[He didn't have long to wait. He knew he wouldn't.
Pacing paused at the distinctive slam of a door being kicked open, all of the Ascian's restlessness continues to build in the face of losing even that meager outlet of movement. This would be his last chance to leave for a time, to put off the inevitable for no reason at all, and for all that he didn't want to, the idea remained, intrusive. A long-ingrained habit towards making things worse was a hard thing to override, the spell in his thoughts, his fingers digging into his palms as he fought back the instinct to escape.
When his own door opens, he freezes in place entirely, as though he were the one with the puca-instinct towards stillness. Only his voice remains, gaze locked upon his lover's face. How familiar he'd become to him, and how welcome the sight of him was. All of that tension and aggression and hurting remained, but the accompanying tenderness was unmistakable.]
Mettaton.
[An acknowledgement. A breath let out as Mettaton closes in on him. His own eyes slip shut as their foreheads touch, at the brush of their noses together, at the brush of their souls close together. This much was as it should be. A sense of belonging that in itself brought an ache; he was trapped, just as he'd wanted from the start.
Emet-Selch knows what's coming when Mettaton's head dips lower, his action so natural that he tenses no further at it. If anything, there was a sense of relief of finally having his lover's teeth in his neck, where they should be, his cry choked off into a hissing inhalation. The sharpness, the rightness of it all brought with it a form of clarity, as though the only way he could be certain of anything in his life was when he could feel Mettaton tearing into his flesh, mouth filling with blood. When he could feel arms crushing him against an unforgiving body, his own the only one able to yield.
It felt like Mettaton could scoop him up entirely like this, with his greater height and machine-led strength. It already felt like his breath was being pushed from his lungs, with no chance given to collect any more- a feeling he only attempts to enhance by the way his own arms wrap around the puca's body. They tighten; his fingers claw for purchase against metal and across fur, to touch, to hold, to push him ever closer. To drive him deeper into his neck with a need, a demand. If the idol was going to threaten his balance, he could have it, as he locks a leg around his, to further reduce space, to further feel him.
To be convinced. That they would remain, that they would remember, that all of this meant a damn even if they did not. To be convinced, over and over, carved into so many times until he had nothing left with which to deny it. Even then, it wouldn't be enough; even then he'd still want him, from the firmness of jaws and sharpness of claws, to the softness and love that went with them.]
[It's true: were he to teleport, Mettaton would track him down again. Bond failing, he would simply think of an object he'd imagine on his person: his earring, if he couldn't simply covet his soul and find him that way. Mettaton has countless ways he'd track him down, and he doesn't imagine Emet-Selch would put up such a fight so as to make him truly untraceable.
This simply means he can devote his energy entirely to ravishing him rather than hunting him.
Blood seeps between his teeth and drains into his mouth. He's gotten good at forming his lips around his bite to reduce the amount of loss, so wanting of his Bonded's blood as he is. His ears perk up, though there's a contentedness to them in their angle, in how they lean and swivel to pick up sounds from his Bondmate over all else. Feeling even his leg locked with his, Mettaton nuzzles into his bite, agitating it, ushering forth a greater gush — has he hit something good already? There's so much...
He sucks; it's a relief beyond measure. He couldn't begin to cough on all of the blood he has in his throat, given that he has no need to breathe, but he swallows and swallows, pleased by its abundance. Mettaton groans into his bite, realizing that he'd been wanting this taste for... days. Ever since he last had his fix of the Ascian, even though it hasn't been long. How stressed he's been, how frantic and agitated, and how immediately Emet-Selch's life serves to ameliorate his troubles, a cure to his anxieties. He is his solace where he can't have one, and his next sigh is crossed with the notes of pleasure and desperation both. And now that he has it, it's a wonderful bite of him, he thinks. One he could suck on for a time, with how plentiful a supply it is. (Perhaps MTT isn't considering any danger to his Emet-Selch. How much is too much? Mettaton doesn't know of such a thing.)
Adjusting his hold on his lover, one of Mettaton's flexible arms winds entirely around Emet-Selch's middle as the other crosses over his back, gripping down onto his ass as he comfortably takes a share of gravity from the Ascian. The idol tugs him as close as he can, shifting his hip into Emet-Selch's leg to form his body against his where he knows it'll give way to his own. Pressing as completely to him as possible as he sucks rapturously upon his injury.
He can only show him he has him in this moment, but this moment has expanse. The uncertainty of their return, should it come, should it be cruel... Whenever it is, it's not now, and now is always happening. Mettaton's upset begins to dissolve with him in his arms: there's nothing to worry about. Emet-Selch is securely in his grip, and surely his loss would feel like danger. He feels nothing of the sort.
This reassurance in place, Mettaton sighs again into his neck, adjusting his lips once more when he feels blood seep from the corner of them. He shudders, even as he remains stable. He swallows again breaking free and sighing long and hard against his skin.
Mettaton kisses him where a bruise blooms around punctures. He bleeds copiously. He shivers again, the smell overwhelming him, intoxicating him. All of his pleasure to have his Bonded so close is immense, and he feels he possesses him all the more for his delight. With a voice deeper and thicker, painted awash in the blood in his throat and the love he harbors, Mettaton speaks against his throat.]
Ah... Y-You didn't tense, darling... I can tell...
[His sharpened teeth slipped through him so readily. It makes him want more.]
[Relying on Mettaton to stand as a hypothetical turns into relying on him to stand as a truth; his arms cling onto him with a certain rigidity, grateful for the idol's reliable winding grip. The rush of dizziness catches him off-guard, and with it a hint of nausea, as he feels the distinct way Mettaton sucked upon the wound, and how quickly blood flowed from it, in a seemingly endless torrent. And how good the robot had gotten, he distantly noticed, at funneling most of it down his throat; so little, at first, escaped his desperate lips.
It was just the suddenness of the drain, he assumed; Mettaton hadn't taken this much this quickly before. As deep as the wound on his chest had been (and still was, as it was yet reluctantly healing), necks were an easier access point for the fluid. From the last time, he'd perhaps he'd felt a touch weaker afterward, but that was the natural result of injury. And this- this was just the abruptness; he'd adjust, he was certain.
His breath is quicker; he swallows heavily. His fingers knead slowly into Mettaton, trying to think more on the press of his hip and the tie of their legs, on the familiar hold on his ass, but it was a faded backdrop to the blood. His heartbeat. That specific sort of pulsing; his lover's lips against the wound.]
I... ah--
[It's not a distracted note (how could he be distracted from all of this?) or even precisely a disoriented one, but it takes a few moments to gather his concentration, to apply them to words. His pulse was thready and so quickened; he wondered how easily Mettaton could feel it, each moment squeezing that bit more life from him. With the puca's mouth less-effectively covering the wound in order to speak (but not to breathe; a robot's body had its advantages, he thought... he would require no breaks from him) he can better feel the way it not only welled up, but flowed past. Wetness uncaught by lips pours down his neck to soak into fabric. A deep red scent that was not uncommon these days.]
Perhaps I'm getting used to it.
[A healthy response to develop, surely: a complete lack of alarm to incisors slicing into his throat. But how could he be at all troubled, knowing what effect his blood had on his lover? Mettaton had been so anxious ever since they'd returned from the underground, and to know he could sooth him like this, if only for a time... it filled him with affection for him. And if Emet-Selch were likewise soothed by the connection, the sensation made it that much harder to think about inevitable losses. Much harder to think in general, but particularly about that; how could anything be forgotten when they were so full of each other? A trading of blood for open wounds, a connection so natural it sets him shivering.]
[Even as Emet-Selch grasps for words, Mettaton licks and kisses at his generous wound, not alarmed by its giving nature. When he presses his lips around the bite marks and presses his tongue against punctures to soak up the blood, he indeed finds the strange sensation of a deep pulse — but he's sure that has far more to do with how in-tune he is with his lover, every time he tangles with him. He's envious of that heartbeat, and wants it for himself. He craves Emet-Selch on a level primal, carnal, and cerebral.
Another sigh slips from his throat, a pleasant one this time. That psychological pleasure is derived easily form Emet-Selch's admission to growing accustomed to Mettaton's vice, willing to give into him as he is. He feels a shudder of electricity course his body, a wave of arousal unique to this form but one he knows would translated readily into obvious excitement, if he had an organic form. He can't seem to separate the two pleasures: of the delight of filling himself with his Bonded's magic, his fluids, his body, versus pleasure found in sex and intimacy. (The intimacy, he suppose, is an element in both.)
Rubbing his lips against blood, envisioning their stain, he smiles against his skin.]
Used to it... wonderful. To give way to me... To anticipate my intrusion. Is it really an intrusion if I'm a part of you?
[He licks again, licks and licks and cleans, but the blood shows no signs of letting up. Mettaton's still not worried. Dizzied for reasons other than blood loss in his own right, the Puca wraps his lips again around Emet-Selch's neck, sucking more of his blood from this generous wound. Even though he holds the Ascian, Mettaton moans, his legs trembling. He feels that wonderful prickling atop his scalp, a deep connection with his Bonded's body and soul... And he tucks himself close to that beloved, dark entity, just as he sidles his thigh between Emet-Selch's legs. Props him up on his leg to supplement the grip he has with his robotic arms and strength.
The robot can hardly think. Emet-Selch's blood overwhelms his senses, tunes out all of his problems and hones his focus in on his Bondmate. He feels so pampered and filled, wishing for nothing more than to lie on his back and feel blood be dripped into his mouth like wine, but something that actually manages to intoxicate him. And intoxicate it does, so quickly...
So quickly, because Mettaton realizes how easily his "getting used to it" wound is really draining. So much to drink, he realizes with a hearty suck. A draw of blood, a pull of vitality into Mettaton's throat as he once again releases his bite of Witch.]
You have... have so much to give me tonight, Hades-darling... Ahhh... [He smears his lips into his blood, then trails kisses from his throat to his jaw. He pulls back and regards his handiwork with a sigh.] You're... Addictive... Ohh....
[Not a statement meant to indicate that he finds anything wrong with their arrangement. He sucks some more, not wanting to waste Emet-Selch's body on the soaking quality of cloth.
Nor realizing how quickly this injury drains. Rather, realizing it, but not knowing of its potential excessiveness. Mettaton drifts from his sucking of Emet-Selch's wounds to brush his lips against his Bonded's, to kiss him gently with lips tinged crimson.]
[It barely even hurt, somehow- or rather, the deep throbbing of the wound was the same as the sensation of it being sucked on. It didn't even sting this time, or at least he didn't notice it accompanying the prodding of a tongue, the pressure of lips. There was an ache, he supposed, a deeper one that felt like it reached the core of him, and he couldn't tell if it was the result of injury or longing. He needed to lose so much in order to be filled with something else, for Mettaton to take the place of all that unnecessary blood and pain. It was soothing; he was still nauseous.
And his eyes are firmly closed. He is aroused himself- or getting there, at least, Emet-Selch had felt flickers of it while waiting for Mettaton's arrival. A normal response to anticipating him, a normal response to not only his presence but the thought of it, a distraction eternal. And with the slide of a thigh between his legs he shudders, beginning to stiffen despite of it all- or because of it, perhaps. But it's a bodily response that dizzies him further, as his blood is torn between filling his cock, and Mettaton's eager mouth, with his lover getting the lion's (or rather, the puca's) share. It was good that he was being propped up so well, he thought; if Mettaton let go, he was certain he'd collapse without him....
It takes him a moment to realize he's being kissed, that he's not just imagining the taste of blood against them. So there's a moment's delay before he presses back, a soft nuzzle for his lips, wet entirely from his own excess. If he slipped his tongue between them, would he taste anything else? A stray thought: Mettaton's mouth tasted more of blood than himself, these days; it was almost a pity.
His neck was wet and not getting any less so; opened and deep, the wound continued to drain. Fabric began to stick to him, a heaviness to it that was gradually spreading, and he's only dimly aware of why. A sensation distant, like so many others. A sensation drowned out by his pulse, by his own quickened breathing. Even arousal seemed quieter, a different sort of throb that seemed to reassure that all was well.
There was... nothing wrong with this. He was also certain of that, as he licks back at Mettaton's lips, legs tensing around his thigh- though it's as much for balance as pleasure.]
Is it....
[He's still working through a response to Mettaton's first words, even as he hears the rest, and his thoughts lose their track again. The robot had barely left his neck and already so much--]
You're- losing some of it.
[A low murmur between kisses, between breaths, shallow and fast.]
[Even though the robot craves his blood like nothing else, Mettaton wants to kiss him — and having Emet-Selch bring notice to his would so quickly after he's left it, after he's started kissing him, has him drawing his gaze to the spot before his mouth for once. And what he sees...
Mettaton is not a professional at Being Organic and Having Blood, but he has enough experience to take note of the amount. The way it floods from his bite, and he tries to envision whatever's underneath, something circulatory from his intensive study. Sure, the body is delicate, he acknowledges. But why would it be too terrible if he'd hit a plentiful vessel...? "Terrible" isn't even something that yet occurs to him, gazing down upon all of that red. How much more comes, even in looking at it.
His lover's breathing is erratic. His clothes are getting as wet as his own was that one time, near the collar, and Mettaton's attention shoots to Emet-Selch's face. Down to his cock; he rubs a thigh against him some more, idly, appreciatively. He sighs, both at the feeling of his growing hardness, and at the reminder.]
Oh...
[Maybe there's a hint of concern now. But it only causes Mettaton to want to stop the blood from escaping him — to claim it as his own, he doesn't have any, he wants it. If he could press his mouth to it, let the excess flow into his mouth, surely it would stop... staining his clothes any worse, and then it wouldn't look as alarming. That would solve the problem. So he returns to his wound eagerly, lapping at it with his tongue behind the security of lips pressed tight to skin, catching any and all excess.
Just with the taste of it on his tongue, there's not as much worry anymore: he could fill himself to the brim like this, he thinks with anticipation. (Without considering that in filling up his chassis, he would be draining that same amount from his Bonded — and he can fit easily 40% of his blood in his body, not that he's thinking about it in numbers, only vastness to be filled. (A very, very bad thing, but Mettaton doesn't realize it. He really should realize it; he would if he weren't placated by blood in the first place.)) He considers the distribution of blood in his Emet-Selch's body, with a concentration of it being given to him by mouth, and a concentration filling his cock. Both are for him. He thinks about how much of a pleasure his Bonded's body is, even without it being his own. But then, isn't it his?
He cares so much for him. Mettaton wants to kiss him all over...
The Puca pulls him closer to his body, even as he continues laving his tongue along his wound. He wishes he could nuzzle him, but he's busy trying to avoid losing any of his blood — no longer sucking hard, but gently prodding him with his tongue. The hand that remains on Emet-Selch's waist strokes him softly, an accompanying sigh of satisfaction slipping from his throat.
Surely, applying his tongue and catching all blood in his mouth will solve all problems. Not that he feels that there were any problems to begin with, even if there was the inkling of a feeling...]
[As far as Emet-Selch was concerned, that was the only concern (insofar as there were any): that Mettaton would miss out on too much of him. How much blood would it take to sooth him properly, to sustain him through the time it would take to solve the problem of someone knowing things they shouldn't? How much removal would it take to ease his own fears of loss? The answer involved more blood than he possessed, but they would just have to make do with what he had. They would just have to make the best use of it.
He thought he was fine; he was sure of it, if Mettaton had hit something too important, he would've bled out by now. Arteries were quick like that. This was just a lesser tier of Plentiful Vessel that the robot had struck upon, which meant that there was no problem at all (problems were not a gradient, they either existed or they did not; he wasn't dying, therefore anything less than that might as well not exist).
So when Mettaton returns to his neck, the Ascian tries for a hum of approval. He makes a sound anyway, something pleased in tone. If there was an issue at all, it was in where all that mess was ending up. He did miss kissing him though, even if it tasted only of blood, so he settles for nuzzling instead at one of his ears. Or at least, letting his face press against it, the absent brush of lips, of breath. There's fur occasionally in his face, anyway, so he makes what he can of it. Yet even with his eyes closed, the dizziness wasn't receding. If anything, it was getting worse, and that was troubling. Not because he had any concept of danger, but because he worried he might faint, and that would be a hassle.]
Mettaton.
[He was used to speech becoming difficult around him, but not usually quite so quickly. Also it felt a bit different this time, somehow. Bodies weren't meant to lose this much blood so rapidly, he supposed, in an extremely distant way, still completely unalarmed. It was speed, not amount that was the problem (not that there were any).]
--Bed. Please.
[It would've been hard to pull back from him under less-excessively-bleeding circumstances, to drag him in the direction of his bed, and it was a complete impossibility now. But Mettaton could get them there, so it was fine in the end. Once he could collapse back, he'd be alright, he assumed, it would be easier to adjust. Then he could relax, to better appreciate the sensation of his lover's lips over his neck. The way his vitality was flowing to someone who needed it more than himself. Mettaton was so gentle to him, he thought, as his arms attempt to rub at his back. From the softness of his tongue, to the security of his hold, to the steady drag of a thigh against his cock. The prickling of arousal was such a warm undercurrent, and warmth was what he wanted. The puca always seemed to provide what he needed....
Mettaton wouldn't let him fall; he was safe. It didn't matter what his pulse or breath was doing, Emet-Selch knew this, with a passion he was at a loss as to how to express. But it was a thought that sustained him through the haze of dizziness, as he tries to nuzzle at his head again with a small sound. He was so fond of him.]
[Even against his neck, that perfect juncture of tender flesh between his shoulder where it's tantalizing to sink deep incisors and canines, where he sloppily runs his tongue and drools against his skin in his lavish enjoyment, he hears Emet-Selch's request. Silver ears swivel, though they remain pressed to the Ascian's face; and he realizes then that his ears are capable of feeling temperature, and it's not unusual that Emet-Selch would feel cooler than his abnormally hot ears. This doesn't strike him as odd, either — because it's not strange to be cooler than Mettaton, either in metal or flesh flavors.
