Chapter Text
Vine Staff was buzzing.
She couldn’t really tell if it was nerves or excitement. Maybe both?
She and Ghosdeeri had met before - of course they had - but then it had just been more getting to know each other; chats and time spent in silent company, either under the shade of a moonlit tree, or in the dusty halls of the archives Ghosdeeri made her home. It had never - officially - been called a date.
The place was nice. It smelt of gravy and beef stock, the scent thick and aromatic with all kinds of delicious herbs. It was lit warmly, amber bulbs buzzing in the corners, the light reflecting on the white dews of condensation that blurred the neon lights of the dark alley beyond the window. The walls were bare brick and dark iron, hung over with pictures of the family who owned the place and paintings of crisp mountain scenes that looked so cool and fresh that you could almost feel the snow on your face. The tables were rough wood, covered in a thin layer of wax, and years of accumulated food spills had stained it in a pleasant patchwork of coffee rings and natural grain. The menus were handwritten on cream card with three or four options, and the daily special was proudly displayed on the blackboard behind the elderly inphernal that worked the counter and till.
“It’s a nice place.” Vine Staff said pleasantly, and Ghosdeeri chuckled.
“That it is. I remember when it first opened - I’m always sure to check out the shops that open near the Archives - and I remember just how delicious those stews were. I would come here all the time if I could afford it.” she replied, her eyes roving over the place, before coming back to rest on Vine Staff.
Vine Staff had always likened Ghosdeeri’s eyes to cameras, even back before she knew her name. They were either constantly moving, taking in the surroundings, absorbing knowledge, or locked onto you, drinking every word you said. Sometimes Vine Staff even reckoned she saw them focus like a camera lens would.
“It doesn’t seem that expensive.” Vine Staff commented.
“It’s not really.” Ghosdeeri said, “But between utilities, taxes, paying Pwnatious what they ask for, getting food for Lightblox, purchasing artefacts and supplies… I’m left with very little in the way of disposable income.”
“Huh,” Vine Staff said, leaning back. That made sense. Vine Staff had long split paying the bills with Shuriken and Slingshot, so she wasn’t responsible for everything, especially since it was Slingshot that paid them at the end of the day. But her apartment was a fraction of the size of the Archives, and some of those artefacts must have been pricey.
“Say,” she said, “You don’t bring Lightblox out much.”
“She doesn’t… she doesn’t like coming out.” Ghosdeeri replied, “Doesn’t like people that much - poor thing - and much prefers to stay inside. I’m happy to oblige. She can handle the occasional statement giver here and there, but I don’t want to put too much strain on her.”
“That makes sense.” Vine Staff mused, before the reason they’d come here in the first place carefully put itself forwards, “So - say, you don’t mind talking more about the fears? Or- whatever you called them.”
“Mm, yes, that.” Ghosdeeri said, turning to where the waitress was coming with two steaming bowels of stew.
“The usual dear,” they said, setting down one in front of Ghosdeeri, then turning to Vine Staff and doing the same, “And one for you as well - 28.76 in total.”
“Of course.” Ghosdeeri said, pulling a small coin pouch from her pocket and rolling out the right amount of silver coins, handing them over to the waitress.
Ghosdeeri exchanged money like the old inphernals back in Vine Staff’s home, setting the coins directly into your palm, resting your hand there for a second as you patted the back of their knuckles, then settling back to whatever you were doing.
“As you were saying?” Ghosdeeri said, as the waitress walked off again, “The fears - what is it you want to know.”
“Well,” Vine Staff said, thinking over what she knew before speaking, “I mean, I guess what they’re all about. I mean, fourteen distinct fears, that’s… how do you categorise that?”
“Well, think of them like colours.” Ghosdeeri said, “See, we could argue whether my eyes are more of an ice blue or a pastel-”
“They’re ice blue.” Vine Staff said, and Ghosdeeri chuckled.
“As I was saying, we could argue that - but at the end of the day it’s still blue. And you can never really pin point where on a line of colours that red becomes orange, or green becomes turquoise, or purple becomes pink. So, you can’t really say where the End begins and becomes the Desolation. Is the terror of finding a lost memory more about the End - the loss of a past, a constant - or the Desolation - the pain of that loss, heck, sometimes it can even be argued that falls into the Lonely, or even the Spiral - it all depends on the direction you spin it in. I mostly go off inclination and blind hunches.”
“Right.” Vine Staff said, nodding slowly, “And… I mean, we’re both, well, End- we both serve the End, but we were chosen by it. Do- do the other fears do that.”
“... Yes and no.” Ghosdeeri said, “They mostly prey on people with certain fears or inclinations. They do choose people, obviously, reach out and claim people that begin to subconsciously call on them - your brother and Slingshot are good examples of that. But a lot of this is about choice. A fear may reach out to you, but it's your choice whether or not you answer that call. Though a lot of the time we don’t see those choices.”
“That’s… ominous.” Vine Staff said, shivering involuntarily. She felt a blink of that icy, certain fear in her chest and glanced down at herself. Could she someday end up as one of the things in the statements she read? Completely deluded to the point she couldn’t see the harm she was causing, only ever chasing the thrill of that fear?
“I doubt you’ll become anything like them.” Ghosdeeri said, “You’ve got a good heart and a good head on your shoulders, so I reckon that you’ll be able to walk the line between hunger and humanity pretty well.”
“Thanks.” Vine Staff said, her face growing hot for a second, “And… if you don’t mind me asking, you?”
“I’ve done things I regret in the aim of feeding the Eye.” Ghosdeeri sighed, “It has to be done sometimes, unfortunately, but I’ve managed to tide myself over with statements willingly given by people that pass through my doors, and older statements if I really need to take the edge off.”
