Sorry about the wait, once again. Life got in the way and blah, blah, blah.
This chapter's brought to you by Rush's new album, "Clockwork Angels".
He was going to die.
At least that's what Tavros kept thinking as Gamzee guided him down the dark streets of Skaia. As the clown rolled Tavros to wherever he had planned, the boy tensed up and gripped the armrests. He shouldn't be freaking out. It's just Gamzee. It's just the bot that saved his life little more than a week ago. Tavros took a shaky breath, trying to calm his self down. When the chair hit a stray pebble on the road, Tavros jumped with a small squeak and his thoughts quickly reverted to his impending doom. He was going to die in a horrible, painful death and he wouldn't be found until days later and- why is Gamzee laughing?
"Tavbro? You okay? Didn't mean to up and motherfuckin' scare ya, bro." Tavros heard Gamzee speak up after he slowly raised his head to meet the automaton's. The boy, of course, found a smiling face, with soft glowing indigo eyes, looking down at him. Tavros couldn't tell if that was good or bad.
"Y-yeah… I'm, fine…" He lied. Gamzee eyed him for a moment before giving a shrug and ruffling his light chocolate Mohawk. The contact made him shiver.
"Whatever you say, Tavbro." And the bot left it at that.
The rest of the stroll was silent, save for the mohawked boy's shuttering breath and the bot's light footsteps. It reminded Tavros of the night of the accident, when Gamzee walked the boy home. The memory brought a quiet sigh from the boy as he straightened up and calmed down. There was no reason to act like this. Deep breaths, he can do this.
It wasn't too long until they hit the old, unfortunate side of town. The steam was heavy here as Gamzee and Tavros continued to trek the dark road, lit only by the meager side lights. Looking at all the neglected, deteriorated houses, and the occasional wayward drunk, Tavros suppressed a shiver before looking back at the clown. He still had that nonchalant smile on his face, like walking through a very bad part of town was normal. Must be nice.
After a few minutes strolling down the street, the bot finally stopped. Blinking, the mohawked boy turned to face a rusty old building, no different than the others they had passed on the way. Looking back at the bot, Tavros saw the same smile plastered on his face, if not bigger. "Gamzee…" The boy began to inquire before the bot rolled him to the entrance.
"Home sweet motherfuckin' home, Tav," The clown chirped before the boy could get another word in. Home? Before the boy could question Gamzee, the bot rolled him over to the entrance. The automaton paused a moment, opening the door in front of them, before wheeling Tavros into the dark building. When he crossed the threshold, he started fidgeting again.
After a few minutes of adjusting to the darkness, the bot took off, leaving a very uneasy Tavros in the dark, alone, squirming in his chair. The boy took in a few deep breaths in a failed attempt to calm himself down, before hearing rustling. Whipping his head forward, he saw Gamzee's two glowing indigo eyes darting back and forth in the shadows. A few moments of searching and a few curses later, the bot gave a loud "Ah-ha!" before a few bright lights illuminated the room. Shielding himself immediately from the sudden lights, Tavros gave himself a little to adjust. Deeming himself ready, he turned his gaze to the room ahead.
All of the mohawked boy's previous fear and uneasiness melted away into pure wonder. The room was lined with beautiful copper, gold and silver trinkets of all shapes sizes and forms, slightly twinkling under the dimly lit lamps. From the furthest left wall he could see copper mannequins adorned with eloquent formal wear with accessorized timepieces to flamboyant jester robes to normal everyday clothing, but, like the others, still stood out like the rest. To the right, the wall was covered in massive blueprints and littered with copper bot parts and ornaments, and a wide range of tools. And everywhere in between, hanging from the ceiling and sitting around on scattered worktables, were a multitude of brilliantly crafted decorations and knick-knacks, from wind chimes to clocks to model steam trains. Tavros gave a shaky breath, afraid to move, before his eyes met Gamzee's, who fit in beautifully with the scene around him.
"What do ya think, Tavbro?" the bot shifted back and forth, his grin bigger than ever, as he gestured to the rest of the room with his extended copper arm.
What could he think? Tavros couldn't say anything let alone think. The boy was so entranced by the room alone that he nearly forgot to breathe. "It's…" He started weakly. As the boy tried to gather his thoughts, the clown waltzed over and grasped the handle bars of his chair and pushed him forward, maneuvering over the tight turns and corners, breaking whatever train of thought Tavros had.
"I should be getting my explain on about all these motherfucking wonders and shit."
The bot took a few moments to describe the various trinkets that cluttered the many tables. It was very soothing hearing Gamzee ramble and Tavros allowed himself to be swept away by his words and the sights of the room. The mohawked boy mentally cursed himself for thinking the bot would hurt him in any way as he eagerly listened to the bot and lightly commented on whatever piece Gamzee was showing him.
