Here's the update for March, and it's earlier than normal, so there might be a chance for a double update this month! Either way, enjoy the chapter
5. An Introspective Moment on Perspective, Part 2: Clockwork
A cocky smirk took over Star's face as she walked up the stairs, "Did you really think you could beat me?"
Shrugging, Clockwork muttered out in defeat, "Before, I did, now, without a shadow of a doubt, I know I can't."
A Time Master racing against co-captain of the cheerleading squad and thinking they could win? Laughable at best.
Star's triumphant smirk grew wider as she leaned over on the railing of the stairs, "You know this means you owe me another meeting."
Clockwork gave Star a small smile, "I suppose it does. Was it not part of our deal?"
Her enthusiasm doubled, "Yeah! When do you think you'll come over?"
Someone's actually excited to meet them again? Someone actually likes them? Lewinski sounded excited, but looks can be deceiving. Realizing that she was still beaming at them, Clockwork realized that she was waiting for an answer. Raising their hand to their chin, they pretended to think, "Time is my mistress, I'll come whenever she permits. Or whenever I can sneak out my tower."
Clockwork reached over Star to open the front door, a rush of something running through them as they accidentally brushed up against Star. It felt… Great, and they thrived to feel it again. However, good things didn't happen to them, so they wrote it off as a fluke, full of false hope and lies.
"As for now, you have to go home." they said, trying to cover up the elation they had just felt.
Star looked between the door and Clockwork, a fond smile taking over. She's smiling at them, how can anyone stand to smile at them. "The last twelve hours have been pretty interesting. Or tiring, in your case," she laughed softly, causing Clockwork to realize how tired they were and suppress a yawn. "Don't be a stranger Clockwork!"
"I don't intend to be."
'She actually wants to see me again? Preposterous.'
She stepped in her doorway, Star flashing one last smile before entering her house, "Have a good rest, see you whenever."
"Whenever, Star," Clockwork parroted back, slowly descending down the steps hearing Star close the door behind her and knowing she was safe, home with the people who cared about her. "Whenever."
Clockwork slipped their hands in their pockets, looking left and right as they attempted to remember how they arrived at Star's house before ultimately deciding to turn left and resume walking.
After all, what was the worst that could happen?
"I honestly regret not looking at the names of the streets." complained Clockwork as they passed another house, "I'm lost in Amity Park. Perfect."
A hand gently clapped Clockwork's shoulder from behind, and they froze, not wanting to anger the stranger standing behind them.
"Are you lost child?" said the stranger, gently turning Clockwork so that the Time Master can face him.
Clockwork was quiet, silently eyeing the hands resting on their shoulders. "Would you mind removing your hands from my shoulders?" they were attempting to be firm yet unease tinged their voice, betraying their nervousness.
The stranger widened his purple eyes, apologizing as he took his hands off of the Time Master. "But I must wonder child, are you lost?" Asked the stranger again. "I could help you if you'd like?"
"That'd be nice."
He smiled, "I'm Caven, owner of Shadow Flowers Shoppe."
"Nice to meet you Mister-"
Caven held a hand up, "Just Caven, kid."
They messed up, Clockwork twiddled their thumbs, suddenly finding the concrete more interesting as they simply waited for Caven to yell at them, hit them, to do something since they messed up. A full minute had passed and Clockwork looked up at Caven with confusion. Why didn't he do anything?
"So you find me more interesting than the ground? Knew you'd come around!" Joked Caven, pulling his hair back into a tight bun. "For a minute there, I thought I had some competition. Anyways, I can't keep calling you kid, what's your name?"
"It's not important," Clockwork shot back.
Caven's smile fell, "Of course it is!"
"No it isn't," they repeated again, grinding their teeth in irritation.
Realizing that he wasn't to worm an answer out of the child, Caven simply gave up, "Fine, I'll call you Bonnie."
"Sure, if that's what you want," came the dismissive response, watching with hesitation as Caven disappeared inside the flower shop, walking back out with several flower pots in his arms. He sat them down on the ground, happily striding back to where Bonnie was. Caven raised his hand, purple eyes widening slightly when he saw the child flinch back away from him. Did the child really think he was going to hurt them? Bonnie still kept eyeing the raised hand warily, even as Caven gestured towards the shop.
