Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Pomni was sat on the floor with her back facing Jax, who lay on the sofa staring absentmindedly at the TV. She was following a tutorial Gangle had given her on how to make a wearable flower badge. This was her 5th attempt and it was turning out to be harder than Gangle made it out to be. The buggy paper definitely didn't help the fact that her gloves were way to thick to easily pick up the paper. She continued with this struggle for another 10 minutes until finally it was complete. The almost perfectly shaped flower that would soon, hopefully, be worn on Jax's overalls. The flower had little amount of grip so Jax would have to be careful with it on adventures.

She began to stand, concealing the flower in her hands, protecting it from the prying eyes of anyone who could be watching. This flower was the little gift to Jax if he reciprocated her strong feelings towards him. She knew it was childish and silly but it felt like who she was deep down. Just a little girl who struggled to love but when she did, she loved hard. Ever since she arrived here she felt a certain gravity towards him. Whether it be his distinct appearance or his wild swings between heartfelt bunny and frustrating but kind of funny rabbit she knew he was right for her. Just like she knew he hated his heartfelt side even though it was apart of him no matter what. She knew that if he were to push her away, he would feel guilty. Just like he did about how he treated Gangle but with her, as he put it, he 'doesn't feel guilty enough' to apologise to her. He would, she hoped, feel guilty enough to apologise to her.

He always made sure not to go too far with any pranks against her because deep down he didn't want her to be mad at him for too long. He wanted her to be his friend but he still felt the lingering thought of 'Push her away. It's for her own good. She doesn't care about you. When people are in crisis they make decisions against their better judgement. She didn't 'choose' you.' He couldn't stop the thought, only push it down until it lead to a meltdown that would push her away anyway. He always let his brain decide and not his heart. Whether it be with Ribbit or Kaufmo he always did what his 'act' wanted. This time though... this time he wanted things to change. He wanted to be better. No just for her but, for once, him.

Pomni turned around and slowed her breathing that had began to quicken. If she were in the real world right now her heart would have been going a million miles an hour. She was ready as she'd ever be. It felt as if all the lights in the circus shined on him whenever he graced her with his gentle, real smile. The first time she saw him physically drop his 'act' she knew that she would grow to love his gentle side, even if at the time she only thought as a friend. She knew she was getting ahead of herself when she imagined this but she could just picture Caine being kind enough to arrange date adventures for Jax and her. Oh and Zooble and Gangle because she couldn't deny that those two are the cutest couple she had ever lay both her human or digital eyes on.
She stepped towards Jax, who still lay on the sofa by now staring at the artificial sky Caine had placed in the air.

"Um Jax ca..." She cleared her throat, "Can I talk to you?"
She was now holding the flower behind her back. She would only show the flower if he reciprocated her feelings. She didn't want to be ridiculed. 'He wouldn't do that to her... right?' she thought.
"Yeah what's up Pom Pom?" Jax asked, swinging is legs down from the arm rest.
That stupid nickname made her want to melt into a pile of not only embarrassment but adoration. She could feel her blush spots growing. She made sure her hair was Infront of her cheeks to attempt to hide said unfortunate feature of her avatar.

"Yeah so I... I just wanted to say how I really like having you as a friend and I'm hoping you feel the same...." Pomni mumbled.
Pomni stood there shuffling her feet, wondering what to say next.
"That cannot be it! You literally interrupted my shockingly entertaining session of staring at the sky! You are unbelievable!" Jax said sarcastically, as his smile grew to a devious grin.
He lent over from his seat and ruffled her hair.
"Come on Pom spit it out!" Jax said, leaning back onto the sofa.

"I wanted... I wanted to tell you that I love-" Pomni was then rudely interrupted.
"YOU LOVE ADVENTURES!! THAT'S WHAT YOU LOVE!!!" Caine screamed, appearing in Pomni's face.
"Caine we were having a conversation so could you save your NPC ramblings for later?" Jax said rolling his eyes.
'What was she talking about.. she said she loved something... maybe me... SNAP OUT OF IT DUMBA**!!!' Jax thought, rubbing his tired eyes aggressively.
He hadn't slept well in a good few weeks. He could feel himself drifting back to his old tendencies of which he was desperately trying to stop for Pomni, and his sake.
He was suddenly snapped out for his thoughts by Caine's booming voice.

"I shall have you know that my ramblings are not ramblings and are valuable information that you should listen to intently!" Caine said, turning his back to Jax and Pomni.
"Caine... What do you actually want?" Pomni asked timidly.
"AH YES THAT REMINDS ME!! ADVENTURE TIME!" Caine bellowed.
Jax and Pomni were then teleported to Infront of the stage.

Around the pair stood the other residents of the circus including Zooble who looked disgruntled at being awoken. Zooble often used the excuse of sleeping nowadays to get away with not going on adventures. Pomni had noticed that much of the circus's harmony relied on the cast having good sleep. She looked them up and down another time before she began to sit down on the cold circus floor. Jax followed as he crouched next to Pomni so he was at head level. She really hated how short she was, not just compared to the other circus members. It made her feel like a child and she really hated that.
"Y'know Pom, I hope Caine does more suggestion box adventures! I've put some good'ns in their recently... all involving you being in charge!" Jax whispered into her ear, grinning.
"Ugh Jax! I hate being in charge! You're the worst y'know!" She said as she gently punched his arm.
"Well you're good at it! I can just see it now.. 'Totalitarian Pomni'.. yeah that sounds about right!" Jax exclaimed.
"Sure Jax.. that sounds great!" Pomni said sarcastically as she began to quietly giggle.

"Oh look Caine's explaining the adventure." Jax pointed out.
He grabbed both of her shoulders and swiveled her on the floor to face Caine. He could swear he saw her blush marks go a slight shade of pink at the brief touch.
"SO MY LITTLE MURDEROUS DRONES, ME AND BUBBLE SHALL GIVE YOU A QUICK EXPLANATION OF OUR ADVENTURE TODAY!!" Caine squealed.
"YES DADDY CAIN-" Bubble began to say.
"DON'T MIND THEM!" Caine said as he stuffed their mouth with his cane.
"ANYWAY TIME FOR THE EXPLANATION!! SO TODAY MY LOVELIES YOU SHALL BE GOING TO BUBBLE MART!!" Caine said enthusiastically.
Nobody replied.
"DID YOU NOT HEAR ME?" Caine asked, frowning with his gigantic teeth.
"We heard you Caine... we just don't understand.." Pomni said quietly.
"ISN'T IT CLEAR? YOU SHALL BE GOING TO BUBBLE MART WERE SOME OF YOU SHALL BECOME MINIMUM WAGE WORKERS AND SOME OF YOU MAY BECOME CUSTOMERS!!!! DOESN'T IT SOUND FUN?!" Caine screamed, now smiling.

