Mianite- Perfect (Chapter Four)
Fandom: Mianite
Chapters: 4/?
Summary: A life-long experiment between two unlikely partners finally comes to completion
Botan woke up, almost like he had been falling as he suddenly gripped the armrests of the lazyboy chair he had slept in. He grunted, calming down when he saw Death on the black couch across from him, also asleep. He wouldn’t have seen the younger man if there weren’t any white lining around his body that expressed his features. He slowly stood from the chair, holding his head from the pounding headache that started to form. Botan almost fell back, his legs wobbly, but he was able to keep himself standing by leaning on the chair.
He felt ridiculous.
After a couple minutes, Botan finally steadied himself on his feet. He took the time to stretch his back and shoulders, his bones popping. “Oh…” he groaned, setting his lower back, “that’s not a friendly sound.”
“No sound coming from you is friendly,” he heard Death mutter, his voice nearly muffled out in the black leather couch.
“Thanks, Smartass,” Botan growled, peering over his shoulder with a nasty glare in his sharp onyx eyes while he rubbed his back.
“Welcome,” Death’s smirk was just barely visible, his snout between two of the couch’s cushions. He lifted his head and even if it were hard to tell, Botan knew Death was giving off a snarky look. He always has, the younger man is sassy in the mornings. “I think you’re getting too old nowadays,” he chuckled while Botan went to go to his room to mope. “You can’t just ignore it! You’re aging!”
Death could just barely hear his partner yell from across the house, “Piss off!”
“I can’t believe you didn’t make me breakfast,” Botan muttered while his partner unlocked the front door to their lab.
Death only shrugged and let Botan walk in first before asking, “So what exactly do you do to the bodies of the subjects after they’re exterminated?” As they walked passed the spot where 301 was, Death saw Botan visibly become confused before it clicking and the two walked passed his office and into 301’s cell.
“You’ll see,” Botan said and slung the limp body over his shoulder with less disgust than Death thought he’d have. Then again this is Botan, what even makes him gag? Botan glanced at Death for a split second, making his younger partner realize that his thoughts didn’t go unheard.
“Sorry,” Death mumbled. How could he have forgotten his partner’s uncanny ability to hear the thoughts of others? Though he isn’t surprised, Botan is capable of many things that not even Death is aware of.
The two had walked over to the elevator way on the other end on the hallway. There were no stairs, just elevators that led to the top floors as well as the basement. The basement happened to be where they were going, but Death wasn’t aware of that.
When Death hadn’t looked, Botan pressed the button to go down to the basement which was the only floor below them. “I might as well tell you now,” Botan said, 301 still slung over his shoulder, “I have ichthyophobia.”
“Really?” Death asked, his voice high pitched. “That’s odd.”
Botan frowned and gave an exasperated shrug. The rest of the elevator ride down was silent and awkward. You could practically hear the tension. This was common between the two, they rarely communicated at home and if they did it was usually one of them making fun of the other or just simple grunts. This is because Botan always knew what was in Death’s mind, not that he can help it. His telepathy isn’t controlled, he never figured out how to control it as it was always involuntary. Thoughts would just come flying at him from people he doesn’t know and it’s what started his hatred for people and nearly started his sadistic nature.
For as long as he’s lived he has become – as he describes it – numb. He could care less what people are thinking or feeling, all he feels he needs is some spark, even if it were rare, to get his senses going again. This is where he took his sadistic nature from: the need to feel something. The need to cause pain in others just so he can get that adrenaline running. The thought of someone coming after him after harming someone is what kept him going, yet he knew no one could really hurt him.
Even if it were one of his own subjects; it’s happened. One of his subjects, many times bigger than himself, has tried to eat him but all he had to do was tear off its jaw and smash it’s skull in. It was simple. A small task, nothing he wasn’t used to by now.
The elevator dinged, signaling that they made it to the basement, but before the door opened Botan had quickly jabbed the “close doors” button. Death was confused to say the least. He turned to Botan who had already been looking down on him with a bored look. He always looks bored.
