Creatures Among Us

part 3

Her fragile heart that she'd been holding together with false hopes and antidepressants fell apart and shattered. She tried to pick up the pieces but it was all so overwhelming.
   Pink and Red were both there by her side. Red wrapped Black in a blanket to show he was there and that he cared. Pink held her close to show he also cared just as much as Red. He held her through every heartbroken sob. He whispered comforting things to her as she cried. He rubbed her back and kept her in a comforting and heartfelt embrace.
   He knew the pain of being called a monster, to be alone. It hit him very close to home. Every word he spoke came directly from the heart. It was a side of him that was rarely seen, the truly human side.
   Every word helped to calm her, every little whisper was a luxury she hadn't felt in a long time. She held on for well over on hour. He kept her in the embrace as long as she was upset.    When her sobs died down, he held her for a while after. All the anxiety and emotional suffering exhausted her. She fell asleep in his arms, her eyes were red and puffy from crying. He gently stroked her hair a bit before laying her down on the bed and quietly getting up. He wanted to hold her forever but he needed to pack both of their stuff.
   Just then, Pinks suitcase floated in, already packed. Red placed it down near pink. It was a gesture in the place of a "thank you" for comforting Black through her breakdown. Pink nodded in Reds direction. He didn't need to know to understand. Although they didn't like each other that much, they had high respects for each other.
   Pink packed Black's stuff neatly. He made sure to be careful with the halo. Red sat by Black and watched over her. Although neither could physically feel it, he covered her with one of his guardian angel wings. She seemed to relax, both could feel it on another level. He sighed.
   Suddenly, White announced something on the speakers, "ahem.. we will be boarding the dropship in about 10 minutes, please make your way there with your luggage." Pink sighed, Black slept soundly through the announcement.
   Pink gently shook her awake, "Black, we have to board the dropship now.."
   She sat up and looked exhausted and sad. He gently caressed her face a bit.
   "I'm sorry I have to wake you but I can't carry you and both our luggage..."
   Black nodded slightly. She slowly got off the bed and grabbed her bags. A backpack and a suitcase with wheels, she would have no trouble but it still felt like a huge chore for her. Pink gently took her hand in his and grabbed his bag as he quickly checked to see if they forgot anything before he led her to the docking bay.
   Black trudged along. Pink wanted to carry her. Red sighed and gently took her bag. He began to roll it for her. Pink saw this and picked her up. Black yawned and fell back asleep in moments. Pink carried her tiny sleeping body the rest of the way. Everyone, alive and dead, was there.
   White watched them enter before saying, "you're right on time... now we just gotta wait for Cobalt..."
   Lime sighed, "I'll go fetch her..."
   White nodded and let him go. After about 15 minutes, lime came back empty handed. He looked upset.
   "She's dead..."
   White froze, LP glared at him. Pink made a somewhat genuine expression, although he didn't give a shit. Yellow also didn't give a shit.
   Black slept. No one noticed her suitcase sitting there.
   "But.. if Cobalt is dead.. that means there's still an imposter... and green was part of the crew..." White whimpered.
   None of them had the energy to do a meeting. LP sighed, "they won't let any of us in if they know there's a killer among us.... for all of our sake, let's say we threw the killer out.."
   Most of them nodded. White ushered them onto the ship. They took their bags and filed into the dropship. Pink carried Black in. Yellow gave him aggressive and disgusted looks. Pink ignored Yellow. He put their bags in some compartments and laid her down on two chairs. He sat next to her.
   Pink pulled her up into a sitting position and buckled her in while the ship was taking off. He buckled himself in and he waited. After a while, they were on their way and they all took off their seatbelts and just chilled. Yellow pulled Pink aside aggressively.
   "I get that she's your favorite, but what the fuck?! Seriously! Do you think that after this you'll get to keep her?! After we finish this mission, she dies! The pickup won't take anyone else and frankly I don't want her around! She's a distraction and a disgrace to my kind!" He whisper-screamed.
   Pink outright slapped him across the face. Everyone saw.
   "Shut your fucking mouth, now!!" Pink growled.
   Yellow growled, "you see! You're fucking blinded! By her! And if you aren't going to deal with her, I will..."
   Pink pushed him into the wall, "touch her and I'll break your fucking legs..."
   Black woke up, she heard Yellow being slammed into the wall. She saw them fighting and she whimpered.