"Yeah sure Caine can we just go through already, I'm excited to kill some NPCs!!" Jax exclaimed as he began to stand, offering Pomni a hand up.
'That's different' Pomni thought as she took his hand and pulled herself up. Jax hadn't seemed to have noticed the fact that neither she or he had let go of each others hand.
Jax began to stride towards the now opening portal until he was abruptly jolted backwards by something attached to his hand. He turned around to then realise it was Pomni who was holding him back due to her being the nice person she is. She was waiting for the others to follow.
Jax swiftly pulled his hand from hers and mumbled a quick apology.

"What are you apologising for? Oh..." Pomni trailed off.
She had seen him wringing his hands and suddenly noticed the absence of warmth from her hand. She began to blush.
'Hmm.. she looks cute when she blushes... WHAT THE F**K AM I THINKING THAT FOR!?' Jax thought, slapping his face discreetly to stop himself from staring.

They then began to walk through the portal, ending up in a blindingly white and completely sterile supermarket with Bubble's face plastered on every product. The shelves were atleast double Jax's height and so for once, even he felt intimidated by the height of such a normal object. Pomni couldn't imagine shopping in here, let alone working with all of these copied and pasted shelves. She was bound to get lost in this sh*t hole.

Chapter Text

Jax looked to his right to see Pomni picking up a can of something that had Bubble's toothy grin slapped over it.
"Look at this! How are we supposed to tell what products are?" Pomni asked as she showed the can to him.
"Well I sure hope I'm not a worker. This place must be hell to work in." Jax said, looking at his surroundings.
The group walked down one of the aisles, coming to a junction at where every way they turned there were ominous hallways. The light bulbs were clearly old as every one emitted a different amount of yellow light. One of the doors at the end of a hallway began to open slightly and so Jax stepped forward Infront of Pomni in an instant. He hoped it wasn't one of Caine's stupid jump scares.
The door continued to open slowly revealing a large mass of blue orbs. Orbsman...

"Great..." Jax mumbled sarcastically.
Orbsman began to walk through the door, bumping his head on the frame. Pomni began giggling quietly as the man rubbed his head where he had hit it. Orbsman walked further down the hallway towards the others, making sound effects with every step.
"So today you guys shall be working for Bubble mart. I originally requested it to be called orb's mart but the big boss refused. Anyway... I see two of you haven't applied for the job.. Why is that?" Orbsman said as he pointed from Jax to Ragatha slowly.

"Oh.. I don't know why that is.. Caine didn't give us a brief on what to do.." Ragatha said as she smiled politely at Orbsman.
"I have no idea who Caine is but you all have briefs in this world.They should be in your back pocket. Everyone must act in order to avoid being thrown in with the outcasts. You guys clearly aren't normal if you have no idea about this system.. Maybe I should tell HR about that.." Orbsman said mysteriously.
"No.. no that's not necessary sir!" Pomni squeaked out nervously.
Gangle and Zooble began to walk away from the group, Zooble already uninterested in the adventure.
Jax reached behind himself to find a brief. is hand brushed an A5 card that was somehow stuck to his a$$. He pulled it off and held it Infront of his face and read it.

'BRIEF FOR A LOVING HUSBAND' It read at the top.
It then began to list specifics about his role and what he should do.
'Wife: Ragatha.
Kids: Gummigoo and Pom.
Class: Upper class, snobby.
Role: Treat your wife as if she is the only women int he world that matters. DO NOT let her do anything for herself as she deserves to be a petite and fragile house wife. For example if her feet are sore carry her. Let her rest whilst you do stuff for her when she is tired.'
It went on longer about what he could do for her but if he read anymore he may just be sick on poor Pomni's hat.
"Caine has clearly never heard of feminism. What the actual f$ck is this!! I cannot be a$$ed with this anymore!!" Jax said as he began to pull at his ears.
"Hey what's up?" Pomni asked, smiling kindly.

"Caine has set me up to be HER," Jax gestured wildly at Ragatha. "husband!!! To make it worse I have to be overprotective! I am not doing this!" Jax exclaimed.
"Come on, it's not that bad! Look at mine sulky pants!" Pomni said teasingly.
She handed him her brief and watched his eyes slowly widen as he read the cursed piece of paper.
"You have to talk to NPCs all day and you aren't aloud to drop your smile! What the f$ck! I mean not that I'd struggle to not drop mine but... I mean you do love to give a good frown!" Jax said awkwardly.
"Oh shut up you!" Pomni went to playfully punch his arm before she was stopped.

Jax had caught her hand and was now holding her fist in his. He could feel the warmth of her, even through both his and her gloves.
"Umm s..sorry.." Jax mumbled as he swiftly pulled his hand away.
Pomni was once again blushing. Jax began to walk away, towards the Ragdoll who was currently looking over her brief.
"Wait Jax!! ABout before I wanted to-" Pomni was cut of by Jax.

"HOW I LOVE MY DEAR WIFE!!" Jax exclaimed as he walked over to Ragatha and picked her up bridal style
He was internally throwing up but if it helped to avoid any possible awkward conversations he would push through.
"Jax get off of me!!! I can walk you know!! And I am not your wife!!!" Ragatha said as she fought against his insanely tight grip.
Jax continued to walk, leaving Pomni to stand there looking as if her heart had just been pulled out and ripped open on the ground where he stood mere moments ago.
"Well according to my brief you cannot and will not walk!! Not on my watch! And also according to my brief you are my lawfully wedded wife... even if the idea makes me want to throw up!!" Jax started of loudly and then began to trail off into a growl of pure loathing.

"See you around the store Pomni!" Ragatha called over Jax's shoulder, as she began to give up on her pointless fight for freedom from Jax's almost painful grip.
Jax turned a corner, now out of site of Pomni, and dropped the ragdoll onto a heap of Bubble branded apples. Yes, even the apples were painted to look like Bubble.
"Hey what was that for?! I thought I was your 'wife'!!" Ragatha exclaimed as she stood up and flattened out her now extremely creased dress and rolled her eyes.
"SHUT IT! Shut it..." Jax said as he ran his hands over his face.

He had just pushed her away like he swore he wouldn't. He thought that she was going to tell him something along the lines of 'I love having you as a friend. I love how are relationship is currently and I don't want you to take it further.' She would have said the opposite. He was fearing rejection already and he hadn't even accepted his feelings towards her yet.
They walked around for thirty minutes, embracing eachother 'lovingly' every time they an NPC, before stopping on a deserted isle.
'I hate my brain..' Jax thought as he lent against one of the shelves.

The shelf began to tip before he noticed and pulled it back into place. A few bottles of 'Caine flavoured' fizzy drinks fell of the shelf and exploded.
Orbsman proceeded to conveniently come rushing down the isle, looking at the mess.
"What happened here?" He said as he began to point one of his large arms at the pair, clearly suspicious of Jax.
"Nothing much. My wife simply just knocked into the shelf and began to fall until I heroically caught her but in the process knocked the bottles." Jax said, wearing a sh$t eating grin.
Ragatha rolled her yes.

