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The fourth anchor breaks, and nothing goes to hell the way it’s supposed to. There’s just silence. A horribly awkward standoff between the teens and dads (and Lark?) outside of Papa John’s stronghold. And somewhere, in the back of Normal’s mind, he feels something ping. It’s dull, like trying to ring a bell when someone’s holding onto it.
“Did it work?” Link asks him, without looking away from his father.
“I don’t– I don’t know. It feels wrong,” Normal says. “There’s something else, I think.”
Link lowers the garlic knot. He finally turns from Grant and nods at Normal. “Fine. Don’t say anything else while they’re here. Let’s go,” he says, and reaches a hand towards Scary. She doesn’t take it, but she nods as well, and she and Link start up the stairs back towards the roof. Taylor elbows Normal and follows right behind them. Normal shakes off his own confusion and goes to join them, when evidently Sparrow snaps back to reality.
“Wait, Normal– can we talk about this? Just hold on–”
Normal casts Silence on the stairs behind him and leaves.
–
Nicky and Hermie are sitting on the roof’s ledge in awkward silence when the teens reach them. Terry’s body is still there, rolled onto his back and covered with Nick’s leather jacket. It almost looks like he’s sleeping.
As soon as he sees his son, Nick jumps up and opens his arms, and Taylor runs in for a hug. Scary looks the other way. Link sets his jaw. Normal watches Hermie, back in a more standard Hermie shape, survey the reactions and awkwardly climb off the ledge to walk over to Normal, who’s kneeling beside Terry.
“I’m catching some less than good vibes,” Hermie mumbles sarcastically. Normal almost laughs. He casts around in his head or heart or wherever for any last little bit of magic, and finds just enough to cast Gentle Repose. Then he stands up, steps back, and almost immediately collapses. Hermie catches him, lowers him back to the ground, places himself in between Normal and Terry.
“Sorry,” Normal says. “I think I’m out of spell slots.”
“I think you were out a whole spell ago,” Hermie says, “you look fucking exhausted.”
Normal looks over at Link and Scary leaning against the ledge, both looking like they’re seconds away from unconsciousness themselves. Scary’s still staring in Terry’s direction, but Normal can tell she’s not exactly seeing anymore. Link’s just watching the stairway, waiting for the first sign of their dads or the Black Parade or god knows what else to come up and start the fight again. “I’m better off than they are,” Normal says.
“Okay, yeah,” Hermie replies, “but that’s a stupid competition. Like, obviously Taylor and I are winning here.” He tilts his head to where Taylor and Nick are now whispering about something. Taylor has a plotting face on.
Normal frowns. “You’re winning? You tried to embrace the void like, six hours ago, dude. You can’t– you can’t just pretend like everything you said in the last couple days didn’t happen, and you’re fine and okay and–”
Hermie sighs. “Normal, I don’t want to do this right now.”
“Okay, well I do!” He could feel himself getting fired up now, his tantrum from earlier coming back in full force. He’d set it aside for Scary’s benefit, but if Hermie was going to play nice and try to comfort him now after– “You have been pushing me away and wallowing in your own self-hatred, and I have been nothing but supportive. You asked me to help you get with Scary, and then Link , who hates you by the way, despite my best efforts, and I just took it because I like you so much but I’m not even sure I know why anymore when you treat me like this, and–”
“Normal–”
“And I know it’s not the time to do this, it’s not, but I’m tired , Hermie! I’m tired of being alone! And Terry’s gone, and Grant might as well be, and I don’t trust my dads or my mom anymore, and I love Hero but she wants out of this and I want her to be happy, so it’s just us. Us, here, on this roof, and I want you to stop hurting me . You don’t have to date me, you don’t have to like me back, just stop rubbing it in. For a little while. Until I’m over it. Please.” Normal pauses, breathes. He can tell that Scary and Link and Taylor and Nicky are staring at him. Hermie isn’t staring at him. He’s looking at Normal’s shoes.
Nicky coughs, and Taylor takes the cue, and they start whispering again.
“...I’m sorry,” Hermie says. “I’m sorry.”
Normal feels the regret hit him right away. “No, no, I’m sorry, you’re having a hard time and I should be here for you as a friend and–”
“No, you’re– don’t apologize. I hurt you. On purpose, I think. And that wasn’t– you didn’t deserve that.”
“Oh. Thanks”, Normal says. Hermie looks up and frowns at him.
“I just said that I’ve been intentionally hurting your feelings. And you thanked me.”
“That’s not what I was thanking you for!”
“Still! You should be mad at me!”
“I think… I’m tired of being mad. There’s too much to be mad at. And I have been mad at you, but you apologized, and I’m tired. So.” Normal shrugs. Hermie looks confused, and sad, and tired, and a million other things that are hard to pin down even on people who aren’t constantly shapeshifting.
“You should be mad at me,” he says again, quieter. Normal reaches over and puts a hand on his knee.
“Too bad,” he says, then pushes against Hermie’s knee as he slowly, painfully gets up. Hermie hops up as well, grabs Normal’s elbow to steady him as he marches over to Nick and Taylor.
“All done with… whatever that was?” Nick asks. Taylor hides a laugh behind his hand.
Normal nods. “You have a plan?” he asks, and Taylor bounces with excitement. He and Nick launch into some convoluted explanation of portal rules and where exactly they can go, how many people they can take, until Normal interrupts. “I can feel something that way,” he says, and points in the direction of the pinging in his brain. “Can we go that way?”
“Well, technically– ” Taylor begins.
“Sure, kid.” Nick says. Taylor looks a bit put out, until Nick rests an elbow on his head and leans on him enough to stop him bouncing. “I’ll make sure you get there, although I’m making you all take a nap first. Get your friends.”
Normal gestures for Scary and Link to join them. “Portal stuff?” Link asks, and Nick nods. That’s evidently enough explanation for Link and Scary, who stumble over to where Nick’s staring intently at a spot on the roof.
Just then, they hear footsteps coming from inside the building.
“Oh, fuck,” Nick whispers, then says louder “say your goodbyes everyone, time to go!” The portal hums open. Taylor jumps through without hesitation.
Scary shoots one last look at the corpse of Terry Jr. She whispers something, maybe a goodbye, and then she and Link step into the portal as well.
The door to the roof breaks open. Lark is the first one through, and he stops dead in his tracks, momentarily blocking Grant and Sparrow’s path.
“Nicky?”
“Goddamn, Oak kid, go time,” Nick yells.
“I’m staying,” Hermie says.
“What? No! You can’t–” Normal starts, but Hermie interrupts him.
“I learned some tricks of my own in Goofs realm. I’ll meet back up with you, I promise,” he says, then darts in and kisses Normal’s cheek. “I promise,” he repeats, then pushes Normal into the portal.