2021-04-29 8:20:24 ¶ ●

Originally two parts, but i want to finish the mini saga and go back to the hijinks. One last serious bit left and we are into crack territory again!!

@nonbinaryeye

YOU ARE NOW PETER LUKAS

He starts the scratch.

Using his wind powers he lifts the Quills of Echidna and starts to cut the mechanism in Oliver’s land that should send the signal to skaia to start another game. It’s not exactly easy and a bunch of giant imps appear to try and stop him. Most of them he can send away with forsaken the others he has to kill manually, which is rather annoying.

Still he is half way through with it when the imps start agonizing out of nowhere.

Looking around he sees something start to come out of their shapes, it looked almost like-

Well if he was being philosophical? It looked as if someone was sucking their souls out of their bodies and putting it in a bunch of small boxes that fall around him.

Their bodies remain still and empty.

Oh no.

“Oh yes” He has seconds to dodge a hit to the head with that fucking 8Ball question cane, before Elias tries to beat him up again.

Peter hides in forsaken thinking that it was strong enough to keep him out of sight of Elias, but just like his own powers got a boost, Elias did as well, because the next thing he feels is searing pain in his head and the lonely being torn apart around him pulling him out.

I KNOW I KNOW I KNOW I KNOW YOU

Fine. If Jonah wants to start a strife he will accept.

Peter is done with this annoying little man.

They spend quite the long time just trying to hit and hurt each other as much as they could, Elias even attempted to use his heart powers to steal him too like he did with the imps, but Peter merely uses the air to shove him around making it impossible to focus.

In the end its merely tiredness that wins, Jonah slips and Peter who has always been bigger, and now with the other in his original body, was even more so, knocks him down keeps him in the ground while he struggles and tries to fight him off.

He merely pushes him back and grabs the stupid cane from him.

“You know, i just asked for one thing only and that was for you to leave me alone. To finally get out of my life and to never see you again. But no, you can’t do that cant you? You have to come around to try and be the biggest pain in my ass to my very last moment!!” Peter doesn’t feel much when he punches him in the face, beyond the indignation at him for denying him his last request.

“Go to hell!! If you think I’m letting you get the best of me you childish-” He looks at him.

A bruise is already forming on his cheek from where he hit him. Jonah was still throwing venom at him and he was exhausted, he had to focus on the fight so he left the needle still almost at the end of scratching the whole thing.

Peter’s head is foggy and everything seems so pointless and loud.

This man more than anything.

Shining bright in fury and indignation and if he was right, fear too. Jonah was a fire, if you didn’t watch it it would get you.

It churns his gut just seeing him.

Clutching the cane he ponders it for a second, but decides to finally do what he should have done a long time ago.

“And-”

“I don’t care Jonah, I really don’t. You had a shot by leaving me be, but I suppose I ought to do this if I really want to achieve peace” Taking a breath he raises the cane upwards so he can beat his head with it to finally shut him up for good, to finally make it end between them.

Peter doesn’t even care if he dies.

Perhaps before he did, he recalls the actual feeling of terror when he asked him to help him die faster because it hurt so much on his quest bed, the bleeding stab wounds were making Elias dizzy and the pain was unbearable. Peter recalls the bout of fear at snapping his neck, but now? Now the fog was making it impossible to matter. To care about finishing this disgusting little man’s life.

“Goodbye” He sees the terror reflected in his eyes.

“Peter- wa- wait we can talk-!” He was about to hit him when something knocked him out of the way and he slid across the floor.

Lying in his back he stares at the sky and the black roots that are moving around it, while reality starts to crumble.

“I can’t believe I turned into such a bloody mess!! Did you honestly try to kill each other??!”

Ah the fake one.

“What are you doing here!” Jonah is scrambling up. Peter is measuring his chances against the two of them, but knows it would be futile. So he remains there.

Why can’t he ever get what he wants? Why won’t they leave??? They did before so many times!! They all have walked out from the other, why is this any different.