"You two are fitting in perfectly...," Orbsman muttered.
"Anyway I shall call Pomni to clean it up." He said as he turned away and began to walk off.
"I hate this Jax!" Ragatha exclaimed.
"How could you hate such a handsome bunny?" Jax said cheekily.
"Ugh shut up you d$ck! Oh there's someone coming! Quick come here!" Ragatha exclaimed.
Jax dashed over to her and pulled her into his side, allowing her to rest her head in the crook of his neck.
"I hate this just as much as you do..." Jax muttered to her before plastering on a loving smile on his face.

Pomni walked onto the aisle and looked up to see the loving 'couple' embracing eachother. Ragatha seemed to be happy but she could tell from her body language that she was uncomfortable. Jax on the other hand looked totally in love, that pissed her off more than I should have. She balled her hands into fists and walked over to the spillage.
She began to mop it up before standing up to go. A group of NPCs waked onto the aisle, blocking her from exciting. That's when she heard Jax say something that made her blood run cold.
"Y'know I used to love this girl in highschool called Pomni.. and I named our daughter after her. But of course I could never love anyone more than my licorice haired sweetheart right here." Jax said lovingly to Ragatha, not once sounding as if he was lying.
Ragatha giggled lightly.

Pomni stormed out of the aisle and she could swear she heard someone call her name but she didn't care. He was too good at this 'act'.
She ran to the staff bathroom and sunk to the floor in one of the stalls, not even caring to lock the door.
She knew he wasn't hers but she couldn't help but feel as if he had been taken from her. She also knew that this was just an adventure but this felt too real. She stayed there for 30 minutes, rewatching their interactions over and over again, until Kinger entered the bathroom.
"Um hi Kinger..." Pomni said as she peaked out of the stall.
"Oh hi Pomni!" He said joyfully.
"This is the women's bathroom... do you want me to show you the men's?" She asked kindly.
"Yes please!"
She led him out and showed him the men's before then deciding to continue her shift to avoid becoming an out cast in this f$cked up society.

Chapter Text

Pomni's shift ended 4 hours later after many more sightings of the 'couple'. She was barely holding her tongue as she saw the pair walking together, Jax's arms around the ragdoll's waist, as she clocked out. It was now dark outside so Pomni 'stole' a flashlight to read the number plates.

Jax0001... no
Gangle0002.... no
Orbsman0003... he can fit in a car?!
Finally Pomni00057
"Why is my one the odd one out!?" Pomni grumbled as she chucked away the flashlight onto the pavement.

She climbed into the car, slumping against her seat. She turned the ignition key carefully, half expecting an explosion. The engine roared to life creating an almost calming background noise for her tired digital brain.

She pulled out of her parking space as the radio turned on all by itself. A crappy cover of espresso (now named latte), sung by Caine, came on.
"Ugh I hate this one!! For god's sake!!" Pomni slammed her head on the steering wheel.

The radio suddenly cut out causing Pomni to suddenly become all too aware of the high pitched voice shouting near the store. She reversed her car back into the parking spot and turned the key. She could now work out who's voice it was without the soothing sound of the engine.

Ragatha..

Pomni opened her door slowly and stepped out, ensuring to close the door quietly. She scanned her surroundings looking for where Ragatha could be. The street light above her car began to flicker as a male voice now joined the fight to be the loudest in this eery parking lot.
It was Jax..
Sh$t!
Not another one of their arguments!!

Pomni groaned as she dragged herself towards the far side of the supermarket building. Surely Orbsman would have heard them by now!! Oh wait, Orbsman hadn't been seen since the spillage. 'Stupid NPCs' Pomni thought to herself.

She had now reached the corner of the rather large building she worked in. All that walking certainly didn't help her tired body after having a mere 2 hours of sleep the night prior. Usually she found adventures that were similar to reality pretty enjoyable but this time... this time it was like hell. She couldn't catch a break from those stupid NPCs whose sole purpose of living was to ask obvious questions such as "Where is the checkouts?" when they were stood directly next to them. And they wouldn't only ask once... they would ask 6-7 times an hour.
Just as Pomni began to mentally curse a specific orange NPC she had to deal with earlier, the same NPC stepped Infront of her blocking her from rounding the corner.
"Um sorry sir can you.. like move?" Pomni said grumpily.
She was fed up with these stupid NPCs.
"I don't think I can... What is the purpose of me in this world? Without my brief I am nothing..." The NPC mumbled.
That's when Pomni noticed the slimy trail of stupid source dribbling from where the mouth of a mannequin should be.
"Oh... How about I show you something eh?" She said as she tried to peer round the corner.
"Sure whatever.." The NPC mumbled once again.
"Ok follow me!"

Pomni grabbed the NPC's hand carefully and began to pull them towards the store. She walked through the electric doors and passed through where the security shutters should have been. It was closing time by now so they really should have been put down but oh well.

That's when she heard it. The cry of pain from Jax that made her digital hairs stand on end.

She hadn't had a specific place she wanted to lead the NPC. Her main goal was to move them out of the way. That's when it dawned on her. She may just have to do her job of closing the shutters..
She dashed to the red button that was flashing on the wall, barely pressing it as she bolted it to where the doors would come down any moment. She only looked back for a second seeing the distraught NPC crumbled into a pile of stupid sauce and sadness as they began to weep. She truly felt bad but if she as going to save her bunny she wouldn't change her actions in a million years. No matter what, she couldn't bare the thought of him getting hurt because of her kindness to NPCs.

The security shutters began to close and so she sprinted to the shutters and slid underneath just before they slammed shut, blowing dust everywhere. That's when she heard the NPC shout "Supermarkets aren't a place for a Jester!". She stopped to process what they just said before realising the dire situation at hand. Her journey to the side of the store..

Continuing to sprint even with her tired legs, she finally made it back to the corner where she had first seen the NPC. She really hoped he wouldn't still be there next shift if this was a 2 day long adventure.
She turned the corner hoping to simply see Ragatha and Jax arguing. No it was much worse. It was worse than having to see the lovey dovey couple during her shift.

Ragatha was towering over the cowering bunny. His usual grin was wiped off of his face as he cradled his eye. Pomni couldn't see what was the matter but she guessed there had been some violence involved. She stepped forward to try catch the attention of one of the two but clearly their attention was too focused on eachother. One trying to prepare for the next strike and the other trying to pinpoint a place to hit next.

Ragatha drew her arm back slowly, clearly wanting this one to hurt. Jax felt pathetic. He didn't want this to happen. He had simple pointed out to Ragatha how she seemed to enjoy the adventure. He had joke about her loving him and that's when she snapped. She didn't even stop to process the fact that it was a human that she was talking to. She just began to hit over and over again without even an ounce of hesitation.

She punched him in the gut to start with, causing him to hunch over, and then had drawn her attention to the slight hint of a grin on his face. She had swung fast and hard but her aim was off. Her fist had collided with his eye causing him to cry out in pain. The noise only made her want to continue more.