He hums a contented affirmative against skin, past the bubbling of blood in his throat as it's met with vibrations of sound. He unlatches from his bite with a kiss.]
You've got it, my darling. Anything... [He licks the corner of his lips, where blood cascades down his chin.] -you'd like.
[One arm unwinds from his waist; the other braces Emet-Selch's lax weight against his thigh as he readjusts his grip on him, manhandling his body like he's nothing. He dislodges his leg from its entanglement, scooping the other man into his arms in something more of a bridal carry — both to better clear him of his legs, and to deposit him squarely in the center of the bed. Standing over him, his hand moves to briefly run through his beloved's hair, taking in his appearance, appreciating him even like this and finding him lovely regardless of pallor.
The robot follows after him, lunging for his neck to prevent any further loss of blood to the dark bedspread — a color more appropriate for bloodstain, he considers. Dark or not, sheets couldn't appreciate blood like he could, so it's only right that he takes it before it goes to waste.
As he sucks upon his neck, Mettaton's body catches up with him. With Emet-Selch laid upon his back, the idol stoops his entire body low enough to rub contours of metal and silicone and fur against his lover's thigh, abdomen, waist, until he finds himself in a good place, body parallel to his. His leg is pressed between Emet-Selch's, thigh flush to his groin, and he hums into his claim on Emet-Selch's skin. This close, Mettaton finally eases himself down, providing the full of his weight upon his body: with his head at his neck, he presses his chest to his, hips to hips, and shifts excitably against him with the whole of his body.
He thinks about Emet-Selch's reassurance to help him deal with the situation he's found himself in. It's a terrifying obstacle, but he feels so empowered, so safe and secure and perfectly at home with this man, and he can feel their mutual trust so clearly in this moment. Emet-Selch is worth his infatuation, and he hums into his neck, a soft, ascending note of comfort. With his weight pressed against his lover, his hand's free to wander: it follows the shape of his body by touch, gently skimming the other side of Emet-Selch's neck and further north yet, until he can run his fingers as far back into his hair as he can reach. He braces his lover's head there, nuzzling into his claim upon his neck with greater security, applying the pressure of his tongue with reverence — not entirely for blood, but for Emet-Selch.
But he breaks from him for a moment to lick. He cleans around the wound whatever excess blood has escaped him, for whatever good that does. It's maintenance, wanting to keep blood from messily drying upon his beloved. Kisses follow, kisses to his clavicle and then following the front of his throat, up to his chin, along his jaw, then just beneath his ear — then right back to his bite mark, where he laps at any draining blood. Forms his lips around him with another soft moan, a sloppy, open-mouthed kiss where he steals away some of his blood in the process. Mettaton shifts his thigh against his erection, hum dipping lower.]
[His form is nearly slack when he feels Mettaton- so casually, it seemed- detangle him and pick him up from the ground. Yet careful as it is, any movement at all has the Ascian feeling queasy again, and strangely sweaty despite the odd chill. Unable to cling, he's forced to remain as still as possible instead; the mix of signals his body was sending him were actually quite unpleasant in that moment. There was the security of being carried and the warm throb of arousal, the disorientation of being moved at all, the dizziness, fatigue, and cold, his body reacting as though something were wrong with it, which he refused to acknowledge. Once he could lie still for a time, he'd feel better.
And once he feels himself flat on his back- deposited there so safely that he's touched all over again- Emet-Selch risks letting his eyes flicker open, dazedly attempting to focus up on Mettaton above him. There was blood on his Bonded's face- a warm, red trail that only complemented his features, he thought. Reassured anew at the sight of him, his eyes drift shut as he feels a hand brush his hair, and he settles for listening and feeling for Mettaton instead. The sound of the covers and bed being pressed on, the friction of the idol's thigh against the fabric of his pants. That, of course, was sensation too, his erection stubbornly maintaining itself despite where the rest of his blood was going, even continuing to harden because his body knew where his priorities should be.
And he did feel a bit better, he thought, to be on his back, with Mettaton's lips returned to his neck; the problem (that didn't exist) would certainly solve itself now that his blood was going where it needed to. The feeling of him trying to clean the wound was sweet, even if it amounted to smearing around a steady flow, and Emet-Selch even manages to hum very softly this time at the way damp lips traveled over the rest of his neglected neck, his jaw, even reaching close to his ear. The way his hand touched and supported his head, providing him that bit more steadiness. It was affection that warmed him when blood no longer could, tilting his head into the touches, in both encouragement and appreciation.
Could he be any more secure, with Mettaton's weight pressing in on him, surely locking in what heat that remained; it didn't matter that he was taking it from him when he was providing it right back with his most fascinating body. Emet-Selch manages to loop one arm loosely about his waist, while the other moves to the back of the idol's head. His fingers shakily stroke from the back of his neck and upwards, petting him while the robot continued to feed from him.
His hips even try to press up against his thigh, though the motion is weaker than it should be, and much movement at all sets everything spinning and off-kilter in his head again. How troublesome. Nearly as bad was how cold he still felt, which didn't make any sense; Mettaton provided plenty of heat, and he was aroused, which provided its own sort of warmth. But when he shivered, it had more to do with chill than anything else.
Emet-Selch couldn't clutch to him very hard, but he tries to; this would help somehow, eventually. He just needed more time to adjust, that was all....]
[The developing prominence of the taste of sweat and his cooling skin under Mettaton's hot, bloodied mouth are notable, though the monster isn't sure how. It's different, and he can feel his mild tremors as he strokes the back of his neck. Can feel the way he shivers under his body.
It brings Mettaton the desire to soothe him in return, for this display of complete vulnerability in body. He does so by licking and further agitating that wound with his tongue. Nuzzling his temple into Emet-Selch's cheek. Pressing his thigh against his engorged arousal, humming at the sensation of him and his attempts to press into his thigh: a reward for his tenacity, for his delectable hardness, a good use of his blood, in Mettaton's opinion. Further taking his blood, preventing it from spilling anywhere other than into his mouth. That he was bleeding this much was for him, he decides, and the robot would gladly take all of this and more from Emet-Selch, because he loves him. Because he would take the whole of him, from head to toe and deeper yet. Not a drop that exits his body should go anywhere else, and it's such a delightful feeling, something that sedates and tides him over, a fixation to distract him from all of his worries. He focuses so wholly on the Ascian that he can't possibly ruminate over all that ails him, so dearly in love with the man beneath him in his gradual chill. Firmly grounded in the moment, this is all that exists: the future and past all exist right now, and of course it means the world. This means everything.
Their Bond. Emet-Selch is dizzy. It's a dizziness that doesn't come from breathlessness, though he wonders if that would make it better if he could suffocate him with his tongue instead of solely pulling blood from his body. (If only he had a duplicate of himself! He could feed on his spilling wound and kiss his lover to death.) Mettaton's arms press into Emet-Selch's body, trying to bring his weight down upon him more firmly.
He still tastes his clamminess.
Mettaton swallows. He swallows and swallows and feels he couldn't get enough of him. But he breaks free of his leaking wound for just a moment, the need to express his thoughts and communicate occurring to him. A check-in to make sense of his Bonded's feelings, despite how he can sense them sympathetically.]
H... Hades? How are you doing?
[Mettaton's voice is soft and light, unhurried and unworried. Even as he thinks that Emet-Selch has lost a lot of blood... It feels like a lot, anyway, when he considers how much has made it down his throat. The idol interprets Emet-Selch's body language to be weakened, succumbing to him... But he was plenty agitated before he got here. They both were. That he should be so receptive and submissive, that he should be so hard and soft simultaneously, and that he should bleed so profusely... All of it felt appropriate, somehow. Whether it's right or not, that's the question. Whether Emet-Selch is all right, that's yet another question.
Because ultimately, Mettaton cares for him. He doesn't think they're in any danger, but he wants to know how Emet-Selch's doing nonetheless. He wants to know how he feels about this drain of lifeblood. He wants to know how his mood sits. He wants to know what troubles him, what he desires, what could soothe, what he feels, what weighs upon his shoulders... and how he could make him feel weightless, if temporarily. What he could do to alleviate that burden.
As soon as he finishes speaking, Mettaton wraps his lips around that bite. How hard he bleeds still... It's fortunate that it's going down somewhat, but it's likely less for any actual healing, and more for lack of pressure. Mettaton presses his tongue to his skin again, applying wet, heated pressure.]
But why was that? The Ascian was no longer overbonded, and he always got plenty of sleep. Too much. Had he been overdoing it again? It's a thought that sidetracks him, distracts him, not noticing any words at first, or even sound. He was always tired; that was nothing strange. There were sensations happening, and that was nice. Some sort of pressure against his face, against his cock. That was good, because he was having trouble moving.
A voice. How had he missed it? He can't recall the words, even the memory of the sound is distant, like it's coming from underwater. Or was he the one drowning?]
Mettaton?
[A question in a soft voice, bewildered. He can barely hear that either, and questions whether he spoke at all. He thinks to ask him to repeat what he said, but loses track of the thought before he can completely think of it. Only uncertainty remained.
But he was better for lying down, that much was still true, and yet it was hard, so hard to concentrate. Fewer things were making sense, and he couldn't stop trembling. His skin felt damp all over and he couldn't remember why; only his neck was bleeding, that was the only place that should be wet. His neck was bleeding somehow? He ached and his lover was here. That was right. His breath remained shallow and fast, and he still couldn't get enough oxygen. Why else would he remain so dizzy, even while holding still, even while prone and the world made dark?
Where was he, again?
He was so cold. The last time he'd been so cold, he'd been carved open completely, and he couldn't move then either. This wasn't nearly so bad; he only had one point of injury, never mind all the healing nibbles he'd acquired over the weeks. He was still safe, he knew that much, somehow; this was Mettaton, and he loved him. Which just made the association that much more confusing. Which just made him more confused in general. Had he imagined everything after all, was this it--]
You're- you're here, aren't you....?
[The disorientation was getting worse, and he was losing any ability to track it. His fingers dig in as hard as they can to- something, he can't tell, he can't even feel it (it's not a hard grip at all, only a spasming brush). His tone reflects pure confusion, unsettled by his own uncertainty. He was so tired, but when wasn't he? But what would happen if he rested, if he lost track of Mettaton entirely?
He wants to tell him not to leave, but the words don't form. He grasps harder, but he can't feel a thing. It was like being tempered again, but without any god waiting to catch him; there was only the darkness itself, and he could only succumb to it. Losing consciousness, his body slackens completely.]
[As soon as he hears the feebleness of Emet-Selch's voice, Mettaton realizes something's wrong. He doesn't immediately pull from his neck, remaining there with a sturdy pressure and a rigid posture, and he feels such delicate, slow stirring from their Bond. It's pitiful, and he pulls away to ask him what he wants.
But then he asks him if he's here at all. Mettaton freezes, ears bolt upright, blood dripping from parted lips. What's he saying? He suddenly realizes what that lukewarm temperature of his skin is all about. His signature feels weak, and Mettaton fears for the worst.]
Hades? Hades?! I'm here!
[Mettaton shifts his entire body, jolting to his knees, straddling his hips, gripping onto his cheeks. He can't feel how cold he is, but there's a slight stickiness that he can detect. He swallows.]
Wait! I'm...
[Emet-Selch is out like a light, as is his Bond. Mettaton despairs. He exhales a pained whimper. Just like when he'd overloaded him with a fourth Bond, Emet-Selch this time has given too much away. Futilely, the idol kisses his cheeks feverishly, thumbs pressing into paling skin, but the other man's gone slack.
He's passed out, just like before. Just like when he took on one too many Bonds. He's the cause then, and now. But this time, Mettaton worries that his physical condition will only worsen.
Mettaton pulls back, diverting his attention with a hazy, stupefied slowness to his manner made sluggish by so much intoxicating indulgence. He feels frozen. It's difficult to move when he needs to, petrified by a slow, creeping dread... which he wrenches himself out of with a sharp glare to Emet-Selch's neck. All of that blood he's lost, and still losing. His clamminess is another point of notice, something he can only sympathize with from his failed attempts at shapeshifting — a surefire way to fall unconscious. The dizzied room, the eventual blackout, and a resolution coming only from... undoing his transformation. Emet-Selch has no transformation to undo, and Mettaton realizes then just how ill-equipped he is at handling his Bondmate's body. He's totally inept, and never bothered to learn properly what to do. What does he do? He can't return his blood to him; he's already taken so much from him, leaving his heart empty and struggling to replenish it all. Mettaton grips onto his own chest, wishing he could empty it back into Emet-Selch as easily as he took it.
But that wound remains. It pours, as it ever does. Mettaton leaps forward and into action: he wads the sheet from beneath his lover's shoulder, bunching them in his fist and pressing it firmly against the deep bite mark on his neck. The idol's first impulse is to make that wound stop bleeding, at any cost. He's had enough of his blood: the cost for his greed is too steep. In his overabundance, his overindulgence, was he blinded to his lover's failing condition? Was he so pacified that he saw no warning signs of his deterioration? He was so blissed out; it was no wonder he couldn't see past it all. His need to go to bed, his softening voice, his woozy manner and unsteadiness felt through their Bond were all the tips he needed, but he ignored them all in favor of pressing ever forward, ignoring all of their problems as though it could be soothed with pleasure and their voracious tearing into each other. Emet-Selch was in agreement with him the entire time despite it. Their approval matched: his blood belongs to him. Yet he harmed his Bonded with his carelessness.
The more seconds pass without the Ascian's stirring, the more frantic Mettaton becomes. He presses flush, leaning in to kiss Emet-Selch's eyelids, smearing blood along his temple in the process. He doesn't know what to do. What if he dies like this? Mettaton stares down upon his lover's body, pale and sticky and shirt collar bloodied from his reckless adoration. From all Emet-Selch wants to give him. Mettaton feels that same sickly feeling he gets when his organs drop, a phantom sensation he couldn't possibly be having.
No, this wasn't innocent adoration: it was fervor, wrath, terror, craving, loneliness, desperation, helplessness. Uncertainty. This was their feelings unmanageable, combined.
His ears flatten. He panics, watching his pallid features helplessly. It's agonizing seconds, agonizing minutes as he keeps leaning forward to listen for his heartbeat with sensitive ears. How soft it is, he thinks, reassured only that it's there. But it's weak: against his lips, this heartbeat is a delightful thing. Mettaton chokes on air. He needs to do something, but what does he do?
Mikasa. Unable to maintain his nigh-impenetrable composure, unable to think straight, Mettaton reaches for his device. The latest message is from Emet-Selch, a thought incomplete, and he panics some more even as he brings up ma and calls her for help, knowing she's probably still displeased with him about all he's been hiding from her... But this was more important, and she knows what it's like to deal with injured people, he assumes.
As soon as his call concludes, Mettaton finds himself trembling, almost ready to burst in his stress. Like he might overheat, and that wouldn't help anybody.]
Legs... [With some purpose, Mettaton can go into action.] Okay.
[Mettaton stacks pillows. He quickly unhands his wad of blankets and lifts his Bonded's legs to shove them underfoot. Another quick diversion: Mettaton hops off the bed and rummages for a spare blanket, of which he's sure to stock around in all manners of textures he's found enchanting. A thick, deep purple one is carelessly attained, and Mettaton crawls on the bed before he unfolds it in his inefficiency, draping it over his lover's body, raised legs included. He's quick to return to applying pressure to his neck, this time with a pillowcase he grabbed in the wake of his blanket-fetching, hoping to warm his Bonded's poor, chilled body with the blanket upon his person. He shifts close, tucking his chin possessively atop his head, pressing his free hand to his clavicle — feeling for a pulse and finding one yet, faint as it is.
None of this was how this was supposed to go. How readily they fell into each other's arms, Emet-Selch into his teeth. He'd given him such trust, such little resistance...
After some time like this, Mettaton checks his heart again. It's beating. He does this over and over. Beating. Breathing. He gets frustrated once and feels inclined to bite him; he can't. He's irritated, mostly with himself. For this inclination that proves too dangerous, after all.
Even after a time, Mettaton's still pressing firm against his neck, afraid that if he lets go, it'll all come apart. The pillowcase is part-way soaked, but not at all soaked through. At some point, he's snuggled in with his Bonded and tucked his chin atop his shoulder so that he can watch his neck, his profile. When he's still, he can watch the rise and fall of his chest, gentle as it is. Mettaton wills himself to ignore the alluring smell of blood, finding it both addictive and worth wariness at once.
Regardless, Mettaton doesn't leave or sleep. He watches. He drapes his free arm across his chest. Should it take long, he begins to talk to Emet-Selch once he confirms that he's breathing still. He tells him about the first movie he'd ever seen and how much he adored the humans he saw. He talks about the first time he saw the plans for his body. He tells him about the show he was just in that evening. He tells him about Mikasa, and how he met her rescuing a human child. He talks about Alphys a little, how he'd grown away from her — and how he's not sure how to bridge that gap, even still. (He's not very good at that, is he?) He confesses that he nearly bit Mira recently, stopped only by a quick-thinking attack on her part. He says really, it didn't scare him to think of Emet-Selch working on his body, it's quite different from being a human and wide open, and he trusts him. He fantasizes aloud that, were he to have it his way, he'd love to relax and watch movies with him — a perfect activity given his disinclination toward moving, and Mettaton's love for such entertainment. He reminds him he loves him.
