Notes: The only reason I updated this soon is thanks to one lovely reader. Everyone thank Eternal Darkness 96! Please vote on my poll as well! Have a wonderful whatever you celebrate.
Warning: A few sexual innuendos if you know where to look.
Rated: T as usual.
Updated: December 23rd 2012
Those of False Innocence Chapter 12
Ring
It had never been Oz's forte to deal with a type of situation like the one he had been dealt, but he tried to the best of his ability to do so anyway. Instead of the amusement he had expected to feel, at the sight of his friends atop a once furious, currently terrified chain, Oz felt immensely befuddled. How was one to react to such a sight?
Trying, and failing to hide his confusion, Oz slid his eyes over the still forms of his friends, and he took it upon himself to wonder why exactly they were so still at all. He took into account the two at his side, but then remembered they had already met his friends after all, so what reason then gave them silence?
Looking at Break, Oz's eyes narrowed, himself unconscious of the action. The clown did look exactly the same after all, and Chesh had told him that at least a decade had passed…
Cheshire would not lie to him, was Oz's conclusion. Break had to have had some reason for his appearance, but Oz found he wasn't particularly interested. The same was for Sharon. Both were obviously still exhilarated from their ride on the Chain, but Break seemed to care less about hiding it.
Break stared at Oz, his eyes not missing the bloodied bandage on the boy's head, and his mouth broke out into a wide grin.
"Been a while, ne?"
Oz stared at him, and felt Cheshire's arm tighten around his waist. Forcing the air into his lungs, Oz confusedly replied.
"…What?"
Break tisked at him, and jumped off the back of the Chain, before striding over to Oz, Sharon and Gil in tow.
"Now now Oz. What's got your mind all twisted?" Break took in the closeness of Oz and Cheshire's bodies, and his grin morphed into a smirk, "Ah, so the kid wasn't lying after all."
Cheshire immediately turned red, but didn't move from his spot at Oz's side, nor did he react more, his worry that him moving might hurt Oz being more powerful than his embarrassment.
Oz looked up at him, confused, "…What?"
Break sighed, "Is that all you can say Oz? And after we went all this way…" Break gasped, fake surprise on his face, "Oh! But we haven't introduced ourselves yet!"
Oz glared at him, previous thoughts of enjoying the reunion discarded, "I already know who you are, Break."
Break grinned, "And the lost child speaks properly again." Emily joined in, "Damned brat!"
Ignoring the doll's outburst, Oz started to memorize the faces of his friends. It might be the last time he got to see any of them, after all. When he reached Gil, his expression loosened. The boy really had changed.
"Hey Gil."
Break clapped merrily, "Hehe Gilbert~ Look's like your master saw through you!"
Gilbert flushed angrily, before taking it upon himself to examine his lost friend. Oz was standing straight, but his face held barely concealed pain. Immediately worried for his friend Gil looked for any sign of a wound, and his eyes landed on the bandages on the boys forehead. Gilbert flinched in surprise, then immediately found himself fussing over the boy.
"You're hurt! What happened? Are you alright? Does it hurt? Are you-" He continued questioning Oz, and flailing his hands around the bandages, but never actually touching them. Cheshire's arm tensed on Oz's waist, and Oz reached a hand behind him, comfortingly touching it. Cheshire calmed down, but Oz saw out of the corner of his eye that he was torn between glaring at Gil, or Break.
Oz giggled quietly at the sight, and the small sound made Gil pause, "What's so funny?"
Oz smiled at him, pushing his previous disappointment at the sour nature of the reunion fully out of his mind. He hadn't expected to be so unhappy at the sight of his friends. He then looked to Break, "How did you get here? What did you do?"
Break hummed, "Oh, a little of this, a little of that, but more importantly," he pointed at Oz , "What are you," he gestured around him and bounced back on his heels, "still doing in here?"
Oz thought for a moment, unsure as how to answer the loaded question, but was spared when Cecil talked for him, "As I said before, Oz wants to stay with us." Oz smiled at him, the pain he was hiding causing him to pant lightly.
Gil seemed to become immediately enraged, but his face held hurt as he looked at Oz, "You re-really want to stay with them!?" He pointed shaking at Cheshire, "He's a cat! Why would you want to stay with a CAT!?"
Oz blinked at the sudden emotional outburst from his friend, and snickered quietly to himself at the appearance of his friends old personality, "Gil, still scared of cats huh?"
Gil blushed, then crossed his arms and turned away, "Th-that's not the point!" Break openly snickered at him, making him more irritated, "Oz," He crossed his arms, "Why do you want to stay? Are they…" he gestured to Cheshire and Cecil, "are they forcing you to stay?"
Immediately, Oz felt himself become enraged, and his fists clenched at his sides. He knew he shouldn't have been so mad but… Gil had no right! He had absolutely no right to judge the only people who cared about him in this place! Feeling Oz tense, Cheshire looked down at him concerned, and spoke with his mind.
