AN: And here we are with the follow up to "Icebreaker". This chapter will focus specifically on the background Moonjumper will have in this fic and how his relationship with Snatcher will be.
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"You-I, what?" Snatcher stuttered out, thoroughly confused by what the newcomer was trying to imply. What the heck did he mean by that?!
Hat Kid, more curious than worried, squirmed out of his grasp and landed on the ground, looking up at Moonjumper. What's he talking about?! Snatcher is Snatcher! There's no way there's someone else like him!
Unless that creepy old lady has a habit of locking her old boyfriends up in dungeons.
"I was quite offended when you left me behind in that dungeon." Moonjumper said, crossing his arms and facing away from the shadow, who now had a look of understanding on his face. "But I understand, you wanted to escape as quickly as possible from-"
The rest of what Moonjumper was going to say was cut off when Snatcher swiftly placed a clawed hand over his mouth. "Not another word." The shadow whispered as he looked over to where the child was standing, that curious expression still on her face.
There was no way he was having this kind of conversation in front of the kid. Not yet.
He spun around and faced the hat brat, a smirk on his face. "Alright kiddo, looks like it's time for you to go home!"
Hat Kid gasped. "No way! Not when this is like one of those soap thingys! I neeeed to know what he means!" She cried out. She just had to find out what Moonjumper was talking about, her curiosity demanded it!
"Nope." Snatcher said, smirk on his face growing wider as four of his subjects appeared around the child.
The four quickly surrounded her while he used his magic to bind the child up. She let out a yelp as she began to fall backwards, balance lost, but before she hit the ground the Subconites swiftly picked her up. Realization dawned on her, now understanding what his plan was.
"Snatcher, don't you dare!" Hat Kid shouted, squirming as she tried to escape the magical bonds, but it was too late.
With a grin and a snap of his fingers Snatcher gave out his orders. "Take her back to the village and make sure she stays there while I chat with Moonboy over here!"
His subjects nodded and they swiftly made their way back to Subcon Village, carrying the shouting child with them. The shadow watched until they faded from view before turning back to face Moonjumper.
The two floating creatures stared at one another in the now silent forest. Snatcher narrowed his eyes. "Alright, now you can talk."
Moonjumper sighed and folded his arms, chains rattling ominously. "As I was saying, I understand that you wished to flee from Vanessa as quickly as possible, so I forgive you for leaving me there."
"But how could I leave you behind?! It was just me down there!" The shadow snarled, magic crackling around his form. He did not like recalling those memories, but he was certain he had been the only one down there!
Trapped while his subjects had searched for him. Trapped while the ice bitch unleashed her magic and killed so many innocent people...
"I told you I am you." The blue figure scoffed. "But perhaps you might remember something that you left behind...?"
Something he left behind...
Though his memories of that fateful day were blurry, he could remember a few things about his escape. The magic that had flown through him and broken the chains that kept him pinned to the wall, the ripping sound as his soul exploded out of his body, and the sight of his blue corpse on the ground.
Blue corpse. It had been so cold he had gotten hypothermia, his skin had turned blue.
Blue skin, like Moonjumper.
His corpse.
Snatcher reared back, staring at the figure in front of him in horror. There was no way that was true! He opened his mouth to demand the figure in front of him speak the truth, but one look at Moonjumper's face told him he already had it.
There was sorrow, grief, and acceptance.
"How," He croaked out, voice breaking as he spoke. "How is something like that possible?!"
"I assume it has something to do with the magic within Subcon Forest." Moonjumper replied, fiddling with the chains attached to his wrists.
"There were two conflicting emotions within me, anger and grief, when I was shackled to that wall. You chose to embrace the anger while I chose grief. Plus the strength of your magic, your emotions, literally ripped me, us, in two." Snatcher blinked at the confusing explanation.
"Wait, so what are you and I then?" The shadow asked, moving forward to inspect... himself?
Ugh, this was so stupidly confusing!
"Think of us as two parts that make up a whole. A body and a soul that when put together make a person." Moonjumper said, placing a hand on his face as he spoke.
"So you and I make... me?" Moonjumper shook his head.
"I find it easier to refer to our previous self as The Prince, simply because it makes it much easier to understand, and less awkward when speaking about our past."
"That makes sense." The shadow mumbled, crossing his arms and glancing off to the side, still unsettled by the whole situation.
"It took me some time to adjust to this too." Moonjumper sighed, looking up at the stars above them. "I managed to escape far later then you did since I cannot use magic."
Well that was surprising.
"What do you mean you can't use magic?! You're a floating corpse!"
"When we broke apart we did not split... evenly." At Snatcher's confused expression, Moonjumper explained further. "Do you remember what The Prince's parents looked like?"
"Of course I do!" The shadow scoffed, folding his arms. "They were... dad was..."
No.
Snatcher's eyes widened and his hands clutched at his arms. Why. Why could he not remember what his father looked like, what his mother looked like? Their images danced within his mind, flying further out of reach the more he forced himself to remember.
"I can't," Snatcher wheezed out. "I can't remember them!"
