Chapter Text
What was left for them to do? Everything they adapted to, the wacky and overstimulating setting their eyes adjusted to and the draining adventures they breezed through was all gone. Caine had lost it and been "accidently" deleted, leaving the cast clueless and lost to a degree.
" ..Wh-.. W-What are we going to do, now..? "
Ragatha hesitantly spoke up while the others remained silent. Eventually, Kinger spoke. His eyes darting around as he slightly adjusted the bucket on his head.
" I don't know.. None of this was my intention.. I didn't mean for this to happen. I'm so sorry for all of this.. I- "
He paused for a brief moment.
" I didn't mean to kill Caine. I was only trying to look through his files, the prompt came up and I must've misclicked... Before I could backtrack and save him from the recycling bin, the computer fell into one of the holes in the floor.. "
Kinger looked down, his expression full of guilt. His words calculated, but his tone was full of distress and guilt. He screwed up. Bad. However, no one seemed to be upset at the mistake he made, only startled by it and what came directly afterwards. Silence came about, but it was quickly broken.
" Kinger. If you knew what Caine just did to us.. I think you'd realize you kind of saved us, by ridding Caine. "
Zooble reassured. The rest of the cast looking at them, and then Kinger, who was confused by what Zooble was suggesting, prompting them to continue.
" I don't know if.. Everyone else got this but.. He put me in some dark room for a while and just.. Tormented me for what felt like hours.. We were trying to cover for you and he.. Lashed out really bad on us. As much as you might be concerned considering the.. State of this shithole.. You probably just saved us from.. Whatever else Caine would've done to us. "
Kinger remained silent for a bit. Taking in the information given to him, before replying a few minutes after, obviously startled by the news.
" I.. I see... "
Silence overwhelmed the cast again, now for longer. They didn't know what to do from here on out.... Everything was in shambles and happened all within a few hours. It was hard to process, hard to fully makeout. Jax in particular was having a pretty hard time. His expression remained shocked by the entire scene, but there was more than just shock underneath. He wasn't over his torment. It felt like his skin was crawling, he crossed his arms to conceal the feeling as much as possible but it hardly helped. He also felt slightly exposed and vulnerable, a feeling that he's always loathed. It even felt as if he could still hear the laughter that once surrounded him. The shadows of those he cared for still felt as if they were looming over him, mocking his very being. He shivered subtly, but made no other motion. The silence from the others only made his paranoia increase.. But no eyes were focused on him. Finally, Pomni broke the ice and tried to ease down everyone's nerves.
" Zooble's right. It was for the better even if this was an outcome. If Caine was still around then we'd have much bigger issues right now. This isn't something we can't handle. ..We can. Restore this place somehow..! It might take a long time but its still possible, as long as we work together and stay close, we should be fine. I promise. "
Stay close and work together. That was the last thing Jax wanted to do with any of them. Even if they all banded together to be there for eachother and grouped him in it, he wasn't going to be in on it. He didn't ask to be in it anyways, why should he care? Jax held his tongue despite everything he had flowing through his mind, but he listened on what they had to say, even if he wasn't going to contribute anything.
" Yeah.. Everything will be okay. Sticking together is the best bet we have since we're all we've got. "
Dollface added, Pomni continued.
" It might be hard to work with what we have right now, but we're much more free now.. No more Caine means no more torment, no more censor, less stress and we can just focus on the future and make the most of what we have. "
Everyone agreed with what was being said, the words were reassuring in a time like this. Things got real, and now they could finally ease down. Everyone eas content. Except for Jax. This was all friendship is magic junk... 'We're all we got!' 'As long as we do this together we can succeed!' It was lame and sappy. How were they going to rebuild THIS? The circus was quite literally falling out of place. There were holes leading into the void, how were they gonna salvage ANY of this? Their overconfidence was amusing. His look shifted to a more uninterested one as the conversation went on, looking off while the others had their moment. Kinger was seeming to think for a little while, before speaking up.