He talks even when he doesn't reply, because it makes him feel better, and he can't help but remember the tone of Emet-Selch's voice. Lost and confused, imploring for his presence, and he wants to somehow convey to him that he's not alone still. A vain hope that his voice will reach him somehow, as if he could throw it into his head. But he also lapses into silence between, listening to his breathing, tilting his head every once in a while to let the shell of a sensitive ear land upon the Ascian's chest to confirm that his heart's still beating.
Around the time Emet-Selch might come to, he might very well be talking about his idea of a date: a line or so that goes, "I don't just act in the feature, you know. I like to watch things too. I think you'd like it, relaxing in our own space and watching something with me... Even if you disliked the movie. Haha." His fingers trace his profile, such shameless care and observation as he absorbs the sight of his face: terrified about the thought of how pale and sickly he looked, but trying to prescribe his appearance to his memory so strongly that he couldn't forget it, just like Emet-Selch suggested he should when he was the one bleeding out.
His hand remains fisted around a wad of pillowcase, pressed firmly to his neck as though scared to lift it. Mettaton doesn't know what to do with this body of his, except to be patient with it. He thinks that's what he needs, even when they know they both don't care for patience. Sometimes it's necessary.]
[The fall into unconsciousness was not a pleasant one. It was an experience beset by confusion, nausea, fear. A fear not even that he was dying (though that would've been a most reasonable assumption, and an expected thing to be afraid of), but only because it hadn't quite occurred to him that he might be. Not exactly. But instead a fear of madness, and of solitude, and of not being able to tell where he was, what was happening, and only scarcely who he was with. But was even that knowledge reliable? That was the worst of the fears, and it was the one that carried him into darkness.
He'd never been afraid of the dark before. He'd never thought to fear what could be lurking in the bottom of it.
And so he sank. And so he remained, for a long time.
Hours of passivity, unresponsive and relaxed in the comforting way a corpse would be. A similar level of warmth and color further deepens the facsimile, the only thing giving the game away was his continuance to breathe, for his heart to beat, however inefficiently. But it still worked, as though it didn't know how to do anything else, a shallow, fast pulse that did its feeble best to keep moving whatever blood that remained. An effort that meant he kept bleeding, more fluid lost from each pass, from each beat- but progressively less. And not only because there was less to lose, but with the pressure of something other than a sucking mouth on the wound, the barest hint of something like coagulation could start. With the pressure of fabric instead, blood was encouraged to stay on the inside of his body, despite its best attempt to find freedom elsewhere. To decorate the bed, or to trail down his throat, or into Mettaton's mouth- these were all normal places for his blood to be.
And how inconsiderate his body was to not realize this, to instead start shutting down because it didn't like suddenly having a dozen or more percentage points of its blood vanished, claimed by someone who had just as much right to it.
But slowly it regained some manner of stability, and while the Ascian wasn't in any manner of good or perhaps even safe condition, he wasn't getting any worse either. Cloth was pressed to him, and he had soaked so much of it without realizing. But even that began to dry, though the sticky scent of blood remained. As fragile as the movement was, his heart continued.
It wasn't quite the same as it had been during his periodic comatose states. This Bond was muted, but not completely dead- sluggish, with a stirring barely perceptible, but there. While his condition before had been a gradual erosion of energy, of magic, of self, with the times of unconsciousness dropping him into a flat featureless plain, blank and still- this had a different note to it. More clearly sickly, a faint pulsing of life that was strong enough to remain, but not yet strong enough to break the barrier of consciousness.
And so he survived, because what choice did he have?
Oblivious to the panic that surrounds him, to the efforts gone to for his sake, at least for the moment, he can do nothing but lie there quiet, and far too still. Removed entirely from the decisions that had led to this moment, from all of that desperation and love and despair, from his encouragement to this end, from Mettaton's glad embracing of it. They'd done this to each other, in their carelessness and adoration and need, a reckless building of violence that led to this inevitability. They needed too many things from one another, and in a willingness to provide... what else could be the result?
Hours pass, and Emet-Selch's condition continues to stabilize. He's weak- so very weak, and somehow both overheated and cold- but consciousness begins to emerge. Not flickering, not in twitches or starts, but slowly. A peeling back of layers, a draining of the waters that surround his suffocated form. And from the depths of that darkness he could hear a voice.
It wasn't always there, and his consciousness wasn't complete enough to think about why, or what it was. But a presence remained, and eventually the sound would continue, and all of this was terribly, terribly soothing. He could listen to that forever, he thought, and not get tired of it.
But thought itself encourages more of them, more rousing, and as consciousness coalesces, words do as well. Emet-Selch doesn't think about where he is or what had happened or why he felt so desperately weak: there was his lover's voice. There was his hand on his face with a gentleness that he could lose himself in, and he could feel that, and he doesn't know why both of those things felt so remarkable. Both to feel and to possess. He's not sure why he's near tears or why his head hurts, but he imagined love was the culprit of at least one of those things.
What had Mettaton been saying? With his meager consciousness devoted solely to his lover's words (and not put towards anything like 'recognizing location' or 'remembering what had happened'), he can almost comprehend them. He doesn't know why he can't remember the rest of the conversation, but....]
I would- like that. I think....
[He doesn't know why his voice is so hoarse either, or why he could barely move, apart from a pained shudder, as though instinctively attempting to curl closer to Mettaton, to shield himself from all these discomforts with his body. A body uncooperative and sore and still very tired. His eyes open, but only slightly, and seem to struggle to focus on anything.]
[It's so sad to feel such flickering of him through their Bond, with his Bonded's otherwise remarkable soul... And at first, he feels he'd admit that it's better than the nothingness. At least it's something. But as the hours go by, he realizes that the pitiful sign he has of Emet-Selch's life felt through their Bond is indicative of a true lack rather than the connection just being shut down, as it did months back, and that thought terrifies him somewhat. How could that be better when it's that much closer to losing him? Which one is worse? He dislikes it all, never wanting to feel his soul fade.
There's no better option, he decides, except one of them could be immediately fatal.
Yet his heart kept beating. It's a relief every time, even when it's faint and struggling. He wondered at some point if he should be bringing him somewhere for proper medical attention, but he can't bring himself to move his hand, and he can't ever think of where to go. He wishes he knew who healed Emet-Selch before... They seemed to be good at it, he thought. Mettaton doesn't know anybody who heals. He wonders if the Coven could help, if he could only bring him there.
So he hopes this works. A part of him starts to make plans, just in case he doesn't rouse or it starts to look unstable, because he won't let Emet-Selch die, even if Mikasa were to tell him he was a lost cause — he's seen her give up before, and she was wrong. He feels like he could stop his death no matter what sometimes, and at others, he feels very incapable of it.
But he comes back. It's hard to tell at first, with his own voice smoothing over the gradual strengthening of Emet-Selch's magical signature, but evening's well into night. Mettaton's fingers are smoothing over his brow, moving to trace over his lips; running over his forehead, down the bridge of his nose. And it's then that he speaks. Mettaton gasps, halting in his reverent tracing as he shifts impossibly close, overwhelmed with emotion.]
Hades...
[The Ascian's eyes open then. Mettaton catches his visage from the side, just as he has all evening, and it's dim in the room but he can see him quite clearly. The relief he feels may just overpower all else, seeing him stir to some manner of alertness.
The idol is the one to come closer, making sure that Emet-Selch doesn't have to. He keeps his hand pressed to the wadded fabric against his neck, moving so that his face should come into view without any further effort on his Bondmate's part — save for the trouble of having to focus on him at all. His free hand rests against his cheek as Mettaton smiles down on him, ears nearly back and brow knit in concern.
They couldn't really do what Mettaton wants, since TV doesn't exist. Movies don't exist. But having Emet-Selch return his words at all has Mettaton elated, desperately so. When he laughs, it's laden with emotion: the relief of hearing his Bonded after fearing for worse and worse situations. That he might never wake, or that he'd die... Any manner of scenarios cropped up in that head of his, extreme or not. He didn't know what to think.]
I'm glad to hear it... Really.
[Less that he might like his date fantasy, and more at the sound of his voice at all, no matter its quality. His thumb strokes over his cheekbone, thankful for all of the work his body's putting forth to recover. It's so much relief to know that he's alive (even if he'll only die when he returns home; Mettaton's thinking about this very moment over all else) that it weighs his very being down, a hope assuaging despair so thoroughly that the whiplash causes the robot to tear up. He can only imagine how Emet-Selch must be feeling: disoriented, aching, weak... But he hopes desperately that he doesn't feel alone or lost.
When Mettaton realizes too late that tears have slipped onto Emet-Selch's neck (the other, unaffected side), he gasps. Then, he hisses:]
Oh! Shit, no—
[He hastily wipes the tear from his neck with the blanket that covers him. ... His tears are perfectly benign, though Mettaton imagines that they must be acidic, proof of how infrequently he cries. (Proof that this robot can cry at all?) At least it snaps him out of crying at all. But Emet-Selch is fine, at least with regards to burning. Unless he can't tolerate robot fluid any more than he already does.
With that dealt with, Mettaton closes his eye and tries to pull himself together with a soundless sigh.]
Ah... How are you doing, darling? Will you... Are you all right?
[At first, all he really does see is shifting colors, shapes. A sight that only serves to disorient him further, and he nearly closes his eyes against it with a pained sound before it steadies slightly. Enough to give his reluctant vision time to focus, gradually bringing his lover's face into hazy recognition. It's still not clear, not sharp, but he's certain it's him. He can recognize his relief, as though he couldn't also feel it through Bond, the emotion nearly drowning him anew. Emet-Selch still couldn't understand why, couldn't yet remember what had happened, but it was a relief he shared somehow. For seeing him again?
He wanted to raise his hand to touch Mettaton's face, but he can't quite manage it. There's actually nothing 'quite' about it, there's a feeble twitch to his arm that hardly signals his intent for anything, and nothing else. But at least he could see him, could feel the touch to his own face- so soft and deliberate and loving, and more of a balm than anything else could be.
It takes Emet-Selch a moment to recognize the wetness hitting his skin, bewildered nearly as much at the feeling as he is at Mettaton's frantic rubbing it away, as though he thought it might hurt him.... He'd never seen the robot cry before, and in that moment he was afraid again. Whatever had happened had been serious enough to warrant both this upset and relief, and his fluttering, overworked heart speeds yet again. His own vision becomes blurry, and for a second he nearly panics, thinking he's losing hold of his own grasp of consciousness- but it's just a few of his own tears spilling over, and he doesn't entirely know why. The awareness that he might've died, that he'd been brought uncomfortably close to it so suddenly- hasn't quite reached his thoughts, but the feeling is there. A reason to be so unsettled.
What had happened? Mettaton's question has him trying to think back on it, on what had led to this state, to why he felt so weak and sick and empty. He'd been messaging the idol, yes- plans were made, of dubious but necessary intent. And then they'd- not argued, exactly, but were in disagreement again. Heatedly, agitatedly so, if not angrily. It was never like that... and then he was waiting for Mettaton to reach him, and- and that was it. The rest was a blank, at least for now.
As though to defend itself from further discomfort, his few thoughts kept being deflected back onto what he'd caught of Mettaton's date imaginings. Something so calm and normal and safe.... And that he wanted to do something nice with him, to just have his company- that it was something worth appreciating, and so, so very easy to lose. Could he have slipped away with so little warning? Not even through disappearance, but--
Emet-Selch doesn't shake his head (just the thought of it made him dizzy), but he does close his eyes, breath shuddering. And just as soon opens them again; as much as it hurt to see, to focus, the reassurance of what he could see was worth it.]
No. [He swallows heavily; he still needed time to piece things back together.] Not- not particularly. I don't- what happened?
[There were details to pick up on, even if the memory remained a blur. The strong scent of blood. His own extreme fatigue, that any attempt to turn his head hurt, both inside and out. There was fabric bunched up against one side of his neck, and his legs were strangely elevated. He was still clothed so they hadn't had sex yet, and he had an additional blanket on top of that. He still felt clammy.
He couldn't quite put the obvious conclusion together yet, only that something had gone wrong somewhere. He twitches, longing to pull himself still closer, to bury his face against Mettaton and breath him in- breathe in something other than blood.]
[It doesn't surprise the Puca to hear that Emet-Selch isn't all right after all, but he's glad to hear it come from him. He'd only just roused from... who knows what sort of arduous process the body goes through to restore itself, and he has more to recover. Yet still, Mettaton fears that if he unhands his neck at all that he'll spring another leak and fall unconscious again. (Wounds can clot. He knows this, logically. It doesn't stop his fears. Too much is at stake.)
Seeing Emet-Selch tearing up in response to his own feelings, an overwhelming concoction of sentiment shared between them, has Mettaton wanting to pull him close and smother him, but he resists. He's not well, and doing that would only make it worse. The robot shifts in place to cope with the desire to kiss him breathless — his Bonded's already struggling with dizziness. Instead, he leans in and kisses his forehead; his temple; the corner of his eye; his cheek. His hand moves to wipe at tears, to remove one more source of liquid to be left cold on his face as he hums thoughtfully, pulling together his composure. Mettaton pulls back, but he remains in Emet-Selch's sights as he sidles his thigh against Emet-Selch's side. (Mettaton hasn't spared the moment to take his heels off, in all of this...)
It's not that he's no longer worried. Just seeing Emet-Selch rouse makes him feel leagues better, but his concern remains. His alertness brings him solace and strength, but his condition's poor, and he wants to keep him safe. (Turns out that Mettaton was the danger.)]
I... You must not remember. [Memory has a funny way of being unreliable like this, he's found. He can't blame Emet-Selch. He has trouble remembering things after a good shut-down, though it usually comes back to him afterward. He imagines it might be the same for the Ascian.] I bit you. I think I bit you too hard... Or maybe in the wrong place.
[Or maybe a combination of the two. Wrong place, just a bit too hard. He looks regretful and sheepish both, glancing at the wad of cloth he's kept pressed to Emet-Selch's neck for... hours.]
You asked me to go to bed. Once we got there, I kept drinking. It was bleeding so much... Too much. [... An unfortunately drool-worthy amount, even when it fills Mettaton with dread. Contradictory feelings. He swallows.] I didn't realize it, until you were passing out. ...Does that jog your memory, darling?
[It's not an excuse. Mettaton's thought about it while he was out cold: he'll figure out more concretely how to deal with bodies like this so that neither of them have to worry. So that they can do whatever they like, without running such risk. He doesn't want to treat Emet-Selch to this manner of suffering. His thumb strokes at his cheek some more, paying close attention to the signs his lover exhibits as he fixes his gaze upon his face again.]
I thought...
[Mettaton swallows again. He worried Emet-Selch would be in critical condition, but he doesn't want to unsettle him right now. He probably already knows, besides. Mettaton sighs and shakes his head, resolving not to ever let Emet-Selch come close to death.]
It's been a few hours since then. Do you need anything right now?
[Is he supposed to hydrate his Ascian after he loses so much blood? Once more, Mettaton is not completely aware of the needs of his body. He thinks that he'll need water, probably. His best guess.]
[Emet-Selch just listens at first, and watches; he doesn't even nod to show his comprehension (or what passed for it) at Mettaton's explanation, but he does manage a soft sound in his throat at the kisses pressed to his face. Even more barely does he lean into them, his breathing still not wholly steady, and it's hard to tell if it's from sentiment or this new fragility of his body. The more Mettaton touched him, the more his body kept trying to tear up, even as the wetness was being cleaned away. An absurd use of his limited fluids, he thought... and he tries to pull himself together a little. He can't waste what Mettaton had managed to save for him.]
I think... I could hear you sometimes.
[This is, for some reason, something Emet-Selch decides he needs to express first. Confusion still lurks, disorientation his new companion, causing his thoughts to drift. But this is the memory he hits on initially. If it even was a memory, and not another delusion, the sparks of a dying mind piecing together something he wanted to hear--]
Have I ever said- that I like your voice. [This was the point he needed to say, apparently. His gaze becomes unfocused, distracted; his tone is soft, drifting.] I don't know. I might've imagined it.
[Blinking in his reverie, this time he does risk shaking his head, if only slightly; the stabbing ache in his neck seemed to support Mettaton's claim of a particularly deep bite, and he takes a shaky breath. What had Mettaton been saying again, in his lovely voice? An explanation of events. Emet-Selch had no idea what his Bonded had been doing during his unconsciousness apart from taking care of him. Ensuring that he was as warm as possible, that he didn't bleed out to the last. It didn't matter that the puca had been the cause of the injury, of reducing him to this state. Of actively pulling more blood from what would've naturally flowed from the wound. After all--]
--I told you- to drain me completely. I think. It... sounds like you nearly made it.
[A sentence muttered in a rushed exhalation, a hint of exasperation entering his voice. He wasn't upset- not in any sort of casting-blame sense, anyway. Only unnerved by the experience, yet- finding it strangely comforting to have the opportunity to at all express that unease, that uncertainty, that weakness. He was in company where he could do so, where he didn't have to pretend that he was fine, didn't have to force a defense.
With effort, he manages to move an arm, to let his hand brush against Mettaton's at his face. He was ill, there was no getting around that, but he wasn't dying, and his lover was here. Things weren't exactly great, but he would be fine. They both would be. But he could see Mettaton's fear; he could feel it, and he felt sick to think about what it must've been like to observe him like this. The helplessness, the panic- at seeing someone much cared for fading out before you.
They had to learn how to do this more safely; he didn't want to put his Bonded through that again....]
Water. [His various replies are all disjointed, thoughts skipping from one avenue to the next, and forgetting how to bridge separate concepts. But he was thirsty. Dreadfully so, now that he was aware of it; the stabbing headache was no doubt in part due to severe dehydration.] That would- help.
[It wasn't a replacement for blood, but it was a necessary component for continued living.]
