Mable: Well… To be fair, I'm dreading posting this. I know that this isn't going to be the same as the action packed beginning of Souls Run Deep… If I could actually count the beginning of Souls Run Deep even a fraction towards being action packed! Though, really, this is more of a continuation than a sequel so I'm not going to really compare the two much… Anyway, if you have not read Souls Run Deep then this is going to be very confusing, so I insist that you probably read that firstly!
Oh wow, here we go. Another one hundred chapters of Stitchpunks starting with an incomplete sentence. I don't own 9, but I do own a few of the characters who I will mention in the later Author's Note. Enjoy!
Fabric Runs Shallow
Chapter One: The Daunting Change
Things had changed.
Subtly more than anything else. Nine had noticed the dull stirrings in the Sanctuary of a changing world, of a changing family, but sometimes it was harder to decipher which things were changing and which weren't. He immediately noticed the other side of his bed being empty. Usually a relief since it meant that he could use all of the one person bed by himself, he wondered why Child had left at all. He wasn't exactly a morning goer in the slightest. So Nine noticed it and sat up, letting the covers fall down into his lap.
Other things hadn't changed much. Looking at the other sides of the room he could see the two other beds that were both filled. Five's, he was alone too so it meant Three hadn't snuck in bed with him, and None, who was Nine's own twin. Then again, it was hard to note that anymore; Nine thought of this with a smile. In the last couple of months None had begun to bloom into his own being. He wasn't actually too much like None if someone was to really think about it, but in that same way he was very similar to None.
He pushed down the blankets the rest of the way and swung his legs over the side, stretching a bit as his body protested waking. It had to be earlier than he thought for him to still feel so tired. He soon stood and wandered to the curtain before stepping out into the hall. Light filtered from two sources, from the throne room's curtain and from the Workshop. Though he realized that the throne room's light was clearly natural, softer and made of gentle light coming through the vents in the throne room, while the workshop's light was from a lit candle.
Someone else was awake and his thoughts went to Child. He had to have been working on something and he approached the Workshop before opening the curtain. There he was met with the shorter frame of someone else instead of the common height of Child. It was none other than the Inventor himself, Two, who was at the workbench fumbling with some sort of wooden item that he was carving. "Morning Two." Nine greeted and the shorter jumped before spinning around, making a quick hushing gesture, and Nine quieted down a bit.
"One has the hearing of a Cat Beast." He informed with a warm smile and Nine agreed with a quiet nod before whispering, "He does. What are you doing up so early?" Two glanced back towards the wooden bench, "Just getting some things done while I still can. I hope I didn't wake you." The younger waved it off and wandered over beside him before casually leaning on the workbench. "Don't worry, you didn't. I didn't even know you were in here until I was in the hall." He paused for a second before remarking, "I won't tell One."
Naturally Two was relieved. One tended to get overprotective when it involved his mate carrying young. Of course, when Nine thought about it, he had a right to be. Two wasn't carrying a small light anymore, he was carrying the body of their child that had nearly completely fused with the soul. As such, Two was due very soon to have the infant removed, and because of such One was adamant on bed rest. His mate had obeyed and done so for a few days, but now had decided to start working again. At least he wasn't obsessively cleaning anymore.
"How's the baby this morning?" Nine asked playfully and Two was clearly endeared by the comment. "The baby is well." He responded and Nine quietly, awkwardly, asked as he rubbed the back of his neck, "Can I feel it again?" Of course he had asked and done so before, with both babies, but he still wanted to do so again. "Certainly! Here, give me your hand." Two instructed and took the younger's hand to rest it in the proper position. Promptly after contact the unborn Stitchpunk fidgeted inside and decided to adjust in a different position.
To think that there would be another baby among them was amazing. Another little Stitchpunk to learn and play. Twenty-One was already starting to get older and slowly starting to become more and more adorable with every passing day. Nine stroked over the belly a bit and felt as the baby continued to roll about. "It's moving a lot today." He pointed out with a smile and Two chuckled, "It certainly is! My little Rabbit; it will be any day now and we will be able to hold h- it." He corrected. Naturally One and he were still 'hiding' the gender.
