[He'll take his time, scribbling away until he's finished. Then, one by one, he'll post each note underneath the other. A neat little row.]
I'll do that... And even better.
I'll be there for you, Serif. The day you carry out your promise is the day that I will never leave you.
I will be there when you're awake, and I will be there when you sleep.
I'll be there when your friends see how EMPTY you are inside, and your BROTHER realizes what you really are. Until all you'll ever be able to see in your brother is disappointment and fear.
I will be there when you realize that Grit could have been the friend you wanted, the friend you needed. But the friend you couldn't have because every time you looked at her, you were really just holding your breath until the second you ripped her out of this timeline.
Together, we the two of us can go back and relive what you've done over and over and we will sear that memory right into your eye. Until you breathe nothing but sadness and bleed nothing but regret. You'll give up for good. But I won't leave you then either.
[Well now, that's one hell of a threat. It's hard to get to Serif, but even he feels a bit of a chill after that. It's because of that that he doesn't respond right away. Because god, how does he respond to something like this? He leans against the wall and stares at nothing for a while.
It's the mentions of Tempus that get to him the most, no surprise there. Yeah, he already knows his brother would be disappointed in him. He knew that when he made the promise. Still hurts. Imagining his brother's reaction, the expression on his face, if Serif ever ended up killing Grit... Well, if he had blood, it would be running cold at the thought.
Honestly, he probably shouldn't have even talked with this creep at all. He'll probably regret responding again as well. But hell. It's been a night full of regrets.
What's one more?]
wow, you really got it all figured out. i'd say you're trying way too hard there, but i get the feeling this just sorta comes naturally to you.
heh. maybe if things come to that, i wouldn't really care what your plan is. or what you ended up doing. probably not. don't think i'd be in the mood for fighting after that.
...or maybe i'd just get rid of you.
i'd say there's about a 50/50 chance of either option.
[The longer silence following his reply is good enough to satisfy Sunny for now. He has no way of knowing whether it affected them, or if it was easily dismissed, but he's gotten his message across. That's good enough for now.]
[He narrows his eyes at the final note. After some time, he looks over the entire conversation, from the thinly veiled threats to... whatever this is at the end.
He's learned what he's wanted to know. He's delivered his message. It'd be easy to finish on a threat, but the more he looks it over, it's really not worth the wasted energy.
He's done.
He hopes you dream tonight of promises, Serif. The one you made to Grit. The one he made to you.]
[No more responses, huh? He was hoping that'd make him feel better, but he feels empty now. And more than a little shaken from that entire conversation.
He was hoping that when he went back to his room, he'd be able to get some sleep. But after this... Well.
Looks like it's time for round 2 of his ketchup binge.
He's not sleeping tonight.]
I wasn't sure where to put this. let's go with action at this point maybe?
[Tempus wasn't usually a fan of his late shifts at the cafe. He didn't usually need to sleep much anyways, but he was one of the firm believes in "early to bed, early to rise". So when he's let out late, he usually heads straight to his room.
Luckily, he happened to make a quick run past Serif's room, and that is enough for him to catch the glint of light there. He peers inside to see his sibling hunched over a piece of paper. Odd. What is he writing at this time of night?
He doesn't really want to be sneaky, but he knows Serif won't show what he's working on willingly. And the great Tempus is excellent with stealth missions. So he tiptoes over to were Serif is sitting, glancing over his shoulder to see what he can read. Something about him seeing Serif for who he really is? Being disappointed? That doesn't sound right...
He might make the slightest sound of disapproval, alerting his brother to his presence.]
[Serif's usually more observant than this - sneaking up on him is incredibly hard - but his mind is someplace else tonight. So as he's sorting through the notes, since he's still not sure if he'll get another response, he doesn't even notice that there's anyone else present.
At least until he hears a noise and a startled gasp escapes. The notes fall to the floor.]
What-
[He quickly picks up the notes and stuffs them away. No one else needs to be reading those. Only then does he turn to look at the source of the noise.
...Oh.]
