chronically tired Welcome to the JMV/DINTIS AU hell (affectionate) I have carefully cultivated. There’s some Dreamswap here too. DO NOT USE ANY OF MY WORKS TO TRAIN GENERATIVE AI. DO NOT FEED ANY OF MY UNFINISHED WORKS TO CHATGPT OR OTHER GEN AI PROGRAMS TO GET AN ENDING. If I could I’d hunt you down and feed you to hungry alligators for doing such.
anyways hi welcome to my tumble and thanks for checking out my pinned post. please send asks about my blorbos i love talking about them and also crave attention
Quick PSA regarding tumblr falsely flagging shit as mature:
For my posts specifically, it’s safe to click ‘view post’ when something is marked as mature or potentially mature. If it’s actually something mature/nsfw/18+, it will be tagged appropriately and the material will be tucked under a cut. You will not see anything unless you click ‘read more’.
i have had a hand in SO many goddamn AUs and weird little dudes
With @wheezethebluejay:
Horror!DS (viewer discretion advised)
Theater Kid JMV (<- link to doc) (master post for the TUMBLR posts coming...eventually? Probably?)
Wholesome JMV & DINTIS
Extreme JMV & DINTIS
Swap JMV & DINTIS
Fell JMV & DINTIS
Horror JMV & DINTIS
Fell Extreme JMV & DINTIS
Swapfell JMV & DINTIS
Hunted Spirits AU (JMV/DINTIS/DS/OG all rolled into one!)
Wonderland AU (JMV/DINTIS) (mischaracterization AU)
The Radiant Crusade (combo of many AUs)
Big-Ass Supernatural AU
With @nom-de-plume-system:
Beechswap JMV and DINTIS (Formerly "Bitchswap")
Broken Family JMV (viewer discretion EXTRA advised)
Polychromatic JMV/DINTIS
Decay (JMV)
Spectrolite (JMV)
By myself (mostly; lots of influence and/or suggestions from friends tho):
Sunfall Dreamswap
Lucidity and all of his bullshit (affectionate) (DS/JMV/DINTIS)
JMV Resistance Roster: OC Division (added a bunch of UTAU characters to the resistance)
More JMV OCs sourced from UTAU characters
Animated Statue AU (aka JMV But They're All Statues Made Of Their Namesakes. DINTIS is there too)
Fatalities (Horror!Fatal Flaws)
Twist of Fate (JMV/DINTIS)
Eternal Smile (OGMV) (NOT by myself, but the only AU I made with Shady so I'm gonna drop it here)
The Hunger Spreads (JMV)
One-off characters:
Coriander and Rose (obsidian's bastard child--literally--and their mom) (we love rose in this house)
Solar System DS Nightmare (we gave him DID)
Entropy (Fusion) (lots of suggestions from friends on Discord)
Atrophy (Fusion)
Sophism (Fusion)
Nephalem (Fusion) (most recent fusion)
Carter (Fusion)
William (Fusion)
Cosmos (Fusion)
(more about the fusions + consistent traits of first 3. A lot of those carry over to Nephalem, but not all.)
Cavansite (JMV)
Talent (no longer affiliated with any fandom) (for now; might go to a different one)
Revamped middle school OC(s) (system)
Adamantine ('What if transitioning fixed obsidian?')
Untitled.MP4, one of two completed fics I have on here. JMV. Warnings in the post.
Fanfic account I haven’t actually done anything with in ages but perhaps, someday, once again...
My YouTube channel
Also I have a Ko-fi that I forgot about
Art tag: Moonfur learns to draw
Animation tag: Moonfur plays with flipaclip
Writing tag: Moonfur writing
Music tag: My music
i keep forgetting to tag my own stuff
Moon or Moonfur works for me. I prefer no pronouns but if you really don't want to say my name every time you refer to me, I don't care what you use. My gender is 'no', but you can refer to me by whatever you want to make the joke land
i love answering asks but do be advised that while I will try to give the benefit of the doubt for some things i can and will delete anything that’s mean spirited and/or bigoted or simply does not spark joy
if we’re mutuals and I don’t reblog your art it’s because I’m a fool and was too busy staring at and admiring it
Be advised: if you receive a link to a post from me in tumblr messages, it was an accident. If I want you to see something, I’ll either reblog it and @ you or just reblog it and yell for you in the tags. There may be some exceptions, but if there’s no additional context…yeah, it was an accident. Sorry
yeah I think that’s the important stuff. Don’t repost stuff, reblogs are greatly appreciated, etc etc
- His name’s Remy because REM sleep. And because I think it sounds fun.
- he’s very confused, and more than a little freaked out.