Maybe neither realized that One had referred to it as a 'he' bluntly six or seven times already. It was a little amusing to see the two oldest and nearly wisest ones being as naïve as he himself was known to be. By Child mostly though. "What are you working on?" Nine asked curiously and Two looked to the wooden figure, "A little something for Twone. He's been interested in the toys for the new baby so I thought, because he's being so good about all of this, that I would make him something. I know there's a good chance that he might not be pleased with the attention aimed at his sibling."
"I'm sure he'll be-." Nine cut off and Two tensed as the curtain opened. However instead of being One it was a waking Five who was still half clouded with awakening. "Morning. Two, you're out of bed." He suddenly realized and Two gave a relieved exhale, "I had to stretch my legs a bit. It helps my back." Back pain had also came with the heaviness of the new baby and Two would admit that during pregnancy he actually felt like he was old, even if he only resembled being of near elder age because of inheritance from the Scientist.
"Morning Five. Have you, or Two, have either of you seen Child? He wasn't in bed." While the Healer shook his head Two remarked, "Someone was walking around earlier. Perhaps it was him?" Nine took this as a cue to continue his search. "Alright, thanks. See you both later on." With that he headed out of the Workshop with one destination in mind; Child's bedroom. As he approached the curtain and pushed it open he realized nobody was inside immediately. The candle was out and upon looking at the bed the lump inside looked nothing like the Stitchpunk.
When Pet poked his optic out Nine knew that it wasn't Child and wandered over to pet the Training Beast's head in gently motions. "Hey Pet." He greeted the companion caringly before his optics looked around the room. Now he was feeling a tinge of worry that passed his face. It was unexplainable, but he knew something was off. Child was quiet, but didn't tend to hide what he was doing and this was especially the case with Nine, but recently Child had been sneaking around doing something. For the last few days it was bluntly obvious.
Laid out across the small desk were various papers and he grew interested as he crossed to light the candle in the corner to see. They weren't blueprints as he expected, but they were instead none other than multiple maps. Resting on them was what looked like a makeshift compass and nearby was a small inkwell cap filled with ink. A metal quill rested in it and looked like it had been used recently. Nine knew what he was seeing, though, "He's making maps?... Is he looking for somewhere?" At this moment he exhaled in a bit of frustration.
"Child…" He wouldn't deny that he wasn't really jumping through hoops to have something strange occurring with Child. After everything they had been through he had hoped that Child trusted him enough to tell him if something was going on. The mere thought made Nine curious and when he was curious he was reckless. He knew this, yet he couldn't help it. He was going to have to figure out what was going on sooner than later. The maps gave no answers and he turned to leave the room once again, "What am I going to do with him?"
It didn't help that Nine exited the bedroom and almost walked straight into One. Thankfully for Nine, and not for Two, One was on a mission to find the Inventor and barely noticed Nine. In fact, he actually said a quick, "Excuse me." Temporarily forgetting that as Leader he tended to scold someone when they did anything he didn't find suiting for Stitchpunks. However, he was gone in a second, heading down the hall and heading straight into the Workshop where Nine heard him announce his presences with, "I trust I am not interrupting anything?"
Eight then peered out of his room looking confused at hearing One storm by. Naturally he knew it was One just from his footsteps. "Morning Eight." Nine greeted pleasantly and Eight returned with a casual repetition. Then Nine went straight onto what he needed from Eight, "Did you hear Child leave his room earlier?" The Guard rubbed his head a bit tiredly, "A couple of hours ago. He headed that way." He followed the comment with a thumbing towards the throne room and Nine was suddenly confused, "You were up?"
"Six was up." Eight corrected and Nine realized that Six must have had a nightmare. While they had cut back considerably, Six still had nightmares, but thankfully what used to cause screams now reverted to soft whimpers instead, quieter nightmares that Eight was able to ease away. He looked tired though so Nine guessed he hadn't gone back to sleep afterwards. "Is he okay?" Nine asked with concern and the Guard stepped out of the room fully, already dressed for the day, "Yeah. He's sleeping now." He explained and the zippered male was somewhat relieved.
