summary: they all know AntiSepticEye is both calculating and unpredictable. they don't know enough.
It turned out Anti and company didn't have to rob another store to turn on their fancy smartphones: they found a tiny mini-grocery three blocks away from where they emerged from the alley.
The floor tiles and shelves were slightly grimy, and the mini-grocery smelled of something damp, but it was brightly-lit and manned by one bored-looking teenage goth girl who only gave them a glance before turning her attention back to a gossip magazine.
Mare looked over the glass display of muffins, doughnuts, and sandwiches on the counter. "Boy, all this excitement has made hungry."
Right. Anti had already grabbed a coffee and a doughnut from the coffeehouse, but the others were so busy scrambling around, they forgot to get breakfast. "You guys should buy something to eat before you all fall over."
Dark side-eyed Mad. "Yes, buy something."
Mad rolled his eyes. "I can hear you, Dark."
Anti sighed. Being elder demons with human emotions, worsened by their intense natures, was quickly becoming a bitch.
Personally, Anti couldn't care less about how they got the phones. It was actually kind of fun, running away from the old man from the tech store; he wanted to yell back, "SCREW YOU, BILLY!" but he decided, back then, that he didn't want to get shot, again.
But he understood why Dark was pissed. It was something that came up during their argument back at the pit stop motel: he and Dark were both proud control freaks (and so were Mare and Mad, though they didn't show it as much). They each had their talents, and they didn't like those talents getting pushed aside. Dark was good at diplomacy, Anti at combat; obviously Mare beat them all at music, and Mad at science. Back at the tech store, Dark could've turned the odds to their favor with a few choice words.
Mad had a point, though. Hell, he always had a good point, what the fuck was Anti saying? They had limited time, money, and places to hide. If they didn't get their asses into gear, they could just kiss their hard-earned freedom goodbye.
So Anti sighed, and though he loved chaos in general, decided he didn't want the two most responsible people in their group to be in a fight. He declared, "Dark, you're angry 'cause Mad blew off your authority, when you never had any -"
Dark opened his mouth, but Anti held up a hand to indicate he wasn't done. "- but Mad, what you pulled was a dick move, anyway, 'cause you just sprung it on us, so can you two morons sit down over there -"
Anti waved a hand to a nearby plastic table with four chairs, continuing, "- and talk this out? Your passive-aggressive war is getting on my nerves."
Anti could feel Mare staring at him, so he turned and snapped, "What?"
"Dude, are you angry," Mare began, "because they're angry at each other?"
"Is that a problem?" Anti asked.
Mare blew out a breath and chuckled. "No. I'm just glad I'm not the only one. I'm just too hungry to say anything." He looked back at the food display.
"Then get something, idiot." Anti turned back to Dark and Mad, who stared at him like he grew two heads. "Well?"
Mad held up his hands. "Okay, I'm sitting down. Just get me a Diet Coke, if they have it." He turned and made his way towards the table.
Anti turned and raised an eyebrow at Dark, who shrugged. "You made it sound like we're children." He left before Anti could reply, and followed Mad.
"You think they're going to be okay?" Mare asked.
Anti nodded. "If Dark and I haven't killed each other by now, and we haven't killed you, then they'll be fine."
Anti didn't have to turn to know Mare was giving him a look. "Sure, if you say so," Mare said. "I'll grab food for them, anyway. You want anything?"
Anti shook his head, but a row of colorful prepaid SIM card packets caught his eye. "We need those for our phones, right?"
Mare glanced over at what Anti was staring at. "Oh, yeah, we do. I'll get them too, they don't look like they cost much."
The goth girl behind the counter raised an eyebrow when Anti and Mare asked her how to activate their phones, but she showed them anyway, and even explained how to use some of the apps, all in a flat, bored tone.
By the time Anti and Mare got to the table - Mare with a tray of three different sandwiches and soft drink cans, Anti with the SIM card packets - it seemed like Dark and Mad were no longer angry with each other. Or at least, they weren't glaring across the table at each other with too much murderous intent.
While Mare set down the tray on the table and sat next to Mad, Anti tossed the packets on the table and slid on the seat next to Dark. "Use those for your phones," Anti explained.
After some lengthy explanations between looking for and downloading phone videogames and heavy-metal rock music, Anti exchanged numbers with the other three, who finished their breakfast. They then collectively decided that it was time to get the other things they needed before finding a car.
So they asked for directions to a local mini-mall from the mini-grocery's goth girl. The mini-mall was quite far, but they could manage it, as long as they sticked to the hidden shortcuts the goth girl indicated.
Now they stood inside the mini-mall, an off-white structure three stories high and five blocks wide, with some walls replaced by glass and showcasing various merchandise. Large, brightly-lit letters adorned the top of the walls, advertising the names of the stores. When they entered, they were greeted by a blast of cold, clean-scented air, compared to the humid outside. They weren't that many people to crowd the mini-mall, but it was still quite noisy, with salespeople calling out customers and selling their wares.
