’t comment. Instead, he attempts to peel Ran off of him slightly to check on him, but he retains his vice-like grip on him*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesiates for a moment* ...dude I think you're gonna be stuck there for a bit-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah probably- *he sighed* ..I’m worried about that dough a bit- the whole process seems so complicated, I don’t know if it’s okay to just leave it out like it is right now-

[mushroom-anon]

ummmm neither do I, hopefully it will be fine? ,̸:̴D̴

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah, hopefully- I would go up there and check on it and make sure it looks normal but like you said I can’t exactly get up- *Ran seems to hold on even tighter to him as a response*

[mushroom-anon]

I mean I can check- don't really know what normal should look like tho-

[lost-field-guy]

That’d be good yeah- IIII don’t think it’s supposed to be in half so I guess you could fix that-?

[mushroom-anon]

oh yeah I can do that- *Fungus goes to stand up*

[lost-field-guy]

Okay, good! *he smiled up at them. Ran seemed to turn away from Tom a bit to glance up at Fungus, but still didn't say anything*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus carefully takes the two hafts of dough and tries to knead them both back together*

[lost-field-guy]

*The dough thankfully comes together easily. Ran, suddenly, peels off of Tom, stands up a bit slowly, and approaches Fungus from behind, mumbling* ..Needs to be kneaded more. Needs more flour.

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus jumps ever so slightly, before turning to face them* Oh- ok um, where's the flour?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo carefully shoves in front of them to grab the dough and the small cup with flour in it off to the side* ..I got it.

[mushroom-anon]

..alright ,̴:̴]̴ *Fungus takes a step back*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo resumes kneading as if nothing had happened. Tom, still on the floor, looks up at Fungus in confusion, glancing at Ran with concern*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus offers a hand to help him up*

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- thanks- *Tom accepts their hand and stands up* ..So, uh… *He glances at Ran again* ..What now??

[mushroom-anon]

...I would say drop the topic for now and resume after cooking maybe?

[lost-field-guy]

*He nods, a bit sadly* ..What should.. we do in the meantime?

[mushroom-anon]

..I mean I don't really mind, anything you want to do?

[lost-field-guy]

*He thinks for a while* ...I guess go out and try to find stuff for the new arms like we were talking about??

[mushroom-anon]

ooh right yeah that could be fun-

[lost-field-guy]

Okay- I’ll, uh- I guess I’ll try to find a bag to put any stuff we find in- *He awkwardly scampers off deeper into the house to look*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesiates a moment, before just waiting for him to come back*

[lost-field-guy]

*After a moment, Tom returns with a couple large luggage bags in tow* These ones look the sturdiest, I don’t know if we’re going to need this much space though-

[mushroom-anon]

oh- well we could probably only take one, and either carry or go back if their's stuff that doesn't fit-

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- okay- *He drops all but one bag to the ground and starts walking to the door* ..Wonder why they have so many of these anyway-

[mushroom-anon]

*fungus follows him* We can ask when we get back- where did you even find all of them??

[lost-field-guy]

Shoved in the back of a hall closet with a bunch of other weird shit, *he said casually, as if that wasn’t strange at all. He opens the front door and lets Fungus go ahead of him* I can’t imagine why they would need more than one bag per person-

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus walks out the door* Well it could be for space reasonings I guess- like maybe one of the bags has more pockets then the others??

[lost-field-guy]

..I could be wrong but they all looked like the exact same bag- *he shrugged it off* It’s probably nothing, they’re probably just overpreparers or something-

[mushroom-anon]

...I mean I guess-.....

[lost-field-guy]

..What, you got another idea of why? If so I wanna hear it >:3

[mushroom-anon]

no I don't I just..there's a vibe that there is more too it- nothing to back up said vibe but it's there none the less-

[lost-field-guy]

Hmm, that could be the case- What if they, like- sold drugs?? And these are where they hid them?? :0

[lost-field-guy]

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus walks into the kitchen from the living room, looking like they just got up*

!̶̙͐.....what fuck is going on???

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom attempts to desperately ask for help, although it’s muffled. Ranboo(?) notices Fungus, but doesn’t seem to care to acknowledge them*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus moves closer to them* ..Ran what the hell- Let go of Tom.

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo hums, tightening his grip on Tom* No, I don’t think I will, thank you though. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m busy finishing the job. *His voice isn’t different at all, but he is noticeably speaking a lot slower and controlled*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus stares at them, before being replaced with a glare as they walk over and attempt to rip his hands off of Tom* Let go, now.

[lost-field-guy]

*They tighten their grip again, pulling their body closer to Tom to shield himself from Fungus* …Why should I?

[mushroom-anon]

Because whatever you're planning isn't going to work, since if you try to go somewhere else, I'll follow you, and if you try to hurt Tom, I would bite the bullet and attack you, so we're at a standstill, and I don't believe you can keep up this control thing forever.

[lost-field-guy]

Oh, I can keep this up for plenty of time. And why would I care if you try to attack? It’s Ranboo’s body, not mine.

[mushroom-anon]

..because you can't really do whatever you have planned if you're pin to the ground so-

[lost-field-guy]

*He pauses for a moment* …Fair point, but who says I’ll even let you get me there? *Aimsey then enters the room as well, immediately takes notice of the situation, and rounds up for a punch in Ranboo’s direction*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus nods ever so slightly, taking a step back* Well, who says you have a choice?

[lost-field-guy]

I do, actua- *Aimsey interrupts him with a punch to the face, and he lets go of Tom and stumbles back in surprise, his pupils blink back to normal size, and passes out, though Aimsey catches him before he falls to the floor* 

[mushroom-anon]

Good job Aims, I was honestly running out of ways to stall him- *Fungus states before moving to check on Tom*

[lost-field-guy]

Thanks!! *Aimsey smiles before carrying Ranboo to the living room to set him down on the couch. Tom had gotten himself off of the counter and was now leaning against it, visibly shaking*

[mushroom-anon]

*fungus looks at him with concern* ..Tom? you alright?

[lost-field-guy]

Of course fucking not, I- *he snapped, but quickly caught himself* …I don’t- he- he can’t be alive- he can’t- 

[mushroom-anon]

...I mean I doubt he's alive, but I get what you mean. We'll figure it out Toms don't worry.

[lost-field-guy]

Wh- the fuck you mean you doubt he’s alive??? How would he have been able to do that *he gestures in the general direction of the living room* if he was dead???

[mushroom-anon]

I don't know- but like I mean I could see it being possible-

[lost-field-guy]

*He pauses for a second in disbelief, then composes himself* ..Okay, first of all, I guess it’s fair because you weren’t in the room when he said it, but he literally said he lived. Secondly, when Ran’s arms act up, he never talks, much less like Leinbury. Have you put two and two together yet???

[mushroom-anon]

I'm not disagreeing with the fact that he's not gone or whatever, I'm arguing the fact that he's alive- there is a difference-

[lost-field-guy]

I’m not saying he’s gone, I’m saying he fucking lived and somehow can remotely control Ran which means we’re all in fucking danger and need to do something about it!!!!!

[mushroom-anon]

yeah alright we're going to. How the fuck did he live anyway, You double-tapped him right?? and how did he control Ran cause like control of your arms shouldn't mean control of the entire body-

[lost-field-guy]

I thought I did- I guess I could’ve checked his pulse- and it doesn’t just mess with his arms, it messes with his behavior and shit so apparently Leinbury can just tap into that and change it???

[mushroom-anon]

How?? why did he only do that now???

[lost-field-guy]

I don’t fucking know, I just- *he put his head in his hands and sighed* I don’t know. I’m- we gotta do something, but I don’t know what-

[mushroom-anon]

..We'll figure it out- we can go to the living room and talk with Aimsey to form a plan of some sorts?

[lost-field-guy]

*He stares at the door to the living room for a second, looking concerned and a little frightened* …You can go, I don’t- I don’t want to be near him-

[mushroom-anon]

..alright, I understand why, you would be safe, but you don't have to come.*fungus hesitates a moment, before leaving to head to the living room*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom watches them go solemnly. Aimsey waves as they enter, then throws a concerned glance at Ran* ..So.. was that typical Ran’s arms making him weird or was there something else I missed-?

[mushroom-anon]

..Something else, they were talking as if they were Lienbury.

[lost-field-guy]

….oh fuck- So I’m guessing that means Leinbury’s alive somehow and can control him somehow- So all we have to do is get rid of the robot arms, right??? But then he won’t have arms that probably won’t work-

[mushroom-anon]

..I mean if we manage to figure out what's causing the control, we could just remove that part-

[lost-field-guy]

How are we supposed to know what part does that?? And what if we can’t put it all back together once we take it apart or the arm doesn’t work at all without that piece-

[mushroom-anon]

We might be able to find a clue or something back at the hostpital, like a blueprint or maybe some notes or something- cause I think the only other option would be to remove the arms and find something to use as replacements.

[lost-field-guy]

Well, given the fact that Leinbury is alive and actively out for blood, maybe going to the hospital isn’t the best idea- and I have no clue what we could use as replacement prosthetics other than actual prosthetics-

[mushroom-anon]

Why not? if he is there, then we can just deal with the root of the problem-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah, but it’s probably better to play it safe- plus, even if we did go and confront him, we wouldn’t outnumber him by much because I doubt Tom or Ran would want to go. *At the mention of his name, Tom moved to the doorway between the kitchen and the living room and listened into their conversation more closely*

[mushroom-anon]

Yes, but I still think that going back there might be our best option, since I would love to beat the shit out of him to deal with the root of the problem, or at least find some clues on how to stop the control thing-

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah, and as if he’d just leave out clues about that- *Tom then steps into the room a bit more, quietly interrupting Aimsey* ..I can- uh- I can make new arms for Ran-

[mushroom-anon]

!̴̢͂ *fungus turns around to face him* Oh- really? What would you need to make them?

[lost-field-guy]

*He flinches a bit in surprise, stepping back into the kitchen* Uh- j-just parts and tools, if you guys have any- I don’t really know where the best place to get the right parts would be-

[mushroom-anon]

well what type of part specifically?

[lost-field-guy]

Um- anything, really- I’d just need a lot to, y’know, make it work-

[mushroom-anon]

so like random electronics orr?

[lost-field-guy]

…yyyyyeah, I think that’ll work- but again I don’t know where we would get any and I don’t want to take apart the electronics here-

[mushroom-anon]

hmm, maybe we can go search some buildings in town? Surely there's somethings there that haven't been looted or anything-

[lost-field-guy]

..right, I guess that would work- I just hope we find enough-

[mushroom-anon]

I'm sure we could ,̷:̴]̶

[lost-field-guy]

..alright.. *Just then, Ranboo’s eyes fluttered open and he slowly sat up, clutching his head* ..What happened?? Where am I???

[mushroom-anon]

.you're in the living room- *fungus explains before trying to get a peak at their eyes*

[lost-field-guy]

*His pupils are still normal size* ..fuck, my arms did the thing again, didn't they- FUCK THE ONIONS- *They instantly get up and rush back into the kitchen to manage, apparently, the onions on the stove*

[mushroom-anon]

....who's gonna tell him they got "possessed"-

[lost-field-guy]

*Aimsey raises their hand to volunteer, but Tom shakes his head at them as he moves from the kitchen to the living room in avoiding Ran* Do it in a bit. Let him do his cooking stuff first.

[mushroom-anon]

....alright...*Fungus says, concerned in their eye*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom plops down on the couch, arms crossed and watching Ran in the kitchen. Aimsey leans over to Fungus while eyeing Tom.* ..Do you know what's up with him??

[mushroom-anon]

..not for sure, but most likely is because of the fact that Leninbury is not gone-

[lost-field-guy]

..Well yeah, I got that, that's probably why he's avoiding them, but like- ..how do I put it- I've never really seen him so.. protective of Ran since, like, we first met him.

[mushroom-anon]

hm..I haven't really noticed that but maybe just also because of the control thing???

[lost-field-guy]

Y’know, him not wanting me to tell Ran immediately?? I guess I can see that being because of that but it just seems a bit hypocritical- avoiding him but protecting him at the same time-

[mushroom-anon]

..I think it's less wanting to avoid Ran and more wanting to avoid Leninbury, and since He controls them you got to avoid Ran to avoid Leninbury

[lost-field-guy]

Well yeah, I got that, but- *they sigh* Nevermind, forget about it. *They plop down on the couch next to Tom, who doesn’t even notice as he continues watching Ranboo closely, who seemed to have turned on an electric mixer and started pouring in flour bit by bit*

[mushroom-anon]

?̷̼̔...*Fungus hesitates, before going to sit down as well*

[lost-field-guy]

*After a bit, Ranboo poked his head through the door* You guys like focaccia, right? I’m making some right now, and I was just wondering how many of us are actually gonna eat it- *Aimsey nods, but Tom just gives them a weird look*

[mushroom-anon]

..I'm good without- *Fungus glances over at Tom*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo nods, then eyes Tom as well* ..do you.. know what focaccia is? *Tom hesitates for a bit, then shakes his head*

[mushroom-anon]

..gonna be honest same -̵w̸-̷

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- it’s a type of yeast bread!! It’s super good, you guys will love it! It’s got herbs and onions and garlic mixed in the dough. I was planning on making a big loaf so we could have bread for sandwiches for a while :3 *Tom raised his eyebrows at the mention of herbs, but said nothing*

[mushroom-anon]

hm nice, still probably gonna pass tho -̵w̸-̷

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo nods in understanding and turns to return to the kitchen, but Tom stops him* ..You're making bread from scratch?? *Ranboo nods again, looking at him in surprise* ..yeah- do you want me to show you??

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus tilts their head slightly, carefully watching the interaction*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom hesitates for a while, then reluctantly nods and gets up, cautiously joining Ranboo in the kitchen*

[mushroom-anon]

........can I come watch? :̶]̷

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo pokes their head through the door again* Oh- yeah, of course!! Get in here >:3

[mushroom-anon]

yay :̶3̸...*Fungus gets up and follows them in*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo joyfully leads them into the kitchen and gestures to the mixer and bowl, with the former being turned off and the latter filled with a fairly sticky, wet looking mixture* As you can tell, I’ve already done the hard part- getting the yeast activated and starting to mix all the ingredients and sautéing the onions and garlic- I just need to finish getting the dough mixed while adding flour so it firms up a bit, add all the herbs and everything, then knead it with the dough hook and myself and then let it ferment for a couple hours! :3 *Tom clearly did not get a word they said but nods along anyway*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus leans against a wall to just watch them, their tail flicking slightly*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo flicks on the mixer, starts adding a bit more flour, pauses, then grabs a small bowl with a bit of assorted dried herbs in it and offers it to Tom* You can put these in when it’s time. I mean- if you want to help- *Tom sort of just.. stands there, looking down at the herbs, not exactly confirming but not protesting either, so Ranboo apparently accepts that as confirmation and turns back to the bowl*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks at Tom, tilting their head as they wait for a reaction*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom continues staring at it, then slowly raises it to his face, takes a sniff, and blushes slightly. He then catches wind of Fungus watching him, sticks his tongue out at them, then scampers closer to Ranboo to watch the dough mix*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus chuckles quietly, watching the both of them*

[lost-field-guy]

Ranboo allows Tom to dump the herbs in, then they dump the now cooled garlic and onions in and add a bit more flour. Tom watches Ranboo closely for a bit, still blushing a bit* …Why can’t you bake it immediately? Why does it have to “ferment”? *Ranboo looks back at him and chuckles* The yeast needs time to eat and release carbon dioxide, otherwise the bread wouldn’t rise. It needs to rise twice before baking, the second time being after I put it in a pan and shape it.

[mushroom-anon]

..Where did you learn how to do all of this Ran?

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- I took a lot of culinary classes in high school! :D *The mixer started sounding like it was struggling to mix the dough, so Ranboo switched out the paddle attachment for a dough hook*

[mushroom-anon]

and they taught you all this? That's so cool-

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah! All of this and more- just in the first class, I learned knife skills, how to properly cook different meats, and how to make an entire pie from scratch, just to name a few examples-

[mushroom-anon]

Nicee :̶]̷

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah :3 *Ranboo turned back to watch Tom watch the mixer, mesmerized by the motion of the hook kneading the dough. Without Tom noticing, Ranboo leans in and takes a cautious sniff of Tom, then blushes and nods in understanding*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks off to the side, an ear flicking as if hearing something, before rolling their eyes and "smiling" foundly*

[lost-field-guy]

*Suddenly, with no prompting, Tom turns to Ran* Leinbury was controlling you while your arms were freaking out. *Ranboo looked at him in bewilderment* ..What????? How????????

[mushroom-anon]

!̴̢͂ Tom I thought you wanted to wait to tell them- and we don't know.

[lost-field-guy]

I did wait. And what other explanation is there?? *Ranboo kind of just stares into space for a second, then seems to come to a realization* Wait- Leinbury’s alive???? I thought you killed him????????

[mushroom-anon]

That's what I'm saying- I still think that he's dead and did something to "live" after death- I feel like he would be the type of guy to put a copy of his brain into a computer or something-

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom looks at them with mild annoyance* You know I could’ve just thought I killed him? He seems more of the type to pretend he’s dead just to get me to go away-

[mushroom-anon]

hm maybe- both possible options-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah, I guess. Anyway, *he turns back to Ran* yeah, that happened. He tried to- I don’t really know- choke me or something. But yeah. *Ranboo had taken the dough out of the bowl and started anxiously kneading it himself, not responding*

[mushroom-anon]

...*Fungus looks at them with worry*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom also watches him with concern* ..Sorry- I should’ve waited more maybe- *Ranboo doesn’t look up, starting to go at the dough a little more aggressively, but mutters a small “it’s fine”*

[mushroom-anon]

..............doesn't seem fine- *fungus mumbles to themself*

[lost-field-guy]

*In silence, Ranboo progressively kneads more and more aggressively, until Tom, who’s expression also grew more and more with concern, decided to reach out to stop them—until suddenly, Ranboo just straight up ripped the dough in half, panting. Tom backed up, his concern turned to fear*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus stands up straight from the wall, quickly moving to stand next to Tom* ...........Ran?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo backed up a bit, staring at the dough in shock, still breathing heavily. He then looked down at his hands, then at Fungus and Tom, revealing his pupils to still be normal sized, then back at his hands, then the dough. Their breath began to quicken as they clutched the counter*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus relaxes ever so slightly when they see his pupils, before moving over to them* Ran hey you’re ok-

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo flinched away from them and slid to the ground, shaking and beginning to cry. Tom, after some hesitation, cautiously moved to sit next to him but still respecting his personal space*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesitates for a long while, their tail flicking slightly, before carefully sitting down as well*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom eyes Fungus nervously, then turns to Ran, hesitates again, and attempts to reach out to comfort him. Ranboo immediately reacts by clutching onto his arm and crying into his shoulder, making him turn bright red*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks surprised for a moment at the quick movement, but when they spot how red Tom is, they chuckle slightly at him*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom sarcastically made a face at Fungus laughing, then awkwardly adjusted himself to be sitting more comfortably with Ran on him and rubbed their back gently. Ran didn’t seem close to calming down, muttering something incomprehensible through his tears*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus "frowns" slightly when they see Ran not calming down, looking for any ways to help*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom looked a bit worriedly between Ran and Fungus, turning a bit red again from embarrassment* ..I don’t know what to do- I’m not good at this-

[mushroom-anon]

..neither am I fuck- ummm just hug them back for now I can't do that umm- *fungus looks down slightly, muttering something to themself, before looking up and scooting a little closer* Hey Ran? Can you hear me bud?

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom nods and tries to carefully hold tighter to Ran. Ranboo pulls closer to Tom, getting a little bit quieter, though it’s not clear if it’s in reaction to Tom or Fungus*

[mushroom-anon]

...Ran? can you nod if you can hear me please?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo, after a second, pauses his mumbling briefly and nods a bit*

[mushroom-anon]

That's good ,:] Do you need some more help calming down or is this ok?/genq

[lost-field-guy]

*He shook his head, gripping even tighter onto Tom, who began to look a little uncomfortable*

[mushroom-anon]

*They glance at the both of them, before focusing back on Ran* ..I don't know what one you where saying no to, so just in case, do you think you can put a hand on you're chest to focus on you're breathing? ,:] you can still hold onto Tom with one hand if that's helping you-

[lost-field-guy]

*He hesitated a moment, then let go of Tom with one hand and moved it to his chest. Tom relaxed a bit, mouthing a ‘thank you’ at Fungus*

[mushroom-anon]

*They look up to "smile" at Tom,T̷͈́h̸͍̚e̶͎̿ ̷̗̀b̴͔̋ľ̷̳u̴̝̒ē̷̳ ̸͔͛i̵̻͋n̷͕̂ ̶͎̏t̴͇̾ẖ̶͛e̷̘͝i̴̧͐r̴̳͐ ̸͔́e̶̝͠y̷͓̔è̵̤ ̴̘͑ì̶̹s̵̘͌ ̵͓̑g̷̉͜o̶̹̍n̷̻͊e̷̘͝, before looking back down* Good- take deep breaths and just focus on that ,:] you can also repeat phrases that comfort you if you want- simple ones are "I'm here" and "I'm safe" if you can't think of any-

[lost-field-guy]

*Ran stays quiet, not including the choked sobs, but his breathing eventually slows. Tom looks up at Fungus worriedly, then turns concerned as he seems to notice their eye color*

[mushroom-anon]

*They don't notice him looking just yet-*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom keeps staring at their eye for moment, then leans a bit in their direction* …Hey, uh, what’s.. up with your eye?

[mushroom-anon]

hmm? ooh right it change when we switch kinda forgot that- -w-

[lost-field-guy]

..Switch-? Oh, your weird demon soul thing- I still don’t, uh, really understand that- haven’t really been thinking about it anyway-

[mushroom-anon]

well don't remember how Fungus explained it- but I can try to explain it :]

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom eyed them warily* …..Sure.

[mushroom-anon]

Basically I was created when Fungus died, and I had the same amount of time they lived by myself before we were supposed to fuse, but I got injured when we were supposed to which caused us to stay separate with both having control :]

[lost-field-guy]

…So you’re not.. Fungus right now??

