Reunion

Chapter 3

The storm had settled and the weather began to clear. A thick layer of snow still covered the ground, making the world seem so much quieter.

035 looked at the bookshelf in the living room, looking for something to read. He quickly came to realize the lack of diversity in the reading selection. He had read all the stories they had, memorized all the plays they had on the shelves and wasn't interested in reading 049's medical textbooks.

"Another thing to add to the list I suppose," he muttered, making a mental note to get more books.

After awhile of relaxing downstairs 035 went to check on the two still upstairs, taking two cups of tea with him. He checked in Jay's room first to find him awake and playing with something on the floor.

"Whatcha got there?" He asked, leaning against the doorframe a bit.

"I found a spider!" Jay beamed as he kept trying to get the creature into his hands.

"Fun, say, have I ever told you about Arachne?"

Jay looked up at 035 and shook his head "No, I don't think so."

"Then I'll have to tell ya sometime," 035 placed one of the cups he brought next to Jay before going to check on 049.

He wasn't surprised to find 049 still hunched over his desk working on something.

'How can someone who spends so much time sitting like that have such good posture' 035 thought.

"Hey Doc, I got some tea for ya, figured you might want some."

049 turned, putting down his pen. "Oh, thank you cher." He stood up and took the cup. He placed it on his desk, grabbing the cloak to put it back on its hanger.

"You been working since you woke up?"

"I have, as usual," 049 checked over his cloak, making sure he hadn't missed any holes.

035 leaned against the door frame, hands in his pockets. "Would it kill you to sleep in a day, or are you just that much of a workaholic?"

"You already know the answer to that, you'd think after all this time you'd stop asking." There was a small smirk across 049's face as he spoke.

"I've gotten you to relax before and I will do it again." The two of them chuckled.

049 reached to a shelf to grab his mask but 035 grabbed it first.

"Cher I need to fix that up," he held his hand out for his mask.

"Nope! You're gonna take the rest of the day off. You need a break." 035 held on to the mask, holding it as high above his head as he could.

049 raised a brow before effortlessly grabbing the mask out of his partner's hands. "I'm taller then you."

"That's not fair you're wearing heels."

"With or with out, I'm still taller." He placed the mask back on its shelf and looked to 035 again. "So, if you insist I take a break what should we do?"

The smile on 035's face seemed to grow "We could use some more books, we've read all the ones downstairs."

"Very well, a walk would do me some good."

035 was beaming as he grabbed 049's hand and began to drag him downstairs.

"Jay, we're heading into town, is there anything you need?" 049 called out.

"Nope I'm fine!"

"Try not to burn the house down!" 035 shouted, rushing to put on his usual attire for their trips into town. 049 pulled on his coat and scarf.

They left, it was a quiet walk even with the sound of crunching snow filling the air. The town wasn't much different. More sounds could be heard but the snow had hushed the usual bustle of the town. The bookstore was still open, warm light shining through the windows and onto the snow.

The bell above the door rang, the warm air washing over the two as they stepped inside. The shop owner waved at the them from behind the counter, he was a kind old man, hair long gone grey. 049 nodded and 035 waved back.

Wandering through the shop they searched the shelves, looking for anything that caught their attention. 049 found himself in the horror section, running a hand along the books spines while reading the titles.

"Pretty funny you'd gravitate towards these huh? All things considered." 035's tone made it clear he was grinning, despite the scarf that covered most of his face.

"It does take away the effect of more lovecraftian horror, but horror on a smaller scale stays mostly intact. A man describing his descent into madness is more captivating then a story of a creature beyond human comprehension."

035 chuckled, looking around for anything that struck his fancy. While wandering through the maze of shelves he picked up a few books, gathered a small stack in his arms. When he returned to 049 he saw that he had also found a few books. They walked to the counter and placed the books down.

The old man smiled at the two of them, "Well you boys sure have some reading to do."

035 bounced on his heels, "Yes sir."

They paid for the books and waved the man goodbye as they set off for home.