Passing by a dark staircase, which Gamzee abruptly ignored surprisingly, the duo ended up in what seemed to be a normal living area. It was fairly plain compared to the rest of the shop, but not without its charm. There was a couch, a couple of tables, each with a small array of copper parts and trinkets, and a very large bookshelf. Large enough to span almost two walls. Tavros's eyes widened.
"Old Man sometimes up and relaxes himself here," Gamzee confirmed before rolling the boy further down into the den. Gamzee's mentioned this "Old Man" several times during the tour, but every time Tavros inquires, the bot would brush it off or abruptly change the subject. The mohawked boy eventually dropped the topic, assuming that maybe he was the clown's creator or an engineer, but he was still curious.
Tavros took the wheels of his chair back and maneuvered to the bookshelf without delay. Behind him, the boy heard the bot chuckle, amused at the boy's eagerness. Tavros's eyes glued themselves to the spines of each book as he read their titles. From steam flying pirates to magic artificers, to The Midnight Crew: Skaia's most feared mob. The bot had it all.
Composing himself, he tried to will himself to speak, to inform Gamzee that this is all amazing, before the spine of another particular title jumped at him. Looking down, he saw his favorite book, Pupa Pan, in all its glory. Reaching out to grab it, the boy noticed dusty smudges around the book, suggesting that it had been used recently.
"I tried to read that motherfucker once." Tavros jumped when he saw Gamzee in the corner of his eye, crouching down and leaning against the boy's chair. "You always got your cute little face in that motherfuckin' book, figured I'd up and give it a shot."
Tavros blushed a deep scarlet and shook himself out of his thoughts long enough to reply. "Did you, um, like it..?" He asked, smiling, holding up the said book.
The automaton shook his head. "Couldn't read the motherfucker. All the words started to blend and stretch all up in my think pan 'till I don't know which word's what," he explained without a missing beat. "Old Man never motherfuckin' took it upon himself to teach me most of it." Gamzee lowered his head, a small sad smile crossing his painted face.
The boy nodded, heart sinking a small bit. He doesn't like this look one bit. Gamzee and sad just don't mix. With an idea popping into his mind, Tavros patted his hand on top of the bot's head, coaxing him to look at the boy. "Um," he held the book up a little, "would you like me, to, uh, read it? For you?" He asked, lamely.
Gamzee beamed at the boy. With a quick, "You're sure, Tavbro?" And after a confirming nod from Tavros, the bot smiled brightly and, much to the boy's surprise, lifted him from the chair as he squeaked in protest, then carried him to the couch. Gamzee sat down, the boy still in his arms, and shifted him chest to back. Tavros sat there, blushing madly, shifting in the bot's embrace. This was very odd for the boy. He'd never been in this situation before, and the bot wasn't normally this affectionate, aside from some tight hugs here and there. But Tavros, despite having a metal knee dug into his ribs and the bot's metal arm joints pinching his shoulder, loved it.
It almost scared him how much.
The mohawked boy looked up at Gamzee, who simply peered down at him with those piercing indigo eyes waiting for him to start. Taking in a deep breath, the boy looked down back at the book, shifting away from the bot's knee probing him. The bot stirred a bit, supporting the boy better and in favor of hugging his waist rather than his shoulders. Tavros, deciding that it was either now or never, opened the book, Gamzee's eyes providing enough light, and with a shaky breath, started to recite the words he knows so well.
The words flew out of his mouth seamlessly, without any hesitation or a stutter of any kind. The thought of that made Tavros's confidence soar. As he continued to read the novel, he couldn't help but notice the reactions coming from Gamzee. The bot would lean forward during the action parts, smile and laugh at the fun parts, and hug him tightly at the sad. When Pupa flew for the first time, Gamzee smiled, with his indigo eyes lighting up brightly, muttered the word "miracles" and hugged him even tighter. He twitched, again, but it didn't break whatever spell that captured the two.
Hours flew by and the boy wasn't even finished with the novel before showing the first signs of fatigue. He started reading slower, and yawned at a few places. The bot gave a small chuckle before grabbing the book from the boy's hands and placing it on the table. Before Tavros could make any sounds of protest, the bot announced that it was time for the boy to go home and embraced him tightly.
The way home was a blur, all Tavros could remember was Gamzee pushing him silently down the road to his house, his glowing eyes serving as a source of light. It was also a blur how he got in his house. He remembers though, the bot carefully laying him down on his bed without a sound, his wheelchair not long after. He also remembers something warm peck his forehead, and before Tavros could comprehend what happened, he remembers seeing Gamzee wave to him on his windowsill with his trademark grin before leaving into the city.
Sleep came easily to him as he dreamed about Pupa Pan and steam fliers and a certain clown named Gamzee.
Beautiful.
Once again, reviews are loved and are eaten like steak, as well as constructive criticism and suggestions.