[mushroom-anon]

nope :] I'm mush- fungus asked me to help since I've dealt with that before-

[lost-field-guy]

*He narrowed his eyes slightly at them, pulling Ran closer* …..Okay. *Ran had gone silent, their face still buried in Tom’s shoulder*

[mushroom-anon]

*They tilt their head slightly, before blinking hard w̶͈̏i̸͖͝ẗ̶͖́h̷̽͜ ̷̗͐ț̵̈h̷͕̎ẽ̴̟ ̴̛͓b̴̘͑l̵̰̀u̸̖͑ë̵̜́ ̶̛̖c̸͕̾ò̵͚m̸̹̅i̷̻̽n̴͇͌g̷̞̊ ̸͕̋b̵̯́á̴̝ć̶̩k̶̙̊ and sitting up, Fungus' tail wrapping around their leg*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom seems eases at their eye turning back blue, but doesn’t comment. Instead, he attempts to peel Ran off of him slightly to check on him, but he retains his vice-like grip on him*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesiates for a moment* ...dude I think you're gonna be stuck there for a bit-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah probably- *he sighed* ..I’m worried about that dough a bit- the whole process seems so complicated, I don’t know if it’s okay to just leave it out like it is right now-

[mushroom-anon]

ummmm neither do I, hopefully it will be fine? ,̸:̴D̴

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah, hopefully- I would go up there and check on it and make sure it looks normal but like you said I can’t exactly get up- *Ran seems to hold on even tighter to him as a response*

[mushroom-anon]

I mean I can check- don't really know what normal should look like tho-

[lost-field-guy]

That’d be good yeah- IIII don’t think it’s supposed to be in half so I guess you could fix that-?

[mushroom-anon]

oh yeah I can do that- *Fungus goes to stand up*

[lost-field-guy]

Okay, good! *he smiled up at them. Ran seemed to turn away from Tom a bit to glance up at Fungus, but still didn't say anything*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus carefully takes the two hafts of dough and tries to knead them both back together*

[lost-field-guy]

*The dough thankfully comes together easily. Ran, suddenly, peels off of Tom, stands up a bit slowly, and approaches Fungus from behind, mumbling* ..Needs to be kneaded more. Needs more flour.

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus jumps ever so slightly, before turning to face them* Oh- ok um, where's the flour?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo carefully shoves in front of them to grab the dough and the small cup with flour in it off to the side* ..I got it.

[mushroom-anon]

..alright ,̴:̴]̴ *Fungus takes a step back*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo resumes kneading as if nothing had happened. Tom, still on the floor, looks up at Fungus in confusion, glancing at Ran with concern*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus offers a hand to help him up*

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- thanks- *Tom accepts their hand and stands up* ..So, uh… *He glances at Ran again* ..What now??

[mushroom-anon]

...I would say drop the topic for now and resume after cooking maybe?

[lost-field-guy]

*He nods, a bit sadly* ..What should.. we do in the meantime?

[mushroom-anon]

..I mean I don't really mind, anything you want to do?

[lost-field-guy]

*He thinks for a while* ...I guess go out and try to find stuff for the new arms like we were talking about??

[mushroom-anon]

ooh right yeah that could be fun-

[lost-field-guy]

Okay- I’ll, uh- I guess I’ll try to find a bag to put any stuff we find in- *He awkwardly scampers off deeper into the house to look*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesiates a moment, before just waiting for him to come back*

[lost-field-guy]

*After a moment, Tom returns with a couple large luggage bags in tow* These ones look the sturdiest, I don’t know if we’re going to need this much space though-

[mushroom-anon]

oh- well we could probably only take one, and either carry or go back if their's stuff that doesn't fit-

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- okay- *He drops all but one bag to the ground and starts walking to the door* ..Wonder why they have so many of these anyway-

[mushroom-anon]

*fungus follows him* We can ask when we get back- where did you even find all of them??

[lost-field-guy]

Shoved in the back of a hall closet with a bunch of other weird shit, *he said casually, as if that wasn’t strange at all. He opens the front door and lets Fungus go ahead of him* I can’t imagine why they would need more than one bag per person-

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus walks out the door* Well it could be for space reasonings I guess- like maybe one of the bags has more pockets then the others??

[lost-field-guy]

..I could be wrong but they all looked like the exact same bag- *he shrugged it off* It’s probably nothing, they’re probably just overpreparers or something-

[mushroom-anon]

...I mean I guess-.....

[lost-field-guy]

..What, you got another idea of why? If so I wanna hear it >:3

[lost-field-guy]

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus walks into the kitchen from the living room, looking like they just got up*

!̶̙͐.....what fuck is going on???

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom attempts to desperately ask for help, although it’s muffled. Ranboo(?) notices Fungus, but doesn’t seem to care to acknowledge them*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus moves closer to them* ..Ran what the hell- Let go of Tom.

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo hums, tightening his grip on Tom* No, I don’t think I will, thank you though. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m busy finishing the job. *His voice isn’t different at all, but he is noticeably speaking a lot slower and controlled*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus stares at them, before being replaced with a glare as they walk over and attempt to rip his hands off of Tom* Let go, now.

[lost-field-guy]

*They tighten their grip again, pulling their body closer to Tom to shield himself from Fungus* …Why should I?

[mushroom-anon]

Because whatever you're planning isn't going to work, since if you try to go somewhere else, I'll follow you, and if you try to hurt Tom, I would bite the bullet and attack you, so we're at a standstill, and I don't believe you can keep up this control thing forever.

[lost-field-guy]

Oh, I can keep this up for plenty of time. And why would I care if you try to attack? It’s Ranboo’s body, not mine.

[mushroom-anon]

..because you can't really do whatever you have planned if you're pin to the ground so-

[lost-field-guy]

*He pauses for a moment* …Fair point, but who says I’ll even let you get me there? *Aimsey then enters the room as well, immediately takes notice of the situation, and rounds up for a punch in Ranboo’s direction*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus nods ever so slightly, taking a step back* Well, who says you have a choice?

[lost-field-guy]

I do, actua- *Aimsey interrupts him with a punch to the face, and he lets go of Tom and stumbles back in surprise, his pupils blink back to normal size, and passes out, though Aimsey catches him before he falls to the floor* 

[mushroom-anon]

Good job Aims, I was honestly running out of ways to stall him- *Fungus states before moving to check on Tom*

[lost-field-guy]

Thanks!! *Aimsey smiles before carrying Ranboo to the living room to set him down on the couch. Tom had gotten himself off of the counter and was now leaning against it, visibly shaking*

[mushroom-anon]

*fungus looks at him with concern* ..Tom? you alright?

[lost-field-guy]

Of course fucking not, I- *he snapped, but quickly caught himself* …I don’t- he- he can’t be alive- he can’t- 

[mushroom-anon]

...I mean I doubt he's alive, but I get what you mean. We'll figure it out Toms don't worry.

[lost-field-guy]

Wh- the fuck you mean you doubt he’s alive??? How would he have been able to do that *he gestures in the general direction of the living room* if he was dead???

[mushroom-anon]

I don't know- but like I mean I could see it being possible-

[lost-field-guy]

*He pauses for a second in disbelief, then composes himself* ..Okay, first of all, I guess it’s fair because you weren’t in the room when he said it, but he literally said he lived. Secondly, when Ran’s arms act up, he never talks, much less like Leinbury. Have you put two and two together yet???

[mushroom-anon]

I'm not disagreeing with the fact that he's not gone or whatever, I'm arguing the fact that he's alive- there is a difference-

[lost-field-guy]

I’m not saying he’s gone, I’m saying he fucking lived and somehow can remotely control Ran which means we’re all in fucking danger and need to do something about it!!!!!

[mushroom-anon]

yeah alright we're going to. How the fuck did he live anyway, You double-tapped him right?? and how did he control Ran cause like control of your arms shouldn't mean control of the entire body-

[lost-field-guy]

I thought I did- I guess I could’ve checked his pulse- and it doesn’t just mess with his arms, it messes with his behavior and shit so apparently Leinbury can just tap into that and change it???

[mushroom-anon]

How?? why did he only do that now???

[lost-field-guy]

I don’t fucking know, I just- *he put his head in his hands and sighed* I don’t know. I’m- we gotta do something, but I don’t know what-

[mushroom-anon]

..We'll figure it out- we can go to the living room and talk with Aimsey to form a plan of some sorts?

[lost-field-guy]

*He stares at the door to the living room for a second, looking concerned and a little frightened* …You can go, I don’t- I don’t want to be near him-

[mushroom-anon]

..alright, I understand why, you would be safe, but you don't have to come.*fungus hesitates a moment, before leaving to head to the living room*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom watches them go solemnly. Aimsey waves as they enter, then throws a concerned glance at Ran* ..So.. was that typical Ran’s arms making him weird or was there something else I missed-?

[mushroom-anon]

..Something else, they were talking as if they were Lienbury.

[lost-field-guy]

….oh fuck- So I’m guessing that means Leinbury’s alive somehow and can control him somehow- So all we have to do is get rid of the robot arms, right??? But then he won’t have arms that probably won’t work-

[mushroom-anon]

..I mean if we manage to figure out what's causing the control, we could just remove that part-

[lost-field-guy]

How are we supposed to know what part does that?? And what if we can’t put it all back together once we take it apart or the arm doesn’t work at all without that piece-

[mushroom-anon]

We might be able to find a clue or something back at the hostpital, like a blueprint or maybe some notes or something- cause I think the only other option would be to remove the arms and find something to use as replacements.

[lost-field-guy]

Well, given the fact that Leinbury is alive and actively out for blood, maybe going to the hospital isn’t the best idea- and I have no clue what we could use as replacement prosthetics other than actual prosthetics-

[mushroom-anon]

Why not? if he is there, then we can just deal with the root of the problem-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah, but it’s probably better to play it safe- plus, even if we did go and confront him, we wouldn’t outnumber him by much because I doubt Tom or Ran would want to go. *At the mention of his name, Tom moved to the doorway between the kitchen and the living room and listened into their conversation more closely*

[mushroom-anon]

Yes, but I still think that going back there might be our best option, since I would love to beat the shit out of him to deal with the root of the problem, or at least find some clues on how to stop the control thing-

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah, and as if he’d just leave out clues about that- *Tom then steps into the room a bit more, quietly interrupting Aimsey* ..I can- uh- I can make new arms for Ran-

[mushroom-anon]

!̴̢͂ *fungus turns around to face him* Oh- really? What would you need to make them?

[lost-field-guy]

*He flinches a bit in surprise, stepping back into the kitchen* Uh- j-just parts and tools, if you guys have any- I don’t really know where the best place to get the right parts would be-

[mushroom-anon]

well what type of part specifically?

[lost-field-guy]

Um- anything, really- I’d just need a lot to, y’know, make it work-

[mushroom-anon]

so like random electronics orr?

[lost-field-guy]

…yyyyyeah, I think that’ll work- but again I don’t know where we would get any and I don’t want to take apart the electronics here-

[mushroom-anon]

hmm, maybe we can go search some buildings in town? Surely there's somethings there that haven't been looted or anything-

[lost-field-guy]

..right, I guess that would work- I just hope we find enough-

[mushroom-anon]

I'm sure we could ,̷:̴]̶

[lost-field-guy]

..alright.. *Just then, Ranboo’s eyes fluttered open and he slowly sat up, clutching his head* ..What happened?? Where am I???

[mushroom-anon]

.you're in the living room- *fungus explains before trying to get a peak at their eyes*

[lost-field-guy]

*His pupils are still normal size* ..fuck, my arms did the thing again, didn't they- FUCK THE ONIONS- *They instantly get up and rush back into the kitchen to manage, apparently, the onions on the stove*

[mushroom-anon]

....who's gonna tell him they got "possessed"-

[lost-field-guy]

*Aimsey raises their hand to volunteer, but Tom shakes his head at them as he moves from the kitchen to the living room in avoiding Ran* Do it in a bit. Let him do his cooking stuff first.

[mushroom-anon]

....alright...*Fungus says, concerned in their eye*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom plops down on the couch, arms crossed and watching Ran in the kitchen. Aimsey leans over to Fungus while eyeing Tom.* ..Do you know what's up with him??

[mushroom-anon]

..not for sure, but most likely is because of the fact that Leninbury is not gone-

[lost-field-guy]

..Well yeah, I got that, that's probably why he's avoiding them, but like- ..how do I put it- I've never really seen him so.. protective of Ran since, like, we first met him.

[mushroom-anon]

hm..I haven't really noticed that but maybe just also because of the control thing???

[lost-field-guy]

Y’know, him not wanting me to tell Ran immediately?? I guess I can see that being because of that but it just seems a bit hypocritical- avoiding him but protecting him at the same time-

[mushroom-anon]

..I think it's less wanting to avoid Ran and more wanting to avoid Leninbury, and since He controls them you got to avoid Ran to avoid Leninbury

[lost-field-guy]

Well yeah, I got that, but- *they sigh* Nevermind, forget about it. *They plop down on the couch next to Tom, who doesn’t even notice as he continues watching Ranboo closely, who seemed to have turned on an electric mixer and started pouring in flour bit by bit*

[mushroom-anon]

?̷̼̔...*Fungus hesitates, before going to sit down as well*

[lost-field-guy]

*After a bit, Ranboo poked his head through the door* You guys like focaccia, right? I’m making some right now, and I was just wondering how many of us are actually gonna eat it- *Aimsey nods, but Tom just gives them a weird look*

[mushroom-anon]

..I'm good without- *Fungus glances over at Tom*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo nods, then eyes Tom as well* ..do you.. know what focaccia is? *Tom hesitates for a bit, then shakes his head*

[mushroom-anon]

..gonna be honest same -̵w̸-̷

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- it’s a type of yeast bread!! It’s super good, you guys will love it! It’s got herbs and onions and garlic mixed in the dough. I was planning on making a big loaf so we could have bread for sandwiches for a while :3 *Tom raised his eyebrows at the mention of herbs, but said nothing*

[mushroom-anon]

hm nice, still probably gonna pass tho -̵w̸-̷

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo nods in understanding and turns to return to the kitchen, but Tom stops him* ..You're making bread from scratch?? *Ranboo nods again, looking at him in surprise* ..yeah- do you want me to show you??

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus tilts their head slightly, carefully watching the interaction*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom hesitates for a while, then reluctantly nods and gets up, cautiously joining Ranboo in the kitchen*

[mushroom-anon]

........can I come watch? :̶]̷

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo pokes their head through the door again* Oh- yeah, of course!! Get in here >:3

[mushroom-anon]

yay :̶3̸...*Fungus gets up and follows them in*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo joyfully leads them into the kitchen and gestures to the mixer and bowl, with the former being turned off and the latter filled with a fairly sticky, wet looking mixture* As you can tell, I’ve already done the hard part- getting the yeast activated and starting to mix all the ingredients and sautéing the onions and garlic- I just need to finish getting the dough mixed while adding flour so it firms up a bit, add all the herbs and everything, then knead it with the dough hook and myself and then let it ferment for a couple hours! :3 *Tom clearly did not get a word they said but nods along anyway*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus leans against a wall to just watch them, their tail flicking slightly*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo flicks on the mixer, starts adding a bit more flour, pauses, then grabs a small bowl with a bit of assorted dried herbs in it and offers it to Tom* You can put these in when it’s time. I mean- if you want to help- *Tom sort of just.. stands there, looking down at the herbs, not exactly confirming but not protesting either, so Ranboo apparently accepts that as confirmation and turns back to the bowl*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks at Tom, tilting their head as they wait for a reaction*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom continues staring at it, then slowly raises it to his face, takes a sniff, and blushes slightly. He then catches wind of Fungus watching him, sticks his tongue out at them, then scampers closer to Ranboo to watch the dough mix*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus chuckles quietly, watching the both of them*

[lost-field-guy]

Ranboo allows Tom to dump the herbs in, then they dump the now cooled garlic and onions in and add a bit more flour. Tom watches Ranboo closely for a bit, still blushing a bit* …Why can’t you bake it immediately? Why does it have to “ferment”? *Ranboo looks back at him and chuckles* The yeast needs time to eat and release carbon dioxide, otherwise the bread wouldn’t rise. It needs to rise twice before baking, the second time being after I put it in a pan and shape it.

[mushroom-anon]

..Where did you learn how to do all of this Ran?

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- I took a lot of culinary classes in high school! :D *The mixer started sounding like it was struggling to mix the dough, so Ranboo switched out the paddle attachment for a dough hook*

[mushroom-anon]

and they taught you all this? That's so cool-

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah! All of this and more- just in the first class, I learned knife skills, how to properly cook different meats, and how to make an entire pie from scratch, just to name a few examples-

[mushroom-anon]

Nicee :̶]̷

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah :3 *Ranboo turned back to watch Tom watch the mixer, mesmerized by the motion of the hook kneading the dough. Without Tom noticing, Ranboo leans in and takes a cautious sniff of Tom, then blushes and nods in understanding*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks off to the side, an ear flicking as if hearing something, before rolling their eyes and "smiling" foundly*

[lost-field-guy]

*Suddenly, with no prompting, Tom turns to Ran* Leinbury was controlling you while your arms were freaking out. *Ranboo looked at him in bewilderment* ..What????? How????????

[mushroom-anon]

!̴̢͂ Tom I thought you wanted to wait to tell them- and we don't know.

[lost-field-guy]

I did wait. And what other explanation is there?? *Ranboo kind of just stares into space for a second, then seems to come to a realization* Wait- Leinbury’s alive???? I thought you killed him????????

[mushroom-anon]

That's what I'm saying- I still think that he's dead and did something to "live" after death- I feel like he would be the type of guy to put a copy of his brain into a computer or something-

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom looks at them with mild annoyance* You know I could’ve just thought I killed him? He seems more of the type to pretend he’s dead just to get me to go away-

[mushroom-anon]

hm maybe- both possible options-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah, I guess. Anyway, *he turns back to Ran* yeah, that happened. He tried to- I don’t really know- choke me or something. But yeah. *Ranboo had taken the dough out of the bowl and started anxiously kneading it himself, not responding*

[mushroom-anon]

...*Fungus looks at them with worry*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom also watches him with concern* ..Sorry- I should’ve waited more maybe- *Ranboo doesn’t look up, starting to go at the dough a little more aggressively, but mutters a small “it’s fine”*

[mushroom-anon]

..............doesn't seem fine- *fungus mumbles to themself*

[lost-field-guy]

*In silence, Ranboo progressively kneads more and more aggressively, until Tom, who’s expression also grew more and more with concern, decided to reach out to stop them—until suddenly, Ranboo just straight up ripped the dough in half, panting. Tom backed up, his concern turned to fear*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus stands up straight from the wall, quickly moving to stand next to Tom* ...........Ran?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo backed up a bit, staring at the dough in shock, still breathing heavily. He then looked down at his hands, then at Fungus and Tom, revealing his pupils to still be normal sized, then back at his hands, then the dough. Their breath began to quicken as they clutched the counter*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus relaxes ever so slightly when they see his pupils, before moving over to them* Ran hey you’re ok-

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo flinched away from them and slid to the ground, shaking and beginning to cry. Tom, after some hesitation, cautiously moved to sit next to him but still respecting his personal space*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesitates for a long while, their tail flicking slightly, before carefully sitting down as well*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom eyes Fungus nervously, then turns to Ran, hesitates again, and attempts to reach out to comfort him. Ranboo immediately reacts by clutching onto his arm and crying into his shoulder, making him turn bright red*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks surprised for a moment at the quick movement, but when they spot how red Tom is, they chuckle slightly at him*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom sarcastically made a face at Fungus laughing, then awkwardly adjusted himself to be sitting more comfortably with Ran on him and rubbed their back gently. Ran didn’t seem close to calming down, muttering something incomprehensible through his tears*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus "frowns" slightly when they see Ran not calming down, looking for any ways to help*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom looked a bit worriedly between Ran and Fungus, turning a bit red again from embarrassment* ..I don’t know what to do- I’m not good at this-

[mushroom-anon]

..neither am I fuck- ummm just hug them back for now I can't do that umm- *fungus looks down slightly, muttering something to themself, before looking up and scooting a little closer* Hey Ran? Can you hear me bud?

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom nods and tries to carefully hold tighter to Ran. Ranboo pulls closer to Tom, getting a little bit quieter, though it’s not clear if it’s in reaction to Tom or Fungus*

[mushroom-anon]

...Ran? can you nod if you can hear me please?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo, after a second, pauses his mumbling briefly and nods a bit*

[mushroom-anon]

That's good ,:] Do you need some more help calming down or is this ok?/genq

[lost-field-guy]

*He shook his head, gripping even tighter onto Tom, who began to look a little uncomfortable*

[mushroom-anon]

*They glance at the both of them, before focusing back on Ran* ..I don't know what one you where saying no to, so just in case, do you think you can put a hand on you're chest to focus on you're breathing? ,:] you can still hold onto Tom with one hand if that's helping you-

[lost-field-guy]

*He hesitated a moment, then let go of Tom with one hand and moved it to his chest. Tom relaxed a bit, mouthing a ‘thank you’ at Fungus*

[mushroom-anon]

*They look up to "smile" at Tom,T̷͈́h̸͍̚e̶͎̿ ̷̗̀b̴͔̋ľ̷̳u̴̝̒ē̷̳ ̸͔͛i̵̻͋n̷͕̂ ̶͎̏t̴͇̾ẖ̶͛e̷̘͝i̴̧͐r̴̳͐ ̸͔́e̶̝͠y̷͓̔è̵̤ ̴̘͑ì̶̹s̵̘͌ ̵͓̑g̷̉͜o̶̹̍n̷̻͊e̷̘͝, before looking back down* Good- take deep breaths and just focus on that ,:] you can also repeat phrases that comfort you if you want- simple ones are "I'm here" and "I'm safe" if you can't think of any-

[lost-field-guy]

*Ran stays quiet, not including the choked sobs, but his breathing eventually slows. Tom looks up at Fungus worriedly, then turns concerned as he seems to notice their eye color*

[mushroom-anon]

*They don't notice him looking just yet-*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom keeps staring at their eye for moment, then leans a bit in their direction* …Hey, uh, what’s.. up with your eye?

[mushroom-anon]

hmm? ooh right it change when we switch kinda forgot that- -w-

[lost-field-guy]

..Switch-? Oh, your weird demon soul thing- I still don’t, uh, really understand that- haven’t really been thinking about it anyway-

[mushroom-anon]

well don't remember how Fungus explained it- but I can try to explain it :]

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom eyed them warily* …..Sure.

[mushroom-anon]

Basically I was created when Fungus died, and I had the same amount of time they lived by myself before we were supposed to fuse, but I got injured when we were supposed to which caused us to stay separate with both having control :]

[lost-field-guy]

…So you’re not.. Fungus right now??