- Heels because this guy’s half Freddy and of course he would. He is also 6’ 3” without them
- Remy doesn’t identify as ace (he’s also not seeking anything like that, but for unrelated reasons), but he wears Somnus’ ace ring because it feels Right. I forgot to include it but he also still has Freddy’s skull necklace
- ideally his hair would be more disheveled and fucked up, because he’s not taking the time to actually style it at all. He has more pressing issues, like “why are we now one guy” and “how do we undo it”
- his clothes are me attempting to balance between Somnus’ fancy shmancy clothes and Freddy’s homeless man fit (affectionate)
For some reason I randomly thought if the Horror Squad ever gets in the middle of severe weather (like a thunderstorm/tornado watch/warning) Pluto’s the one that’s going to go stand outside and stare at the clouds. Possibly the girls too but mostly just Pluto in my brain for some reason.
Not in a like. Dangerous way. I have faith he would seek shelter before something horrible reached him. He just wants to go look at the clouds and how they’re sort of spinning. Also gets drenched because he’s standing outside in a thunderstorm.
Also Freddy joins him a lot. Woag cool clouds
Ok I need one of the girls to be from somewhere where severe weather like that basically never happens so they see the clouds, realize what’s happen, go ‘oh shit oh fuck’ and run for shelter, and then turn around to see the dipshits they moved in with just STANDING OUTSIDE TO WATCH IT?!? THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING
“It’s fine! We’ll come inside when it gets real bad!”
“ITS A FUCKING TORNADO?!?”
“Those things don’t have the range you think they do.”
“If you get sucked up and sent to Oz I’m not coming to save your asses.”
I haven't written in a while. I'm sorry. Life got busy, I guess. How are you?
I hope you're better, wherever you are.
Sometimes when I wake up, before I open my eyes, I pretend for a moment we're back to normal. Before… everything. Before it went wrong. When we were just us and everything was fine. But I always have to open my eyes, and I'm back here. And you're gone. Forever.
They're nice here, at least. They give me tasty food and let me sleep in when I don't have school. Finch tells me I can learn to drive soon, if I want. He always says big stuff like that. "If I want." It makes me feel important and scared all at once.
I wonder what you would have thought of all this; I think you would have gotten along with all of them, before… that. You would have learned all their games in no time, and played with them and been happy. Not like me, who's spending all my time wondering what it would have been like if you were here.
Hacker doesn't like me. I see the way he looks at me, like I'm something dangerous. I don't think he always means to, but I can sense the unease whenever we're in the same room. I try not to be around him much.
I wish you got to meet Randy; he's scared too, but not like Hacker. He picks me up from school if Finch is busy, and he calls me "son." I like it when he does that. It feels nice. I think you would like it too… or maybe not. I remember how weird you got about that stuff sometimes.
Braiding my hair is hard now. I don't want to bother Finch and I can't ask Hacker, so I have to do it myself. I don't do it as much now, but I still miss when you helped, even if everyone said it was "girly things."
I miss you.
I'm sor—
“You like writing, huh?" Finch's voice startled Judge, sending his shoulders up near his ears as he instinctively snapped the notebook closed. To his credit, Finch didn't react to that, just continued offering that gentle, slightly awkward smile. "That's good. I'm glad you're doing things you like." He stepped slightly out of the doorway. "We gotta get going, before you're late."
Judge nodded, shoving the notebook under his pillow. "Right. I'm coming." He grabbed his backpack and shoved his feet into his shoes, wiggling the left foot to get his lift sitting right, running his hands through his hair as he followed Finch.
He could finish the letter later, he thought dully. It wasn't like he'd ever send it.
TW: cursing (like, actual curses), mention of Snailpaw’s poisoning
Snowypaw should have known something was wrong when Yellowpaw insisted on coming with him for his next patrol. He should have known that something was coming from the look on Yellowpaw's face. Now they were far from camp, near to the TumbleClan border as Snowypaw searched for betony while Yellowpaw kept his nose out for prey.
Yellowpaw was the one that broke the silence. "What did you do to Snailpaw?"
Snowypaw sat up from a patch of plants, shaking the worst of the leaf litter from his pelt. "Huh?"
"You said she ate too much catmint; she said you made her."
"She's a mouse-brain." Snowypaw flicked his tail. "She'd probably say StarClan made her do it if it meant she didn't look the fool. Which she still does."
Yellowpaw curled his lilp. "You're lying, Snowypaw. I know you are."
"Why would I lie?" Snowypaw snapped. "I told her she wasn't supposed to eat herbs. Snailpaw's basically a kit; she obviously smelled the catmint and ate it without thinking. She's addled from the catmint."
Lashing his tail, Yellowpaw stood tall over Snowypaw. "You made her, I know you did! You were jealous—"
"Hey there!" Both apprentices jumped sideways as the voice boomed over the moors, the massive adult cat walking towards them.
Snowypaw instinctively darted behind Yellowpaw for safety.
