Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Glob was laughing at him, he was sure of it. How else could one explain the ridiculous circumstances he currently found himself in? 

An hour into the road trip he realised what a horrible mistake he’d made. Prismo was sitting backwards in his seat to look at Howell so they could argue nonsense about the best battle strategy to use in whatever ridiculous game the two liked. He could feel a vein begin to pop in his forehead when he noticed the two sat unbuckled as well.

After another thirty minutes of pointless arguing, Scarab finally broke.

“If you are going to spend this entire trip arguing, at the very least sit down properly . Glob knows the last thing we need is a cop pulling us over…” He said, eyes glued to the road but still keenly aware of the eyerolls his companions gave in response.

“Awe, c’mon Scrabby nothin’ll happen!” replied Prismo, though he still complied and flipped himself around, lazily reaching for the buckle and struggling for a half second before shooting Scarab a wide grin as if he had just accomplished the hardest task imaginable.

“W-hoo-ell, We’re barely out of the city anyways. Can’t you go any faster?” 

“I’d be going over the speed limit if I went any faster.”

“You’ll be stuck with us for waaaay longer if you don't step on it Scrabby.~” Singsonged Prismo in response. 

Now that was a horrifying idea. A grimace worked its way onto his face at the mere thought of having to spend more time with them, so he quietly pressed down on the pedal, the man next to him grinning widely at the action as he leaned back on his seat.

Another hour passed of not-so-quiet bickering between the two men and Scarab trying his best to tune it out, but with the boredom of monotonous driving he couldn’t help but listen in to the argument as it began getting more heated.

“I’m telling you man- Just because she’s been brainwashed doesn’t mean she's guiltless!”

“Bu-hoot that’s not the point! She’s trying to redeem herself, so why not give her the chance?”

“Ughhhhhhh!” Prismo shoved his head in his hands and sighed, after a second he chanced a glance at Scarab then poked his finger on his shoulder. “Whatcha think Scrabby? I know you like these edgy shows so you for sure watched this.”

Scarab had, indeed, watched the show. A dark fantasy about a witch slowly corrupted by the greed of her superiors trying and failing to make amends with her actions. Frankly, Scarab really enjoyed the show. He related to the main character's plight of being assigned a gruelling task then being punished for doing her job when the fault hadn’t fully been hers.

He thought for a second, looking at Prismo who looked right back at him with those stupid big blue eyes, then turned back to look at the road.

“She doesn’t deserve redemption.” He stated plainly which earned a gobsmacked sound from the man in the back. “She made her choices, made her decisions. Even after being told of the consequences of her actions she continued, well aware of what she’d be doing. It’s quite fitting for her to be punished for it.”

“Hah! Take that Cos!” Cheered Prismo before giving Scarab a light smack on the back. “Knew you’d agree with me Scrabby!”

“Pffsh- Big w-hoo-op…” 

Scarab just rolled his eyes at it all, though he couldn’t ignore the small feeling of pride bubbling in his chest when Prismo cheered for his answer. A weird sense of happiness causing the tips of his ears to go red. Prismo always seemed so eager to listen to his thoughts, always asking for his opinions on things. Scarab had no idea why he did that, why it seemed to matter to Prismo what he of all people thought. For some reason however, he couldn’t get himself to hate it.

Scarab decides that's something he’d rather not think about now, into the vault it goes.

When hour five hit Scarab finally had enough of the two men complaining about the fact they were out of chips and candy like it was the end of the world. Plus, it was right about time he refilled the gas in his car anyways, a quick pitstop wouldn’t hurt anyone.

“Alright, this is just a quick stop so don't-“ Before he could even finish the thought, Howell rushed out running and screaming “FOOD!” towards the shitty little convenience store next to the gas station.

“Great. He’s going to spend ages in there won’t he?” Scarab couldn’t help but grumble out, slamming the car door shut whilst Prismo quietly laughed behind him as he poured out of the car.

“Caaant blame him,” He’d start, stretching his arms out with a tired yawn. “He’s been starving for the past hour or so.”

“I am painfully aware.” Scarab couldn’t help but stare ever so slightly at Prismo. He had always been aware of how much taller Prismo was than him. Scarab was not a short man by any means, he stood taller than most people he met, yet still Prismo seemed to tower over him. He couldn’t tell if the feeling that elicited was fear or… something else. 

One again Scarab decided not to think about it. Into the vault it goes.

After Prismo was satisfied with popping what seemed to be every damn bone in his body, he turned to Scarab with a cheerful smile.

“So Scrabs, my turn drivin or are you goin’ to go the whole trip like that?”

He couldn’t help but groan at that, rubbing the bridge of his nose to try and soothe the headache that came about when he even tried to think about driving like that for another ten hours.

“Do you know how to drive a stick?”