[mushroom-anon]

nope :] I'm mush- fungus asked me to help since I've dealt with that before-

[lost-field-guy]

*He narrowed his eyes slightly at them, pulling Ran closer* …..Okay. *Ran had gone silent, their face still buried in Tom’s shoulder*

[mushroom-anon]

*They tilt their head slightly, before blinking hard w̶͈̏i̸͖͝ẗ̶͖́h̷̽͜ ̷̗͐ț̵̈h̷͕̎ẽ̴̟ ̴̛͓b̴̘͑l̵̰̀u̸̖͑ë̵̜́ ̶̛̖c̸͕̾ò̵͚m̸̹̅i̷̻̽n̴͇͌g̷̞̊ ̸͕̋b̵̯́á̴̝ć̶̩k̶̙̊ and sitting up, Fungus' tail wrapping around their leg*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom seems eases at their eye turning back blue, but doesn’t comment. Instead, he attempts to peel Ran off of him slightly to check on him, but he retains his vice-like grip on him*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesiates for a moment* ...dude I think you're gonna be stuck there for a bit-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah probably- *he sighed* ..I’m worried about that dough a bit- the whole process seems so complicated, I don’t know if it’s okay to just leave it out like it is right now-

[mushroom-anon]

ummmm neither do I, hopefully it will be fine? ,̸:̴D̴

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah, hopefully- I would go up there and check on it and make sure it looks normal but like you said I can’t exactly get up- *Ran seems to hold on even tighter to him as a response*

[mushroom-anon]

I mean I can check- don't really know what normal should look like tho-

[lost-field-guy]

That’d be good yeah- IIII don’t think it’s supposed to be in half so I guess you could fix that-?

[mushroom-anon]

oh yeah I can do that- *Fungus goes to stand up*

[lost-field-guy]

Okay, good! *he smiled up at them. Ran seemed to turn away from Tom a bit to glance up at Fungus, but still didn't say anything*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus carefully takes the two hafts of dough and tries to knead them both back together*

[lost-field-guy]

*The dough thankfully comes together easily. Ran, suddenly, peels off of Tom, stands up a bit slowly, and approaches Fungus from behind, mumbling* ..Needs to be kneaded more. Needs more flour.

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus jumps ever so slightly, before turning to face them* Oh- ok um, where's the flour?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo carefully shoves in front of them to grab the dough and the small cup with flour in it off to the side* ..I got it.

[mushroom-anon]

..alright ,̴:̴]̴ *Fungus takes a step back*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo resumes kneading as if nothing had happened. Tom, still on the floor, looks up at Fungus in confusion, glancing at Ran with concern*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus offers a hand to help him up*

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- thanks- *Tom accepts their hand and stands up* ..So, uh… *He glances at Ran again* ..What now??

[mushroom-anon]

...I would say drop the topic for now and resume after cooking maybe?

[lost-field-guy]

*He nods, a bit sadly* ..What should.. we do in the meantime?

[mushroom-anon]

..I mean I don't really mind, anything you want to do?

[lost-field-guy]

*He thinks for a while* ...I guess go out and try to find stuff for the new arms like we were talking about??

[mushroom-anon]

ooh right yeah that could be fun-

[lost-field-guy]

Okay- I’ll, uh- I guess I’ll try to find a bag to put any stuff we find in- *He awkwardly scampers off deeper into the house to look*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesiates a moment, before just waiting for him to come back*

[lost-field-guy]

*After a moment, Tom returns with a couple large luggage bags in tow* These ones look the sturdiest, I don’t know if we’re going to need this much space though-

[mushroom-anon]

oh- well we could probably only take one, and either carry or go back if their's stuff that doesn't fit-

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- okay- *He drops all but one bag to the ground and starts walking to the door* ..Wonder why they have so many of these anyway-

[mushroom-anon]

*fungus follows him* We can ask when we get back- where did you even find all of them??

[lost-field-guy]

Shoved in the back of a hall closet with a bunch of other weird shit, *he said casually, as if that wasn’t strange at all. He opens the front door and lets Fungus go ahead of him* I can’t imagine why they would need more than one bag per person-

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus walks out the door* Well it could be for space reasonings I guess- like maybe one of the bags has more pockets then the others??

[lost-field-guy]

..I could be wrong but they all looked like the exact same bag- *he shrugged it off* It’s probably nothing, they’re probably just overpreparers or something-

[lost-field-guy]

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus walks into the kitchen from the living room, looking like they just got up*

!̶̙͐.....what fuck is going on???

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom attempts to desperately ask for help, although it’s muffled. Ranboo(?) notices Fungus, but doesn’t seem to care to acknowledge them*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus moves closer to them* ..Ran what the hell- Let go of Tom.

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo hums, tightening his grip on Tom* No, I don’t think I will, thank you though. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m busy finishing the job. *His voice isn’t different at all, but he is noticeably speaking a lot slower and controlled*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus stares at them, before being replaced with a glare as they walk over and attempt to rip his hands off of Tom* Let go, now.

[lost-field-guy]

*They tighten their grip again, pulling their body closer to Tom to shield himself from Fungus* …Why should I?

[mushroom-anon]

Because whatever you're planning isn't going to work, since if you try to go somewhere else, I'll follow you, and if you try to hurt Tom, I would bite the bullet and attack you, so we're at a standstill, and I don't believe you can keep up this control thing forever.

[lost-field-guy]

Oh, I can keep this up for plenty of time. And why would I care if you try to attack? It’s Ranboo’s body, not mine.

[mushroom-anon]

..because you can't really do whatever you have planned if you're pin to the ground so-

[lost-field-guy]

*He pauses for a moment* …Fair point, but who says I’ll even let you get me there? *Aimsey then enters the room as well, immediately takes notice of the situation, and rounds up for a punch in Ranboo’s direction*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus nods ever so slightly, taking a step back* Well, who says you have a choice?

[lost-field-guy]

I do, actua- *Aimsey interrupts him with a punch to the face, and he lets go of Tom and stumbles back in surprise, his pupils blink back to normal size, and passes out, though Aimsey catches him before he falls to the floor* 

[mushroom-anon]

Good job Aims, I was honestly running out of ways to stall him- *Fungus states before moving to check on Tom*

[lost-field-guy]

Thanks!! *Aimsey smiles before carrying Ranboo to the living room to set him down on the couch. Tom had gotten himself off of the counter and was now leaning against it, visibly shaking*

[mushroom-anon]

*fungus looks at him with concern* ..Tom? you alright?

[lost-field-guy]

Of course fucking not, I- *he snapped, but quickly caught himself* …I don’t- he- he can’t be alive- he can’t- 

[mushroom-anon]

...I mean I doubt he's alive, but I get what you mean. We'll figure it out Toms don't worry.

[lost-field-guy]

Wh- the fuck you mean you doubt he’s alive??? How would he have been able to do that *he gestures in the general direction of the living room* if he was dead???

[mushroom-anon]

I don't know- but like I mean I could see it being possible-

[lost-field-guy]

*He pauses for a second in disbelief, then composes himself* ..Okay, first of all, I guess it’s fair because you weren’t in the room when he said it, but he literally said he lived. Secondly, when Ran’s arms act up, he never talks, much less like Leinbury. Have you put two and two together yet???

[mushroom-anon]

I'm not disagreeing with the fact that he's not gone or whatever, I'm arguing the fact that he's alive- there is a difference-

[lost-field-guy]

I’m not saying he’s gone, I’m saying he fucking lived and somehow can remotely control Ran which means we’re all in fucking danger and need to do something about it!!!!!

[mushroom-anon]

yeah alright we're going to. How the fuck did he live anyway, You double-tapped him right?? and how did he control Ran cause like control of your arms shouldn't mean control of the entire body-

[lost-field-guy]

I thought I did- I guess I could’ve checked his pulse- and it doesn’t just mess with his arms, it messes with his behavior and shit so apparently Leinbury can just tap into that and change it???

[mushroom-anon]

How?? why did he only do that now???

[lost-field-guy]

I don’t fucking know, I just- *he put his head in his hands and sighed* I don’t know. I’m- we gotta do something, but I don’t know what-

[mushroom-anon]

..We'll figure it out- we can go to the living room and talk with Aimsey to form a plan of some sorts?

[lost-field-guy]

*He stares at the door to the living room for a second, looking concerned and a little frightened* …You can go, I don’t- I don’t want to be near him-

[mushroom-anon]

..alright, I understand why, you would be safe, but you don't have to come.*fungus hesitates a moment, before leaving to head to the living room*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom watches them go solemnly. Aimsey waves as they enter, then throws a concerned glance at Ran* ..So.. was that typical Ran’s arms making him weird or was there something else I missed-?

[mushroom-anon]

..Something else, they were talking as if they were Lienbury.

[lost-field-guy]

….oh fuck- So I’m guessing that means Leinbury’s alive somehow and can control him somehow- So all we have to do is get rid of the robot arms, right??? But then he won’t have arms that probably won’t work-

[mushroom-anon]

..I mean if we manage to figure out what's causing the control, we could just remove that part-

[lost-field-guy]

How are we supposed to know what part does that?? And what if we can’t put it all back together once we take it apart or the arm doesn’t work at all without that piece-

[mushroom-anon]

We might be able to find a clue or something back at the hostpital, like a blueprint or maybe some notes or something- cause I think the only other option would be to remove the arms and find something to use as replacements.

[lost-field-guy]

Well, given the fact that Leinbury is alive and actively out for blood, maybe going to the hospital isn’t the best idea- and I have no clue what we could use as replacement prosthetics other than actual prosthetics-

[mushroom-anon]

Why not? if he is there, then we can just deal with the root of the problem-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah, but it’s probably better to play it safe- plus, even if we did go and confront him, we wouldn’t outnumber him by much because I doubt Tom or Ran would want to go. *At the mention of his name, Tom moved to the doorway between the kitchen and the living room and listened into their conversation more closely*

[mushroom-anon]

Yes, but I still think that going back there might be our best option, since I would love to beat the shit out of him to deal with the root of the problem, or at least find some clues on how to stop the control thing-

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah, and as if he’d just leave out clues about that- *Tom then steps into the room a bit more, quietly interrupting Aimsey* ..I can- uh- I can make new arms for Ran-

[mushroom-anon]

!̴̢͂ *fungus turns around to face him* Oh- really? What would you need to make them?

[lost-field-guy]

*He flinches a bit in surprise, stepping back into the kitchen* Uh- j-just parts and tools, if you guys have any- I don’t really know where the best place to get the right parts would be-

[mushroom-anon]

well what type of part specifically?

[lost-field-guy]

Um- anything, really- I’d just need a lot to, y’know, make it work-

[mushroom-anon]

so like random electronics orr?

[lost-field-guy]

…yyyyyeah, I think that’ll work- but again I don’t know where we would get any and I don’t want to take apart the electronics here-

[mushroom-anon]

hmm, maybe we can go search some buildings in town? Surely there's somethings there that haven't been looted or anything-

[lost-field-guy]

..right, I guess that would work- I just hope we find enough-

[mushroom-anon]

I'm sure we could ,̷:̴]̶

[lost-field-guy]

..alright.. *Just then, Ranboo’s eyes fluttered open and he slowly sat up, clutching his head* ..What happened?? Where am I???

[mushroom-anon]

.you're in the living room- *fungus explains before trying to get a peak at their eyes*

[lost-field-guy]

*His pupils are still normal size* ..fuck, my arms did the thing again, didn't they- FUCK THE ONIONS- *They instantly get up and rush back into the kitchen to manage, apparently, the onions on the stove*

[mushroom-anon]

....who's gonna tell him they got "possessed"-

[lost-field-guy]

*Aimsey raises their hand to volunteer, but Tom shakes his head at them as he moves from the kitchen to the living room in avoiding Ran* Do it in a bit. Let him do his cooking stuff first.

[mushroom-anon]

....alright...*Fungus says, concerned in their eye*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom plops down on the couch, arms crossed and watching Ran in the kitchen. Aimsey leans over to Fungus while eyeing Tom.* ..Do you know what's up with him??

[mushroom-anon]

..not for sure, but most likely is because of the fact that Leninbury is not gone-

[lost-field-guy]

..Well yeah, I got that, that's probably why he's avoiding them, but like- ..how do I put it- I've never really seen him so.. protective of Ran since, like, we first met him.

[mushroom-anon]

hm..I haven't really noticed that but maybe just also because of the control thing???

[lost-field-guy]

Y’know, him not wanting me to tell Ran immediately?? I guess I can see that being because of that but it just seems a bit hypocritical- avoiding him but protecting him at the same time-

[mushroom-anon]

..I think it's less wanting to avoid Ran and more wanting to avoid Leninbury, and since He controls them you got to avoid Ran to avoid Leninbury

[lost-field-guy]

Well yeah, I got that, but- *they sigh* Nevermind, forget about it. *They plop down on the couch next to Tom, who doesn’t even notice as he continues watching Ranboo closely, who seemed to have turned on an electric mixer and started pouring in flour bit by bit*

[mushroom-anon]

?̷̼̔...*Fungus hesitates, before going to sit down as well*

[lost-field-guy]

*After a bit, Ranboo poked his head through the door* You guys like focaccia, right? I’m making some right now, and I was just wondering how many of us are actually gonna eat it- *Aimsey nods, but Tom just gives them a weird look*

[mushroom-anon]

..I'm good without- *Fungus glances over at Tom*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo nods, then eyes Tom as well* ..do you.. know what focaccia is? *Tom hesitates for a bit, then shakes his head*

[mushroom-anon]

..gonna be honest same -̵w̸-̷

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- it’s a type of yeast bread!! It’s super good, you guys will love it! It’s got herbs and onions and garlic mixed in the dough. I was planning on making a big loaf so we could have bread for sandwiches for a while :3 *Tom raised his eyebrows at the mention of herbs, but said nothing*

[mushroom-anon]

hm nice, still probably gonna pass tho -̵w̸-̷

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo nods in understanding and turns to return to the kitchen, but Tom stops him* ..You're making bread from scratch?? *Ranboo nods again, looking at him in surprise* ..yeah- do you want me to show you??

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus tilts their head slightly, carefully watching the interaction*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom hesitates for a while, then reluctantly nods and gets up, cautiously joining Ranboo in the kitchen*

[mushroom-anon]

........can I come watch? :̶]̷

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo pokes their head through the door again* Oh- yeah, of course!! Get in here >:3

[mushroom-anon]

yay :̶3̸...*Fungus gets up and follows them in*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo joyfully leads them into the kitchen and gestures to the mixer and bowl, with the former being turned off and the latter filled with a fairly sticky, wet looking mixture* As you can tell, I’ve already done the hard part- getting the yeast activated and starting to mix all the ingredients and sautéing the onions and garlic- I just need to finish getting the dough mixed while adding flour so it firms up a bit, add all the herbs and everything, then knead it with the dough hook and myself and then let it ferment for a couple hours! :3 *Tom clearly did not get a word they said but nods along anyway*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus leans against a wall to just watch them, their tail flicking slightly*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo flicks on the mixer, starts adding a bit more flour, pauses, then grabs a small bowl with a bit of assorted dried herbs in it and offers it to Tom* You can put these in when it’s time. I mean- if you want to help- *Tom sort of just.. stands there, looking down at the herbs, not exactly confirming but not protesting either, so Ranboo apparently accepts that as confirmation and turns back to the bowl*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks at Tom, tilting their head as they wait for a reaction*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom continues staring at it, then slowly raises it to his face, takes a sniff, and blushes slightly. He then catches wind of Fungus watching him, sticks his tongue out at them, then scampers closer to Ranboo to watch the dough mix*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus chuckles quietly, watching the both of them*

[lost-field-guy]

Ranboo allows Tom to dump the herbs in, then they dump the now cooled garlic and onions in and add a bit more flour. Tom watches Ranboo closely for a bit, still blushing a bit* …Why can’t you bake it immediately? Why does it have to “ferment”? *Ranboo looks back at him and chuckles* The yeast needs time to eat and release carbon dioxide, otherwise the bread wouldn’t rise. It needs to rise twice before baking, the second time being after I put it in a pan and shape it.

[mushroom-anon]

..Where did you learn how to do all of this Ran?

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- I took a lot of culinary classes in high school! :D *The mixer started sounding like it was struggling to mix the dough, so Ranboo switched out the paddle attachment for a dough hook*

[mushroom-anon]

and they taught you all this? That's so cool-

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah! All of this and more- just in the first class, I learned knife skills, how to properly cook different meats, and how to make an entire pie from scratch, just to name a few examples-

[mushroom-anon]

Nicee :̶]̷

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah :3 *Ranboo turned back to watch Tom watch the mixer, mesmerized by the motion of the hook kneading the dough. Without Tom noticing, Ranboo leans in and takes a cautious sniff of Tom, then blushes and nods in understanding*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks off to the side, an ear flicking as if hearing something, before rolling their eyes and "smiling" foundly*

[lost-field-guy]

*Suddenly, with no prompting, Tom turns to Ran* Leinbury was controlling you while your arms were freaking out. *Ranboo looked at him in bewilderment* ..What????? How????????

[mushroom-anon]

!̴̢͂ Tom I thought you wanted to wait to tell them- and we don't know.

[lost-field-guy]

I did wait. And what other explanation is there?? *Ranboo kind of just stares into space for a second, then seems to come to a realization* Wait- Leinbury’s alive???? I thought you killed him????????

[mushroom-anon]

That's what I'm saying- I still think that he's dead and did something to "live" after death- I feel like he would be the type of guy to put a copy of his brain into a computer or something-

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom looks at them with mild annoyance* You know I could’ve just thought I killed him? He seems more of the type to pretend he’s dead just to get me to go away-

[mushroom-anon]

hm maybe- both possible options-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah, I guess. Anyway, *he turns back to Ran* yeah, that happened. He tried to- I don’t really know- choke me or something. But yeah. *Ranboo had taken the dough out of the bowl and started anxiously kneading it himself, not responding*

[mushroom-anon]

...*Fungus looks at them with worry*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom also watches him with concern* ..Sorry- I should’ve waited more maybe- *Ranboo doesn’t look up, starting to go at the dough a little more aggressively, but mutters a small “it’s fine”*

[mushroom-anon]

..............doesn't seem fine- *fungus mumbles to themself*

[lost-field-guy]

*In silence, Ranboo progressively kneads more and more aggressively, until Tom, who’s expression also grew more and more with concern, decided to reach out to stop them—until suddenly, Ranboo just straight up ripped the dough in half, panting. Tom backed up, his concern turned to fear*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus stands up straight from the wall, quickly moving to stand next to Tom* ...........Ran?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo backed up a bit, staring at the dough in shock, still breathing heavily. He then looked down at his hands, then at Fungus and Tom, revealing his pupils to still be normal sized, then back at his hands, then the dough. Their breath began to quicken as they clutched the counter*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus relaxes ever so slightly when they see his pupils, before moving over to them* Ran hey you’re ok-

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo flinched away from them and slid to the ground, shaking and beginning to cry. Tom, after some hesitation, cautiously moved to sit next to him but still respecting his personal space*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesitates for a long while, their tail flicking slightly, before carefully sitting down as well*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom eyes Fungus nervously, then turns to Ran, hesitates again, and attempts to reach out to comfort him. Ranboo immediately reacts by clutching onto his arm and crying into his shoulder, making him turn bright red*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks surprised for a moment at the quick movement, but when they spot how red Tom is, they chuckle slightly at him*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom sarcastically made a face at Fungus laughing, then awkwardly adjusted himself to be sitting more comfortably with Ran on him and rubbed their back gently. Ran didn’t seem close to calming down, muttering something incomprehensible through his tears*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus "frowns" slightly when they see Ran not calming down, looking for any ways to help*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom looked a bit worriedly between Ran and Fungus, turning a bit red again from embarrassment* ..I don’t know what to do- I’m not good at this-

[mushroom-anon]

..neither am I fuck- ummm just hug them back for now I can't do that umm- *fungus looks down slightly, muttering something to themself, before looking up and scooting a little closer* Hey Ran? Can you hear me bud?

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom nods and tries to carefully hold tighter to Ran. Ranboo pulls closer to Tom, getting a little bit quieter, though it’s not clear if it’s in reaction to Tom or Fungus*

[mushroom-anon]

...Ran? can you nod if you can hear me please?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo, after a second, pauses his mumbling briefly and nods a bit*

[mushroom-anon]

That's good ,:] Do you need some more help calming down or is this ok?/genq

[lost-field-guy]

*He shook his head, gripping even tighter onto Tom, who began to look a little uncomfortable*

[mushroom-anon]

*They glance at the both of them, before focusing back on Ran* ..I don't know what one you where saying no to, so just in case, do you think you can put a hand on you're chest to focus on you're breathing? ,:] you can still hold onto Tom with one hand if that's helping you-

[lost-field-guy]

*He hesitated a moment, then let go of Tom with one hand and moved it to his chest. Tom relaxed a bit, mouthing a ‘thank you’ at Fungus*

[mushroom-anon]

*They look up to "smile" at Tom,T̷͈́h̸͍̚e̶͎̿ ̷̗̀b̴͔̋ľ̷̳u̴̝̒ē̷̳ ̸͔͛i̵̻͋n̷͕̂ ̶͎̏t̴͇̾ẖ̶͛e̷̘͝i̴̧͐r̴̳͐ ̸͔́e̶̝͠y̷͓̔è̵̤ ̴̘͑ì̶̹s̵̘͌ ̵͓̑g̷̉͜o̶̹̍n̷̻͊e̷̘͝, before looking back down* Good- take deep breaths and just focus on that ,:] you can also repeat phrases that comfort you if you want- simple ones are "I'm here" and "I'm safe" if you can't think of any-

[lost-field-guy]

*Ran stays quiet, not including the choked sobs, but his breathing eventually slows. Tom looks up at Fungus worriedly, then turns concerned as he seems to notice their eye color*

[mushroom-anon]

*They don't notice him looking just yet-*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom keeps staring at their eye for moment, then leans a bit in their direction* …Hey, uh, what’s.. up with your eye?

[mushroom-anon]

hmm? ooh right it change when we switch kinda forgot that- -w-

[lost-field-guy]

..Switch-? Oh, your weird demon soul thing- I still don’t, uh, really understand that- haven’t really been thinking about it anyway-

[mushroom-anon]

well don't remember how Fungus explained it- but I can try to explain it :]

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom eyed them warily* …..Sure.

[mushroom-anon]

Basically I was created when Fungus died, and I had the same amount of time they lived by myself before we were supposed to fuse, but I got injured when we were supposed to which caused us to stay separate with both having control :]

[lost-field-guy]

…So you’re not.. Fungus right now??

