What if... (hfjONE-shots)

...Tomato Wasn't Eliminated (Pt.6)

Heyo my Edgelings!

Wow this chapter took FOREVER to write! Tsk! Family drama has been draining my motivation lately, but I'm still working! Chapters might be a bit shorter and take a little longer to come out, but I will continue writing! >:D

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A bronze lantern, ablaze in the late evening rays, methodically swung a stone ax into a notch he had chipped into the base of a mighty pine tree. The smell of its bleeding sap permeated the air around with a pleasant, crisp aroma.

As he lifted and swung his heavy tool, it split the evening air with a piercing whistle, singing as it worked.

Thunk.

Thunk.

Thunk.

Airy paused for a moment, his breathing heavy and his arms aching. He was winded from the exertion of wielding the heavy ax... seven months of paralysis certainly got him out of shape...

Suddenly, he noticed a noise that was out of place in his quiet world.

The sound of footsteps gradually built up behind him, and he turned to see Backpack approaching, along with Scenty and Moldy... the three of them seemed to be drawn to each other for some reason, all of them recognizing some mysterious sense of familiarity.

"How is... Tomato...?" Airy asked the trio. He couldn't risk the possible danger of bringing the baby with him to chop down trees, especially now that he had only half of his vision, but every moment away from the child made him more anxious. A growing pit in his stomach as though the distance itself was expanding into a void within him. A dull ache that twisted every time he turned and didn't see the playful child rolling in the grass next to him.

Airy had grown so used to the presence of the baby that he had to suppress a mild panic attack every time he noticed his absence. It would take him a while to get used to the knowledge that he was being taken care of by someone else... a thought that wasn't entirely comfortable for the attached lantern... but it was necessary for Tomato's safety... he had to keep reminding himself of that.

"He's pretty content... he likes Bassy's pinecone collection." Backpack assured him.

Airy's blank expression brightened slightly as he heaved the ax up, letting it rest on his shoulder as he turned back towards the tree. "Yeah... he would like those..." he smiled at the thought.

The silence of the evening rolled back upon them once more like a wave descending on the shore as Airy began the routine swinging of his tool. It was a motion that became ingrained in his being a long, long time ago.

Thunk.

Thunk.

Thunk.

"Um..." Scenty cleared her throat, feeling an odd sense of nervousness when addressing the lantern, "Airy?" she addressed him hesitantly. Why did she feel so anxious saying his name?

"...yeah...?" Airy huffed, only half-listening as he focused on the task at hand.

"Uh...." Scenty blanked, the words fleeing from her mind before they reached her lips.

"We want to help out and make things go faster." Moldy finished for her, rolling her eyes in annoyance at the candle's seeming incompetence.

"Oh..." Airy contemplated for a minute, "I, uh... only have one ax, but... um... You can use a sharp rock if you want and... take the limbs off those logs over there..." he pointed at the two felled trees, which he had already chopped down and dragged together.