No Strings Attached (TEASER)

Ch 1

Wally stood at the center of the void, just like he did many times before. He faced straight ahead, just as he did before. Everything was just like all of the other times before, but rather than seeing the white scleras that normally stared back, he saw a silhouette that was similar to himself.

There were a few differences between himself and said silhouette. Yellow skin replaced by a bright red, blue and yellow sweater replaced by an crimson red vest, eyes which were turned into windows, and the ever so permanent smile no longer sat underneath. The silhouette's expression was unreadable, but it could read Wally's just fine, no matter how much his permanent smile tried to conceal it.

Wally wanted to run, to leave, to do anything to escape the darkness that surrounded him and the other figure. He wanted out. He wanted to get away. He wanted his friends. Oh how he wanted his friends. The one day he doesn't feel eyes following his every movement is the one day he's in the void.

"Wally...." The silhouette groaned, its many voices growling, whispering, crying, begging to be heard.

"Wally, you didn't follow the rules." It whispered, "YOU CHEATER!"

"Home, please-" Wally took another step back, his voice shaking, "We can talk about this-"

Wally was cut off by two thin white strings wrapping around his hands. He felt as they tightened and tugged at his arms.

"Home please!" Wally begged as he planted his feet on the ground. "Please don't do this!"

The strings pulled tighter against the puppets wrists as he tugged away

"YOU SAID YOU WOULD PLAY BY THE RULES WALLY!" The silhouette laughed manically, it's face pried apart by two yellow hands.

"YOU LIED! LIAR!" The many voices of home were all synchronized, whimpering, shouting, speaking, whining.

The strings pulled harder with every raised octave. Wally tugged sharply on his own wrists. He kept thinking of his friends rather than the burning pain at his shoulders. He wanted his friends. He wanted everything to go back to normal. He wanted to be free. He didn't wish to be aware. He didn't wish to play Home's sick game.

Wally squinted with added tension and directed his gaze to his wrists. They were blushing a bright orange. He needed to get these strings off now. No matter the cost. He balled up his fists and he kept fighting. He kept pulling, tugging, resisting. Wally wouldn't give up, he couldn't. He was too far ahead to give up now.

SNAP!

Wally fell backwards, the white strings became limp around his hands. He broke them. Home looked in his direction curiously.

"How did you do that?"Their voices were small and meek, almost confused as they added, "I could never do that..."

Wally took this moment of non-hostility to examine Home further. Home looked mostly the same, except for the bright red chains on their wrists and ankles that seemed to phase through the ground.

Home became agitated and attempted to lunge at Wally before falling, the chains causing more restrictions than Wally originally thought. Home hissed and growled at the puppet in front of them. The more Wally looked, the more he realized they looked more like a caged animal than anything.

Wally furrowed his brows as he took notice of the hands. They were clawing at the poor puppet's face and reaching towards him. Home's eyes were glazed over and watery.

"We need to talk.", Wally muttered as he crouched down on his knees, "No more fighting, no more one-sided conversations, no more being scared."

Home looked up at the bluenette.

"Sound fair?"

"What is there to talk about?" One of their voices growled.

"About all of us. I believe I deserve some answers and I also believe you have them."

Home seemed to have wanted to keep their mouth shut before sighing defeatedly, "What do you want to know?"

"First of all, what are you?"

"I don't know. I'm just as trapped and confused as you are, or," they gestured to their ankles, "Maybe even a little more."

"Okay then- that doesn't really help at all-"

"I never said I could help!" Home snapped.

"Touché... Do the others have strings?"

"I haven't been able to leave my place, nor can I see the strings unless I'm permitted to so I don't know."

"Lovely." Wally exasperated.

Home sat up and pulled their knees to their chest.

"So neither of us remember anything from before the neighborhood. Any information you think I should know?"

Home thought for a second, "The watchers."

"Huh?"

"The watchers can tell if something's wrong. They watch during the day- that's why you feel like someone's always watching you while you're outside."

"So just stay on script?"

Home nodded in reply.

They both sat in a comfortable silence, Home fidgeting with their hands and Wally drawing imaginary circles on the ground.

"How did you do that?" Home questioned, their many voices just as curious.

"What?"

"How did you break the strings?'

Wally gazed up, "I don't know. Guess I got Lucky?"

Home closed their eyes before replying, "You should go to bed. It's getting late."

"Can we finish talking tomorrow then?" Wally's head perked up.

"Depends."

"On what?"

"Just depends."

Wally stood up and began to walk back up the stairs. Since their regular meeting place was right below his room, he wouldn't have to walk far. Though rather than crashing on his bed, he made a b-line towards the living room and plopped onto his couch.

He smiled, "There are no strings on me." He muttered.

Wally began to think. The bluenette wondered what changed the others' aggression to him. He wondered if any of that actually happened. He wondered if anything home said was real. Was the other puppet lying? Were they just needing him to believe them for some alternative "evil" scheme?

He could ponder that later. He was far too exhausted to overthink about it. And so the bluenette closed his eyes and allowed sleep to take him.