[mushroom-anon]

nope :] I'm mush- fungus asked me to help since I've dealt with that before-

[lost-field-guy]

*He narrowed his eyes slightly at them, pulling Ran closer* …..Okay. *Ran had gone silent, their face still buried in Tom’s shoulder*

[mushroom-anon]

*They tilt their head slightly, before blinking hard w̶͈̏i̸͖͝ẗ̶͖́h̷̽͜ ̷̗͐ț̵̈h̷͕̎ẽ̴̟ ̴̛͓b̴̘͑l̵̰̀u̸̖͑ë̵̜́ ̶̛̖c̸͕̾ò̵͚m̸̹̅i̷̻̽n̴͇͌g̷̞̊ ̸͕̋b̵̯́á̴̝ć̶̩k̶̙̊ and sitting up, Fungus' tail wrapping around their leg*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom seems eases at their eye turning back blue, but doesn’t comment. Instead, he attempts to peel Ran off of him slightly to check on him, but he retains his vice-like grip on him*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesiates for a moment* ...dude I think you're gonna be stuck there for a bit-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah probably- *he sighed* ..I’m worried about that dough a bit- the whole process seems so complicated, I don’t know if it’s okay to just leave it out like it is right now-

[mushroom-anon]

ummmm neither do I, hopefully it will be fine? ,̸:̴D̴

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah, hopefully- I would go up there and check on it and make sure it looks normal but like you said I can’t exactly get up- *Ran seems to hold on even tighter to him as a response*

[mushroom-anon]

I mean I can check- don't really know what normal should look like tho-

[lost-field-guy]

That’d be good yeah- IIII don’t think it’s supposed to be in half so I guess you could fix that-?

[mushroom-anon]

oh yeah I can do that- *Fungus goes to stand up*

[lost-field-guy]

Okay, good! *he smiled up at them. Ran seemed to turn away from Tom a bit to glance up at Fungus, but still didn't say anything*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus carefully takes the two hafts of dough and tries to knead them both back together*

[lost-field-guy]

*The dough thankfully comes together easily. Ran, suddenly, peels off of Tom, stands up a bit slowly, and approaches Fungus from behind, mumbling* ..Needs to be kneaded more. Needs more flour.

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus jumps ever so slightly, before turning to face them* Oh- ok um, where's the flour?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo carefully shoves in front of them to grab the dough and the small cup with flour in it off to the side* ..I got it.

[mushroom-anon]

..alright ,̴:̴]̴ *Fungus takes a step back*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo resumes kneading as if nothing had happened. Tom, still on the floor, looks up at Fungus in confusion, glancing at Ran with concern*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus offers a hand to help him up*

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- thanks- *Tom accepts their hand and stands up* ..So, uh… *He glances at Ran again* ..What now??

[mushroom-anon]

...I would say drop the topic for now and resume after cooking maybe?

[lost-field-guy]

*He nods, a bit sadly* ..What should.. we do in the meantime?

[mushroom-anon]

..I mean I don't really mind, anything you want to do?

[lost-field-guy]

*He thinks for a while* ...I guess go out and try to find stuff for the new arms like we were talking about??

[mushroom-anon]

ooh right yeah that could be fun-

[lost-field-guy]

Okay- I’ll, uh- I guess I’ll try to find a bag to put any stuff we find in- *He awkwardly scampers off deeper into the house to look*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesiates a moment, before just waiting for him to come back*

[lost-field-guy]

*After a moment, Tom returns with a couple large luggage bags in tow* These ones look the sturdiest, I don’t know if we’re going to need this much space though-

[mushroom-anon]

oh- well we could probably only take one, and either carry or go back if their's stuff that doesn't fit-

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- okay- *He drops all but one bag to the ground and starts walking to the door* ..Wonder why they have so many of these anyway-

[mushroom-anon]

*fungus follows him* We can ask when we get back- where did you even find all of them??

[lost-field-guy]

Shoved in the back of a hall closet with a bunch of other weird shit, *he said casually, as if that wasn’t strange at all. He opens the front door and lets Fungus go ahead of him* I can’t imagine why they would need more than one bag per person-

[lost-field-guy]

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus walks into the kitchen from the living room, looking like they just got up*

!̶̙͐.....what fuck is going on???

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom attempts to desperately ask for help, although it’s muffled. Ranboo(?) notices Fungus, but doesn’t seem to care to acknowledge them*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus moves closer to them* ..Ran what the hell- Let go of Tom.

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo hums, tightening his grip on Tom* No, I don’t think I will, thank you though. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m busy finishing the job. *His voice isn’t different at all, but he is noticeably speaking a lot slower and controlled*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus stares at them, before being replaced with a glare as they walk over and attempt to rip his hands off of Tom* Let go, now.

[lost-field-guy]

*They tighten their grip again, pulling their body closer to Tom to shield himself from Fungus* …Why should I?

[mushroom-anon]

Because whatever you're planning isn't going to work, since if you try to go somewhere else, I'll follow you, and if you try to hurt Tom, I would bite the bullet and attack you, so we're at a standstill, and I don't believe you can keep up this control thing forever.

[lost-field-guy]

Oh, I can keep this up for plenty of time. And why would I care if you try to attack? It’s Ranboo’s body, not mine.

[mushroom-anon]

..because you can't really do whatever you have planned if you're pin to the ground so-

[lost-field-guy]

*He pauses for a moment* …Fair point, but who says I’ll even let you get me there? *Aimsey then enters the room as well, immediately takes notice of the situation, and rounds up for a punch in Ranboo’s direction*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus nods ever so slightly, taking a step back* Well, who says you have a choice?

[lost-field-guy]

I do, actua- *Aimsey interrupts him with a punch to the face, and he lets go of Tom and stumbles back in surprise, his pupils blink back to normal size, and passes out, though Aimsey catches him before he falls to the floor* 

[mushroom-anon]

Good job Aims, I was honestly running out of ways to stall him- *Fungus states before moving to check on Tom*

[lost-field-guy]

Thanks!! *Aimsey smiles before carrying Ranboo to the living room to set him down on the couch. Tom had gotten himself off of the counter and was now leaning against it, visibly shaking*

[mushroom-anon]

*fungus looks at him with concern* ..Tom? you alright?

[lost-field-guy]

Of course fucking not, I- *he snapped, but quickly caught himself* …I don’t- he- he can’t be alive- he can’t- 

[mushroom-anon]

...I mean I doubt he's alive, but I get what you mean. We'll figure it out Toms don't worry.

[lost-field-guy]

Wh- the fuck you mean you doubt he’s alive??? How would he have been able to do that *he gestures in the general direction of the living room* if he was dead???

[mushroom-anon]

I don't know- but like I mean I could see it being possible-

[lost-field-guy]

*He pauses for a second in disbelief, then composes himself* ..Okay, first of all, I guess it’s fair because you weren’t in the room when he said it, but he literally said he lived. Secondly, when Ran’s arms act up, he never talks, much less like Leinbury. Have you put two and two together yet???

[mushroom-anon]

I'm not disagreeing with the fact that he's not gone or whatever, I'm arguing the fact that he's alive- there is a difference-

[lost-field-guy]

I’m not saying he’s gone, I’m saying he fucking lived and somehow can remotely control Ran which means we’re all in fucking danger and need to do something about it!!!!!

[mushroom-anon]

yeah alright we're going to. How the fuck did he live anyway, You double-tapped him right?? and how did he control Ran cause like control of your arms shouldn't mean control of the entire body-

[lost-field-guy]

I thought I did- I guess I could’ve checked his pulse- and it doesn’t just mess with his arms, it messes with his behavior and shit so apparently Leinbury can just tap into that and change it???

[mushroom-anon]

How?? why did he only do that now???

[lost-field-guy]

I don’t fucking know, I just- *he put his head in his hands and sighed* I don’t know. I’m- we gotta do something, but I don’t know what-

[mushroom-anon]

..We'll figure it out- we can go to the living room and talk with Aimsey to form a plan of some sorts?

[lost-field-guy]

*He stares at the door to the living room for a second, looking concerned and a little frightened* …You can go, I don’t- I don’t want to be near him-

[mushroom-anon]

..alright, I understand why, you would be safe, but you don't have to come.*fungus hesitates a moment, before leaving to head to the living room*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom watches them go solemnly. Aimsey waves as they enter, then throws a concerned glance at Ran* ..So.. was that typical Ran’s arms making him weird or was there something else I missed-?

[mushroom-anon]

..Something else, they were talking as if they were Lienbury.

[lost-field-guy]

….oh fuck- So I’m guessing that means Leinbury’s alive somehow and can control him somehow- So all we have to do is get rid of the robot arms, right??? But then he won’t have arms that probably won’t work-

[mushroom-anon]

..I mean if we manage to figure out what's causing the control, we could just remove that part-

[lost-field-guy]

How are we supposed to know what part does that?? And what if we can’t put it all back together once we take it apart or the arm doesn’t work at all without that piece-

[mushroom-anon]

We might be able to find a clue or something back at the hostpital, like a blueprint or maybe some notes or something- cause I think the only other option would be to remove the arms and find something to use as replacements.

[lost-field-guy]

Well, given the fact that Leinbury is alive and actively out for blood, maybe going to the hospital isn’t the best idea- and I have no clue what we could use as replacement prosthetics other than actual prosthetics-

[mushroom-anon]

Why not? if he is there, then we can just deal with the root of the problem-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah, but it’s probably better to play it safe- plus, even if we did go and confront him, we wouldn’t outnumber him by much because I doubt Tom or Ran would want to go. *At the mention of his name, Tom moved to the doorway between the kitchen and the living room and listened into their conversation more closely*

[mushroom-anon]

Yes, but I still think that going back there might be our best option, since I would love to beat the shit out of him to deal with the root of the problem, or at least find some clues on how to stop the control thing-

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah, and as if he’d just leave out clues about that- *Tom then steps into the room a bit more, quietly interrupting Aimsey* ..I can- uh- I can make new arms for Ran-

[mushroom-anon]

!̴̢͂ *fungus turns around to face him* Oh- really? What would you need to make them?

[lost-field-guy]

*He flinches a bit in surprise, stepping back into the kitchen* Uh- j-just parts and tools, if you guys have any- I don’t really know where the best place to get the right parts would be-

[mushroom-anon]

well what type of part specifically?

[lost-field-guy]

Um- anything, really- I’d just need a lot to, y’know, make it work-

[mushroom-anon]

so like random electronics orr?

[lost-field-guy]

…yyyyyeah, I think that’ll work- but again I don’t know where we would get any and I don’t want to take apart the electronics here-

[mushroom-anon]

hmm, maybe we can go search some buildings in town? Surely there's somethings there that haven't been looted or anything-

[lost-field-guy]

..right, I guess that would work- I just hope we find enough-

[mushroom-anon]

I'm sure we could ,̷:̴]̶

[lost-field-guy]

..alright.. *Just then, Ranboo’s eyes fluttered open and he slowly sat up, clutching his head* ..What happened?? Where am I???

[mushroom-anon]

.you're in the living room- *fungus explains before trying to get a peak at their eyes*

[lost-field-guy]

*His pupils are still normal size* ..fuck, my arms did the thing again, didn't they- FUCK THE ONIONS- *They instantly get up and rush back into the kitchen to manage, apparently, the onions on the stove*

[mushroom-anon]

....who's gonna tell him they got "possessed"-

[lost-field-guy]

*Aimsey raises their hand to volunteer, but Tom shakes his head at them as he moves from the kitchen to the living room in avoiding Ran* Do it in a bit. Let him do his cooking stuff first.

[mushroom-anon]

....alright...*Fungus says, concerned in their eye*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom plops down on the couch, arms crossed and watching Ran in the kitchen. Aimsey leans over to Fungus while eyeing Tom.* ..Do you know what's up with him??

[mushroom-anon]

..not for sure, but most likely is because of the fact that Leninbury is not gone-

[lost-field-guy]

..Well yeah, I got that, that's probably why he's avoiding them, but like- ..how do I put it- I've never really seen him so.. protective of Ran since, like, we first met him.

[mushroom-anon]

hm..I haven't really noticed that but maybe just also because of the control thing???

[lost-field-guy]

Y’know, him not wanting me to tell Ran immediately?? I guess I can see that being because of that but it just seems a bit hypocritical- avoiding him but protecting him at the same time-

[mushroom-anon]

..I think it's less wanting to avoid Ran and more wanting to avoid Leninbury, and since He controls them you got to avoid Ran to avoid Leninbury

[lost-field-guy]

Well yeah, I got that, but- *they sigh* Nevermind, forget about it. *They plop down on the couch next to Tom, who doesn’t even notice as he continues watching Ranboo closely, who seemed to have turned on an electric mixer and started pouring in flour bit by bit*

[mushroom-anon]

?̷̼̔...*Fungus hesitates, before going to sit down as well*

[lost-field-guy]

*After a bit, Ranboo poked his head through the door* You guys like focaccia, right? I’m making some right now, and I was just wondering how many of us are actually gonna eat it- *Aimsey nods, but Tom just gives them a weird look*

[mushroom-anon]

..I'm good without- *Fungus glances over at Tom*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo nods, then eyes Tom as well* ..do you.. know what focaccia is? *Tom hesitates for a bit, then shakes his head*

[mushroom-anon]

..gonna be honest same -̵w̸-̷

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- it’s a type of yeast bread!! It’s super good, you guys will love it! It’s got herbs and onions and garlic mixed in the dough. I was planning on making a big loaf so we could have bread for sandwiches for a while :3 *Tom raised his eyebrows at the mention of herbs, but said nothing*

[mushroom-anon]

hm nice, still probably gonna pass tho -̵w̸-̷

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo nods in understanding and turns to return to the kitchen, but Tom stops him* ..You're making bread from scratch?? *Ranboo nods again, looking at him in surprise* ..yeah- do you want me to show you??

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus tilts their head slightly, carefully watching the interaction*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom hesitates for a while, then reluctantly nods and gets up, cautiously joining Ranboo in the kitchen*

[mushroom-anon]

........can I come watch? :̶]̷

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo pokes their head through the door again* Oh- yeah, of course!! Get in here >:3

[mushroom-anon]

yay :̶3̸...*Fungus gets up and follows them in*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo joyfully leads them into the kitchen and gestures to the mixer and bowl, with the former being turned off and the latter filled with a fairly sticky, wet looking mixture* As you can tell, I’ve already done the hard part- getting the yeast activated and starting to mix all the ingredients and sautéing the onions and garlic- I just need to finish getting the dough mixed while adding flour so it firms up a bit, add all the herbs and everything, then knead it with the dough hook and myself and then let it ferment for a couple hours! :3 *Tom clearly did not get a word they said but nods along anyway*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus leans against a wall to just watch them, their tail flicking slightly*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo flicks on the mixer, starts adding a bit more flour, pauses, then grabs a small bowl with a bit of assorted dried herbs in it and offers it to Tom* You can put these in when it’s time. I mean- if you want to help- *Tom sort of just.. stands there, looking down at the herbs, not exactly confirming but not protesting either, so Ranboo apparently accepts that as confirmation and turns back to the bowl*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks at Tom, tilting their head as they wait for a reaction*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom continues staring at it, then slowly raises it to his face, takes a sniff, and blushes slightly. He then catches wind of Fungus watching him, sticks his tongue out at them, then scampers closer to Ranboo to watch the dough mix*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus chuckles quietly, watching the both of them*

[lost-field-guy]

Ranboo allows Tom to dump the herbs in, then they dump the now cooled garlic and onions in and add a bit more flour. Tom watches Ranboo closely for a bit, still blushing a bit* …Why can’t you bake it immediately? Why does it have to “ferment”? *Ranboo looks back at him and chuckles* The yeast needs time to eat and release carbon dioxide, otherwise the bread wouldn’t rise. It needs to rise twice before baking, the second time being after I put it in a pan and shape it.

[mushroom-anon]

..Where did you learn how to do all of this Ran?

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- I took a lot of culinary classes in high school! :D *The mixer started sounding like it was struggling to mix the dough, so Ranboo switched out the paddle attachment for a dough hook*

[mushroom-anon]

and they taught you all this? That's so cool-

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah! All of this and more- just in the first class, I learned knife skills, how to properly cook different meats, and how to make an entire pie from scratch, just to name a few examples-

[mushroom-anon]

Nicee :̶]̷

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah :3 *Ranboo turned back to watch Tom watch the mixer, mesmerized by the motion of the hook kneading the dough. Without Tom noticing, Ranboo leans in and takes a cautious sniff of Tom, then blushes and nods in understanding*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks off to the side, an ear flicking as if hearing something, before rolling their eyes and "smiling" foundly*

[lost-field-guy]

*Suddenly, with no prompting, Tom turns to Ran* Leinbury was controlling you while your arms were freaking out. *Ranboo looked at him in bewilderment* ..What????? How????????

[mushroom-anon]

!̴̢͂ Tom I thought you wanted to wait to tell them- and we don't know.

[lost-field-guy]

I did wait. And what other explanation is there?? *Ranboo kind of just stares into space for a second, then seems to come to a realization* Wait- Leinbury’s alive???? I thought you killed him????????

[mushroom-anon]

That's what I'm saying- I still think that he's dead and did something to "live" after death- I feel like he would be the type of guy to put a copy of his brain into a computer or something-

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom looks at them with mild annoyance* You know I could’ve just thought I killed him? He seems more of the type to pretend he’s dead just to get me to go away-

[mushroom-anon]

hm maybe- both possible options-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah, I guess. Anyway, *he turns back to Ran* yeah, that happened. He tried to- I don’t really know- choke me or something. But yeah. *Ranboo had taken the dough out of the bowl and started anxiously kneading it himself, not responding*

[mushroom-anon]

...*Fungus looks at them with worry*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom also watches him with concern* ..Sorry- I should’ve waited more maybe- *Ranboo doesn’t look up, starting to go at the dough a little more aggressively, but mutters a small “it’s fine”*

[mushroom-anon]

..............doesn't seem fine- *fungus mumbles to themself*

[lost-field-guy]

*In silence, Ranboo progressively kneads more and more aggressively, until Tom, who’s expression also grew more and more with concern, decided to reach out to stop them—until suddenly, Ranboo just straight up ripped the dough in half, panting. Tom backed up, his concern turned to fear*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus stands up straight from the wall, quickly moving to stand next to Tom* ...........Ran?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo backed up a bit, staring at the dough in shock, still breathing heavily. He then looked down at his hands, then at Fungus and Tom, revealing his pupils to still be normal sized, then back at his hands, then the dough. Their breath began to quicken as they clutched the counter*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus relaxes ever so slightly when they see his pupils, before moving over to them* Ran hey you’re ok-

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo flinched away from them and slid to the ground, shaking and beginning to cry. Tom, after some hesitation, cautiously moved to sit next to him but still respecting his personal space*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesitates for a long while, their tail flicking slightly, before carefully sitting down as well*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom eyes Fungus nervously, then turns to Ran, hesitates again, and attempts to reach out to comfort him. Ranboo immediately reacts by clutching onto his arm and crying into his shoulder, making him turn bright red*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks surprised for a moment at the quick movement, but when they spot how red Tom is, they chuckle slightly at him*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom sarcastically made a face at Fungus laughing, then awkwardly adjusted himself to be sitting more comfortably with Ran on him and rubbed their back gently. Ran didn’t seem close to calming down, muttering something incomprehensible through his tears*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus "frowns" slightly when they see Ran not calming down, looking for any ways to help*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom looked a bit worriedly between Ran and Fungus, turning a bit red again from embarrassment* ..I don’t know what to do- I’m not good at this-

[mushroom-anon]

..neither am I fuck- ummm just hug them back for now I can't do that umm- *fungus looks down slightly, muttering something to themself, before looking up and scooting a little closer* Hey Ran? Can you hear me bud?

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom nods and tries to carefully hold tighter to Ran. Ranboo pulls closer to Tom, getting a little bit quieter, though it’s not clear if it’s in reaction to Tom or Fungus*

[mushroom-anon]

...Ran? can you nod if you can hear me please?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo, after a second, pauses his mumbling briefly and nods a bit*

[mushroom-anon]

That's good ,:] Do you need some more help calming down or is this ok?/genq

[lost-field-guy]

*He shook his head, gripping even tighter onto Tom, who began to look a little uncomfortable*

[mushroom-anon]

*They glance at the both of them, before focusing back on Ran* ..I don't know what one you where saying no to, so just in case, do you think you can put a hand on you're chest to focus on you're breathing? ,:] you can still hold onto Tom with one hand if that's helping you-

[lost-field-guy]

*He hesitated a moment, then let go of Tom with one hand and moved it to his chest. Tom relaxed a bit, mouthing a ‘thank you’ at Fungus*

[mushroom-anon]

*They look up to "smile" at Tom,T̷͈́h̸͍̚e̶͎̿ ̷̗̀b̴͔̋ľ̷̳u̴̝̒ē̷̳ ̸͔͛i̵̻͋n̷͕̂ ̶͎̏t̴͇̾ẖ̶͛e̷̘͝i̴̧͐r̴̳͐ ̸͔́e̶̝͠y̷͓̔è̵̤ ̴̘͑ì̶̹s̵̘͌ ̵͓̑g̷̉͜o̶̹̍n̷̻͊e̷̘͝, before looking back down* Good- take deep breaths and just focus on that ,:] you can also repeat phrases that comfort you if you want- simple ones are "I'm here" and "I'm safe" if you can't think of any-

[lost-field-guy]

*Ran stays quiet, not including the choked sobs, but his breathing eventually slows. Tom looks up at Fungus worriedly, then turns concerned as he seems to notice their eye color*

[mushroom-anon]

*They don't notice him looking just yet-*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom keeps staring at their eye for moment, then leans a bit in their direction* …Hey, uh, what’s.. up with your eye?

[mushroom-anon]

hmm? ooh right it change when we switch kinda forgot that- -w-

[lost-field-guy]

..Switch-? Oh, your weird demon soul thing- I still don’t, uh, really understand that- haven’t really been thinking about it anyway-

[mushroom-anon]

well don't remember how Fungus explained it- but I can try to explain it :]

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom eyed them warily* …..Sure.

[mushroom-anon]

Basically I was created when Fungus died, and I had the same amount of time they lived by myself before we were supposed to fuse, but I got injured when we were supposed to which caused us to stay separate with both having control :]

[lost-field-guy]

…So you’re not.. Fungus right now??

