Archive of Our Own

“Is there not a single idiot here that can rig a light fixture correctly?”

The annoyed bark from the TV show host came after a single light flickered during a prep phase of one of the game shows, not even during the airing segment. They’d planned to air the show a few hours later, once they’d made sure that everything was in working order - that was the point of the prep period.

Battat sighed and scrubbed a hand down his face, knowing exactly why Mr. Ant Tenna was acting the way he was.

It happened once every few months, really. He’d start to get more aggressive, snapping at the Darkners around the studio for little things. Leaving glasses around the Green Room, lights not being turned on exactly how he wanted. Little things that normally, Tenna would just either not notice or frankly, would ignore. He’d start to shoot off more electricity between his antennae when he was frustrated, like he was at the moment.

Tenna was perched on his director’s chair, one leg crossed over the other. His leg was bouncing, tail lashing angrily back and forth as he scanned a clipboard that was in his hand. His lips were curled into a scowl, a Shadowguy and a Shuttah at his sides and looking as though they would rather be anywhere else. Even the static buzz that followed Tenna everywhere was sharper, almost like microphone feedback, to the point where everyone looked as though they were about to storm into the Mike’s office and shred their own damn contracts in order to get away from the Boss Darkner.

“Jongler,” Battat finally relented after Tenna threw the clipboard at a passing Zapper, starting to yell about a prop that wasn’t exactly where he wanted it - even though he hadn’t told anyone where he’d fucking wanted it, “Can you. Keep Tenna distracted for a half hour? You-”

“I knows, boss, yeah. Maybe Pluey can helps him.” Jongler scratched the back of their own head as they looked over at Tenna who was now shaking both legs, looking even more irritable, “Hows are you goin’ to convince him?”

“Angel knows, Jon.” Battat grumbled and then turned on his heel, “I’ll mike you when I’m ready. Send ‘im to his office. Just tell ‘im that I need ‘im, that’ll probably work.”

“Will do, boss.” Jongler saluted at him and then walked off, pressing their mic to their head and muttering into it, most likely to summon Pluey. Usually, the cat variant of their little dynamic trio was able to bring Tenna down from the worst of moods. 

Even if it was as bad as this one. 

Hopefully.

Battat half jogged through the halls to Tenna’s office and unlocked it with the keys on his waist, slipping inside and pushing it shut behind him, thunking his head against the heavy wood for a moment. Either this was going to go awful, or it would go fine. He wasn’t sure, but he was going to try his best, since that was all he could do.

Simply put, Tenna needed maintenance. And Tenna hated maintenance.

He always was in a rush to finish up, even back when Battat was in the Mike costume for years and years. He muttered under his breath the entire time and practically threw Battat out of the office when he was finished with the ordeal, but Battat knew that he needed it. With how much Tenna danced and twisted and twirled around, his wires got all tangled up and he was certain there was a layer of dust built up in his fans that caused him to get irritable and annoyed at even the smallest of things. 

Even when the Mike costume had come off and Tenna had found out the actual truth and that whole, awful thing had happened, he still didn’t like the entire thing. Would practically pick Battat up in both hands and throw him out of the office as soon as he was done man-handling his wires. Battat knew he was good at his job, too! He’d studied that damn manual back and forth, left and right, upside down. He had a million and a half tabs sticking out of it that helped him really understand exactly how a cathode ray tube worked, and he was damned if he was going to end up ruining something inside of Tenna’s delicate systems.

Which brought him to today. Since Tenna was so insistent that maintenance was about the worst thing that had happened since - well, about eleven years ago had happened, and that mailman had left - Battat wanted to make the entire experience . . as best as he could. At least to make it bearable. Anything, really. He could practically smell the dust that had accumulated on the intricate inner workings of Tenna’s wiring, which he knew led directly up and into the ray gun which led to his sensory systems. Which was why he was so damn out of sorts. He couldn’t feel as strongly as he usually did - muffled by the dust and the grit and the tangled wires and cables. 