Botan chuckled, the frown on his face giving off an eerie atmosphere. “You’ll hate me for this,” he said and jabbed the “open doors” button. The doors opened (no shit) and revealed a dark room. Fog clouding most of the room gave off that fear Death could feel rising in his chest because he knew exactly where they were.
They were in the basement.
A deep rumbling came from Death while he glared at Botan. “What the actual fuck, Dude?”
Botan shrugged, “You wanted to know what I did with the bodies.” Death saw a sly smirk tug at the corner of his lips, threatening to show emotion. Botan winked and took 301 by his leg and slung the dead body into the room, disturbing the fog when it collided with the floor with a resounding thump. Death shivered.
Almost immediately Death gave out a shriek when the fog moved just slightly, being distorted by another presence in the room. The shriek was truly caused not by the fog moving but by the large, snake-like mouth suddenly striking through the white mist and engulfing the small lifeless body compared to it.
Th…that’s what Botan does with these things? He thought to himself, essentially shrieking in his head. At this point he didn’t care about what Botan heard. “I…” Death stammered, speechless. How could he have not realized the sudden disappearance of the subjects’ bodies were linked to Botan feeding 01?
By the looks of the snake head as it pull itself slowly back into the fog Death now knew why Botan was never afraid of 01 escaping. The elevator shaft was too small for the humongous body of this leviathan-like snake.
“Well now you know,” Botan chuckled, staring off into the fog. “And now you won’t ask anymore questions."
Death only stayed silent, the only part of him showing any movement were the white lines of his features which moved almost jerkily whether or not the shadowed being was still like now. He let out a small breath, he hadn’t realized that Botan still showed some sort of care towards another being. Especially on the level of feeding it himself. He didn’teven care about himself enough to do that! Sort of.
“I… I don’t know what I was expecting,” Death muttered more to himself while his partner started walking into the large room. He wasn’t sure how big 01 had gotten since the last time he saw him, but to be truthful he really didn’t want to know. But as the way of life, he knew exactly that he would be getting his answer sometimes today.
Death sighed and followed his partner when he stopped and motioned to come over. He walked cautiously across the room while making sure he wasn’t stepping on anything… scaly. He reached his partner quickly, standing closer to him than he would like. “Where is he?” Death asked in a whisper, though whispering happened to be useless since Death’s voice echoed out into the fog.
Botan chuckled, the deep noise also echoing and making Death shudder. He knew exactly why Botan is feared, just hearing that bone chilling laugh in a dark alley would be anyone’s worst nightmare.
Botan stretched out his hand and started making a clicking noise with his tongue. After a few seconds of the echo of Botan’s clicking the snout of 01 slowly emerged from the fog and brushed itself against Botan’s palm. The mauve scales of the large reptilian reflected off the light that shone through the fog—the light of its own four eyes.
“He’s not that scary,” Botan said, his face still black and he rubbed his palm against 01’s large plated snout. 01’s tongue flicked out, making a subtle vibrating noise when flickering.
Death knew at some point Botan would attempt to show that 01 isn’tas bad as he thought he was. Ever since the incident with 01, 02, and 03, he has held a sort of fear when around 01 or 03 or even any of the mutated subjects that Botan tends to hide around.
Death hesitantly approached 01, sucking in his fear. He jumped slightly when he placed a hand on its snout and almost jumped out of his skin when he felt the hard plating covering it. The plates felt rough and worn yet he knew they’d protect it from any coming danger.
“I thought so,” Botan chuckled, patting 01’s snout. Death nearly screamed when the floor moved, nearly making him fall over. “By the way we’re standing on him,” Botan laughed while Death fell over and onto 01’s scales protecting his body. 01 pulled its head back and away from the two, disappearing into the fog.
“I hate you so much,” Death growled and slowly stood. He quickly walked over to the elevator, jamming the button to go to the first floor so he could get some work done.
A/N: Sorry this chapter might’ve sucked a bit, I’ve been extremely distracted if you couldn’t tell. But I still hope it’s okay. Though I will probably post a bonus chapter after this at some point, so maybe y’allcan look forward to that.
(also before anyone asks: ichthyophobia is the fear of fish whether it’d be touching/eating raw, cooked, or dead fish.