Serendipity (Karlnapity Fantasy AU)

Chapter 17

The weeks passed. They were rainy days, filled with paralyzing fatigue and waiting. For as Karl had learned, the rain was different in this world. Its drops were corrosive for the people here and so they had to stay in their houses and wait during the phases of the rainy season, which usually lasted up to two weeks.

In the brief moments when the rain paused, the windows were opened to let in the fresh air, and they scampered in the garden until a howl in the distance announced the next storm and they ran back into the cabin. All over the world, except in the polluted and locked parts of the world, huge towers were erected to announce the rain. They were built and distributed by the angels because the two species had one thing in common. None was spared by the natural laws of this planet.

After it finally subsided, one morning Sam rushed into the room that Karl, Sapnap, and Quackity shared. He paid no attention to the three of them as they tiredly sat up in bed. Actually, it was two beds pushed together in a makeshift fashion. Karl slept on the window side, and Sapnap on the wall side, because Quackity had the habit of throwing himself out of bed after his dreams to make sure that he hadn't just dreamed about losing his leg.

The boys were not thrilled with Sam that morning, who had rushed into the cabin as soon as the sun began to rise. He had been staying day and night in Technoblade's stable, which had been converted into a kind of workshop so that he could have a place to work on the prosthesis.

"Quackity! You need to wake up! I finished-", he stopped when he saw the drowsy boys. Quackity sat up carefully, his whole body including wings stretched out followed by a long yawn that for a brief moment exposed the hybrid's unusually pointy teeth. While Karl was hitting the covers over his head to sleep again, Sapnap sat up as well, trying to rub his eyes awake.

"What's going on?", Quackity whispered to Sam, small circles forming under the hybrid's eyes. Sam made hand motions calling for the three to follow.
"Your prosthetic is ready for use."

~~~

It took a few more days for Quackity to learn the basic techniques with the prosthesis. Karl and Sapnap stood on the porch of the hut almost every day and watched him learn to walk from scratch with Sam for most of the day. In the meantime, Philza, Niki, and Ranboo had made their way to another group that needed urgent support.

"They were attacked recently," Philza had explained the situation earlier and had left briskly with the others. Karl had seen the concern in the old man's eyes as he spoke about the group his youngest son was in. So only Wilbur, Technoblade, Professor Awesamdude, Sapnap, Quackity, and Karl himself remained in the hut.

"He's doing well," Sapnap suddenly commented, leaning against the railing, his gaze fixed on Quackity. With those words, he had snapped Karl out of his thoughts. He had noticed how engrossed Karl was in his thoughts and he was getting quieter every day. It worried him.

"Huh? Oh well," Karl glanced over at the duck hybrid who was managing a few steps across the green meadows on his own, with a walking stick to help him, "I'm just worried he's overexerting himself."

Sapnap nodded in agreement, looking at Karl. The eyes of the two met and at the soft brown that lit up in Sapnap's eyes, that special expression in his eyes that only lit up when Karl looked at him, made his heart melt.
"We'll take care of him," Sapnap assured him, and the two boys smiled at each other. For a brief moment, they were silent, looking only at each other, and then the moment was interrupted by a sound outside. 

Quackity had fallen down, landed with his face on the muddy meadow and while he straightened up, the two couldn't help but laugh at their friend. Of course, Quackity noticed this, because Karl's shrill laughter was anything but quiet.
"Assholes! You shouldn't pick on handicapped people!", Quackity screamed very offendedly to the others, but this didn't stop the laughter of the two. After Karl and Sapnap calmed down again, Sapnap suddenly spoke.