   Pink saw her and sighed, "bring this up again and I'll cut out your tongue...."
   Yellow growled and pushed Pink away, "no you fucking wont! Don't make me tell everyone after the mission you went soft for a useless little newbreed!"
   Pink punched yellow across the face with enough force to knock him down. Yellow hit the floor. Black saw them fighting and she began to cry. She knew it was about her. Red tried to comfort her. LP watched the situation unfold. They nor anyone heard what Yellow or Pink said.
   Pink went to Black and sighed, she cried.
   "I'm sorry about that..." He gently patted her.
   Black shook her head, "i-its my fault... isn't it..?"
   Pink sighed. "It was about you but it wasn't your fault, it was his"
   Yellow glared at them, he had a dark expression. It was an expression that said he was out for blood. Black had impacted Pinks human half and Yellow didn't like it at all. He growled and was pissed. He pulled out his circular device. He began to do some things on it.
   Pink hugged Black and gently rested his head on hers, "I know the easiest thing may be to blame yourself, but it's not true... I promise you. You aren't the problem and you never will be. You may not think it, but you are wanted and I love being around you. You aren't annoying and you aren't a burden. And no matter how much you think that you're at fault, I'll always try to prove you wrong"
   Black was at a loss for words. She just sat there with her mouth open. She hugged him gently. His words filled a part of her that had been empty for a long time. For a short while, it felt as if what he'd said was true. It felt really good, her tears were those of relief and not anxiety for a bit.
   "T-thank you..." she held on tightly.
   Pink nodded to her, "no problem"
   He gently stroked her hair. He didn't care who saw them. He let the moment between them last, it meant a lot to Black. After a while, Black released the hug but she didn't add distance between them. She rested on him and she just existed with him. Pink didn't mind at all.
   A while passed and they sat with eachother the whole trip. White soon announced that they were there shortly. Everyone took their seats and buckled their seatbelts as they began to land. The ship made a loud metallic sound as they touched down and the door opened. They all got up and got their stuff.
   They were greeted by a crew of 7 people. The tallest one, visibly taller than Pink, stepped forward.
   "Hello.. my name is Maroon and I'm the leader here... where is the rest of your crew and most importantly, your captian?"
   White stepped forward. "An imposter was aboard our ship.. we threw him out but he managed to kill a majority of us... I'm currently the one in charge"
   Maroon nodded, "I see... well.. I'll have my crew show you to your rooms. I'm sure you're all tired."
   They all nodded. Black especially looked exhausted. She didn't nod, she just stood there yawning. One of the crew pointed her out to two of the other crew.
   Maroon looked over his crew, "Gray and Forte, can you lead them?"
   Two of the crew who were pointing her out looked over and nodded. The third one sighed, he didn't go with. He left the group. Black watched him for a moment. Out of the corner of her eye she could see him pull out a flask as he disappeared around the corner. She looked around to see if anyone else saw. Pink suddenly began to lead her in the direction Forte and Gray were going.
   The pair were whispering to each other, they snuck occasional glances at Pink and mostly Black. Pink saw it and gave them an aggressive glare. They stared forward. They stopped and began to hand out individual keys.
   "Since more than half of your crew won't be here, you all can have your own rooms"
   Black had almost fallen asleep standing up when she got a rough tap on the shoulder, "little girl! Take your key!"
   Black whimpered, she was scared by him seemingly appearing out of thin air. Pink glared at Gray.
   Gray aggressively tapped her head, "hello?! Take your key!"
   Pink made himself into a barrier between Black and Gray, "that's enough.."
   Gray stood up straight, "Tell your little rat she needs to pay attention before she gets knocked into the lava pit"
   Lime raised an eyebrow, "dude.. wrong thing to say... I know from experience.."
   Black whimpered and hugged herself. Pink stood up straight, he punched Gray across the face. Gray screamed.
   "What the fuck?!" He seemed shocked.
   Pink aggressively pushed him away. He took Black's key and he took her hand. He began to lead her to her room. Black looked absolutely confused and scared. Forte watched, he checked Gray.
   After he handed out the rest of the keys, he pulled Gray aside. "Let's talk to Purple about this... she's causing problems with that bodyguard of hers.. she needs to be taught a lesson..."
   Gray nodded, "Come on, let's go look for him.."
   They left, they found Purple in the kitchen, refilling his flask. Forte snatched his flask before he could react.
