#hypbow

"Hey Rainbow! Been a while,I know,I knowww. But I have missed ya,if it makes you feel better. I’m sure it does,you’re such a sap.”

The multicolored steve hummed as he sat down,frozen grass crunching under him as some speckles of ice remaining imprisoned the starlight and twirled it around as Hypno’s tail curled around himself.

Rainbow Steve himself was nowhere in sight. Hypno’s gaze was focused fully on the stars.

“In my defense,it’s harder to talk when we travel. There’s so many people now! I really have to be on my A-game with the whole socializing thing.” He laughed to himself.

“Hasn’t been all bad,though! Not bad at all,if I do say so myself. Hm,where did we leave off?” He tapped his chin,thinking.

“Surely I told you about me finally getting out of that bastard’s lab,right? Hah,wow,feels like that’s happened a few too many times! Ehh,at least this one had less…no,you know what? They BOTH had too much lava.”

Hypno shrugged,leaning back.

“We’re doing good. Found two versions of Light! Isn’t that strange? Not as strange as those other versions of myself. I thought I was losing my mind when they first reached out! But no no,they’re wonderful. The Lights that is. The newer one is a little more wary of me,but I’m sure he’ll get over it eventually,so no need to worry over it.”

He waves it off,before grinning,sharp teeth glinting like steel.

“Oh and you’ll love this! We found Blue! A little dried out,but still his old self.”

Hypno’s smile softened. “He got all emotional when I told him how much you two were still connected…I didn’t mention everything,of course. He doesn’t know that I blame Sabre,but…he knows you’re in the spirit world…

…we’re going there next. Should be anyway. …I can’t wait to see you again…rainbow…”

He sighed softly,hoping to catch a glimpse of a rainbow in the stars like earlier.

“The spiritless world was about as pleasant as you’d expect. Now,the GOOD news is- I killed the demon king!”

He proceeded to pull Melinoe’s heart out dramatically,holding it out for the world to see.

“And then Guardian and Zero got rid of him permanently! She stabbed him clean through and everything while his soul was getting ripped apart like paper! It was awesome!” He grinned,tail wagging.

“I can’t wait for the two of you to meet. You’re going to love her,I know it.”

Hypno couldn’t help but purr,imagining them finally meeting face to face. She was probably going to be as awkward with Rainbow as she was with Hypno at first. Good quality entertainment!

“Oh,and speaking of meetings,you’ll never guess who I ran into in hell! Dark Steve! HAH! Even in death he couldn’t escape being a henchman! Luckily,one quick rock throw took care of that little reunion!”

He mimed throwing the demon heart.

“Anddd of course,he was still shit-talking me from the grave! Gossiping with that dumbass demon king.” He scoffed.

“Thankfully he left you out of it,or I would have REALLY had to mangle him!” He twirled the heart on his finger like a basketball.

“Speaking of reunions,got to reunite the little advisor with someone! Heeee still doesn’t like me very much- I THINK he’s warming up to me,slowly? He’s too proper,I can’t tell whether he tolerates me or not. The queen,however! I know we’ve had a bad history with royalty,but Gemma’s great!”

He giggled mischievously,tail smacking the ground.

“Whadya think,should I bag us a couple tickets to Cozen? I think that place needs some seriousss redecorating! And you certainly deserve a vacation!”

A few of the nearby remaining ice pieces stuck into his tail. He grimaced,pausing to pull them out.

“...Hey,how’s the spirit world doing by now,anyway? Did the corruption…stop? Is it fixed?”

He looked up for answers,but the stars gave him none,only twinkling peacefully. Hypno huffed in frustration.

“I love you,but you end up in danger way too often,you know that? You’re stressing ME out,that’s how you know it’s bad.”

He sighed dramatically again,flopping on his back.

“...You’re gonna laugh at me for worrying about you,aren’t ya?” He smiled softly. “You’re going to get away with it too,damnit.” He giggled.

“You’re lucky you’re adorable! But I’m sure you already know that.”

His tail twitched. Then Hypno shut his eye and smiled.

“You know…I get the weird feeling it’s okay now. I dunno if it’s just how this world feels…kinder…or maybe you talk to the stars too and I hear the echo of that. But I get the feeling you’re all okay. This universe is strange,isn’t it? But it’s…the good kind of strange.

Like you.”

---

"And that ones the big L, and that ones little l!” Rainbow declared confidently,pointing at some constellations.

Hypno snickered,rolling over on the fluffy blanket they had laid out to give him a look of doubt.

“And who told you that??”

“Sabre!” Rainbow chirped cheerfully. “So when someone’s “taking L’s” it’s like they’re reaching for the stars!”

“I don’t think that’s what that means.” Hypno said lovingly,patting his head. “But I love how optimistic you are.”

Rainbow giggled before batting his eyes.

“Aww,and I thought you hated my optimism.”

Hypno rolled his eye dramatically.

“I suppose it’s rubbed off on me.”