"It is okay." Moonjumper said, hovering closer to the distraught shadow. "When we split I got The Prince's body, and everything connected to it such as his memories, but I believe you will regain yours the more you try to remember. Just do not force it, let the memories come to you and embrace them."
"So my memories won't be gone forever?" Snatcher asked, relaxing his hands so his talons were no longer digging into his arms. He was still a bit irritated at not having realized how much he had forgotten of his past life, even if there were some things he was happy forgetting.
Forgetting his parents, that was something he would never wish for.
"That is correct! The memory loss is only a temporary issue, like my own problem that occurred after I escaped." At the shadow's curious look, Moonjumper explained.
"For several years I could not feel any emotion other than grief. I mourned constantly and worried that I would never feel anything else, and then I realized I could feel worry!" Moonjumper grinned, lifting his gangly arms up in the air while he spoke.
"It is all a matter of exposure, as I experienced more emotions, I remembered how to feel others and I am certain the same applies for your memories."
"Exposure, huh." Snatcher muttered, recalling the different time he had been forced to remember his past. There had been several times, all with the hat brat of course, where he had remembered his childhood and even his past with her.
Those images were the clearest in his mind, so it was obvious that Moonjumper was telling the truth, but did he actually want to remember everything…
Did he want to remember being in love with Vanessa?
That was the real question.
He shook his head, chasing the dark thoughts from his mind, and faced Moonjumper once more. "So what else is different between the two of us?"
"Well as I have The Prince's body my physical form is naturally stronger than yours." Snatcher nodded. He could be pathetically weak when confronted by an enemy that could actually attack him, or when he was coloured blue. It was why he preferred using contracts or his magic, there was no need to get physically involved.
"And as I previously mentioned you are far more magically inclined than I am, but I do have some abilities."
Snatcher tilted his head to the side and crossed his arms, curious as to what these so called abilities were. "Abilities, huh. Show me."
Moonjumper grinned and waved his arms through the air, his eyes taking on a soft red glow. Strange red strings suddenly began to appear in the air, twisting and turning as they floated about. Some wrapped around tree trunks, others lay on the ground, and one even snaked its way over to the floating shadow, who batted it away.
"I am able to create these strings, though I am not certain how or why." Moonjumper waved his hands once again and several of the strings reached out and picked up various items off of the snow covered ground. "I can only assume it is some remnant power from you."
"At least you can do something useful." Snatcher muttered, only to then yelp when a blue hand yanked at the hair around his neck.
"You should be nice!" The floating figure scolded, releasing the tuft of hair. The shadow scoffed and floated a bit further away in case he got grabbed again.
"Oh please Moonboy, why would I want to be nice to you?"
"So we can be friends!" Moonjumper said, that stupid smile still on his face.
Did this guy ever stop smiling?! It was creepy! Wait, had he been like that while he was alive? Snatcher shuddered, people who never stopped smiling were weird, and suspicious. Like door to door salesmen.
"Besides I am certain you will be seeing more of me since I intend to 'hang out' with the hatted child!"
Not on my watch buster!
As if he would let someone he did not know be near the kid, even if that person was himself! Granted, it looked like Moonjumper took after his more socially awkward, nerdy self from his younger years, but that did not matter! He could be lying and faking it! Now how to enforce his point...
Of course, he would threaten Moonjumper! Threatening people always worked!
"Let me just make one thing clear," The shadow said, floating closer to Moonjumper until he was right in front of him. "If you do anything to hurt the kid, I'll destroy you."
Instead of getting angry or acting terrified like he had hoped, Moonjumper laughed. It was a warm noise and far different from his own cackles.
"Do you think that's funny?" He hissed, hair fluffing up in irritation. It would be a grave mistake to not take his threat seriously!
"I already knew my shadowy friend!" Moonjumper beamed, still trying to control his laughter from earlier. "You radiate protectiveness around the child and only a fool would try to harm her, especially with you so close."
"Your aura betrays you, Snatcher." The floating corpse said, a smile still on his face.
"What the hell are you talking about?!" His aura?! What did that have to do with anything?
"You might not have been aware of it but I am certain your subjects must have noticed by now. Surely they mentioned something to you?"
"Mentioned what?! Stop speaking in riddles and just spit it out!"
"She's your daughter."
Snatcher wheezed, a choked noise that barely escaped his throat. What had Moonjumper just said?! There was no way he meant that, right!?
AS IF HE CARED ABOUT THE HAT BRAT LIKE THAT!
RIGHT!?
The shadow felt like he was having an aneurysm.
"Besides, I have no intentions of replacing you, my friend." Moonjumper clasped his hands together, blissfully unaware of Snatcher's mental breakdown. "No, I wish to become her favourite uncle!"
"What!?"
"Yes," He continued, ignoring the shadow's stunned expression. "I shall become the best uncle ever! I will give only the best of presents, allow her to break rules (within reason), and stay up after her bed time!"
"You're making a lot of assumptions there." The shadow groaned into the palm of his hand. As if he could make the kid go to bed at a reasonable time!
Then again if he got her to sign a contract...