" ..I still feel... Responsible. So I'll do everything in my power to help you guys out. I'm sure there's something that can be used to fix these patches, I'll keep an eye out and let you guys know if I see anything. "
The group nodded. Everything had calmed down now.. The previously tense mood had became more hopeful and relaxed... Mostly felt content now. But the outliar was obvious. In which he'd be called out.
" ...You do realize this whole thing includes you, right? "
" Wh...Huh-.? "
" We told you this before, I'll tell you again. You're apart of this. You're here with us, so you're going to take part of this whether you like it or not. Get used to it. "
That's something he'd never do. Ever. The inclusiveness stunned him yet again. His ears slightly lowering, with his hands trembling. But before the mask could fall, he put it back on. Instantly relaxing and putting on a smug grin.
" You guys treat me like I'm on suicide watch.. I'll be fine.? When was I not? "
" ...Jax. Don't start your bullshit again, we all know what we saw and heard. "
" What? I was being reasonable, Zoobie. I told you this before, I'll tell you again. Caine lies, Bubble might lie too. Who knows where that button would've taken us.. "
" It's not about that anymore. You're just living in your own world and don't wanna face reality. It's risky for you to crack open like you have been and it'll be even more risky with you abstracting now that Caine's dead. "
" I won't abstract, Zooble. You can call it me cracking open but I was the voice of reason you just didn't want to hear.. "
" Can you just PLEASE get your shit together and realize the stakes we're at if we don't stick together, Jax? "
" There's always stakes no matter what any of you try to do here. Don't wanna listen to me? Look around. "
Jax remained stoic, and eventually took off from the rest of the group, avoiding the holes in the floor and heading off to his room. Zooble watched Jax leave, their eyes narrowing as he left. Mumbling under their breath.
" Maybe take your own advice and take a look at yourself, asshole... "
Zooble rolled their eyes, and focused back on the group. The rest of them being silent for a short moment. The mood now a little tense thanks to the exchange they had with him. Gangle broke the ice before the silence became uncomfortable.
" ...We can still be a group, even if he's not apart of it. He won't listen or be much of a help so.. I think it'll be best to just.. Let him be. "
Zooble relaxed a little, letting out a sigh.
" ..Probably. Whatever, good riddance... "
" ..I-I could. Try to get through to him later if.. Need be. We stil all need eachother, even if he doesn't want to be around any of us, y'know? He can't last on his own with things like this for too long... "
Pomni randomly offered with a mixed response from the rest. It was really hard to get through Jax, and they could never understand him or how he works.. Neither did most of them care to know or budge much on it. Ragatha had some idea and Pomni got a little leeway, but overall there wasn't much knowledge on the Rabbit and his.. Behavior..
" That's true and all Pomni, but.. Are you sure he's gonna.. Let loose to you.? I don't think I've seen him be lenient with someone else other than.. Ribbit and Kaufmo. And even they probably had their limits.. You didn't nearly as much leniency as they did and he's been pretty distant the last few days.. I'm not sure he'll- "
" It's gonna be fine, Ragatha. I'll try some other time but for now lets just.. Focus on us for a change instead of Jax. We have bigger issues right now. "
" ...You're right. I'm sure he can hold himself up. But first.. We should probably get back to figuring out what to do with these.. Holes. "
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The door closed. Leaving Jax alone in his room. The bright pink, blues and yellows of the room were slightly disturbed thanks to a few small holes in his room. He took a moment to glance around, letting out a small grumble at the sight of them. Great. It could've been worse, but it was pretty frustrating to have his already embarrassing room crumbling down due to the deletion of Caine, making it even worse. After looking, he turned off his room light and went straight to his bed. Lying down and looking over to the wall beside him where his pictures were.. Thankfully those went untouched, but he was worried that they could get lost.. He had no clue if those holes could spread, neither did he really want to find out if they could. He sat up, gathering the photos on the wall and keeping them in a neat stack within his hands. Once they were all off the walls, he looked at them. Staring at the first photo in the stack. A picture of him, Kaufmo and Ribbit together at a previous adventure. His gaze softened, his ears lowered, and he began looking through the pictures. Each picture either had Kaufmo, Ribbit or Jax in frame, whether they were by themselves or with one another. He remembered all of these being taken, his gaze drifting off to his camera, and then back at the pictures before stuffing them into his overall pocket. He missed them. He missed spending time with them, talking to them and wreaking any sort of havoc that he could with them. Everything was fine.. Everything was perfect before they showed up. Jax tensed, grumbling a little while he laid back down.