Caven plastered a smile on his face, praying that Bonnie wouldn't catch on to his suspicions. "I have to go out and make some deliveries, I was wondering if you wouldn't mind helping me load my cart?"
Clockwork glanced over to the cart, now fiddling with the pocket of their hood. They were already late going home, so what did it matter going a little bit later then they were expecting?
"Why not?" Came the tenacious reply.
The florist smiled, heading over to the his cart, gesturing for Clockwork to come over. Doing so cause Caven to launch into what exactly he wanted them to do. Pick up flower pots, carry them outside, place them on the cart. Rinse. Repeat.
Besides, it wasn't that hard. It wouldn't even take them that long to do it, so what harm was there in helping out?
"Bonnie, where are you from?" Caven asked as he lifted a flower pot filled with sunflowers and tulips, wedging it into two flower pots.
Bonnie stopped in their tracks, picking up a flower pot and heading over to the flower cart, "What does it matter to you?"
Caven frowned slightly, "Depending on where you came from, I was going to tell you which is the best way to get you home, whether it's by car, train-"
"I won't need a train for where I'm going."
"Well, why not?"
"I just don't," Bonnie snapped out.
"Oh, okay," Caven said. "Bonnie, I'd hate to intrude on your personal life but I have to know… Are you being treated okay at home?"
Bonnie began to shake in anger, and Caven knew he had crossed a line.
"What do you care? Why do you want to know?" They seethed, hands balling into tight fists.
"I thought I could-"
"Help? Help me?" Bonnie hissed out, "You can't and you won't, so why don't you just BUTT OUT!"
Caven glanced out of the corner of his eye to make sure that he wasn't causing a scene. He glanced back to the child seething angrily in front of him, wondering what he should do next. "Bonnie, you don't know that for certain!" He replied, worry coloring his voice.
"Yes I do! I know that for certain!" Bonnie screeched, their grip on the flower pot tightening. "There's absolutely nothing you can do so stop trying!"
A sharp shatter pierced the florist's ears. Looking down, he saw the broken flower pot, dirt scattered across Bonnie's sneakers. Slowly, Caven looked up, looking directly into their petrified brown eyes; setting down the flower pot that he was holding, he took a step towards the child.
"Bonnie-"
"I didn't mean to break it, honest!" Panic took over, Bonnie's breathing quickened, yet they still stood there as if they waiting for something.
Shaking his head with a gentle, reassuring smile, Caven took another step towards Bonnie, "I can always replace flower pots-"
A black and white blur crashed into him and Bonnie, a collective oomph could be heard from the three as they were knocked back into the flower cart, destroying everything on it. Several seconds of silence passed before a head full of snow white hair popped up from the mess of broken flower pots, dirt and dented cart. The boy turned around, emerald green eyes glowing radiantly, intensifying the mischievous grin that formed when he saw two other people emerge from the mess.
"I guess this shows how down-to-earth I am, huh?" Was all that he said.
Caven only looked down at the mess that was once his cart. "You better be prepared to prove to me how down to earth you are when you help me clean up this mess, Phantom." Sparing a quick glimpse of Bonnie, releasing a breath he didn't know he held when he saw that Bonnie was in fact alright, only escaping with a few minor scratches marring their skin.
Phantom tilted his head in confusion, pursing his lips in a thin line. "Help?" He repeated.
"Yes, help. You cause a mess, you clean it up." Caven snapped out. "Is that a problem for our residential Friendly Ghost?"
The boy's green eyes widened, shaking his head vigorously, white hair bouncing as he did so. "Don't be mistaken sir! I have no problem helping you clean this up!" He turned himself intangible, floating above the broken mess, turned off the intangibility and helped Caven and Bonnie get out of the pile.
Caven nodded in approval, muttering out a 'thank-you' to Phantom, stepping inside the his shop, leaving the two teens out on the sidewalks by themselves.