[mushroom-anon]

nope :] I'm mush- fungus asked me to help since I've dealt with that before-

[lost-field-guy]

*He narrowed his eyes slightly at them, pulling Ran closer* …..Okay. *Ran had gone silent, their face still buried in Tom’s shoulder*

[mushroom-anon]

*They tilt their head slightly, before blinking hard w̶͈̏i̸͖͝ẗ̶͖́h̷̽͜ ̷̗͐ț̵̈h̷͕̎ẽ̴̟ ̴̛͓b̴̘͑l̵̰̀u̸̖͑ë̵̜́ ̶̛̖c̸͕̾ò̵͚m̸̹̅i̷̻̽n̴͇͌g̷̞̊ ̸͕̋b̵̯́á̴̝ć̶̩k̶̙̊ and sitting up, Fungus' tail wrapping around their leg*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom seems eases at their eye turning back blue, but doesn’t comment. Instead, he attempts to peel Ran off of him slightly to check on him, but he retains his vice-like grip on him*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesiates for a moment* ...dude I think you're gonna be stuck there for a bit-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah probably- *he sighed* ..I’m worried about that dough a bit- the whole process seems so complicated, I don’t know if it’s okay to just leave it out like it is right now-

[mushroom-anon]

ummmm neither do I, hopefully it will be fine? ,̸:̴D̴

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah, hopefully- I would go up there and check on it and make sure it looks normal but like you said I can’t exactly get up- *Ran seems to hold on even tighter to him as a response*

[mushroom-anon]

I mean I can check- don't really know what normal should look like tho-

[lost-field-guy]

That’d be good yeah- IIII don’t think it’s supposed to be in half so I guess you could fix that-?

[mushroom-anon]

oh yeah I can do that- *Fungus goes to stand up*

[lost-field-guy]

Okay, good! *he smiled up at them. Ran seemed to turn away from Tom a bit to glance up at Fungus, but still didn't say anything*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus carefully takes the two hafts of dough and tries to knead them both back together*

[lost-field-guy]

*The dough thankfully comes together easily. Ran, suddenly, peels off of Tom, stands up a bit slowly, and approaches Fungus from behind, mumbling* ..Needs to be kneaded more. Needs more flour.

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus jumps ever so slightly, before turning to face them* Oh- ok um, where's the flour?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo carefully shoves in front of them to grab the dough and the small cup with flour in it off to the side* ..I got it.

[mushroom-anon]

..alright ,̴:̴]̴ *Fungus takes a step back*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo resumes kneading as if nothing had happened. Tom, still on the floor, looks up at Fungus in confusion, glancing at Ran with concern*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus offers a hand to help him up*

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- thanks- *Tom accepts their hand and stands up* ..So, uh… *He glances at Ran again* ..What now??

[mushroom-anon]

...I would say drop the topic for now and resume after cooking maybe?

[lost-field-guy]

*He nods, a bit sadly* ..What should.. we do in the meantime?

[mushroom-anon]

..I mean I don't really mind, anything you want to do?

[lost-field-guy]

*He thinks for a while* ...I guess go out and try to find stuff for the new arms like we were talking about??

[mushroom-anon]

ooh right yeah that could be fun-

[lost-field-guy]

Okay- I’ll, uh- I guess I’ll try to find a bag to put any stuff we find in- *He awkwardly scampers off deeper into the house to look*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesiates a moment, before just waiting for him to come back*

[lost-field-guy]

*After a moment, Tom returns with a couple large luggage bags in tow* These ones look the sturdiest, I don’t know if we’re going to need this much space though-

[mushroom-anon]

oh- well we could probably only take one, and either carry or go back if their's stuff that doesn't fit-

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- okay- *He drops all but one bag to the ground and starts walking to the door* ..Wonder why they have so many of these anyway-

[lost-field-guy]

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus walks into the kitchen from the living room, looking like they just got up*

!̶̙͐.....what fuck is going on???

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom attempts to desperately ask for help, although it’s muffled. Ranboo(?) notices Fungus, but doesn’t seem to care to acknowledge them*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus moves closer to them* ..Ran what the hell- Let go of Tom.

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo hums, tightening his grip on Tom* No, I don’t think I will, thank you though. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m busy finishing the job. *His voice isn’t different at all, but he is noticeably speaking a lot slower and controlled*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus stares at them, before being replaced with a glare as they walk over and attempt to rip his hands off of Tom* Let go, now.

[lost-field-guy]

*They tighten their grip again, pulling their body closer to Tom to shield himself from Fungus* …Why should I?

[mushroom-anon]

Because whatever you're planning isn't going to work, since if you try to go somewhere else, I'll follow you, and if you try to hurt Tom, I would bite the bullet and attack you, so we're at a standstill, and I don't believe you can keep up this control thing forever.

[lost-field-guy]

Oh, I can keep this up for plenty of time. And why would I care if you try to attack? It’s Ranboo’s body, not mine.

[mushroom-anon]

..because you can't really do whatever you have planned if you're pin to the ground so-

[lost-field-guy]

*He pauses for a moment* …Fair point, but who says I’ll even let you get me there? *Aimsey then enters the room as well, immediately takes notice of the situation, and rounds up for a punch in Ranboo’s direction*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus nods ever so slightly, taking a step back* Well, who says you have a choice?

[lost-field-guy]

I do, actua- *Aimsey interrupts him with a punch to the face, and he lets go of Tom and stumbles back in surprise, his pupils blink back to normal size, and passes out, though Aimsey catches him before he falls to the floor* 

[mushroom-anon]

Good job Aims, I was honestly running out of ways to stall him- *Fungus states before moving to check on Tom*

[lost-field-guy]

Thanks!! *Aimsey smiles before carrying Ranboo to the living room to set him down on the couch. Tom had gotten himself off of the counter and was now leaning against it, visibly shaking*

[mushroom-anon]

*fungus looks at him with concern* ..Tom? you alright?

[lost-field-guy]

Of course fucking not, I- *he snapped, but quickly caught himself* …I don’t- he- he can’t be alive- he can’t- 

[mushroom-anon]

...I mean I doubt he's alive, but I get what you mean. We'll figure it out Toms don't worry.

[lost-field-guy]

Wh- the fuck you mean you doubt he’s alive??? How would he have been able to do that *he gestures in the general direction of the living room* if he was dead???

[mushroom-anon]

I don't know- but like I mean I could see it being possible-

[lost-field-guy]

*He pauses for a second in disbelief, then composes himself* ..Okay, first of all, I guess it’s fair because you weren’t in the room when he said it, but he literally said he lived. Secondly, when Ran’s arms act up, he never talks, much less like Leinbury. Have you put two and two together yet???

[mushroom-anon]

I'm not disagreeing with the fact that he's not gone or whatever, I'm arguing the fact that he's alive- there is a difference-

[lost-field-guy]

I’m not saying he’s gone, I’m saying he fucking lived and somehow can remotely control Ran which means we’re all in fucking danger and need to do something about it!!!!!

[mushroom-anon]

yeah alright we're going to. How the fuck did he live anyway, You double-tapped him right?? and how did he control Ran cause like control of your arms shouldn't mean control of the entire body-

[lost-field-guy]

I thought I did- I guess I could’ve checked his pulse- and it doesn’t just mess with his arms, it messes with his behavior and shit so apparently Leinbury can just tap into that and change it???

[mushroom-anon]

How?? why did he only do that now???

[lost-field-guy]

I don’t fucking know, I just- *he put his head in his hands and sighed* I don’t know. I’m- we gotta do something, but I don’t know what-

[mushroom-anon]

..We'll figure it out- we can go to the living room and talk with Aimsey to form a plan of some sorts?

[lost-field-guy]

*He stares at the door to the living room for a second, looking concerned and a little frightened* …You can go, I don’t- I don’t want to be near him-

[mushroom-anon]

..alright, I understand why, you would be safe, but you don't have to come.*fungus hesitates a moment, before leaving to head to the living room*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom watches them go solemnly. Aimsey waves as they enter, then throws a concerned glance at Ran* ..So.. was that typical Ran’s arms making him weird or was there something else I missed-?

[mushroom-anon]

..Something else, they were talking as if they were Lienbury.

[lost-field-guy]

….oh fuck- So I’m guessing that means Leinbury’s alive somehow and can control him somehow- So all we have to do is get rid of the robot arms, right??? But then he won’t have arms that probably won’t work-

[mushroom-anon]

..I mean if we manage to figure out what's causing the control, we could just remove that part-

[lost-field-guy]

How are we supposed to know what part does that?? And what if we can’t put it all back together once we take it apart or the arm doesn’t work at all without that piece-

[mushroom-anon]

We might be able to find a clue or something back at the hostpital, like a blueprint or maybe some notes or something- cause I think the only other option would be to remove the arms and find something to use as replacements.

[lost-field-guy]

Well, given the fact that Leinbury is alive and actively out for blood, maybe going to the hospital isn’t the best idea- and I have no clue what we could use as replacement prosthetics other than actual prosthetics-

[mushroom-anon]

Why not? if he is there, then we can just deal with the root of the problem-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah, but it’s probably better to play it safe- plus, even if we did go and confront him, we wouldn’t outnumber him by much because I doubt Tom or Ran would want to go. *At the mention of his name, Tom moved to the doorway between the kitchen and the living room and listened into their conversation more closely*

[mushroom-anon]

Yes, but I still think that going back there might be our best option, since I would love to beat the shit out of him to deal with the root of the problem, or at least find some clues on how to stop the control thing-

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah, and as if he’d just leave out clues about that- *Tom then steps into the room a bit more, quietly interrupting Aimsey* ..I can- uh- I can make new arms for Ran-

[mushroom-anon]

!̴̢͂ *fungus turns around to face him* Oh- really? What would you need to make them?

[lost-field-guy]

*He flinches a bit in surprise, stepping back into the kitchen* Uh- j-just parts and tools, if you guys have any- I don’t really know where the best place to get the right parts would be-

[mushroom-anon]

well what type of part specifically?

[lost-field-guy]

Um- anything, really- I’d just need a lot to, y’know, make it work-

[mushroom-anon]

so like random electronics orr?

[lost-field-guy]

…yyyyyeah, I think that’ll work- but again I don’t know where we would get any and I don’t want to take apart the electronics here-

[mushroom-anon]

hmm, maybe we can go search some buildings in town? Surely there's somethings there that haven't been looted or anything-

[lost-field-guy]

..right, I guess that would work- I just hope we find enough-

[mushroom-anon]

I'm sure we could ,̷:̴]̶

[lost-field-guy]

..alright.. *Just then, Ranboo’s eyes fluttered open and he slowly sat up, clutching his head* ..What happened?? Where am I???

[mushroom-anon]

.you're in the living room- *fungus explains before trying to get a peak at their eyes*

[lost-field-guy]

*His pupils are still normal size* ..fuck, my arms did the thing again, didn't they- FUCK THE ONIONS- *They instantly get up and rush back into the kitchen to manage, apparently, the onions on the stove*

[mushroom-anon]

....who's gonna tell him they got "possessed"-

[lost-field-guy]

*Aimsey raises their hand to volunteer, but Tom shakes his head at them as he moves from the kitchen to the living room in avoiding Ran* Do it in a bit. Let him do his cooking stuff first.

[mushroom-anon]

....alright...*Fungus says, concerned in their eye*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom plops down on the couch, arms crossed and watching Ran in the kitchen. Aimsey leans over to Fungus while eyeing Tom.* ..Do you know what's up with him??

[mushroom-anon]

..not for sure, but most likely is because of the fact that Leninbury is not gone-

[lost-field-guy]

..Well yeah, I got that, that's probably why he's avoiding them, but like- ..how do I put it- I've never really seen him so.. protective of Ran since, like, we first met him.

[mushroom-anon]

hm..I haven't really noticed that but maybe just also because of the control thing???

[lost-field-guy]

Y’know, him not wanting me to tell Ran immediately?? I guess I can see that being because of that but it just seems a bit hypocritical- avoiding him but protecting him at the same time-

[mushroom-anon]

..I think it's less wanting to avoid Ran and more wanting to avoid Leninbury, and since He controls them you got to avoid Ran to avoid Leninbury

[lost-field-guy]

Well yeah, I got that, but- *they sigh* Nevermind, forget about it. *They plop down on the couch next to Tom, who doesn’t even notice as he continues watching Ranboo closely, who seemed to have turned on an electric mixer and started pouring in flour bit by bit*

[mushroom-anon]

?̷̼̔...*Fungus hesitates, before going to sit down as well*

[lost-field-guy]

*After a bit, Ranboo poked his head through the door* You guys like focaccia, right? I’m making some right now, and I was just wondering how many of us are actually gonna eat it- *Aimsey nods, but Tom just gives them a weird look*

[mushroom-anon]

..I'm good without- *Fungus glances over at Tom*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo nods, then eyes Tom as well* ..do you.. know what focaccia is? *Tom hesitates for a bit, then shakes his head*

[mushroom-anon]

..gonna be honest same -̵w̸-̷

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- it’s a type of yeast bread!! It’s super good, you guys will love it! It’s got herbs and onions and garlic mixed in the dough. I was planning on making a big loaf so we could have bread for sandwiches for a while :3 *Tom raised his eyebrows at the mention of herbs, but said nothing*

[mushroom-anon]

hm nice, still probably gonna pass tho -̵w̸-̷

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo nods in understanding and turns to return to the kitchen, but Tom stops him* ..You're making bread from scratch?? *Ranboo nods again, looking at him in surprise* ..yeah- do you want me to show you??

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus tilts their head slightly, carefully watching the interaction*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom hesitates for a while, then reluctantly nods and gets up, cautiously joining Ranboo in the kitchen*

[mushroom-anon]

........can I come watch? :̶]̷

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo pokes their head through the door again* Oh- yeah, of course!! Get in here >:3

[mushroom-anon]

yay :̶3̸...*Fungus gets up and follows them in*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo joyfully leads them into the kitchen and gestures to the mixer and bowl, with the former being turned off and the latter filled with a fairly sticky, wet looking mixture* As you can tell, I’ve already done the hard part- getting the yeast activated and starting to mix all the ingredients and sautéing the onions and garlic- I just need to finish getting the dough mixed while adding flour so it firms up a bit, add all the herbs and everything, then knead it with the dough hook and myself and then let it ferment for a couple hours! :3 *Tom clearly did not get a word they said but nods along anyway*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus leans against a wall to just watch them, their tail flicking slightly*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo flicks on the mixer, starts adding a bit more flour, pauses, then grabs a small bowl with a bit of assorted dried herbs in it and offers it to Tom* You can put these in when it’s time. I mean- if you want to help- *Tom sort of just.. stands there, looking down at the herbs, not exactly confirming but not protesting either, so Ranboo apparently accepts that as confirmation and turns back to the bowl*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks at Tom, tilting their head as they wait for a reaction*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom continues staring at it, then slowly raises it to his face, takes a sniff, and blushes slightly. He then catches wind of Fungus watching him, sticks his tongue out at them, then scampers closer to Ranboo to watch the dough mix*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus chuckles quietly, watching the both of them*

[lost-field-guy]

Ranboo allows Tom to dump the herbs in, then they dump the now cooled garlic and onions in and add a bit more flour. Tom watches Ranboo closely for a bit, still blushing a bit* …Why can’t you bake it immediately? Why does it have to “ferment”? *Ranboo looks back at him and chuckles* The yeast needs time to eat and release carbon dioxide, otherwise the bread wouldn’t rise. It needs to rise twice before baking, the second time being after I put it in a pan and shape it.

[mushroom-anon]

..Where did you learn how to do all of this Ran?

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- I took a lot of culinary classes in high school! :D *The mixer started sounding like it was struggling to mix the dough, so Ranboo switched out the paddle attachment for a dough hook*

[mushroom-anon]

and they taught you all this? That's so cool-

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah! All of this and more- just in the first class, I learned knife skills, how to properly cook different meats, and how to make an entire pie from scratch, just to name a few examples-

[mushroom-anon]

Nicee :̶]̷

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah :3 *Ranboo turned back to watch Tom watch the mixer, mesmerized by the motion of the hook kneading the dough. Without Tom noticing, Ranboo leans in and takes a cautious sniff of Tom, then blushes and nods in understanding*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks off to the side, an ear flicking as if hearing something, before rolling their eyes and "smiling" foundly*

[lost-field-guy]

*Suddenly, with no prompting, Tom turns to Ran* Leinbury was controlling you while your arms were freaking out. *Ranboo looked at him in bewilderment* ..What????? How????????

[mushroom-anon]

!̴̢͂ Tom I thought you wanted to wait to tell them- and we don't know.

[lost-field-guy]

I did wait. And what other explanation is there?? *Ranboo kind of just stares into space for a second, then seems to come to a realization* Wait- Leinbury’s alive???? I thought you killed him????????

[mushroom-anon]

That's what I'm saying- I still think that he's dead and did something to "live" after death- I feel like he would be the type of guy to put a copy of his brain into a computer or something-

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom looks at them with mild annoyance* You know I could’ve just thought I killed him? He seems more of the type to pretend he’s dead just to get me to go away-

[mushroom-anon]

hm maybe- both possible options-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah, I guess. Anyway, *he turns back to Ran* yeah, that happened. He tried to- I don’t really know- choke me or something. But yeah. *Ranboo had taken the dough out of the bowl and started anxiously kneading it himself, not responding*

[mushroom-anon]

...*Fungus looks at them with worry*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom also watches him with concern* ..Sorry- I should’ve waited more maybe- *Ranboo doesn’t look up, starting to go at the dough a little more aggressively, but mutters a small “it’s fine”*

[mushroom-anon]

..............doesn't seem fine- *fungus mumbles to themself*

[lost-field-guy]

*In silence, Ranboo progressively kneads more and more aggressively, until Tom, who’s expression also grew more and more with concern, decided to reach out to stop them—until suddenly, Ranboo just straight up ripped the dough in half, panting. Tom backed up, his concern turned to fear*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus stands up straight from the wall, quickly moving to stand next to Tom* ...........Ran?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo backed up a bit, staring at the dough in shock, still breathing heavily. He then looked down at his hands, then at Fungus and Tom, revealing his pupils to still be normal sized, then back at his hands, then the dough. Their breath began to quicken as they clutched the counter*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus relaxes ever so slightly when they see his pupils, before moving over to them* Ran hey you’re ok-

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo flinched away from them and slid to the ground, shaking and beginning to cry. Tom, after some hesitation, cautiously moved to sit next to him but still respecting his personal space*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesitates for a long while, their tail flicking slightly, before carefully sitting down as well*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom eyes Fungus nervously, then turns to Ran, hesitates again, and attempts to reach out to comfort him. Ranboo immediately reacts by clutching onto his arm and crying into his shoulder, making him turn bright red*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks surprised for a moment at the quick movement, but when they spot how red Tom is, they chuckle slightly at him*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom sarcastically made a face at Fungus laughing, then awkwardly adjusted himself to be sitting more comfortably with Ran on him and rubbed their back gently. Ran didn’t seem close to calming down, muttering something incomprehensible through his tears*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus "frowns" slightly when they see Ran not calming down, looking for any ways to help*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom looked a bit worriedly between Ran and Fungus, turning a bit red again from embarrassment* ..I don’t know what to do- I’m not good at this-

[mushroom-anon]

..neither am I fuck- ummm just hug them back for now I can't do that umm- *fungus looks down slightly, muttering something to themself, before looking up and scooting a little closer* Hey Ran? Can you hear me bud?

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom nods and tries to carefully hold tighter to Ran. Ranboo pulls closer to Tom, getting a little bit quieter, though it’s not clear if it’s in reaction to Tom or Fungus*

[mushroom-anon]

...Ran? can you nod if you can hear me please?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo, after a second, pauses his mumbling briefly and nods a bit*

[mushroom-anon]

That's good ,:] Do you need some more help calming down or is this ok?/genq

[lost-field-guy]

*He shook his head, gripping even tighter onto Tom, who began to look a little uncomfortable*

[mushroom-anon]

*They glance at the both of them, before focusing back on Ran* ..I don't know what one you where saying no to, so just in case, do you think you can put a hand on you're chest to focus on you're breathing? ,:] you can still hold onto Tom with one hand if that's helping you-

[lost-field-guy]

*He hesitated a moment, then let go of Tom with one hand and moved it to his chest. Tom relaxed a bit, mouthing a ‘thank you’ at Fungus*

[mushroom-anon]

*They look up to "smile" at Tom,T̷͈́h̸͍̚e̶͎̿ ̷̗̀b̴͔̋ľ̷̳u̴̝̒ē̷̳ ̸͔͛i̵̻͋n̷͕̂ ̶͎̏t̴͇̾ẖ̶͛e̷̘͝i̴̧͐r̴̳͐ ̸͔́e̶̝͠y̷͓̔è̵̤ ̴̘͑ì̶̹s̵̘͌ ̵͓̑g̷̉͜o̶̹̍n̷̻͊e̷̘͝, before looking back down* Good- take deep breaths and just focus on that ,:] you can also repeat phrases that comfort you if you want- simple ones are "I'm here" and "I'm safe" if you can't think of any-

[lost-field-guy]

*Ran stays quiet, not including the choked sobs, but his breathing eventually slows. Tom looks up at Fungus worriedly, then turns concerned as he seems to notice their eye color*

[mushroom-anon]

*They don't notice him looking just yet-*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom keeps staring at their eye for moment, then leans a bit in their direction* …Hey, uh, what’s.. up with your eye?

[mushroom-anon]

hmm? ooh right it change when we switch kinda forgot that- -w-

[lost-field-guy]

..Switch-? Oh, your weird demon soul thing- I still don’t, uh, really understand that- haven’t really been thinking about it anyway-

[mushroom-anon]

well don't remember how Fungus explained it- but I can try to explain it :]

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom eyed them warily* …..Sure.

[mushroom-anon]

Basically I was created when Fungus died, and I had the same amount of time they lived by myself before we were supposed to fuse, but I got injured when we were supposed to which caused us to stay separate with both having control :]

[lost-field-guy]

…So you’re not.. Fungus right now??