He wishes they were here with him right now, but it was probably for the better that they weren't considering the current state of the circus and Caine had just done to them, he couldn't imagine what Caine would've put them through. Jax still couldn't shake off what happened to him in his torture segment, and with his prior moment of reminiscing, he couldn't help but to be reminded of what Caine put him through. Slowly, it began to feel as if something was instead underneath his skin. Before the feeling could settle or get too intense, Jax tried to shift himself to be more comfortable, yet he felt as if he could hardly move. He tried to roll onto his side so he could fix himself to face the wall. Shortly after he tried, he realized that he couldn't move at all. Leaving him stuck lying on his back, staring up at the ceiling while he felt his skin being purged into, paralyzed and unable to stop the feeling. The only thing he could do was frantically look around his room, where there was nothing. No culprit behind his skinning like there had been before. The more his eyes darted around, the sound of laughter slowly built up. Laughter that had tormented him prior to the tearing of his shell. Still, no matter where he looked, there was nothing he could pin the feeling or the laughter on. He grew desperate to find it, yet to no avail. The purge just grew more intense along with the laughter. Simply mocking his panic and fear, like they had done once before. Jax's breathing became heavy, rapid and irregular. He felt as if he was trembling, yet he was as still as he could be. Nothing could shake off the invasion he felt. Nothing could stop the laughter, either. One simple look back to the ceiling greeted him with a familiar sight. The culprits themselves. Kaufmo and Pomni's shadow off to the side. Ribbit front and center. Taunting him. Mocking him. Not a hand on him, yet it felt like they were already tearing him apart, which would quickly become true. In a sudden motion, the shadow of Ribbit reached their arms out and rushed towards him, almost as if to tackle him. The second she made contact, something different occurred.
The Rabbit had ended up on his knees, staring down at the yellow beneath him. His gloves intact, barely keeping him apart of his skin. He looked down at his chest, a tear near the middle, causing a fold. Both his skin and overalls torn from the middle. The skin that covered his head now on his back, almost as if he was wearing a hoodie. His panic remained, yet the purging had finally ended. Nevertheless. It was still scarring to lose his skin. He desperately grasped at one of the folds on his arm, frantically looking around the new setting for a second, before looking back down at his skinsuit. He was back where Caine had previously tormented him, and he could only imagine the worst. Just as before, he lacked the ability to even mumble.. Whether or not it was because of his state of panic or Caine's sinister engineering, he had no idea. He just wanted to use his voice and make this stop. He hated looking. He wish he could stop staring but he couldn't help but go against his own thoughts and keep his gaze fixated on his disgusting, ripped form. The Rabbit finally let go of himself, and looked up ahead of him. A black silhouette far from where he knelt. It was too far to make out who it was, but he knew it was staring. He could feel their intense gaze on him. Which made him feel even worse. He was vulnerable and exposed in the worst way possible, and there was nothing he could do to shield himself. The Rabbit's hands began trembling. He hunched over and covered himself, desperate for them to stop looking. While he cowardly hid from the figure. They only drew closer. They stood still, yet were practically teleporting over to him little by little. Increasing his stress. The more he looked away and looked back, the closer they got. The cycle repeated until they stood right infront of him. The gaze they had kept on him was even worse. It felt like their stare pierced right through his very soul. Finally, he found his words.
