Cuphead and Mugman in "Fate Will Find You"

Exile

Morning eventually came as David's new body started to arouse to the warm dew in the air. He stretched out his arms and then his legs. Yellow eyes opened to find that he was still in the cave. David still had hope that the horrible pain he felt the previous night was a dream. He noticed a puddle just outside the mouth of the cave. Perhaps his reflection would shed some light as to what was real.

He cautiously crawled to the opening. The lip of the cave dripped down onto his head as he went to stare into the liquid. Before him he saw the face of the faun staring back at him.

Oh, thank goodness.... He breathed a sigh of relief. But then the image blurred and morphed into the rounded black head he now had. Yellow eyes widened as he realized that last night's events actually did happen. Memory of all the pain and confusion came racing back to him all at once. And he had a million questions as to why this came to be.

What am !? What did I do that caused this? He wondered. But one thing was for sure: he needed help.

I have to go back to the village! Kettle will help me.... I hope.

The flame in his heart began to wane as he remembered what the kettle had said to him when he was drunk. David could only hope he didn't really mean any of it. That he would still be willing to help him despite that he had some new friends now. Desperate for any help he could get, David tried to stand up on his hind legs like he used to. He grabbed the lip of the cave with his long fingers and used it to steady him. As soon as he let go, the legs wobbled and threatened to give out. The former faun gave a sigh of disappointment, realizing that he didn't have the proper balance to do that just yet.

David had only taken a few awkward gallops when he found his trident and pieces of armor littered on the mountain. He picked up his helmet with one hand and looked down at it. His reflection was scarcely visible in the dented and rusted piece of metal that faintly resembled what it was supposed to be. In no way would it fit him anymore. But he didn't just want to leave all his prized possessions out in the open. These items still meant something to him. So he took a minute to pick each one up and bring it back to the cave where they would be out of the weather. David looked longingly at his dented and crumpled armor that he decorated the cave with. He remembered the many memories he had with Kettle exploring the world. His furry head shook that emotion away. For he could not think about that right now. His top priority at the moment was to find help on how to be reverted back to normal. To do that, he needed to go back to the village. The thick-furred body galloped its way down the mountain. To his surprise, his small, rounded troll-like nose caught the scent of Kettle and the centaur. This new nose was much more powerful than the human nose he used to have. He followed the smell without question and it led him right back to the village.

David slowed his pace as he neared the outskirts of the town. But the black creature did not huff and puff from the journey. It was as if he were not tired at all. Like he had taken it slow the entire way. All four gray paws plodded slowly into the village. He looked up and down the streets. Anyone and everyone that was out all gasped at his appearance and shrank away from him. They all talked in hushed voices and pointed accusingly in his direction, as if he were a freak of nature. Families tried to shield their children's eyes from its hideous appearance. Doors and windows closed loudly as they rushed kids indoors. David felt hurt that they reacted like this. His ears twitched as the tops of them folded towards his face. He wished they had been big enough to hide his face. The black creature kept going despite what the others were doing around him. For he was here to find Kettle.

"Mommy, what is that?" Came a small female voice. Having recognized it, David looked in its direction. The voice belonged to the young garden troll he had met yesterday. He stopped what he was doing and went to greet the little girl. Perhaps the child could see past this new exterior, he thought. David slowly approached the troll family.