He was evil, pure evil. She couldn't see how someone as nice as Pomni had seen good I him until this adventure. He had acted as if he cared. His act was too good and it had worked on her. She thought he cared, she thought he wanted her to be happy. But no, of course he wouldn't. She should have known after dealing with his sh*t for years.

Pomni continued to shuffle forward, once again failing to catch their attention. Ragatha began to pull her fist back even more a Jax stumbled, falling into the side of the overfilled large bin next to the side door of the store. A black plastic bag fell out of it and ripped. That's when Ragatha saw it. The final punishment for this stupid rabbit.

It glinted at her, enticing her to pick up the perfectly sharpened blade that would give the rabbit what he deserved. She strolled closer to Jax, lowering her fist.
She then slowly dragged the bag to her original position. From where she stood Jax had nothing to save him. He couldn't reach into the bin to grab a weapon and so he had no defense to her knowledge.
She bet over and grabbed the long knife, flipping it over in her hands cautiously.

From Pomni's position it looked as if Ragatha had given up in trying to attack the bunny and so she stopped shuffling. Her heart rate began to slow down as a wave of exhaustion began take over her small frame.

Ragatha turned to face Jax once again, welding the deadly weapon in her fabric hand.

Pomni could now see what she was holding.... a knife.. and not just any kitchen knife.. a zombie knife. She had discovered many in her time as an abandoned building explorer. They always use to make her blood run cold as they signalled possible crime or violence that had taken place in the building. She preferred to stay on the more legal side of it.
Ragatha took a step forward, ready to strike the poor bunny. She raised the knife causing it to catch the light of the moon. Jax looked up and his grimaces turned into a face of stone cold despair. He began to backup before being stopped by the rough brick wall behind him.

He knew he was trapped. He knew he couldn't be saved. He knew that he was the one always telling people to have some fun with the violence aspects but this time it felt too targeted. He couldn't think straight except for the image of a smiling Jester that wouldn't seem to leave his head. Pomni was the only one he could trust to save him now without saying he deserved his fate. At the same time he doubted that someone could help someone like him after he ignored them. He felt pathetic.

Ragatha went to strike and that's when Pomni sprang into action. She was about a metre from Ragatha and Jax and so could easily stop her. So she did the one thing that seemed right. She lunged. Lunged without a care in the world of the outcome aslong as he was ok. Even if he was a d*ck to her earlier she still cared deeply for him. Seeing him get hurt was worse than the fate that was in store for her.
Ragatha brought the knife down with her eyes closed, wanting to savour the sound of his scream. That's when she heard it..
But it wasn't his.. It was high pitched... female..

She opened her eyes to see Pomni led on the ground Infront of the, now crying, rabbit.
Everything went white suddenly until they were back in the circus with a bleeding out Pomni and a crying Jax.
"OH.. I'LL FIX THAT!!" Caine boomed.#
They were now back to normal. No bruises. No cuts.
Pomni looked between Ragatha and Jax. Her eyes went wide as her large tears began to fall. She turned and ran in the direction of the rooms without looking back once.
"WAIT!! Pomni wait!!" Jax cried.
He began to take a step forward before being held back by Zooble.
"Leave her..." She mumbled.
"GET OFF ME!! YOU ARE ALL SUCH D*CKS!!" Jax shouted, wiping his face of any evidence of tears.
"Jax.. calm down please.." Ragatha said quietly.
"YOU'RE TELLING ME TO CALM DOWN!! YOU JUST F*CKING STABBED HER!! HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO BE CALM ABOUT THAT?" He screamed with his teeth bared.
"I.. I didn't mean to! You know I didn't!" She stumbled out.
"F*CKING HELL JUST KILL ME AT THIS POINT!! I KNOW YOU ALL ME SO JUST KILL ME!! YOU'VE ALREADY TRIED!!" He shouted as he pointed aggressively at Ragatha who was beginning to tear up.
"I d..didn't try-" She was cut off.
"SHE'S IS THE ONLY ONE THAT CARES! THE ONLY ONE THAT UNDERSTANDS! I DIDN'T F*CKING MEAN TO LET HER IN, OF CAUSE I DIDN'T!! SO DON'T BE SURPRISED WHEN I GO TO WAR WITH YOU LOT BECAUSE YOU ONCE AGAIN DON'T SEE HER WORTH! She deserves the world... not us..." He mumbled he last part.

He then took it upon himself to leave before it got worse, before he spilt his heart out Infront of those who wouldn't keep it safe from the harms that may come it's way. Only she could do that..

He walked to her door and knocked in their pattern. Knock..1..2..3..knock, knock..1..2..3

Chapter Text

Pomni didn't know why she ran. Was it because she didn't want to see Jax? No... Was it that she couldn't stand any form of apology? No... to be honest she really wanted one. Not for her, for Jax.
She had no idea Ragatha could snap like that. It was like some internal switch had been flicked at just the right, well more like wrong, timing. She knew that Jax had probably caused the reaction but he certainly didn't deserve it.

She had now reached her door, tears still cascading down her cheeks. She opened her door and sank to the floor beside her bed. She didn't have the strength to climb up there anymore. It felt like her legs were made of lead as she scooted over to her bed and lent her head upon the mattress. Today was too much. This place was too much. Her mind as too much.

Her mind wouldn't stop spinning as she kneeled there. She felt hopeless. She didn't know whether to feel mad at Jax, Ragatha or herself for feeling this way about that stupid bunny.
She needed some rest but considering how she couldn't be bothered climbing onto her bed she needed another option. She cast her eyes to her clump of bean bags that lay untouched on her rug. 'That'll do!' she thought as she let out a loud sigh. She crawled her was there and picked up the little blanket Caine had recently given her after and adventure In the artic. It was purple, just like a certain bunny, with yellow flowers scattered across it. It was also extremely soft, just like a certain bunny.

She rolled onto the largest beanbag and pulled the blanket to her chin. She was so comfy that she considered never leaving. Then she remembered that she would miss Jax. That idea was officially scrapped. She then decided to stay here until she felt well enough, both mentally and physically, to talk to Jax.

She hadn't particularly moved here to sleep but as she felt her breathing slow and muscles relaxed, she knew she would soon be taken to the land of digital dreams that would most likely be about bunnies... 'Oh well it's better than nothing!' he thought as she curled into a ball.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Jax stood there waiting for reply but wasn't lucky enough to receive one. Well when was he ever lucky? First off Ragatha had actually gotten attached to him and then secondly Pomni got hurt because of him! He didn't deserve a reply after what he had done today.

'I'll make sure that no one but Pomni will come close to me.... yes that's it... in terms of relationship status and physically because how weak was I today huh? Such a stupid rabbit...' He thought to himself as he raised his hand to knock again.