[mushroom-anon]

nope :] I'm mush- fungus asked me to help since I've dealt with that before-

[lost-field-guy]

*He narrowed his eyes slightly at them, pulling Ran closer* …..Okay. *Ran had gone silent, their face still buried in Tom’s shoulder*

[mushroom-anon]

*They tilt their head slightly, before blinking hard w̶͈̏i̸͖͝ẗ̶͖́h̷̽͜ ̷̗͐ț̵̈h̷͕̎ẽ̴̟ ̴̛͓b̴̘͑l̵̰̀u̸̖͑ë̵̜́ ̶̛̖c̸͕̾ò̵͚m̸̹̅i̷̻̽n̴͇͌g̷̞̊ ̸͕̋b̵̯́á̴̝ć̶̩k̶̙̊ and sitting up, Fungus' tail wrapping around their leg*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom seems eases at their eye turning back blue, but doesn’t comment. Instead, he attempts to peel Ran off of him slightly to check on him, but he retains his vice-like grip on him*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesiates for a moment* ...dude I think you're gonna be stuck there for a bit-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah probably- *he sighed* ..I’m worried about that dough a bit- the whole process seems so complicated, I don’t know if it’s okay to just leave it out like it is right now-

[mushroom-anon]

ummmm neither do I, hopefully it will be fine? ,̸:̴D̴

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah, hopefully- I would go up there and check on it and make sure it looks normal but like you said I can’t exactly get up- *Ran seems to hold on even tighter to him as a response*

[mushroom-anon]

I mean I can check- don't really know what normal should look like tho-

[lost-field-guy]

That’d be good yeah- IIII don’t think it’s supposed to be in half so I guess you could fix that-?

[mushroom-anon]

oh yeah I can do that- *Fungus goes to stand up*

[lost-field-guy]

Okay, good! *he smiled up at them. Ran seemed to turn away from Tom a bit to glance up at Fungus, but still didn't say anything*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus carefully takes the two hafts of dough and tries to knead them both back together*

[lost-field-guy]

*The dough thankfully comes together easily. Ran, suddenly, peels off of Tom, stands up a bit slowly, and approaches Fungus from behind, mumbling* ..Needs to be kneaded more. Needs more flour.

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus jumps ever so slightly, before turning to face them* Oh- ok um, where's the flour?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo carefully shoves in front of them to grab the dough and the small cup with flour in it off to the side* ..I got it.

[mushroom-anon]

..alright ,̴:̴]̴ *Fungus takes a step back*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo resumes kneading as if nothing had happened. Tom, still on the floor, looks up at Fungus in confusion, glancing at Ran with concern*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus offers a hand to help him up*

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- thanks- *Tom accepts their hand and stands up* ..So, uh… *He glances at Ran again* ..What now??

[mushroom-anon]

...I would say drop the topic for now and resume after cooking maybe?

[lost-field-guy]

*He nods, a bit sadly* ..What should.. we do in the meantime?

[mushroom-anon]

..I mean I don't really mind, anything you want to do?

[lost-field-guy]

*He thinks for a while* ...I guess go out and try to find stuff for the new arms like we were talking about??

[mushroom-anon]

ooh right yeah that could be fun-

[lost-field-guy]

Okay- I’ll, uh- I guess I’ll try to find a bag to put any stuff we find in- *He awkwardly scampers off deeper into the house to look*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesiates a moment, before just waiting for him to come back*

[lost-field-guy]

*After a moment, Tom returns with a couple large luggage bags in tow* These ones look the sturdiest, I don’t know if we’re going to need this much space though-

[lost-field-guy]

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus walks into the kitchen from the living room, looking like they just got up*

!̶̙͐.....what fuck is going on???

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom attempts to desperately ask for help, although it’s muffled. Ranboo(?) notices Fungus, but doesn’t seem to care to acknowledge them*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus moves closer to them* ..Ran what the hell- Let go of Tom.

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo hums, tightening his grip on Tom* No, I don’t think I will, thank you though. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m busy finishing the job. *His voice isn’t different at all, but he is noticeably speaking a lot slower and controlled*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus stares at them, before being replaced with a glare as they walk over and attempt to rip his hands off of Tom* Let go, now.

[lost-field-guy]

*They tighten their grip again, pulling their body closer to Tom to shield himself from Fungus* …Why should I?

[mushroom-anon]

Because whatever you're planning isn't going to work, since if you try to go somewhere else, I'll follow you, and if you try to hurt Tom, I would bite the bullet and attack you, so we're at a standstill, and I don't believe you can keep up this control thing forever.

[lost-field-guy]

Oh, I can keep this up for plenty of time. And why would I care if you try to attack? It’s Ranboo’s body, not mine.

[mushroom-anon]

..because you can't really do whatever you have planned if you're pin to the ground so-

[lost-field-guy]

*He pauses for a moment* …Fair point, but who says I’ll even let you get me there? *Aimsey then enters the room as well, immediately takes notice of the situation, and rounds up for a punch in Ranboo’s direction*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus nods ever so slightly, taking a step back* Well, who says you have a choice?

[lost-field-guy]

I do, actua- *Aimsey interrupts him with a punch to the face, and he lets go of Tom and stumbles back in surprise, his pupils blink back to normal size, and passes out, though Aimsey catches him before he falls to the floor* 

[mushroom-anon]

Good job Aims, I was honestly running out of ways to stall him- *Fungus states before moving to check on Tom*

[lost-field-guy]

Thanks!! *Aimsey smiles before carrying Ranboo to the living room to set him down on the couch. Tom had gotten himself off of the counter and was now leaning against it, visibly shaking*

[mushroom-anon]

*fungus looks at him with concern* ..Tom? you alright?

[lost-field-guy]

Of course fucking not, I- *he snapped, but quickly caught himself* …I don’t- he- he can’t be alive- he can’t- 

[mushroom-anon]

...I mean I doubt he's alive, but I get what you mean. We'll figure it out Toms don't worry.

[lost-field-guy]

Wh- the fuck you mean you doubt he’s alive??? How would he have been able to do that *he gestures in the general direction of the living room* if he was dead???

[mushroom-anon]

I don't know- but like I mean I could see it being possible-

[lost-field-guy]

*He pauses for a second in disbelief, then composes himself* ..Okay, first of all, I guess it’s fair because you weren’t in the room when he said it, but he literally said he lived. Secondly, when Ran’s arms act up, he never talks, much less like Leinbury. Have you put two and two together yet???

[mushroom-anon]

I'm not disagreeing with the fact that he's not gone or whatever, I'm arguing the fact that he's alive- there is a difference-

[lost-field-guy]

I’m not saying he’s gone, I’m saying he fucking lived and somehow can remotely control Ran which means we’re all in fucking danger and need to do something about it!!!!!

[mushroom-anon]

yeah alright we're going to. How the fuck did he live anyway, You double-tapped him right?? and how did he control Ran cause like control of your arms shouldn't mean control of the entire body-

[lost-field-guy]

I thought I did- I guess I could’ve checked his pulse- and it doesn’t just mess with his arms, it messes with his behavior and shit so apparently Leinbury can just tap into that and change it???

[mushroom-anon]

How?? why did he only do that now???

[lost-field-guy]

I don’t fucking know, I just- *he put his head in his hands and sighed* I don’t know. I’m- we gotta do something, but I don’t know what-

[mushroom-anon]

..We'll figure it out- we can go to the living room and talk with Aimsey to form a plan of some sorts?

[lost-field-guy]

*He stares at the door to the living room for a second, looking concerned and a little frightened* …You can go, I don’t- I don’t want to be near him-

[mushroom-anon]

..alright, I understand why, you would be safe, but you don't have to come.*fungus hesitates a moment, before leaving to head to the living room*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom watches them go solemnly. Aimsey waves as they enter, then throws a concerned glance at Ran* ..So.. was that typical Ran’s arms making him weird or was there something else I missed-?

[mushroom-anon]

..Something else, they were talking as if they were Lienbury.

[lost-field-guy]

….oh fuck- So I’m guessing that means Leinbury’s alive somehow and can control him somehow- So all we have to do is get rid of the robot arms, right??? But then he won’t have arms that probably won’t work-

[mushroom-anon]

..I mean if we manage to figure out what's causing the control, we could just remove that part-

[lost-field-guy]

How are we supposed to know what part does that?? And what if we can’t put it all back together once we take it apart or the arm doesn’t work at all without that piece-

[mushroom-anon]

We might be able to find a clue or something back at the hostpital, like a blueprint or maybe some notes or something- cause I think the only other option would be to remove the arms and find something to use as replacements.

[lost-field-guy]

Well, given the fact that Leinbury is alive and actively out for blood, maybe going to the hospital isn’t the best idea- and I have no clue what we could use as replacement prosthetics other than actual prosthetics-

[mushroom-anon]

Why not? if he is there, then we can just deal with the root of the problem-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah, but it’s probably better to play it safe- plus, even if we did go and confront him, we wouldn’t outnumber him by much because I doubt Tom or Ran would want to go. *At the mention of his name, Tom moved to the doorway between the kitchen and the living room and listened into their conversation more closely*

[mushroom-anon]

Yes, but I still think that going back there might be our best option, since I would love to beat the shit out of him to deal with the root of the problem, or at least find some clues on how to stop the control thing-

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah, and as if he’d just leave out clues about that- *Tom then steps into the room a bit more, quietly interrupting Aimsey* ..I can- uh- I can make new arms for Ran-

[mushroom-anon]

!̴̢͂ *fungus turns around to face him* Oh- really? What would you need to make them?

[lost-field-guy]

*He flinches a bit in surprise, stepping back into the kitchen* Uh- j-just parts and tools, if you guys have any- I don’t really know where the best place to get the right parts would be-

[mushroom-anon]

well what type of part specifically?

[lost-field-guy]

Um- anything, really- I’d just need a lot to, y’know, make it work-

[mushroom-anon]

so like random electronics orr?

[lost-field-guy]

…yyyyyeah, I think that’ll work- but again I don’t know where we would get any and I don’t want to take apart the electronics here-

[mushroom-anon]

hmm, maybe we can go search some buildings in town? Surely there's somethings there that haven't been looted or anything-

[lost-field-guy]

..right, I guess that would work- I just hope we find enough-

[mushroom-anon]

I'm sure we could ,̷:̴]̶

[lost-field-guy]

..alright.. *Just then, Ranboo’s eyes fluttered open and he slowly sat up, clutching his head* ..What happened?? Where am I???

[mushroom-anon]

.you're in the living room- *fungus explains before trying to get a peak at their eyes*

[lost-field-guy]

*His pupils are still normal size* ..fuck, my arms did the thing again, didn't they- FUCK THE ONIONS- *They instantly get up and rush back into the kitchen to manage, apparently, the onions on the stove*

[mushroom-anon]

....who's gonna tell him they got "possessed"-

[lost-field-guy]

*Aimsey raises their hand to volunteer, but Tom shakes his head at them as he moves from the kitchen to the living room in avoiding Ran* Do it in a bit. Let him do his cooking stuff first.

[mushroom-anon]

....alright...*Fungus says, concerned in their eye*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom plops down on the couch, arms crossed and watching Ran in the kitchen. Aimsey leans over to Fungus while eyeing Tom.* ..Do you know what's up with him??

[mushroom-anon]

..not for sure, but most likely is because of the fact that Leninbury is not gone-

[lost-field-guy]

..Well yeah, I got that, that's probably why he's avoiding them, but like- ..how do I put it- I've never really seen him so.. protective of Ran since, like, we first met him.

[mushroom-anon]

hm..I haven't really noticed that but maybe just also because of the control thing???

[lost-field-guy]

Y’know, him not wanting me to tell Ran immediately?? I guess I can see that being because of that but it just seems a bit hypocritical- avoiding him but protecting him at the same time-

[mushroom-anon]

..I think it's less wanting to avoid Ran and more wanting to avoid Leninbury, and since He controls them you got to avoid Ran to avoid Leninbury

[lost-field-guy]

Well yeah, I got that, but- *they sigh* Nevermind, forget about it. *They plop down on the couch next to Tom, who doesn’t even notice as he continues watching Ranboo closely, who seemed to have turned on an electric mixer and started pouring in flour bit by bit*

[mushroom-anon]

?̷̼̔...*Fungus hesitates, before going to sit down as well*

[lost-field-guy]

*After a bit, Ranboo poked his head through the door* You guys like focaccia, right? I’m making some right now, and I was just wondering how many of us are actually gonna eat it- *Aimsey nods, but Tom just gives them a weird look*

[mushroom-anon]

..I'm good without- *Fungus glances over at Tom*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo nods, then eyes Tom as well* ..do you.. know what focaccia is? *Tom hesitates for a bit, then shakes his head*

[mushroom-anon]

..gonna be honest same -̵w̸-̷

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- it’s a type of yeast bread!! It’s super good, you guys will love it! It’s got herbs and onions and garlic mixed in the dough. I was planning on making a big loaf so we could have bread for sandwiches for a while :3 *Tom raised his eyebrows at the mention of herbs, but said nothing*

[mushroom-anon]

hm nice, still probably gonna pass tho -̵w̸-̷

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo nods in understanding and turns to return to the kitchen, but Tom stops him* ..You're making bread from scratch?? *Ranboo nods again, looking at him in surprise* ..yeah- do you want me to show you??

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus tilts their head slightly, carefully watching the interaction*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom hesitates for a while, then reluctantly nods and gets up, cautiously joining Ranboo in the kitchen*

[mushroom-anon]

........can I come watch? :̶]̷

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo pokes their head through the door again* Oh- yeah, of course!! Get in here >:3

[mushroom-anon]

yay :̶3̸...*Fungus gets up and follows them in*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo joyfully leads them into the kitchen and gestures to the mixer and bowl, with the former being turned off and the latter filled with a fairly sticky, wet looking mixture* As you can tell, I’ve already done the hard part- getting the yeast activated and starting to mix all the ingredients and sautéing the onions and garlic- I just need to finish getting the dough mixed while adding flour so it firms up a bit, add all the herbs and everything, then knead it with the dough hook and myself and then let it ferment for a couple hours! :3 *Tom clearly did not get a word they said but nods along anyway*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus leans against a wall to just watch them, their tail flicking slightly*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo flicks on the mixer, starts adding a bit more flour, pauses, then grabs a small bowl with a bit of assorted dried herbs in it and offers it to Tom* You can put these in when it’s time. I mean- if you want to help- *Tom sort of just.. stands there, looking down at the herbs, not exactly confirming but not protesting either, so Ranboo apparently accepts that as confirmation and turns back to the bowl*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks at Tom, tilting their head as they wait for a reaction*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom continues staring at it, then slowly raises it to his face, takes a sniff, and blushes slightly. He then catches wind of Fungus watching him, sticks his tongue out at them, then scampers closer to Ranboo to watch the dough mix*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus chuckles quietly, watching the both of them*

[lost-field-guy]

Ranboo allows Tom to dump the herbs in, then they dump the now cooled garlic and onions in and add a bit more flour. Tom watches Ranboo closely for a bit, still blushing a bit* …Why can’t you bake it immediately? Why does it have to “ferment”? *Ranboo looks back at him and chuckles* The yeast needs time to eat and release carbon dioxide, otherwise the bread wouldn’t rise. It needs to rise twice before baking, the second time being after I put it in a pan and shape it.

[mushroom-anon]

..Where did you learn how to do all of this Ran?

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- I took a lot of culinary classes in high school! :D *The mixer started sounding like it was struggling to mix the dough, so Ranboo switched out the paddle attachment for a dough hook*

[mushroom-anon]

and they taught you all this? That's so cool-

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah! All of this and more- just in the first class, I learned knife skills, how to properly cook different meats, and how to make an entire pie from scratch, just to name a few examples-

[mushroom-anon]

Nicee :̶]̷

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah :3 *Ranboo turned back to watch Tom watch the mixer, mesmerized by the motion of the hook kneading the dough. Without Tom noticing, Ranboo leans in and takes a cautious sniff of Tom, then blushes and nods in understanding*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks off to the side, an ear flicking as if hearing something, before rolling their eyes and "smiling" foundly*

[lost-field-guy]

*Suddenly, with no prompting, Tom turns to Ran* Leinbury was controlling you while your arms were freaking out. *Ranboo looked at him in bewilderment* ..What????? How????????

[mushroom-anon]

!̴̢͂ Tom I thought you wanted to wait to tell them- and we don't know.

[lost-field-guy]

I did wait. And what other explanation is there?? *Ranboo kind of just stares into space for a second, then seems to come to a realization* Wait- Leinbury’s alive???? I thought you killed him????????

[mushroom-anon]

That's what I'm saying- I still think that he's dead and did something to "live" after death- I feel like he would be the type of guy to put a copy of his brain into a computer or something-

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom looks at them with mild annoyance* You know I could’ve just thought I killed him? He seems more of the type to pretend he’s dead just to get me to go away-

[mushroom-anon]

hm maybe- both possible options-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah, I guess. Anyway, *he turns back to Ran* yeah, that happened. He tried to- I don’t really know- choke me or something. But yeah. *Ranboo had taken the dough out of the bowl and started anxiously kneading it himself, not responding*

[mushroom-anon]

...*Fungus looks at them with worry*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom also watches him with concern* ..Sorry- I should’ve waited more maybe- *Ranboo doesn’t look up, starting to go at the dough a little more aggressively, but mutters a small “it’s fine”*

[mushroom-anon]

..............doesn't seem fine- *fungus mumbles to themself*

[lost-field-guy]

*In silence, Ranboo progressively kneads more and more aggressively, until Tom, who’s expression also grew more and more with concern, decided to reach out to stop them—until suddenly, Ranboo just straight up ripped the dough in half, panting. Tom backed up, his concern turned to fear*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus stands up straight from the wall, quickly moving to stand next to Tom* ...........Ran?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo backed up a bit, staring at the dough in shock, still breathing heavily. He then looked down at his hands, then at Fungus and Tom, revealing his pupils to still be normal sized, then back at his hands, then the dough. Their breath began to quicken as they clutched the counter*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus relaxes ever so slightly when they see his pupils, before moving over to them* Ran hey you’re ok-

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo flinched away from them and slid to the ground, shaking and beginning to cry. Tom, after some hesitation, cautiously moved to sit next to him but still respecting his personal space*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesitates for a long while, their tail flicking slightly, before carefully sitting down as well*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom eyes Fungus nervously, then turns to Ran, hesitates again, and attempts to reach out to comfort him. Ranboo immediately reacts by clutching onto his arm and crying into his shoulder, making him turn bright red*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks surprised for a moment at the quick movement, but when they spot how red Tom is, they chuckle slightly at him*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom sarcastically made a face at Fungus laughing, then awkwardly adjusted himself to be sitting more comfortably with Ran on him and rubbed their back gently. Ran didn’t seem close to calming down, muttering something incomprehensible through his tears*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus "frowns" slightly when they see Ran not calming down, looking for any ways to help*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom looked a bit worriedly between Ran and Fungus, turning a bit red again from embarrassment* ..I don’t know what to do- I’m not good at this-

[mushroom-anon]

..neither am I fuck- ummm just hug them back for now I can't do that umm- *fungus looks down slightly, muttering something to themself, before looking up and scooting a little closer* Hey Ran? Can you hear me bud?

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom nods and tries to carefully hold tighter to Ran. Ranboo pulls closer to Tom, getting a little bit quieter, though it’s not clear if it’s in reaction to Tom or Fungus*

[mushroom-anon]

...Ran? can you nod if you can hear me please?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo, after a second, pauses his mumbling briefly and nods a bit*

[mushroom-anon]

That's good ,:] Do you need some more help calming down or is this ok?/genq

[lost-field-guy]

*He shook his head, gripping even tighter onto Tom, who began to look a little uncomfortable*

[mushroom-anon]

*They glance at the both of them, before focusing back on Ran* ..I don't know what one you where saying no to, so just in case, do you think you can put a hand on you're chest to focus on you're breathing? ,:] you can still hold onto Tom with one hand if that's helping you-

[lost-field-guy]

*He hesitated a moment, then let go of Tom with one hand and moved it to his chest. Tom relaxed a bit, mouthing a ‘thank you’ at Fungus*

[mushroom-anon]

*They look up to "smile" at Tom,T̷͈́h̸͍̚e̶͎̿ ̷̗̀b̴͔̋ľ̷̳u̴̝̒ē̷̳ ̸͔͛i̵̻͋n̷͕̂ ̶͎̏t̴͇̾ẖ̶͛e̷̘͝i̴̧͐r̴̳͐ ̸͔́e̶̝͠y̷͓̔è̵̤ ̴̘͑ì̶̹s̵̘͌ ̵͓̑g̷̉͜o̶̹̍n̷̻͊e̷̘͝, before looking back down* Good- take deep breaths and just focus on that ,:] you can also repeat phrases that comfort you if you want- simple ones are "I'm here" and "I'm safe" if you can't think of any-

[lost-field-guy]

*Ran stays quiet, not including the choked sobs, but his breathing eventually slows. Tom looks up at Fungus worriedly, then turns concerned as he seems to notice their eye color*

[mushroom-anon]

*They don't notice him looking just yet-*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom keeps staring at their eye for moment, then leans a bit in their direction* …Hey, uh, what’s.. up with your eye?

[mushroom-anon]

hmm? ooh right it change when we switch kinda forgot that- -w-

[lost-field-guy]

..Switch-? Oh, your weird demon soul thing- I still don’t, uh, really understand that- haven’t really been thinking about it anyway-

[mushroom-anon]

well don't remember how Fungus explained it- but I can try to explain it :]

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom eyed them warily* …..Sure.

[mushroom-anon]

Basically I was created when Fungus died, and I had the same amount of time they lived by myself before we were supposed to fuse, but I got injured when we were supposed to which caused us to stay separate with both having control :]

[lost-field-guy]

…So you’re not.. Fungus right now??

[mushroom-anon]

nope :] I'm mush- fungus asked me to help since I've dealt with that before-

[lost-field-guy]

*He narrowed his eyes slightly at them, pulling Ran closer* …..Okay. *Ran had gone silent, their face still buried in Tom’s shoulder*

[mushroom-anon]

*They tilt their head slightly, before blinking hard w̶͈̏i̸͖͝ẗ̶͖́h̷̽͜ ̷̗͐ț̵̈h̷͕̎ẽ̴̟ ̴̛͓b̴̘͑l̵̰̀u̸̖͑ë̵̜́ ̶̛̖c̸͕̾ò̵͚m̸̹̅i̷̻̽n̴͇͌g̷̞̊ ̸͕̋b̵̯́á̴̝ć̶̩k̶̙̊ and sitting up, Fungus' tail wrapping around their leg*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom seems eases at their eye turning back blue, but doesn’t comment. Instead, he attempts to peel Ran off of him slightly to check on him, but he retains his vice-like grip on him*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesiates for a moment* ...dude I think you're gonna be stuck there for a bit-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah probably- *he sighed* ..I’m worried about that dough a bit- the whole process seems so complicated, I don’t know if it’s okay to just leave it out like it is right now-

[mushroom-anon]

ummmm neither do I, hopefully it will be fine? ,̸:̴D̴

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah, hopefully- I would go up there and check on it and make sure it looks normal but like you said I can’t exactly get up- *Ran seems to hold on even tighter to him as a response*

[mushroom-anon]

I mean I can check- don't really know what normal should look like tho-

[lost-field-guy]

That’d be good yeah- IIII don’t think it’s supposed to be in half so I guess you could fix that-?

