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Glitch has had somewhat of a big day. Thankfully he's been freshly showered and safely deposited within Downtime by Laura, who braved the men's dressing room to recover him in somewhat of a fugue. The Sprite is dressed modestly in a tanktop and shorts, laying on his back in the center of the pillow pit, arms and legs splayed out as he just stares up at the ceiling, lost in thought.
"Player One?" Teagan sort of... appears. The way that Teagans do. Well, this time they walk in through the door, but they are directly looking for Glitch, anyway, and they pad in quietly, in their sleep pants and tank top, carrying Baby, because G-d forbid they go in to the Hedge without Baby, even just to Downtime.
The Sprite responds to that, sitting up slowly and a bit mechanically, just contracting his tummy to swing his torso up into sitting position. Glitch's expression is inscrutable on the best of days, but Teagan's insight and time with him means they can immediately tell he's off. His pixellated gaze stares somewhere a mile past the back of the mirrorskin's head. "Player Two," he responds, falling silent afterwards.
They hang up the machete on the hook by the door and pad soft-footed over to crouch down next to him. "Hey," Teagan says softly, reaching out a hand to pet over his hair. "You look tired." The mirror's eyes glitter softly. "That course, right?"
Glitch is compliant, if clearly a bit spooked. He startles at the touch of their hand, as if not expecting it, but relaxes into the contact and closes his eyes. "...no. I have energy left. I didn't give it my best." The words are a bit deflated. "You saw the times already. I wasn't even in the top four." A tension starts to slide into the Sprite, one Teagan's seldom seen, and he draws his knees up towards his chest, opening his eyes.
"You did give it your best. Just because someone was faster doesn't mean that you didn't do your best," Teagan answers, sinking to their knees next to him and briefly wrapping their arms around him, pulling him into a short, but firm, hug. "If you want to do more training on that kind of course with June, you can. But I think... maybe... that ... wasn't so good for you, so maybe let's talk about that first."
He's a bit of a ragdoll, being tugged against Teagan limply without any of the eager curling into he usually does. His head lolls back against them. "You're...just trying to make me feel better. I know what I said. I was just having fun out there. I could have boosted plenty of times or used better tech." His eyes close and he sighs. "He's going to be upset. This isn't my first fuckup."
The minute they saw Glitch start running that course, they knew. They knew. But it doesn't matter, because hearing it? It's like a bucket of cold water poured down their back, and they shudder. Pressing their lips into a line, they curl him back up in their arms. "Oh, no. We're not doing this, Player One. He has nothing for you anymore." There's a subtle shift in their appearance, the mirror-dark skin becoming softer and more gentle, their expression softening, the forms of them somehow more cuddly. "You're mine. Not his."
Glitch curls against Teagan, and it's clear he's not entirely in one place. It's written on his face, literally, the pixels at his edges and corners scrambling up faster and denser as the agitation overtakes him. "He knows. He knows. I thought it was going to be okay. I thought I had another chance. I was proud and I wanted to go back," he gasps, a look of disgust and rage overtaking him in the midst of the panic. "I thought I could handle it," he hisses again, burying his face against Teagan as he fights back tears. "Something's wrong."
The Mirrorsk-- nope. The Truebalm, because while they were holding him, they shifted their Kith, buries their nose in his hair and wraps their arms around him. "You need to stop doing this to yourself," Teagan says quietly. "My little glass cannon." It's not like they haven't ended up with a similar problem, mind, but, you know. Physician, heal thyself.
And Teagan will need to in a minute or five, because bruises blossom over their skin as the self-made Truebalm holds him tight and pulls the delusion right out of his brain the way the mouse plucked the thorn from the lion's paw.