Knock..1..2..3..Knock, Knock..1..2..3..Knock

No response.. Now he was getting worried. 'She must hate me now.. She's locking herself away to protect her from me...' His unwanted thoughts never seemed to leave him alone anymore. Not since Ribbit left. That side of him doesn't care who he hurts as long as he comes out victorious in the field of loneliness.

In some ways Ribbit had been similar to Pomni in the fact that she pointed out when he went too far but she was slightly different. She didn't tell him stop.. She simply made him aware of it and left him to it. Pomni only wants the best for him and he knew that but he still couldn't help but hurt her again just like when he didn't care what the outcome was of his silly pranks. Even if it led to his end he would have continued.

Now with Pomni by his side he has began to learn how to improve even if it goes against everything he ever aimed for. She balances him out perfectly.
She is truthful, he is fake.
She is kind, he is rude.

She openly cares, he puts forward a face of carelessness even if deep down he does care, more than anyone else in this d&mn place.
He could go on but he knew he needed to talk to her instead of brewing over how she doesn't deserve him for the rest of the night.

"Pomni I know you're in there! Can you atleast let me in? I don't want to be out here after blowing up on the others... I wouldn't be surprised if they came an Jumped me, this time with all of them!!! Haha!" He said, faking a cheery attitude towards the absolute car crash the adventure had turned into.

"Come on Pom! I'm giving you the perfect opportunity to continue our conversation from earlier!! Who knew my company is something you people enjoy from time to time! I'm Mr popular!"
He was the complete and utter opposite right now.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Pomni woke up to the sound of a familiar voice at the door.
'What does he want?!' Pomni thought.

She began to sit up on her bean bag, the blanket falling from her exhausted body. She already missed the cocoon of warmth she had been enveloped in mere moments ago.
She slowly stood up, clearing up the floor as she went.

'When did I leave such a mess in here...? Oh wait Caine had lost something in here the other day and tipped the place, yeah that's it... Ugh stupid a$$ ringleader.' She thought.
She didn't want to talk to him. She didn't want to see him. Yet she felt her heart strings pull as she noticed the hint of despair in his voice as he joked about today's tornado of horrific events. She couldn't just leave him there.

He was worried... but that's not like him... why would he be so bothered about her now? He was the one who completely ignored her presence the whole adventure.

His attempt at making his voice sound cheery wasn't good, at all. It instead made him sound exhausted making Pomni want to run into his arms and sleep through all of the sh$t the circus through their way.
But no... she couldn't just forgive him for the hurt he caused. If he had been straight from the start about not wanting to talk, all the hurt wouldn't have been caused. Everyone would be as normal as you could be In this place, but it wasn't just his fault... Ragatha truly needed to be studied. She could go from the sweet, almost motherly figure in this place to some sort of knife wielding demon. What was that all about...?

She would have to atleast let Jax in to found out more about that.... but not until he showed her that he was sorry. She would usually just take a simple apology from any normal person she met but this time it was different. This time she could truly make it stop instead of simply covering a deep cut with a plaster. She could cure the cut that would only grow worse over time. The cut of Jax's cruelty, the cut of his grin that could infuriate and also cheer up the poor Jester.

And so, with all the energy she could muster, she walked to her door and opened it slowly. There stood the bunny she knew but his grin seemed to have been swapped out for a relieved smile. Even though she should be mad at him, she couldn't help but find it was extremely cute.

Chapter Text

Hello.. What do you want?" Pomni asked, sleep still attempting to pull her eyelids shut.
"I was just.... I was just checking on you actually..." Jax mumbled, avoiding eye contact.
"Well how come you care all of a sudden?" Pomni said before she could stop herself.
"What? I don't know what you mean?" Jax said as his eyes widened.
"Yes you do. Don't be a d$ck.." Pomni said calmly.
"Pom pom.. sorry.. Pomni I promise you I have no idea what you mean!" Jax pleaded.

"Ugh! You f*cking ignored me! I literally told you that I wanted to talk but instead you just ran of with your secret girlfriend! The adventure was already horrible enough without having to see you two practically snogging on each isle!!" Pomni shouted, fed up at this point.
"What...? I didn't.. I... Me and Ragatha aren't together... you know that right?" Jax asked, completely and utterly confused.
"Well you sure did do a good job of pretending!! On top of all of that I've probably hurt Ragatha!!"
Pomni turned to the side so that she was facing the entrance to the hall to the right.
"You do know that she literally tried to kill me?" Jax said.

He slowly knelt down to eye level and tried to catch her eye. She was too stubborn and so Jax reached his hand up to her cheek and turned her head, keeping his hand on her cheek even after he got her attention.

Half of him wanted to let go and storm off but he stayed there because he couldn't help but long for forgiveness from the one person he cares about most. He may deny it but he truly cared about her and how the others treated her. He would stick by her side till the point of abstraction if it meant she was happy. He had no idea why he felt like that but all he knew was that it felt real, natural.... exciting? Did he truly feel excited at the thought of caring for someone so deeply? That couldn't be him!! But it was.. and even the thought of her made his heart pound in a happy rhythm that soothed his worries when the darkness of his thoughts tried to pull him further away from his end goal... happiness, happiness at last, that's all he longed for now. He already found... Love?.. He finally knew what it was, LOVE!!! He already had the one thing he thought he would never find.

Pomni began to tear up as she stumbled out the only words that came to mind.
"I know that... b..b..but I don't want her to be mad at me!! I didn't mean to cause trouble!!! I just wanted to help you!! I didn't... I didn't want to lose you!!"
"I know you did!! I know you did!!! It's ok!! You were just being classic Pomni and caring for others before yourself, which is fine by the way!!!" Jax said hurriedly.
He began to wipe the tears from her eyes but saw that it wasn't helping. The only option left to do was.. comfort her physically...
"I don't want to invade your personal space or ought but do you want a hug? Also to make it clear I'm not doing this in the hallway for ribbons or licorice to see so we'll have to go in your room.. is tha-" Jax was abruptly cut off by Pomni's yanking of his arm.

She pulled him into her room easily as he wasn't resisting. She kicked the door shut and continued to pull him further into her room, to the bean bags where they both sat down, Jax practically falling onto them.
"What exactly are you doing?" Jax asked, his arm still in her grasp.
He received no reply except for her nodding her head towards the blanket that lay close to his side. Jax pulled the blanket up and over her, leaving him exposed to the cold. He began to shiver slightly.
Pomni noted this and pulled him by the strap of his overalls, closer to her, so that he could be covered by the blanket.

"Pomni I'm fine! You take the blanket! Your the one who's upset, we don't want you crying and cold!" Jax said jokingly as he made sure that she was still fully covered.
"Jax?" Pomni said quietly, tears still streaming down her face.
"Yeah Pom... sorry I mean Pomni?" Jax said nervously.
"First of all it's ok for you to call me that y'know? Secondly I have a question..." She said, turning her head away to avoid eye contact.
"Umm..." He cleared his throat gently "Pom I thought we came in here for a hug!!" He said, smiling gently at her to try get her attention.
"Well I know that idiot so I thought we could compromise... You answer my question whilst we lay down and rest because I am f$cking tired!" She sad as she turned her body to face him.