...Bro?
[Tempus will probably notice right away that Serif looks like hell. He always looks tired, but not like this. The complete lack of sleep, the nightmares that caused that in the first place, and the conversation that was keeping him up, have all taken their toll on him.
Then there's the (by now mostly dry) ketchup stains on his clothes, not to mention the scattered empty bottles around the place.]
What're you doing here so late? Heh...
[He just has to keep his voice steady. Everything is fine. Everything is just fine.]
[He can already tell something is wrong by the fact that Serif doesn't catch him until it's practically too late. That's not like Serif. He's far more observant most days. Is he just tired?
He watches him hasten to try to put the notes away, and only vaguely wonders why he's trying to hide them. He's much more worried about the fact that his brother looks awful almost sick with sleep deprivation, and probably some sort of unpleasant emotion. The mess of bottles and stains aren't commented on, even if they're noticed.]
...Serif. I was just coming back from work... what's the matter? You look like you've seen a ghost. Who would be writing to you so late?
[He can't stop himself from being curious, even if he knows Serif would probably do better if Tempus eased into this.]
[Getting right to it. Ah, damn. Well, then again, it's not like Serif really has an answer there. He glances away for a moment.]
Nah, pretty sure all I saw was a skeleton. Heh heh... [...] But uh, heh, wish I knew that...
[He still doesn't know who this even was, after all. He's already making a list of possible suspects in his mind, but even if he makes a reasonable guess he can't be sure.]
Oh, you know. Can't sleep every night away, right? At this rate I might get tired of it.
Heh...
[...Even he didn't find that one funny, judging from the expression on his face and the very weak laugh. Tempus honestly doesn't even need to comment on it, because Serif looks like he regrets that one right away.]
I... uh... [Serif looks away from his brother, deciding to stare at the floor instead. The lights in his eyes dim a little - not entirely and not through any conscious effort... it's more as if even keeping those on is costing too much energy.] Just... kind've had a rough night, I guess...
[He can feel himself itching to make a comment and scold his brother, but it looks like Serif is already scolding himself. Tempus just stays silent, watching his brother carefully, and hesitantly bringing a hand forward to rest it on his shoulder.]
A rough night is something that should be talked about. Serif, please tell me what's going on?
...I don't want to betray your trust, but I did see some of what those notes entailed. If you don't want me to assume the worst, it'd be better to tell me the truth.
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Well then.
As a friend, I'll support your decisions.
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I s n ' t t h a t n i c e .
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I'll do that... And even better.
I'll be there for you, Serif. The day you carry out your promise is the day that I will never leave you.
I will be there when you're awake, and I will be there when you sleep.
I'll be there when your friends see how EMPTY you are inside, and your BROTHER realizes what you really are. Until all you'll ever be able to see in your brother is disappointment and fear.
2/3
Together, we the two of us can go back and relive what you've done over and over and we will sear that memory right into your eye. Until you breathe nothing but sadness and bleed nothing but regret. You'll give up for good. But I won't leave you then either.
3/3
The way we are with GRIT.
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It's the mentions of Tempus that get to him the most, no surprise there. Yeah, he already knows his brother would be disappointed in him. He knew that when he made the promise. Still hurts. Imagining his brother's reaction, the expression on his face, if Serif ever ended up killing Grit... Well, if he had blood, it would be running cold at the thought.
Honestly, he probably shouldn't have even talked with this creep at all. He'll probably regret responding again as well. But hell. It's been a night full of regrets.
What's one more?]
wow, you really got it all figured out. i'd say you're trying way too hard there, but i get the feeling this just sorta comes naturally to you.
heh. maybe if things come to that, i wouldn't really care what your plan is. or what you ended up doing. probably not. don't think i'd be in the mood for fighting after that.
...or maybe i'd just get rid of you.
i'd say there's about a 50/50 chance of either option.
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Eager to add another kill to the pile already?
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but you seemed eager to get involved, so.
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It would've been a lot simpler if I wasn't.
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now that sounds familiar.
