#darkgameplays

So this turned out differently than I expected and I’m not sure how I feel about it

Let me know what you guys think

Ethan looked out over the ice nervously. His heart was beating out of his chest. He swallowed and placed one foot on the frozen surface, his skate immediately beginning to slide across it. Panic gripped him and he pulled back, inhaling sharply. He couldn’t do this.

A warm body sidled up next to him, “Hey, you’re going to be okay. It’s not as scary as it looks, I promise. Why don’t you hold my hand? I’ll make sure you don’t fall.”

A large hand covered one of his own and he gripped it, entwining their fingers. A soft chuckle came from beside him and he turned to Dark, his eyes wide, “Are you sure this is a good idea?”

The demon smiled, placing a hand on the human’s back, “It’ll be fine. Are you ready?”

Before Ethan could answer, he pushed them away from the side, his grip on Ethan tightening as the boy tried to catch his balance.

His legs were completely frozen, fear consuming him as his upper body wobbled dangerously. He latched onto Dark, cursing quietly.

The demon slid them to a stop in the middle of the pond, looking at his lover fondly, “Darling, you need to relax. I’m not going to let you fall, remember?

Ethan’s whole body was trembling. He kept his hands firmly on Dark’s biceps and nodded, “I’m trying.”

“I know, darling. It will get easier once we get moving. You just need to remember to move your feet, okay?”

 Ethan gasped when they started to move again, his grip on Dark tightening, “You’re okay,” the demon whispered, “I’ve got you.”

They moved around the pond in lazy circles, Dark skating backwards so he could ensure Ethan didn’t fall. Slowly, Ethan became accustomed to the feel of ice under his feet. He started to move with a little more confidence, picking up speed.

Dark grinned and slowly put one of his arms down, moving so he was beside his boyfriend and grabbing one of his hands, “You’re doing amazingly, love.”

Ethan smiled, his joyful laugh filling the air. Dark looked over at his love and smiled softly. Ethan’s cheeks were tinted red from the cold, his eyes bright and a smile stretched across his face. He looked breathtakingly beautiful.

Suddenly, something caught on Ethan’s skate and he lost his balance. He wobbled for a moment, his eyes wide and then he fell, dragging Dark down with him. Ethan’s face slammed into the ice with a painful smack.

Dark groaned. He had landed on his back, his spine creaking as he slowly sat up. He leaned over to Ethan and put a hand on the human’s shoulder, worry settling into his gut, “Ethan, are you okay?”

When Ethan didn’t respond, Dark started to panic. He forced himself into a kneeling position and grabbed Ethan, gently flipping him over onto his back. He cursed when he saw the blood oozing from Ethan’s nose and a cut on his forehead. His shell started to crack, red and blue flickering around him. He shook Ethan gently, muttering quiet pleas to the unconscious boy.

Ethan didn’t stir.

Dark felt his breathing pick up. He clutched Ethan to him, whispering muffled assurances into his hair. After a moment, he pulled back. This was doing nothing to help. He shoved a shaking hand into his pockets, fishing out his phone. He started to dial but the screen kept freezing. Eventually, it turned to static. He cursed and shoved it back into his pocket.

His breathing still too fast, he poked at the cut on Ethan’s head. He flinched away when he noticed the gray leaking into his fingers. He cursed and inspected the gray quietly, a dizzying swirl of red and blue pulsating around him. His shell creaked quietly, a high-pitched ringing echoing off the ice. He breathed deep, trying to calm himself down. He couldn’t afford to lose control right now. He didn’t want to think what would happen to Ethan if he did.

He hugged the boy to his chest and breathed with him. Soon, he was able to calm himself down enough to push the gray back. He pulled away from Ethan and poked at the cut on his forehead again, relief filling him when he realized that it had stopped bleeding. Hopefully, that meant that the damage was minimal. He moved from the forehead to the boy’s nose, feeling along the bridge to make sure it hadn’t been broken. As his finger slowly dragged along the extremity, the boy’s face twitched slightly.

Ethan blinked his eyes open slowly, looking up at Dark in confusion, “What happened?” he whispered. He tried to sit up but winced in pain and relaxed back into Dark’s arms, “It feels like someone took a jackhammer to my brain.”

Dark almost cried with relief, “You took a pretty bad fall just now. I wouldn’t be surprised if you end up with a concussion. Do you think you can stand? I don’t want you out here in the cold any longer.”

Ethan nodded and slowly sat up. He swayed dangerously and pressed a hand to his head, but he quickly recovered, “I don’t think I can walk,” he mumbled, stumbling to his feet with Dark’s help.

“That’s okay,” the demon murmured, “You can lean on me.”

They waddled back to the car with Ethan’s arm draped heavily over Dark’s shoulders. The demon carefully lifted him into the passenger seat, buckling him in and checking that he was comfortable. He clambered into the driver’s side and started the car, letting out a heavy, regretful sigh.

Ethan wanted to reassure him that whatever he felt bad about wasn’t a problem, but a sudden wave of nausea distracted him. He curled up in the seat and moaned. Dark patted his back comfortingly.