Vine Staff nodded quietly, taking the spoon sat next to her bowl and scooping up a mouthful of the stew. It was meaty, flavoured with a handful of herbs, and melted easily over her tongue.
“Never had Blackrock cuisine before.” she commented, taking another spoonful.
“You haven’t?” Ghosdeeri said, scooping up her own spoonful. She paused to chew, one hand placed delicately over her mouth, before speaking again once she’d swallowed, “I find that it's quite lovely. They know how to make a good stew or soup. Something about the cold mountains that makes the warmth of a hot stove so appealing.”
“I can imagine.” Vine Staff said, looking over to the paintings on the walls, “What’s it like? Blackrock I mean.”
“Oh- absolutely dreadful these days. Most of it’s industrial, and they’re very set on modernising everything, that being said… there’s still some lovely views, but you have to trek for miles to get to them. I don’t like travelling there often.” Ghosdeeri replied, adjusting her glasses with her knuckle, “Traffic doesn’t mind going there, and obviously Pwnatious is from that region - they’re family has quite a lovely estate, actually.”
Vine Staff nodded slowly. She supposed that Blackrock and Thieves’ Den would be polar opposites then. Thieves’ Den clung to the past, Blackrock pushed on without abandon into the future.
“Say,” Vine Staff said, “You never told me which faction you were from originally.”
“Originally?” Ghosdeeri said, before chuckling, “I was spawned in Thieves’ Den if that’s what you’re asking. But I stayed there for a grand total of one year, two months and sixteen days. The rest of my life is either travelling, or living here.”
Ghosdeeri was always so specific with everything she talked about; she could tell you exactly what she ate at what time on any given day, say exactly the time and date she first met you, and tell you exact time frames for everything. Vine Staff had always found comfort in that fact. That even if she forgot the time she spent with her, Ghosdeeri would remember all of it down to the second.
“So we’re both from Thieves’ Den then.” Vine Staff said.
“And that makes four out of the seven of us from there then!”
“You keep mentioning the others - but who are they?” Vine Staff said, and Ghosdeeri chuckled.
“Well, there’s Eerie, me and her had a thing going on back in the day, she still lives in Thieves’ Den and sponsors the archives - I believe she runs a sustainable logging company actually. Then would be Doomsekkar - me and her didn’t get along - though I think she ended up partially serving the Desolation, and she’s currently kicking about in the far reaches of Lost Temple - a statement about them occasionally still drifts my way. Outside of Lost Temple there’s Blizzaria; they mostly keep to the far edges of Blackrock, and they don’t really seem ready to accept their curse, though it has been twenty years since we last saw each other. Dusekkar mostly keeps to themself as well - lives in Playgrounds, haven’t heard from them in a while - believe they serve the Dark as well. And lastly there’s Sparkle - she was fun, but we never really formed a friendship. We keep in contact, and she sometimes brings me tales from the area of Lost Temple she’s made home.”
“Huh,” Vine Staff said, “That’s… a lot.”
“Indeed.” Ghosdeeri said, “It’s good to know we’re not alone however, and sometimes it is good to vent to somebody you know understands what you’re talking about.”
“Yeah,” Vine Staff said, “Meeting you properly was probably the best thing that ever happened to me to be honest.”
Ghosdeeri paused, her eyes scanning along Vine Staff’s face. It was a soft, tender gaze, and her expression softened significantly. It was hard not to notice the slight shadows beneath each wide, unblinking eye. It was only natural that they each had troubles with insomnia.
“My dear,” she said, and the tone of her voice sent Vine Staff’s heart fluttering, “I didn’t realise you thought as much.”
“Well,” Vine Staff said, trying to keep her cool, despite the dumb smile that was beginning to break out over her face, “I do. It was, good to get everything off my chest - speak to somebody who understood, as you said.”
“Hm,” Ghosdeeri mused, before stretching out her hand and carefully lacing her fingers into Vine Staff’s - her skin was cool, but not unpleasantly so, especially under the silk gloves she always wore outside the archives, “Well, I’ve always considered that kind of thing very relative. But I will say, this past month has been some of the best in my recent memory.”
Vine Staff tried not to get flustered. She’d known Ghosdeeri for a month now and they were dating. But Vine Staff had been pining for months - years even - before working up the courage to speak to her, so this return of affection was something she had never hoped to receive.
She swallowed nervously, nodding and smiling. Her fingers tightened around Ghosdeeri’s. Her heart felt like it was hammering out of her chest.
Ghosdeeri chuckled softly, her thumb lightly stroking the side of Vine Staff’s hand. Her gaze dipped to it, before sliding back up to Vine Staff’s face - to her eyes. And looking into those eyes, glossy black except for the gleaming halo of icy blue and the clear pupil - Vine Staff was reminded of staring into starlight, a spark of light in the darkness. Or maybe staring into the depths of space itself, infinite, unknowable, all-consuming.
Then Ghosdeeri slowly leaned in to kiss her.
Vine Staff was surprised at first, but leaned in to accept. It was their first kiss, and as Vine Staff would later realise, her first kiss. It was soft, with the same quiet coolness that Ghosdeeri always carried with her, like a moonlit- no starlit night. The kiss didn’t last long, but it didn’t have to, Vine Staff knew it didn’t have to. Just that brief moment, the seal to a deal they both knew about, that final bit of conformation.
Ghosdeeri settled back, and Vine Staff stayed where she was, her cheeks glowing. She fell back eventually, giggling like she was drunk, and looked over to Ghosdeeri. The light played off her eyes beautifully, and the dark cascades of her hair somehow managed to look effortless and unplanned at once. There was a slight smile in her eyes when she spoke next.
“What else would you like to know?” she asked, her tone cool and easy.
Vine Staff simply laughed and sat back up.
“Whatever you want to tell me.”