[How sweet Emet-Selch is, always. When he's weakened like this, he's just more forthright with it — there are no defenses he can rely on, making him all the more worth protecting in this state. He gets this way around Mettaton sometimes. He only wishes that it were under less morbid circumstances that he could hear him pay him such a compliment. Of course he'd love his voice — and Mettaton loves his in turn.
Like the other compliments he's paid him, it's one that touches him deeply — especially knowing he'd heard him. He swells with pride, love, and relief, and he nods.]
I was talking to you! You weren't imagining it, gorgeous. I'm glad you heard me...
[He's very excited at having been heard and in his thrill, he leans in to kiss Emet-Selch next to his lips. He rubs his nose to his with a short, airy laugh, both at the pleasure to have been perceived at all, and at the acceptance of his compliment. It meant that maybe, Emet-Selch had something to hold onto in his lonely subconscious. The pads of his fingers rub at his face in small circles, careful to keep claws from digging in at all while he tries to come down from his roller coaster of emotions, jumping from despair to relief to fear to sorrow to this blithe euphoria. Glad to be here, glad Emet-Selch is, too.
And he has to simper at Emet-Selch's exasperation. He sure did that... attempt to drain him so thoroughly, as though trying to leave nothing behind to lose. His ears don't quite fold back, but they do fall, and they posture at either side of his head almost in the direction of a lop's. At feeling the Ascian's fingers reach for his, he captures them between his own and holds his hand, though it's the back of his hand to Emet-Selch's palm.
Emet-Selch's free to show the whole of himself, and Mettaton expects as much. Mettaton demonstrates in turn his excessiveness to its fullest degree. There's little he can do to return his blood to him... It's his, and it's always been his, but he acknowledges that he went overboard. Terrifyingly overboard, sedated into feeling all was fine.
He could elaborate some more on that matter upon his return, as his ears spring to attention at Emet-Selch's request. He nods. Mettaton feels validated for predicting what he might need. Maybe he's not so bad at understanding Emet-Selch's needs after all, as a creature of flesh and blood. His fingers pet Emet-Selch's cheek, and he realizes that he's still holding onto his neck...]
Ah.
[It's palpable, how quickly Mettaton chills through their Bond, as though his heart sunk. He shifts, uneasy.]
I... can get you water. Will you be able to hold this? Against your neck.
[Mettaton doesn't even consider that it might be safe to pull it off. That maybe he could switch to bandages, in fact. He just keeps imagining that he'll keep holding this for all of these moments, into infinity, for however long it's necessary to feel reassured that Emet-Selch won't just bleed out again.]
[Mettaton's clear pleasure pleases him in turn, and though it's a less practical warmth than that of the blankets, it feels like it settles much deeper. That it hits places fabric could never (or should never) reach, and it didn't even hurt as much as it usually would. That might've been because so much of him was hurting or aching already, so his emotional state realized he was well and truly pained, and there was less need to add to it.
And though he doesn't quite hum at the outpouring of affectionate gestures (there's a sort of... hoarse sound that might've been an attempt at one, though), he appreciates them deeply. Both the feeling of contact, and the feeling of emotion that went with it- though it did strike the Ascian as a bit sad that he could rarely express these sorts of things... except under unusual circumstances. And that this time was a bit more unfortunate than most.
But he hadn't imagined him... that part was the most reassuring point of all. And Emet-Selch wondered if it had made it a little easier to surface again. To have something drawing him back... or to at least keep him company in the dark.
Company that was something other than a delusion. Perhaps he was just more susceptible in this state, but- with this reassurance applied, it felt easier to accept that this all was real. That everything he was feeling, the hurt and relief, adoration and exhaustion, all of it was happening, somehow. He was here, in this place, with this person. He could feel Mettaton's hand and his love.
--And his unease, suddenly, which he can't help but hone in on, even in his reduced condition. Whatever concentration he could manifest was for him. His neck? Ah... Mettaton was still supporting it, was still pressing a lump of fabric to it, as though his head might fall off if he let go. Emet-Selch doesn't nod, but he does shift his other arm up to feel for the material there. The pressure he can apply with his hand isn't that great, though, so he's not sure how to respond. He could touch it, but that didn't really qualify as holding it.]
A little.
[That was the appropriate qualifier, he thought. That it might be safe to remove, he doesn't know and is more than willing to accept Mettaton's impulse of It Stays There Forever, Now. Or at least until there are bandages to replace it (especially if the material has at all dried to the wound; removing it will likely tear it open again, so having something else available to take its place would be useful).]
It should be fine. [Though his tone makes a question of that statement, so he adds:] Just- don't take too long.
[But that was more because he didn't want to lose sight of him, didn't want to lose that contact, rather than any concern when it came to additional bleeding.]
[Mettaton helps to guide Emet-Selch's hand more thoroughly over the wadded pillowcase with a small smile, pressing both of his hands firmly atop his as though to impart his strength into him. He keeps his hands there, smiling at his wakefulness and pleased that Emet-Selch has the wherewithal to try, for as soft as his touch seems to be. He hopes all will be well — and he doesn't feel any danger in it, though his senses have failed him before, apparently. (They failed him tonight, having not noticed anything coming until it was already happening...)
Gingerly, he lets go, and pats the Ascian's hand for good measure, an expenditure of energy. The hand he's had pressed to the cloth is bloodied, though it's all dry at this point and it tries to stick to fabric as he trades places. Released from his duty temporarily, he nods at Emet-Selch.]
I'll be back before you know it. Just watch, and hang in there.
[Fondly, he gives him another soft caress of his cheek, another peck to his forehead — a lingering look, as though to ensure that Emet-Selch will really be fine.
But Mettaton figures the best he can do is be quick, so he hops to it.
The most unfortunate thing about a big house: having to go distances to get from place to place. Not that Mettaton's caring much for that, even though he dislikes being pried from his Bonded. For the most part, he's pleased to be fetching something for his sake, and he takes as many shortcuts as exist by dropping off the banister instead of using the stairs (too confident in himself to imagine that he could sprain an ankle now that he has any muscle at all) and skipping steps on his way back up. Water is easily obtained without distraction. He thinks to make a detour for medical supplies, and realizes that... they don't have any.
This is a house with a skeleton and a robot as the permanent residents. And unless Emet-Selch spontaneously decided to stock the place with medical supplies, they are likely to have absolutely nothing. Mettaton doesn't bother looking, choosing instead to head straight back for the room. (He'll have to make do with fabric or something, he thinks.)
Upon entering, he quickly sets a pitcher aside (thinking ahead: reducing trips to the kitchen for water, in case Emet-Selch should want more than a glass), Mettaton brings a completely nondescript glass of water (free of nitroglycerin) to the bed, sidling up next to him and offering it in a trade. He does this as he analyzes Emet-Selch's condition, thinking about his weak grip, the way he's lying down in such a way that drinking would be the same as upending water over his head...
The Puca hums.]
Do you need help, Hades, darling?
[Already, his other hand moves to prepare to assist, fingers hovering around his neck and shoulders. No matter what he needs, Mettaton will do it. He seems so weakened, after all... Could he sit up on his own? He doubts it. Could he hold a glass in his grip? He's not sure, but he'll be here to help: Emet-Selch has nothing to hide from him, after all. Mettaton softens some more, ears dropping a degree.]
[Perhaps it didn't count as danger because neither of them considered it that way until it was too late. Mettaton wanted his blood, and Emet-Selch wanted to provide it- all of it, as much as the robot could hold. It was only a flaw of mortal form that he couldn't fill the both of them up with what he contained... but they tried. And despite the consequence, when the Ascian thought of how much of himself must still be within his Bonded, it made the experience seem not a total waste. Or not a waste at all, even if they should probably not be this careless again. He still liked being bitten by him... he didn't think that would change.
And he wondered if it would scar, this bite. Emet-Selch didn't mind the thought of keeping it around, even if this memory was complicated. But weren't they all? Even the healing mark over his heart had all the associations of that day attached to it. From the failed transformations, to the sharing of tortures and everything else- there were a lot of feelings the sight of it invoked. This wound would be the same, he suspected: mixed of sentiment, but important.
His fingers tense against the pillowcase as best they can. It remained a touch unnerving how weakened he felt, but as the minutes ticked past, he could settle by degrees. He would still need a lot of sleep he knew, but there were worse prospects- and it would at least be the sleep of deliberate rest, and not a forced unconsciousness due to a sharp reduction in blood pressure. A sleep of healing.
But he nods this time when Mettaton makes his move for a temporary departure, sustained anew by all the additional attention. He would hold this pillowcase to the best of his ability and deliberately not count the moments until Mettaton returned. And he found that even when he couldn't see him, he could hear his Bonded moving- the clicking of heels on stairs, the loud thump of a heavy metal body jumping off... something. There was plenty of noise.
It's well enough that Mettaton hadn't stopped to look for medical supplies that didn't exist; the Ascian certainly wouldn't have stocked any. If for some reason any items like this ever became required, he'd trusted in his ability for conjuration to handle it. This... led to some minor problems when he was the one in need of attention, because his ability to magic up anything at the moment was minimal. It was a perfect plan otherwise, with the small caveat that he could never be the one hurt.
And then Mettaton was back, and Emet-Selch relaxes a bit of tension he hadn't noticed he'd collected, though when he's offered up the water, he pauses, wondering much the same thing as the puca. He didn't particularly look forward to sitting up, but it was the only way he'd be able to drink anything without choking, and he did need the water.]
...If you could. [He's not even about to pretend that he was capable of doing this on his own. While it might not be impossible, he considered- to painfully drag and push himself upright- it would be easier with his lover's support. There really was nothing to hide. So though his arms move, to do what they could, Emet-Selch will lean heavily into Mettaton's own grip, wincing at the changing positions. Nor does he like the way he's getting out of breath again just from this, or the lightheadedness or- much of anything about this whole process. In the end he mostly ends up clinging to Mettaton instead, eyes closed, waiting for the world to stop moving.
And once settled, the glass itself would also be safer with another hand on it; another case where it might not be strictly necessary... but it would certainly facilitate affairs. It was strange to both have someone to rely on, and be comfortable enough to accept the available help.]
[By "that", he means his neck, still worrying himself over it.
Sliding his fingers underneath Emet-Selch's neck, he realizes too late that his movement was more to achieve an end in his desire to help him sit up than it was out of any caution for his existing wounds, and he worries for a moment that he could've hurt his already damaged neck. Just how careful should he be? But it doesn't seem it did anything to hurt him. The give of pillows beneath his neck were to thank for that, since they formed around his arm more than Emet-Selch's skin.
In fact, thank anything related to pillows and pillowcases. Even if Emet-Selch accidentally lets go of the fabric Mettaton's dedicated himself to, it likely has dried to the spot: it won't move as readily as Mettaton fears, which is both a relief (mostly to ease Mettaton's irrational (?) worries about Emet-Selch bleeding out again upon its removal) and probably a sign that its intentional removal will disturb the wound somewhat. Regardless of the pressure applied to his neck, Mettaton's easily helped him sit up with an arm about the Ascian's shoulders, other hand holding the glass before him like a prize he's happy to give, though it's clear Emet-Selch needs a moment.
And so he watches him, wondering how he feels. How the hoarse quality of his voice feels in his throat, what it feels like to know he needs water, how the neck injury impacts speaking or turning his head or if it'll affect drinking — a ridiculous image in his mind's eye of water draining from the wound, even though he knows it's not that deep, not connected to this esophagus, but having the confusing thought anyway. For all of Mettaton's growing understanding of his body, it's all so curious to him, how they work. And really, he'd rather have thoughts like these - ridiculous ones that compare an injured neck to a leaky pipe - than the harrowing thoughts of crushed organs and distorted giants. This is about his lover, and his well-being.
Mettaton wonders if this level of vulnerability Emet-Selch feels ready to demonstrate before him has anything to do with having met him in a cell intended for torture. He doesn't strike him as the sort to drop his guard readily, more the sort to feel uncomfortable at the thought, and it causes his grip to tighten protectively. But then, he considers that his own feelings of being able to be so prone to Emet-Selch in spirit come from the knowledge that even if it hurts him, his Bonded can handle him. He believes that to be the case, and he smiles warmly, wishing to convey to him that he'll take him any time, no matter how he is. No matter how scary, incensed, weak, or softened he is, Mettaton wants to see every dimension of Emet-Selch. It's a natural result, to feel this close to someone he loves like this. It's mutual.
The idol facilitates Emet-Selch's lean and waits until he's ready.
His hand remains with the glass so it's not dropped in a mess all over, too, especially once he feels the lightness of the Ascian's touch. He's already anticipated as much. Mettaton's thumb strokes over Emet-Selch's shoulder.]
... This showed me something. I may have learned more about bodies like this... More than I've ever understood. However. Learning how to better care for you could only be a benefit.
[Not only in practicing emergency first aid for Emet-Selch, himself (organic form), and for anybody he chances upon, but to avoid damaging their bodies. He doesn't view them as particularly weaker than his own metal one, but with different vulnerabilities. (He truly could only learn, given that he still believes that humans can consume just about anything safely.)
This could have gone a lot worse, if he didn't ask for help. If he didn't get lucky. If Emet-Selch were in any worse condition. He can hardly fathom it.
Regarding Emet-Selch in this host of his, he imagines that normally, he should be able to vacate this body and find another. Worrying about dying like this is be a new concern for the Ascian, bound to his body as he likely is. It means he has to be extra cautious — or about as cautious as everyone else who only gets one body, which is normal levels of caution.]
For example. I didn't know that pressure would stop your bleeding... I only thought about how you tried to hold me together, in vain. That I could hold you together.
[The rest of it, he needed external advice — and even knowing that pressure was a good thing was something he learned through that conversation.]
And you probably don't need stitches. [Not even thinking about the fact that a society that can rely upon magic for healing mostly takes care of the need for stitches; just regurgitating what Mikasa could tell him.]
[It's all well and good that the pillowcase has dried to the wound; in his efforts to sit up, Emet-Selch's concentration when it comes to holding onto it falters, despite Mettaton's verbal caution. His hand remains pressed there, he can do that much, but his grip is inconsistent. Sometimes his fingers just touch it, sometimes they dig in when he remembers what they're doing there, but the fabric doesn't really shift so it works out in the end. Even if it would eventually need to be removed, it was fine to remain for the time being; not reopening the wound took precedence over finding something more appropriate to cover it.
Guiding the glass rather than taking it with his free hand, he slowly drinks from it, listening to Mettaton as he does. He takes it slowly; as desperate for water as he felt, he knew if he went too quickly, even water alone would be a difficult thing for his body to handle. So he sips at it, and thinks of his Bonded's impromptu lesson when it came to a human's physiology.
It wasn't a surprise, not really, that Mettaton had been unaware of such basic aspects of a mortal's maintenance. His anatomy studies must've been about form and some degree of correct function; the imagery he'd seen in the memories of others had covered catastrophic damage, bodies rendered unsalvagable, barely recognizable. Had he ever come across these lesser sorts of injuries before? He couldn't have.
Emet-Selch wanted to say that Mettaton's not missing much when it comes to experiencing these details of organic form, and that it was better to limit his knowledge to that of observation. There was pleasure in the pain of being bitten, sure (at least, when it came to being bitten by Mettaton), and even in a bit of blood loss, and even in a bit of satisfying aching due to exertion and aforementioned damage- but there was an upper limit to what felt good, and this had slightly passed it. His neck was stiff, his head was pounding, his pulse was still too fast, he felt shaky and sick and tired- these were not fun experiences.
But he wouldn't have been surprised if Mettaton would've wanted them all anyway, if for the novelty. For the satisfaction of it, of understanding humanity in the way one only can by wearing their flesh for more than a few hours. So the Ascian says nothing, quietly relieved that any similar-to-far-worse damage on the idol's part would be undone by a shapeshifting reversion. And his robotic form could be repaired.... He didn't want to see him hurting.
Emet-Selch just nudges against him instead, in quiet affection. Touched again that Mettaton wanted to learn how to take better care of this sort of body, in all its fragility. It doesn't surprise him, but it doesn't keep him from appreciating it.]
Not... the kindest of introductions to a mortal form's requirements, was it? Still. At least... at least you've learned something from it. Although I prefer... your previous studies of my body.
[He sighs softly against the glass, then takes a few more swallows from it. The Ascian was also continuing to learn that he should probably take better care of this host. What would happen if he died here? Would it be the same as dying in truth?]
How did you learn what to do?
[How did he know about stitches and assessing a wound for them.]
[Mettaton's glad that water doesn't seem to be too difficult for Emet-Selch to down, and his smile takes on a bit of a silly edge with a lightness to his eyes in his observation of his Bonded trying to come back from his poor health. Even most monsters could regard the act of drinking water as normal, a way to cool down, but Mettaton's further removed from that experience than them. And for humans, it's a requirement. How sad would it be to struggle more than he already is with the simple requirement of drinking? He squeezes Emet-Selch's shoulder, keeping him and the glass both stable. Wanting for him to recover, and willing to do whatever it took to facilitate that.
When Emet-Selch responds to his musings upon what he's learned, his ears droop somewhat, thinking about what sort of unpleasant method of learning this truly was. And though one could say that the two of them were complicit in Emet-Selch's deterioration (even Mettaton would agree that they both wanted this, they both wanted Emet-Selch's drain, this possession, this pleasure), he still feels a level of responsibility for his part of blissful ignorance, his true indulgence. Worse yet, for wanting more of his blood even as he sits here at his side, trying to aid in his recovery, acknowledging that were he somehow starved for his Witch's blood in this moment instead of half-filled with it, he might crave it badly enough that he'd take another bite of him if driven to low enough moods. Mettaton glances away for a moment, biting shortly at his lower lip.