'Oz, you need to calm down. Your body doesn't have the energy to do this.' Cecil heard the statements as well, and squeezed Oz's shoulder comfortingly. Gil took it as a sign of ownership, and he scowled, much to Break's amusement.
Indeed, Oz felt the burden already taking a toll on his body. He seemed to struggle for air, the stress on his body slowly taking its toll. He panted harder, and Cheshire's hand clenched and moved so his whole arm was visible supporting the small boy. Oz nudged him gratefully, and forced himself to calmly answer the initial question. "It's been ten years… Gil. Whose still waiting for me over there?"
Gil didn't even hesitate, "Oscar are Ada miss you terribly! Would you abandon them!? That's stupid!"
Oz whimpered quietly, "I wouldn't abandon…"
"They love you Oz! They want you back! I want you back too! Why would you choose some stupid cat over the people who love you? Don't be an idiot!"
Oz flinched, and he looked down, "…an idiot…"
Cheshire tightened his grip, and growled quietly at Gilbert, who took a step back. Seeing his masters devastated face, Gil's heart dropped in guilt, "I didn't mean…"
Break put a hand on his shoulder, "That's enough Gilbert." Then he smiled, "I don't know about you, but I don't want to have my head cut off by that stupid cat."
Startled, Gil's head shot up and he flinched at the glare Cheshire was fixing him with. Emily laughed, "Nehehe! Stupid Mutt! Let him be eaten by the Kitty Cat!"
Gil turned to glare at Break, "Now's not the time to be fooling around Break!" Break just grinned.
"I didn't say anything~"
Oz stared at the water swirling around his feet, suddenly extremely interested in why he could not hear the liquid as it moved. Slowly, as he tried to drown out the sound of Break and Gil bickering, Oz became aware of another sound. A ringing sound.
Looking up slowly, Oz's eyes flickered around, trying to pinpoint the location of the ringing, until he realized the sound had drown out the sound of everyone's voices. Reaching up with one hand to touch his ear, a bewildered expression crossed his face.
He felt Cheshire shift next to him, and looked up to see Cheshire's worried face. His mouth didn't move but Oz knew he was trying to communicate with him, figure out what was wrong. When it didn't work, he saw Cheshire's mouth move, and saw that Break and Gil had stopped fighting, and were watching him curiously. He found he couldn't move. That he didn't want to move.
Cecil was at his other side, and Oz saw that he was talking as well, but the ringing was to loud. He couldn't hear anything.
And then the ringing was gone, and Oz was moving.
The metallic clang of weapon against weapon evaporated the atmosphere, and with it came a violent laugh.
"What do you think you're doing, brother!?"
Eyes widened as everyone say what had occurred. Oz had, within a second, moved to block an attack with his own scythe.
Oz glared daggers at the attacker, all his anger at Gil now directed at her.
"Leave them alone, Alice!"
Break's one eye widened, and he grinned widely, "Alice…"
Gil and Sharon looked at Oz, shocked at his inhuman ferocity, and only stared as Cheshire and Cecil appeared at his side, Cheshire armed with his claws, Cecil with a bloody knife; Sharon was startled to realize it was the very same one that she had been stabbed with.
One of Oz's eyes squinted, "Where's Alyss?"
Alice smiled madly at him, "Why are you protecting them brother? You know they don't care about you. Not like we do~."
Oz's seal immediately pulsed in response to her words, and he bit his lip against the pleasure coming from it. Friends didn't do this… Siblings didn't do this… Seeing him tense, Alice grinned, causing the seal to vibrate harder.
Oz bit his lip so hard it bled, the crimson fluid ran down his chin. Cheshire growled at Alice, "What are you doing to him!?"
Alice snickered madly, before glaring at him, "Something you could never do, Cheshie~"
Before Cheshire had a chance to react, Cecil lunged at Alice, attacking her skillfully with his small dagger. Dodging easily, Alice swung at him with her scythe, cutting a thin, shallow line across his torso. He hissed quietly in pain, before jumping back to where Cheshire was glaring at him.
"You idiot! Don't attack her without a plan!" Cecil held gingerly onto his chest.
"Y-yeah. I'll take that into consideration next time."
Seeing his friend in pain, Cheshire forgot everything about his old relationship with the girls. Anything that had been holding him back from protecting his friends was gone.
He hated those girls, and they would pay for all they had done.
He wouldn't let them hurt his Oz anymore.
Even if it killed him.
And in the background, Oz's old friends only watched.
Hey everyone, so I'm thinking of starting a new story on the game, Slender. It would be like Goosebumps, like where the reader can choose what happens by saying so in the reviews. Example- 'Do you try and climb the fence, or do you venture around the forest' would be the last sentence in a chapter, and the next chapter's first sentence would start with your choice from the last.
Sound good?
Also thanks again to Eternal Darkness 96 for being wonderful and taking the time to contact me during their holiday break. I love talking to all of you, and if any of you ever need to vent or anything, I will never judge you. I'll only help.
Have a Merry Christmas everybody! And if you don't celebrate Christmas, Happy Holidays! : )