“HAH! YES!” Rainbow pumped his fist in victory.

Hypno rolled his eye again,playfully shoving Rainbow away.

“Yeah yeah,rub it in…”

His tail thumped happily against the blanket. Rainbow giggled,reaching over to pet it.

“Don’t worry,I won’t tell anyone you’ve gone soft. Wouldn’t want your terrifying reputation ruined by everyone knowing you’re a sweetheart~"

“You’re pushing it,Bow.” He warned playfully,squinting.

“And you’ll let me get away with it!” Rainbow replied,a smug look on his face.

Hypno sighed in defeat before smiling.

“Fine,you win. Just know that if you tell,I will get back at you!” He grinned more menacingly, and Rainbow shuddered.

“Ohh believe me,I know. I am still a little scared of you.”

Hypno cackled,his voice crackling and glitching.

“I’m glad!”

“Weirdo.” Rainbow stuck his tongue out at him before snuggling close again. Hypno hummed,doing the same and looking back at the stars.

“How come you love this so much?”

Rainbow got quiet for a moment before continuing,reaching over to stroke Hypno’s hair.

“You remember when Lucas had to move to your-rope?”

“Europe,sure. He was like the more tolerable version of Sabre,I almost missed him.” Hypno purred as he was pet,tilting his head closer so Rainbow could scratch his horns if he wanted.

“Sabre wasn’t that bad.” Rainbow giggled.

“Ohh yes he was.” Hypno reaffirmed. Rainbow gave him a couple horn-scritches,which seemed to pause the rant in progress.

“Anywayyy…it was really far away and I missed him. I couldn’t just talk to him like Sabre did…”

Rainbow tilted his head upwards.

“There are a BUNCH of stars out there. But we can only see a few from where we are! Doesn’t that make them special?”

Rainbow’s own tail started wagging as he began to talk more animatedly.

“Like,out of all the thousands upon thousands of stars in the galaxy,these ones get to be seen by us! We get to look at them and make up stories about them and admire how pretty they are! And stargaze with our friends! And they get to shine in all these beautiful colors and formations just for us!!”

He hummed happily. Hypno slow-blinked at him,equally happy.

“So,they’re special because we share them,you’re saying?”

“Mhm!!”

The starlight seemed to dance in the iris of his eyes.

“...I was really sad when Lucas left. I was sad anytime I got separated from my friends. But…the stars are always there. So as long as we’re both looking at the same stars…we’ll never be apart,not really.”

He sat silently for a moment before sniffling,wiping his tears on his sleeve. “S-sorry-”

Hypno hugged him,nuzzling the top of his head.

“Nothin’ to be sorry about.” He whispered. “It’s beautiful,Rainbow.”

Rainbow sobbed quietly,burying his face in Hypno’s chest.

“Sorry-I’m not- ‘m not even that upset about it this just happens-”

“You’re an emotional person. I’m used to it.” Hypno murmured softly,resting his chin on Rainbow’s head.

“Th-thanks. Ugh.” He sniffled again,trying to pull back so he didn’t get tears and whatever else all over Hypno. Hypno responded to this by pushing him close again.

“I gotcha,Rainy.”

“...th-thank you.” Rainbow hugged him tightly.

Hypno curled his tail around both of them.

“You know what I think?”

“H-hm?”

“I think you’re right. And I bet they think of you every time they look up.” He purred.

Rainbow sniffled again before laughing softly.

“It-it would make more sense to think of Galaxy,though.”

“Sandwich boy? Nahhh,he gets enough attention. They think of you.”

“You’re ridiculous. I-I already have rainbows!”

Hypno finally moved back to wipe Rainbow’s tears with a clawed hand.

“They can think of you for both. It isn’t really hard. I’ve seen just about everything. And everything reminds me of you.”

Rainbow squeaked softly before more tears came out.

“Hy-hypno-o-” He whimpered,wiping his eyes again.

“I know,I know…” Hypno smiled apologetically,patting his head. “Emotional.”

“...Sh-shut up.”

“Heh.”

“...h-hard to believe you’re the same steve who tormented me with hallucinations-”

“Hard to believe you didn’t give up on me.”

“Heheh…they called me a madman…”

“...’s that a reference?”

“Yeah but Sabre never explained what to.”

“That sounds about right.”

Hypno pulled part of the blanket over them again as they went back to snuggling,tails curling around eachother.

“...well,the stars make me think of Galaxy,anyway. I hope that dummy is doing alright.” Rainbow giggled.

“If he hadn’t driven Alex insane by the time I left,he never will.” Hypno smiled knowingly at him.

“We can only hope! …I hope everyone there is alright.”

“Once they aren’t,they’ll come join us!”

“Ha,true…”

Rainbow sighed,scratching Hypno’s horns again. Hypno trilled affectionately.

“...Do you think Blue can see stars,wherever he is? …guardian said…”

“Like I said,everything reminds me of you.” Hypno said calmly. “It’s the same for Blue. Even if he doesn’t see stars,he sees you in everything.”