The cat limping towards them was a tall cream-coated tom, holding his ginger tail high in the air. "How's it going?" He asked casually.
Snowypaw lifted his nose alongside Yellowpaw, sniffing cautiously. This tom didn't smell like a Fogtwist, but he didn't move. Yellowpaw had reported a cat who didn't smell like a Fogtwist, and still attacked him with all the viciousness of one, on his Fogwalk.
When neither apprentice answered, the tom just flicked his tail and lowered his head. "Sorry to scare you two," he said carefully. "I'm looking for some cats, and I was wondering if you'd seen them around."
"Who?" Yellowpaw asked, stepping forward.
"No, who are you?" Snowypaw hissed from behind him, refusing to move forward with his Clanmate.
The tom swished his tail again. "Shit, I haven't introduced myself. Name's Ben Nevis, but most cats just call me Ben." He looked over to Yellowpaw. "And I think these cats called themselves... whisper cats?" He tilted his head. "I haven't seen their lot around for a while, so I wanted to make sure everything was okay." He glanced around. "Whole place looks fucked up, though. Is this fog always so thick?"
Yellowpaw and Snowypaw exchanged wide-eyed stares. "You can see it?" Yellowpaw asked.
"Can't see much else." Ben mrrped at his own joke. "So have you seen those cats?"
Snowypaw and Yellowpaw glanced at each other again. "... I think that's us," Yellowpaw finally said. "WhisperingClan."
Ben blinked. His eyes widened slowly. "... You?" He looked between them. "I know there was more than a pair of fucking kits."
"There used to be." Snowypaw flicked his tail. "We're all that's left, now." He narrowed his eyes. "What are you doing here?"
Ben tilted his head, rising to his full height again. "Like I said, I knew the cats that used to live here. Got worried when I hadn't seen them wandering through for a while." He watched them intently. "You're... alone out here? In this?" He looked around at the Fog anxiously. "Seems like a mighty bad place for kits."
"We aren't kits," Snowypaw snapped, standing as tall as he could. He still barely reached Ben's shoulder. "We're apprentices."
"Oh, that makes it better," Ben's sarcasm dripped from his voice. "You're what, a year old? If that?" His tail lashed in frustration. "I'm not leaving you out here by yourselves. Come on, we'll find you two a nice big barn to settle in—"
"With Twolegs?" Yellowpaw stepped back, curling his lip. Because now both apprentices had spotted the spiked collar around Ben's neck. "I'd rather eat fox-dung. And we aren't leaving our friends."
Ben shook his head in consternation. "Your— there's more of you out here?" He stared at them. "How the hell are you alive?" He shook himself again, taking a deep breath as he seemed to come to a decision. "Alright. Show me where."
Snowypaw glanced at Yellowpaw, who spoke for them both. "Where what?"
"Where a gaggle of kits are hiding out in this godforsaken place."
"We aren't—" Snowypaw puffled up.
"Yeah yeah, save it for when we get there." Ben looked around. “I’m tired, and this place gives me the creeps. You better have shelter,or I'm dragging your asses to a barn whether you like it or not."
The apprentices eyed each other. There didn't seem to be any way to get out of this, but Snowypaw still flattened his ears in distaste.
"Fine." Yellowpaw said when Snowypaw seemed unwilling to speak. "This way." He started in the direction of camp, with Ben following in his awkward limp; Snowypaw brought up the rear, watching Ben for any sign of danger.
Snowypaw slipped into the medicine den, his mouth laden with herbs and his ears pinned back. He tried not to spend much time here, now that he had another apprentice nesting here that filled his den with noise and energy that made him want to claw her ears. But no, the others wouldn't accept that.
"Hi!" Snailpaw popped her head out of the alcove where the herbs were stored, darting forward with her tail high. "Is that the catmint?" She sniffed at the sweet-smelling bundle in Snowypaw's jaws. "It is, right?"
Snowypaw nodded, setting it down in the alcove and setting to work rearranging the herbs. "You moved the herbs." He grunted.
Snailpaw flicked her tail. "Not much. Fringepaw and Wigglepaw were in here for their tick fever, so I was looking for the dandelions—"
"I told you not to give them anything!" Snowypaw whirled around. "I told you not to give them herbs. Their next doses aren't until tonight."
Sailpaw's eyes widened at his outburst, and she sank into a crouch. "I— I'm sorry, I wanted to help—"
"Well you've done enough of that." Snowypaw hissed. He unsheathed his claws, digging them into the earth beside his newly-gathered catmint. And a thought occurred to him.
Taking a deep breath, Snowypaw turned to look at Snailpaw; she was still crouched, ears flat against her head as she shuffled her paws.
"Hey," he said quietly, unable to miss her flinch. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have snapped." He nudged a pawful of catmint (not everything he'd gathered— just enough for what he wanted to do) towards Snailpaw, flicking his tail. "Here. It'll settle your nerves."