"Don't leave," he ordered, leaning out of the door, before retreating back inside the shop.
It's been five minutes since Caven left the two teenagers outside so that he could do who knows what; an uncomfortable silence took over the two teenagers while they waited for the florist to return.
"So what's your name?" Phantom blurted out, reaching out his hand in a kind gesture.
Phantom watched as the other teen eyed the hand warily, before tentatively shaking his hand. "Bonnie, apparently."
"Isn't that a-"
"Girl's name? Don't know, don't care," came Bonnie's quick retort. "If you're going to laugh, then do it for all I care."
A wry grin replaced the frown from earlier, "I wasn't going to laugh, but the florist does have a sense of humor. Bonnie is also the name of this large purple bunny robot in this horror game who can kill the player," Phantom smirked, "Needless to say, it might be a little fitting. I'm sure there's plenty of badassery in you."
Bonnie gave a non-committal hum, "Whatever you say."
"Seriously! Cute but totally able to murder someone!" Phantom asserted, "Girls and guys dig the 'looks like a cinnamon roll but will actually kill you' type of thing."
"Of course they do."
Phantom jutted out his bottom lip in a pout, turning away from Bonnie, whining, "You're patronizing me."
Bonnie tucked some of their hair behind their ear, blurting suddenly, "I'm not."
"You're being dismissive," he pointed out, "I may not be the smartest ghost around but I can tell when people when don't want to talk to me. If you don't want to, just say that, but don't lead me on."
"I wasn't being- It doesn't matter, if that's what you think then fine."
Green eyes widened at the dejected statement, maybe he had been too judgemental, too rash. Stretching a hand out, "Um. Could you maybe finish your statement? I was curious as to what you were saying," he muttered out bashfully.
Bonnie snapped out, "Why? It's not going to change how you think of me." They turned away from Phantom, voice hardening with bitterness. "It doesn't change how anyone thinks of me and it never does me any good to explain myself."
The hero flew around Bonnie so that the two teenageers were facing one another, "Look Bonnie, I'm sorry. I judged you too harshly, that wasn't really cool of me. Can you give me another chance?"
Bonnie stared into Phantom's pleading eyes, "I… Suppose I can give you another chance."
Phantom hollered in joy, soon rubbing his back nervously when the other teen rose an eyebrow at the unexpected enthusiasm.
"Thank you. I really don't get a chance to have a second chance with other people," Phantom explained, leaning in towards Bonnie, he tilted his head in curiousity. "Although, you never explained to me-"
A derisive huff interrupted him, "I'm just not really a social person, don't really talk to people and I have no idea how to hold a conversation. It's not you, it's me being an idiot."
"I don't think-" Once again Phantom had been interrupted as Caven kicked the door of his flower shop open, dust bunnies nesting in his hair, clothes ruffled. In short, the florist looked a hot mess.
"Apparently the brooms were hiding?" Caven offered with a sheepish smile.
Seeing as that failed to get a reaction from the two teens, he simply shoved a broom into each of their hands and the three began to sweep. A comfortable silence formed as they swept. After almost 3 hours had passed, Bonnie, Phantom and Caven managed to sweep up the dirt and broken flower pots into trash bags, dump the trash bags into a dumpster, and tip the flower cart to stand upright. Caven stepped back to view the work the three had done, smiling at the two teenagers and thanking Bonnie and Phantom for helping him.
Bonnie looked up, brown eyes widening when they saw the sun beginning to set. "I have to go," they said suddenly, twiddling with their pockets when they were meet with befuddled looks from Phantom and Caven, "I can't miss dinner?"
Phantom's green eyes widened as well, "Shit, I have to go too."
Caven stayed silent and watched as Bonnie and Phantom dashed away, Bonnie took a sharp turn a block down the street while Phantom jumped into flight, both teens disappearing from his sight. The florist picked up the brooms the teens left behind, stepping inside the flower shop, closing it it up for the night.
However, he couldn't make the worry gnawing at his stomach go away.
See you later this month or in April for chapter 6! Please Read and Review and feedback is greatly appreciated!