Anti squinted at all the lights and colors. "Damn, it's so bright here."
Dark eyed the nearest glass display with barely-concealed disgust. "Why do those exist?" he whispered, mostly to himself.
They all turned at what he was looking at: a row of mannequins wearing various suits and dresses. "Why, do those suits offend you or something?" Mare asked.
Dark shook his head. "No, the suits are fine. It's just... never mind." He seemed to shudder, but maybe that was just Anti's imagination.
Mad pulled out his phone. "Signal's weak, but we can manage. If anybody gets lost, we can meet up again at the entrance."
Mare looked around the mini-mall. "I don't think we can get lost that easily in here."
Anti opened his mouth to point out all the ways they could get lost - but left it hanging open when his eye caught sight of a stall selling various jars of candies, and, oh, yes -
"COOKIES!" he screamed, and with a flash-step he instantly stood in front of the stall, face to face with its display of sweet confectioneries. He distantly registered Dark yelling something, and the stall's saleswoman yelping off to the side, but he ignored them in favor of grabbing a jar of classic chocolate chip cookies, and tucking it close to his chest.
"U-uhm, s-sir," the saleswoman was saying, "that would be three dollars -"
"I'll take it," Anti interrupted, holding the jar up and pressing his nose close to the glass. He could see every delicious-looking crumb of the cookies. He could almost taste them in his mouth -
"No," Dark's voice intoned, interrupting Anti's cookie heaven. "No no no no no no. We are not buying that."
NOPE, NOT HAPPENING. Anti turned and glared at Dark, who had caught up with him and glared back.
"Guys, we're just going to go ahead," Anti heard Mad announce from somewhere behind Dark. "We'll be at a clothing store."
Dark then rolled his eyes, and reached out a hand. "Anti, get a hold of yourself, it's just -"
NO, NOBODY CAN TAKE ANTI'S COOKIES AWAY FROM HIM. "Buy these cookies, or I'm killing everyone here," Anti growled, keeping a tight grip on the cookie jar.
Dark huffed. "You're bluffing."
Anti didn't blink. "I'm not."
The saleswoman gulped next to them, but Dark only looked up at the ceiling and groaned. "Anti, we don't have the money for that!"
"It's only three dollars!" Anti reasoned.
Dark began clenching his hands in front of himself. "You're acting like a child!"
Anti then decided enough was enough. "I'm walking out of here with these cookies, one way or another. You can try to stop me, but you will fail."
"UGH, WHY AM I STUCK WITH YOU?" Dark screamed, pulling on his hair. "YOU'RE FUCKING UNREASONABLE!"
Anti shrugged. "Because Mare, Mad, and I are the only friends you have?"
They both fell silent at this statement, Dark looking as shocked as Anti felt.
Shit, what the hell did Anti say? Friends? No, friends were weaknesses, people who made you need them, until they left you behind. And Anti didn't need friends; Dark certainly wasn't his friend. Nope, they were just using each other for convenience, just as they were using and being used by Mare and Mad. Once the four of them reached a city large enough to influence, they will all inevitably turn on each other.
No, that's not true, a voice in his head said, a voice that sounded like Sean. It goes both ways. They're the only ones we have.
WHAT THE FUCK.
Anti grabbed his head, shaking away the voice, but realized that he had let go of the cookie jar. Too confused to move, he watched it fall to the floor -
- and into Dark's open hands. Dark straightened up, cradling the cookie jar, an unreadable frown on his face.
"I'm sorry," Anti whispered, so quiet he could barely hear himself. But he didn't know what exactly he was apologizing for.
Dark did his habitual head-tilt again. "You're not okay." It wasn't a question.
"I'm sorry," Anti repeated, before he could stop himself. He felt as if he had lost control of his body, and it was moving on its own.
Dark looked at him for a moment, then sighed. "I suppose cookies can't hurt." He turned to the saleswoman, who had gone pale. "We'll take this, please."
"O-okay," the saleswoman, and she moved behind the stall to type at the cash register.
Dark handed back the cookie jar to Anti, who took his hands off his head to gently hold it.
"I suppose we are all children," Dark mused. "We are newborns to this human existence. Nothing from our world could have prepared us for...this."
Did Dark know? Did he also experience the echoes of his host? The ghostly voice, snatches of memories in his mind's eye, a burning emotion in history chest that he couldn't explain?
The confusion must have showed on Anti's face, because Dark glanced at him and gave a small, almost comforting smile. "We can talk about this later, but for now, let's find a map."
Anti only nodded, tucking the jar under his chin again.
a/n: i apologize for taking an early hiatus; no, i have not abandoned this fic. i just had to deal with fixing plot holes, handling academic requirements, getting flu-like symptoms, and meeting up with some old friends.
speaking of which, raise your hand if you felt personally victimized by Mark and Jack for the past week.
also, i'm wrong again. i think i need two more chapters before the first act ends. however, soon i'll post an extra chapter from the pov of either Natemare or MadPat.