   "Whatcha drinking? It better be better than generic whiskey" He took a sip and winced.
   "Good.. it's strong... anyways, do you know that little girl we were talking about earlier?"
   Purple nodded and stole his flask back, "what about her?" He took a swig.
   Gray sighed, "she's causing problems... she also has a bodyguard apparently... you wanna help us deal with her?"
   He stole the bottle and looked at it before drinking some.
   Purple nodded, "yes, it's been a while since we've had any fun"
  He took another swig.
   Meanwhile, Pink was with Black in her room. Red was watching over them.
   Black had fallen asleep on top of Pink. He was relaxing with her. He didn't care about the separate rooms. He stroked her hair as she slept and he gently rested his face on the top of her head. He liked the close proximity, it made him feel reassured. Between Yellow and the polus crew, he was currently very low on trust. He held her closer when he thought about it. He didn't want anything bad to happen to her. She looked so fragile and peaceful at the moment and it only made him feel more protective over her. She looked like a single wrong touch would cause her to shatter.
   She subconsciously held onto him. She felt safe with him, even in her sleep. Red watched over them as usual. He wished he was in Pinks place. He sighed and sat there the whole night. Eventually Pink went to sleep as well.
   In the morning, the wake up alarm played. It startled Black as usual. Pink woke up and gently patted her.
   "Don't worry, it was just the alarm..." He reassured her.
   Black nodded and relaxed. She sat there for a bit before getting up and starting to get ready.
   Pink sighed, "I'll be in my room getting ready if you need me.."
   He walked away and left. She nodded to him. After a while, everyone was getting breakfast. The trio from the previous night was together. Pink was still in his room getting ready when Black came to the cafeteria and got a small tray of food. It looked like a meal for a kid, the trio saw it and began to chuckle to themselves.
   Purple smirked, "now are you sure she's not 5?"
   Forte nodded, "I raided her file, she's in her 20s. She's also got a lot of mental problems, making her an easy target, am I correct?"
   Purple nodded, "mhmm"
   He ate some of his breakfast, "all we gotta do is get her away from the big guy. Did you find anything about him?"
   Forte nodded, "its generic info. There's nothing special about him except for his height and strength.. unlike the little one, she seriously wasted her life with mental illness. Her file states she's got an IQ of 190. Now I'm not good with numbers but I think she should get her head out of her ass and put her numbers to good use. She's smarter than Sheldon Cooper for Christ's sake"
   Gray sighed, "Are you gonna complain about her being a stupid smart person all morning or are you gonna eat your damn breakfast?"
   Forte sighed, "I'll eat my breakfast thank you very much" He took a bite.
   Purple sighed, "she's alone right now, do you guys wanna go grab her?"
   Forte shook his head, "witnesses everywhere right now"
   Purple nodded. He ate some of his food.
   Black ate her food. She noticed them glancing and pointing at her, she knew they were talking about her and it made her anxious. She caught purples eye for a moment, his glare was intense. She was too scared to look away.
   Pink suddenly came over to her with a tray of his food, "hey, black"
   She broke eye contact with purple and looked up. She smiled and sighed with relief.
   "Hey.." she still felt purples gaze on her.
   She patted the seat next to her, Pink sat there. Black smiled and was happy he was there now.
   Purple looked away and ate his breakfast.
   Pink ate with Black. She seemed happier around him, she felt better around him for sure. They talked a bit as they ate, and soon they finished.
   They left to do their tasks, Pink knew something was up and he stayed by Black's side.
   A few days passed, a few people had been killed. Pink was with Black when Yellow suddenly pinned him to the wall.
   "Alright, I'm done with this bullshit! You're leaving me with all the work because of her! Wake up and get your head in the game! She doesn't matter!"
   Pink growled and pushed him away, when he tried to walk away, yellow pulled him back. He wasn't letting Pink go. Pink began to fight him. As usual, the fighting scared Black. She weakly tried to pull yellow away from Pink but she got a powerful hit across the face. She fell over and she began crying. Pink saw this and was furious. He began to beat Yellows ass.
   Black ran away crying and holding her face. She didn't understand what'd just happened. She ran passed Forte, he saw her and grabbed her arm. She nearly fell when he stopped her. She weakly tried to pull away.
   "Where do you think you're going?" He held her in place.