Snailpaw blinked, sniffing at the catmint. "Oh, really? You never told me that."
A chuckle left Snowypaw's jaws. "Well, if I told any old cat that sort of thing, then we'd have no catmint left come leaf-bare." He nudged the leaves towards her again. "Eat. It'll make everything easier."
That was all the invitation Snailpaw needed; with the sweetness still flooding her nose, she swallowed all of the catmint Snowypaw offered to her. "Thanks," she said after a few moments. Snowypaw could already see the sluggishness overtaking her. "It's... it's working already..."
Snowypaw flicked his tail proudly, stepping around Snailpaw’s drooping body. "Good. Rest."
Settling into his own nest, Snowypaw enjoyed the peace and quiet as Snailpaw's breath evened, growing longer and deeper. He didn't get up when that rhythm turned sharp and panicked, her body rebelling against the catmint's effects.
"S— Snowy—" She gasped.
“Relax.” He didn't stir, just curled his tail further around himself. “It’s doing its job."
If Marna could have been anywhere in that moment, it would be right here: sitting on the grass beside Otto, with Aevis curled up at her feet. Looking up at the stars, she was reminded of days when Sandy was young, before Rhaeis died. "Do you know your constellations, Otto?"
She asked, turning her head to look at him.
Looking at her with the same glassy look as ever, Otto slowly shook his head. When Marna continued to watch him, he slowly lifted one hand.
"No." He signed slowly.
"Hm." Marna looked up at the stars again, then back to Otto. "Would you like to?"
Otto looked up at the stars, and while Marna was watching him closely, she saw light flicker deep in his glazed-over gaze. "Okay."
Smiling to herself, Marna reached down with one hand to pet Aevis as the other lifted to point up at the stars. "That's Varanus." She said, shifting to brush shoulders with Otto as she tried to trace the twisting pattern where he could see. "When we die, xe gathers our souls and brings us to the Gates of Varani." She drifted her hand to indicate the twin horizontal lines of stars. "If you've done good and been kind, you will pass through them into paradise, Varani."
Otto made a soft hum, but when Marna looked at him again his face was more troubled than interested. "How do I sign this?" He asked, pointing to the Gates. When Marna showed him with a gentle smile, he just frowned deeper. "Why did I not go to Varani?"
Marna paused, looking at Otto. For a long moment, her mind went blank. "Well..." She looked up at the stars again as if Varanus xemself could give her an answer. "I'm not sure, dear." She looked back at Otto, but he just stared up at the stars without looking at her. "I think you're a... special case." Looking back up at the stars, she sighed. "I don't know what to make of you, dearie. You're not like anything I'm familiar with." Her fingers gently twisted Aevis' patchy feathers, making the dragon lean into her touch with a purr.
Otto didn't make a sound, but he did lift his hands again. "Will you go to Varani one day?"
Hand tightening in Aevis' feathers, Marna hesitated. She wanted to say something to him, but it was becoming clear that he was more distressed about this than she was prepared for on some simple stargazing. Finally, she answered at length. "I hope I do, honey."
"Why?"
Marna's smile turned sad as she pulled Aevis up against her chest. It wasn't as easy as it was when he was a hatchling, but she needed to hold him closely in this moment. "I told someone I'd see him there."
"Who?" Otto let out a quiet whine.
Rubbing Aevis' jaw gently, she reached out to hold Otto's shoulder. "My husband, dear. Rhaeis. I’ve told you about him, right?"
"He's dead."
The bluntness made Marna snort, even as her heart twisted. "Yes, Otto. He's dead. But he was a very good man while he was alive." She pressed a kiss to Aevis' head. "He's the one who gave me Aevis, you know."
Otto looked down at the dragon, and even with just laying his eyes on him Aevis' head jerked up to stare at him. Looking away, Otto frowned, a quiet noise escaping his throat.
Eyes blurring with tears, Marna continued. "He was from a farmer— apparently one of their showy agility dragons got in with a livestock guardian, and the livestock guardian got pregnant. The farmer was offloading them for cheap, and he told Rhaeis he was going to kill them if they got too big before he could sell them." She hugged Aevis tightly. "He was barely big enough to fit in my hands back then; every time we fed him we had to mash the meat so fine it was practically slurry, since that's what hatchlings eat." Sniffling quietly, she went on. "Rhaeis did most of the work with him, getting up in the middle of the night to take care of him." Looking up at Otto as she cried, her voice cracked. "I know he would have loved you, if he'd met you."
Otto didn't look so sure, but his face was always one wrong move away from blank. "I see." He signed slowly.
Realizing that she was talking to a Shell that might never see the Gates of Varani, Marna stuttered. "I— I mean, I'm sure one day you'll see Varani too, hon. Everyone does, and you're a good enough person that I'm sure we'd see each other there."