“Of course I do!” though Prismo quickly paused, rubbed the back of his neck, something Scarab had come to notice was a nervous tick of his, then looked down at the floor. “Err.. Well, at least I think I do…”

“Reassuring.”

“Aw, cmon, give me a chance!”

“ Fine , but if you crash my car and it doesn’t kill us then I’m strangling you to death.” Scarab said, tossing the car keys at Prismo who fumbled to catch them.

“Sounds like a deal!” 

Prismo smiled as he admired the keys in his hand like they were some kind of precious treasure. 

That damned smile, Prismo was always the type to constantly smile but it felt like he rarely genuinely smiled recently. Why had Scarab noticed that? And why did Prismo seem so genuinely happy that Scarab trusted him (even if begrudgingly) enough to drive his car? Why was that damned smile so intoxicating?

He shook his head, another thought tossed into the vault.

After a few minutes of peaceful silence and a properly refuelled car, Howell finally emerged from the store carrying armfuls of packaged junk food. 

“Sorry for the delay but H-oo-ly shit that place was packed !” The man commented as he tossed some snacks into the back seat before handing a bag of cheesy snacks to Prismo and what seemed to be some kind of chip made from tea to Scarab. “Didn’t know what you like Scrabby so I just guessed, I think I remember you saying you like tea? H-oo-pe that's alright!”

Scarab felt a bit speechless at the act, fully expecting the shorter man to not grab Scarab a snack at all.

“No this.. This is fine, thank you Howell.” Scarab would say, though any pleasant thought was quickly shattered when Prismo playfully slapped him on the back.

“Gee, don’t get all sentimental on us now Scrabby!” he’d quip, earning a glare from Scarab and an eye roll from Howell.

“Just get in the car, Prismo.” was all Scarab said in response as he sat down in the passenger's seat. 

He really was starting to regret letting the two of them talk him into this road trip.

Chapter Text

Scarab hated admitting it, but Prismo really did know how to make someone get weirdly invested in a conversation. Thirty minutes into Prismos' turn driving and the two were already deeply invested in a very heated debate about if coffee or tea was better. Howell had decided early on this was not a debate he wanted to participate in and elected instead to take a nap, so it really had just been the two arguing for a bit too long than normal.

“At the very least I do not need to drown my tea in milk and sugar for it to be drinkable.”

“Aw c’mooon, Like- Okay, tea is good and all,” Prismo started again, waving a hand around for emphasis as he spoke, never quite letting his gaze leave the road but tilting his head slightly towards Scarab whenever he started speaking. “But you just gotta admit that coffee is better! You can do more with it!”

That made Scarab scoff, the smile he’d been so desperately fighting off threatening to reveal itself as he slapped Prismos shoulder. “You say that as if there is only one type of tea. Truly, have you ever tried anything other than the terrible bags they have at the office?”

Prismo whistled in response, moving his hand to smooth out a couple of messy curled pink and brown locks out as he thought, Scarab's eyes wandered to the sight. Prismo’s hair seemed almost impossibly soft, a part of Scarab thought that if he were to run his fingers through those locks they’d feel like running his hand through a cloud.

“Well…” Prismos voice startled him out of the thought, his eyes quickly dashing to stare at the road to distract himself from staring at Prismos hair. “I mean, what’s the point of buying tea if I won’t like it?”

“You won’t know until you try it , Prismo.”

“Yeah, but I mean- What if I don’t? Then what? Just have a box of tea I won’t drink around?”

“Glob, you’re unbelievable.” Scarab said, a small laugh escaping him that he hoped and prayed sounded like another scoff. “Alright, let's compromise then. If I make you tea from my own collection will you try it?”

For the first time in the past thirty minutes Prismo turned to look at him and if Scarab had been staring at Prismo back he would’ve found a face painted with pleasant surprise. He let out a small laugh before turning to look at the road again.

“Sounds like a plan, Scrabby.” He said and made no attempt to hide the clear and obvious glee sounding in his voice. Scarab chose not to think about why that’d make the man so happy and instead focused on fiddling with the bag of tea chips Howell had given him.

They drifted into a comfortable silence for the next hour or so. Prismo was a surprisingly good driver, though a bit distracted. More than once Scarab would have to point out a turn Prismo almost missed or tell him what exit was the right one to take which Prismo laughed off and thanked him for each time.

“So hey, Scrabby,” Prismo started, tilting his head ever so slightly in his direction again, pink curls following and Scarab was suddenly keenly aware of how close the two of them were. “I don’t think I’ve ever asked you this- What do ya even do outside of work?”

“What do you mean?”

“Like, do you have hobbies? Friends? I don’t think I’ve ever seen you do anything besides work, work, work.” Prismos' voice went deeper to mimic Scarabs' voice at the end there before smiling at his own stupid joke.

Scarab hummed in response, choosing to ignore the tease and instead answer truthfully. “While it might shock you to learn, I do have a couple of close friends.”

