JackieBoy-Man: Protecting [Y/N]
{The sequel to "Anti Dealing with Troublesome Y/N}
The first thing Jackie noticed when he opened the door to the house was a plethora of noises which didnāt seem to mesh quite right. The first sound was gentle snoring, unmistakably Antiās, with the wheeze of air through the neck wound and distortion of his voice; the second was a tiny, muffled, terrified screaming; and the third was an uncomfortably noisy gurgling stomach. This miasma of noise stabbed suspicion right into Jackieās heart and he crept closer to the source: Anti, sleeping peacefully on the couch with an uncharacteristically swollen and lumpy abdomen. Near enough to understand what he was seeing, he realized that he was hearing [Y/N]ās voice coming from inside Anti. They were screaming for help and squirming hard to escape.
His eyes widened as he paled and gasped softly, ā[Y/N]!ā
āI-itāll be okay bud, Iāll find a way to getcha outta there! Ju-just hold on!ā He whispered, racking his brain for a solution.
What should he do? If he punched Anti to make him throw them up, heād likely wind up hurting them, too. If he shoved his finger down the glitchās throat, there was a good chance heād end up getting cut. Or worse, end up in the same scenario as [Y/N]. How did Anti even get them in there?! Did Henrik have any ipecac left after the last poisoning incident? No, there wasnāt enough time to go looking! Who knew how long theyād been in there.
Anti began to stir and all thoughts flew from Jackieās mind. His chest tightened and his breath hitched in his throat, so he did the only thing he could think of. He cocked his right arm back, summoned his flame aura to his fist, and socked Anti in the gut.
Oh God why did I do that?! I hope I missed them!!
Anti was flung into a sitting position with his jet black eyes bugged out. He yelled something incoherent before he groaned and doubled over, leaned to the side, heaved, and threw up. Out popped [Y/N], who fell to the carpet with a small-sounding scream. They were so tiny! Barely six inches tall if Jackieās guess was right. Anti began to sway, so Jackie grabbed them and took off for the nearest bathroom. He held them tight to his chest as he sprinted down the hall, took a left, took another left, and slammed the door behind him with his foot. Anti would be livid after this. Jackie needed to find a way to protect them, but first he had to get them clean!
He locked the door and leaned his back against it, panting hard and sweating. Not from exertion, mind, he was a professional hero after all. No, he was trembling in his boots and swallowing hard on a dry mouth. He hadnāt even peeked to make sure [Y/N] was okay yet. He had to check, though, even though he was afraid of what he might see⦠what he might have done when he punched Anti.
He gulped and shook his head, steeling his nerves, āAre you alright, buddy?ā
A tiny voice piped up from against his chest, āI-I thinkā I think so⦠Thank you, Jackie.ā
Finally, he dared peek at the miniaturized friend in his hands. They seemed mostly unharmed, if soaked in saliva and bile in their destroyed pajamas. Dark bags sagged below their eyes, which mightāve been bloodshot but were so small he couldnāt tell. They were pale, which made sense considering where theyād just been. He stepped up to the sink and ran some warm water.
āLetās getcha cleaned up,ā he murmured, āYa look like yeāve been through the wringer.ā
āFeels like it, too,ā they nodded, edging off his palm and onto the sink.
Jackie stopped the drain and his ears perked to the approaching sound of stomping feet. Anti was coming and Jackie still didnāt know how to protect his friend! He turned the water off to hopefully throw the demon off their trail, but he knew better. Anti was clever, it wouldnāt work.
He glanced at the door and whispered to [Y/N], āHurry, wash up and Iāll getcha outta the house.ā
Anti was pounding on the door already, demanding that Jackie āget his ass out here with that little menace so he can eat them againā. How about no? [Y/N] hurriedly splashed around in the sink before Jackie felt them tugging at his sleeve. He looked down so fast his neck popped. They were soaking wet and had both hands up, grasping at the air and bouncing on the balls of their feet in the childlike signal for āupā.
āJackie, eat me!ā they begged.
āI just spent the last two hours in Antiās stomach, Iāll be fine in yours!ā
He felt the blood drain from his face as he glanced at his watch. Two hours? Did that mean Anti got them while they were sleeping? Just like him to prey on someone when they canāt fightā the door rattled on its hinges as the glitch-demon outside grew impatient and began cursing at Jackieboy. But to swallow [Y/N] so soon after freeing them from that very situation was wrong! How could he do that to his friend? He couldnāt!
āThereās no time! Heās going to break that door down and Iād rather be in your stomach than his!ā
ā[Y/N], Iā¦ā he gulped hard on nothing and turned to them, āI couldnāt possibly do that to ya!ā
āDo we have another option?! Hurry!ā
The door rattled harder with a heavy āthunk!ā that sounded like Anti was throwing his body at it. He fidgeted in place, but jumped when the door began to crack.