[Meaning he knows the feeling. Very well.]
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It would've been simpler if they'd never come to the Underground.
[Simple didn't necessarily mean good or bad. But considering the situation they're currently in, it's the truth.]
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yeah
[Not better, not worse, just... simpler. Now that's a good way of putting it.]
yeah it would've been
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[They changed everything. How could an eight year old even understand the scale of it?]
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and it's better like that.
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He's learned what he's wanted to know. He's delivered his message. It'd be easy to finish on a threat, but the more he looks it over, it's really not worth the wasted energy.
He's done.
He hopes you dream tonight of promises, Serif. The one you made to Grit. The one he made to you.]
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He was hoping that when he went back to his room, he'd be able to get some sleep. But after this... Well.
Looks like it's time for round 2 of his ketchup binge.
He's not sleeping tonight.]
I wasn't sure where to put this. let's go with action at this point maybe?
Luckily, he happened to make a quick run past Serif's room, and that is enough for him to catch the glint of light there. He peers inside to see his sibling hunched over a piece of paper. Odd. What is he writing at this time of night?
He doesn't really want to be sneaky, but he knows Serif won't show what he's working on willingly. And the great Tempus is excellent with stealth missions. So he tiptoes over to were Serif is sitting, glancing over his shoulder to see what he can read. Something about him seeing Serif for who he really is? Being disappointed? That doesn't sound right...
He might make the slightest sound of disapproval, alerting his brother to his presence.]
action it is!
At least until he hears a noise and a startled gasp escapes. The notes fall to the floor.]
What-
[He quickly picks up the notes and stuffs them away. No one else needs to be reading those. Only then does he turn to look at the source of the noise.
...Oh.]
...Bro?
[Tempus will probably notice right away that Serif looks like hell. He always looks tired, but not like this. The complete lack of sleep, the nightmares that caused that in the first place, and the conversation that was keeping him up, have all taken their toll on him.
Then there's the (by now mostly dry) ketchup stains on his clothes, not to mention the scattered empty bottles around the place.]
What're you doing here so late? Heh...
[He just has to keep his voice steady. Everything is fine. Everything is just fine.]
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He watches him hasten to try to put the notes away, and only vaguely wonders why he's trying to hide them. He's much more worried about the fact that his brother looks awful almost sick with sleep deprivation, and probably some sort of unpleasant emotion. The mess of bottles and stains aren't commented on, even if they're noticed.]
...Serif. I was just coming back from work... what's the matter? You look like you've seen a ghost. Who would be writing to you so late?
[He can't stop himself from being curious, even if he knows Serif would probably do better if Tempus eased into this.]
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Nah, pretty sure all I saw was a skeleton. Heh heh... [...] But uh, heh, wish I knew that...
[He still doesn't know who this even was, after all. He's already making a list of possible suspects in his mind, but even if he makes a reasonable guess he can't be sure.]
Just some jerk.
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[That's not even a decent pun. Something must be wrong.]
So you don't know who it was? I'm sorry someone was bothering you. It must have been hard to sleep through that. Are they done now, at least?
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[...Because that isn't a massive red flag or anything.]
Yeah, looks like it. Guess they got bored. Or maybe they just ran out of things to say, who knows.
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[The letter-writing bully is ignored for now, as Tempus sits down beside his brother, expression stern and worried.]
What happened?
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Heh...
[...Even he didn't find that one funny, judging from the expression on his face and the very weak laugh. Tempus honestly doesn't even need to comment on it, because Serif looks like he regrets that one right away.]
I... uh... [Serif looks away from his brother, deciding to stare at the floor instead. The lights in his eyes dim a little - not entirely and not through any conscious effort... it's more as if even keeping those on is costing too much energy.] Just... kind've had a rough night, I guess...
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A rough night is something that should be talked about. Serif, please tell me what's going on?
...I don't want to betray your trust, but I did see some of what those notes entailed. If you don't want me to assume the worst, it'd be better to tell me the truth.
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1/2
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