Instead, he thinks about their previous... study sessions. The times Mettaton's raked his hands along the expanse of Emet-Selch's skin, kissed him from lips to hips, probed every part of his body with wandering fingertips. Even thinking about it in combination with his muted craving might well be relayed by their Bond, Mettaton knowing how transparent they both are, though it's not an indulgence he's willing to satisfy with his lover like this. A memory is fine. The remembrance of warm skin under his tongue, the give of muscle, the sound of his panting...
Mettaton drags his attention to this new kind of scenario with a soundless sigh. Exhaling heat. One of his ears flicks. He nudges back against Emet-Selch when he's not busy drinking, heated by his infatuation for him but very much in this moment and all of its ills. He nods in agreement, that he's learned, but that he prefers the less terrifying ways of learning about his Bondmate's body. Not the kinds that leave him cold and lifeless, if he could help it.
He would also have to be careful. If not learning to control himself, he's determined to learn to pace himself.
Emet-Selch's question earns a short nod from Mettaton.]
Ah. I called a friend! Her name is Mikasa. She's a human, and she's blunt, no-nonsense... but she's protective, and knows what to do. Since she's a soldier, I figured she'd know how to help in a pinch... Elevating your legs, since you were unconscious and drained. Applying pressure to your wound. I trust her.
[And she could have very well given him advice that would've broken his heart, but she didn't, so all was well and good. She didn't see that Emet-Selch would be a lost cause, but she's probably seen people survive worse. (And if he'd stayed on the line any longer, she probably would have tried to get Emet-Selch a healer. Not that Mettaton knew what she might've been up to, in his panic...)]
I asked her what to do if you lost too much blood, and she wanted to see how big the injury was...
[Mettaton doesn't at all prioritize making private their activities if Emet-Selch's health was on the line, and he doesn't even think of the impression she might've gotten from seeing a Puca bite on an unconscious person's neck atop a bed. He sure showed her that. But he got helpful advice from her, and for that, the idol couldn't be happier with it. She helped Emet-Selch, because of course she would.]
[Though it was too soon for being marginally less dehydrated to have much of an effect, Emet-Selch felt better on an emotional level just from this much. It was a sign that things were under control, were improving, were understandable and fixable. Mettaton was there and looking so pleased at him for succeeding in the arduous task of Drinking Water, and if it were anyone else, he would've felt condescended to. But instead it was endearing, that he was so invested in his well-being that he could raise his mood a little just by doing an extremely basic task (with assistance). By being relatively alert and coherent.
He would just have to keep improving then, to not worry him, to not have to see the remorse evident in his ears. Finishing with his water, he lets that hand drop, and the Ascian leans that bit more against his Bondmate, allowing himself to relax. He wished he could nuzzle him, bury his face in his neck- but that would take moving and twisting, so leaning closer is all he does for now. He wasn't sure how to express that he didn't consider this to be at all Mettaton's fault, that this was solidly a joint effort in absolute excess, so he settles for... settling, as warmly as his body could manage it.
It yet brings the briefest of smiles to his expression at the distinct sense of heat evident through Bond, clearly inspired by his mention of past studies of his form. How easily prone Mettaton was- how they both were, to each other. Even though it were a current impossibility, it was a nicer thought, and provided another measure of comfort. They weren't ignoring the current situation, the blood and the fear and how fragile it had all been, so quickly- but it wasn't as though attraction and wantings stopped being an undercurrent to their affection. Even if it couldn't be indulged in, it was soothing (and warming) to know it was there.
That Mettaton would still be wanting his blood as well doesn't quite occur to him.
And Emet-Selch only nods a little at Mettaton's mention of showing this Mikasa some sort of imagery of the injury. The Ascian didn't particularly like the idea of anyone else seeing him so weakened, unconscious, unable to defend himself, but accepted that it was necessary in the circumstances. He'd just have to trust in Mettaton's perception of his friend (and she had given him useful advice, so perhaps his judgement of her was correct).]
So you know... a few useful humans after all.
[Any concerns about propriety don't occur to him, and he wouldn't care much about them even if they did. Sure, he wouldn't have gone around displaying the implications brought by being collapsed on someone's bed with their distinctive teeth-marks in his neck, but he also wouldn't have been embarrassed by them.]
Hm... perhaps I'll have to thank her.
[For providing useful advice in part, even though he's likely to have survived regardless, with Mettaton's base instinct regarding covering the wound (and not continuing to drink from it) doing enough to save him. But it was still proper advice, and more importantly, provided the inherent reassurance of being told what to do. Of having something to do, and being able to trust that someone's assessment of what to do was correct. To not be left completely alone in his panic with his possibly-dying Bondmate. That alone was worth gratitude.]
We'll just- have to avoid requiring her... assistance again.
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Pacing paused at the distinctive slam of a door being kicked open, all of the Ascian's restlessness continues to build in the face of losing even that meager outlet of movement. This would be his last chance to leave for a time, to put off the inevitable for no reason at all, and for all that he didn't want to, the idea remained, intrusive. A long-ingrained habit towards making things worse was a hard thing to override, the spell in his thoughts, his fingers digging into his palms as he fought back the instinct to escape.
When his own door opens, he freezes in place entirely, as though he were the one with the puca-instinct towards stillness. Only his voice remains, gaze locked upon his lover's face. How familiar he'd become to him, and how welcome the sight of him was. All of that tension and aggression and hurting remained, but the accompanying tenderness was unmistakable.]
Mettaton.
[An acknowledgement. A breath let out as Mettaton closes in on him. His own eyes slip shut as their foreheads touch, at the brush of their noses together, at the brush of their souls close together. This much was as it should be. A sense of belonging that in itself brought an ache; he was trapped, just as he'd wanted from the start.
Emet-Selch knows what's coming when Mettaton's head dips lower, his action so natural that he tenses no further at it. If anything, there was a sense of relief of finally having his lover's teeth in his neck, where they should be, his cry choked off into a hissing inhalation. The sharpness, the rightness of it all brought with it a form of clarity, as though the only way he could be certain of anything in his life was when he could feel Mettaton tearing into his flesh, mouth filling with blood. When he could feel arms crushing him against an unforgiving body, his own the only one able to yield.
It felt like Mettaton could scoop him up entirely like this, with his greater height and machine-led strength. It already felt like his breath was being pushed from his lungs, with no chance given to collect any more- a feeling he only attempts to enhance by the way his own arms wrap around the puca's body. They tighten; his fingers claw for purchase against metal and across fur, to touch, to hold, to push him ever closer. To drive him deeper into his neck with a need, a demand. If the idol was going to threaten his balance, he could have it, as he locks a leg around his, to further reduce space, to further feel him.
To be convinced. That they would remain, that they would remember, that all of this meant a damn even if they did not. To be convinced, over and over, carved into so many times until he had nothing left with which to deny it. Even then, it wouldn't be enough; even then he'd still want him, from the firmness of jaws and sharpness of claws, to the softness and love that went with them.]
no subject
This simply means he can devote his energy entirely to ravishing him rather than hunting him.
Blood seeps between his teeth and drains into his mouth. He's gotten good at forming his lips around his bite to reduce the amount of loss, so wanting of his Bonded's blood as he is. His ears perk up, though there's a contentedness to them in their angle, in how they lean and swivel to pick up sounds from his Bondmate over all else. Feeling even his leg locked with his, Mettaton nuzzles into his bite, agitating it, ushering forth a greater gush — has he hit something good already? There's so much...
He sucks; it's a relief beyond measure. He couldn't begin to cough on all of the blood he has in his throat, given that he has no need to breathe, but he swallows and swallows, pleased by its abundance. Mettaton groans into his bite, realizing that he'd been wanting this taste for... days. Ever since he last had his fix of the Ascian, even though it hasn't been long. How stressed he's been, how frantic and agitated, and how immediately Emet-Selch's life serves to ameliorate his troubles, a cure to his anxieties. He is his solace where he can't have one, and his next sigh is crossed with the notes of pleasure and desperation both. And now that he has it, it's a wonderful bite of him, he thinks. One he could suck on for a time, with how plentiful a supply it is. (Perhaps MTT isn't considering any danger to his Emet-Selch. How much is too much? Mettaton doesn't know of such a thing.)
Adjusting his hold on his lover, one of Mettaton's flexible arms winds entirely around Emet-Selch's middle as the other crosses over his back, gripping down onto his ass as he comfortably takes a share of gravity from the Ascian. The idol tugs him as close as he can, shifting his hip into Emet-Selch's leg to form his body against his where he knows it'll give way to his own. Pressing as completely to him as possible as he sucks rapturously upon his injury.
He can only show him he has him in this moment, but this moment has expanse. The uncertainty of their return, should it come, should it be cruel... Whenever it is, it's not now, and now is always happening. Mettaton's upset begins to dissolve with him in his arms: there's nothing to worry about. Emet-Selch is securely in his grip, and surely his loss would feel like danger. He feels nothing of the sort.
This reassurance in place, Mettaton sighs again into his neck, adjusting his lips once more when he feels blood seep from the corner of them. He shudders, even as he remains stable. He swallows again breaking free and sighing long and hard against his skin.
Mettaton kisses him where a bruise blooms around punctures. He bleeds copiously. He shivers again, the smell overwhelming him, intoxicating him. All of his pleasure to have his Bonded so close is immense, and he feels he possesses him all the more for his delight. With a voice deeper and thicker, painted awash in the blood in his throat and the love he harbors, Mettaton speaks against his throat.]
Ah... Y-You didn't tense, darling... I can tell...
[His sharpened teeth slipped through him so readily. It makes him want more.]
no subject
It was just the suddenness of the drain, he assumed; Mettaton hadn't taken this much this quickly before. As deep as the wound on his chest had been (and still was, as it was yet reluctantly healing), necks were an easier access point for the fluid. From the last time, he'd perhaps he'd felt a touch weaker afterward, but that was the natural result of injury. And this- this was just the abruptness; he'd adjust, he was certain.
His breath is quicker; he swallows heavily. His fingers knead slowly into Mettaton, trying to think more on the press of his hip and the tie of their legs, on the familiar hold on his ass, but it was a faded backdrop to the blood. His heartbeat. That specific sort of pulsing; his lover's lips against the wound.]
I... ah--
[It's not a distracted note (how could he be distracted from all of this?) or even precisely a disoriented one, but it takes a few moments to gather his concentration, to apply them to words. His pulse was thready and so quickened; he wondered how easily Mettaton could feel it, each moment squeezing that bit more life from him. With the puca's mouth less-effectively covering the wound in order to speak (but not to breathe; a robot's body had its advantages, he thought... he would require no breaks from him) he can better feel the way it not only welled up, but flowed past. Wetness uncaught by lips pours down his neck to soak into fabric. A deep red scent that was not uncommon these days.]
Perhaps I'm getting used to it.
[A healthy response to develop, surely: a complete lack of alarm to incisors slicing into his throat. But how could he be at all troubled, knowing what effect his blood had on his lover? Mettaton had been so anxious ever since they'd returned from the underground, and to know he could sooth him like this, if only for a time... it filled him with affection for him. And if Emet-Selch were likewise soothed by the connection, the sensation made it that much harder to think about inevitable losses. Much harder to think in general, but particularly about that; how could anything be forgotten when they were so full of each other? A trading of blood for open wounds, a connection so natural it sets him shivering.]
no subject
Another sigh slips from his throat, a pleasant one this time. That psychological pleasure is derived easily form Emet-Selch's admission to growing accustomed to Mettaton's vice, willing to give into him as he is. He feels a shudder of electricity course his body, a wave of arousal unique to this form but one he knows would translated readily into obvious excitement, if he had an organic form. He can't seem to separate the two pleasures: of the delight of filling himself with his Bonded's magic, his fluids, his body, versus pleasure found in sex and intimacy. (The intimacy, he suppose, is an element in both.)
Rubbing his lips against blood, envisioning their stain, he smiles against his skin.]
Used to it... wonderful. To give way to me... To anticipate my intrusion. Is it really an intrusion if I'm a part of you?
[He licks again, licks and licks and cleans, but the blood shows no signs of letting up. Mettaton's still not worried. Dizzied for reasons other than blood loss in his own right, the Puca wraps his lips again around Emet-Selch's neck, sucking more of his blood from this generous wound. Even though he holds the Ascian, Mettaton moans, his legs trembling. He feels that wonderful prickling atop his scalp, a deep connection with his Bonded's body and soul... And he tucks himself close to that beloved, dark entity, just as he sidles his thigh between Emet-Selch's legs. Props him up on his leg to supplement the grip he has with his robotic arms and strength.
The robot can hardly think. Emet-Selch's blood overwhelms his senses, tunes out all of his problems and hones his focus in on his Bondmate. He feels so pampered and filled, wishing for nothing more than to lie on his back and feel blood be dripped into his mouth like wine, but something that actually manages to intoxicate him. And intoxicate it does, so quickly...
So quickly, because Mettaton realizes how easily his "getting used to it" wound is really draining. So much to drink, he realizes with a hearty suck. A draw of blood, a pull of vitality into Mettaton's throat as he once again releases his bite of Witch.]
You have... have so much to give me tonight, Hades-darling... Ahhh... [He smears his lips into his blood, then trails kisses from his throat to his jaw. He pulls back and regards his handiwork with a sigh.] You're... Addictive... Ohh....
[Not a statement meant to indicate that he finds anything wrong with their arrangement. He sucks some more, not wanting to waste Emet-Selch's body on the soaking quality of cloth.
Nor realizing how quickly this injury drains. Rather, realizing it, but not knowing of its potential excessiveness. Mettaton drifts from his sucking of Emet-Selch's wounds to brush his lips against his Bonded's, to kiss him gently with lips tinged crimson.]
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And his eyes are firmly closed. He is aroused himself- or getting there, at least, Emet-Selch had felt flickers of it while waiting for Mettaton's arrival. A normal response to anticipating him, a normal response to not only his presence but the thought of it, a distraction eternal. And with the slide of a thigh between his legs he shudders, beginning to stiffen despite of it all- or because of it, perhaps. But it's a bodily response that dizzies him further, as his blood is torn between filling his cock, and Mettaton's eager mouth, with his lover getting the lion's (or rather, the puca's) share. It was good that he was being propped up so well, he thought; if Mettaton let go, he was certain he'd collapse without him....
It takes him a moment to realize he's being kissed, that he's not just imagining the taste of blood against them. So there's a moment's delay before he presses back, a soft nuzzle for his lips, wet entirely from his own excess. If he slipped his tongue between them, would he taste anything else? A stray thought: Mettaton's mouth tasted more of blood than himself, these days; it was almost a pity.
His neck was wet and not getting any less so; opened and deep, the wound continued to drain. Fabric began to stick to him, a heaviness to it that was gradually spreading, and he's only dimly aware of why. A sensation distant, like so many others. A sensation drowned out by his pulse, by his own quickened breathing. Even arousal seemed quieter, a different sort of throb that seemed to reassure that all was well.
There was... nothing wrong with this. He was also certain of that, as he licks back at Mettaton's lips, legs tensing around his thigh- though it's as much for balance as pleasure.]
Is it....
[He's still working through a response to Mettaton's first words, even as he hears the rest, and his thoughts lose their track again. The robot had barely left his neck and already so much--]
You're- losing some of it.
[A low murmur between kisses, between breaths, shallow and fast.]
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Mettaton is not a professional at Being Organic and Having Blood, but he has enough experience to take note of the amount. The way it floods from his bite, and he tries to envision whatever's underneath, something circulatory from his intensive study. Sure, the body is delicate, he acknowledges. But why would it be too terrible if he'd hit a plentiful vessel...? "Terrible" isn't even something that yet occurs to him, gazing down upon all of that red. How much more comes, even in looking at it.
His lover's breathing is erratic. His clothes are getting as wet as his own was that one time, near the collar, and Mettaton's attention shoots to Emet-Selch's face. Down to his cock; he rubs a thigh against him some more, idly, appreciatively. He sighs, both at the feeling of his growing hardness, and at the reminder.]
Oh...
[Maybe there's a hint of concern now. But it only causes Mettaton to want to stop the blood from escaping him — to claim it as his own, he doesn't have any, he wants it. If he could press his mouth to it, let the excess flow into his mouth, surely it would stop... staining his clothes any worse, and then it wouldn't look as alarming. That would solve the problem. So he returns to his wound eagerly, lapping at it with his tongue behind the security of lips pressed tight to skin, catching any and all excess.
Just with the taste of it on his tongue, there's not as much worry anymore: he could fill himself to the brim like this, he thinks with anticipation. (Without considering that in filling up his chassis, he would be draining that same amount from his Bonded — and he can fit easily 40% of his blood in his body, not that he's thinking about it in numbers, only vastness to be filled. (A very, very bad thing, but Mettaton doesn't realize it. He really should realize it; he would if he weren't placated by blood in the first place.)) He considers the distribution of blood in his Emet-Selch's body, with a concentration of it being given to him by mouth, and a concentration filling his cock. Both are for him. He thinks about how much of a pleasure his Bonded's body is, even without it being his own. But then, isn't it his?
He cares so much for him. Mettaton wants to kiss him all over...
The Puca pulls him closer to his body, even as he continues laving his tongue along his wound. He wishes he could nuzzle him, but he's busy trying to avoid losing any of his blood — no longer sucking hard, but gently prodding him with his tongue. The hand that remains on Emet-Selch's waist strokes him softly, an accompanying sigh of satisfaction slipping from his throat.
Surely, applying his tongue and catching all blood in his mouth will solve all problems. Not that he feels that there were any problems to begin with, even if there was the inkling of a feeling...]