He looked at her with such adoration in his eyes that he wouldn't be surprised if his eyes had turned to hearts.

"Can we make it clear that I'm NOT the one who wanted this hug!" He said as he gently ruffled her hair.
"Yeah, yeah whatever bunny boy!" Pomni said teasingly.
Jax began to tun away before Pomni scooted over to his side and lent her head on his chest, making any escape practically impossible. He began to wipe the remaining tears from her cheeks.
Jax's cheeks turned to a bright pink as she nuzzled her head into his chest.

"Umm Pom... I uh... You umm.. what was your question?" Jax stumbled out of his mouth.
'She is f$cking adorable!'
'Push her away because she will only leave you eventually. Abstraction comes after everyone eventually.'
'Aww she's like a little kitten!! I just wanna pick her up and never let her go!'
'You aren't good enough for her!'

These were the thoughts that swirled round his head. He knew he shouldn't let her in but he couldn't help it. He loved her and he really hoped that she loved him.

Pomni began to adjust her position on his chest, lifting her comfortable weight off of him for a few seconds. This was the perfect chance for him to escape until she reached down and grabbed his hand, bringing it to her face and nuzzling him once again.

It was so comfortable led there with her that finally he decided to stay. She would never hurt him, not on purpose and he knew that, but his worst fear was that she would give up on him and leave his heart to shatter and result in his abstraction. But for now he decided he would appreciate what he had and hopefully will have in terms of Pomni and their relationship. A bunny could only dream of having someone who actually loves him for him and not his facade that he but up to fool those who had false intentions towards his heart.

She was perfect or I'm and so for once in his digital life the nagging, of how he should anyone he should ever meet away, had quietened down and simply become an occasional reminder of his past actions.
"So... what I wanted to ask was... where you and Ragatha ever together in the past?" Pomni said against his chest.
"No..." He said quietly.
"Jax please be honest. I hate it when you lie!" She said as she looked up into his eyes pleadingly.
"Yes.. yes we were."

Chapter Text

Pomni led there, mouth wide open, trying to process what she had just been told. She knew that it was likely the case that they were together at one point, had a nasty breakup and then began to despise eachother as they took steps away from the trust they once had between them.

"Umm.. I... How?" Pomni asked nervously, half hoping he wouldn't want to answer.

"I... I don't know whether I should tell you and I'm probably going to regret this but if it makes you forgive me completely I shall deliver.." Jax said as he graced Pomni with yet another genuine but small smile.
"I mean you don't have to.. I just want to feel like... like I fit in here.. I feel like I'm never let in on anything because I'm 'too young' or 'too new' and I don't know whether that's because my avatar makes me look like a f$cking child bu-" She said before being abruptly interrupted.

She had begun to tear up again, hiding her face in his overalls.

"Hey, hey! They're is nothing wrong with you! It's just how Ragatha likes it I guess. She prefers to have a functioning family from the outside and a bomb site on the inside instead of dealing with the problem. That doesn't excuse me doing it aswell though... I just don't want you to have to deal with the sh$t I have, y'know?" He said as he lifted her chin and wiped her tears.
"Yeah... Thank you for.. for caring for me.. I know you don't like to show it but I'm truly happy that you do care. You look so much less tense when you aren't bullying the sh$t out of people, dufus!" She said as she messed up the fur around his ears.

Jax pulled her closer to him, tickling her gently as he didn't want to push her limits. She still began to laugh uncontrollably even though he was barely doing anything.
He knew she often hated any form of physical affection and so he often restrained himself from his usual push or shove when messing around. He didn't want to force her into anything like he had been.
"Jax stop it, idiot!! Haha! Stopppp!! You still need to tell me about how you two got together!!" Pomni said as she she pried herself from his grip and and led down beside him, snuggled into his side.
She truly happy here, with him. She could trust him to protect her no matter how many times he tried to deny his obvious care for her happiness.

"Oh, yeah, right..." He cleared his throat. "Well you don't know a..about R..Ri...Ribbit right?" He said nervously as he ensure she didn't know too much of is past.
He still liked to be guarded about his past, even with Pomni who he felt so at peace with.
"Yeah I do.. Ragatha told me about her..and how she.. she abstracted. I'm really sorry abou-" Pomni began before being interrupted.
Jax's eyes were wide and his gaze was full of pure rage, evidently not directed at Pomni by how he continued to brush through her hair with his hands gently.
"How could she? HOW COULD SHE!? I F$CKING TOLD HER NOT TO! IT WASN'T HER'S TO TELL! F$ck... f$ck.. f$ck." Jax seethed.
"I asked her about previous circus members!! It wasn't her fault!!" Pomni reasoned with him.

He sat up slowly on the bean bag as he placed his head in his gloved hands. His gloves were one of the only things that stopped him from ripping through everything and everyone with his claws nowadays. Before Pomni arrived he would often leave them off to keep people away from him. His claws were sharp as some of the all-destroying knifes he had used in past adventures.

When Pomni arrived he decided to keep them on. At first he wanted to keep them on so that he could lure her in and then twist her into the perfectly bullyable character he needed after Gangle's defiance but that's not what happened. She was.. different, different from anyone else he had met in this h$ll hole. She treated him as a human being even after his initial attempts to break her down (aka chucking her out of a truck). For this purple bunny it was unusual to feel so normal and at peace when in the company of someone and yet she somehow made that unreachable goal extremely reachable.

He could feel the black mass begin to take his ears. The eyes began to open, staring into Pomni's little soul.

"Listen Jax be calm, please! Don't leave me! Not now!" Pomni pleaded as he began to scratch his left eye that was now being taken over by the mass of destruction.
"I couldn't save her though! I don't deserve someone else!! I'll just end up hurting you just like I did with her!! I should have never dated Ragatha!!" He exclaimed as his breathing became heavy, his speak becoming distorted by the eyes that stared, unblinking at the poor women infront of him

"Firstly I know you would never willing hurt me and secondly it's not your fault Ribbit left! In abstraction I bet you there is some part of it that depends on you! Someone who has already drowned can't be pulled back from the ocean depths they belong to now!!! She gave up and that's not your fault!! She most likely felt that she was no longer needed and although that is horrible to think about, you can't change that!!" Pomni said as she began to sob at the sight of his glitching body.

Pomni knelt up to eye level as she assessed the situation at hand. Her objective: Save her bunny.

She grabbed his shoulders, even though the glitching could easily spread onto her gloved hands, and shook him gently until he looked up at her. His right eye was wide as he took in the sight Infront of him.
A person who cared for him, a person who would never leave him willingly. That was what he had needed all along and now he was leaving!? Why would he do that to her when all she had done was cared?!
He began to try and push back. He thought of the one thing he loved the most... her. It all led to her no matter where he looked. She was the knot on the spider web of thread that held him together. She cared for him relentlessly and that was what he needed most. He fought back until it was all gone, just a purple bunny with a large zigzag, occasionally looping into the shape of an eye, along both of his ears.
Pomni fell back onto the bean bag, releasing a relieved sigh.