   He called Gray and Purple, "oh boys, guess who I've got finally.."
   Purple chuckled, "bring her to security, me and gray are already here"
   Forte smirked, "okie dokie"
   He hung up and he began to drag Black there. She was panic fighting him. She cried. Forte aggressively hit her in the stomach.
   "Be quiet..."
   She was winded and in pain. It hurt a lot. She was silent and submissive the rest of the time he was dragging her. Tears poured from her eyes. Red had been distracted by Cobalt, who had heard in on their plans and wanted to help them to get revenge on Black. She held Red back and kept him away from black. Forte dragged her into security and the door locked behind them.
   Purple snatched Black away from Forte and had a look at her, "mhm, good job Forte"
   Gray sighed, "whatever you guys are gonna do, I don't wanna know"
   Purple smirked at him, "chicken shit"
   Forte laughed and made chicken sounds at him. Gray sighed.
   "I'm not scared, I just don't want to be a part of this.. morally it's wrong"
   Forte scoffed, "when did you start caring about moral?"
   Purple looked black up and down as Forte and Gray went back and fourth.
   "Hey guys, you finished yet? I wanna get this over with before we get caught." Purple looked at them.
   Gray sighed, "fine. I'm leaving. Don't bring me into this if you get caught..."
   Forte sighed, Gray left. Once he did, Purple locked the door and Forte held her down.
   She cried and wanted to leave but Purple nor Forte cared. Purple sighed, "tie her to the desk and get the cloth and water, she needs to be taught a lesson..."
   Black began to freak out. Forte pinned her to the desk belly up and tied her down, he aggressively covered her face in a damp cloth.
   Purple growled, "welcome to the real world"
   He poured a small amount of water on her face while it was covered. She was fine for the first few seconds but she suddenly began to gag and cough.
   Meanwhile, pink had noticed her missing and he was looking for her. Yellow kept trying to fight Pink but he avoided it. When an hour and a half passed, yellow had given up but Pink was still searching, he was getting very desperate. Purple and Forte had finished a while back and they left her there. Red was trying to get away from Cobalt. When he finally did, he quickly went to find her.
   When he did find her, his heart broke. She was sobbing and coughing uncontrollably. She had many bruises and cuts on her body, her wrists specifically because of the ropes. She was still tied there with the cloth on her face. He found Pink, he stole pinks backpack and began to lead him there. He knew Pink could help her better than he could.
   Pink followed his backpack quickly, he didn't need to see Red to know who it was. He followed the backpack to security. Red threw the bag at the sealed door. Pink understood and he unlocked the door. What he saw broke him just as much as it broke Red.
   He went to her and knelt next to her, he gently touched her and she flipped out in a panic. She tried to scream through the cloth and fresh tears started pouring. He pulled the cloth off her and untied her.
   "Black, it's me..." He gently tilted her head towards himself to show her.
   She stopped struggling and she just sat there sobbing. She quickly hugged Pink. He hugged her back and held on. He whimpered.
   "I'm so sorry... for everything... you deserve so much better than this..." He gently rested his face on her shoulder.
   "I promised to protect you and I'm sorry I didn't keep my promise... "
   Black sobbed. She weakly held onto him and she shook. He began to carefully heal her wounds. When he finished, he picked her up tenderly and carried her to his room. Pink got her cleaned up and he put her on his bed. He wrapped her in a soft blanket and he gently picked her up and just held her close. It was very comforting on both their parts. Red could only spectate but wished he could do more.
   The rest of the day and night passed with them just existing like that, Black had fallen asleep. Pink was staying up, in an attempt to protect her through the night. He ended up falling asleep with her in his arms. Red kept a close watch on them.
   In the morning, they both overslept the alarm. They woke up to a knock on the door. Black woke up slowly, Pink woke up rather quickly. He went and opened the door. Purple was standing there.
   "Bro, where you at? Maroon needs to do the attendance thing~" He saw Black, without any bruises or cuts.
   It threw him off guard. Black saw him and she froze. She was having a complete meltdown inside but she was frozen outside. Pink saw this, he raised an eyebrow.
   "So.. Purple... how was last night?"
   Purple froze, he thought Pink knew. "Umm... good..."
   Pink glared, "really.. what'd you do?"
   Purple stood there, "I.. um... I was playing video games with Forte and Gray..."
   Pinks glare intensified, "you don't mind me asking them, do you?" He called Forte.