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He thought he was fine; he was sure of it, if Mettaton had hit something too important, he would've bled out by now. Arteries were quick like that. This was just a lesser tier of Plentiful Vessel that the robot had struck upon, which meant that there was no problem at all (problems were not a gradient, they either existed or they did not; he wasn't dying, therefore anything less than that might as well not exist).
So when Mettaton returns to his neck, the Ascian tries for a hum of approval. He makes a sound anyway, something pleased in tone. If there was an issue at all, it was in where all that mess was ending up. He did miss kissing him though, even if it tasted only of blood, so he settles for nuzzling instead at one of his ears. Or at least, letting his face press against it, the absent brush of lips, of breath. There's fur occasionally in his face, anyway, so he makes what he can of it. Yet even with his eyes closed, the dizziness wasn't receding. If anything, it was getting worse, and that was troubling. Not because he had any concept of danger, but because he worried he might faint, and that would be a hassle.]
Mettaton.
[He was used to speech becoming difficult around him, but not usually quite so quickly. Also it felt a bit different this time, somehow. Bodies weren't meant to lose this much blood so rapidly, he supposed, in an extremely distant way, still completely unalarmed. It was speed, not amount that was the problem (not that there were any).]
--Bed. Please.
[It would've been hard to pull back from him under less-excessively-bleeding circumstances, to drag him in the direction of his bed, and it was a complete impossibility now. But Mettaton could get them there, so it was fine in the end. Once he could collapse back, he'd be alright, he assumed, it would be easier to adjust. Then he could relax, to better appreciate the sensation of his lover's lips over his neck. The way his vitality was flowing to someone who needed it more than himself. Mettaton was so gentle to him, he thought, as his arms attempt to rub at his back. From the softness of his tongue, to the security of his hold, to the steady drag of a thigh against his cock. The prickling of arousal was such a warm undercurrent, and warmth was what he wanted. The puca always seemed to provide what he needed....
Mettaton wouldn't let him fall; he was safe. It didn't matter what his pulse or breath was doing, Emet-Selch knew this, with a passion he was at a loss as to how to express. But it was a thought that sustained him through the haze of dizziness, as he tries to nuzzle at his head again with a small sound. He was so fond of him.]
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He hums a contented affirmative against skin, past the bubbling of blood in his throat as it's met with vibrations of sound. He unlatches from his bite with a kiss.]
You've got it, my darling. Anything... [He licks the corner of his lips, where blood cascades down his chin.] -you'd like.
[One arm unwinds from his waist; the other braces Emet-Selch's lax weight against his thigh as he readjusts his grip on him, manhandling his body like he's nothing. He dislodges his leg from its entanglement, scooping the other man into his arms in something more of a bridal carry — both to better clear him of his legs, and to deposit him squarely in the center of the bed. Standing over him, his hand moves to briefly run through his beloved's hair, taking in his appearance, appreciating him even like this and finding him lovely regardless of pallor.
The robot follows after him, lunging for his neck to prevent any further loss of blood to the dark bedspread — a color more appropriate for bloodstain, he considers. Dark or not, sheets couldn't appreciate blood like he could, so it's only right that he takes it before it goes to waste.
As he sucks upon his neck, Mettaton's body catches up with him. With Emet-Selch laid upon his back, the idol stoops his entire body low enough to rub contours of metal and silicone and fur against his lover's thigh, abdomen, waist, until he finds himself in a good place, body parallel to his. His leg is pressed between Emet-Selch's, thigh flush to his groin, and he hums into his claim on Emet-Selch's skin. This close, Mettaton finally eases himself down, providing the full of his weight upon his body: with his head at his neck, he presses his chest to his, hips to hips, and shifts excitably against him with the whole of his body.
He thinks about Emet-Selch's reassurance to help him deal with the situation he's found himself in. It's a terrifying obstacle, but he feels so empowered, so safe and secure and perfectly at home with this man, and he can feel their mutual trust so clearly in this moment. Emet-Selch is worth his infatuation, and he hums into his neck, a soft, ascending note of comfort. With his weight pressed against his lover, his hand's free to wander: it follows the shape of his body by touch, gently skimming the other side of Emet-Selch's neck and further north yet, until he can run his fingers as far back into his hair as he can reach. He braces his lover's head there, nuzzling into his claim upon his neck with greater security, applying the pressure of his tongue with reverence — not entirely for blood, but for Emet-Selch.
But he breaks from him for a moment to lick. He cleans around the wound whatever excess blood has escaped him, for whatever good that does. It's maintenance, wanting to keep blood from messily drying upon his beloved. Kisses follow, kisses to his clavicle and then following the front of his throat, up to his chin, along his jaw, then just beneath his ear — then right back to his bite mark, where he laps at any draining blood. Forms his lips around him with another soft moan, a sloppy, open-mouthed kiss where he steals away some of his blood in the process. Mettaton shifts his thigh against his erection, hum dipping lower.]
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And once he feels himself flat on his back- deposited there so safely that he's touched all over again- Emet-Selch risks letting his eyes flicker open, dazedly attempting to focus up on Mettaton above him. There was blood on his Bonded's face- a warm, red trail that only complemented his features, he thought. Reassured anew at the sight of him, his eyes drift shut as he feels a hand brush his hair, and he settles for listening and feeling for Mettaton instead. The sound of the covers and bed being pressed on, the friction of the idol's thigh against the fabric of his pants. That, of course, was sensation too, his erection stubbornly maintaining itself despite where the rest of his blood was going, even continuing to harden because his body knew where his priorities should be.
And he did feel a bit better, he thought, to be on his back, with Mettaton's lips returned to his neck; the problem (that didn't exist) would certainly solve itself now that his blood was going where it needed to. The feeling of him trying to clean the wound was sweet, even if it amounted to smearing around a steady flow, and Emet-Selch even manages to hum very softly this time at the way damp lips traveled over the rest of his neglected neck, his jaw, even reaching close to his ear. The way his hand touched and supported his head, providing him that bit more steadiness. It was affection that warmed him when blood no longer could, tilting his head into the touches, in both encouragement and appreciation.
Could he be any more secure, with Mettaton's weight pressing in on him, surely locking in what heat that remained; it didn't matter that he was taking it from him when he was providing it right back with his most fascinating body. Emet-Selch manages to loop one arm loosely about his waist, while the other moves to the back of the idol's head. His fingers shakily stroke from the back of his neck and upwards, petting him while the robot continued to feed from him.
His hips even try to press up against his thigh, though the motion is weaker than it should be, and much movement at all sets everything spinning and off-kilter in his head again. How troublesome. Nearly as bad was how cold he still felt, which didn't make any sense; Mettaton provided plenty of heat, and he was aroused, which provided its own sort of warmth. But when he shivered, it had more to do with chill than anything else.
Emet-Selch couldn't clutch to him very hard, but he tries to; this would help somehow, eventually. He just needed more time to adjust, that was all....]
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It brings Mettaton the desire to soothe him in return, for this display of complete vulnerability in body. He does so by licking and further agitating that wound with his tongue. Nuzzling his temple into Emet-Selch's cheek. Pressing his thigh against his engorged arousal, humming at the sensation of him and his attempts to press into his thigh: a reward for his tenacity, for his delectable hardness, a good use of his blood, in Mettaton's opinion. Further taking his blood, preventing it from spilling anywhere other than into his mouth. That he was bleeding this much was for him, he decides, and the robot would gladly take all of this and more from Emet-Selch, because he loves him. Because he would take the whole of him, from head to toe and deeper yet. Not a drop that exits his body should go anywhere else, and it's such a delightful feeling, something that sedates and tides him over, a fixation to distract him from all of his worries. He focuses so wholly on the Ascian that he can't possibly ruminate over all that ails him, so dearly in love with the man beneath him in his gradual chill. Firmly grounded in the moment, this is all that exists: the future and past all exist right now, and of course it means the world. This means everything.
Their Bond. Emet-Selch is dizzy. It's a dizziness that doesn't come from breathlessness, though he wonders if that would make it better if he could suffocate him with his tongue instead of solely pulling blood from his body. (If only he had a duplicate of himself! He could feed on his spilling wound and kiss his lover to death.) Mettaton's arms press into Emet-Selch's body, trying to bring his weight down upon him more firmly.
He still tastes his clamminess.
Mettaton swallows. He swallows and swallows and feels he couldn't get enough of him. But he breaks free of his leaking wound for just a moment, the need to express his thoughts and communicate occurring to him. A check-in to make sense of his Bonded's feelings, despite how he can sense them sympathetically.]
H... Hades? How are you doing?
[Mettaton's voice is soft and light, unhurried and unworried. Even as he thinks that Emet-Selch has lost a lot of blood... It feels like a lot, anyway, when he considers how much has made it down his throat. The idol interprets Emet-Selch's body language to be weakened, succumbing to him... But he was plenty agitated before he got here. They both were. That he should be so receptive and submissive, that he should be so hard and soft simultaneously, and that he should bleed so profusely... All of it felt appropriate, somehow. Whether it's right or not, that's the question. Whether Emet-Selch is all right, that's yet another question.
Because ultimately, Mettaton cares for him. He doesn't think they're in any danger, but he wants to know how Emet-Selch's doing nonetheless. He wants to know how he feels about this drain of lifeblood. He wants to know how his mood sits. He wants to know what troubles him, what he desires, what could soothe, what he feels, what weighs upon his shoulders... and how he could make him feel weightless, if temporarily. What he could do to alleviate that burden.
As soon as he finishes speaking, Mettaton wraps his lips around that bite. How hard he bleeds still... It's fortunate that it's going down somewhat, but it's likely less for any actual healing, and more for lack of pressure. Mettaton presses his tongue to his skin again, applying wet, heated pressure.]
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But why was that? The Ascian was no longer overbonded, and he always got plenty of sleep. Too much. Had he been overdoing it again? It's a thought that sidetracks him, distracts him, not noticing any words at first, or even sound. He was always tired; that was nothing strange. There were sensations happening, and that was nice. Some sort of pressure against his face, against his cock. That was good, because he was having trouble moving.
A voice. How had he missed it? He can't recall the words, even the memory of the sound is distant, like it's coming from underwater. Or was he the one drowning?]
Mettaton?
[A question in a soft voice, bewildered. He can barely hear that either, and questions whether he spoke at all. He thinks to ask him to repeat what he said, but loses track of the thought before he can completely think of it. Only uncertainty remained.
But he was better for lying down, that much was still true, and yet it was hard, so hard to concentrate. Fewer things were making sense, and he couldn't stop trembling. His skin felt damp all over and he couldn't remember why; only his neck was bleeding, that was the only place that should be wet. His neck was bleeding somehow? He ached and his lover was here. That was right. His breath remained shallow and fast, and he still couldn't get enough oxygen. Why else would he remain so dizzy, even while holding still, even while prone and the world made dark?
Where was he, again?
He was so cold. The last time he'd been so cold, he'd been carved open completely, and he couldn't move then either. This wasn't nearly so bad; he only had one point of injury, never mind all the healing nibbles he'd acquired over the weeks. He was still safe, he knew that much, somehow; this was Mettaton, and he loved him. Which just made the association that much more confusing. Which just made him more confused in general. Had he imagined everything after all, was this it--]
You're- you're here, aren't you....?
[The disorientation was getting worse, and he was losing any ability to track it. His fingers dig in as hard as they can to- something, he can't tell, he can't even feel it (it's not a hard grip at all, only a spasming brush). His tone reflects pure confusion, unsettled by his own uncertainty. He was so tired, but when wasn't he? But what would happen if he rested, if he lost track of Mettaton entirely?
He wants to tell him not to leave, but the words don't form. He grasps harder, but he can't feel a thing. It was like being tempered again, but without any god waiting to catch him; there was only the darkness itself, and he could only succumb to it. Losing consciousness, his body slackens completely.]
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But then he asks him if he's here at all. Mettaton freezes, ears bolt upright, blood dripping from parted lips. What's he saying? He suddenly realizes what that lukewarm temperature of his skin is all about. His signature feels weak, and Mettaton fears for the worst.]
Hades? Hades?! I'm here!
[Mettaton shifts his entire body, jolting to his knees, straddling his hips, gripping onto his cheeks. He can't feel how cold he is, but there's a slight stickiness that he can detect. He swallows.]
Wait! I'm...
[Emet-Selch is out like a light, as is his Bond. Mettaton despairs. He exhales a pained whimper. Just like when he'd overloaded him with a fourth Bond, Emet-Selch this time has given too much away. Futilely, the idol kisses his cheeks feverishly, thumbs pressing into paling skin, but the other man's gone slack.
He's passed out, just like before. Just like when he took on one too many Bonds. He's the cause then, and now. But this time, Mettaton worries that his physical condition will only worsen.
Mettaton pulls back, diverting his attention with a hazy, stupefied slowness to his manner made sluggish by so much intoxicating indulgence. He feels frozen. It's difficult to move when he needs to, petrified by a slow, creeping dread... which he wrenches himself out of with a sharp glare to Emet-Selch's neck. All of that blood he's lost, and still losing. His clamminess is another point of notice, something he can only sympathize with from his failed attempts at shapeshifting — a surefire way to fall unconscious. The dizzied room, the eventual blackout, and a resolution coming only from... undoing his transformation. Emet-Selch has no transformation to undo, and Mettaton realizes then just how ill-equipped he is at handling his Bondmate's body. He's totally inept, and never bothered to learn properly what to do. What does he do? He can't return his blood to him; he's already taken so much from him, leaving his heart empty and struggling to replenish it all. Mettaton grips onto his own chest, wishing he could empty it back into Emet-Selch as easily as he took it.
But that wound remains. It pours, as it ever does. Mettaton leaps forward and into action: he wads the sheet from beneath his lover's shoulder, bunching them in his fist and pressing it firmly against the deep bite mark on his neck. The idol's first impulse is to make that wound stop bleeding, at any cost. He's had enough of his blood: the cost for his greed is too steep. In his overabundance, his overindulgence, was he blinded to his lover's failing condition? Was he so pacified that he saw no warning signs of his deterioration? He was so blissed out; it was no wonder he couldn't see past it all. His need to go to bed, his softening voice, his woozy manner and unsteadiness felt through their Bond were all the tips he needed, but he ignored them all in favor of pressing ever forward, ignoring all of their problems as though it could be soothed with pleasure and their voracious tearing into each other. Emet-Selch was in agreement with him the entire time despite it. Their approval matched: his blood belongs to him. Yet he harmed his Bonded with his carelessness.
The more seconds pass without the Ascian's stirring, the more frantic Mettaton becomes. He presses flush, leaning in to kiss Emet-Selch's eyelids, smearing blood along his temple in the process. He doesn't know what to do. What if he dies like this? Mettaton stares down upon his lover's body, pale and sticky and shirt collar bloodied from his reckless adoration. From all Emet-Selch wants to give him. Mettaton feels that same sickly feeling he gets when his organs drop, a phantom sensation he couldn't possibly be having.
No, this wasn't innocent adoration: it was fervor, wrath, terror, craving, loneliness, desperation, helplessness. Uncertainty. This was their feelings unmanageable, combined.
His ears flatten. He panics, watching his pallid features helplessly. It's agonizing seconds, agonizing minutes as he keeps leaning forward to listen for his heartbeat with sensitive ears. How soft it is, he thinks, reassured only that it's there. But it's weak: against his lips, this heartbeat is a delightful thing. Mettaton chokes on air. He needs to do something, but what does he do?
Mikasa. Unable to maintain his nigh-impenetrable composure, unable to think straight, Mettaton reaches for his device. The latest message is from Emet-Selch, a thought incomplete, and he panics some more even as he brings up ma and calls her for help, knowing she's probably still displeased with him about all he's been hiding from her... But this was more important, and she knows what it's like to deal with injured people, he assumes.
As soon as his call concludes, Mettaton finds himself trembling, almost ready to burst in his stress. Like he might overheat, and that wouldn't help anybody.]
Legs... [With some purpose, Mettaton can go into action.] Okay.
[Mettaton stacks pillows. He quickly unhands his wad of blankets and lifts his Bonded's legs to shove them underfoot. Another quick diversion: Mettaton hops off the bed and rummages for a spare blanket, of which he's sure to stock around in all manners of textures he's found enchanting. A thick, deep purple one is carelessly attained, and Mettaton crawls on the bed before he unfolds it in his inefficiency, draping it over his lover's body, raised legs included. He's quick to return to applying pressure to his neck, this time with a pillowcase he grabbed in the wake of his blanket-fetching, hoping to warm his Bonded's poor, chilled body with the blanket upon his person. He shifts close, tucking his chin possessively atop his head, pressing his free hand to his clavicle — feeling for a pulse and finding one yet, faint as it is.
None of this was how this was supposed to go. How readily they fell into each other's arms, Emet-Selch into his teeth. He'd given him such trust, such little resistance...
After some time like this, Mettaton checks his heart again. It's beating. He does this over and over. Beating. Breathing. He gets frustrated once and feels inclined to bite him; he can't. He's irritated, mostly with himself. For this inclination that proves too dangerous, after all.
Even after a time, Mettaton's still pressing firm against his neck, afraid that if he lets go, it'll all come apart. The pillowcase is part-way soaked, but not at all soaked through. At some point, he's snuggled in with his Bonded and tucked his chin atop his shoulder so that he can watch his neck, his profile. When he's still, he can watch the rise and fall of his chest, gentle as it is. Mettaton wills himself to ignore the alluring smell of blood, finding it both addictive and worth wariness at once.