He set his hand on the sink with an open palm, āOkay, okay. I donāt like this, but fine! Cāmere.ā
The now-tiny [Y/N] jumped onto his palm and hugged his thumb as they kneeled. He brought them up to his face and hesitated. This felt so wrong, but he couldnāt come up with any other solution. Anti hit the door once more and Jackie was showered with splinters. He gasped and opened his mouth, then tilted his head back a little ways. They practically threw themself into his maw and he choked somewhat, then tried not to gag. They tasted like watered down bile.
Something whizzed past his ear and he gulped. He felt their head and arms pop into his throat as the thing that missed him by centimetres embedded itself in the tile wall in front of him. Antiās knife. He needed to do this quickly. Another swallow and their legs were in his mouth. The door crashed open and he closed his mouth as he turned to see Anti panting and glitching in rage.
āGĢ·ive.Ģ· tĢ”haĶ¢t.Ķ lĶ¢i̧tĶ”tleĶ”.Ķ” ĶshiĶtĶ¢. bĢøackĢ!ā
āNm-mn,ā Jackie shook his head and [Y/N] squirmed, trying to worm their way down his throat. His stomach churned and greasy feeling started at the base of his tongue. He wanted to throw up.
āTĢ”heyĢ·'ĶrĶe ĢØmĢiĶ”nĢ“eĢ·!ā
He finally swallowed hard one last time and grimaced as he felt their descent. Anti snarled as Jackie gagged, then burped and wiped his mouth. The knife reappeared in the glitchās hand and he leveled it at Jackieās abdomen as it swelled ever-so-slightly. He never broke eye contact.
āFi̵neĢØ. ĶBuĶt Ķyouād Ģ¢bĶ”ettĶeĶr kĶeĶ¢eĢ·pĶ tĢ·heĢ”mĶ dĶowĢn, oĢrĢ Ģ§yĶ ou'ĶrĶeĢØ ĶnĶext.Ķā
āIām not lettinā ya hurt āem.ā He flexed his abs, the slight distention disappearing behind muscle, āIāll protect āem, whatever it takes.ā
Anti growled, stabbed his knife into the wooden door frame, and stomped off back to the living room. āWatĶcĢ“h yĢ“oĢøurĶ baĶ”cĶkĢ, hĶe̶rĶo.ā
Jackie waited until the knife disappeared in a small puff of staticy black smoke to relax and let [Y/N]ās bulge return to his belly, then put his hand over them. There was a good chance that he was about to throw up even if he didnāt force it. Theyād shifted around inside his stomach in such a way that made him incredibly queasy. Even though they seemed to be sitting still, he could feel their every subtle movement, from breathing to hugging their knees. God, this was all wrong!
His breaths were shaky as he traced their outline with his fingertips and stared at the door across the hallway. Oh God, heād just swallowed his friend and now they were inside his stomach! How had it come to this? He couldnāt bring himself to move. He just stood rigidly, disgusted with himself but unable to truly bring himself to vomit. It was true that Anti couldnāt get them now, and theyād lasted two hours in the glitchās stomach, but how long would they last in his? He had to go see Henrik and get them out, then find another way to protect and get them back to their original size. Marvin needed to know that Anti had done this, so did SeĆ”n. Especially SeĆ”n.
āJackie? Hey! Jackie!ā [Y/N] piped up, their voice seeming to come from inside his head, āHEY! Are you okay out there?!ā
He didnāt respond at first, couldnāt bring his mouth to work.
A small collision rippled through his gut, āJACKIE!ā
āWha-?ā He shook himself, snapping back to reality.
That was ironic, they were worried about his well being.
He chuckled haltingly, āI-Iām alright, but what about you? This is the second time today yeāve been swallowed!ā
āIāll be fine, donāt worry. And thank you.ā
āFer what?ā He furrowed his brow but never stopped rubbing their outline.
āSaving me. Protecting me. Getting me out of Antiās stomach.ā
āBut I putcha back in the same situation!ā
He felt them place a hand against the lining of his stomach, āNot really. I mean, I asked you to. Youāre protecting me, not⦠whatever it was he wanted to do to me.ā
Jackie legs finally collapsed from beneath him and he fell to the ground, landing hard on his ass, as he put a hand to his head. What had Anti wanted to do to them? Probably digest them, if he guessed right. Oh god! Digest them! Adrenaline tipped into his system and he jumped back to his feet.
āIāve gotta see the Doc and getcha outta me! Then weāll see Marvin about fixing this!ā
He resisted gulping on a dry mouth again and shakily made his way out of the bathroom, taking a roundabout route to Henrikās office. If he wanted to fix this, the Doc would be the best person to see. He needed to hurry, but his feet felt so sluggish and unresponsive and the short trip down the hallways of the big house felt like an eternity. Anti would need to answer for this, but first [Y/N] needed to be safe.
He covered their outline with his hand, āLike Iāve said before: I promise Iām gonna keep ya safe, [Y/N]. No matter what it takes.ā