Player and batter treating add ons like their pets and give them items like treats :3
Circular Reasoning
[PLAYER X THE BATTER ONESHOT]
Themes: gender neutral Player, Add-Ons emotionally intertwined to The Batter, Player inside of OFF, Player with a (somewhat) pre-established personality, Warm Batter.
been a while since ive wrote anything ahhh
Word count: 1.608
Character count: 9.058
Setting: tramway to the inner part of Zone 3, still fooling around.
Quick note for this oneshot: Add-On's can share sensations with The Batter if they are within 2 feet apart.
Extra: sorry I didn't really follow the theme
An OFF hyperfixation, in this economy? Well! Surprise, surprise. You now get to live inside its surrealist world.
You have been assigned to a being called "The Batter". Batter has a sacred mission, be sure that it is accomplished. You two shall resume from your last save point.
Synchronized with The Batter in a quite literal manner, your soul is interlocked to his body that lacks a soul, strings; visible only to you and the Purifier; may be produced to manipulate his movement at will, while the palms of your hands house, simultaneously, the essence of all five elements in OFF required to deliver the most damage to enemies, greatly lowering combat difficulty. That's practical.
You are fine with all these details, controlling this monster batter. what greatly picks at you... Are these circular shapes.
They fight alongside the french man, however, you exert no control over them no longer. You watch them surround Batter in combat, having some sort of telepathical communication with him. You guide his faithful steps through the tips of your fingers, he filters your coordination. Run with Courage, he synthetizes. You watch him and his equally mysterious Add-Ons tear through the sugar factory, leaving the whole party proportionally weakened in Life and Competence. Bad news, there are no blocks nearby, it is inviable to backtrack, you decide to take the tramway. The injuries aren't as grave, and you can always heal them on the way.
On the train with The Batter, taking a seat while he stands ramrod straight. Besides the deadly slugger right in front of you, you could not help but notice once more: the trio of floating rings that constantly orbit him. One of them, Alpha, tilts forward and floats atop of Batter's head, making him appear almost angelical. It envelops him like a hoop, reaching the waist before Batter grows annoyed and grabs ahold of Alpha, removing it from around him.
It almost makes you laugh, watching what appears to be a playful hula hoop attempting to connect with a mannequin. The remaining two Add-Ons, Omega and Epsilon, remain stationary. One is set to protect The Batter, the other meant to buff him in combat, you've collected as much. Batter and the Add-Ons turn to the side in unison, the corner of your mouth twitches. Interested, the baseball player tilts his head. He still has his back to you.
— You are amused.
He notes, you give him an unimpressed look, intending to communicate a silent "no, duh". Your savior, on the other hand, completely misses the meaning behind your facial expression. But then again, you shouldn't really expect knowledge or expertise on faces when your vessel tends to lack one.
You ask The Batter about the Add-Ons: are they also closely intertwined to him as he is to you? Do they have a will of their own? His answer will shock you:
— It seems so. I'm afraid I do not fully know.
Curious, you decide to try and find out for yourself. Your hand reaches out toward Omega, the floating ring closest to you from where you're seated. Your fingers get to brush its upper curve before The Batter's head snaps to the side, almost as if he had felt it in himself. He observes you intensely, you have but a clue if he's displeased or confused. Omega, meanwhile, presses itself againsr your hand. You reciprocate the gesture by petting it on what you assume is the Add-On's head. Batter startles, jolting forward ever so slightly.
— Mas quoi- What are you doing?
The Purifier questions, now fully turning around to face you, as much as a partially eyeless purificatory entity can. You shrug in response, certain you're not the one responsible for whatever it is that's bothering him.
Epsilon and Alpha start to orbit around you now. If you didn't know any better, you'd think these extensions of Batter's will are individually vying for your attention. Are they? You pull the three Add-Ons into your arms, attempting to pet all of them at once. You dare to sneak a glance at your savior while you do so. Disregarding the quality of your eyesight, you notice that he's flustered. It's subtle, a gentle tint of pink on his cheek, on his immaculate paper white skin. You ask about his blushing, he simply shakes his head:
— I don't understand.
He sounds confused himself. You resort to scratching Alpha around its supposed side. Instinctively, The Batter's hip cocks to the right, his head tilts toward the same direction. You are now completely sure he can also experience it when you give the Add-Ons affection.
— You took interest upon them. Why?