"I hope he's alright. Thanks for the tip." He thanked and headed out into the throne room where he saw the bucket lift down. This meant Child had left and he exhaled tiredly before crossing over to it and sitting on the wooden platform beside it. If Child was going to dodge him then he was just going to wait until he got back. That would be the end of it.
Seven felt much too warm to be comfortable even when tucked into the softness of her bed. The blankets were wrapped uncomfortably and something was practically on top of her. She leaned back slightly only to have the back of her head hit the firm chest of someone else. Immediately she recognized the chest when she recognized the dull purring pulsing through it and into her audio receptors. "Cat…" She exhaled groggily, "Cat, I thought you were going to stop doing this." Another morning to realize that Cat had climbed into bed.
His tall frame was practically wrapped around her upper torso and in front of her she could see his sharp claws locked together. She started to lift his arm off of her. He protested the movement. "Come on, Cat, I need to get up. It's too hot in here for you to do this." His face pressed into the back of her neck and she assumed it was to spite her; she just imagined him smirking behind her. Finally she pushed his arm off and sat up before stretching, sending him a mock glare, "I thought we got you a bed for this."
Cat, optics still closed, released a playful smile. "My bed's cold and lonesome." He explained, trying to mock a pitiful tone, and Seven scoffed with her out mock one, "That's because you won't sleep in it." She reminded him and he chuckled, his voice box crackling under the motion. While he did so she could see him watching her with that same focused gaze that usually applied when he had been a Beast. She couldn't help but feel a little self-conscious by having someone stare at her, running their optics over her frame like an actual cat hunting an actual bird.
She found herself getting her helmet on quickly. She felt more secure with it on, as though Cat's piercing gaze couldn't get through the skull, and moved on to get ahold of her weapon when suddenly the twins entered in through the doorway. Probably to wake Seven by pouncing on her as they typically do. To their surprise there was another Stitchpunk in the bed and they simply stared at him for a few seconds before looking over to Seven. They were probably innocently confused but Seven felt the need to defend herself.
"Cat couldn't stay in his own bed, again." She smiled to them and the two released silent giggling in amusement. This managed to draw Cat somewhat out of bed and he sat up before stretching, his claws knitting in the blankets before he tried to pull back, couldn't, and ended up having to practically tear it off. He looked over to Seven to make sure she hadn't noticed, but she was too busy heading towards the door and stepping out, the twins following along with her.
She got two foot down the hall before Three suddenly steered herself into the Workshop to find Five. He was there, but so was One and Two, with the Leader trying to get the Inventor out of the Workshop as fast as possible. Two managed to grab onto the doorway to stop himself for a second to greet them. "Good morning, girls. I hope you are well." At this moment, One retorted, "Unfortunately, you will not know. Come along." Seven almost wanted to defend Two, but considering his situation she just returned the greeting and watched him get dragged off by One.
When Three hurried to Five's side Seven could see both her and Five's faces alight. They hadn't gotten to see each other the night before because of how busy both had been, but now they were glad to be reunited. The Healer gave her a comforting embrace and Three pressed into his chest with a sweet smile of someone who was in love. Four seemed to be giggling again in her own way and waved the two off before beginning to head into the hall again.
"Morning Seven." Five said overtop Three's hooded head and Seven smiled at him, "Morning. I hope you got a few minutes with Two before he was stolen." Five chuckled a little, hugging Three a bit tighter, "A few minutes at most, maybe." The Warrior exhaled at the Leader's behavior before pulling back into the hall, "He's acting irrational. You would think after the first child he'd know how to handle his separation anxiety." She continued down the hall, glancing at both Eight and Child's rooms. The latter having a candle lit inside.