“Oh god you are a mess for real, aren’t you Peter i can’t believe this”

“Elias-”

“You can’t hear him, but he is!! And he is my husband, get your own-”

He tunes them out and focuses on finishing what he came to do even while lying on the floor.

YOU ARE NOW ELIAS BOUCHARD

“And- Oh Peter fuck off!” Jonahsprite goes to grab Peter’s face while apparently the man starts again to try and finish the job.

Elias tries to not shudder at the memory of the empty expression he made when he tries to kill him. He compares it to when he asked him to help him die faster in his quest bed, because the stab wounds while waiting to bleed out hurt a lot. The stark difference between those two moments and the expressions he got were enough to make him want to hurl.

Peter had not wanted to hurt him then, he did it the fastest way possible and only because he insisted, Elias had to track him down afterwards with JonahSprite and actually reassure him, even if it was a thinly veiled effort, to not let him know he was sort of happy he was so worried about him.

He had thought at the time that he found something else to have an upper hand on him. But now he realizes that it wasn’t.

“Let us finish talking first!” His double is trying his best to keep the man in place. But he hasn’t realized like him that it was sort of late. Annabelle and his own weapon had been right, he was too far gone now.

“Why should i-” Dropping next to him he feels sore, hurt and tired.

“You are an idiot” Peter merely watches him and after a few seconds says the thing that really nailed the fact that it was all over.

“I really did think I loved you” Reading it was one thing, seeing him say it with such a blank expression was another. Locking his jaw in place and swallowing he tries.

“You do, you still do, you are just being dumb and letting your god get the best of you” He has to believe it.

“I dont think so” He makes a pained sound and looks down at him.

“Im- did you actually throw them away?” It takes him a second to realize he meant the rings.

“I dropped them yes” That’s it, he tries to get up and go, but his double keeps him there giving him a furious look.

He is angry and now he is the one that’s upset.

“You are a thief of heart and you have beholding, think” What does he even want from him?

“So what? I steal his soul? Keep it as a companion in a doll or something? what else can i do with this??”

“Oh my god, feelings! You deal with feelings too”

“But they are gone if you haven’t noticed! There is nothing for me to take or use or-!” He doest understand, he didn’t see him, the emptiness as he tried to kill him.

“Forsaken doesn’t take them away you know this. It just… makes them dull, makes you think you don’t care. He thinks- no, we made him think he had nothing else!” Peter has never needed an anchor, he could walk the perfect line between his god and their relationship.

But here? Here it was so condensed that he sank and he never noticed happen.

So just this once… JonahSprite doesn’t have his memories, he remembers up until he was James, but in the amount of time he accompanied Peter the man got him to care too.

Guess they do have a type and it’s lonely. He owes Simon money then.

He doesn’t want to steal his feelings, but he wants to bring them forth.

But first, he grabs his face and leans down while the man tries to get him off. He rebuffs him.

“I love you, you giant sap, I do. I did not cheat! Neither of us did. So get that out of your thick head, we just had fun talking with a friend. It’s been so long, but thats all, we could not ever even go back to that again. Barnabas is good but he is not that good to forgive us for it”

“Not like you, or well not good per se, but you certainly put up with me far more than anyone has before and that is something”

“So please big man just this once…dont fight me on this ok?” He kisses him. Peter goes still under him, and he can feel him start to try and slip away, but he holds him tighter and bites his lip making him go back to being solid.

Elias doesn’t push further merely kissing him over and over again in little presses of their lips, one of his hands goes to caress his cheek and he lets their foreheads touch.

He just needs a spark and he can take care of the rest, afraid of opening his eyes and seeing a dull stare he can’t help but to let out a small sniff, he will not cry, he refuses. Getting up he watches him and Peter looks at him with the same empty stare. His lips wobble and he shakes his head. Beholding then? He tries to shove memories of their time together, but the man looks more and more angry rather than moved.

“Peter, c'mon you have to-” Jonah is trying, but if it didn’t work with him-

“I don’t, really can you both please stop touching me? Its making me uncomfortable” He hits him in the chest.