Battat took the next half hour to rearrange the entire office, pushing the ottoman that usually rested a few feet away from the couch against the side wall against it, to create a sort of make-shift bed that Tenna could lie on. He did have to push a big potted sunflower out of the way, since it was right next to the side of the couch that he knew Tenna would be leaning up against. It was a pretty thing, one that Tenna would stare off into when he was figuring out a particularly rough script. The pot itself was a lovely pink and green ceramic, big enough to cradle the flower and make sure that the roots would grow comfortably. He pushed it just enough that it was next to the couch, but wouldn't get tipped over if anything were to happen. Usually, Battat would sit up on top of Tenna’s stomach, in order to reach the panels that led into his chest, so he went back to the couch to make sure that several pillows were up propped up against the arm in order to create a comfortable space for the Boss Darkner to rest on. He also stowed away his box of tools on the top of the couch, knowing that once he was in place, he wasn’t going to be getting down. He hopped off the couch once that was done, brushing his hands on his poncho and then letting out an aggravated sigh.

This was not going to be enough to entice him in, he was certain.

Battat tugged his poncho up and over his head, tossing it onto a smaller desk beside Tenna’s desk that was reserved for him. He didn’t use it too often, as he was usually bustling around the studio or locking himself in the sewing rooms, but it was nice to have a space in his partner’s office for his things. He rolled up his sleeves as well, wiggling his dark green fingers and looking around the room briefly.

The record player! He could do something with that!

He pushed Tenna’s chair up and over to the table that was against the other side of the room and climbed up onto it, flicking through the different records that were in the display beside it. He sucked his lower lip between his teeth, letting out a low noise.

Decisions, decisions.

“Boss, boss, ya hear me?” 

Battat jumped when he heard the crinkling noise of a headset coming from the mic attached to his poncho, still attached and over on his desk. He randomly plucked a vinyl from the stack and slid it out of the case, putting it on the player and flipping the spindle down. 

John Coltrane’s ‘Soul Eyes’ began to play and he found himself humming along to it as he scrambled off the seat, pushing it back in place behind Tenna’s desk. It was a longer album, but it was full of songs that he knew Tenna loved to sway to, things more lowkey and soft.

“Hey, Jon,” Battat swiped the mic off his poncho and hooked it over his head, pressing the earpiece against himself, “What’s up?”

“Bad news,” Jongler sounded stressed, and to really stress Jongler out - well. Tenna had to really be going off the deep end, “I had to sends him to ya early. Is that okay?”

“Fuck, uh,” Battat looked around the room and then nodded, but quickly remembered that Jongler couldn’t actually see him, “Yeah. yeah, that’s fine. I’m just about ready for him. I’ve got all my shit in my desk, anyway. Must’a been mentally preparing for this anyways. He’s on his way here right now?”

“Yes - hey, cut that out, stop that! Ya don’t wanna piss ‘im off more! - He started to yells at Pluey of all peoples, and so I tolds him that you were waitin’ for him. He looked kinda relieved, I’ll be honest wit’ ya. Probably wanted ta’get off the stage.” They sounded tense, and Battat could hear them quickly walking around, likely pushing things back into place that Tenna had knocked out of the way when he walked out of the game board.

“That’s fine, I’ll be able to manage. Got the room mostly set up. Just - Jon, let everyone else take the day off, alright? Ten’s gonna be - outta commission for the rest of the day, like he usually is. Let everyone go home, get a drink, whatever. Just don’t let the fuckin’ Pippins take over the Green Room and turn it into a gambling den! I’m just a fuckin’ handyman, not a miracle worker!” he swore as he walked over to a shelf behind Tenna’s desk, climbing it like a jungle gym and pulling down a large green candle. Tenna said he’d liked the color and scent, something earthy, as it had reminded him of Battat himself, “And you and Pluey just - take a nap or somethin’, alright? ‘Specially if Ten yelled at him.”

“Okay, okay, boss. Thanks, I’ll let everyones know.” The sigh of relief was nearly audible from Jongler, “See youse tomorrow?”

“Probably not. He don’t ever let me stay after this. I’ll meet up with you two for dinner.” With another brief goodbye from Jongler, Battat slipped the headset off his head and threw it back onto his poncho. He rummaged around in his desk drawers until he found his lighter, popping the lid to the candle off and taking a deep inhale.

Sunrise woods. He used to not be the biggest fan of sandalwood, but Tenna had convinced him that it was nice, with him having the damn candle blowing all the time. He lit it and then set it on top of the shelf again, hands on his hips as he looked around.

The doorknob turned, and he prayed to the Angel that he could convince Tenna that this was a good idea.