"Will Charlie and Aevis go to Varani too?" Otto asked finally, looking up at the stars again.
It took several minutes of thought before Marna found an answer she thought might not upset Otto further. "I think they will, but it won't be for a good long while, honey." She tried to smile, but she was sure it didn't come off as convincing when there were still tears on her face. Otto wasn't even looking, and his hands had fallen still, so she just cuddled Aevis tighter and closed her eyes.
She was asleep before she could think of how to make this conversation up to him.
I randomly thought about Korvos trying to explain demon shit to Spindle, but Spindle freaks out every time. Korvos tries so hard to be non threatening, but when your default form is a shadowy bird thing, your conversation partner has trauma related to demons, and half the time you aren’t visible, being non threatening is not easy.
Spindle is experiencing the horror movie sequel. The Bad Guy is gone but now there's a new, scarier Bad Guy who's trying to get him to turn on the friends that helped him!
Korvos is in one of those superhero movies where a retired hero with superpowers has to calm down this kid he found who's convinced that all superpowers are Evil(TM) and he has to figure out how to get them to stop believing that before they hurt themselves or someone else.
everyone else is watching some guy try to coax a scared puppy into a pet carrier so it can get its goddamn vaccines while the puppy freaks out every time the guy breathes wrong
hooo boy that sure escalated, huh? anyway im obviously still testing things rn so expect more stuff like this. ive also roughed out the next, like, 4 pages and im so excited to keep makin em
Hello, young one. Sorry we messed up your grass; it was an accident. My friend can't fly that well.
Wait, don't panic! He's fine, I protected him in the fall! He's my friend, we won't hurt you.
Huh? I look weird? The blue's too bright? I suppose I could dull it back a bit- wait you think it's nice that way. I'll keep it then.
Oh, my friend's awake! Sorry about him yelling, he's usually quieter. Wait why are you panicking. We have to hide? Is it because we messed up the grass? No, it's because your father is home? Does he not like us? Where are you going?
I can't remember. It's alright, you two are talking anyways. I'm glad you are getting along; it is my fault we ruined your grass. No, you two are arguing. That's not good.
You have a halo. A good friend of mine also has one, I wonder how she's doing? It's been a long time- Oh dear. It's flying everywhere. Oh no, your window broke! I'll get it fixed don't worry.
Why did my friend push you out of the window? You could have gotten hurt! Where are we going? I see, my friend wants to fly again. Are you scared? It's alright, I'll stay by your side while he does. You can open your eyes now. No? That's alright, I'll stay here anyways.
We are going down again. Hopefully he will land better than earlier. Why are you more scared?
I haven't seen a tree this big in a long time. We might hit it, but I can protect you if we do! Wait...!
You fell! Are you alright? Your arm shouldn't look like that. I can't fix it. My friend is helping you though, that should work! He's also hurt. I can't fix it.
I'm sorry, Blink? Is that me?
I like it.
We'll be walking for a little, do you mind if I stay by you? You seem worried. Do you miss your father? I can't remember mine.
You don't like it here. That's okay, at least your arm is fixed now! That was nice of his friend to help. I'm sorry I can't do more.
Why are you leaving? It's really late at night, you could get hurt more. You want me to stay here? Why, is something wrong?
You made a friend! That's why you kept leaving, you were spending time together. I'm glad you did. I don't know why he's angry. He's usually not.
Please don't be upset, don't cry. It will be alright. Here, it's an old lullaby a friend used to sing. I can't remember all the words. Can't you understand?
No one kidnapped you, you're safe. I promise. I'll keep you safe, please rest easy.
You'll blame him if you did get kidnapped? I don't know why, but it's funny. You should really sleep now, it's almost morning.
Can't you understand? I'm telling you as clear as I can. Is it because you're this young? I can't remember being that age. I can't remember much.
Finally, you're asleep again. You need sleep to stay healthy; you haven't gotten much. I'll make sure you do. I can keep you safe while you are away from your father. You shouldn't be away from your father, you're so young.
Why is it just the two of us now? Where's our friend? Is something after us? I'll keep you safe. It's okay to cry. We'll find him.
I want to share with yall the idea my brain decided to feed me before I pass out for the night, which is Puzzle in Final Girl deciding to get into animation.
Why would he do this? No idea. I just remembered in one of the NE Gouge things Moon wrote Freddy found his doodles and thought they weren’t bad, so I just decided he does that more when he is not able to commit patricide, and somehow this evolves into animation.
He basically just pours all his energy that would have gone into patricide into hours of drawing and building the story. His family have to drag him away from it to get him to rest. When asked why he’s doing it, his response is “it brings me joy and whimsy” with a straight face, so they don’t know if he’s fucking with them or not.
There is a nonzero possibility various members of his family and their friends get roped into voice acting because Puzzle doesn’t know anyone else and he wants his characters to have more than just his voice.