“Wow, color me surprised. The feared crimson auditor has friends !” Prismo quickly responded, earning a scowl from Scarab. “Must be nice company then, if they’ve earned you of all people over.”

Scarab simply hummed in response, his friends were.. An interesting bunch, people he’d met early on in college and decided to stick with as they all decided the company was tolerable enough. Better suffering with someone than completely alone. He did not miss his college days.

“Well, you’ve got friends but what about hobbies? Anythin’ interesting in your weekend plans?”

“Well, I guess I do quite a bit of reading during my spare time… I’ve been reading a fair amount of mystery dramas and dark fantasy recently.” He’d say, earning a surprised hum from Prismo.

“Guess I should've expected you’d like reading. You should totally throw me some recommendations! I've been so out of my reading game recently.”

That surprised Scarab, he was well aware Prismo was an avid reader. Not just a reader but a writer as well, he’d caught the man writing fanfiction at his desk more than once. Curiosity won over his usual indifference. “Any particular reason why?” he asked.

“Eeeeh…” Prismo waved his hand around in the air, his previous smile dropping ever so slightly. “Alotta reasons, I guess. Fell into a slump because of it.”

Scarab couldn’t help but notice how vague Prismo was being, he was usually such an open book. He considered questioning the man next to him for a second but quickly shook the idea away. It was none of Scarabs' business, even if the way Prismos' smile turned into a frown ever so slightly bothered him in a way he couldn’t explain.

“I can tell you some recommendations once we’re at the hotel.” Scarab started, his voice softer than he meant it to be. He didn’t know why he felt that way, why Prismo so easily tore down his walls.

Prismos smile returned, a bit calmer, a bit softer. “Thanks Scrabby, I’d appreciate it.”

Chapter Text

They were nearing the final stretch and Scarab could feel his energy begin to reach its end.
While he had found the majority of the trip surprisingly tolerable, enjoyable even (though he’d loathe to admit it), Scarab was running out of fuel for so much social interaction. He was almost impressed, really, with how much Prismo and Howell both spoke and how much they managed to make him speak. The two seemed to have a knack for spinning meaningless conversation for hours on end.

As the hours passed, Scarab managed to follow along with the conversations decently enough. Not as invested as he had been, nor as focused as he was at the start of the trip, but noticeably relaxed enough to respond without any hint of sarcasm or venom in his voice. Finding himself enjoying the sound of the two speaking.

“Man, Scrabby, you’d love Risk.” Started Howell in another weak attempt to get Scarab to play boardgames with him. Something the man had been attempting for months- always saying that ‘the games get boring if it's only him and Prismo’ which was reasoning that Scarab usually shrugged off, but after hearing the man complain for about 3 hours about the subject matter he had to admit that it was finally getting to him. 

“It’s the type of thinky game I think you’-hoot-d like.” He’d continue, looking at Scarab with a gaze filled with hopeful expectation.

Scarab couldn’t help but let out a breathy laugh at that, a bit surprised Howell had games he thought someone like him would enjoy. He chanced a glance to Prismo and caught the pink haired man staring right back at him with a look Scarab could only guess was curiosity for what his answer would be. The two truly looked like their worlds would end if Scarab said no.

“Fine,” He finally said with a tired sigh and Howell smiled so widely Scarab thought the man's teeth would fall right out of his face. “You brought it with you?”

“Game should be in my bags. Cos brought way too many games so he hogged some of my bag space.” Said Prismo before Howell could respond, earning Prismo a quick slap on the shoulder from the man sitting in the back seat.

“You never know man! Maybe I can bring some to the office party…”

“Oh yeah, cuz drunk people loooove playing complicated board games. If you pull out Catan again I swear to glob I’m walking out.” Prismo would respond before pausing in thought, then letting out a loud, hardy laugh. “Oh man, I just remembered- You remember that one time we were playing jenga with shots and you face planted on the table then passed out?”

Scarab couldn’t help but let out a surprised laugh at that, the image of the scene conjured in his head and the tiredness seeping into him not aiding in keeping his usual aloof persona up. If Scarab was more lucid; he'd have noticed the two men staring at him completely gobsmacked, Howell embarrassed that that was what managed to make the feared crimson auditor laugh and Prismo a mix of surprised and awestruck at hearing the other genuinely laugh for the first time.

“Prismo, c’mon man! That was like one time!” Complained the man, a mix of embarrassment and amusement in his face as Scarab let out another audible chuckle.

“Hey it’s not my fault you getting shitfaced makes for a good laugh!” Replied the other, clearly just teasing his friend for fun.

“Glob, the two of you are insufferable .” Scarab finally said, punctuated with a breathy laugh. He pinched the bridge of his nose as he straightened up in his seat, finally fixing the slouch he had fallen into as he listened to the two argue. “I am amazed you two manage to function like normal human beings with the way you act.”

