#cringo

Sometimes, even the words of Emmet were not enough to calm the fear in his heart. Most times, his brother’s voice and presence would allow him to feel a temporary comfort, wrapped around him as if a blanket. Emmet was kind, playful, and worked tirelessly to keep his mind occupied on anything but self-loathing. When Emmet smiled at him, he felt light, as if he was floating. Emmet had always made him feel some kind of way, and it was only recently that he realized it was a positive thing.

Ingo wished, more than anything, that he could forget what he was, leave it behind as he grew older. If he could have been human from the start, he and Emmet could have lived side by side for their entire lives. They could get normal jobs, live in a regular house; Emmet was so smart and enthusiastic that he could do anything he set his mind to. Coming home from work to see Emmet welcoming him would be a dream come true.

However, every day, he was reminded just how different they were, how incompatible their existence together was. 

A copper tang of thrumming blood tickled his senses, flaring his nostrils in his already restless sleep. An ear flicked, and he tried hopelessly to will himself back to dreaming. But a body, sighing sleepily, shifted closer towards him, soft skin pressing against his fur and bringing an all too welcome warmth. 

Conflicting feelings warred within him. 

He yearned to pull the body closer to him, hold it tightly in his arms, feel it draw into him and merge with his essence. To have it be one with him, the final ultimate completeness, would soothe whatever it was that threw itself at his rib cage day in and day out desperate to burst out. A deep inhale of the scent of the body brought him to salivating.

Repulsed, he blearily cracked open his eyes and drew his tongue around his snout. Salivating was ridiculous; it was not as though he would swallow Emmet through his mouth. At least, he didn’t think that’s how it went. Consume by absorbing. That was the impulse, the drive that gnawed at him, and it was all he could think of some days. 

Still half asleep but unable to truly drift off, his mind wandered without much of his own input. His thoughts were foggy, instinct-driven, and he hugged Emmet closer to himself to act as a tether in case his own thoughts became too much. Tilting his snout down to ruffle it through Emmet’s hair, he drew in a long inhale in hopes of calming his nerves and centering his thoughts. 

What would he be like if he consumed Emmet? The thought sprung unbidden to his mind as he tried to concentrate on Emmet’s presence. Would he become Emmet, since he knew him so well, or would he be a corrupted version, just like that changeling that ate Elesa? Would he become kind, then? Would he be able to look at even the worst being and see good in them? Would he become so certain of himself, able to watch the world with a smile? Would he finally become good?

A ragged gasp of breath pulled his focus out from the pinpoint it had become. Emmet, still asleep, let out a labored whine as though he were having a nightmare, brow dotted with sweat. 

With a gasp, he loosened his grip on his brother. The static charge of power dissipated between them, and in an instant Emmet relaxed again. Muttering a light groan, Emmet burrowed back into his arms, seeming to not notice the tremor in Ingo’s grip.

Consume whispered in the back of his mind, and he could feel the same static fizz at his fur.

“No!” he desperately whispered, ears back and tears beginning to prick hotly at the corner of his eyes. He couldn’t bear to not have Emmet by his side, even if his entire being wanted to pull Emmet within him. Within him, Emmet would no longer be able to smile at him, press kisses to his face, tell him he loved him…

There was no way that absorbing Emmet could be better than any of those things. 

Squeezing his eyes tight, he attempted to stop the shaking that threatened to rattle his very bones. Consume rumbled louder in his mind, but he thrashed his head back and forth. A mantra of ‘no no no no no’ started in his head, and white blossomed behind his eyelids. 

“Ingo?”

Eyes snapping open, he looked down to see Emmet blinking sleepily up at him. “E-Emmet?” he croaked out, throat drier than he expected.

“Did you have a nightmare? Don’t worry. Emmet is here.” Reaching up towards him, Emmet’s hand was cool and soft, turning the shaking to shivering. He was covered in fur, he should not have been cold and yet…

“Yes... You are here,” he said, voice cracking with tears. “Thank you for being here, Emmet.” His brother must have realized how much he wanted to hold him, even through his hesitation, because he shimmied upwards in the nest they had made. In his new position, he held Ingo’s snout against his chest, pressing kisses to Ingo’s forehead in a mirror of how Ingo had previously held him. 

