Into The Underground (Starlo X OC)

Chapter 4

Dalv grabbed Blaze's hand, gently shaking it before helping the human up, with a small, nervous-looking smile.

"I... Don't know what friends actually do, but I'm pretty sure they help each other." Dalv remarked, frowning in thought, "And right now, you seem to need help..."

"Yeah, friends do help each other..." Blaze confirmed, closing his eyes. Everything hurt and he could barely stand so he was certainly glad that Dalv was helping him, supporting his weight so he could stand.

"Do you, um, want to see my house?" Dalv offered, "I can get you something to eat. That should heal you... I think."

"Would it? I guess I haven't tried any monster food yet..." Blaze muttered, mostly to himself.

"Monster food is made up of magic." Dalv explained, beginning to walk towards his house, helping Blaze walk. "I don't think human food is... But I don't think it'll make you sick or anything. From what I've heard it heals humans..."

"That's useful to know." Blaze remarked, as they finally entered the house. Dalv pulled out a chair from a desk with a bunch of colourful drawings on, and Blaze sat down on it.

Watching as Dalv rummaged through the fridge, Blaze blinked when Dalv brought out what looked like sponge cake. It looked a bit old, but still edible. At least it wasn't mouldy or anything, but Blaze wasn't sure if monster food could even get mouldy.

"I don't exactly have a huge selection of food. I don't get out much... But I do have these leftovers. I hope you like it! I made it for my birthday! Sponge cake is my favourite!" Dalv said happily, handing Blaze a plate with a slice of sponge cake on it. While he did hesitate for a second, Blaze eventually took a bite.

"Oh, it's pretty good..." Blaze muttered. Admittedly, he was rather hungry so he ate the entire cake. While the sensation of the food disappearing in his mouth was odd, the cake wasn't terrible. He could even feel his wounds slowly healing, so at least he didn't feel as terrible anymore.

"Thank you! Sorry, I didn't invite you... It was last week. You can come next year!" Dalv apologised. Blaze smiled awkwardly.

"Yeah, that sounds nice..." Blaze agreed. It wasn't like he planned to go back to the surface, anyways. Up there, he had a lot of things to worry about with his father, but down here, he was free from all of that. Even if he could go back to the surface, he was already considering staying in the underground, despite being attacked so often. Maybe not in the Ruins, but still.

"Well, if you're feeling better, how about you look around?" Dalv suggested.

Slowly standing up, Blaze glanced over at the desk Dalv had gotten the chair, tilting his head slightly. "What are those drawings?" he asked.

"Oh, those are my projects. I sometimes try and write books. Like for kids and stuff..." Dalv explained, "I sometimes kinda forget what colours things are outside this place... So I just make them up! I think that the kids will find that more interesting like that anyways! It might not be as educational though..."

"Well, not all books need to be educational. I know when I was young I really loved this book about a red giraffe." Blaze remarked, "Giraffes usually aren't red."

"Really?" Dalv asked, glancing over at his drawings with a small smile, seemingly encouraged by Blaze's words, "That's good to know."

Noticing what seemed like a wardrobe, Blaze approached it, confused. Opening it up, he was greeted by a red balloon with a smiley face drawn on it. Dalv turned to face him and Blaze immediately shut the door, staring at Dalv.

"Um... Was that another one of your projects?" he asked.

"Oh, no, that's Pops!" Dalv answered, smiling at that. Blaze gave him a blank stare, "Thanks for minding his personal space, he likes the dark..."