He was exhausted and felt his body begin to fall into a sleep that would undoubtedly be long. All he could think to do was fall into the person he loved most because that was where he was safe without any stupid conditions to make them benefit from their act of kindness.

He fell forward on the bean bag into her side, face nuzzled into her stomach.
"Goodnight pillow..." He muttered before falling sound asleep.
"Stupid bunny.." She whispered as she began to run her hands through his fur.
They fell asleep until the artificial sun came out

Chapter Text

She woke up, well rested, warm and surprisingly comfortable considering the position she was in.

She lay on top of Jax's body, legs to the right of his own. She could feel a flush of warmth rush to her cheeks as she attempted to slip off of the sleeping bunny. He didn't seem to like that idea though.
He wrapped his arms around her and turned her so that she was on her back as he began to wake up. He now began to sit up with her led in his lap. He let go of her slowly as he rubbed his closed eyes, seeming to have not noticed who lay in his lap, practically burning alive from the heat her cheeks emitted at the thought of the position she was in.

"Um Jax... umm.... did you sleep well..?" She said quietly, practically squeaking.
His eyes snapped open and his mouth hung wide open as he stared at her. She was half expecting him to start shouting at her or to chuck a pillow at her. Until he did the complete unexpected.
"Umm yeah.. yeah I did.. thanks Pom. Do you.. um... do you want to come get breakfast with me? If the table's empty I'll explain all the sh$t about relationships because I think I'm ready.."
"That.. that sounds great! Also I need to show you something before we go.
"Oh? Ok then! Where are we going shorty?" He said sleepily a he began to stand.
"Jax what are you doing!? I'm gonna fall!" Pomni said as she began to slowly slide off of his lap.
"I'm carrying you dumba$$! I'm cold and I need a hot water bottle so I'm improvising and using you." He said as he grinned down at her in his arms.
"Ugh fine whatever! Right take me to the bathroom but close you eyes when we get in there ok!?" She said as she pretended to be annoyed.
"On it boss but may I ask why?" He said as he spotted the door to her bathroom.
"Just do it ok, for me, pleaseeeeee?" She whined.
"Fine! I hate surprises! It better not be something sappy!!!" He exclaimed as he sighed loudly.
"It's not a good surprise.." She practically whispered as he reached the door.

He turned the handle and Pomni then reached her hand up to cover his vision partially. She could feel the warmth from his face.
"I can close my eyes y'know! Ugh whatever.. Can I look now?" He asked impatiently.
"Put me down first.. I don't want you to drop me when you see it..." She said quietly.
He did what he was told as he placed her down and searched around with his gloved hand to ruffle her hair but he ended up stroking her cheek.
She squeaked as she stepped away from him.
"S..sorry I didn't mean to!!" He exclaimed as he opened his eyes slightly.

He then spotted them in the perfectly clear mirror. The zigzagging lines that ran up his ears, occasionally looping into the shape of an eye.
He had only ever heard of it, the mark of abstraction. He couldn't pull Ribbit back in time and so was left to watch as his best friend was thrown into the cellar full of those who had also lost hope in this h$ll hole. If he had helped her in time he may have been accustomed to such marks.
He knew that he should hate the marks but he couldn't bring himself to. They were apart of him now and although they were a constant reminder of how he failed both Ribbit and Pomni, he liked how they looked.

In the real world he had always wanted some sort of tattoo but could never find an artist who did tattoos illegally on people underage. He had tried making fake ones with ink and pins he found at one but they all ended up with an infected mark that looks horrible on his arm. He gave up after that. He thought he would get chance to get a tattoo legally until he was pulled into the digital world he now called home. Now was his chance to experience his dream once and for all.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you earlier... it's just you fell asleep so fast that I didn't want to disturb you and I thought that maybe after some rest you wouldn't freak out about the marks so much.. y'know?" Pomni said gently, trying to catch his eye.
"Why would I freak out?" Jax asked bluntly, still staring at his reflection.
"Well.. well your ears are.. different and I thought you prided yourself in your appearance so I was worried you would hate it.. and also the marks are kinda.. well... a constant reminder of what happened and I know you like to ignore and push out things that don't match your mask or outside appear-" She rambled before being interrupted.

"I love them." He said quietly as he pulled on is right ear gently.
"What.. I mean pardon.. what did you say?" She said tentatively.
"I said I love them. They look sick!! Like a tattoo!! You're as deaf as a bat y'know.. wait you don't actually have ears unlike me, the pinnacle of masculinity. So this is kinda unfair to say butttt imagine not having ears!!" Jax said jokingly as he stepped towards her, knelt down and ruffled her hair as he grinned at her mischievously.

She stood there, staring at him. He looked truly happy, so much so that she wanted to jump onto him and squeeze him in a bone crushing hug.

She wasn't the type to like physical contact like that but recently, with him, she has felt herself loosening up and inviting such contact. He had a charm to him tha even she couldn't ignore.
Before she could act upon those thoughts he pulled her into a hug, tight but not so tight that she couldn't escape if she wanted to. He was considerate like that, but only with her as if he was saving his care for her and her only. That was the truth in reality but neither of them would ever want to except that.

"Thanks Pom, for everything. Without you there I would have gone and joined miss froggy down there.. and I realise that I'm actually happy you know about Ribbit.. I know she would have absolutely hated your kindness, haha." Jax said as he buried his face into her shoulder, words muffled by her costume.
"Hey that's not nice! Ugh!! I'll let you off because you said thank you d$ckhead!" She said as she playfully punched him.
"You wound me!" Jax said as he pretended to faint, Pomni struggling to hold him up as he lent back with his arm covering his forehead like a damsel in distress.
"Ugh whatever dumba$$!" She said as she slowly lowered him to the floor and began to walk out of the bathroom.

Jax flipped over onto his stomach and reached for her ankle, grabbing it gently to halt her movement.
"Where are you going missy!?" He exclaimed jokingly.
"Breakfast obviously. You literally offered to go earlier. Somebody's getting dementia! Now would you let go?" She said as she smiled down at him gently.
"Oh yeah right!"

He was about to release his grip before realising she had already pried herself from his grip and had left the bathroom, the sound of her door opening being picked up by his rather good hearing.
He leapt up rather quickly causing him to experience a spell of dizziness. The effects of his almost abstraction he guessed as he began to sprint to catch up to the little jester.
She hadn't made it to the end of the corridor before he came up behind her and lifted her onto his shoulders.
"I'm not a child y'know! I don't need to carry me everywhere!" She said as she rested her head in-between his ears.
"Yeah but sometimes just hearing you complain makes my day so much better!" He said as he reached up to ruffle her hair.
The reached the dining room and sat down in two seats, facing eachother over the table.

