a special lil drabble for @esperhuntress of our favorite fucking goblin
Keeping his horns from emerging was probably the most difficult part of the whole scam. Pretending to be that FOOL was easy enough. Smile politely enough, don't show the too sharp teeth--not fully changed, but undoubtedly sharper than a humans should be--, keep his vocabulary closer to the old one, listen semi attentively. No one knew the difference. But he did have to watch out, he knew the time he awoke he was not infected yet. But Monarch didn't know if his infected blood carried over to this timeline, and if it had, he did not want to infect anyone just yet.
No, the thing he found was actually the hardest part of the scam was... not warning GLYNDA GOODWITCH. When he awoke in bed with her tucked in his arms, he almost threw both of them from the bed in a panic.
SHE DID NOT WANT TO BE FORGOTTEN.
It still rung in his skull.
He still thought of the ENTITIES she COULD HAVE BEEN.
Monarch had inhaled sharply that morning and dug his blunt human nails into her fragile human skin, and the light sleeper she was meant she awoke right away. Bluffing through that had been unsteady, but believable. “I had a NIGHTMARE. I did not mean to wake you, love.” Pressing an ‘apologetic’ kiss to her cheek had sealed the deal.
Glynda merely mumbled his name and turned to return the kiss gently before drifting back to sleep. Monarch spent most of that night wide awake, staring at the ceiling of their shared room. The memories of what was to come flickering through his minds eye. He wondered if he could circumvent FORCED MOVE KING’s forming completely. Could he stop it before it began? He would have to perish too, but he believes he could stop it all. The few entities they had PUT DOWN for forming could be used as an explanation easy enough.
And that had bounced around his too tight skull for the next week, along with millions of other thoughts until he was left alone in his office with his hands clutching his head, skin too tight for his DIVINITY and his skull pounding. He doesn’t even feel his spines emerge, leaving sticky red blood drooling from his upper arms, or his claws start to dig into his scalp either. Doesn’t feel any of it as his mind SPINS. Monarch is just trying to keep from turning completely, if he goes fully, there is no stepping back.
But what he also doesn’t hear is the elevator slide open.
The SCAM is over.
Monarch’s head snaps up to look right at her and- his expression tightens as he brings his hand up to massage the side of his head. He manages to retract his spines, and force the dark taint on his arms to retreat back to the nails, but the blood remains, and he doesn’t know how much GLYNDA saw. She stands just inside the doorway. He stares back at her, red eyes flashing back to golden brown to complete the change.
“...Yes?”
Monarch doesn’t blame her. They continue to stare at each other, silently begging the other to move first before, finally, Monarch stands. Turns to look at the tiny puddles of blood on the floor beside his seat and then steps around it, toward GLYNDA. To her credit, she does not back up, even though she SHOULD.
He steps closer, calmly closing the distance until he is just before her. Only when there is barely a foot between them does she step back. She has pieced together what he is. She has not pieced together his motives, or what kind of ENTITY he is. He did not INFECT her when she had not run, nor did he ATTACK her when she startled him.
HE DOES NOT THINK HE COULD KILL HER A THIRD TIME.
Monarch reaches for her, only to halt his hand when he notices his own blood on it. Examines it before wiping his hand off on his pants. He would have to burn this set of clothes. But first... Monarch cups GLYNDA’s cheek with a thoughtful expression. There is no fear in her eyes. Trepidation, yes. Fear? No.
She leans carefully into his touch, putting her own hand over his. She shouldn’t. It’s foolish. He isn’t OZPIN. But she does anyway, and stares back at him before speaking. “When did you get infected?”
“I HAVEN’T, YET.”
He replies honestly. Because it’s true. He hadn’t been yet. Monarch strokes her cheek before retracting his hand and turning to look away.
“AND I CAN STOP IT FROM EVER HAPPENING. I JUST HAVE TO STOP THIS EXPERIMENT.”
GLYNDA doesn’t seem convinced. That’s fine.
She’ll thank him later.
