Day 10
The sun had just began to rise, marking the tenth day of the journey. The fact that the sun was rising right at this moment of tension reminded Karkat of yesterday, when Sollux had been eaten just as the sun had risen. Now they were faced with another situation, and he couldn't wait to see how this played out.
"K-kan? I-is that you?" Eridan asked shakily. Kanaya nodded slowly, still cautiously looking at him.
"I-it's been a-awhile now, hasn't it?" Kanaya answered. She slowly floated forward toward him, hesitating along the way.
"It's okay Kan. I can't hurt you now. I can't hurt anyone now." he said. Nobody had noticed his knees shake intensely, until they buckled from underneath him, and he just sat there, trying to hold back ghastly tears. Kanaya then strode forward with full confidence, bent down, and hugged him tightly. He quietly let tears stream down his cheeks as Kanaya held him.
"I forgive you Eridan." she whispered. Karkat sat back and watched the whole thing unfold, thinking that it was interesting how Kanaya could forgive so easily. She'd make a great mother. But although it seemed that she had forgiven him, he still wondered what he had to be sorry for.
"I hate to ruin the moment, but why does Kanaya know Eridan?" Karkat asked. Everyone in the group nodded in agreement to his question. Kanaya stood, and explained.
"Eridan was the one who shot me in the school shooting." Kanaya stated simply. There was a large gasp from the group. Jade still couldn't get over the fact that a kid her age would bring something dangerous to a group of innocent children. Well maybe "innocent" was the wrong word for most of them, but the rest did nothing wrong. Or did they? Jade didn't know anymore. She just sat back and watched Feferi talk to Eridan about the whole thing, and looked up at the rising sun hidden beneath the ugly gray clouds.
And she realized something.
Jade turned away from the group and frowned as she realized just how homesick she was. She missed Beq and grandpa, and her Internet friends. Especially Dave. She couldn't get the image of him crying out of her mind. Everything was just so unreal.
"...you alright?" she heard someone ask. She turned to look at Karkat.
"I'm sorry, I didn't catch that."
"I said, are you alright?" he asked again. She nodded.
"This whole adventure just is wearing me out." she said. Karkat came closer and hugged her.
"Don't worry, we'll get to wherever we're going soon." And then, without thinking, Karkat placed a small kiss on Jade's head, which surprised her. If ghosts could blush, Karkat's face would've been as red as a tomato at that point. But Jade only looked at him and laughed. Then, she returned the kiss, on his nose this time. This would've made Karkat blush so hard his head might've popped off. Jade giggled.
"Well c'mon you two, are we gonna find this way to the otherside or what?" Eridan called back at them. They both rushed forward, rejoining the group. It had seemed that Eridan and Feferi were the newest members of the group, which meant they had to answer what was dubbed as the 'important question' by the group.
"So Feferi and Eridan, how did you two die?" Nepeta asked.
"Well I was washed away in the sea." Feferi admitted sheepishly. The group then noticed that she had a tank top on, with a swimsuit underneath.
"Well that's not so bad." Karkat said. Feferi shook her head.
"Actually, it was on my part. I was a junior lifeguard, and I was practicing saving a dummy drowning. Instead, I was the one who drowned." she said, giving a sad smile. She comforted by Nepeta and Aradia while the rest asked Eridan what happened to him.
This probably seems really insensitive of me to think, but Eridan probably killed himself after the shooting. Karkat thought as Eridan explained.
"Well after the shootin, I felt miserable about killin everybody. So, I killed myself." he said quietly. Nobody seemed surprised by this answer. But before everybody could move on, Aradia suddenly collapsed. She wailed in agony as she clutched her head, as if she was having the worst migraine known to man.
"Aradia, no!" Nepeta shrieked as she tried to shake Aradia. No luck. But the cat girl didn't even have to shake her again, for suddenly Aradia's eyes lit up with a light blue glow. It had seemed she was possessed. She began to speak.
"Children of the afterlife, hear my speech. If you wish to go to the otherside, you'll follow your friend." the deep voiced possessor said in an eerie tone. The group wasn't sure if they could trust the man, but they were afraid that if they didn't, Aradia would be sent to Hell, or someplace worse. They also wondered if the voice actually meant what it said about taking them to the otherside. This may have been their lucky break.