He turned around and then met the taller Darkner with a tiny smile, arms crossed over his chest. His sleeves were still rolled up and he could feel Tenna’s screen immediately lock in on that fact - he loved the look of Battat’s hands, how the dark green of his fingers and palms and wrists slowly faded up into the white of his body, melding by the time that it reached his elbows. Tenna’s attention was quickly diverted, however, by the pillows that were piled up on the couch, the candle on the shelf, and the music playing in the record player.

“Well, well, well,” came the lazy drawl from the showman, “What have we here?”

“Don’t play coy with me, Ant,” Battat muttered out first, but then quickly scrubbed his hand over his face and shook his head, “Sorry, not the right answer. Can you please close the door behind ya? I need to talk to ya.”

Tenna arched a brow but conceded. His tail was still lashing back and forth, the only outward key that he was still as anxious and bottled-up as Battat knew he was. The Pippins sighed low and took a step forward, hands still crossed over his chest, “I don’t wanna fuck around with ya, Ten. But the entire studio can tell that you’ve got somethin’ going on with ya right now. Ya even got Jongler pissed off, and ya yelled at Pluey?”

“I- well-”

“Not exactly your shining moment, I’m sure,” He pointed to the couch, one lazy finger outstretched and his head tilting toward it in a sharp motion, “Sit.”

His voice gave no room for argument and Tenna nearly immediately listened without thinking about it. His limbs felt a bit disconnected as he fumbled with the cushions, though they were already nearly perfectly settled against the arm of the couch to comfortably rest against his back, which he already knew had to be due to Battat’s planning. A quick glance around the room proved that his little diceboy had really planned the entire thing - the candle already lit, the music playing through the speaker on the record player.

It hit him, then, what this was all a setup for, as the door clicked with a finalizing lock and Battat looped the key back on his waist.

“So, haha,” Tenna laughed nervously then, tail still flicking back and forth, knocking against the front of the couch with a residual thud, “What’s the occasion? You don’t usually pull all the stops out like this!”

“What scents are in the candle right now?” Battat responded in return as he crossed the room, gripping Tenna’s arm and then hauling himself up onto the couch with him. He stood next to his legs, head tilted back slightly as he looked down at him.

Tenna felt his fans start to whirr nearly immediately at just the sight of Battat looking down at him like that and his breath caught, “O-oh.” He shifted slightly, as though he was going to turn to look.

Battat snapped a hand out and yanked on Tenna’s tie, one foot pressing on his stomach as he shook his head, “I didn’t say look, Ant. I said to smell it. What candle did I light for you? Turn off your screen and focus on it.”

Tenna’s entire body seemed to take a screenshot at the sudden movement and his tail flopped to the side but his screen immediately turned off. Dutifully, his olfactory systems started to work in time with the fans on the side of his head, the wiring working together to compute the different scents that were drifting through the air. He didn’t necessarily need to breathe in order to scent, but it helped to keep everything stable and keep him steady as he felt small, deft fingers start to undo his tie.

The candle, the candle. Not the weight of Battat coming to sit on his stomach and those same fingers starting to unbutton his shirt buttons - oh, Angel, he could feel Battat’s claws scraping his skin -

“Tenna,” a quiet interruption, “The candle.”

“Right!” The showman chirped as he shook his head slightly, “It’s one of the - hm, we don’t use this one very often, do we? You like the ones with… mnh - vanilla.”

“Yes,” Battat hummed an affirmation as he shifted to pull Tenna’s shirt up and out of his belt, giving his belt buckle one swipe of the thumb as it winked up at him - the little thing was animated, after all - before settling back down on his lower stomach. He lightly ran his claws up and down his now-bare chest, eyes lidded, “Lower shelf.”

Tenna’s breath hitched at the sensation and his screen fuzzed as though it was going to turn on, but a harsher swipe of a claw from Battat had it darkening immediately, “It’s nice, mm, berries? Has some fruity scent to it. And cashmere. Smells like you, that’s why I like this one. It’s- um- oh-” 

Battat’s fingers traced against the edges of the access panel that took up the majority of Tenna.’s chest and upper stomach, knowing exactly how sensitive it was, “What’s the name of it? Open this up for me, Ant.”

“Yes, o-okay-”

There was a quiet click and a rush of air as the panel slid open. Battat took great care to pick it up and set it down and off to the side, propping it up against the side of the couch before sitting back up and peering in.

It was as bad as he thought. Worse, really.

“Oh, Tenna.”