The baseball hitter inquires, only for you to shrug. You are then largely successful in your attempt to embarrass him: making his head loll backwards as you target the top side of Epsilon, his arm twitching while you pet Omega, clearing his throat awkwardly meanwhile you scratch underneath the upper side of the ring.
— You are doing this on purpose.
He huffed. It is safe to assume that The Batter is more miffed about being teased than anything. Deciding on mercy; highly contrary to The Batter's morals; you reach out toward him, rubbing your palm over his chest. He is static still, the Add-Ons vibrate in place and float... intensely. You suppose.
The train finally comes to a stop, his focus instantly shifts to the exit. Unbothered, as if nothing had happened. Or, at least, that's what he would want you to think. Batter waits for you patiently until you stand up and step out into Zone 3. You can tell he's mildly affected through his irregular gait, akin to a wooden puppet experimenting with fluid movement. If you comment, it somehow worsens.
The Add-Ons approach you with seeming interest, displaying their own will in spite of the linking. They circle you, almost as if expecting something from you. Surprisingly enough, the usual save point is missing from this station, and the orbiting rings are on low Health Points and Competence Points. You sense a challenging battle ahead and so, you cannot leave them on the low.
You dig into your pockets and, surely enough, you have stocked up on Fortune Tickets and Silver Flesh for this very occasion.
The Add-Ons float toward you with readiness. You offer Alpha, the second DPS, a piece of the Silver Flesh. You get to witness a sentient hula hoop make quick work of cooked meat with a nonexistent mouth. Somehow, the flesh disappears, piece by piece. Alpha seems satisfied, even more so when you plaster Tickets all over it, healing its pain.
Next, it's Omega. You feed it Silver Flesh. It spins excitedly around the healing item, akin to a small tornado, if it were a glowing onion ring. The flesh breaks down from top to bottom, and it's gone. You stack Tickets on it, it enjoys that.
For Epsilon, it demands that you take care of its wounds first, as if it could not stand itself looking "imperfect". Quite the snooty Add-On, but you treasure it all the same. You patch it up with the Fortune Tickets, then let it carefully consume the Flesh.
Exhale.
You side-eye The Batter, certifying that sound had really come out of him. It repeated: an almost imposing exhale, through his nose. You raise a brow at the demigodly baseball man. He places a hand around his hip, long, slender fingers splayed around the waist. You don't even need to ask him what's wrong. You have to remember this grown man is about as old as your first save file.
You lead him to sit down with you and provide Batter with the attention he requires oh-so much. He is the most beaten up out of the bunch, courtesy of being the main attacker and hero. You place the band-aid Fortune Tickets over his wounds, watching them vanish for about the hundredth time. Adventuring alongside the Pure has its costs. He seems pleased, as much as his limited set of expressions let on. The Add-Ons join in for the sake of making company for the two of you. Omega dives in and encircles The Batter's neck, looking like a large hoop around his shoulders and collarbone. Epsilon and Alpha levitate around you, with the latter going through your wrist and staying around your forearm, rotating idly. Epsilon floats over your head like a halo, attempting to communicate something.
The french Purifier gives in, reaching out himself to pet Alpha who is rotating around your forearm. It is delighted. All the Add-Ons leave the spots they have just taken to surround the two of you. Batter seeks out your hand with his own. His is quite sizeable, even by your standards. His joints are exaggerated and pronounced, including extra sets of them in his slender fingers. Another pleasing part of this, his hands are quite warm. They hold onto your dominant hand gently, showing conscious action to communicate affection. His lips part ever so slightly, exposing a mouth that definitely wasn't there before, he had appeared completely faceless.
You do not mind. You allow him to now take and hold your hands in his own, you don't need them for what you are about to do either way.
Without hesitation, you push forward, head tilting to the side to avoid the brim of his cap and perfectly capture his lips in a kiss. They are surprisingly soft, but dry. He is completely pure, missing a taste, almost sweet aftertaste. To the best of his abilities and purpose, he reciprocates, large hands squeezing your own during the act. When you break away, he doesn't seem to realize it is time to pull away, and so he gently pushes his lips against yours once more, letting you go a bit later than he was supposed to.
Post-kiss, his palm cups the side of your face, fingers missing nails delicately trace your skin, getting acquainted to the feeling of it. Despite the texture, he greatly appreciates it. Appreciates you.
stormborns
titsay
vaporwave
