Horizon-Bound

-- Ensemble|Seul--

Cooking Cat paced around the ship, tail lashing as she spoke with Hat Kid.

"It'll be fine!" The kid chirped, "(Y/N)'s only been gone a few days, maybe they're camping out. I did that once!"

Good graces, what did that child just say? She also spent prolonged time in that cursed forest? Oh, she felt like she was going to have a heart attack. All these young friends, getting in such trouble...But she let that go for now. There were more pressing matters at hand.

"Sweetheart I'm just scared that they won't come back, 'least...not without him," She sighed, "I just wanna make sure  they're alright, you know?"

Hat kid nodded softly, "Ok! It'll be fine. We'll find them!"

"...Thank you dear."

----0----

Fire crackled softly next to yourself, sleeping bag drawn close to your body as you lay, staring up through the treeline at the shimmering stars in the sky. A million thoughts graced your head, but you couldn't focus on any of them. It was going to be hard to sleep like this, anyways. You felt like you'd have to be alert even in your dreams.

A harsh breeze brought a shiver over your body, an uncomfortable one. You sat back up, grabbing the softer blanket you had brought with you just incase of something like this. It draped over your form, spreading out over the ground a bit as well. As comfortable as it was going to get, you figured.

The campsite wasn't entirely your idea, though. You would've preferred to climb a tree and set up there, but...well your current companion was more than a little vocal about the idea, wanting a warm fire- as well as taking your other blanket for himself. It'd work...Just a little more worrying for you.

"Geez, you don't have any wool blankets at home?" Chester grumbled from his side of the campfire, "This isn't nearly as warm as the ones back at my house."

"Well sorry," You quietly hissed back, "I don't carry live sheep with me to just sheer for an entire blanket."

"Don't snark me, kid."

"Not your kid, bud."

"Not your bud!"

You chuckled, rolling over to face away from the flames, letting out a yawn, "How old are you anyways? You act  like you're way older than me, but your voice sure doesn't sound it."

"A couple centuries at least!"

"Well of course, you're a ghost, Chester. Don't play smart."

"My death age is not your business!"

You hummed softly, "You were a kid, weren't you."

The subconite went quiet, shuffling back against the tree his rope was tied to, huffing at you in annoyance.

"No."

...He most certainly had been.

---0----

The first thing Moonjumper had been to exposed to when he first awoke was the blinding white of the cloud-like ground he had found himself on. Alone. Completely alone. Deafening silence.

No, no, no. It had to be a dream. It all had to be a horrible, awful dream. This wasn't right.

He was simply asleep, having another nightmare. He'd awake, safe and sound. He'd wake up with you.

This, this wasn't happening.

He'd just close his eyes, and wake up soon enough.

...

Moonjumper didn't wake up from the supposed nightmare. No matter how many times he tried to relax himself, tried to rationalize the situation...The phantom realized he truly, truly was back here.

Trapped, again. Just like he had been before the time piece, just like he had been in the past.

Helpless, alone, held up like some prisoner.

How? How? This didn't make sense, he clearly freed himself-

It didn't-

The  ghost collapsed, burying his face in his hands with a strangulated screaming sound. It hurt, it felt like his throat was on fire, but he couldn't help it. He didn't stop for a while, either.

Everything had been ripped away again, just when Moonjumper thought things were going to get better. Things were finally normal, finally happy---

But he just couldn't get that, could he? Why? Did the world deem him undeserving of such? What had he done  to deserve to be stuck here again? Of all places...

Hiccuping with a sob, his thoughts drifted.

Oh god.

What did everyone else think happened? Did they think the ghost had simply left, abandoning them? Were they looking for him?

...Were you looking for him?

...Did you think he had left?

Were you angry?

He hoped you were not angry. His heart couldn't handle that.

He was sorry...So so sorry...He didn't mean to--

He never meant-

...You were angry, he decided.

You were very very angry that he had disappeared. Perhaps enough so that you decided the pathetic, scared ghost was not worth looking for. You didn't need him, either. You deserved a better person. You'd find someone better.

And so, the ghost wept.

Perhaps he indeed deserved this prison. After all, he was so weak, so distant. He must seem so rude, so...unkind at times, to everyone who truly did not deserve that behavior. For being foolish, and dumb. Like she had said before. 

...Ah. Her.

He hadn't thought of her in a while. What was it she always said when he would cry foolishly like this?

----

(Me making Moonjumper sad and panic: 😞😞😞😞 I'm so sorry lil moonman...ow.)