Glitch lets out a gasp as it leaves him, as it it was pulled straight out of his body, shivering against them. When he looks up at the soft Truebalm again, his eyes are wet with tears. "Teagan," he says with emphasis and obvious relief, more emphatic than the pet names from before. "Teagan. Oh my god. I thought..." His eyes well up and he grits his teeth, shoving his head back against them as he starts to heave out sobs. "Thank you. I'm sorry. I'm sorry you have to see me like this. Fucking..." There's a shudder of relief as it comes out, the tension and fear of the cruel assumption giving way.
They don't say anything at first, except, "Hey, Glitch," gently and quietly. Their arms wrap tighter around him, and they hold on to him when he cries. They know what he thought, because they thought it recently enough, after all. Their nose buries into his hair and they gently rock him back and forth. "Oh, my love," they sigh gently. "Who fixed me up when I thought everyone else was a one of His Mirrorskins?"
"You know how this works. This is forever, and this is no matter what. I've seen you in worse straits. Hell, I saw you when you thought you were straight." A smooch for the top of his head. "It's okay. Bruises heal."
The last few words get a choked sob-laugh out of him, the levity needed. "I know," he snorts, leaning back to wipe at his face and haul in a ragged breath. "You...thank you. I don't want me to see me like that again. That was...disgusting." He grimaces and turns his face back towards them. "I've had dreams like that, if I wasn't careful. That I'm back there. But the worst part is...wanting to be back. Being not just afraid but hopeful. Do you understand?" He babbles, pausing to try and center himself, but his brow furrows as he hisses the clarification. "Hoping I'll be good enough...for...that fucking monster."
"I think we all know what that feels like, if we're really honest," answers Teagan quietly, hugging him close and gently shifting so they can pull him into their lap, cradle his head against their shoulder. "You were one of his best, and so he gave you favor along with the pain. It's how abusers work. They give you just enough joy and just enough approval that you crave it."
"But you're mine. You're ours. You belong to us and with us, and he can't have you back."
The digital boy nods a bit hollowly, sniffling just a bit. "I wasn't one of the best," he beeps out. "I was the best. I was Player One. Running a course like that...just for fun, not caring about my time, not pushing myself to the absolute limit...it wouldn't be acceptable. I had to be the best."
He relaxes just enough to slide back against Teagan and wind his arms fully around them. "I'm yours," he agrees. "But...you're right. I don't...this shouldn't happen again. Not from that. I was fine until the end, you know? I really was enjoying it. It was just when I hit the buzzer, and I was standing there..."
"Mmmm," agrees Teagan. Their fingers curl through his shaggy hair, down his back, and they kiss the top of his head again. "I know. I've seen." And boy, have they. He gets rocked slowly in their arms, and they let out a long slow sigh.
"No, this shouldn't happen again. You should talk to June. She's really good with this kind of stuff. Or one of the Springs. Maybe Jack could help you. He's a Joyeux. We'll have to figure out how to, uh, increase your stats for this kind of thing." They try.
"I know you were enjoying it," they agree. "I... wasn't. I have to admit. I mean I liked watching you perform, and you were really good... but the minute you started running, I -- just. Knew. What would happen."
They succeed. He nods. "This is a weakness," he says plainly. "I can't just...I need to worry about my survivability more," he murmurs. "It matters more now. No more glass cannon. You're right." He's quiet, eyes squeezing shut again. "I knew it might. Part of the reason why I...didn't expose myself. I didn't want to attract attention or lead anyone to you all, but... I figured if I started acting weird, it'd be better if I was masked up." He's quiet a moment, a hand gently sliding along Teagan's shoulder. "But I wasn't worried. I...I wasn't trying to just throw myself and let you all catch me, I was trying to be careful, but...I knew if something happened, I wasn't alone. It's...why I even ran in the first place. Would've been safer to just not do it. Would've regretted it my whole life, probably, too."
They don't say anything while he talks. They just hold on to him and pet his hair and listen and nod into said hair. Their fingers curl down his back, petting him slowly. "This is part of survivability now," Teagan says quietly. "If something like this happened when the two of us were in the Hedge together, it would be harder for me to get you home."
"I know. You had to run. And I was here to catch you. It's okay."
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