“I am Emmet. I won’t leave Ingo’s side. Ever.” His brother’s words are firm, allowing for no argument, and he let his eyes shut once more. A shuddering breath was the only sound he made as the tears finally spilled over, wetting his fur and Emmet’s chest.

They keep growing up. Ingo gets into more fights with kids, and now it’s because maybe someone teased Emmet or bullied him. It gets some of the aggression out too. But this also means Ingo gets punished a lot. Emmet tries to get into the same punishments as him, but doesn’t do severe enough things to warrant it. Ingo only lets up when he’s threatened to be separated from Emmet, and he can’t allow that.

He can’t really explain it. He kind of feels that there is something about him that is different. He also feels some violent urges toward Emmet. There’s like a deep inside instinct that he stopped looking at when he grew fond of Emmet. But from his early teens to his mid teens he starts examining that again.

He researches, and reads things. About legends and folk tales, drawing from like the shit he feels inside himself and he... doesn’t like it. He does not like what he has to see, and that makes him afraid. He tries to withdraw from Emmet, avoids him, is cagey with him. But that makes Emmet follow him around even more, hiding in order to try and sneak his way into being near Ingo. Ingo tries something else, and admits to Emmet that he was the one pushed Emmet down the stairs. That he’s actually a terrible monster that will eat Emmet up and that Emmet should stay away. Ingo also kind of says this a bit desperately and rambly, and Emmet is pretty confused about it. How can Ingo be a monster? because he’s kind of a bully? But he isn’t anymore, so it’s fine. And Emmet finds it hard to believe that Ingo pushed Emmet down the stairs. It’s been so long that the memory does not matter to him, except that Ingo was there when he cried.

Ingo finds this frustrating and cries, and Emmet tries to comfort him, though he does not understand what Ingo means when he says he’s a monster. Emmet just says he loves him even if Ingo is a monster.

It is also around his mid teens that Ingo feels a deep exhaustion that makes him sick. Emmet tries to care for him, but he’s worried because Ingo has been resting to no available. Ingo feels something tug in him. He feels his body twist, and churn, and he wills himself to stay the same.

Thing is, whatever power changeling’s have to copy someone’s shape is limited until they actually consume their prey and lock into their form. They hold it for some time, but eventually they either have to eat their prey or revert into an inhuman form to rest and recuperate. Unfortunately for Ingo, he’s stayed for so long in his human form without doing anything with Emmet that he’s severely burnt himself out. He sees his body try and distort itself, and he holds it for as long as he can. Emmet is always right by his side. It comes to a head when Ingo feels like he can’t hold it any longer, and runs out of the house and into the woods. He yells at Emmet to not follow him, but that has never stopped Emmet before.

Emmet tries and chase Ingo, and he’s crying because he doesn’t understand why Ingo is doing this. He’s sick! He should rest! Until he sees a large form ahead of him. It’s also running away. But Emmet recognizes that the thing is wearing a stretched and torn up version of Ingo’s clothes, and he starts chasing it. That’s Ingo! He’s sure of it!

Ingo is distraught, because there’s no more denying that he’s a monster. He’s living it, he’s not a person, he’s just an evil creature who was going to kill Emmet. He has to get as far away as possible. And he can hear Emmet chasing him, yelling for him. Ingo tries his best to get high up where Emmet shouldn’t be able to reach him. But Emmet prevails. Ingo has climbed up a jaggedy rock, and Emmet tears and scratches his arms and legs climbing it. But he *has* to get to Ingo.

He almost falls, but Ingo catches him the last minute and drags him up.

Emmet tries to sit up immediately, but Ingo is scrambling away from him and cowering. Ingo has never been in creature form before, and he can’t talk like this.

Emmet doesn’t want Ingo to run away again so he doesn’t get closer yet (though at this point Ingo is exhausted. He had a burst of fear energy but he still hasn’t rested from holding his human form so he’s kaput.)

Emmet is asking questions, mostly if Ingo is ok? Does it hurt? Is he mad at Emmet? He’s trying his best to hold back tears.

After a bit, Ingo can’t stand it and goes near Emmet because his brother looks a bit battered from running through the woods and climbing up sharp rocks. He’s worried about Emmet too, though it’s hard to fight with his own anxiety. Emmet is the one to close the gap, and hugs Ingo tightly and asks him to not run away again. They sit there for quite some time.

OK! I’m all kaput from writing this down, but theres way more to this AU! This should suffice for now though I think.