However, she did peer into Eight's room because of the dispute the night before. She had heard Six's babbling through the wall and Eight's comforting mutters or grogginess; as expected another nightmare had hit. She hoped that it wasn't a bad sign of something yet to come. Looking through the darkness of the room she could see Six in bed. His body was spread out tiredly across the bed and he was wrapped around a pillow. With a soft exhale Seven pulled back into the hall and continued towards the throne room. Six needed the rest.
She could use some too. Things had felt hectic recently even with the arrival of the new baby on the way. "I need to get out for a bit. I've been trapped inside too long; how long has it been since I last went to scout?" She exhaled tiredly. It seemed since Cat had become less of a pet figure and more of, well, a Stitchpunk, Seven had felt the need to spend time with him. Not many of the others were very social with Cat. Mostly because Cat himself, while seemingly social, gave little effort to such. He spent most of his time with either Seven or Child.
"I just need some time to myself." She caved as she entered the throne room before glancing over to notice that Nine was sitting near the bucket lift which was down. She smiled a little in amusement, "Waiting for someone?" His head jolted upwards and he soon began to ease, "Oh, Seven, good morning." He greeted before explaining, "I'm just waiting for Child to get back." The female glanced at the lowered lift, "He left?" Nine shrugged a little, "He's gone so I guess so… I just took a note from One to ambush him."
"That would be a note from One, no doubt about it." Seven answered before moving to sit down beside him, leaning against the wall. The two Stitchpunks simply sat there for a few seconds before Nine decided to ask her, "Things have changed, haven't they?" It was a conversation starter, but an odd one and she raised a brow. "They have. Do you regret them?" Nine chuckled a little at the question, "Of course not! I guess I'm just being a little melancholy." The Warrior went a bit more firm towards him, "Nine, you don't have to lie to me, what's wrong?"
Now Nine caved and admitted, "I have this bad feeling that something's going to happen, but I think I'm exaggerating a bit." Seven gave a little smile to him, "Sometimes that's a good thing with us." She admitted and this seemed to somewhat ease Nine. Even if Seven realized that Nine did have a point; there was a forewarning feeling in the air. Or perhaps Nine's words and her own questioning of her and Cat, or lack of time outdoors, brought it on. Either way, she'd stay here and wait with him a bit later.
The bucket lift was boarded in a quick motion and for a second the boarder just stood there and sorted through the papers in his hand. Traced maps detailing exactly what he wanted, Child had finally found what was needed, the last details. His mouth stretched into a bit of a smile, but it wasn't innocent or filled with any pleasure. It was a scowl of distaste yet a clear pleasure in being able to finally get answers. "Maybe all of this will be worth it after all." He thought to himself before mentally adding in, "Or it will be a complete waste of time."
He stacked the papers together and moved over to use the crank and raise the lift upwards towards the Sanctuary. As the lift hit the platform he glanced out before double taking. There was Nine, sitting alone outside the bucket lift and against the wall. His head was slumped a bit and he looked as though he was asleep. "Creator, Nine." Child muttered to himself and leaned down to check if Nine would respond, which he wouldn't, so he assumed he had fallen asleep and attempted to creep by him.
Unfortunately for him, Nine wasn't as 'asleep' as he expected, and the second he heard the quiet footsteps he looked upwards. Though Child was now focused on the paper in his grasp and was slightly startled when Nine abruptly spoke, optics twitching from their position on his maps. "You're back." He sounded questioning and stood as Child immediately spoke, "I assumed you were asleep. It would not be the strangest thing you have done." He glanced back and forced a small, sly smirk, even if it wasn't fully there. It was an illusion that his mind wasn't taken with other things.
"I was waiting for you to get back." Nine admitted with a slightly embarrassed smile, "Where were you gone all day?" For a second Child's gaze seemed to vanish as he stared at nothing in particular. Nine watched the unfocused optics and predicted correctly that his mate was not going to give him a complete answer. "I was visiting the closest thing to a government building left in the city." Child answered nonchalantly before heading towards the hall slowly, expecting Nine to follow and so he did.
