Prince of Heart- ayy, little tidbit of info: I actually hated Eridan my first read-through of Homestuck. But then I kinda got into him as a character (and by get into him I mean become completely obsessed) on my second read-through after hearing the song 'Ugly Story'- check it out if you haven't! Seriously, it's pretty good!
Karkat was the first to rush through the door to the roof, eager to see whatever Terezi was doing up here, followed by Kanaya and Sollux, and finally Eridan. As Eridan stepped out into the roof, he saw Kanaya and Sollux stopped in front of him, obscuring his view. He cautiously stepped beside them, and pulled his attention away from them in favour of the scene that lay out before them. Eridan let out an audible 'oh' as he saw Vriska's lifeless body sprawled out on the floor, a pool of her blue blood around her. Terezi stood over her, her cane sword unsheathed and covered with the Thief's blood, with diluted Teal tears running down her face. Karkat attempted to say something to her, but instead opted to just tap her on the shoulder. She turned to face him, and Karkat gave her a look of genuine concern, before Terezi closed the gap between them and wrapped her arms around him. Eridan could've sworn he saw the two share a kiss, but was unsure from the distance, so he just dismissed it.
He passed Kanaya, prompting her to watch him as he did, and he made his way past Terezi and Karkat, whom were still embracing. He heard a couple of tid-bits from their whispers, notably 'SH3 M4D3 M3, 1 H4D TO…' and 'DON'T THINK ABOUT, THERE WAS NOTHING YOU COULD DO." Though he paid no attention to it, as he stood over Vriska's body, the blood still spilling out around her. Eridan saw his shoes become covered with the stuff, though he made no effort to avoid it as he knelt beside her body, and tilted his head down.
He heard a voice speak up behind him, "What Are You Doing?"
Eridan kept his head down as he replied, "payin my respects."
Kanaya placed her hand on her hip, "Respects? But I Thought You Two Disliked Each Other."
Eridan sighed, "i knoww, but i… i dont knoww. i guess i feel kinda bad for her. vvris didnt deservve a death like this."
"Why Do You Care About Her Death? You Were Planning On Killing Her Yourself Minutes Ago, Weren't You?"
"it's wweird. i shouldnt, but its like i still respected her. and respectin is a wwhole lot different than likin." Eridan turned his head towards her. "i guess, if i killed her, i wwouldvve gotten some satisfaction with knowin that i got the last laugh, and she wwouldvve gotten a noble and dignified death. but it just seems like she was stabbed wwhen her back wwas turned. She nevver stood a chance."
Eridan looked back towards the ground, and a single Violet tear fell down his cheek. "kan, wwhy cant i just care for someone wwithout them leavvin me? do i just bore them? am i too intense? vvris and i had a good thing goin in our FLARPin days, but then she just left. wwas i that pathetically clingy? i guess i cant blame her, or fef, or the shipper girl for hating me wwhen im just some pathetic excuse for royalty. fef had the right idea, and evveryone lovved her- maybe if hadnt been such a murderous psychopath, maybe things coulda wworked out for us. but i just cant help it, i wwas taught to be like this, and i dont knoww if i can change. i think i passed that point a long time ago."
Eridan stood up, and turned to the Sylph. He wiped away the stain that the tear had made against his face with the sleeve of his shirt.
"wwhy didnt you kill me, kan?" he plead, "you had no reason not to, so wwhy the fuck didnt you do it?"
Kanaya stood there for a second, her mouth hanging open slightly and her hand under her chin in thought, before answering, "As I Previously Said, I'm Not You. I Don't Want To Solve My Problems With Cold Blooded Murder."
Eridan scoffed, "is it really considered murder if its justified? cause i wwoulda called it justice. all the things i did today, and somehoww im still goin. fuck, maybe gam was right. Maybe there are miracles in this wworld. next thing i knoww, its gonna turn out that magic is real too."
He made a soft clicking noise with his mouth, and held out a hand to Kanaya. "could i please havve my cape back?"
Kanaya looked at him, disgusted. "You're Really Asking Me That? Why Would You Even Want To Wear It Anymore?"
Eridan pouted at her, and his eyes almost seemed to sparkle. "not to wwear kan. i wwanna covver her body with it. it seems kinda disrespectful to leavve her body lying out here."
Kanaya opened her mouth in protest, wanting to mention Feferi's corpse still in the computer room, but instead closed it and sighed. She unwrapped the cape from around her torso, revealing the small and gaping hole that allowed Eridan to look right through her, and held it out to Eridan. Eridan looked at her for a moment, surprised that she didn't just chuck it at him, but eventually took it from her. He gave her a nod in return, and knelt back down beside Vriska. Luckily his cape was a few inches longer than him, so it managed to cover Vriska's body entirely. It really sucked for him, being short.
"you knoww she didnt knoww you liked her?" Eridan suddenly said. "she still thought that you liked tavv. you shoulda said somethin, you knoww?" Eridan chuckled, though it was obviously forced, as he then gave a weary sigh, before turning to Kanaya. "kan, do you think i should just… i dont knoww… kill myself before i hurt any others?"
Kanaya's eyes opened widely at the question, but before she could answer, a noise was heard from behind them. A noise that sounded vaguely like a…
Honk.
There he was. The Purple blood, Gamzee. Eridan nearly jumped out of his skin, but stumbled back in fright. In front of him, Terezi and Karkat's attention had turned to Gamzee as well, but Sollux looked around confusedly in search of the source of the sound. Gamzee stepped forward, a small smile on his scratched face and brown blood around his mouth.
"HONK MOTHERFUCKIN' HONK motherfuckers," he screamed, though the last word was spoken in a normal tone. "LISTEN TO MY requests, YOU BLASPHEMOUS friends of mine. I AM LOOKING to get my MOTHERFUCKIN' kill on WITH A VERY SPECIFIC blue blooded fairy. I WANT TO SEE HER, if i may?"
No-one answered for a few seconds, before Eridan stood to the side. "uh, terezi already beat you to it."
Gamzee's smile disappeared. "WHAT, MOTHERFUCKIN' what? I DIDNT EVEN GET to avenge my dear, departed flushed bro TAVROS? well, then," he pulled his juggling clubs from his inventory, "I GUESS YOU GUYS will have to motherfuckin' do."