Chapter Text

She sat there awkwardly for a few minutes, staring at anywhere but his face. Her knee bounced as she attempted to figure out a way to gently nudge Jax towards the conversation she hoped to have. Then she go and idea, one that hopefully would allow Jax to feel comfortable in confiding in her.

She knew that he enjoyed cooking and so, seeing as it was breakfast she thought that maybe he could cook for them whilst he told her how he came about to dating Ragatha. She wasn't particularly hungry for anything but it was her last resort.
"Hey Jax.. uhm do you wanna make breakfast for me?" She said gently, hoping to not have startled him out of his daze.
"Ha! Can't you cook pom? Pathetic!" He said as he began to stand. "But yeah sure why not. Get ready for my exquisite cooking skills!"
He strolled over t the fridge, hand on hip, and yanked the door opening causing a bottle of stupid sauce to fall out and hit Pomni on the head. Luckily it didn't spill but it did caused a throbbing pain to erupt on Pomni's unprotected head.

"Ouch! What was that for?" She exclaimed as she turned around to face the culprit who stod behind her.
"I didn't mean to! It fell out! It really did! I'm not lying!" Jax continued to ramble on about how he wasn't lying, looking like a child who had been framed of an in severe crime that to them, felt like their world was ending.
Well, Jax did feel like that.
"Woah! Chill out! I believed you the first time you said that you weren't lying! Why would you think I didn't?" Pomni exclaimed as she gently grabbed Jax's hands to stop his flailing.
She found it extremely cute but she knew it wasn't practical when she was in range of being hit by them.
"I.. I really hate it when people say that I'm lying when I'm not.. Considering how many lies spill out of my mouth I'm not surprised when people instantly assume that I'm lying but that doesn't make me like it. It makes me feel like a trapped animal." He grumbled.
"You know you're an animal right.. and you're trapped in this h$ll hole? You are literally a trapped animal!" She said jokingly as she smoothed out the fur on his hands and smiled wickedly at him.
"Oh shut up you!" He exclaimed, pushing her head away from him.
"Let me get on with breakfast! What do you want? There are some eggs or the leftover bacon from yesterday." He said.
"I'm not that hungry actually. Make some food for yourself though!" She told him gently.
"Oh ok..."

Jax busied himself with the pan as he cracked an egg into the pan. They both fell into the rhythm of the sound of it sizzling away, enjoying the presence of eachother. She struggled to bring herself to interrupt their peace but knew it was for the best.

"So.. um... Jax can I ask you how you two got together It's fine if you don't want to! I get it!" She reassured I'm nervously.
"Me and Ragatha? Oh right.. yeah sure." He said as he flipped the now green egg.
"When I joined this place, Ragatha was already here and she had settled in well, especially with Kinger by her side she seemed content. She must have felt she needed to repay such kindness and so sprung onto me as he first victim." He said slowly, taking time to think about his words.

"She seemed to love the idea of having me rely on her, almost like it was her main goal in life. If I remember correctly, her mum always told her of how 'It's the woman's role to have kids' and all that crap. Seeing as that was all Ragatha heard, she couldn't be deterred from that idea. So she continued to car for me like I was her child, cooking for me, taking me to places just so that I wasn't bored. Well it all came at a price, my loyalty. If any of the past cast members tried to pick and argument she expected me to deal with it for her, hence why i'm so prone to violence. I know that isn't an excuse for me, it's probably more of an explanation about my tendencies, but it allows you to see the bigger picture I guess." He said, hatred seeping through every word.

"Anyway, R... Ribbit eventually joined and obviously we clicked right away. She got me, the real me, unlike Ragatha who simply picked up the general pieces of me and shaped them into her little pet. Ribbit knew it wasn't right but never said anything because she didn't want to be the target of Ragatha's fury. Well that was until Ragatha took me into her room one time, which at that point wasn't unusual for us. She started talking about how she noticed our 'closeness' and how I treated her better than the others. Then she said how she thought we should 'take our relationship a step forward. Obviously I said no and tried to leave but she had locked the door. Before you ask, at this point I hadn't started collecting keys because I didn't have a reason to. I wouldn't get out and she shouldn't let me out unless I said yes. I agreed and eventually the word got to Ribbit. She never expressed her opinion on me and Ragatha when we were friends but once we began 'dating' she couldn't look at us together without rolling her eyes. I hated it, every hug, every time she latched onto my hand in an effort to keep me by her side. It was torture. Ribbit slowly began distancing from me... and I felt utterly alone." Jax explained, now reheating the bacon in the microcaine (Caine's version of a microwave).

"On one adventure Ribbit... Ribbit didn't turn up so I tried to get it done fast. It was an Easter themed adventure where we had to collect eggs in this stupid a$$ forest full of pixies. Ragatha instead dragged me along on a 'romantic' couples walk. I tried to break away but oh my f$cking got was she strong. I have no idea where that came from. Anyway, we proceeded to walk through the forest and waited for the others to finish. Once it was over I dashed away from Ragatha and ran to find Ribbit, only to find her.. her abstracted form running though the corridors wildly. I still see it to this day.. her bow laying aboned upon the floor, her abstracted form trampling over it occasionally. She looked like a encaged animal, unable to escape. I ran, as fast a I could. I was a coward.. I left her when she needed me most.." He said angrily.

"She was already gone Jax, you couldn't save her. You did your best." Pomni said quietly.
Jax sat down at the table, placing two plates down.
"Yeah, whatever you say sweetheart." He said solemnly as he placed his head in his gloved hands. "I 'broke up with' Ragatha right after that and she flipped out on me. She told lies about me to the others and obviously they believed her after how I treated them under her 'command'. That's why this past of me being horrible Jax stook with me, even after I tried to reason with them. After that I just decided to fit into that role." He said.

"I'm so, so sorry." Pomni said, standing up and walking over to where he sat.
She held him in her arms as he struggled to keep his tears at bay. He felt exhausted even just thinking about that day.
After his tears dried out, she stepped back, gave him a kiss on the cheek and sat back down, noticing the plate Infront of her.

"What's this for?" She asked, her eyes wide.
"I thought you'd be hungry after my story." He said, shrugging his shoulders.
"I love you so much, y'know?" She said, smiling wide.
"I mean who wouldn't?" He joked, leaning over the table to ruffle her hair.
"Jax!!" She exclaimed.
"Ugh! Can a guy not make a joke to his girlfriend?!"
"Girlfriend...? OK then! Shut up boyfriend! Also you still needed to say those three special words!" She said,, grinning even wider.
"I LOVE YOU!!" He exclaimed.

They began to giggle together, feeling extremely content with this newfound normal.

"What are you two gimps doing?" Zooble said, Gangle walking behind her, hand in hand.
"Don't call my girlfriendddd a gimp you multicoloured lump of shapes!" Jax said.
"JAX!!!" Pomni said, dying of embarrassment.