“Awww, you love us.” Prismo said, a goofy grin spreading on his face that Scarab tried not to stare at. He didn’t understand why his face suddenly felt warm. “I mean- Who else is gonna drag you out of your office after work hours for drinks?”

“I think you overestimate my willingness during those little outings.” Scarab replied with a scoff that sounded a bit too soft to be genuinely annoyed. In truth, he did appreciate it. Being taken out of the office, out of that hyper fixated state he tended to fall into when he was too invested in his work. Regardless, he had an image to maintain. “I’m not much of a drinker anyways.”

“Dude. I think you’re the only person in the w-hoo-le office w-hoo can drink someone like Orbo under the table.” Howell piped up, half chewing on his final stick of beef jerky. “Wouldn’t be as fun without you, you really know how to rile people up.”

“Pffh- yeah, in more ways than one.” Prismo remarked.

“I am going to choose to interpret that as a compliment.” Scarab said, glaring daggers at the pink haired man next to him. “And it really isn’t that hard to outdrink Orbo, he tends to mix his drinks and he always drinks on an empty stomach. I’m just smarter than him.” That final comment came out with more snark than he intended, earning a quiet ‘ooooh’ from Howell.

“Man, if you’re that confident then just wait till I tell him that. I’m sure he’d be more than glad to challenge you there.”

“Don’t you dare. ” Scarab quickly responds, already feeling a headache from the mere idea “I’d never hear the end of it from him, he already pesters me enough I don’t need you adding more fuel to the fire.”

Prismo laughs in response, content with simply annoying the other with the idea. Regardless, Prismo had never been the type to snitch, Scarab knew he would’ve never told Orbo any comment he could’ve possibly made about the aussie, be it positive or negative and he found himself thankful for it.

After a few more minutes of quiet driving Prismo perked up, looking around before smiling and turning to his two companions. “I think we’re almost to the hotel! I finally started recognizing places here. ”

Scarab responded with a quiet hum, looking around for any familiarity of his own. He had barely been to Ooo before, he couldn’t say he was too fond of the city, but he was well aware Prismo was very fond of the place. “You had family or something here, right?”

“Heh, I guess you could say that…” Prismo rubbed the back of his neck, eyes looking around the night sky with something Scarab felt looked like sad nostalgia. “A.. good friend of mine used to live here, came here all the time to visit him and his family- Still do! I hang out with his younger brother a lot ever since he, um.. Since he passed. I think it’s been helpful for the two of us, to not feel as alone.”

Scarab was a bit flabbergasted at the reveal, looking at Prismo and finding the sad, small smile that made the man look so small and vulnerable, like any little thing would break him. Scarab was never one to comfort, he was never good with emotions in general. Still, he found his hand moving to give Prismos shoulder a small squeeze before he could stop himself.

“I’m sorry for your loss.” He stated plainly, unsure if it’d be enough, but it was. Prismo let out a quiet chuckle, a sad little thing, but Scarab could see a bit of light return to the man's eyes.

“Thanks Scrabby, really.”

“Hey, maybe we can visit Finn!” Howell piped up, grabbing the head of Scarabs' seat to prop himself up and closer to the two. “That’s the younger brother- I know we’re here on business and all but I think it’d be nice. We can probably get him to play games with us too!”

Howell's hidden agenda made Scarab roll his eyes, and while he’d usually be firmly against the idea of doing something like that while on a business trip the man next to him gave him a look filled with so much hope he already knew what his answer would be before Prismo even asked.

“Would that be okay? I mean- I know you’re a stickler for rules ‘nd all- And that's great!-” Prismo began to ramble and Scarab felt his heart melt, just a bit. He.. Didn’t want to think about that right now, instead he turns his focus back to the night sky as Prismo continues to talk. “It’d mean a lot though, to me. I think you’d like Finn! He’s- He’s cheerful, brave, pretty strong too! Kids grown a fuck ton these past few years and well-”

“Prismo,” Scarab interrupted and the man flinched ever so slightly, fully expecting Scarab to shoot the idea down. “It’s fine. We have plenty of time, we can go visit your friend.”

There was a small pause, both men staring at Scarab with surprise before Prismo wrapped an arm around Scarab and pulled him into a hug.

“Thanks Scrabby! Aw- man you will NOT regret this!” Prismo beamed and Scarab felt his face heat up once

“If you do not unhand me and place your damned hand back on the wheel I will cancel the idea!” Scarab yelled, making Prismo return to an appropriate stance for someone driving a damned vehicle.

“I’ll send him a message, I’m sure we can make some time in the coming days.” Said Howell, already pulling out his phone to message the man the two seemed so excited to see.

Scarab could feel this trip slowly turning into a longer ordeal than he wanted it to be.