psychoshenanigans | Skeleton City // PSL

"I thought as much. Come over here."

And so, Robin leads Phalanx away from the dining room table, around the pyramid of cans and cartons stacked up around the trash can (Vincent has been meaning to take those out, he swears), and towards the threadbare couch that serves as the heart of the tiny room.

The couch is probably the closest thing that this house has to a holy place. It is a safe zone, the only location where both Robin and Vincent know that they have to be amicable towards one another while they are both sitting on it. Vincent lays on it when he's too tired to get to the bed, Robin lays on it when he's too tired to have a proper meltdown in the bathroom. This is where they listen to the radio together, the only other thing besides card games and killing monsters that these men can seem to do in complete, unwavering agreement.

So in a sense, Robin taking Phalanx there is both a power play (taking advantage of the unspoken rule of the Safe Couch) and a silent plea for a peaceful discussion over what he knows is going to be a delicate topic. Realizing one or the other, Vincent sighs, but busies himself with putting leftover food into their ice chest and refrigerator for a while. He'll get around to it, he just doesn't like that he has to.

Robin sits on one of the end cushions, patting next to him for Phalanx to snuggle up next to him. There are a couple of blankets wadded up nearby, in case they want to grab and absorb any of them along the way.

It's kind of crazy how small and comfy Phalanx can wad themself up when they're allowed to. This might be a respectable, adult body, but they don't move like it. The way that they bonelessly curl up with blankets hugged close, becoming as soft and small and bundled as possible, is something you generally lose long before "grown-up" years set in.

Robin's side gets quite snuggled as a pile of ghosts builds a cocoon against him on the couch.

Even though Robin invited them over in the first place, he's still a little surprised when the creature curls up next to him so readily. Just like before, in the bedroom, the idea of someone actually grateful to be near him is a little jarring--but he still wouldn't trade it for the world, in this moment, and wraps an arm loosely around Phalanx's scrunched up form as they settle into their happy little bundle.

They will have several minutes of peace before Vincent finally joins them, treading through his living room and eventually taking a seat on the far side of the couch.

It's not a very big couch, though, so Phalanx can feel the edge of his cushion sinking down towards the heavy man. It would be very easy to poke him with a stray foot.

Yeah, Vincent asked for it. When the cushion sinks down, shifting gravity a little bit, Phalanx automatically adjusts for it by pulling both feet onto the couch and tucking them into the blanket too. Vincent definitely has some of that whole bundle settling against him now, fully part of this comfy couch family.

Vincent grunts, but does not actually tell Phalanx to move. He must finally be resigned to his fate, or think there's worse things than having some weird bundle-person's feet on him.

"So," he prompts Robin. A silence hangs in the air for a moment, and Robin starts rubbing Phalanx's shoulder through the blankets while he thinks.

"I like them," the demigod finally states.

"'Kay," Vincent acknowledges. "But that doesn't change that this is a... situation."

"It is."

The two of them don't sound angry, at least. Vincent doesn't sound nervous, Robin doesn't sound mean. The rules of the couch are being upheld, even if it takes the two of them a while to find what words are best around pauses of heavy thought.

And like they've done before, Phalanx drifts along with the scene like they're not actually a part of it. It doesn't hurt that the shoulder-rub is nice. The touch is soothing, and it's easier to disperse than stay focused, so they settle back away from the effort.

They're probably listening (at least most of them) but there isn't the sense of it. The two other men can carry the tension between them without anything getting in the way.

"...So, what're you gonna do about it?"

Robin continues smoothing out the blankets over Phalanx's shoulder in repetitive, intentional motions. He counts the seconds that way, letting three, four, five pass by as he thinks of what to say in response to his only friend.

"I'm not sure. I've seen a lot of things, but this is beyond my understanding."

Vincent grunts at that, slumping a little further down the couch, Phalanx's feet still on him.

"Shit. S'that bad, huh?"

"I don't think they're dangerous," Robin follows, quick on his heels.

"Yeah, but you don't know that," Vincent responds, countering just as quick, "And I don't know if I want it to be my job to clean up if you turn out to be wrong."

There's a pause as the both of them think again, and Vincent scratches at his head and rubs at the corners around his not-eyes. When Robin says nothing for a while, Vincent brings up something else.

"'Sides, you know I don't have time to watch a kid."

"I'll watch him," Robin states, quietly resolute. "I can't afford not to, until I figure this out."

"...Think you can?"

"Hm?" Robin chuckles then, almost a scoff, "Of course I can. I just need time."

"Okay..."

Vincent doesn't seem entirely okay, but his next question sounds more like a last-minute suggestion than any genuine effort to dissuade Robin from his path.

"And you're sure you couldn't just, like, take him to the Priesthood, or..."

