SCP Foundation Oneshots

Home

For all the shit Clef had to deal with in his life; he sure was a patient man in comparison to others when he was alone. Every move he made, every decision he came to, every word he spoke was given at least a moment of careful consideration when by himself. Most would have called him slow for that, maybe weak of mind or to a lesser but more unbelieve extent, shy, though his outwards personality towards everyone else destroyed that thought in a millisecond. Kondraki knew that wasn't the case and though Clef had never gone out of his way to tell him exactly why, he figured it wasn't worth pushing, it was already a shock to have Clef openly be fragile around him. Clef had his own way of dealing with things that bothered him on a deep levwl, even if that way was patient and calculated and hidden deep within layers of defence.

Kondraki on the other hand was far more impulsive in his anger, he realised that life is far too short to begin with, his journey had begun with impulse and ended with impulse, even after he was shaped by the foundation's walls. He acted first and felt guilty later, it was just how he went about his life in his own defence, and though it appeared to frustrate Clef to no ends it never cropped back up in his conversations when they were alone. He teased when others were around but when it was just the two of them, Clef would simply incline his head and nod at him like a cat watching a drowning mouse with interest not yet peaked.

Clef had moments where he would slip up and crack his own defences, he would say something a little too quickly and stumble over his words, not express what he meant to say properly and reveal more that he didn't want to say. He'd apologise and think it over and build his walls again, he'd apologise again, and nothing drove Kondraki further up the wall than that. He'd insist it was okay, everyone slips up, everyone makes that mistake and Kondraki had regrettably lashed out at him on a few occasions for apologising too much.

It was a part of his impulse, a part of his 'act first guilt later' policies. Clef would be hurt, his trust cracked, Kondraki would make it up to him with soft words, and through little whimpers Clef would forgive him. Kondraki can't help but think a relationship like this was unhealthy, opposites don't attract like that, Clef didn't deserve to be hurt any more than he was. Whenever he withdrew from Clef's company though, he could feel the deep churning in his gut right under his ribcage grow, Clef's prodding in for his whereabouts, worried and concerned, and he has never minded.

There had been a time where Clef had cried so hard Kondraki had to rub circles into his back while he threw up, through near hyperventilation and puffy eyes he had asked him to stay, please stay, stay longer, please, I'm scared to be alone. Kondraki vowed to never let Clef have to go through that again, memory rebounds too disastrous for him to not intervene with some way for Clef to feel safe. It had stayed a distant memory for them both and they never spoke of it since.

It had been an all-too-quiet night when Clef had sat on his bed in his pyjamas, breath minty and eyes downcast with a glaze that ate away the vibrant color of blues and greens and browns. His voice was almost too quiet to hear, but Kondraki felt the tugs of his voice shining through the white noise of the room, empathy pouring into his chest as he felt Clef's crushing sadness. Words couldn't describe the empty feeling, the welling up in his own eyes had come faster than he could stop it, and they had cried into each other like Kondraki had lost his own family and innocence. Like the void in his chest belonged to him and not the grief-stricken man cradled, shakily, in his arms.

It was the same night, the same moment, when Clef had told him about his earliest memories. How he had ran off in child-like feet, how he wished he had thought of his wording better when he was pulled into the fray as a Reality Bender, how he wanted to turn back the clock and stop what happened during his capture. Why he was so considerate of his words, why he apologised, why he couldn't stand being alone and then flinched away when touched. He had grown up with a near-reflection beside him that was his innocene and suddenly it had been stripped away.