"But you do not deny your fatherly connection to her." Moonjumper said, smile fading as he began perhaps the most serious conversation of the shadow's unlife.
Snatcher sighed and folded his arms. He had always wanted children, even before he had met Vanessa. After his death he had assumed his wish would never be granted. He was a ghost, and ghosts cannot have kids!
The shadow had never thought about adopting though, and it seemed like a large part of him had already accepted the kiddo as his own. Heck, even his aura screamed that the kid was his kid, and auras did not lie!
"I guess she's mine." He muttered and as he spoke he could feel his chest tightening as another thought entered his mind. "But I don't know anything about her family, or if she even has one!"
"Well she certainly does not have one on this planet, so you can be her father here, and I can be her favourite uncle!" Moonjumper chimed in, throwing one of his arms over Snatcher so he could pull him into a hug.
Snatcher snorted and offered the gleeful corpse a grin. "Fine."
Moonjumper squealed and began spinning around in joy. "Excellent! Shall we make our way to Subcon Village then so I may introduce myself then?"
The shadow sighed. He had a feeling he would not win this argument. His other self seemed determined to see the kiddo again, and his subjects. Perhaps it was for the best he got introductions out of the way.
Besides, where else would Moonjumper live if not in the village? At least Snatcher could keep an eye on him there.
"Alright, follow me Moonboy."
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"Pleeeeeease?" Hat Kid whined, hands clasped together as she stared at the Subconite in front of her with big, puppy dog eyes.
"Please let me go find Snatcher and Moonjumper?"
She was still stuck in Subcon Village and had been since she was carried here by the Subconites. The small shadows constantly blocked her and prevented her from leaving, but she did not give up and continued to try and leave.
Sneaking out had not worked, so she resorted to begging. Who could resist her adorableness?!
Apparently that was every Subconite.
The shadow in front of her sighed and shook her head. "Sorry newbie, but the Boss ordered us to keep you here until he came back, and even then I wouldn't let you go since I don't know this Moonjumper person."
"Yeah!" Another Subconite chimed in. "How do we know you're safe around this guy?! The Boss can travel through the shadows if he needs to, you can't!"
For a moment Hat Kid was taken aback at the concern the Subconites expressed. It was strange, ever since they had explained what auras were to her they had been more... affectionate? Attentive?
Rather than spitting out snide remarks like when she had first entered the village, now the Subconites engaged in proper conversations with her. Asking how her day had been, how many Time Pieces she had collected so far, and even if she needed any help getting her fuel back!
Oddly enough this started happening at the same time as Snatcher acting friendlier towards her. It was a weird coincidence.
"I just need to make sure Snatcher doesn't hurt Moonjumper." She exclaimed, throwing her hands up in the air as she spoke. "Moonjumper saved my life, so I need to make sure he's okay!"
Sure Moonjumper seemed a bit weird, and she had no idea who or what he actually was, but he was nice!
More muttering erupted from the crowd near her. While some Subconites agreed in letting the child return to Snatcher, they knew how he could get around someone who might be dangerous, the general consensus was to keep her at the village.
Hat Kid groaned and face palmed. Ugh, great! Now how was she supposed to make sure Snatcher did not hurt Moonjumper!?
Luckily enough her question was answer when a familiar voice shouted, breaking up the conversation and forcing everyone's attention on him.
"LISTEN UP EVERYONE!"
Immediately every Subconite spun and faced the entrance of the village where Snatcher floated, a faint grin on his face.
And Moonjumper was behind him!
The other floating figure had a huge smile on his face and was gleefully waving to the Subconites, chains rattling as he moved his arms. Once he caught sight of her, his smile grew even larger and he quickly floated his way over.
Or he tried to until Snatcher put his arm out and blocked him from moving.
"Alright, so Moonjumper here is gonna live in Subcon Village with you guys." Whispers immediately broke out once again. Snatcher allowed his subjects a couple moments to converse before he continued speaking.
"He's on probation, so if you see him doing anything suspicious tell me right away and I'll take care of it." A tenseness that had previously been in the air faded and was replaced by the feeling of relief.
The Subconites knew that if this, oddly familiar looking creature was dangerous that their Boss would take care of him. Since he was allowed to live near them it was a clear sign that they would be safe in his presence, or that if he did something to endanger them his punishment would be swift and severe.
Snatcher had never put any of his subjects in danger, and he was not about to start now!
With that the crowd began to disperse, some Subconites returning to their homes or the forest and others sticking around to observe their new neighbor. Said neighbor who seemed to be looking for someone...
There she was!
"Young hat wearing child!" Moonjumper called out, attracting Hat Kid's attention. "I am now your uncle!"
"What?!" The child shouted, confusion clearly etched across her face. The floating corpse, instead of answering, rushed over to her and eagerly scooped her up in his arms. He gleefully spun around, ignoring the shouting coming from the girl trapped in his arms.
Snatcher sighed. It looked like today was going to be a long day.
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AN: Moonjumper is a precious being who must be protected at all costs, and Snatcher has had an important realization!
Thank you guys for all of the follows, favs, and wonderful reviews! I'll see you in the next (angst filled) chapter!