"No Priesthood." Phalanx can feel Robin shake his head, he does it so pointedly. "They'll kill him, plain and simple. I don't think there's an exorcist in that whole gods-damned temple that could handle what'd come out of this if they did."

"That's not..." Vincent wheezes quietly, "Filling me with a lot of confidence..."

"It's fine," Robin says. "I just need to understand the beast before I can understand who best to hand it to. In the long run, I think you'd much rather they stay with me than with someone who may accidentally unleash a magic that they don't understand."

There is one more silence, and the next time Vincent talks, he's talking through his hands over his face.

"So he's staying on my couch tonight, huh?"

Robin laughs, an honest laugh this time. "Yes, if you wouldn't mind terribly."

Grubby fingers fidget while the two men talk, but not with anything tangible. Phalanx plays with the hem of the blanket for only a second or two before the motion changes to simply kicking a couple fingers back and forth against nothing in the air. Patiently and distantly existing while their whole world is debated.

And once a lull finally settles, Phalanx wordlessly decides to crane their head back to look right at Robin's face. It's a little too close and sudden for how casually they're watching him, but that's what the ghosts do--not expectant, but curiously checking in on Robin's expression and waiting to see what happens next.

Phalanx gets the rare treat of catching Robin looking at nothing. After all, it's not like he has to keep up appearances for Vincent... Maybe that's why he always finds himself being so honest around him; there's less pressure, all around, to play the part of a normal, functional human being.

His posture is relaxed, leaning into Phalanx with all the ease in the world. His face isn't necessarily contradictory--he looks calm, maybe even happy, but there's a red glint in his eyes, almost glowing behind an otherwise uninteresting brown. Those eyes are gazing outward, past the wall, maybe past the whole city, alert and sharp and for a few seconds, entirely absorbed in a narrative that only he is privy to.

Excited, that's the word. His face is empty but his eyes are alive and brimming with something much brighter than a simple human lifetime.

Robin eventually glances over, finds himself staring down into eyes with no reflection. Dark holes with no end. He raises an eyebrow, the look in his eyes spreading to the rest of his face as he smiles. A hand makes it to Phalanx's covered head to ruffle the blankets and whatever hair is underneath.

"You can stay," he tells him, while Vincent is busy obliviously contemplating the extended ramifications of his new roommate.

Phalanx is just a watchful, faraway doll until Robin jostles something loose. As blankets and white hair get ruffled into their eyes, Phalanx suddenly comes to life again and shares Robin's grin.

"Everyone says so?" the creature asks, sounding bright and hopeful. "Four?"

Edited 2018-04-08 00:29 (UTC)

Robin has just enough time to think that a grin looks good on them, before a number is presented to him in the form of a question.

Vincent, misunderstanding, speaks up from his end of the couch, "Until you can get your shit together, or Robin solves his fuckin' mystery."

Robin heard it correctly, tilting his head while he tries to think. There are only two of them here, aren't there? Unless they meant someone downstairs, or... He tilts his head the other direction, coming to rest it on the back of the couch, looking down at Phalanx with that same, vibrant curiosity he'd shown a second ago.

It's four if Robin counts the others. Like the twins, the birds, the writing on the wall--"four" is another little coincidence that makes him think Phalanx really does have some greater understanding of the truth than most would believe. But whatever it is, fluke or not, Robin supposes the other two would be in agreement if they weren't potentially entirely figments of his own unsettled imagination.

"Yeah," Robin tells Phalanx, completely separate from what Vincent had said, "Everyone."

"...Huh?" Poor Vincent.

"Good." To Robin and to Vincent. It all makes perfect sense, so... "Good. Good!"

Phalanx wiggles aimlessly--almost like they're shifting their weight to go and sit up straight again, but don't actually make it that far. In fact, they end up settling even more solidly between the other two, sinking comfortably smaller, like liquid puddling between two big stones. A blanket-wrapped hand pats Vincent's leg happily.

"Busy houses... you know? The ones with lots of people. Like that. They like each other--it's nice."

Vincent 'looks' down at where a blanketed hand has patted his leg--both a little bothered and a little heartened by the gesture, neither of which are strong enough to actually get him to move. Whatever they're saying about "busy houses" doesn't quite hit the mark either (he's been in plenty of busy houses and never much enjoyed them), but he's kind of a sap who likes the idea of people just being fucking nice to each other and living in relative peace--and it's been a long day, and maybe he's ready to stop fighting it and just go along with whatever unbelievable thing has stumbled into his life for now.

So while Robin snickers quietly, Vincent shrugs, "Guess it's a nice sentiment, at least."

"Do you think that Kneecap would like Phalanx?" Robin asks, out of the blue, "Speaking of houses with lots of people."

"Yeah, probably. That guy's weird."

With the way that Phalanx continues to puddle and settle down, they may be half convinced that the three of them are just going to live there on the couch from now on, in one big, happy, communal blob forever. A blanket flipper is casually left on Vincent's leg (along with the feet and whatever else is still lumped half-on him from before), and Phalanx plunks their head back down on Robin's chest, lower than before.