The whole ride home was made in silence.

Once they got home, Dark helped Ethan onto a couch. Ethan smiled at him weakly, his head throbbing. Without saying a word, Dark slid into place behind Ethan and curled around him, dragging a blanket over both of them.

Ethan let out a small sound of surprise. Dark usually wasn’t one for cuddling, except for after sex. He placed his hands over Dark’s, stroking along his strong arms soothingly.

Dark squeezed his middle lightly, burying his face in Ethan’s shoulder.

“Hey, what’s up?” Ethan asked quietly, fighting down his nausea, “You didn’t do anything wrong, sweetie.”

It took a moment for Dark to speak. His voice was muffled by Ethan’s shirt, “I thought I lost you. After you fell and didn’t wake up. I thought you were dead. I thought I had killed you.”

Ethan let a low sympathetic whine, “Oh, Dark. I’m sorry. This wasn’t your fault, though. Neither of us could have stopped it from happening. But we’re both okay and that’s all that matters, right?”

Dark was perfectly still behind him and Ethan knew he was silently hating himself. With a strained sigh, the human twisted himself around until he was facing Dark and placed a hand on the larger male’s cheek, “Dark, this wasn’t your fault. You didn’t make me fall nor did you give me this concussion. I don’t blame you and you shouldn’t blame yourself.”

“I promised I wouldn’t let you fall,” the demon rumbled, avoiding eye contact. His eyes were so full of regret, it made Ethan’s heart clench “I promised that and yet here we are.”

“Yeah, you did promise that,” Ethan agreed, “However, there was something you told me a long time ago when you first introduced me to ice skating. You said that the ice is unforgiving. It doesn’t care whether you are standing or sitting or lying on top of it. As long as you are on it, it will try to throw you off. That’s what you find so exhilarating about ice skating. Do you remember?”

Dark nodded slowly. He brought his sad gaze to Ethan’s, the boy’s ever-present smile easing his guilt slightly.

“That’s all that happened today. The ice tried to throw us off and it succeeded. You didn’t do anything wrong and I didn’t do anything wrong. We simply lost to nature. And that’s okay because we’re both still here and we’re together. So can you stop blaming yourself, please? For me?”

He smiled up at Dark shyly and the demon broke. He nodded and nuzzled the boy’s forehead, grinning, “Just for you, I suppose I can figure out a way.”

Ethan giggled and adjusted so his lips were pressed firmly against Dark’s. They simply lied there for several minutes, kissing and giggling together.

Eventually, when Ethan’s head was no longer aching and Dark’s eyes were beginning to droop, they curled up tighter, mixing their limbs together in a tangled mess. Dark buried his nose his Ethan’s hair, letting the smell of his small lover surround him. Ethan nuzzled into Dark’s chest, enjoying the warmth his demon boyfriend always gave off.

@markiplier @crankgameplays

It’s been what seems like a hundred years. At first, the days, months, decades were easy to count by the light slanting across the marble, quickly collecting dust and dead leaves. A hundred years since you died, deposited in a mirror by something profoundly Dark. Something had changed, though. Something was different today.

It was then he came around the corner. The one who left you here, cracked and useless. He approached slowly, intent hiding in his features, his two stolen souls echoing around his figure in red and blue. His suit pristine, tie slightly askew, he reached for your frame, dragging his electric finger down the filigree. He finally spoke, the undertones of Celine and Damien’s voices making your soul ache.

“I’m tired of feeling your spirit in this world,” he said. “I can still feel your memories. The poker game, the fall from the staircase, the exact moment Wilford cracked, I remember it all. I can feel your hatred, your longing for revenge. I know all it would take is a single moment of slicing one’s hand on the cracks of this mirror and you’d be free, ready to come after me,” he stepped back. “That’s why I’m sending you away. Say goodbye to your friends.”

He raised his hands lightly, as if he were about to begin a light orchestra ballad, but suddenly you feel more cracks stretching across your surface. The world started taking that strange green appearance from all those years ago, the moment you pieced the answers all together. Sounds begin to distort and a deeply low hum filled your soul.

And then it stopped. You reflected a completely different room. It was strange and foreign, but before you could distinguish anything specific, a boy walked past. He didn’t give you a second glance as he left, but then he came slowly back, his face holding alarm. He looked not a day over twenty and his hair was shaved oddly. He approached, lifting his hand toward you.

He turned his head, directing his voice towards another room, “Hey, Mark? What happened to your mirror?”

Mark? Your Mark? A voice answered, the sound roiling through your memory, “What mirror?”

The boy answered, “The one in your hallway.”

“I don’t have a mirror in my hallway.”

You could hardly believe it. Mark was alive, but not in the way he was the last you’d seen him. His soul was in Damien’s body, but this voice sounded like he did when he was truly alive. This was more more kind, though. It sounded right.

The boy’s eyebrows reached for each other as he brought his hand toward you. A single finger traced a single crack.

A single slice of one’s hand and you’re free.

Dark, if you can hear this…