" Don't look at me. Stop looking at me. "
His voice was a little rushed. Maintaining a relatively flat tone, but he was obvious panicked and frightened thanks to how he was acting like a pussy. His voice also trembled and cracked a small bit. The silhouette failed to listen. Continuing to stare the Rabbit down. He couldn't even bother to look at them anymore, keeping his eyes averted away from them out of fear, leaving him unaware of the movements they now made. The silhouette knelt down next to him. Not bothering to speak, only taking action. They reached out, grabbing the loose skin of his hanging on his back and gently working it around his yellow body. Putting what was torn off of him back on. Tears from before still remained, but now he was no longer as exposed. The moment he felt his skin be pulled over him. He shivered. It was a gross feeling, leaving him a bit freaked out, but also confused... Why was this happening..? Once most of his skin was put on, his face was put back on, finishing it all off. The second he got his face back, his ears lowered all the way down. His panicking not calmed down despite the oddly generous actions of the unknown figure. He took another look of his more intact self with some heavy breathes, before slowly turning to look at who had exactly done this for him... It was a familiar face. A face he knew all too well. A face that he had been missing.
" ...Ribbit.? "
No longer was she that dreadful shadow that Caine had reduced them too. It was the Frog, in all of their glory. The Rabbit did nothing but stare in shock. He couldn't tell if he should be grateful, or fearful. It was some mix of both. He was less disheveled thanks to them, but it was still incredibly startling to even look at their door, and seeing their face wasn't any better. She hardly reacted to his expression, only looking at him more closely now, almost analyzing him. His gaze broke off from theirs before quickly returning, growing a bit unsettled the longer she looked at him. The Frog's face grew a little closer, the Rabbit shifted a little, finally breaking off from their gaze and take a moment to process what's going on, which they gave him no time to do. With a finger, they gently tapped under his chin and moved his head to face themself so he could look at the Frog again. This only startled the Rabbit more, as she began to stare at him more intensely now. Their finger swapped to both of their hands now instead, grabbed the sides of his face and pulling them closer together. The Frog's head tilted back a little, their hands guiding the Rabbit's do the same. He did absolutely nothing but stare in shock. After a short minute, their heads met, sending a quick shiver down the Rabbit's body, followed by a warm, comforting feeling. The contact they had wouldn't be allowed to enjoy for much longer. As a small smile grew on his face, reality struck him like a semi-truck.
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Jax let out a gasp, launching himself up. His hands clutching his head and chest in a frenzy. Taking deep and rapid breaths. His ears shot up while he rose from his paralysis. Looking around, he saw that he was now back in his room. What was that for..? He checked his hands after snapping back to reality. His skin intact, no longer was he ripped and exposed. He let out a relieved sigh and began calming down. His breathing slowing down and returning to normal. Once relaxed, he laid back down again. A hand going back on his chest, rethinking what had just happened. It felt practically nightmarish for him most of the time. The purging, seeing his skin torn off from him again.. It was awful. Though.. He was fairly surprised to see the version of Ribbit he had both been longing and dreading to see arrive to his comfort.. As she had before when he nearly let himself abstract... No matter how startling it was to look at them, he couldn't say he didn't appreciate seeing them to some degree again.. Even if she.. Wasn't here with him now.. His train of thought returned to the small moment that they had before everything ended.. Why did that... Happen..? What did she do that for..? He figured it was to comfort him. He had been in distress the entire time he had been there, and the entire time Ribbit was there.. So it could be figured. They were close before he ruined everything, so it would make sense but.. Ribbit hadn't done anything remotely similar before so.. What was all of this for..? The more he thought on it, more confusion rose, along with the comforting feeling that he had gotten once he made contact with Ribbit, leaving him slightly conflicted. Something had to be up with it, no.? He couldn't be going crazier than he already was.. ...Maybe he could. He had barely surpassed his breaking point, thanks to Pomni and Ragatha interfering with it before he could completely lose himself.. The warm feeling grew the more he thought. Jax let out a grumble, sitting up and posting himself up against his bedframe, reaching into his overall pocket and grabbing the photos again. Looking through each of the photos again, specifically fixing his gaze on Ribbit. The feeling grew only stronger. His ears lowered and his gaze softened. Regardless of how guilty he is and regretful, he'll forever remain haunted by them. Maybe that moment was for him to settle on what he had lost.