At this point, the creature has slunk down almost to the point where they could be considered lying down, curled up in an impressively small, boneless pile.

Vincent grunts in resignation, crossing his arms as he's settled against. He still isn't comfortable with Phalanx, for a lot of reasons, but at least they aren't scared of him anymore. That gives him a little comfort. He can help better when he isn't innately startling to the person he's trying to help.

Robin, meanwhile, soaks up the contact and settles in deeper against the couch. He hadn't actually made long-term plans for sleeping, but he wouldn't be opposed to staying just like this, the three of them piled up in one of his favorite places.

"Mm... Want anything else, mynah?" They seem content to pool in their current collection of blankets, but he supposes he might as well make this "sleeping" thing final. He chuckles a little, under his breath, "Anything for your nest?"

Vincent is in trouble. With how Phalanx lives more or less moment-to-moment, this is increasingly becoming how the state of the world simply is to them. The ghosts are gaining gravity in that spot. Roots are probably starting to grow.

And they're seemingly absorbing Robin's gushy, affectionate nature, which is a dangerous prospect for everyone. Especially to someone with Vincent's sensitive hearing, the chuckle that echoes Robin's sounds like an eerily-exact copy.

"Want... want? We don't want." Phalanx's free hand flutters back and forth, wherever it's hidden under the blanket. "And they say not to touch those. Because of the mites."

Vincent finds the double-laugh very creepy, but visibly frowns between Phalanx's explanation and Robin's startled, tickled laughter.

"They do, huh?" Robin finds that very funny, still grinning, reminded of some very old advice that has been all but lost to time in these parts, "Sure, we don't need them anyway."

"I'm going to bed," Vincent announces, deciding to end his participation in this discussion sooner rather than later.

"How do you know when?" a surprisingly-lucid-sounding Phalanx turns to ask in Vincent's direction. With all this fixating on the here and now, their features are beginning to shift away from blank monochrome as well.

"Are you tired? Do... we go too?"

Upon being addressed so directly, Vincent instinctively turns his head to meet their eyes--or where he assumes their eyes must be, relative to where he assumes their mouth is. He almost wishes he hadn't, though, now expected to answer this bizarre series of questions.

Robin says nothing, smiling tightly to hide a laugh, far more interested in hearing what Vincent comes up with in response.

"Uh..." He stalls, torn between a smart-ass answer and a genuine response, "Yeah? I'm tired...?"

He does not sound very sure of himself, until this last part, "You guys should stay out here."

Phalanx slowly nods--which is of no use at all to Vincent--also seeming unsure about this.

And then Phalanx swivels around to look at Robin, seeming expectant. Whether because their questions weren't entirely answered, or they want some verification for the answers, they're waiting to see what Robin has to say next.

Robin considers poking fun at Vincent (it's so easy) for not wanting two cute boys in bed with him... But the man has been incredibly accommodating this evening, and the only other person who would hear may not appreciate the humor in making Vincent uncomfortable.

So he shrugs up his shoulders, nodding to admit the truth.

"Vincent is right. Let's let him have his room to himself."

They did already crash in it earlier today. And who knows--maybe in the dead of night, Robin will change his mind. Things happen. Bed plans change.

"But he's..." Phalanx begins, but it almost seems as though they hadn't actually meant to make words happen, because they trail off before they go anywhere.

If they'd been a creature with any amount of social awareness at all, they might have been intentionally catching themselves, but that's a low possibility in this case. Phalanx doesn't even think to move over so Vincent can easily get off of the couch, let alone probably think about the words they may or may not be saying.

"...But he's what?" Vincent asks flatly, narrowing his not-eyes.

Now it's Robin's turn to watch Phalanx, eyebrows raised a little, wondering what his new collection of friends could possibly have to say in response.

And Phalanx looks at Robin...!

Because it takes them a second to realize who Vincent is actually talking to. And when that finally registered, they're visibly confused.

"But he's... what?"

Robin's snickering is enough to get an annoyed "look" from Vincent, who adds, "What do you think is so funny, huh?"

"Nothing, nothing...!" Robin waves a hand in the air before gathering Phalanx back up, attempting to pull them up a little more snugly against his chest. Perhaps it is a cue to end the conversation, or perhaps it is simply Robin trying to move poor Phalanx out of the way.

"I'm sure that Phalanx is just happy to have a new friend here, that's all."

"Uh-huh," Vincent gives a good dead-eyed stare right at Robin's stupid, cheerful face, "Well I hope my old friend ain't gonna get up to any trouble while I'm asleep."

Robin just laughs, petting Phalanx's hair again, dipping his face down to check on the color of their eyes, "No, I think you and I will be just fine out here. Right, Phalanx?"

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