#eric derikson

Here you go :)

"This way," Illinois said confidently. However, judging by how often he was looking at the slip of paper with the address on it, he was just as nervous as Yancy.

“Is youse sure about this?” Yancy asked. He was still in shock from what had happened the past couple of days. He had been freed from prison, his home, with no explanation. Then, this Indiana Jones wannabe had dropped in with some kind of note telling both of them to come here. It was all very suspicious.

“Of course I’m sure,” Illinois told him. He then approached the giant, looming mansion and knocked. Yancy held his breath. He didn’t know what to expect, but he certainly didn’t expect what happened next.

“Someone’s at the door, Jim!” A voice yelled from inside.

“Come, we must investigate,” another voice said.

“No, you idiots! I told you to let me answer it!” A voice growled. There was then a bunch of noise indicating that several people were scrambling to get to the door. It bursted open, several people standing on the threshold.

“Are wes at the right place?” Yancy asked, looking between the people. They all look the same. Well, not exactly. They all dressed differently and had unique characteristics, but they all had the same face. The same face as Yancy and Illinois themselves.

“Another Jim!” One of them exclaimed, shoving a camera in the two new egos faces.

“Jims,” one of the people said, glaring. He was wearing a suit and he had a red and blue aura dancing around him. Apparently, just him speaking their name was frightening, because the two “Jims” let out a squeak and rushed back into the manor. The man then turned to Yancy and Illinois. Even Illinois looked unsure at this point. “You are indeed in the right place,” he said, straightening his suit. “My name is Darkiplier. You may come in.”

“Sure thing,” Illinois said after a moments hesitation. He winked at Darkiplier as he passed, while Yancy just eyed him suspiciously. The door shut behind them and they could see all of the others crowded into the room, mumbling amongst themselves. All eyes were on the two newcomers.

“I know, I’m gorgeous. And yes, I am single,” Illinois said.

“Woah, some new egos,” a man with a pink mustache said, “I’ll have to get you guys an interview on Warfstache Tonight!”

“The Host inspects the new egos. He wonders why the man in the prison uniform has such a weird accent, since he is from Ohio.”

“I didn’t realize we were famous,” Illinois said to Yancy with a chuckle.

“I want to go back to prison,” Yancy said back.

Bonus: Yancy meeting Eric

“And who might youse be?” Yancy asked a timid looking ego.

“I-I... My name i-is Eric,” He responded.

“Hey, youse is gonna stick with me,” Yancy told him, smiling. “I ain’t one of them familial types, but wes is gonna be good friends.”

So I read @bashfulmusician’s fic A Few of My Favorite Things, and I couldn’t get the mental image of little Eric sobbing in a closet alone out of my head. Now everyone else gets to experience see it with me :)

"Everything just keeps dying around me."

TW: blood, mentions of fighting

Eric finally gets back to the ego mansion, covered in blood and dirt. He tried to fight back, he really did, but… fighting is not Eric’s strong suit, at all.

He quickly walks towards Dr. Iplier’s office. If he’s lucky, he thinks he can get cleaned up before Host even notices.

However, he has no such luck.

“Eric?” His boyfriend’s voice comes from the living room, causing Eric to stop short. “Eric, are you home?”

“Y-yes, I’m home,” Eric stutters. Stop that, he tells himself. He almost never stutters around Host, if he stutters now he’ll definitely be able to tell that something is wrong.

Please don’t come out here, please don’t come out here, please-

“Hello dear,” the Host says, walking out from the living room and over to where Eric is standing. He wraps his arms around Eric in a hug. Eric hugs him back, but after a moment feels him tense.

“Hostie-”

“Wh…” The Host pulls away from Eric, holding him at arms length. He then starts muttering narrations under his breath, allowing him to get a clearer picture of Eric and the damage that’s been done to him. He sees Eric’s cracked, bloodied lip, the bruise forming on his cheek, the dirtied state of his clothes, and his missing glasses.

The Host’s jaw clenches and blood starts to seep through the cloth on his eyes as his anger rises. It’s scary how calm he seems to be and how gentle his touch is. He runs his finger under Eric’s mouth, wiping some of the blood away, and Eric holds his breath. He sure feels sorry for the creeps that did this.

Erik collapsed on his bed, sobbing. Why did he always mess everything up? Why couldn't he do anything right?

He had spent the day working, helping his father advertise products, but he became a stuttering, crying mess every time the camera pointed in his direction. His father had eventually told Erik to go home, that he could finish the day off himself.

It wasn't fair. Erik always tried his best. He just wanted to be a successful business man, like his father, but it wasn't enough. He wasn't enough. At this, Erik sobbed even harder, hiding his face in his handkerchief.

Suddenly, a knock sounded on his door. Erik sat up.

"Erik?" A voice said. "It's me, Oliver. Are you alright? Can I come in?"

"G-go away," Erik answered between sobs. He didn't want Oliver to see how much of a baby he was.

Ignoring Erik's protests, the android opened the door and walked in, shutting it softly behind him.

"Oh, Erik," Oliver said, walking over to the crying boy and enveloping him in a hug. He rubbed circles on Erik's back as he clung to Oliver tightly, burying his face in his chest.

"I-I just w-want to-to make him p-proud," Erik stuttered.

"I know," Oliver said. "It's okay."

"It-it's not!" At this, Oliver pulled away from Erik and grabbed him by the shoulders. Erik looked up at him with eyes filled with sorrow, that would have caused Oliver's heart to break if he had had one.

"Erik," Oliver said sternly, "you are an amazing person. You make all of us proud, and you can't anyone, especially your father, tell you otherwise. Even Dark is proud of you, Erik."

"H-he is?" Erik asked with wide eyes.

"Yup. It's not your fault that you get anxious. It happens to everybody. You just have to remember that we love you no matter what, and do your best. Live up to your own expectations, not everybody else's."

"Th-thank y-you," Erik said, hugging the android close once more. Oliver smiled and hugged him back. After a moment Oliver pulled away again and kissed the tip of Erik's nose.

"You're welcome. Now what do you say we go get some ice cream?" Erik blushed and smiled, nodding.