"One's room?" Nine joked in an attempt to liven the mood and Child released some sort of small scoffing noise at the remark. This was good; Nine didn't want it to seem like he was prying or Child would close up and the last thing he wanted was to be kept completely in the dark about whatever was going on. As Child entered his room he immediately paused with a jolt as he realized the candle was lit. Before he could become paranoid Nine spoke, "I came looking for you earlier. I must have forgot to put it out."
Child was suspicious; Nine could tell by his silence. "So where were you, exactly?" The awkwardness was frustrating and Child crossed to his workbench before laying the papers down, beginning to obsessively shuffle and organize them. This time the zippered one decided it was time to be firm, "Child, what's going on?" Child calmly answer with, "You decided to stop beating around the bush?" The younger huffed in a bit of frustration, "I'm not that naïve, Child. You've been quiet for days and when you're not in your room you are gone."
He came forward and reached out. After gently moving aside Child's cloak he laid a hand on his shoulder, "What are you hiding from me?" Maybe it was his desperate tone or the wording that slight suggested he wasn't going to simply accept no answer at all, but finally the other caved. The albino Stitchpunk faced him immediately with a calm, but somewhat apologetic look, as though he actually felt guilty. Which he did. His hands came to rest on Nine's own shoulders as he explained.
"I have been looking for something, somewhere, something that is somewhere I cannot find and it has taken much of my focus. Today I went down to the old city hall and searched through what of the records were left and managed to find out the location. That is all." His words were honest, but that didn't meant he was saying everything. Nine allowed himself to believe this much as his face softened a little, "So you've been spending all this time just copying and drawing maps so you could find a location?" Child closed his optics and nodded while Nine asked, "Are you leaving again?"
"Yes Poppet, in the morning. It should only be a day long trip." With this, Nine felt the need to add in, "I'll come with you. It would be safer if you didn't go alone." Yet Child answered with a quick, "That won't be necessary." He tried letting his mate down easy as he pulled back and leaned on his workbench, staring down at the papers stretched out before him. "I know you can handle yourself, but anything could happen. A fall, a Beast attack, overheating, we both know what happens when you're out in the sun."
"You can't come with me, Nine. I need to do this alone." The fact that he now stated Nine's name was a way of showing that he was certain. That he wasn't planning to let Nine come with him. Nine was completely torn. He wasn't sure whether to keep pressing or not and finally decided to reassure the other, "Look, I know we're together and because of this you feel like you have to protect me, but I'm not helpless out there. I've been outside on my own before, if you remember."
Child glanced over before remarking, "Oh yes, I remember you telling me about that. Of course if I didn't all I'd have to do is look at that delightful scar on your shoulder." He gestured to the red thread that clashed with the black and Nine rubbed the area as though it was sore, which it wasn't, "Bad example. What I meant was; I know I don't have a good history, but I do have use, and want to come with you." A sympathetic look passed Child face, "Nine, this has nothing to do with you handling yourself out there. I just need to do this alone."
"Do what- never mind." Nine cut off what nearly became a frustrated tone and exhaled. "Alright, I trust you, I love you, if you have to go alone then I trust you, but don't blame me if you get sunstroke." While he wasn't completely pleased, Nine felt a bit of pleasure in seeing that Child was, now giving a sincere and warm smile. "Thank you. I love you too." He then moved in to gently take him in his arms, one hand moving to brush his cheek. Getting a smile in return he moved in and pressed his lips to Nine's tan ones in a gentle motion.
It wasn't their first kiss and Nine doubted it would be their last, but he sort of felt bad. He had a feeling that he'd have to go back on his words. It wouldn't be the first time that curiosity and a feeling of obligation had him wandering in the Emptiness for a mysterious location. Best not to tell Child and hope he wouldn't realize his plans for the next day.
Maybe things really hadn't changed.
Mable: Alright, so that's the first chapter! I don't own 9, but I do own Child, Cat, None, Twenty-One, and Two and One's soon to be born baby. The next chapter will be posted tomorrow at a much earlier time. I hope everyone enjoys!