   Purple stood there frozen. He knew how dead he was.
   Forte answered, "hello?"
   Pink sighed, "what were you doing last night?"
   There was a static, "..um... I was sleeping.."
   Pink glared at purple, "mhm.." He hung up.
   Black whimpered. Pink looked behind himself to look at her, "excuse us just a moment... I'll be back in a bit.." He nodded reassuringly to her before closing the door behind him.
   Purple whimpered, "listen bro... I can explain..."
   Pink aggressively pinned him to the wall, "then you'd better start talking... I'm all ears..." his eyes began to glow red.
   Purple saw it and realized what he was dealing with. He was scared shitless now. "I-i... we w-were drinking last night.. none of us remember..."
   Pink slammed him against the wall, "remember what?! Hmm?! Go ahead and say it!"
  Purple winced, "s-say what..?"
  Pink growled, "Torture! You and your little pricks fucking tortured her!"
   Purple knew he wasn't getting out of it so he decided to just let it spill. "Actually, Gray flaked out on me and Forte. And she deserved it.. she's disturbing the peace here... her mental retardation is not welcome"
   Pink aggressively grabbed Purples neck and he let his claws come out. Purple whimpered.
   "Your little girlfriend is a retarded piece of trash.. don't blame me for that!"
   Pink clawed him across the face. He began to aggressively beat purple. He especially aimed for the head, hoping to give him brain damage. He knocked purple to the ground and he stomped his head. Forte found him, he was weirded out by the call so he came looking. When he saw Pink, he tried to run. Pink grabbed him and threw him down with purple.
   "Hey!! What the hell?!" He tried to run.
   Pink stomped his chest, "you and purple fucking tortured her!"
   Forte wheezed, he wasn't able to say anything. Pink began to aggressively beat Forte like he beat Purple. He didn't care what people thought, he didn't want them around if they were going to hurt Black.
   Forte tried to fight back for the first 10 minutes but he soon went limp. Maroon had come to investigate when neither returned. When he saw the bloody mess Pink had made out of them, he threw and pinned Pink against the wall.
   He called an emergency meeting as he shouted, "WHAT THE FUCK PINK?!!"
   Pink aggressively tried to go back to beating them, "they fucking hurt her, i fucking break their goddamn necks!!"
   Maroon kept him pinned, "what are you talking about...?"
   Everyone else was gathering. Black even came out.
   Pink made sure everyone could hear when he yelled, "they fucking beat and tortured her!!"
   Black whimpered and began to cry hearing that. Maroon backed off. Pink pushed him away and instead of going to Forte and Purple, he went to Black and hugged her.
   He sighed, "their actions are unforgivable and I won't tolerate it. Do away with them or I'll do it myself.." his tone was aggressive and cold.
   Black cried into him. Yellow rolled his eyes in disgust. Red wanted to comfort her. Gray was the first one to go and try to help Purple and Forte. Lime later went and helped.
   Maroon sighed and shook his head, "this isn't the first time... I thought grief permanently stopped them after..." He shook his head.
   Gray sighed, "their last victim threw herself into the lava pit during a meeting..."
   Pink stood in front of black as he turned to Maroon and Gray, he was livid, "you knew that something like this had happened and you didnt say anything...?! THIS COULD HAVE BEEN PREVENTED!!!"
   Black jumped at the screaming.
   Maroon sighed, "we didn't think it was important... we also didn't know they'd see anything in her... I'm sorry..."
   Pink slapped him across the face. Maroon knew he deserved it. He sighed and let it happen.
   "I understand how you're feeling right now, and I know you're angry, but violence isn't the answer now.. I'll have them dealt with personally. They'll be treated here and sent back to earth to face prison... hurting them any farther will only make your situation worse"
   Pink growled, he shook his head before gently taking Black and leaving. She cried the whole time.
   "W-what did I do w-wrong...?"
   He stopped and looked at her empathetically, he knelt next to her and gently wiped the tears from her eyes.
   "You did nothing wrong, I promise. What they did is not and never will be your fault..."
   She whimpered and just held onto him. He took her somewhere quiet and peaceful, med bay. She was able to calm down. She watched him do a few things before he sighed and went to her.
   "I'm gonna go get our lists, okay? Stay right here and I'll be back in a little bit"
   She whimpered and nodded, Pink hugged her.