I don’t think I’ve mentioned it explicitly but Michael’s kind of a freak (affectionate), and it’s mostly Korvos’ fault.
Like. A solid 99.99% of the time any damage he receives will be healed by Korvos, on top of Korvos usually dulling the pain, so he’s less worried about his own death and more fascinated by all the little bits of him that said damage can reveal.
Like Puzzle literally skewered him through several organs during their first meeting and Mike’s just like “coooooll I think that one went through my heart :D” as he was poking at it.
Korvos is very unhappy with this behavior but the alternative is letting his son die. Which he will not be doing thank you.
and weirdly enough the italics transferred over this time. after I complained about it
Previous | Next
Finch had finally woken up a few days ago, but no one would tell him anything about what happened until he was discharged. Just some vague assurances that they were looking for the perpetrators.
Dream did, however, come visit him, as well as someone who appeared to be a carbon copy of Finch. He introduced himself as Sparrow, and Dream assured him Sparrow was here to help. Finch wasn’t so certain, after his ordeal, but there wasn’t much he could’ve done anyway.
Sparrow came around a few more times to talk to him. Mostly, he wanted to see how different they were. But he really was just exactly like Finch in almost every way, which unnerved him just as much as it eased his fears.
This morning, the doctor decided his leg was healed enough to give him one of those big, clunky boots with the curved soles. Something about not thinking he’d do well with crutches? He tried to tell them it would’ve been fine, but they didn’t listen.
At least it meant he could get to Dream’s office sooner and get some answers.
Dream had been waiting for him, as well as Sparrow. They’d given Finch the cliff's notes version of what happened since he’d been attacked, and then Dream all but ordered Finch to go rest.
Finch, having found several panicked texts from Hacker once he got his phone back, didn’t argue as much as he once might’ve. He needed to call his fool of a boyfriend and assure him he wasn’t dead. He couldn’t really do that in front of his boss, considering Hacker was still technically a wanted criminal.
Sparrow had asked to accompany him. They were about halfway to Finch’s apartment now, and Finch’s head was still full of questions.
“I…I don’t understand how Ink could’ve just…dropped off the face of the earth.”
Sparrow shook his head, equally baffled. “I don’t have any answers, either. I know your Dream suspects my version of Ink, but…“ he trailed off.
“You don’t think she’d do anything,” Finch finished. He shook his head. “If I’d heard about this a few days ago I’d say it must’ve been her. I can’t imagine our version of the Meme Squad seriously hurting anyone for their own amusement, nevermind…everything yours did. It would’ve made perfect sense to me if your Ink was wildly different and completely insane. But you…you’re not that much different from me. So I’m not so sure.”
Sparrow nodded slowly. “It does concern me that she hasn’t come around yet. I didn’t expect her to come running to this other JR, but I figured she’d have shown up by now.”
“I guess all we can do now is wait and see.”
The rest of their walk passed in relative silence. Several people—especially his neighbors—were very happy to see Finch up and walking around. The sweet old lady who lived just below him gave him a big hug and told him to come see her later; she’d have homemade cookies for him. She invited Sparrow, too, though she seemed to think he was Finch’s twin brother she’d never met before.
Finch was half expecting to see some ridiculous ’surprise’ from Hacker waiting for him in his apartment, but everything was the way he left it.
He must’ve been really worried.
Sparrow glanced around the living room as Finch locked the door, and hobbled over to the couch.
“They should’ve just given me the chair.”
Sparrow bit his lip. “Did they give you anything for the pain?”
Finch pulled a bottle of prescription painkillers from his pocket.
“Do you want me to get you a drink?”
“No, it’s okay. I can get it myself. Just…give me a minute.”
Sparrow folded his arms. “You almost died. Your leg is broken. Walking down here from Dream’s office has pretty much wiped you out. Shall I go on?”
“…Can I have a glass of water, please?”
“Yes, absolutely.”
Finch sighed as Sparrow walked away. He used that on a lot of his coworkers when they tried to push themselves to get back to work after getting injured. It almost always worked.
It wasn’t as fun being on the receiving end of it.
After taking his meds, Finch pulled out his phone and said, “I should call my boyfriend and tell him I’m not dead. He’s probably freaking himself out.”
Sparrow furrowed his brow, but said nothing as Finch dialed Hacker’s number.
Hacker picked up immediately.
“Finch?!”
“Hi. I’m not dead,” Finch said dryly.
“That’s-“
A deep, rumbling sound came from the other end. It sounded almost like a growl.
“-Good.” The terror in his voice was palpable, even across universes and a shitty phone line. “You…you heard that, didn’t you?”
“Hacker, what was that?”
Sparrow’s eyes widened, but Finch had stopped paying attention. The growling noises continued.
“Um…a problem. Big problem. Several big problems, actually. We might be trapped in the basement.”