Before he could focus more on the Frog plaging his mind, Jax heard his doorbell ring from the outside. He had company, and he had an idea on who it was. He let out a small exhale, pocketing the pictures and raising up from his bed. Jax's ears rose as he walked over to the door, grabbing the handle and creaking it open so that he was visible, but the person outside was unable to see the interior of his bedroom. The person at his door was Pomni. As he had expected..
" Hey, Jax! Uhm. Do you have a second.? We were just figuring some stuff out about the circus and.. I didn't want to leave you out on anything. The last few days have been.. Rough and all but-! The worst is behind us now, and we can only move forward. Do you wanna come back with the group? You don't have to talk if you don't want to, but you should still be there with us. "
Honestly, Jax wanted to say no and go back to what he was doing before, but if he did that then half the cast would be eyeing him like a hawk if he stepped out of his room. The worst may be behind them now, but he still felt like he was at his absolute lowest. They were somewhat aware of this, so it felt like he was kind of lumped in with the group so he wouldn't veer off and give into his insanity like he almost did. Now that Caine's dead, it's especially more vital. If he abstracts, there's no cellar to drop him into, and theres no AI that can reverse the damage that he's inflicted on the others. It would be a recipe for disaster on the behalf of the others.. The thought was.. Entertaining. But it was better if he instead enterained what the group wanted, just so there's less eyes on him overall, despite how stupid that sounds.
" Well, aren't you so considerate.. I was doing something VERY important in this room of mine, but I suppose I can give you all a little bit more of my time... I didn't know you guys needed me THIS much.. "
Jax responded, putting up a slightly inconvenienced front, whilist giving into Pomni's offer despite it. He couldn't help but boost a little of his ego in the process. They had been sort of conforming him into their whole little group so.. The shoe fit. Pomni sighed in response. His usual behavior still shining through as if he hadn't been on edge for the last few days. She couldn't blame him but, he also couldn't pretend like things were normal right now, and that he was better off on his own. No matter how much he pushed the group and her away from him, and no matter how much of a pain he was, they needed eachother. The best she could do was atleast try bring them together. Jax could use the company anyways. After the arguement, they never got to really talk again. She was hoping that they could reconcile from it, even though the odds were unlikely. She was still willing to give him a chance, he just had to loosen up.
" Alright. We've moved on into Zooble's room while we were talking. Still trying to figure stuff out and all but they've been pretty generous in helping along with Kinger. "
She informed him, walking off away from his door and to Zooble's room once she finished speaking, expecting him to follow... Which he did. Stepping out of his room and closing the door behind him. His mind drifted off to the pictures in his pocket briefly. Jax let out a sigh, and dragged himself over to where Pomni was walking. He could only wonder what the hell they were doing in Zooble's room of all places.. Once Pomni reached the room, she knocked on the door. Waiting for it to open. As Pomni did this, Jax looked across the hall and to the doors off to the side. Kaufmo's room being the first he focused on. He let out a small exhale. His look stiffening a bit. Naturally, he focused on the room right down the hall. Ribbit's room. His eyes gradually expanded the longer he looked over there. Before he could look for too long, he snapped out of his stare. Looking back to Zooble's door instead. His look relaxing and becoming more carefree and bored. His arms crossed and he gazed off to the other side of the hall. Pomni knocked again, now being met with a click from the door and it being opened. The two being met by Kinger, who was rather enthusiastic.
" We've figured something out! "
(Words : 4,349)
(Zhiney - 4/2/26)