[mushroom-anon]

oh yeah I can do that- *Fungus goes to stand up*

[lost-field-guy]

Okay, good! *he smiled up at them. Ran seemed to turn away from Tom a bit to glance up at Fungus, but still didn't say anything*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus carefully takes the two hafts of dough and tries to knead them both back together*

[lost-field-guy]

*The dough thankfully comes together easily. Ran, suddenly, peels off of Tom, stands up a bit slowly, and approaches Fungus from behind, mumbling* ..Needs to be kneaded more. Needs more flour.

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus jumps ever so slightly, before turning to face them* Oh- ok um, where's the flour?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo carefully shoves in front of them to grab the dough and the small cup with flour in it off to the side* ..I got it.

[mushroom-anon]

..alright ,̴:̴]̴ *Fungus takes a step back*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo resumes kneading as if nothing had happened. Tom, still on the floor, looks up at Fungus in confusion, glancing at Ran with concern*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus offers a hand to help him up*

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- thanks- *Tom accepts their hand and stands up* ..So, uh… *He glances at Ran again* ..What now??

[mushroom-anon]

...I would say drop the topic for now and resume after cooking maybe?

[lost-field-guy]

*He nods, a bit sadly* ..What should.. we do in the meantime?

[mushroom-anon]

..I mean I don't really mind, anything you want to do?

[lost-field-guy]

*He thinks for a while* ...I guess go out and try to find stuff for the new arms like we were talking about??

[mushroom-anon]

ooh right yeah that could be fun-

[lost-field-guy]

Okay- I’ll, uh- I guess I’ll try to find a bag to put any stuff we find in- *He awkwardly scampers off deeper into the house to look*

[lost-field-guy]

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus walks into the kitchen from the living room, looking like they just got up*

!̶̙͐.....what fuck is going on???

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom attempts to desperately ask for help, although it’s muffled. Ranboo(?) notices Fungus, but doesn’t seem to care to acknowledge them*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus moves closer to them* ..Ran what the hell- Let go of Tom.

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo hums, tightening his grip on Tom* No, I don’t think I will, thank you though. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m busy finishing the job. *His voice isn’t different at all, but he is noticeably speaking a lot slower and controlled*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus stares at them, before being replaced with a glare as they walk over and attempt to rip his hands off of Tom* Let go, now.

[lost-field-guy]

*They tighten their grip again, pulling their body closer to Tom to shield himself from Fungus* …Why should I?

[mushroom-anon]

Because whatever you're planning isn't going to work, since if you try to go somewhere else, I'll follow you, and if you try to hurt Tom, I would bite the bullet and attack you, so we're at a standstill, and I don't believe you can keep up this control thing forever.

[lost-field-guy]

Oh, I can keep this up for plenty of time. And why would I care if you try to attack? It’s Ranboo’s body, not mine.

[mushroom-anon]

..because you can't really do whatever you have planned if you're pin to the ground so-

[lost-field-guy]

*He pauses for a moment* …Fair point, but who says I’ll even let you get me there? *Aimsey then enters the room as well, immediately takes notice of the situation, and rounds up for a punch in Ranboo’s direction*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus nods ever so slightly, taking a step back* Well, who says you have a choice?

[lost-field-guy]

I do, actua- *Aimsey interrupts him with a punch to the face, and he lets go of Tom and stumbles back in surprise, his pupils blink back to normal size, and passes out, though Aimsey catches him before he falls to the floor* 

[mushroom-anon]

Good job Aims, I was honestly running out of ways to stall him- *Fungus states before moving to check on Tom*

[lost-field-guy]

Thanks!! *Aimsey smiles before carrying Ranboo to the living room to set him down on the couch. Tom had gotten himself off of the counter and was now leaning against it, visibly shaking*

[mushroom-anon]

*fungus looks at him with concern* ..Tom? you alright?

[lost-field-guy]

Of course fucking not, I- *he snapped, but quickly caught himself* …I don’t- he- he can’t be alive- he can’t- 

[mushroom-anon]

...I mean I doubt he's alive, but I get what you mean. We'll figure it out Toms don't worry.

[lost-field-guy]

Wh- the fuck you mean you doubt he’s alive??? How would he have been able to do that *he gestures in the general direction of the living room* if he was dead???

[mushroom-anon]

I don't know- but like I mean I could see it being possible-

[lost-field-guy]

*He pauses for a second in disbelief, then composes himself* ..Okay, first of all, I guess it’s fair because you weren’t in the room when he said it, but he literally said he lived. Secondly, when Ran’s arms act up, he never talks, much less like Leinbury. Have you put two and two together yet???

[mushroom-anon]

I'm not disagreeing with the fact that he's not gone or whatever, I'm arguing the fact that he's alive- there is a difference-

[lost-field-guy]

I’m not saying he’s gone, I’m saying he fucking lived and somehow can remotely control Ran which means we’re all in fucking danger and need to do something about it!!!!!

[mushroom-anon]

yeah alright we're going to. How the fuck did he live anyway, You double-tapped him right?? and how did he control Ran cause like control of your arms shouldn't mean control of the entire body-

[lost-field-guy]

I thought I did- I guess I could’ve checked his pulse- and it doesn’t just mess with his arms, it messes with his behavior and shit so apparently Leinbury can just tap into that and change it???

[mushroom-anon]

How?? why did he only do that now???

[lost-field-guy]

I don’t fucking know, I just- *he put his head in his hands and sighed* I don’t know. I’m- we gotta do something, but I don’t know what-

[mushroom-anon]

..We'll figure it out- we can go to the living room and talk with Aimsey to form a plan of some sorts?

[lost-field-guy]

*He stares at the door to the living room for a second, looking concerned and a little frightened* …You can go, I don’t- I don’t want to be near him-

[mushroom-anon]

..alright, I understand why, you would be safe, but you don't have to come.*fungus hesitates a moment, before leaving to head to the living room*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom watches them go solemnly. Aimsey waves as they enter, then throws a concerned glance at Ran* ..So.. was that typical Ran’s arms making him weird or was there something else I missed-?

[mushroom-anon]

..Something else, they were talking as if they were Lienbury.

[lost-field-guy]

….oh fuck- So I’m guessing that means Leinbury’s alive somehow and can control him somehow- So all we have to do is get rid of the robot arms, right??? But then he won’t have arms that probably won’t work-

[mushroom-anon]

..I mean if we manage to figure out what's causing the control, we could just remove that part-

[lost-field-guy]

How are we supposed to know what part does that?? And what if we can’t put it all back together once we take it apart or the arm doesn’t work at all without that piece-

[mushroom-anon]

We might be able to find a clue or something back at the hostpital, like a blueprint or maybe some notes or something- cause I think the only other option would be to remove the arms and find something to use as replacements.

[lost-field-guy]

Well, given the fact that Leinbury is alive and actively out for blood, maybe going to the hospital isn’t the best idea- and I have no clue what we could use as replacement prosthetics other than actual prosthetics-

[mushroom-anon]

Why not? if he is there, then we can just deal with the root of the problem-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah, but it’s probably better to play it safe- plus, even if we did go and confront him, we wouldn’t outnumber him by much because I doubt Tom or Ran would want to go. *At the mention of his name, Tom moved to the doorway between the kitchen and the living room and listened into their conversation more closely*

[mushroom-anon]

Yes, but I still think that going back there might be our best option, since I would love to beat the shit out of him to deal with the root of the problem, or at least find some clues on how to stop the control thing-

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah, and as if he’d just leave out clues about that- *Tom then steps into the room a bit more, quietly interrupting Aimsey* ..I can- uh- I can make new arms for Ran-

[mushroom-anon]

!̴̢͂ *fungus turns around to face him* Oh- really? What would you need to make them?

[lost-field-guy]

*He flinches a bit in surprise, stepping back into the kitchen* Uh- j-just parts and tools, if you guys have any- I don’t really know where the best place to get the right parts would be-

[mushroom-anon]

well what type of part specifically?

[lost-field-guy]

Um- anything, really- I’d just need a lot to, y’know, make it work-

[mushroom-anon]

so like random electronics orr?

[lost-field-guy]

…yyyyyeah, I think that’ll work- but again I don’t know where we would get any and I don’t want to take apart the electronics here-

[mushroom-anon]

hmm, maybe we can go search some buildings in town? Surely there's somethings there that haven't been looted or anything-

[lost-field-guy]

..right, I guess that would work- I just hope we find enough-

[mushroom-anon]

I'm sure we could ,̷:̴]̶

[lost-field-guy]

..alright.. *Just then, Ranboo’s eyes fluttered open and he slowly sat up, clutching his head* ..What happened?? Where am I???

[mushroom-anon]

.you're in the living room- *fungus explains before trying to get a peak at their eyes*

[lost-field-guy]

*His pupils are still normal size* ..fuck, my arms did the thing again, didn't they- FUCK THE ONIONS- *They instantly get up and rush back into the kitchen to manage, apparently, the onions on the stove*

[mushroom-anon]

....who's gonna tell him they got "possessed"-

[lost-field-guy]

*Aimsey raises their hand to volunteer, but Tom shakes his head at them as he moves from the kitchen to the living room in avoiding Ran* Do it in a bit. Let him do his cooking stuff first.

[mushroom-anon]

....alright...*Fungus says, concerned in their eye*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom plops down on the couch, arms crossed and watching Ran in the kitchen. Aimsey leans over to Fungus while eyeing Tom.* ..Do you know what's up with him??

[mushroom-anon]

..not for sure, but most likely is because of the fact that Leninbury is not gone-

[lost-field-guy]

..Well yeah, I got that, that's probably why he's avoiding them, but like- ..how do I put it- I've never really seen him so.. protective of Ran since, like, we first met him.

[mushroom-anon]

hm..I haven't really noticed that but maybe just also because of the control thing???

[lost-field-guy]

Y’know, him not wanting me to tell Ran immediately?? I guess I can see that being because of that but it just seems a bit hypocritical- avoiding him but protecting him at the same time-

[mushroom-anon]

..I think it's less wanting to avoid Ran and more wanting to avoid Leninbury, and since He controls them you got to avoid Ran to avoid Leninbury

[lost-field-guy]

Well yeah, I got that, but- *they sigh* Nevermind, forget about it. *They plop down on the couch next to Tom, who doesn’t even notice as he continues watching Ranboo closely, who seemed to have turned on an electric mixer and started pouring in flour bit by bit*

[mushroom-anon]

?̷̼̔...*Fungus hesitates, before going to sit down as well*

[lost-field-guy]

*After a bit, Ranboo poked his head through the door* You guys like focaccia, right? I’m making some right now, and I was just wondering how many of us are actually gonna eat it- *Aimsey nods, but Tom just gives them a weird look*

[mushroom-anon]

..I'm good without- *Fungus glances over at Tom*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo nods, then eyes Tom as well* ..do you.. know what focaccia is? *Tom hesitates for a bit, then shakes his head*

[mushroom-anon]

..gonna be honest same -̵w̸-̷

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- it’s a type of yeast bread!! It’s super good, you guys will love it! It’s got herbs and onions and garlic mixed in the dough. I was planning on making a big loaf so we could have bread for sandwiches for a while :3 *Tom raised his eyebrows at the mention of herbs, but said nothing*

[mushroom-anon]

hm nice, still probably gonna pass tho -̵w̸-̷

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo nods in understanding and turns to return to the kitchen, but Tom stops him* ..You're making bread from scratch?? *Ranboo nods again, looking at him in surprise* ..yeah- do you want me to show you??

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus tilts their head slightly, carefully watching the interaction*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom hesitates for a while, then reluctantly nods and gets up, cautiously joining Ranboo in the kitchen*

[mushroom-anon]

........can I come watch? :̶]̷

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo pokes their head through the door again* Oh- yeah, of course!! Get in here >:3

[mushroom-anon]

yay :̶3̸...*Fungus gets up and follows them in*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo joyfully leads them into the kitchen and gestures to the mixer and bowl, with the former being turned off and the latter filled with a fairly sticky, wet looking mixture* As you can tell, I’ve already done the hard part- getting the yeast activated and starting to mix all the ingredients and sautéing the onions and garlic- I just need to finish getting the dough mixed while adding flour so it firms up a bit, add all the herbs and everything, then knead it with the dough hook and myself and then let it ferment for a couple hours! :3 *Tom clearly did not get a word they said but nods along anyway*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus leans against a wall to just watch them, their tail flicking slightly*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo flicks on the mixer, starts adding a bit more flour, pauses, then grabs a small bowl with a bit of assorted dried herbs in it and offers it to Tom* You can put these in when it’s time. I mean- if you want to help- *Tom sort of just.. stands there, looking down at the herbs, not exactly confirming but not protesting either, so Ranboo apparently accepts that as confirmation and turns back to the bowl*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks at Tom, tilting their head as they wait for a reaction*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom continues staring at it, then slowly raises it to his face, takes a sniff, and blushes slightly. He then catches wind of Fungus watching him, sticks his tongue out at them, then scampers closer to Ranboo to watch the dough mix*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus chuckles quietly, watching the both of them*

[lost-field-guy]

Ranboo allows Tom to dump the herbs in, then they dump the now cooled garlic and onions in and add a bit more flour. Tom watches Ranboo closely for a bit, still blushing a bit* …Why can’t you bake it immediately? Why does it have to “ferment”? *Ranboo looks back at him and chuckles* The yeast needs time to eat and release carbon dioxide, otherwise the bread wouldn’t rise. It needs to rise twice before baking, the second time being after I put it in a pan and shape it.

[mushroom-anon]

..Where did you learn how to do all of this Ran?

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- I took a lot of culinary classes in high school! :D *The mixer started sounding like it was struggling to mix the dough, so Ranboo switched out the paddle attachment for a dough hook*

[mushroom-anon]

and they taught you all this? That's so cool-

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah! All of this and more- just in the first class, I learned knife skills, how to properly cook different meats, and how to make an entire pie from scratch, just to name a few examples-

[mushroom-anon]

Nicee :̶]̷

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah :3 *Ranboo turned back to watch Tom watch the mixer, mesmerized by the motion of the hook kneading the dough. Without Tom noticing, Ranboo leans in and takes a cautious sniff of Tom, then blushes and nods in understanding*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks off to the side, an ear flicking as if hearing something, before rolling their eyes and "smiling" foundly*

[lost-field-guy]

*Suddenly, with no prompting, Tom turns to Ran* Leinbury was controlling you while your arms were freaking out. *Ranboo looked at him in bewilderment* ..What????? How????????

[mushroom-anon]

!̴̢͂ Tom I thought you wanted to wait to tell them- and we don't know.

[lost-field-guy]

I did wait. And what other explanation is there?? *Ranboo kind of just stares into space for a second, then seems to come to a realization* Wait- Leinbury’s alive???? I thought you killed him????????

[mushroom-anon]

That's what I'm saying- I still think that he's dead and did something to "live" after death- I feel like he would be the type of guy to put a copy of his brain into a computer or something-

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom looks at them with mild annoyance* You know I could’ve just thought I killed him? He seems more of the type to pretend he’s dead just to get me to go away-

[mushroom-anon]

hm maybe- both possible options-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah, I guess. Anyway, *he turns back to Ran* yeah, that happened. He tried to- I don’t really know- choke me or something. But yeah. *Ranboo had taken the dough out of the bowl and started anxiously kneading it himself, not responding*

[mushroom-anon]

...*Fungus looks at them with worry*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom also watches him with concern* ..Sorry- I should’ve waited more maybe- *Ranboo doesn’t look up, starting to go at the dough a little more aggressively, but mutters a small “it’s fine”*

[mushroom-anon]

..............doesn't seem fine- *fungus mumbles to themself*

[lost-field-guy]

*In silence, Ranboo progressively kneads more and more aggressively, until Tom, who’s expression also grew more and more with concern, decided to reach out to stop them—until suddenly, Ranboo just straight up ripped the dough in half, panting. Tom backed up, his concern turned to fear*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus stands up straight from the wall, quickly moving to stand next to Tom* ...........Ran?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo backed up a bit, staring at the dough in shock, still breathing heavily. He then looked down at his hands, then at Fungus and Tom, revealing his pupils to still be normal sized, then back at his hands, then the dough. Their breath began to quicken as they clutched the counter*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus relaxes ever so slightly when they see his pupils, before moving over to them* Ran hey you’re ok-

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo flinched away from them and slid to the ground, shaking and beginning to cry. Tom, after some hesitation, cautiously moved to sit next to him but still respecting his personal space*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesitates for a long while, their tail flicking slightly, before carefully sitting down as well*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom eyes Fungus nervously, then turns to Ran, hesitates again, and attempts to reach out to comfort him. Ranboo immediately reacts by clutching onto his arm and crying into his shoulder, making him turn bright red*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks surprised for a moment at the quick movement, but when they spot how red Tom is, they chuckle slightly at him*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom sarcastically made a face at Fungus laughing, then awkwardly adjusted himself to be sitting more comfortably with Ran on him and rubbed their back gently. Ran didn’t seem close to calming down, muttering something incomprehensible through his tears*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus "frowns" slightly when they see Ran not calming down, looking for any ways to help*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom looked a bit worriedly between Ran and Fungus, turning a bit red again from embarrassment* ..I don’t know what to do- I’m not good at this-

[mushroom-anon]

..neither am I fuck- ummm just hug them back for now I can't do that umm- *fungus looks down slightly, muttering something to themself, before looking up and scooting a little closer* Hey Ran? Can you hear me bud?

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom nods and tries to carefully hold tighter to Ran. Ranboo pulls closer to Tom, getting a little bit quieter, though it’s not clear if it’s in reaction to Tom or Fungus*

[mushroom-anon]

...Ran? can you nod if you can hear me please?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo, after a second, pauses his mumbling briefly and nods a bit*

[mushroom-anon]

That's good ,:] Do you need some more help calming down or is this ok?/genq

[lost-field-guy]

*He shook his head, gripping even tighter onto Tom, who began to look a little uncomfortable*

[mushroom-anon]

*They glance at the both of them, before focusing back on Ran* ..I don't know what one you where saying no to, so just in case, do you think you can put a hand on you're chest to focus on you're breathing? ,:] you can still hold onto Tom with one hand if that's helping you-

[lost-field-guy]

*He hesitated a moment, then let go of Tom with one hand and moved it to his chest. Tom relaxed a bit, mouthing a ‘thank you’ at Fungus*

[mushroom-anon]

*They look up to "smile" at Tom,T̷͈́h̸͍̚e̶͎̿ ̷̗̀b̴͔̋ľ̷̳u̴̝̒ē̷̳ ̸͔͛i̵̻͋n̷͕̂ ̶͎̏t̴͇̾ẖ̶͛e̷̘͝i̴̧͐r̴̳͐ ̸͔́e̶̝͠y̷͓̔è̵̤ ̴̘͑ì̶̹s̵̘͌ ̵͓̑g̷̉͜o̶̹̍n̷̻͊e̷̘͝, before looking back down* Good- take deep breaths and just focus on that ,:] you can also repeat phrases that comfort you if you want- simple ones are "I'm here" and "I'm safe" if you can't think of any-

[lost-field-guy]

*Ran stays quiet, not including the choked sobs, but his breathing eventually slows. Tom looks up at Fungus worriedly, then turns concerned as he seems to notice their eye color*

[mushroom-anon]

*They don't notice him looking just yet-*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom keeps staring at their eye for moment, then leans a bit in their direction* …Hey, uh, what’s.. up with your eye?

[mushroom-anon]

hmm? ooh right it change when we switch kinda forgot that- -w-

[lost-field-guy]

..Switch-? Oh, your weird demon soul thing- I still don’t, uh, really understand that- haven’t really been thinking about it anyway-

[mushroom-anon]

well don't remember how Fungus explained it- but I can try to explain it :]

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom eyed them warily* …..Sure.

[mushroom-anon]

Basically I was created when Fungus died, and I had the same amount of time they lived by myself before we were supposed to fuse, but I got injured when we were supposed to which caused us to stay separate with both having control :]

[lost-field-guy]

…So you’re not.. Fungus right now??

[mushroom-anon]

nope :] I'm mush- fungus asked me to help since I've dealt with that before-

[lost-field-guy]

*He narrowed his eyes slightly at them, pulling Ran closer* …..Okay. *Ran had gone silent, their face still buried in Tom’s shoulder*

[mushroom-anon]

*They tilt their head slightly, before blinking hard w̶͈̏i̸͖͝ẗ̶͖́h̷̽͜ ̷̗͐ț̵̈h̷͕̎ẽ̴̟ ̴̛͓b̴̘͑l̵̰̀u̸̖͑ë̵̜́ ̶̛̖c̸͕̾ò̵͚m̸̹̅i̷̻̽n̴͇͌g̷̞̊ ̸͕̋b̵̯́á̴̝ć̶̩k̶̙̊ and sitting up, Fungus' tail wrapping around their leg*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom seems eases at their eye turning back blue, but doesn’t comment. Instead, he attempts to peel Ran off of him slightly to check on him, but he retains his vice-like grip on him*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesiates for a moment* ...dude I think you're gonna be stuck there for a bit-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah probably- *he sighed* ..I’m worried about that dough a bit- the whole process seems so complicated, I don’t know if it’s okay to just leave it out like it is right now-

[mushroom-anon]

ummmm neither do I, hopefully it will be fine? ,̸:̴D̴

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah, hopefully- I would go up there and check on it and make sure it looks normal but like you said I can’t exactly get up- *Ran seems to hold on even tighter to him as a response*

[mushroom-anon]

I mean I can check- don't really know what normal should look like tho-

[lost-field-guy]

That’d be good yeah- IIII don’t think it’s supposed to be in half so I guess you could fix that-?

[mushroom-anon]

oh yeah I can do that- *Fungus goes to stand up*

[lost-field-guy]

Okay, good! *he smiled up at them. Ran seemed to turn away from Tom a bit to glance up at Fungus, but still didn't say anything*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus carefully takes the two hafts of dough and tries to knead them both back together*

[lost-field-guy]

*The dough thankfully comes together easily. Ran, suddenly, peels off of Tom, stands up a bit slowly, and approaches Fungus from behind, mumbling* ..Needs to be kneaded more. Needs more flour.