“Wh-“
“You…you wouldn’t happen to be in good enough shape to teleport, would you?”
An unholy screech, followed by vicious scraping noises.
“That- that damn kid snatched Randy’s ax, and- and that’s the only way we can travel.” Hacker’s voice cracked. “If that thing gets in here, we’re dead.”
Banging noises. Finch heard Bobby sob in the background.
“I’m coming.” Finch stood and half-ran, half-wobbled into his office to get his weapons. “You said you’re in the basement?”
“Y-yeah. Just don’t teleport upstairs. Aside from, yknow, a demon or two and a guy who’s either also a demon or being fricken mind-controlled, we have the basement door locked and barricaded. If you go up there, you’re going to die.”
“The hell do you mean, a demon?”
“I don’t know what the fuck else they could be! One of them’s a creepy-ass kid that can levitate and the other-”
The horrible, bone-chilling scream that cut him off was so loud Finch instinctively yanked his phone away from his ear. There was another, louder banging, and scraping, and the sound of wood splintering.
Bobby screamed. Hacker swore and begged Finch to get them out of there.
“…Finch?” Sparrow was in the doorway. He looked almost as confused and alarmed as Finch himself was.
“I’m on my way. Just hold on.” Finch hung up and looked back at Sparrow. “I- I need you to come with me. If something happens- I can’t fight right now. Please. I don’t know what the hell is happening, but-“
Sparrow’s gaze hardened. “Let’s go.”
Relieved, Finch grabbed Sparrow’s hand and teleported to Hacker’s location.
The growling, scraping, snarling and screaming were so much worse in person. Hacker, Bobby, and Randy hadn’t had that much furniture in the basement, but everything they did have was now piled in front of the only exit. It was holding, but judging by the creaking and cracking it wouldn’t last much longer.
The three were huddled in the corner, as far away from the door as possible. Hacker was sitting with his bad leg out, clearly in pain. Bobby was curled up in a terrified ball, one hand clamped over her mouth and the other holding Randy’s arm in a death grip. Randy…
Randy was a big guy. He’d been through some shit. He was incredibly strong, and the most relaxed person Finch knew. Finch had never, not once, seen Randy look afraid.
And right now, he looked terrified.
Hacker’s face lit up when he saw Finch. He looked momentarily confused when he noticed Sparrow.
Finch hurried over to them. “Are you all alright? What the hell is going on?”
“Hell if we know!” Hacker looked back to Sparrow. “You’re from that other multiverse, aren’t you? Do you know what his deal is?!”
Sparrow, standing much closer to the door than Finch would’ve liked, looked surprised.
“What? Why do you think I know what’s going on?!” He seemed almost offended.
“Because it’s-“
“F…Finch…?”
Sparrow froze.
The growling had stopped. From the other side of the door came a familiar voice, though it was distorted, disoriented, and weak. It continued to speak as Sparrow slowly turned towards the door.
“…it’s me.” Hacker’s voice was a hoarse, terrified whisper. His eyes were wide. “Oh, god, he wasn’t- he wasn’t talking before. He was just-“
“Wh…where the hell am I?” He sounded almost as scared as the rest of them. “What’s-“
“Did you say ‘Finch?’”
Another familiar voice. The first gasped in what sounded like terror.
“Is your little friend from jail in there, now, too?” The second voice said, closer now. It sounded like Bobby, but…
“W-w-wait-“ the first voice started, pleadingly, but was cut off by the second snapping “That’s enough from you!”
Immediately the first voice cried out in pain. The cry got louder, and more pained, and slowly became the same horrible snarling, hissing, and growling from before as the other Hacker kept trying to break down the door.
“Ah, I can sense you now. Two Finches.” The second voice sounded much calmer now that its…companion had stopped talking. “Well, I suppose there’s no point breaking this down, now, if you two are here.”
The scratching, clawing, and growling stopped. There was a strange, heavy clunking sound that seemed to be moving away from the door.
Finch grabbed Hacker and Bobby’s hands. “Come on.”
They didn’t need to be told twice. Randy got to his feet, and Bobby and Finch helped Hacker up—who seemed like he could hardly stand at all, even with his cane—as the voice outside began to laugh.
“What a shame. I was having so much fun! Oh, well. I’ll be seeing you all again soon, don’t worry.”
“Sparrow!”
Sparrow gave a start. He silently hurried over, took Randy’s arm, and they teleported the trio back to Finch’s apartment.
Hacker dropped on the couch immediately. “Ohh my god, we’re alive.”
Bobby joined him, grabbing one of the blankets on the couch and very tightly wrapping it around her. Randy sat beside her, trying to gently comfort her. She was still shaking like a leaf; not that Finch could blame her.
Sparrow sat down heavily in one of the armchairs.
