sweet talk

i'm looking for time

chapter twenty-seven

The two had stumbled back inside, Rigby grasping onto his thoughts that were already beginning to slip from his head. He could feel Mordecai's own words fumbling with small excitement as the other paced the floor, his steps in sync with what seemed to be his thudding heart.

As Rigby counted, however, he realized that the steps were in sync with his own heartbeat, and he looked up as the blue jay ran both hands over his head. He was smiling, but his eyes were searching. He could tell the other was glad they had at least a simple idea, and the thought comforted. It almost silenced the small whispering voice in the back of his head. Almost.

"Dude, okay," Mordecai said, and slowed his steps, turning to face the raccoon across the room, "Okay. So if I'm correct, we have to distract the demon from trying to get to your head--"

"Yeah, but what if he has like... I don't know... minions or allies or something?" Rigby blurted out the first anxious thought that came to mind. He didn't even know where it had come  from, and was quite proud he thought of it, "You remember the shadow creatures at Skips' house."

"We don't pay attention to them. Besides, they must have a similar weakness--"

"Our closeness? Love?"

"Yeah. Something like that. But dude, our main focus is the demon. Once the demon is gone, everything else associated with him will be gone, I assume." The blue jay let out a small huff, and began to pace some more. Something he did when his mind was working, was processing the information he was taking in.

Rigby, meanwhile, sat on the edge of his trampoline. The springs croaked beneath his weight, and he watched Mordecai pace while he played with the loose threads from the trampoline edge.

"Well, I was angry at myself. So we also need a distraction for me to prevent myself from feeling angry or something--"

Mordecai snapped his fingers, coming to a stop. "I'll be the distraction."

Rigby blinked. "What?"

"Stay with me, Rigs," Mordecai said while whipping around, turning fully to face the other. And for the first time, then and there, Rigby seemed to forget about everything. The summer heat, the lightning storms, the demon, the nightmares. Falling, falling into oblivion where the feeling of drowning weighed on his shoulders, on his chest, on his mind. For the first time, looking at Mordecai, he could see what the other was feeling. And it felt real, too real, and the tears they shed a few days ago felt dryer than ever.

"Stay with me," Mordecai said again, jarring the raccoon from his thoughts, "The demon supposedly weakens with our love--"

"Lame..." Rigby mumbled under his breath, but Mordecai ignored this and continued.

"--and Skips said your main source of happiness right now is... me. And in order to defeat this demon, we drive him away using us. Together. So I need to somehow distract you from the anger while also distracting the demon using..." his voice trailed away as he became lost in his own words, searching for answers.

Rigby decided to encourage him. "I see where you're going," he said, and then looked up at the other from his place on his trampoline. His amber eyes grew fierce. "And I can confirm that you are my main source of happiness, Mordecai. You always have been."

They shared a loving glance with each other, Mordecai smiling proudly at these words. His eyes glistened in the afternoon sun that shone through the window pane. "I'm going to help you get out of this, dude. I won't stop until that demon leaves you alone."

Rigby smiled at this. "You promise?" He croaked.

"I swear on my dead body."

Tears brimmed Rigby's eyes, but he would not let them fall. He took in a shaky breath, and then let it out, fast. Then he looked at his best friend, his crush, his boyfriend. "Let's keep thinking, then," he murmured, and their serious conversation continued.

They were silent for a moment, both thinking immensely about how they could possibly drive away the demon, how they could distract the demon.

Then, Rigby sprang to his feet, his mind working. "Dude!" He exclaimed, and Mordecai looked up, expectantly, "What if we sweet talk the demon into leaving!"

"What? That's not going to--"

"No, no, no," Rigby interrupted him, "You sweet talk me into not listening to the voices!" At the mention of the deadly whispers in his head, the voices immediately sprang up. There were multiple, all whispering at the same time, and Rigby tried his best to push them away, continuing his explanation, "You have to try and... and distract me from the voices by seducing me, and maybe that will be enough to weaken the demon."

Mordecai looked thoughtful for a moment as he wrung his hands nervously on his bed. Rigby couldn't help but decide how cute he was when he was concentrating, how he frowned slightly and played with his hands, almost awkwardly. It was adorable.

These thoughts made the voices in his head quieter, which only confirmed his idea.

"I mean," Mordecai began, and Rigby drew his focus to his words, "I don't know, dude... I feel like when Skips says 'fight with love', he means something more genuine than sweet talk."

"Ugghh, well, do you have a better idea?" Rigby snapped.

The blue jay opened his beak, then closed it, bewilderment laced in those deep eyes. "I guess not."

"Then let's just try my idea for once. It can't be all that bad. Besides, I think I know where I'm going with this."

"You do? That's a first."

"Shut up."

Mordecai chuckled at this, only making Rigby more annoyed than ever. But this small anger only coaxed the voices further, and they grew louder once more. The raccoon backed away. He sat down. He tried hard, so hard to push the voices away. Anger and frustration and guilt and everything bad seemed to roll into one and collapse onto his shoulders. The voices grew louder. He curled up tighter.

You will never win. Your plan is not going to work.

Give him fear.

Once this is over, I will finally have you, once and for all of eternity.

"Rigby?" Mordecai's voice was muffled in the room, and Rigby closed his eyes tight as the voices grew louder and louder and more harsher than ever. And as soon as Rigby felt a grasp on something positive, something that felt good and hopeful, the voices washed over him and he slipped away, slipped further into the darkness. He gripped at the edge of his bed.

And then, like breaking the surface of a pool of water, Rigby gasped for air, and looked at Mordecai. The darkness seemed to fade away for a moment, the voices hushing back into their usual quiet tone.

"Dude, you're right. The demon is stronger under anger!" Rigby hurriedly said, and scrambled to his feet.

"Well... that's what Skips told me."

"Its going to work."

"What? Dude, you gotta actually give me more context when you--"

"We're going to sweet talk." Rigby grabbed a hoodie from the floor and slipped it over his head, looking at Mordecai with hard eyes. "We leave tonight."