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus jumps ever so slightly, before turning to face them* Oh- ok um, where's the flour?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo carefully shoves in front of them to grab the dough and the small cup with flour in it off to the side* ..I got it.

[mushroom-anon]

..alright ,̴:̴]̴ *Fungus takes a step back*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo resumes kneading as if nothing had happened. Tom, still on the floor, looks up at Fungus in confusion, glancing at Ran with concern*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus offers a hand to help him up*

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- thanks- *Tom accepts their hand and stands up* ..So, uh… *He glances at Ran again* ..What now??

[mushroom-anon]

...I would say drop the topic for now and resume after cooking maybe?

[lost-field-guy]

*He nods, a bit sadly* ..What should.. we do in the meantime?

[mushroom-anon]

..I mean I don't really mind, anything you want to do?

[lost-field-guy]

*He thinks for a while* ...I guess go out and try to find stuff for the new arms like we were talking about??

[lost-field-guy]

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus walks into the kitchen from the living room, looking like they just got up*

!̶̙͐.....what fuck is going on???

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom attempts to desperately ask for help, although it’s muffled. Ranboo(?) notices Fungus, but doesn’t seem to care to acknowledge them*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus moves closer to them* ..Ran what the hell- Let go of Tom.

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo hums, tightening his grip on Tom* No, I don’t think I will, thank you though. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m busy finishing the job. *His voice isn’t different at all, but he is noticeably speaking a lot slower and controlled*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus stares at them, before being replaced with a glare as they walk over and attempt to rip his hands off of Tom* Let go, now.

[lost-field-guy]

*They tighten their grip again, pulling their body closer to Tom to shield himself from Fungus* …Why should I?

[mushroom-anon]

Because whatever you're planning isn't going to work, since if you try to go somewhere else, I'll follow you, and if you try to hurt Tom, I would bite the bullet and attack you, so we're at a standstill, and I don't believe you can keep up this control thing forever.

[lost-field-guy]

Oh, I can keep this up for plenty of time. And why would I care if you try to attack? It’s Ranboo’s body, not mine.

[mushroom-anon]

..because you can't really do whatever you have planned if you're pin to the ground so-

[lost-field-guy]

*He pauses for a moment* …Fair point, but who says I’ll even let you get me there? *Aimsey then enters the room as well, immediately takes notice of the situation, and rounds up for a punch in Ranboo’s direction*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus nods ever so slightly, taking a step back* Well, who says you have a choice?

[lost-field-guy]

I do, actua- *Aimsey interrupts him with a punch to the face, and he lets go of Tom and stumbles back in surprise, his pupils blink back to normal size, and passes out, though Aimsey catches him before he falls to the floor* 

[mushroom-anon]

Good job Aims, I was honestly running out of ways to stall him- *Fungus states before moving to check on Tom*

[lost-field-guy]

Thanks!! *Aimsey smiles before carrying Ranboo to the living room to set him down on the couch. Tom had gotten himself off of the counter and was now leaning against it, visibly shaking*

[mushroom-anon]

*fungus looks at him with concern* ..Tom? you alright?

[lost-field-guy]

Of course fucking not, I- *he snapped, but quickly caught himself* …I don’t- he- he can’t be alive- he can’t- 

[mushroom-anon]

...I mean I doubt he's alive, but I get what you mean. We'll figure it out Toms don't worry.

[lost-field-guy]

Wh- the fuck you mean you doubt he’s alive??? How would he have been able to do that *he gestures in the general direction of the living room* if he was dead???

[mushroom-anon]

I don't know- but like I mean I could see it being possible-

[lost-field-guy]

*He pauses for a second in disbelief, then composes himself* ..Okay, first of all, I guess it’s fair because you weren’t in the room when he said it, but he literally said he lived. Secondly, when Ran’s arms act up, he never talks, much less like Leinbury. Have you put two and two together yet???

[mushroom-anon]

I'm not disagreeing with the fact that he's not gone or whatever, I'm arguing the fact that he's alive- there is a difference-

[lost-field-guy]

I’m not saying he’s gone, I’m saying he fucking lived and somehow can remotely control Ran which means we’re all in fucking danger and need to do something about it!!!!!

[mushroom-anon]

yeah alright we're going to. How the fuck did he live anyway, You double-tapped him right?? and how did he control Ran cause like control of your arms shouldn't mean control of the entire body-

[lost-field-guy]

I thought I did- I guess I could’ve checked his pulse- and it doesn’t just mess with his arms, it messes with his behavior and shit so apparently Leinbury can just tap into that and change it???

[mushroom-anon]

How?? why did he only do that now???

[lost-field-guy]

I don’t fucking know, I just- *he put his head in his hands and sighed* I don’t know. I’m- we gotta do something, but I don’t know what-

[mushroom-anon]

..We'll figure it out- we can go to the living room and talk with Aimsey to form a plan of some sorts?

[lost-field-guy]

*He stares at the door to the living room for a second, looking concerned and a little frightened* …You can go, I don’t- I don’t want to be near him-

[mushroom-anon]

..alright, I understand why, you would be safe, but you don't have to come.*fungus hesitates a moment, before leaving to head to the living room*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom watches them go solemnly. Aimsey waves as they enter, then throws a concerned glance at Ran* ..So.. was that typical Ran’s arms making him weird or was there something else I missed-?

[mushroom-anon]

..Something else, they were talking as if they were Lienbury.

[lost-field-guy]

….oh fuck- So I’m guessing that means Leinbury’s alive somehow and can control him somehow- So all we have to do is get rid of the robot arms, right??? But then he won’t have arms that probably won’t work-

[mushroom-anon]

..I mean if we manage to figure out what's causing the control, we could just remove that part-

[lost-field-guy]

How are we supposed to know what part does that?? And what if we can’t put it all back together once we take it apart or the arm doesn’t work at all without that piece-

[mushroom-anon]

We might be able to find a clue or something back at the hostpital, like a blueprint or maybe some notes or something- cause I think the only other option would be to remove the arms and find something to use as replacements.

[lost-field-guy]

Well, given the fact that Leinbury is alive and actively out for blood, maybe going to the hospital isn’t the best idea- and I have no clue what we could use as replacement prosthetics other than actual prosthetics-

[mushroom-anon]

Why not? if he is there, then we can just deal with the root of the problem-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah, but it’s probably better to play it safe- plus, even if we did go and confront him, we wouldn’t outnumber him by much because I doubt Tom or Ran would want to go. *At the mention of his name, Tom moved to the doorway between the kitchen and the living room and listened into their conversation more closely*

[mushroom-anon]

Yes, but I still think that going back there might be our best option, since I would love to beat the shit out of him to deal with the root of the problem, or at least find some clues on how to stop the control thing-

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah, and as if he’d just leave out clues about that- *Tom then steps into the room a bit more, quietly interrupting Aimsey* ..I can- uh- I can make new arms for Ran-

[mushroom-anon]

!̴̢͂ *fungus turns around to face him* Oh- really? What would you need to make them?

[lost-field-guy]

*He flinches a bit in surprise, stepping back into the kitchen* Uh- j-just parts and tools, if you guys have any- I don’t really know where the best place to get the right parts would be-

[mushroom-anon]

well what type of part specifically?

[lost-field-guy]

Um- anything, really- I’d just need a lot to, y’know, make it work-

[mushroom-anon]

so like random electronics orr?

[lost-field-guy]

…yyyyyeah, I think that’ll work- but again I don’t know where we would get any and I don’t want to take apart the electronics here-

[mushroom-anon]

hmm, maybe we can go search some buildings in town? Surely there's somethings there that haven't been looted or anything-

[lost-field-guy]

..right, I guess that would work- I just hope we find enough-

[mushroom-anon]

I'm sure we could ,̷:̴]̶

[lost-field-guy]

..alright.. *Just then, Ranboo’s eyes fluttered open and he slowly sat up, clutching his head* ..What happened?? Where am I???

[mushroom-anon]

.you're in the living room- *fungus explains before trying to get a peak at their eyes*

[lost-field-guy]

*His pupils are still normal size* ..fuck, my arms did the thing again, didn't they- FUCK THE ONIONS- *They instantly get up and rush back into the kitchen to manage, apparently, the onions on the stove*

[mushroom-anon]

....who's gonna tell him they got "possessed"-

[lost-field-guy]

*Aimsey raises their hand to volunteer, but Tom shakes his head at them as he moves from the kitchen to the living room in avoiding Ran* Do it in a bit. Let him do his cooking stuff first.

[mushroom-anon]

....alright...*Fungus says, concerned in their eye*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom plops down on the couch, arms crossed and watching Ran in the kitchen. Aimsey leans over to Fungus while eyeing Tom.* ..Do you know what's up with him??

[mushroom-anon]

..not for sure, but most likely is because of the fact that Leninbury is not gone-

[lost-field-guy]

..Well yeah, I got that, that's probably why he's avoiding them, but like- ..how do I put it- I've never really seen him so.. protective of Ran since, like, we first met him.

[mushroom-anon]

hm..I haven't really noticed that but maybe just also because of the control thing???

[lost-field-guy]

Y’know, him not wanting me to tell Ran immediately?? I guess I can see that being because of that but it just seems a bit hypocritical- avoiding him but protecting him at the same time-

[mushroom-anon]

..I think it's less wanting to avoid Ran and more wanting to avoid Leninbury, and since He controls them you got to avoid Ran to avoid Leninbury

[lost-field-guy]

Well yeah, I got that, but- *they sigh* Nevermind, forget about it. *They plop down on the couch next to Tom, who doesn’t even notice as he continues watching Ranboo closely, who seemed to have turned on an electric mixer and started pouring in flour bit by bit*

[mushroom-anon]

?̷̼̔...*Fungus hesitates, before going to sit down as well*

[lost-field-guy]

*After a bit, Ranboo poked his head through the door* You guys like focaccia, right? I’m making some right now, and I was just wondering how many of us are actually gonna eat it- *Aimsey nods, but Tom just gives them a weird look*

[mushroom-anon]

..I'm good without- *Fungus glances over at Tom*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo nods, then eyes Tom as well* ..do you.. know what focaccia is? *Tom hesitates for a bit, then shakes his head*

[mushroom-anon]

..gonna be honest same -̵w̸-̷

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- it’s a type of yeast bread!! It’s super good, you guys will love it! It’s got herbs and onions and garlic mixed in the dough. I was planning on making a big loaf so we could have bread for sandwiches for a while :3 *Tom raised his eyebrows at the mention of herbs, but said nothing*

[mushroom-anon]

hm nice, still probably gonna pass tho -̵w̸-̷

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo nods in understanding and turns to return to the kitchen, but Tom stops him* ..You're making bread from scratch?? *Ranboo nods again, looking at him in surprise* ..yeah- do you want me to show you??

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus tilts their head slightly, carefully watching the interaction*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom hesitates for a while, then reluctantly nods and gets up, cautiously joining Ranboo in the kitchen*

[mushroom-anon]

........can I come watch? :̶]̷

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo pokes their head through the door again* Oh- yeah, of course!! Get in here >:3

[mushroom-anon]

yay :̶3̸...*Fungus gets up and follows them in*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo joyfully leads them into the kitchen and gestures to the mixer and bowl, with the former being turned off and the latter filled with a fairly sticky, wet looking mixture* As you can tell, I’ve already done the hard part- getting the yeast activated and starting to mix all the ingredients and sautéing the onions and garlic- I just need to finish getting the dough mixed while adding flour so it firms up a bit, add all the herbs and everything, then knead it with the dough hook and myself and then let it ferment for a couple hours! :3 *Tom clearly did not get a word they said but nods along anyway*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus leans against a wall to just watch them, their tail flicking slightly*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo flicks on the mixer, starts adding a bit more flour, pauses, then grabs a small bowl with a bit of assorted dried herbs in it and offers it to Tom* You can put these in when it’s time. I mean- if you want to help- *Tom sort of just.. stands there, looking down at the herbs, not exactly confirming but not protesting either, so Ranboo apparently accepts that as confirmation and turns back to the bowl*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks at Tom, tilting their head as they wait for a reaction*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom continues staring at it, then slowly raises it to his face, takes a sniff, and blushes slightly. He then catches wind of Fungus watching him, sticks his tongue out at them, then scampers closer to Ranboo to watch the dough mix*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus chuckles quietly, watching the both of them*

[lost-field-guy]

Ranboo allows Tom to dump the herbs in, then they dump the now cooled garlic and onions in and add a bit more flour. Tom watches Ranboo closely for a bit, still blushing a bit* …Why can’t you bake it immediately? Why does it have to “ferment”? *Ranboo looks back at him and chuckles* The yeast needs time to eat and release carbon dioxide, otherwise the bread wouldn’t rise. It needs to rise twice before baking, the second time being after I put it in a pan and shape it.

[mushroom-anon]

..Where did you learn how to do all of this Ran?

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- I took a lot of culinary classes in high school! :D *The mixer started sounding like it was struggling to mix the dough, so Ranboo switched out the paddle attachment for a dough hook*

[mushroom-anon]

and they taught you all this? That's so cool-

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah! All of this and more- just in the first class, I learned knife skills, how to properly cook different meats, and how to make an entire pie from scratch, just to name a few examples-

[mushroom-anon]

Nicee :̶]̷

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah :3 *Ranboo turned back to watch Tom watch the mixer, mesmerized by the motion of the hook kneading the dough. Without Tom noticing, Ranboo leans in and takes a cautious sniff of Tom, then blushes and nods in understanding*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks off to the side, an ear flicking as if hearing something, before rolling their eyes and "smiling" foundly*

[lost-field-guy]

*Suddenly, with no prompting, Tom turns to Ran* Leinbury was controlling you while your arms were freaking out. *Ranboo looked at him in bewilderment* ..What????? How????????

[mushroom-anon]

!̴̢͂ Tom I thought you wanted to wait to tell them- and we don't know.

[lost-field-guy]

I did wait. And what other explanation is there?? *Ranboo kind of just stares into space for a second, then seems to come to a realization* Wait- Leinbury’s alive???? I thought you killed him????????

[mushroom-anon]

That's what I'm saying- I still think that he's dead and did something to "live" after death- I feel like he would be the type of guy to put a copy of his brain into a computer or something-

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom looks at them with mild annoyance* You know I could’ve just thought I killed him? He seems more of the type to pretend he’s dead just to get me to go away-

[mushroom-anon]

hm maybe- both possible options-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah, I guess. Anyway, *he turns back to Ran* yeah, that happened. He tried to- I don’t really know- choke me or something. But yeah. *Ranboo had taken the dough out of the bowl and started anxiously kneading it himself, not responding*

[mushroom-anon]

...*Fungus looks at them with worry*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom also watches him with concern* ..Sorry- I should’ve waited more maybe- *Ranboo doesn’t look up, starting to go at the dough a little more aggressively, but mutters a small “it’s fine”*

[mushroom-anon]

..............doesn't seem fine- *fungus mumbles to themself*

[lost-field-guy]

*In silence, Ranboo progressively kneads more and more aggressively, until Tom, who’s expression also grew more and more with concern, decided to reach out to stop them—until suddenly, Ranboo just straight up ripped the dough in half, panting. Tom backed up, his concern turned to fear*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus stands up straight from the wall, quickly moving to stand next to Tom* ...........Ran?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo backed up a bit, staring at the dough in shock, still breathing heavily. He then looked down at his hands, then at Fungus and Tom, revealing his pupils to still be normal sized, then back at his hands, then the dough. Their breath began to quicken as they clutched the counter*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus relaxes ever so slightly when they see his pupils, before moving over to them* Ran hey you’re ok-

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo flinched away from them and slid to the ground, shaking and beginning to cry. Tom, after some hesitation, cautiously moved to sit next to him but still respecting his personal space*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesitates for a long while, their tail flicking slightly, before carefully sitting down as well*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom eyes Fungus nervously, then turns to Ran, hesitates again, and attempts to reach out to comfort him. Ranboo immediately reacts by clutching onto his arm and crying into his shoulder, making him turn bright red*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus looks surprised for a moment at the quick movement, but when they spot how red Tom is, they chuckle slightly at him*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom sarcastically made a face at Fungus laughing, then awkwardly adjusted himself to be sitting more comfortably with Ran on him and rubbed their back gently. Ran didn’t seem close to calming down, muttering something incomprehensible through his tears*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus "frowns" slightly when they see Ran not calming down, looking for any ways to help*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom looked a bit worriedly between Ran and Fungus, turning a bit red again from embarrassment* ..I don’t know what to do- I’m not good at this-

[mushroom-anon]

..neither am I fuck- ummm just hug them back for now I can't do that umm- *fungus looks down slightly, muttering something to themself, before looking up and scooting a little closer* Hey Ran? Can you hear me bud?

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom nods and tries to carefully hold tighter to Ran. Ranboo pulls closer to Tom, getting a little bit quieter, though it’s not clear if it’s in reaction to Tom or Fungus*

[mushroom-anon]

...Ran? can you nod if you can hear me please?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo, after a second, pauses his mumbling briefly and nods a bit*

[mushroom-anon]

That's good ,:] Do you need some more help calming down or is this ok?/genq

[lost-field-guy]

*He shook his head, gripping even tighter onto Tom, who began to look a little uncomfortable*

[mushroom-anon]

*They glance at the both of them, before focusing back on Ran* ..I don't know what one you where saying no to, so just in case, do you think you can put a hand on you're chest to focus on you're breathing? ,:] you can still hold onto Tom with one hand if that's helping you-

[lost-field-guy]

*He hesitated a moment, then let go of Tom with one hand and moved it to his chest. Tom relaxed a bit, mouthing a ‘thank you’ at Fungus*

[mushroom-anon]

*They look up to "smile" at Tom,T̷͈́h̸͍̚e̶͎̿ ̷̗̀b̴͔̋ľ̷̳u̴̝̒ē̷̳ ̸͔͛i̵̻͋n̷͕̂ ̶͎̏t̴͇̾ẖ̶͛e̷̘͝i̴̧͐r̴̳͐ ̸͔́e̶̝͠y̷͓̔è̵̤ ̴̘͑ì̶̹s̵̘͌ ̵͓̑g̷̉͜o̶̹̍n̷̻͊e̷̘͝, before looking back down* Good- take deep breaths and just focus on that ,:] you can also repeat phrases that comfort you if you want- simple ones are "I'm here" and "I'm safe" if you can't think of any-

[lost-field-guy]

*Ran stays quiet, not including the choked sobs, but his breathing eventually slows. Tom looks up at Fungus worriedly, then turns concerned as he seems to notice their eye color*

[mushroom-anon]

*They don't notice him looking just yet-*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom keeps staring at their eye for moment, then leans a bit in their direction* …Hey, uh, what’s.. up with your eye?

[mushroom-anon]

hmm? ooh right it change when we switch kinda forgot that- -w-

[lost-field-guy]

..Switch-? Oh, your weird demon soul thing- I still don’t, uh, really understand that- haven’t really been thinking about it anyway-

[mushroom-anon]

well don't remember how Fungus explained it- but I can try to explain it :]

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom eyed them warily* …..Sure.

[mushroom-anon]

Basically I was created when Fungus died, and I had the same amount of time they lived by myself before we were supposed to fuse, but I got injured when we were supposed to which caused us to stay separate with both having control :]

[lost-field-guy]

…So you’re not.. Fungus right now??

[mushroom-anon]

nope :] I'm mush- fungus asked me to help since I've dealt with that before-

[lost-field-guy]

*He narrowed his eyes slightly at them, pulling Ran closer* …..Okay. *Ran had gone silent, their face still buried in Tom’s shoulder*

[mushroom-anon]

*They tilt their head slightly, before blinking hard w̶͈̏i̸͖͝ẗ̶͖́h̷̽͜ ̷̗͐ț̵̈h̷͕̎ẽ̴̟ ̴̛͓b̴̘͑l̵̰̀u̸̖͑ë̵̜́ ̶̛̖c̸͕̾ò̵͚m̸̹̅i̷̻̽n̴͇͌g̷̞̊ ̸͕̋b̵̯́á̴̝ć̶̩k̶̙̊ and sitting up, Fungus' tail wrapping around their leg*

[lost-field-guy]

*Tom seems eases at their eye turning back blue, but doesn’t comment. Instead, he attempts to peel Ran off of him slightly to check on him, but he retains his vice-like grip on him*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus hesiates for a moment* ...dude I think you're gonna be stuck there for a bit-

[lost-field-guy]

..Yeah probably- *he sighed* ..I’m worried about that dough a bit- the whole process seems so complicated, I don’t know if it’s okay to just leave it out like it is right now-

[mushroom-anon]

ummmm neither do I, hopefully it will be fine? ,̸:̴D̴

[lost-field-guy]

Yeah, hopefully- I would go up there and check on it and make sure it looks normal but like you said I can’t exactly get up- *Ran seems to hold on even tighter to him as a response*

[mushroom-anon]

I mean I can check- don't really know what normal should look like tho-

[lost-field-guy]

That’d be good yeah- IIII don’t think it’s supposed to be in half so I guess you could fix that-?

[mushroom-anon]

oh yeah I can do that- *Fungus goes to stand up*

[lost-field-guy]

Okay, good! *he smiled up at them. Ran seemed to turn away from Tom a bit to glance up at Fungus, but still didn't say anything*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus carefully takes the two hafts of dough and tries to knead them both back together*

[lost-field-guy]

*The dough thankfully comes together easily. Ran, suddenly, peels off of Tom, stands up a bit slowly, and approaches Fungus from behind, mumbling* ..Needs to be kneaded more. Needs more flour.

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus jumps ever so slightly, before turning to face them* Oh- ok um, where's the flour?

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo carefully shoves in front of them to grab the dough and the small cup with flour in it off to the side* ..I got it.

[mushroom-anon]

..alright ,̴:̴]̴ *Fungus takes a step back*

[lost-field-guy]

*Ranboo resumes kneading as if nothing had happened. Tom, still on the floor, looks up at Fungus in confusion, glancing at Ran with concern*

[mushroom-anon]

*Fungus offers a hand to help him up*

[lost-field-guy]

Oh- thanks- *Tom accepts their hand and stands up* ..So, uh… *He glances at Ran again* ..What now??

[mushroom-anon]

...I would say drop the topic for now and resume after cooking maybe?

[lost-field-guy]

*He nods, a bit sadly* ..What should.. we do in the meantime?