Paradox Space Won't Stop Him

CHAPTER SIX

While John Egbert and Alpha Dave Strider were busy weeping on one another's shoulders, our main and younger version of Dave, the one who wore his emotions more on his face, the one who had an amazing boyfriend, was mentally annihilating himself too. Maybe when one Dave cries, they all do? Like when a dog howls, and every other dog hears and they drop everything just to bark unintelligibly back. Maybe that's what this Dave was doing right now. Or maybe it just so happens that the Dead Daves Tell No Tales deal extends to feeling an abrupt amount of pain?

Probably not. This is simply the narrative, and coincidence was the main ingredient in this happening. There was certainly nothing ironic about this.

So, again, that's how he found himself in a pile of blankets pooling around his shoulders and feet, on the floor beside his bed, looking at old Tony Hawk's Underground Gameplays on the good old archived site we know as YouTube. Dave lets his mind wander tastelessly towards the simple thought of 'are we going to make YouTube a thing again?' He supposed, that the answer would be yes, yes they would.

Only when they actually had a prominent population. After a couple decades of the Matriorb and, whatever else they find to populate Earth C, before he could enjoy the shitshow that YouTube was beginning to be. He wonders what it was like after 2009. Maybe he should ask himself.

Dave Strider wondered how he could so easily have a mental breakdown without so much as gasping softly.

Oh, that's right. That was Bro's fault. He scrolled aimlessly through the old archived videos and stupidly let his mind wander off; this wasn't good for him, and he knew, but he didn't really feel like trying to psyche himself out of his hole of crying and agony. He thought about Bro, his Bro, and thought about the endless days of melting sun and swords clashing against one another. He took a second to let his mind wander to the few good times he had had; too.

No for too long, though.

Bro was here. He was alive and yet... When he looked at him, and got a blank face-- not one of stone cold murder, no; one of confusion-- he looked and looked and looked and didn't find anything that actually was his bro. No puppets, no weird, toxic masculinity he had to take apart for years on end before accepting himself just a little, no surprise strifes. It terrified him. Terrified of the unknown, of the possibilities. Did he want to form a bond? An actual, real life, brotherly bond? Did he want to ignore him? Act as if he was just another person? He didn't know and neither did Karkat when he rambled off about this abruptly in the middle of a 50's movie marathon. He didn't know if he could handle asking Rose. Dave thought about asking the older one, technically, she's a therapist right?

He didn't know if that would really be a good idea, though.

All these things he had no idea about terrified him to no end, and he could feel himself recoiling in his barricade of blankets, almost like a slithering snake retreating back in its hole or wherever the hell they actually lived--

He was going on another tangent, again, alone, and without anyone to probe him into it. He always knew he did that, of course, however he wasn't quite sure about what he should do about it. Karkat told him that it 'DIDN'T FUCKING MATTER, DAVE, IT'S A PART OF YOU AND WE ACCEPT IT,' and you've silently nodded in agreement, fully knowing you'd lose it in the first place.

He was right, technically. Dave could... talk to The Mayor? He always listened to him, even though he couldn't talk he knew that The Mayor was totally and 100% of the time all Hells of supportive. However... that would require getting up. Maybe he should? He'd already helped out with what he could, though he knew he personally couldn't do jack shit- his talents were worthless when it came to building a civilization from the ground up- and now, David Elizabeth Strider was free to roam all around and about the whole 100 feet worth of place to his homosexual heart's content.