Regardless, Mettaton doesn't leave or sleep. He watches. He drapes his free arm across his chest. Should it take long, he begins to talk to Emet-Selch once he confirms that he's breathing still. He tells him about the first movie he'd ever seen and how much he adored the humans he saw. He talks about the first time he saw the plans for his body. He tells him about the show he was just in that evening. He tells him about Mikasa, and how he met her rescuing a human child. He talks about Alphys a little, how he'd grown away from her — and how he's not sure how to bridge that gap, even still. (He's not very good at that, is he?) He confesses that he nearly bit Mira recently, stopped only by a quick-thinking attack on her part. He says really, it didn't scare him to think of Emet-Selch working on his body, it's quite different from being a human and wide open, and he trusts him. He fantasizes aloud that, were he to have it his way, he'd love to relax and watch movies with him — a perfect activity given his disinclination toward moving, and Mettaton's love for such entertainment. He reminds him he loves him.
He talks even when he doesn't reply, because it makes him feel better, and he can't help but remember the tone of Emet-Selch's voice. Lost and confused, imploring for his presence, and he wants to somehow convey to him that he's not alone still. A vain hope that his voice will reach him somehow, as if he could throw it into his head. But he also lapses into silence between, listening to his breathing, tilting his head every once in a while to let the shell of a sensitive ear land upon the Ascian's chest to confirm that his heart's still beating.
Around the time Emet-Selch might come to, he might very well be talking about his idea of a date: a line or so that goes, "I don't just act in the feature, you know. I like to watch things too. I think you'd like it, relaxing in our own space and watching something with me... Even if you disliked the movie. Haha." His fingers trace his profile, such shameless care and observation as he absorbs the sight of his face: terrified about the thought of how pale and sickly he looked, but trying to prescribe his appearance to his memory so strongly that he couldn't forget it, just like Emet-Selch suggested he should when he was the one bleeding out.
His hand remains fisted around a wad of pillowcase, pressed firmly to his neck as though scared to lift it. Mettaton doesn't know what to do with this body of his, except to be patient with it. He thinks that's what he needs, even when they know they both don't care for patience. Sometimes it's necessary.]
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He'd never been afraid of the dark before. He'd never thought to fear what could be lurking in the bottom of it.
And so he sank. And so he remained, for a long time.
Hours of passivity, unresponsive and relaxed in the comforting way a corpse would be. A similar level of warmth and color further deepens the facsimile, the only thing giving the game away was his continuance to breathe, for his heart to beat, however inefficiently. But it still worked, as though it didn't know how to do anything else, a shallow, fast pulse that did its feeble best to keep moving whatever blood that remained. An effort that meant he kept bleeding, more fluid lost from each pass, from each beat- but progressively less. And not only because there was less to lose, but with the pressure of something other than a sucking mouth on the wound, the barest hint of something like coagulation could start. With the pressure of fabric instead, blood was encouraged to stay on the inside of his body, despite its best attempt to find freedom elsewhere. To decorate the bed, or to trail down his throat, or into Mettaton's mouth- these were all normal places for his blood to be.
And how inconsiderate his body was to not realize this, to instead start shutting down because it didn't like suddenly having a dozen or more percentage points of its blood vanished, claimed by someone who had just as much right to it.
But slowly it regained some manner of stability, and while the Ascian wasn't in any manner of good or perhaps even safe condition, he wasn't getting any worse either. Cloth was pressed to him, and he had soaked so much of it without realizing. But even that began to dry, though the sticky scent of blood remained. As fragile as the movement was, his heart continued.
It wasn't quite the same as it had been during his periodic comatose states. This Bond was muted, but not completely dead- sluggish, with a stirring barely perceptible, but there. While his condition before had been a gradual erosion of energy, of magic, of self, with the times of unconsciousness dropping him into a flat featureless plain, blank and still- this had a different note to it. More clearly sickly, a faint pulsing of life that was strong enough to remain, but not yet strong enough to break the barrier of consciousness.
And so he survived, because what choice did he have?
Oblivious to the panic that surrounds him, to the efforts gone to for his sake, at least for the moment, he can do nothing but lie there quiet, and far too still. Removed entirely from the decisions that had led to this moment, from all of that desperation and love and despair, from his encouragement to this end, from Mettaton's glad embracing of it. They'd done this to each other, in their carelessness and adoration and need, a reckless building of violence that led to this inevitability. They needed too many things from one another, and in a willingness to provide... what else could be the result?
Hours pass, and Emet-Selch's condition continues to stabilize. He's weak- so very weak, and somehow both overheated and cold- but consciousness begins to emerge. Not flickering, not in twitches or starts, but slowly. A peeling back of layers, a draining of the waters that surround his suffocated form. And from the depths of that darkness he could hear a voice.
It wasn't always there, and his consciousness wasn't complete enough to think about why, or what it was. But a presence remained, and eventually the sound would continue, and all of this was terribly, terribly soothing. He could listen to that forever, he thought, and not get tired of it.
But thought itself encourages more of them, more rousing, and as consciousness coalesces, words do as well. Emet-Selch doesn't think about where he is or what had happened or why he felt so desperately weak: there was his lover's voice. There was his hand on his face with a gentleness that he could lose himself in, and he could feel that, and he doesn't know why both of those things felt so remarkable. Both to feel and to possess. He's not sure why he's near tears or why his head hurts, but he imagined love was the culprit of at least one of those things.
What had Mettaton been saying? With his meager consciousness devoted solely to his lover's words (and not put towards anything like 'recognizing location' or 'remembering what had happened'), he can almost comprehend them. He doesn't know why he can't remember the rest of the conversation, but....]
I would- like that. I think....
[He doesn't know why his voice is so hoarse either, or why he could barely move, apart from a pained shudder, as though instinctively attempting to curl closer to Mettaton, to shield himself from all these discomforts with his body. A body uncooperative and sore and still very tired. His eyes open, but only slightly, and seem to struggle to focus on anything.]
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There's no better option, he decides, except one of them could be immediately fatal.
Yet his heart kept beating. It's a relief every time, even when it's faint and struggling. He wondered at some point if he should be bringing him somewhere for proper medical attention, but he can't bring himself to move his hand, and he can't ever think of where to go. He wishes he knew who healed Emet-Selch before... They seemed to be good at it, he thought. Mettaton doesn't know anybody who heals. He wonders if the Coven could help, if he could only bring him there.
So he hopes this works. A part of him starts to make plans, just in case he doesn't rouse or it starts to look unstable, because he won't let Emet-Selch die, even if Mikasa were to tell him he was a lost cause — he's seen her give up before, and she was wrong. He feels like he could stop his death no matter what sometimes, and at others, he feels very incapable of it.
But he comes back. It's hard to tell at first, with his own voice smoothing over the gradual strengthening of Emet-Selch's magical signature, but evening's well into night. Mettaton's fingers are smoothing over his brow, moving to trace over his lips; running over his forehead, down the bridge of his nose. And it's then that he speaks. Mettaton gasps, halting in his reverent tracing as he shifts impossibly close, overwhelmed with emotion.]
Hades...
[The Ascian's eyes open then. Mettaton catches his visage from the side, just as he has all evening, and it's dim in the room but he can see him quite clearly. The relief he feels may just overpower all else, seeing him stir to some manner of alertness.
The idol is the one to come closer, making sure that Emet-Selch doesn't have to. He keeps his hand pressed to the wadded fabric against his neck, moving so that his face should come into view without any further effort on his Bondmate's part — save for the trouble of having to focus on him at all. His free hand rests against his cheek as Mettaton smiles down on him, ears nearly back and brow knit in concern.
They couldn't really do what Mettaton wants, since TV doesn't exist. Movies don't exist. But having Emet-Selch return his words at all has Mettaton elated, desperately so. When he laughs, it's laden with emotion: the relief of hearing his Bonded after fearing for worse and worse situations. That he might never wake, or that he'd die... Any manner of scenarios cropped up in that head of his, extreme or not. He didn't know what to think.]
I'm glad to hear it... Really.
[Less that he might like his date fantasy, and more at the sound of his voice at all, no matter its quality. His thumb strokes over his cheekbone, thankful for all of the work his body's putting forth to recover. It's so much relief to know that he's alive (even if he'll only die when he returns home; Mettaton's thinking about this very moment over all else) that it weighs his very being down, a hope assuaging despair so thoroughly that the whiplash causes the robot to tear up. He can only imagine how Emet-Selch must be feeling: disoriented, aching, weak... But he hopes desperately that he doesn't feel alone or lost.
When Mettaton realizes too late that tears have slipped onto Emet-Selch's neck (the other, unaffected side), he gasps. Then, he hisses:]
Oh! Shit, no—
[He hastily wipes the tear from his neck with the blanket that covers him. ... His tears are perfectly benign, though Mettaton imagines that they must be acidic, proof of how infrequently he cries. (Proof that this robot can cry at all?) At least it snaps him out of crying at all. But Emet-Selch is fine, at least with regards to burning. Unless he can't tolerate robot fluid any more than he already does.
With that dealt with, Mettaton closes his eye and tries to pull himself together with a soundless sigh.]
Ah... How are you doing, darling? Will you... Are you all right?
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He wanted to raise his hand to touch Mettaton's face, but he can't quite manage it. There's actually nothing 'quite' about it, there's a feeble twitch to his arm that hardly signals his intent for anything, and nothing else. But at least he could see him, could feel the touch to his own face- so soft and deliberate and loving, and more of a balm than anything else could be.
It takes Emet-Selch a moment to recognize the wetness hitting his skin, bewildered nearly as much at the feeling as he is at Mettaton's frantic rubbing it away, as though he thought it might hurt him.... He'd never seen the robot cry before, and in that moment he was afraid again. Whatever had happened had been serious enough to warrant both this upset and relief, and his fluttering, overworked heart speeds yet again. His own vision becomes blurry, and for a second he nearly panics, thinking he's losing hold of his own grasp of consciousness- but it's just a few of his own tears spilling over, and he doesn't entirely know why. The awareness that he might've died, that he'd been brought uncomfortably close to it so suddenly- hasn't quite reached his thoughts, but the feeling is there. A reason to be so unsettled.
What had happened? Mettaton's question has him trying to think back on it, on what had led to this state, to why he felt so weak and sick and empty. He'd been messaging the idol, yes- plans were made, of dubious but necessary intent. And then they'd- not argued, exactly, but were in disagreement again. Heatedly, agitatedly so, if not angrily. It was never like that... and then he was waiting for Mettaton to reach him, and- and that was it. The rest was a blank, at least for now.
As though to defend itself from further discomfort, his few thoughts kept being deflected back onto what he'd caught of Mettaton's date imaginings. Something so calm and normal and safe.... And that he wanted to do something nice with him, to just have his company- that it was something worth appreciating, and so, so very easy to lose. Could he have slipped away with so little warning? Not even through disappearance, but--
Emet-Selch doesn't shake his head (just the thought of it made him dizzy), but he does close his eyes, breath shuddering. And just as soon opens them again; as much as it hurt to see, to focus, the reassurance of what he could see was worth it.]
No. [He swallows heavily; he still needed time to piece things back together.] Not- not particularly. I don't- what happened?
[There were details to pick up on, even if the memory remained a blur. The strong scent of blood. His own extreme fatigue, that any attempt to turn his head hurt, both inside and out. There was fabric bunched up against one side of his neck, and his legs were strangely elevated. He was still clothed so they hadn't had sex yet, and he had an additional blanket on top of that. He still felt clammy.
He couldn't quite put the obvious conclusion together yet, only that something had gone wrong somewhere. He twitches, longing to pull himself still closer, to bury his face against Mettaton and breath him in- breathe in something other than blood.]
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Seeing Emet-Selch tearing up in response to his own feelings, an overwhelming concoction of sentiment shared between them, has Mettaton wanting to pull him close and smother him, but he resists. He's not well, and doing that would only make it worse. The robot shifts in place to cope with the desire to kiss him breathless — his Bonded's already struggling with dizziness. Instead, he leans in and kisses his forehead; his temple; the corner of his eye; his cheek. His hand moves to wipe at tears, to remove one more source of liquid to be left cold on his face as he hums thoughtfully, pulling together his composure. Mettaton pulls back, but he remains in Emet-Selch's sights as he sidles his thigh against Emet-Selch's side. (Mettaton hasn't spared the moment to take his heels off, in all of this...)
It's not that he's no longer worried. Just seeing Emet-Selch rouse makes him feel leagues better, but his concern remains. His alertness brings him solace and strength, but his condition's poor, and he wants to keep him safe. (Turns out that Mettaton was the danger.)]
I... You must not remember. [Memory has a funny way of being unreliable like this, he's found. He can't blame Emet-Selch. He has trouble remembering things after a good shut-down, though it usually comes back to him afterward. He imagines it might be the same for the Ascian.] I bit you. I think I bit you too hard... Or maybe in the wrong place.
[Or maybe a combination of the two. Wrong place, just a bit too hard. He looks regretful and sheepish both, glancing at the wad of cloth he's kept pressed to Emet-Selch's neck for... hours.]
You asked me to go to bed. Once we got there, I kept drinking. It was bleeding so much... Too much. [... An unfortunately drool-worthy amount, even when it fills Mettaton with dread. Contradictory feelings. He swallows.] I didn't realize it, until you were passing out. ...Does that jog your memory, darling?
[It's not an excuse. Mettaton's thought about it while he was out cold: he'll figure out more concretely how to deal with bodies like this so that neither of them have to worry. So that they can do whatever they like, without running such risk. He doesn't want to treat Emet-Selch to this manner of suffering. His thumb strokes at his cheek some more, paying close attention to the signs his lover exhibits as he fixes his gaze upon his face again.]
I thought...
[Mettaton swallows again. He worried Emet-Selch would be in critical condition, but he doesn't want to unsettle him right now. He probably already knows, besides. Mettaton sighs and shakes his head, resolving not to ever let Emet-Selch come close to death.]
It's been a few hours since then. Do you need anything right now?
[Is he supposed to hydrate his Ascian after he loses so much blood? Once more, Mettaton is not completely aware of the needs of his body. He thinks that he'll need water, probably. His best guess.]
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I think... I could hear you sometimes.
[This is, for some reason, something Emet-Selch decides he needs to express first. Confusion still lurks, disorientation his new companion, causing his thoughts to drift. But this is the memory he hits on initially. If it even was a memory, and not another delusion, the sparks of a dying mind piecing together something he wanted to hear--]
Have I ever said- that I like your voice. [This was the point he needed to say, apparently. His gaze becomes unfocused, distracted; his tone is soft, drifting.] I don't know. I might've imagined it.
[Blinking in his reverie, this time he does risk shaking his head, if only slightly; the stabbing ache in his neck seemed to support Mettaton's claim of a particularly deep bite, and he takes a shaky breath. What had Mettaton been saying again, in his lovely voice? An explanation of events. Emet-Selch had no idea what his Bonded had been doing during his unconsciousness apart from taking care of him. Ensuring that he was as warm as possible, that he didn't bleed out to the last. It didn't matter that the puca had been the cause of the injury, of reducing him to this state. Of actively pulling more blood from what would've naturally flowed from the wound. After all--]
--I told you- to drain me completely. I think. It... sounds like you nearly made it.
[A sentence muttered in a rushed exhalation, a hint of exasperation entering his voice. He wasn't upset- not in any sort of casting-blame sense, anyway. Only unnerved by the experience, yet- finding it strangely comforting to have the opportunity to at all express that unease, that uncertainty, that weakness. He was in company where he could do so, where he didn't have to pretend that he was fine, didn't have to force a defense.
With effort, he manages to move an arm, to let his hand brush against Mettaton's at his face. He was ill, there was no getting around that, but he wasn't dying, and his lover was here. Things weren't exactly great, but he would be fine. They both would be. But he could see Mettaton's fear; he could feel it, and he felt sick to think about what it must've been like to observe him like this. The helplessness, the panic- at seeing someone much cared for fading out before you.
They had to learn how to do this more safely; he didn't want to put his Bonded through that again....]
Water. [His various replies are all disjointed, thoughts skipping from one avenue to the next, and forgetting how to bridge separate concepts. But he was thirsty. Dreadfully so, now that he was aware of it; the stabbing headache was no doubt in part due to severe dehydration.] That would- help.
[It wasn't a replacement for blood, but it was a necessary component for continued living.]
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Like the other compliments he's paid him, it's one that touches him deeply — especially knowing he'd heard him. He swells with pride, love, and relief, and he nods.]
I was talking to you! You weren't imagining it, gorgeous. I'm glad you heard me...
[He's very excited at having been heard and in his thrill, he leans in to kiss Emet-Selch next to his lips. He rubs his nose to his with a short, airy laugh, both at the pleasure to have been perceived at all, and at the acceptance of his compliment. It meant that maybe, Emet-Selch had something to hold onto in his lonely subconscious. The pads of his fingers rub at his face in small circles, careful to keep claws from digging in at all while he tries to come down from his roller coaster of emotions, jumping from despair to relief to fear to sorrow to this blithe euphoria. Glad to be here, glad Emet-Selch is, too.
And he has to simper at Emet-Selch's exasperation. He sure did that... attempt to drain him so thoroughly, as though trying to leave nothing behind to lose. His ears don't quite fold back, but they do fall, and they posture at either side of his head almost in the direction of a lop's. At feeling the Ascian's fingers reach for his, he captures them between his own and holds his hand, though it's the back of his hand to Emet-Selch's palm.
Emet-Selch's free to show the whole of himself, and Mettaton expects as much. Mettaton demonstrates in turn his excessiveness to its fullest degree. There's little he can do to return his blood to him... It's his, and it's always been his, but he acknowledges that he went overboard. Terrifyingly overboard, sedated into feeling all was fine.
He could elaborate some more on that matter upon his return, as his ears spring to attention at Emet-Selch's request. He nods. Mettaton feels validated for predicting what he might need. Maybe he's not so bad at understanding Emet-Selch's needs after all, as a creature of flesh and blood. His fingers pet Emet-Selch's cheek, and he realizes that he's still holding onto his neck...]