“You bloody sea weaded excuse of a sailor i cant believe how much of a fucking bastard you are, i cant- I… i can't”

“Almost 30 years and you do this to me, you are the worst husband in existence, you leave me for months, make awful puns and nicknames, fight me over the petties things ever-” He doesn’t stop he has to let it out, along with the tears that finally are slipping through his eyes, but now they are out of sheer indignations rather than sadness.

“You snore, you keep putting my stuff on high shelves just to make me ask you for help or get a chair to get them-” A sob breaks through.

“make me cake, buy me things you know i would like, let me sleep on top of you when i get home and let me unwind if work was hard-” His hand grips his stupid godtier hoodie.

“-Kill the spiders, because you know i actually hate them even if i pretend they don’t bother me-”

A hand wipes his tears from his left cheek and he stiffens. Hoping for a small chance.

“Awfully weepy of you Lias” His voice is cracked and when he looks he has the barest hint of a flush on his otherwise pale skin. And a glint of amusement in his expression.

Oh.

He falls forward while Peter tries to catch him, but Elias merely goes to kiss him. He latches onto him and to make his point across he uses his heart powers. Peter lets out a startle and pained sound, but he doesn’t relent, bringing forth all his feelings, but not actually stealing them, just letting them simmer there. He could.

Elias could just as easily steal him away to keep forever in his grasp.

But when two pair of hands grab him back and tug him closer he knows he can’t.

He loves him like this.

Eventually they break apart.

“Don’t ever do that again” Peter gives him a peck and nuzzles him.

“I can’t believe i will say this, and if anyone asks it never happened, but- Please don’t ever stop giving me a glance from time to time. It felt like i was going on autopilot, i couldn’t even enjoy my own loneliness”

“I won't”

They hear a tiny mew and Jonah is looking at them with what he knows is envy in his own face.

Peter looks up at him and his face goes from entertained to guilty and then a grimace. Lifting a hand towards him the sprite hisses. His husband nods and sits up before grabbin Jonah and putting him on his lap, while he lets out a bunch of noises of protest and actually scratches his arms.

“Im sorry, i didn’t mean it, i do think you are real-”

“No, you dont. Its fine, you are right i’m just a copy, now leave me be-” Peter gives him a look and then at Jonah as if asking permission.

He considers it, but…he knows that he can’t say no. He nods.

The taller man lifts the chin of the sprite and kisses him, while the other freezes in place. Peter actually deepens the kiss and it was fascinating to see, like seeing a distorted mirror. He would admit it was exhilarating to see himself in that position. So sneakily he goes next to his husband and kisses his neck too making him pull apart to sigh against his doubles lips.

“Insatiable aren’t you?”

“Maybe, maybe i just like to see you both”

“Narcissistic then” His husband was a little shit.

“I would say voyeur” But apparently he wasn’t even better. Still JonahSprite looked at the two of them with a calculating look, that Peter stops by merely bopping his nose.

“I’m tired, and you are both the same bastard, same eyes after all. What does it matter where they are? You could both steal as many bodies as you want and i would still marry you anyways”

Funnily enough both of them blush at the comment.

“Sap”

“Idiot”

“Yours?” He is definitely exhausted if he was that soft.

“Yes… always” Elias is just as tired, so he is permitted to say it just as softly.

Before he could attempt to sneak into his lap too and start what could possibly be the best make out session in the history of paradox space involving the three of them, Peter gives him an apologetic look.

“ Elias… I already started the scratch, i can’t not finish it. The game is busted beyond relief, both of you said it, by now it’s impossible to win” He takes a deep breath.

“Can you finish it and make it out to where we are supposed to meet up with the rest?”

“No, we don’t have the time” Before he can answer him to curse him for following Annabelle’s plan he sees Jonah press his cheek against their husbands chest and gives him a smug look.

“Finish it”

“Excuse me??” He startles at him.

“You heard me finish it”

“We can’t make it in time to the others-”

“Oh i wouldn’t be so sure…just trust me, both of you” Well, if anyone would want to survive is him, no matter the situation.

“Fine”

“Are you- of course you both are. Great”

“Ok, let me up then”