   "Don't worry, I'm sure Red is here watching over you.. he'll protect you when I can't"
   Black held onto Pink for as long as she could before he tenderly released the hug. Black whimpered as he slowly walked away. Red floated close to her, he gently wrapped her in a blanket to comfort her.
   "I know you're upset right now... I know your scared and confused, but I promise it'll be okay..."
   Black cuddled the blanket and looked at Red. "will it though..?"
   Red sighed.
   "Honestly... I don't know... but I'll do everything in my power to help keep that promise.."
   Black weakly reached for Red, knowing she wouldn't be able to touch him but still hoping that maybe he would magically materialize.
   Red reached for her hand with his, only met with him phasing through her gloved hand. Black whimpered and held the blanket close to her.
   "I-I'm sorry..."
   Red sighed and floated in front of her.
   "No, you have nothing to be sorry about. Black, you've already been through a war and a half, you're the last one that should be apologizing of all of us"
   Black sighed, "i-i was probably asking for it..."
   Reds heart sank, "Black. No you weren't. They're sadistic and drunks! They saw a victim in you, and they exploited it. This wasn't on you and it won't ever be!"
   Black whimpered and looked up into his eyes. Her large brown eyes gleamed in the light. She had no words for Red. Red locked eyes with her and they both shared the moment. He floated his hand on her face as if he was caressing her cheek, Black appreciated the gesture a lot.
   They both found themselves blushing, but neither wanted it to end. It was peaceful and wholesome.
   Suddenly a body report alarm went off, Red sighed as the moment was ruined.
   "Come on... we have to see who died.."
   Black whimpered.
   "I hate death..."
   "I know... and believe me I understand."
   He gestured to his dead, translucent self. Black looked him up and down then whined.
   "It's not like that... it's because death has been the root of almost everything that happened to me..."
   Red whimpered. Black elaborated.
   "If my mother wasn't dead... maybe dad would have cared more about me... he wouldn't have treated me that way... he wouldn't have left me with..."
   Black caught her words in her throat before she said a name, the name of the man who'd hurt her more than her father's neglect and abuse ever would. A choked sob suddenly escaped her. She coiled up and began to sob hard. Red whimpered and knew they weren't going to the meeting anytime soon. He tried to comfort her the best he could, he was processing what she'd told him. It was heartbreaking, thinking about everything she'd suffered.
   Meanwhile, at the meeting, Pink was watching the others as they fought over Limes dead body. Yellow seemed relatively happy that Pink had actually done something. Pink just seemed indifferent, he didn't care anymore. He was done with the crew, the way they treated their own made him sick. The way they'd hurt Black had really opened his eyes to them.
He saw Black wasn't there and wasn't surprised, it actually made him feel at ease knowing she didn't have to hear the yelling.
   After a while of bickering they settled on skipping. Pink kinda wished he killed someone from the Polus crew that he didn't have beef with. The skeild crew knew it was one of their own, by picking them off it shortens the list to white, LP, Pink, and Yellow. They all know it wouldn't be Black or BB, as BB is just a kid and Black.. well you know. It's also very unlikely that LP and White are imposters, as they both had someone they cared about be killed. Any smart person with context would be able to figure it out. Not only that, but Pink had beef with Lime, more than the others. He realized this afterwards and he wished he could undo it. However he had the alibi that he was with Maroon getting his and Black's tasks.
   Yellow sighed and nodded to Pink as the group dispersed, it was a nod of approval, Pink didn't care for Yellows approval but he was relieved to have Yellow off his back about not killing.
   Pink then left and went somewhere more isolated, the O² room precisely. He pulled out a pack of cigarettes and lit one. He began to smoke it slowly. His troubles began to slowly numb away with each puff. He didn't realize the time go by when someone walked in on him, it was Gray.
   Pink growled at him lowly, Gray raised his hands to show he meant no harm.
   "Just here to do a task"
   Pink backed off a bit but didn't let his guard down. Gray headed over to the task in question.
   "I'm really sorry about Forte and Purple... I know I shouldn't be apologizing for their actions but I do blame myself to what happened to your friend..."
   Pinks free hand balled into a fist.
   "And why would you care?"
   "Because I did nothing about it... I honestly feel guilty... They're my friends and I didn't want to rat them out.. but now... I have to live with their actions. Knowing I was the only one that could have helped... it makes me feel really shitty... I understand if you want to kill me or at least beat my ass, but I wanted to be honest.."
