Beware the AJ

Part Four

Dave was sitting with his knees tucked up against his chest, arms wrapped around them. He was trying not to freak out anymore than he already had, but it was getting more and more difficult. He could hear what was going on outside, but they couldn't hear him. It was unnerving, and undeniably creepy, not to mention the fact that everything around him was moving and pulsing. It was warm and slightly stuffy inside of Karkat's gut, soft gurglings and other noises keeping it from being completely silent inside of him. A low erratic thumping sound could be heard overlaying the other sounds, and Dave realized it was Karkat's heart beating. He wiped his eyes a little, biting his lip lightly as he worked up the courage to look around. He didn't expect to see anything, but was surprised that he could see surprisingly well. The entire organ was mutely filled with warm red light, the space much smaller than he expected it to be. He shakily got to his feet, eyes wide with wonder as he looked around him, turning in a slow circle. The flesh of the gut was glistening slightly in the warm light, emanating heat and pulsing slightly. He tentatively reached out a hand, nearly touching the wall of the organ before pulling back, afraid to touch the goo that coated the surface. He knew that Karkat could feel what he was doing in here.. That had already been established when he'd kicked the wall a few minutes earlier. Speaking of which.. He inspected his pant leg and shoe. There weren't any signs of corrosion or deterioration..

'Well that's weird.. I'm not dying yet. Not that I'm complaining..'

He stumbled a little bit as everything around him lurched, falling into the wall of the stomach. Everything came to an abrupt halt again, and a loud groan interrupted Dave's silence. He could hear Karkat groaning, the space around him constricting a bit as the troll clutched his arms around himself. He was still feeling sick, not to mention the fact that Dave couldn't seem to sit still. It was like having butterflies in your stomach constantly, with more nauseous lurching. Terezi gave him a weird look.

"Are you coming with me, or not?"

"Terezi, I need a second, okay?? This is really freaking weird."

He let out a deep breath, trying to calm his racing heart so he could help his friend.

'Pull yourself together Karkat! You need to find Rose and Kanaya so you can fix this mess with Dave!'

A smaller more annoying voice spoke up from the back of his mind.

'Yeah, you'd better hurry.
He's probably digesting as you stand around like a little piss baby, you weak little nook sniffer!'

Karkat groaned, clutching a hand over his mouth.

"Oh Gog I think I'm gonna puke.."

"Bad plan, Karkat! No puking!!"

Terezi grabbed his arm, starting to drag him to the door.

"Get your rear in gear, man! We need to help Dave before it's too late."

"That's not really reassuring.."

He groaned, his free arm still wrapped around his stomach as he stumbled after Terezi as best as he could manage. Dave was bumped and tossed around as he tried to stay on his feet, eventually giving up and bracing his back against one of the gooey walls. The flesh seemed to cup around his body, squeezing him gently like a hug. Dave shuddered a little bit, not used to the strange sensation.

"Jesus that's weird.."

As Karkat and Terezi hunted around the meteor for the lesbian power couple, Dave tried to relax. It actually wasn't that bad, if he thought about it logically. He was safe (for the moment) and warm. Aside from the goo and the weird gurglings, he felt pretty damn comfortable with the entire situation. He let himself relax comfortably against the wall of the organ, letting out a small sigh. He could hear Karkat's heart beating somewhere above his head, the sound hurried and irregular.

'He's probably freaking out..'

He sighed, biting his bottom lip. He hesitantly reached out his hand again, his palm lightly making contact with the interior of the organ. He started rubbing the surface of the flesh in slow circular motions, hoping to reassure his friend that he was okay. Karkat blinked a bit, the grip around his stomach loosening slightly. He could feel whatever Dave was doing to him in there. And it felt.. Surprisingly nice. He smiled a little, taking a deep breath and letting it out. He felt better, knowing that Dave was still okay. He walked on, opening doors and poking his head into rooms as him and Terezi continued their search.