Ah.
[It's palpable, how quickly Mettaton chills through their Bond, as though his heart sunk. He shifts, uneasy.]
I... can get you water. Will you be able to hold this? Against your neck.
[Mettaton doesn't even consider that it might be safe to pull it off. That maybe he could switch to bandages, in fact. He just keeps imagining that he'll keep holding this for all of these moments, into infinity, for however long it's necessary to feel reassured that Emet-Selch won't just bleed out again.]
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And though he doesn't quite hum at the outpouring of affectionate gestures (there's a sort of... hoarse sound that might've been an attempt at one, though), he appreciates them deeply. Both the feeling of contact, and the feeling of emotion that went with it- though it did strike the Ascian as a bit sad that he could rarely express these sorts of things... except under unusual circumstances. And that this time was a bit more unfortunate than most.
But he hadn't imagined him... that part was the most reassuring point of all. And Emet-Selch wondered if it had made it a little easier to surface again. To have something drawing him back... or to at least keep him company in the dark.
Company that was something other than a delusion. Perhaps he was just more susceptible in this state, but- with this reassurance applied, it felt easier to accept that this all was real. That everything he was feeling, the hurt and relief, adoration and exhaustion, all of it was happening, somehow. He was here, in this place, with this person. He could feel Mettaton's hand and his love.
--And his unease, suddenly, which he can't help but hone in on, even in his reduced condition. Whatever concentration he could manifest was for him. His neck? Ah... Mettaton was still supporting it, was still pressing a lump of fabric to it, as though his head might fall off if he let go. Emet-Selch doesn't nod, but he does shift his other arm up to feel for the material there. The pressure he can apply with his hand isn't that great, though, so he's not sure how to respond. He could touch it, but that didn't really qualify as holding it.]
A little.
[That was the appropriate qualifier, he thought. That it might be safe to remove, he doesn't know and is more than willing to accept Mettaton's impulse of It Stays There Forever, Now. Or at least until there are bandages to replace it (especially if the material has at all dried to the wound; removing it will likely tear it open again, so having something else available to take its place would be useful).]
It should be fine. [Though his tone makes a question of that statement, so he adds:] Just- don't take too long.
[But that was more because he didn't want to lose sight of him, didn't want to lose that contact, rather than any concern when it came to additional bleeding.]
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Gingerly, he lets go, and pats the Ascian's hand for good measure, an expenditure of energy. The hand he's had pressed to the cloth is bloodied, though it's all dry at this point and it tries to stick to fabric as he trades places. Released from his duty temporarily, he nods at Emet-Selch.]
I'll be back before you know it. Just watch, and hang in there.
[Fondly, he gives him another soft caress of his cheek, another peck to his forehead — a lingering look, as though to ensure that Emet-Selch will really be fine.
But Mettaton figures the best he can do is be quick, so he hops to it.
The most unfortunate thing about a big house: having to go distances to get from place to place. Not that Mettaton's caring much for that, even though he dislikes being pried from his Bonded. For the most part, he's pleased to be fetching something for his sake, and he takes as many shortcuts as exist by dropping off the banister instead of using the stairs (too confident in himself to imagine that he could sprain an ankle now that he has any muscle at all) and skipping steps on his way back up. Water is easily obtained without distraction. He thinks to make a detour for medical supplies, and realizes that... they don't have any.
This is a house with a skeleton and a robot as the permanent residents. And unless Emet-Selch spontaneously decided to stock the place with medical supplies, they are likely to have absolutely nothing. Mettaton doesn't bother looking, choosing instead to head straight back for the room. (He'll have to make do with fabric or something, he thinks.)
Upon entering, he quickly sets a pitcher aside (thinking ahead: reducing trips to the kitchen for water, in case Emet-Selch should want more than a glass), Mettaton brings a completely nondescript glass of water (free of nitroglycerin) to the bed, sidling up next to him and offering it in a trade. He does this as he analyzes Emet-Selch's condition, thinking about his weak grip, the way he's lying down in such a way that drinking would be the same as upending water over his head...
The Puca hums.]
Do you need help, Hades, darling?
[Already, his other hand moves to prepare to assist, fingers hovering around his neck and shoulders. No matter what he needs, Mettaton will do it. He seems so weakened, after all... Could he sit up on his own? He doubts it. Could he hold a glass in his grip? He's not sure, but he'll be here to help: Emet-Selch has nothing to hide from him, after all. Mettaton softens some more, ears dropping a degree.]
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And he wondered if it would scar, this bite. Emet-Selch didn't mind the thought of keeping it around, even if this memory was complicated. But weren't they all? Even the healing mark over his heart had all the associations of that day attached to it. From the failed transformations, to the sharing of tortures and everything else- there were a lot of feelings the sight of it invoked. This wound would be the same, he suspected: mixed of sentiment, but important.
His fingers tense against the pillowcase as best they can. It remained a touch unnerving how weakened he felt, but as the minutes ticked past, he could settle by degrees. He would still need a lot of sleep he knew, but there were worse prospects- and it would at least be the sleep of deliberate rest, and not a forced unconsciousness due to a sharp reduction in blood pressure. A sleep of healing.
But he nods this time when Mettaton makes his move for a temporary departure, sustained anew by all the additional attention. He would hold this pillowcase to the best of his ability and deliberately not count the moments until Mettaton returned. And he found that even when he couldn't see him, he could hear his Bonded moving- the clicking of heels on stairs, the loud thump of a heavy metal body jumping off... something. There was plenty of noise.
It's well enough that Mettaton hadn't stopped to look for medical supplies that didn't exist; the Ascian certainly wouldn't have stocked any. If for some reason any items like this ever became required, he'd trusted in his ability for conjuration to handle it. This... led to some minor problems when he was the one in need of attention, because his ability to magic up anything at the moment was minimal. It was a perfect plan otherwise, with the small caveat that he could never be the one hurt.
And then Mettaton was back, and Emet-Selch relaxes a bit of tension he hadn't noticed he'd collected, though when he's offered up the water, he pauses, wondering much the same thing as the puca. He didn't particularly look forward to sitting up, but it was the only way he'd be able to drink anything without choking, and he did need the water.]
...If you could. [He's not even about to pretend that he was capable of doing this on his own. While it might not be impossible, he considered- to painfully drag and push himself upright- it would be easier with his lover's support. There really was nothing to hide. So though his arms move, to do what they could, Emet-Selch will lean heavily into Mettaton's own grip, wincing at the changing positions. Nor does he like the way he's getting out of breath again just from this, or the lightheadedness or- much of anything about this whole process. In the end he mostly ends up clinging to Mettaton instead, eyes closed, waiting for the world to stop moving.
And once settled, the glass itself would also be safer with another hand on it; another case where it might not be strictly necessary... but it would certainly facilitate affairs. It was strange to both have someone to rely on, and be comfortable enough to accept the available help.]
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Of course I can. Hang onto that...
[By "that", he means his neck, still worrying himself over it.
Sliding his fingers underneath Emet-Selch's neck, he realizes too late that his movement was more to achieve an end in his desire to help him sit up than it was out of any caution for his existing wounds, and he worries for a moment that he could've hurt his already damaged neck. Just how careful should he be? But it doesn't seem it did anything to hurt him. The give of pillows beneath his neck were to thank for that, since they formed around his arm more than Emet-Selch's skin.
In fact, thank anything related to pillows and pillowcases. Even if Emet-Selch accidentally lets go of the fabric Mettaton's dedicated himself to, it likely has dried to the spot: it won't move as readily as Mettaton fears, which is both a relief (mostly to ease Mettaton's irrational (?) worries about Emet-Selch bleeding out again upon its removal) and probably a sign that its intentional removal will disturb the wound somewhat. Regardless of the pressure applied to his neck, Mettaton's easily helped him sit up with an arm about the Ascian's shoulders, other hand holding the glass before him like a prize he's happy to give, though it's clear Emet-Selch needs a moment.
And so he watches him, wondering how he feels. How the hoarse quality of his voice feels in his throat, what it feels like to know he needs water, how the neck injury impacts speaking or turning his head or if it'll affect drinking — a ridiculous image in his mind's eye of water draining from the wound, even though he knows it's not that deep, not connected to this esophagus, but having the confusing thought anyway. For all of Mettaton's growing understanding of his body, it's all so curious to him, how they work. And really, he'd rather have thoughts like these - ridiculous ones that compare an injured neck to a leaky pipe - than the harrowing thoughts of crushed organs and distorted giants. This is about his lover, and his well-being.
Mettaton wonders if this level of vulnerability Emet-Selch feels ready to demonstrate before him has anything to do with having met him in a cell intended for torture. He doesn't strike him as the sort to drop his guard readily, more the sort to feel uncomfortable at the thought, and it causes his grip to tighten protectively. But then, he considers that his own feelings of being able to be so prone to Emet-Selch in spirit come from the knowledge that even if it hurts him, his Bonded can handle him. He believes that to be the case, and he smiles warmly, wishing to convey to him that he'll take him any time, no matter how he is. No matter how scary, incensed, weak, or softened he is, Mettaton wants to see every dimension of Emet-Selch. It's a natural result, to feel this close to someone he loves like this. It's mutual.
The idol facilitates Emet-Selch's lean and waits until he's ready.
His hand remains with the glass so it's not dropped in a mess all over, too, especially once he feels the lightness of the Ascian's touch. He's already anticipated as much. Mettaton's thumb strokes over Emet-Selch's shoulder.]
... This showed me something. I may have learned more about bodies like this... More than I've ever understood. However. Learning how to better care for you could only be a benefit.
[Not only in practicing emergency first aid for Emet-Selch, himself (organic form), and for anybody he chances upon, but to avoid damaging their bodies. He doesn't view them as particularly weaker than his own metal one, but with different vulnerabilities. (He truly could only learn, given that he still believes that humans can consume just about anything safely.)
This could have gone a lot worse, if he didn't ask for help. If he didn't get lucky. If Emet-Selch were in any worse condition. He can hardly fathom it.
Regarding Emet-Selch in this host of his, he imagines that normally, he should be able to vacate this body and find another. Worrying about dying like this is be a new concern for the Ascian, bound to his body as he likely is. It means he has to be extra cautious — or about as cautious as everyone else who only gets one body, which is normal levels of caution.]
For example. I didn't know that pressure would stop your bleeding... I only thought about how you tried to hold me together, in vain. That I could hold you together.
[The rest of it, he needed external advice — and even knowing that pressure was a good thing was something he learned through that conversation.]
And you probably don't need stitches. [Not even thinking about the fact that a society that can rely upon magic for healing mostly takes care of the need for stitches; just regurgitating what Mikasa could tell him.]
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Guiding the glass rather than taking it with his free hand, he slowly drinks from it, listening to Mettaton as he does. He takes it slowly; as desperate for water as he felt, he knew if he went too quickly, even water alone would be a difficult thing for his body to handle. So he sips at it, and thinks of his Bonded's impromptu lesson when it came to a human's physiology.
It wasn't a surprise, not really, that Mettaton had been unaware of such basic aspects of a mortal's maintenance. His anatomy studies must've been about form and some degree of correct function; the imagery he'd seen in the memories of others had covered catastrophic damage, bodies rendered unsalvagable, barely recognizable. Had he ever come across these lesser sorts of injuries before? He couldn't have.
Emet-Selch wanted to say that Mettaton's not missing much when it comes to experiencing these details of organic form, and that it was better to limit his knowledge to that of observation. There was pleasure in the pain of being bitten, sure (at least, when it came to being bitten by Mettaton), and even in a bit of blood loss, and even in a bit of satisfying aching due to exertion and aforementioned damage- but there was an upper limit to what felt good, and this had slightly passed it. His neck was stiff, his head was pounding, his pulse was still too fast, he felt shaky and sick and tired- these were not fun experiences.
But he wouldn't have been surprised if Mettaton would've wanted them all anyway, if for the novelty. For the satisfaction of it, of understanding humanity in the way one only can by wearing their flesh for more than a few hours. So the Ascian says nothing, quietly relieved that any similar-to-far-worse damage on the idol's part would be undone by a shapeshifting reversion. And his robotic form could be repaired.... He didn't want to see him hurting.
Emet-Selch just nudges against him instead, in quiet affection. Touched again that Mettaton wanted to learn how to take better care of this sort of body, in all its fragility. It doesn't surprise him, but it doesn't keep him from appreciating it.]
Not... the kindest of introductions to a mortal form's requirements, was it? Still. At least... at least you've learned something from it. Although I prefer... your previous studies of my body.
[He sighs softly against the glass, then takes a few more swallows from it. The Ascian was also continuing to learn that he should probably take better care of this host. What would happen if he died here? Would it be the same as dying in truth?]
How did you learn what to do?
[How did he know about stitches and assessing a wound for them.]
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When Emet-Selch responds to his musings upon what he's learned, his ears droop somewhat, thinking about what sort of unpleasant method of learning this truly was. And though one could say that the two of them were complicit in Emet-Selch's deterioration (even Mettaton would agree that they both wanted this, they both wanted Emet-Selch's drain, this possession, this pleasure), he still feels a level of responsibility for his part of blissful ignorance, his true indulgence. Worse yet, for wanting more of his blood even as he sits here at his side, trying to aid in his recovery, acknowledging that were he somehow starved for his Witch's blood in this moment instead of half-filled with it, he might crave it badly enough that he'd take another bite of him if driven to low enough moods. Mettaton glances away for a moment, biting shortly at his lower lip.
Instead, he thinks about their previous... study sessions. The times Mettaton's raked his hands along the expanse of Emet-Selch's skin, kissed him from lips to hips, probed every part of his body with wandering fingertips. Even thinking about it in combination with his muted craving might well be relayed by their Bond, Mettaton knowing how transparent they both are, though it's not an indulgence he's willing to satisfy with his lover like this. A memory is fine. The remembrance of warm skin under his tongue, the give of muscle, the sound of his panting...
Mettaton drags his attention to this new kind of scenario with a soundless sigh. Exhaling heat. One of his ears flicks. He nudges back against Emet-Selch when he's not busy drinking, heated by his infatuation for him but very much in this moment and all of its ills. He nods in agreement, that he's learned, but that he prefers the less terrifying ways of learning about his Bondmate's body. Not the kinds that leave him cold and lifeless, if he could help it.
He would also have to be careful. If not learning to control himself, he's determined to learn to pace himself.
Emet-Selch's question earns a short nod from Mettaton.]
Ah. I called a friend! Her name is Mikasa. She's a human, and she's blunt, no-nonsense... but she's protective, and knows what to do. Since she's a soldier, I figured she'd know how to help in a pinch... Elevating your legs, since you were unconscious and drained. Applying pressure to your wound. I trust her.
[And she could have very well given him advice that would've broken his heart, but she didn't, so all was well and good. She didn't see that Emet-Selch would be a lost cause, but she's probably seen people survive worse. (And if he'd stayed on the line any longer, she probably would have tried to get Emet-Selch a healer. Not that Mettaton knew what she might've been up to, in his panic...)]
I asked her what to do if you lost too much blood, and she wanted to see how big the injury was...
[Mettaton doesn't at all prioritize making private their activities if Emet-Selch's health was on the line, and he doesn't even think of the impression she might've gotten from seeing a Puca bite on an unconscious person's neck atop a bed. He sure showed her that. But he got helpful advice from her, and for that, the idol couldn't be happier with it. She helped Emet-Selch, because of course she would.]
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He would just have to keep improving then, to not worry him, to not have to see the remorse evident in his ears. Finishing with his water, he lets that hand drop, and the Ascian leans that bit more against his Bondmate, allowing himself to relax. He wished he could nuzzle him, bury his face in his neck- but that would take moving and twisting, so leaning closer is all he does for now. He wasn't sure how to express that he didn't consider this to be at all Mettaton's fault, that this was solidly a joint effort in absolute excess, so he settles for... settling, as warmly as his body could manage it.
It yet brings the briefest of smiles to his expression at the distinct sense of heat evident through Bond, clearly inspired by his mention of past studies of his form. How easily prone Mettaton was- how they both were, to each other. Even though it were a current impossibility, it was a nicer thought, and provided another measure of comfort. They weren't ignoring the current situation, the blood and the fear and how fragile it had all been, so quickly- but it wasn't as though attraction and wantings stopped being an undercurrent to their affection. Even if it couldn't be indulged in, it was soothing (and warming) to know it was there.
That Mettaton would still be wanting his blood as well doesn't quite occur to him.
And Emet-Selch only nods a little at Mettaton's mention of showing this Mikasa some sort of imagery of the injury. The Ascian didn't particularly like the idea of anyone else seeing him so weakened, unconscious, unable to defend himself, but accepted that it was necessary in the circumstances. He'd just have to trust in Mettaton's perception of his friend (and she had given him useful advice, so perhaps his judgement of her was correct).]
So you know... a few useful humans after all.
[Any concerns about propriety don't occur to him, and he wouldn't care much about them even if they did. Sure, he wouldn't have gone around displaying the implications brought by being collapsed on someone's bed with their distinctive teeth-marks in his neck, but he also wouldn't have been embarrassed by them.]
Hm... perhaps I'll have to thank her.
[For providing useful advice in part, even though he's likely to have survived regardless, with Mettaton's base instinct regarding covering the wound (and not continuing to drink from it) doing enough to save him. But it was still proper advice, and more importantly, provided the inherent reassurance of being told what to do. Of having something to do, and being able to trust that someone's assessment of what to do was correct. To not be left completely alone in his panic with his possibly-dying Bondmate. That alone was worth gratitude.]
We'll just- have to avoid requiring her... assistance again.
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