   Pink wanted to be mad at him, and was to some extent, but knowing how Gray really felt was kind of relieving. He understood Gray's perspective and was only mad at his cowardice. He blamed the nicotine for making him somewhat numb to the situation.
   "The real question is why you still stay with them"
   Gray sighed.
   "With them, there's only 2 sides. Your either with or against them.. If your against them they can make your life hell, so I had no choice but to be in their good graces... after everything though... is it really worth it to stay with them...?"
   He seemed to be asking himself that question. Pink realized Gray's dilemma, he had no choice based on fear. If he were to tell someone, he feared retaliation from Purple and Forte.
   He sighed and put his previous cigarette out because I was just a filter now. He pulled out the pack and took one out, he placed it in his mouth and offered Gray one. Gray gladly took it, Pink lit both cigarettes before putting the pack and lighter in his pocket. Gray took a large inhale of smoke, before blowing it away from Pink.
   "Thanks..."
   Pink nodded. Gray looked at Pink sympathetically.
   "I know it must be hard for you, and especially your friend..."
   "Her name is Black"
   Gray nodded. He took a puff.
   "I know, but I just feel bad whenever I say her name... knowing that I probably can't make up for what they did to her... knowing that they'll never feel guilty for what they did... I'll never understand how they can be so carefree after everything..."
   Pink sighed.
   "If Maroon hadn't of gotten in the way I would have made sure they learned..."
   "They wouldn't have learned anything, they would have only gotten pissed that you attacked them. They don't learn anything unless they want to, they take advantage of everything and everyone around them... it's draining after a while.."
   Pink looked at him. He inhaled a puff of his cigarette.
   "Why hasn't maroon stepped in? He is the leader, is he not?"
   "Maroon is very strict but the thing is, his boss on earth is Purples mother. He can do no wrong in her eyes. He had to let Purple off with only a warning. He's done everything to try and report her but he's had no success"
   "And what about you? Where have you been in all this?"
   "I've been flying under the radar. I don't want them to find out the truth about how I feel about them because if they did, they'd probably kill me. I know way to much about them for me to simply walk away"
   "What do you know about them?"
   "I know they're drunks, I've had to play the part a few times but I don't drink nearly as much as them. They abuse their power and they've abused a few of the crew on multiple occasions, not nearly as bad as they did Black, but still abuse nonetheless. Everyone is too afraid to confront them... it really is a shitty situation here..."
   Pink sighed.
   "and what if they were gone?"
   "I think everyone would be grateful, they already are. You disabled those two for a while. Knowing them and Purples mother, they'll stay here and heal then the cycle will continue.. they'll get just a minor slap in the wrist... honestly I hope the imposter kills them... They need to die..."
   He put his small cigarette out on his leg, Pink watched and it made him a little nauseous. He could do a lot of things, but putting a cigarette out on someone's skin wasn't one of them. That shit hurt. Gray didn't react, but he saw Pinks discomfort.
   "Sorry, I'm used to people putting cigarettes out on my skin.. so it's my go to ashtray"
   Pink became concerned, he was an imposter, but he was also the doctor.
   "Did those "people" happen to be that pair from hell?"
   Gray nodded and sighed.
   "Yes..."
   Pink sighed. His anger at Gray was lost, he now just felt plain bad. He knew he shouldn't gain any connection to crewmates because he'd have to kill them later, but he couldn't help but want to get justice for not just Black, but now Gray and the rest of the crew. He wasn't really the hero type, but he was willing to make Purple and Forte suffer. He put his cigarette out on the wall and picked up all 3 butts.
   "I understand.. and I know you're already feeling guilty, but let it be a lesson for being a follower. You may have suffered, but you could have prevented others suffering, Blacks most of all. I can understand but I will never forgive you."
   Gray nodded.
   "You don't have to and I won't expect you to, what I did was wrong, but I just needed to get it off my chest"
   Pink nodded. He began to slowly leave, the conversation ending with that. Gray sighed. He wanted to apologize for everything but only finding himself staying silent.
   Pink headed back to his room where Black was residing for now. He came in to find Black coiled up and asleep. Her face was tearstained and she still had some fresh tears in her eyes. Pink went to her and gently wiped the tears away while she slept. He looked to the air, "what happened..?"
