Chapter Text
Growling under his breath, Pennywise glanced over to his left, through the sides of his eyes.
That was all it took.
From there, the bumpy-skinned orange sphere was practically shoved into his face.
Shoved.
Didn't matter if they were polite about it.
"Please?"
He scowled. Maybe it wouldn't have been so bad if he wasn't crouched down at the time. But if he knew anything about what the little boy preferred when it came to their conversations-slash-debates, it was being at the same eye level.
At least then Georgie didn't have to shout like he was trying to reach someone atop a skyscraper.
But past that, that was when Pennywise felt the 'spirit of cooperation' fizzle out of him.
He looked away, arms folding.
"No, GeorgIe."
"Just a taste?"
Pennywise scowled, wiping drool from his chin, eyeline angled off into the distance, unwavering. It wasn't his close proximity to the child making him salivate (though that might have contributed a bit). Rather, it was fault of the memories were assaulting his consciousness. The very tingle of citrus held too near his nose made his lips curl involuntarily.
"No. You didn'T see what happeNed last time."
Georgie blinked, tilted his head, holding the baseball-sized fruit with both hands. If he couldn't get a reaction, could he at least get a story out of the bargain?
"Why? What was it last time?"
With his suit's bells tinging for emphasis, Pennywise shuddered at being forced to remember.
Still, he rattled off an answer.
"KiwIs. LeMons. CucumbErs. CeleRy. The liSt goes on."
If the Losers aren't trying to forcefeed them to me, having them turn up where I least expect is just as 'good', apparently.
"I didn't see any of those. How do I know you're not just making that up?"
It, the cosmic horror from outer space, master of manipulatory illusions, older than the universe itself, who preyed on the fears and flesh of (most of) the children of Derry, Maine every twenty-seven-years.
"You don'T."
Making things up.
Neeever.
And yet, that he hated fruits and vegetables with all the fiery passion of countless burning stars...
Now that took some anaylizing to understand.
Kinda like the attributation of male pronouns to a creature that, by definition, was asexual in every sense of the word.
Human brains. Something about assigning "he" or "she" to whatever was being referred to made it somehow easier for them to grasp, to understand.
But we're getting off track here.
Back to the orange.
Which Pennywise was still turning his nose up at.
Like a snooty cat who found their new brand of food "ohh, most unappetizing".
"Give iT to someoNe else, GeorgIe. You'd just be waSting it, giviNg it to me."
Trying to give it to me. Points for trying.
Nothing worked better on convincing Georgie Denbrough of something than accusing the boy of being potentially-wasteful. 'Twas a sin, wasn't it?
"You don't waNt to lose your boat. Bill's gonna kiLl you."
Georgie frowned, ever reconsidering.
"Well... I am a little hungry."
He rolled the fruit over in his hands, looking thoughtful.
"But there's nothing to cut it with here. Or wash it."
There probably was, in the house. But Pennywise wouldn't ask Georgie to take a chance on that. Any silverware left in 29 Neibolt was decades old, neglected, well beyond its intended lifetime of use.
He couldn't do anything about cleaning off the morsel.
But, what if...
"HaNd it over."
Raising an inquisitive eyebrow, Georgie did.
With one hand, Pennywise held the orange close to his face, examining it with a critical eye. Yes, he could work with that.
The other hand, he morphed it into a crude imitation of a Swiss army knife. All sharp edges and scissoring joints. A regular Edward Scissorhands would-be homage come to life.
He cut horizontally, from both sides. With one clean snip of the knife-like digits, the orange was cleaved into two neat halves atop the clown's gloved palm.
Georgie still marveled at the feat like a novel magic trick (which wasn't far off from the truth).
"Wow!"
Snapping his bladed digits, It's hand returned to human shape. "TheRe, enjoy."
He tried handing both portions over, but to his quiet dismay, the boy only snatched one away.
Then Georgie grabbed the sticky glove, folding Pennywise's long digits back over the remaining orange half, and pushed the dripping extremity back toward the clown.
"Half for you!"
His guardian pulled a face at that, a long, profound frown. The fruit's split molecules were already stinging his senses, they were so tart.
It's gonna be the lemon all over again.
"GeorgIe..."
His pleading tone didn't work.
"C'mon, Penny, it can't be that bad, right?"
And just to make an example of himself, Georgie raised his half in an impromptu toast, then bit deep.
"Mmm! See?"
Pennywise looked down at his waiting sample, going completely still. He ran his tongue across the back of his teeth, uneasy.
Well, there was no getting out of this now.
Sensing Georgie's disappointment had become something like enduring a battery acid burn to the cosmic being.
It would smart long after the initial pain dulled.
And...
He stared down at the sectioned half, felt the juice soaking into his glove. He could almost hear the other Losers, goading-slash-cheering him on.
"What the hey?" Ben would say.
"There are worse things," Stan would reason.
"You only live once," Richie would concur.
"You live every day, you only die once," Eddie would object.
"Better a man than a mouse," Bill would add.
"Is It a man or a mouse?" Mike would ask.
"Better It be a man than a mouse, anytime," Beverly would endorse.
Eyes falling shut, Pennywise lifted the orange to his mouth and bit.
. . .
Nothing.
No ballistic spazzing.
No jolts of unease.
No inherent, uncontrollable repulsion.
It was... surprisingly pleasant.
The pulpy texture, combined with the sharp-yet-sweet taste.
The leaking half of orange stayed clutched in the creature's jagged, oversized teeth. The tips had punctured the thick outer skin with ease.
Experimentally, he gave a little pull on it, tearing off some of the fruit's flesh. The stringy white fibers seperated easily between the pointed fangs. Then he chewed carefully, mouth shut.
He opened an eye, glancing over at his newly-designated 'snacktime partner'.
It was worth the reward.
With a smile to rival the brightness of Sol, Georgie beamed back at him, juice dribbling down his face.
"Told you."