ice cold [twisted wonderland x ice king! male reader]

forty-five

[End the deal with the Devil, Episode 13]

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"Well, we're back here." You looked around the endless white space, walking forward in search of Azul's conscience. It was better to get this done early. Ignoring the contract will take great pain after you come back to your body, so you had to hurry up and beat some sense into Azul.

"Well, he's got some pent-up anger in him. I almost burst out from all that matter."

You looked behind you in shock to see him. "...Deleo."

"Hey~" the boy waved back. No-this boy looked like you. Deleo looked like you, with the same face, same voice.

But what was different was that he excluded dark matter. His hair was inked with dark stains and his eyes glowing white light, something that made him almost blind if he didn't have iris presented. He was wearing the same uniform you had, he had the same style you had, but all of that didn't matter when it was clear he emitted dark magic.

"You actually look good," Deleo mused. "It's been a while since I took on a form of what I inhabited. So far, your looks are on par with mine."

"Well, then why don't you change to your looks?" You reeled in disgust. "Seeing you talk like that with my face is like a living nightmare."

"Aw pooh~ I won't!" Delo was stubborn. You rolled your eyes and just let him be, opting to go and search for Azul. Deleo was following behind, a faint trace of black ink was within his footsteps that sounded oddly satisfying to hear.

"He's right there." Deleo pointed a few feet away from you. There was Azul blankly staring at the projectile screen with scorn and hate. Whatever was on that screen, Azul grew to loathe it with his whole being.

You thanked Deleo who nodded lightly and finally disappeared. This wasn't the first time you saw Deleo, but this was a rare occasion where he would voluntarily come out and guide you. You thanked him for that.

"Hey." you gently called out to Azul. You sat beside him, watching the holographic memory play out.

Azul didn't bother to acknowledge your reply as he immediately slithered his arms on your waist and bury his head at your collar.

You tensed. Such an unfamiliar skinship Azul has bought. Although you could hear him sobbing, it made all your past emotions lessen and made you sigh. "It's alright, Azul." you patted his back gently.

The same sounds of sobbing resonated through the screen as both of you were forced to watch this memory mindscape like torture.

"Eww! Azul's an icky ink-spitting octopus~ boo~!" One merman boy laughed at the familiar octopus figure that was a few feet away.

"Just get rid of them! You have lots of legs, don't 'cha?"

'Their laughs were ugly like their faces' you thought. Azul had to endure this kind of bullying because of his figure?

"P-please stop..." Azul weakly begged as he was forced into a corner of the room, his face was full of fear. "Why are you guys saying mean stuff...like that..."

One little mermaid smirked and playfully shook her friend. "Run away! I think he's gonna blast ya with ink~!"

Like fishes, they simultaneously backed away but kept their distance to taunt Azul with every word they could muster.

Azul was crying, showing feelings that you knew he had held deep down. His cries were pitiful and so was his past self, it made you want to look away.

"...Is this...?" you tried to talk to Azul's conscience.

He looked up at you, completely different from how he would usually show you his confidence. This man was wrecked, eyes red and nose and cheeks flushed from his tears.

"It's alright." you gently wiped away the tears reeling from the corner of his eyes. You smiled softly, "Are you willing to tell me about it, Azul?"

Woed by such comfort, Azul slowly nodded and buried his head in your chest as he looked at the memories in pain.

"...It's because I was different from the other mermaids...because I had more legs that has suckers on them. It was hard to talk back because I was introverted..." he started. "I wasn't like what I am right now...I was bad with academics and physical education, I...I..."

"I was alone!...a trash-I was no one and everyone was always picking on me for being like...this!"

"...But it grew better, right?" you said. Azul looked back at the screen and saw the scene transformed to a familiar distant memory.

It was how he met Jade and Floyd. How the two little eel twins took curiosity in him and willingly followed him around no matter how much he protested.

"For better or for worse, you gained confidence and studies, you became top of the class, you created magical formula no kid your age would've dreamed of." You told Azul.

"I heard that there's a chubby mermaid from the other class that got a girlfriend~"

"In exchange, the voice he was ever so proud of has turned ugly now."

"Eh,~ Is that so?"

Three colorful merpeople sat in the lonesome garden behind the class. With a few breaks for them, Azul took upon the time to write on his notes as Floyd and Jade entertained themselves with the recent topic that has been happening in their school recently.

"Mm. Hey, Azul, it's all your doing, isn't it?" And Jade was first to strike the bucket.

Azul blinked in false confusion, "...Mine...? Why do you think so?" but it wasn't like he was panicking, rather, he found it amusing.

Just like how the twins found him amusing as well.

Your lip pursed from all these memories. It looks like Azul had a tougher upbringing than you thought. But to the point, he used your contract to harm other people?

"...I didn't mean to...use..."

"Huh?"

You looked at Azul in shock. Had he read your mind?

"I...didn't mean to do it," Azul said softly with a teary-eyed. "I was just...scared. People...people always try to hurt me y'know? And when you willingly let me handle your choices, I thought I could finally have someone who really understands me...!"

"..."

"I'm sorry, [m/n]," his arms tightened their grip on your waist. "I'm sorry..sorry..I-I-"

"Azul,"

The crying stopped. Azul looked up at you and you looked down at him.

You bit your lip, contemplating what to do.

"Just do it!" Deleo chimed from your mind. "What goes on here doesn't come out, not unless you let them."

"Really.." you sighed.

"It's alright, Azul...I...I'm not that mad anymore," you said carefully. "Rather, you need to wake up,"

"Huh?" Azul was confused. "Are...are you leaving me? Are you going to ignore me? When I wake up? Huh?"

"Azul-no. I won't be ignoring you-Hey..." you cupped his cheeks and looked at him in the eyes. "I've been with you ever since I befriended you. And it'll take more than this to lose you, to lose me, okay?"

"Yeah...o-okay," Azul nodded.

Although, a bit hypocritical judging from how much you've been loathing Azul for using you like that previously, half of those feelings disappeared, and what remained are bitterness from the outcome.

"Now, Azul."

Azul felt his face being pulled closer to yours. His eyes widened.

"Wake up."

And the last thing he ever felt before he was awake was the lingering cold feeling of your eyes, but the warmest feeling of how his lips felt with yours.

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