Rainbow ran his fingers over his heart tattoo,smiling shyly.

“You think so?”

“I know so,Rainbow. I know everything,or don’t you remember how right I was?” Hypno gave him a smug look.

Rainbow snickered,shoving him.

“You’re a dork!”

“I wonder who I picked that up from.”

They stared at eachother for a moment,locked in stalemate. Then Rainbow started giggling and both of them collapsed again in laughter,broken only when Rainbow pulled the stitched steve close and kissed him.

Even after all this time,Hypno still felt fuzzy when Rainbow kissed him. Not quite butterflies,at least not the way Rainbow described the bugs. More like a swarm of bats during a lightning storm,in a good way. Like lighting up a cave that was meant to stay in darkness forever. Like putting down a repeater to complete a machine. Like ink blending with a wet page. Like it was supposed to go together. Like Hypno and Rainbow.

Hypno tangled his mismatched hands in Rainbow’s hair,pulling him close and kissing him breathless until they both felt fuzzy. The properly colored steve finally pulled away from the heated session after one more kiss,panting.

“Breathe,Rainbow- oh wait–”

Rainbow made an incredibly wrong choked gasping sound. Hypno shook his head with a sigh.

“We really gotta fix that.”

“Hey,it’s how I breathe! I can’t help it,man! >:c”

“You reallyyyyy need to learn how to breathe. I’ll teach ya! 0>"

“Ooh,yay!”

An inevitable future disaster,but one Hypno was ready for.

Rainbow hummed before biting his lip.

“...What?” Hypno asked,head tilted.

“...I wanna stay like this.” Rainbow admitted. “Like here,with you.”

“Sure,so do I. Nowhere else I’d rather be!”

Rainbow tried to smile,but faltered.

“...Something’s wrong in the overworld.” He confessed quietly.

“......Something’s always wrong there. Alex and Galaxy and Sabre can handle it!” Hypno tried to reassure him.

“But Guardian’s worried.” Rainbow’s lower lip trembled. “Guardian’s NEVER worried about the overworld.”

“...He’s an anxious guy.” Hypno tried.

“Not about this.” Rainbow shook his head. “It’s bad,Hypno,I’m scared.”

Hypno pulled him closer.

“Look,I got rid of the single biggest threat. Right? Ori’s long gone. If there’s someone or something new,I’m sure they can take it. Maybe it’s demon steves and that’s what's making our angel all twitterpaited.”

He stroked Rainbow’s hair.

“You’re scared that they’ll end up here?”

Rainbow shook his head.

“...I-I’m scared I’ll have to go back.”

He whispered like he was ashamed of it,curling into the blanket.

“I was the “hero” for so long- a-and I loved it! I love making people happy and saving them! …but everything back then…the mess with Void-” Hypno bristled as Rainbow mentioned the cloaked asshole. “I just…I want peace. I don’t wanna have to be the one who fixes it again.”

He stared up with big anxious eyes.

“Is that bad…?”

“Rainbow,if you wanted to conquer the planet I would be the first to slay and worship in your honor. If you wanted fire,I would set the sky ablaze to keep you warm. If you wanted Sabre gone,I would bring him to you like a fox proud of a kill. You can do anything and everything,and in my eye it isn’t bad. But this especially. You’re fine.”

Rainbow visibly relaxed in relief,sighing quietly.

“...You’re weird when you’re supportive,but somehow it works.”

“Weird but somehow it works is kinda my whole thing,if ya haven’t noticed!”

“I actually have!” Rainbow giggled.

Hypno purred,his eye seemingly glowing.

“How about this. If someone has to go,I’ll do it! I’ll fix everything,wrap it up in a neat little bow,and come right back to you! And then you can shower me in praise again!”

“Pfft-I did not shower you in praise.”

“Funny,cause how I remember it-”

“Shut uppp!!”

They both quietly laughed before Rainbow hummed again.

“...Would you really do that for me?”

“I would do ANYTHING for you,Rainbow.”

Rainbow smiled so sweetly.

“Even make a fool out of yourself by talking to the stars to keep me updated?” He teased.

Hypno groaned,but then laughed again.

“For you? Every chance I got.”

Rainbow pulled him in for another kiss,making Hypno’s tail wag quickly.

“...And you’d really come back?” Rainbow asked,quietly.

“I’ll always come back to you,Rainbow. Dead or alive,I’ll make it home.” Hypno said in utter confidence,looking him in the eyes.

Rainbow’s smile far eclipsed every star in the sky as he pulled Hypno in for another kiss.

—

…

“I’ll make it back to you,Rainbow.”

Hypno promised,reaching a hand up towards the stars as that Rainbow aurora fell over them again.

“Dead or alive,I’ll make it back home.

I promise.”

…Almost as soon as he said it,clouds began to gather,blotting out some of the stars and starting to rain on him.

All Hypno could do was laugh.

“You’re so damn emotional,Rainbow.