   Red left and returned with a note pad. He wrote:
   "After we heard the alert, she began to talk about her past... about how she hated death... it caused her to break down crying..."
   Pink felt bad for her. Red wanted to tell Pink what she'd said but he knew that it was Black's decision whether to tell Pink and not his. Above all things, he felt Black was entitled to privacy at least.
   Pink sighed and nodded. He carefully shifted her so her head was on some pillows. Red made sure she was wrapped up comfortably.
   Pink noticed this and sighed. He understood the mistake he'd made by killing Red. Leaving him alive would have been so much better for Black but he wasn't thinking about it when he killed Red.
   He stared down.
"Red.. I know what I did to you.. and I don't know if you ever forgave me, but... I made a mistake... I don't know you that well, but I do know that you would have been better to her than I could ever be... and I know how hard you try to be there for her even being dead..."
   Red was left speechless. He had not expected that. Pink sighed.
   "I was impulsive and stupid... I was only thinking about myself and my instincts.."
   Red sighed, he wrote:
   "I was never mad at you for killing me, and although I can't forgive you, I always understood why you did it. And I wouldn't have been better, because you care and try just as much as I do... even if you let your heart get ahead of your head sometimes..."
   Pink nodded.
   "I still am sorry... perhaps after this mission, I can find someone who can help you... necromancers aren't hard to find where I'm from.."
   Red perked up as he realized his death could be reversed. It seemed impossible but at the same time hope flooded him. Just then, Black woke up. She curled up smaller and turned around. She looked up with hazy eyes to see Red and Pink.
   "Mm.. are my boys having a chat with eachother..?"
   Pink and Red looked at her, she'd meant it lightheartedly, but it caused them both to blush, knowing she considered both of them hers. Black gently snuggled up to Pink in her sleepy state.
   Pink chuckled and nodded.
   "yes, we are"
   Red smiled and wished he could caress her face or give her a kiss. He could only send her love and praise through words though
   "Your too precious, Black"
   He said it with a gentle smile. It made Black giggle and blush.
   It was a moment the trio wanted to last forever. It was so peaceful and sweet. Black was calm and looked like nothing had ever happened to her. The sound of her soft giggles was a melody that Red and Pink could listen to for hours. They smiled and continued to praise her and make her happy. They fed her temporary joy as if they could make it last forever.
   Pink and Red both wanted to kiss her and cuddle her, but Red was dead and Pink wasn't sure if she wanted kisses. He gladly cuddled her tho. He didn't have a choice anyways, she would have made him whether he wanted to or not. She gently pulled him down and snuggled closer to him, her head resting on his shoulder.
   She looked up to Red and grabbed a spare blanket, she wrapped it around him and since it was an inanimate object she used it to pull him close. He was able to cuddle through blankets. She snuggled them both.
   "My boys..."
   They weren't sure how to react at first, both of them cuddling her at once, but eventually they eased into it, despite it being awkward with Red and Pink both.
   A gentle purr could be heard from Black, which made them happy. They existed like that for a while, it was peaceful and comfortable. Pink realized how affection deprived he had been as the time passed. He'd never really thought about it, but it had been decades since anyone before Black even gave him a hug. He gently rested his head on hers and closed his eyes. He was relaxed and resting. It felt good, it was a feeling he missed.
   At this point he would have immediately jumped away and left to somewhere isolated, where he'd probably numb away the feelings with some kind of drug, but he didnt. He felt at ease despite feeling so many things. Things he'd numbed with nicotine, drugs, and alcohol. The cigarettes he'd smoked with Gray earlier had worn off and raw emotion was seething into him. He tried not to think about it, he buried his face in her hair and inhaled the scent of her. Her smell alone was actually rather intoxicating. I lost himself in it, distracting himself from the whirlwind of emotion that began to brew inside him. He hated that emotional sensation and it made his skin crawl. He'd buried it so long that if he let it out, he'd break down completely, and he couldn't afford to lose it.
   He gently nuzzled her head, wanting to stay by her forever. Red was holding onto her other side, not taking up nearly as much room as Pink. He provided enough pressure in his makeshift blanket hug to relieve all tension and anxiety from Black, it grounded her and was just flat out comforting.
   However, Black was not the one that needed comfort at the moment. Pink was doing everything in his power to ignore his feelings, it resulted in him looking distressed. Black looked up at him and saw it.
   "You okay Pink?"