“What,” Finch started, his voice shaking, “in the actual hell was that?”
“We- we ran into our own alternates,” Randy said shakily. “The…the other Bobby and Hacker…something was wrong with them.”
“It wasn’t me.” Bobby’s voice was raw. “I don’t know what that thing was, but it wasn’t. Me. It even said so when I said something about it.”
“The other Randy was…less weird,” Hacker said uncertainly. “But he didn’t talk much. He just kind of stood there looking really nervous.”
“And that- that- that thing. The one that looked like Hacker. It-“ Bobby sobbed. “He chased us. He was s-s-so fast, and he nearly- he nearly killed us, and then we got to the house and barely even s-sat down and they were all outside-“
Randy pulled her into a hug. “It’s alright. We’re safe now.”
“We should’ve been safe at home!”
Sparrow was silent. He was leaned forward, propping himself up with his forearms on his legs, and just…stared off. His expression was unreadable.
“…Sparrow?” Finch tried. “Are you alright?”
Sparrow didn’t respond.
“Sparrow.”
Sparrow closed his eyes and took a shaky breath. Then he looked at Hacker.
“You…were you arrested for credit fraud and involvement with a criminal organization here, too?”
Hacker blinked. “Uh…on advice of counsel, no.”
Sparrow turned to Finch. He didn’t say anything, but Finch got the idea.
“Yes, I helped him get out,” Finch said quietly. “Why?”
Sparrow stared off into space again.
“When…when I got him out, a man named Randy happened by. He definitely wasn’t supposed to be there, and when he realized what was happening he offered to help Hacker get out of the building. Find somewhere safe, that sort of thing.”
Hacker and Randy nodded along. Finch remembered that, too. Except…
“They walked away. Before I left, this…this kid appeared. Like they’d been there the whole time.” Sparrow glanced at Bobby. “I…I never got their name, and never once saw them after that, but I think they looked like you.”
Finch narrowed his eyes. “…Bobby was with Randy the whole time, here.”
Bobby nodded slowly.
Sparrow hesitated, his gaze slowly returning to the very interesting spot on the coffee table he’d been staring at.
“How…how sure are you that…whatever it was you saw, whatever was behind that door, was a version of Hacker, and not just some kind of…mimic, thing?”
“Positive,” Randy said grimly.
“Even before he started talking, he kinda sounded like Hacker,” Bobby said shakily. “And he had the same jacket—just, like, really beat up.”
“He- he had a limp.” Hacker said weakly. “His right leg. Just like me.”
Sparrow was silent. When he finally looked up again, he had a broken look in his eyes.
“Then this is the first time I’ve heard from him since he got out of JR.” His voice cracked.
Their eyes widened.
“I…I thought he just…” Sparrow covered his face. He sounded like he was about to cry. “Oh, god…”
“…The…the other Hacker and…not-me,” Bobby started. “They both had these weird glowing things on their skin. Like…runes, or something? It was all the same color. And when the one that looked like me told the other Hacker to chase us, the ones on the other Hacker sort of…flashed.”
“That…that almost sounds like they were controlling him,” Finch said hesitantly. “Which would make…whatever the hell we heard back there make more sense.”
“He recognized my voice.” Sparrow was so quiet, Finch almost didn’t hear him. “He’s…”
Then he clenched his fists. “If he could come to his senses at all, even if it was just a few seconds, then there has to be a way to help him.”
“I would like to mention that he was acting like a starving animal the entire time, except for that one moment,” Hacker said. “It…it’ll be hard to help him if we can’t even get close.”
Sparrow looked up at Finch. All despair had been replaced with determination. Before he even opened his mouth to ask, Finch nodded. “I’m going to be out of commission while my leg heals. I can do some research while I’m otherwise unoccupied.”
“Can we help?” Bobby asked, with more confidence than Finch would’ve expected after her ordeal. “If you think he can be saved, I want to help. Maybe I can help our Finch look stuff up?”
“Me too!” Hacker said. “Since I’m also going to be sitting on my ass for a while, after all that running.”
“I know of a few places where I might be able to find information about unusual kinds of magic,” Randy said, rubbing his chin. “I can’t go anywhere without my axe, and I can’t guarantee we’ll find anything useful, but it’s a place to start.”
“We’ve got some teleportation devices for humans who can’t use magic,” Finch said. “I could easily get one for you. And then you three wouldn’t be dependent on me and Sparrow if you ever wanted to go out for something.”
“Can you get two?” Hacker asked, hopefully. Finch snorted.
“Maybe, but I’ll definitely need a good excuse.”
“Aw, man.”
Sparrow looked so surprised as they talked. Now, he smiled. “That…that would be really helpful. Thank you. All of you.”
The room was filled with determination. They all had a combined purpose. Nothing could possibly stop them now.
“...Those three are going to be camping out in your house now, aren’t they?”