“Wh-huh?” Tenna’s screen flipped on and he looked down at Battat, antennas standing straight up in shock as his came up from the fuzzy lull that Battat had started to worm him into, “What-”

“Hey,” The Pippins reached up then, shifting so he was sitting a little higher up and closer to the open panel. His claws started to lightly scratch the sides of Tenna’s head casing, right underneath his fans, which were still whirring out warm air, “Turn off your screen, you big box. You still haven’t told me what candle this is. Let me take care of you, lean back and relax.”

“Is this - you tricked me!” Tenna’s hands raised slightly, but then fell back down as his screen started to snow over - the fingers against his chassis felt way too damn good.

Battat let out a tiny snort, “Relax. The entire studio is going to end up quitting by tomorrow if we don’t just get through with this. Just focus on the candle, the music. And then we’ll be done and I’ll leave and it’ll be fine, okay?”

There was a beat of silence before Tenna flipped his screen back on, though it was with a tiny little frown, “Can I have a kiss?”

How could Battat say no to that?

His other hand came up to grip the other side of his screen and he leaned in, pressing their lips together. Kissing Tenna was a marvel each and every time - silky smooth glass, molten and so hot. Tenna wasn’t shy about kissing, either, so each time was confident and bold, with a tongue nearly immediately darting out to deepen it. He was overwhelming in nearly every way, the static against his face, in his mouth, vibrating against his teeth and against nearly every piece of his body made him almost want to throw out the entire plan that he had for the day. And the way Tenna brought a hand up to grip at his waist made him suspect that the showman had the same thought.

With great difficulty, Battat pulled away. He tapped the middle of Tenna’s screen with two of his fingers and shook his head, “Off. Candle.” And then moved back to his perch on his stomach. He reached up as soon as Tenna’s screen was off for his toolbox, lips pursing as he pulled out a small rag and a flathead screwdriver. The rag would help him collect the dust, and the screwdriver would help him pry out some of the more stubborn clips of cables that got tangled. He knew which ones had to stay plugged in, but there were some less necessary functions that he could unplug in order to loop them around. He could feel Tenna tense under him, but he could also hear the fans start to shift into the “input” settings, letting him scent the areas around him again.

He let Tenna think about it for a moment as he reached in. His fingers lightly brushed against a very tense bundle of cables and Tenna jolted, his fingers curling into the couch cushions as his tail thudded hard against the floor. Battat didn’t pay him any mind - he always acted like this, and he wondered if he was in pain.

“It’s - mnn - it’s the sun-sunrise woods, isn’t it, Batty?” Tenna finally squeaked out, voice a bit fuzzy and breathless. His screen remained dutifully off, however, even though he desperately wanted to see what Battat was doing and how he was looking at him.

“Good job, you pretty television,” Battat crooned low, fingers wedging into the wires and finding one that was a little looser than the others. He felt Tenna tense up again and he thumbed the edges of his panel, “Keep breathing in for me, Ten. Tell me about some woods, yeah? How about flowers, ya like flowers. What’s your favorite kind?”

“Oh -” the static feedback sharpened briefly as Battat finally freed the wire from the bundle, fingers moving briskly over it as he cleaned it over with the microfiber rag, “Um, I like, daisies. Red ones! I love red daisies!”

“Like the ones that come outta your nose, huh?” Battat laughed at that, fully amused, shifting to settle himself a little closer to access Tenna’s insides better. He found the port that the wire was meant to be connected to and then lightly blew on it and Tenna’s hands were suddenly on his hips, “What- whatcha doin’, Ten?”

“Just - holding on! So you don’t fall in!” Tenna’s voice was tense and fuzzy all at once, shoulders tense as his thumbs pressed into Battat’s sides, “I’m fine! Ahah! But yes, like - oh-”

Battat plugged the wire back in and then went back to that thick bundle, fingers deftly working through a knot that had formed. It was warm, and he could see why - the entire bundle had worked its way around one of Tenna’s AC rods, which kept his entire body cool while the fans worked at keeping his head cool, “Ya really gotta let me get in here more often, Ten. No wonder you’ve been heatin’ up so fast. Nothin’ can breathe. How about your second favorite flower?”

As soon as his fingers were able to brush against the actual AC rod, the noise that escaped Tenna was downright sinful and Battat looked up sharply, eyebrows furrowed. Tenna was looking absolutely everywhere else, antennae still sprung straight upward and hands still curled tightly on Battat’s waist.

“What was-’

“Lily of the valley,” Tenna forced out, his tail thumping once against the couch as he shifted slightly underneath Battat, “I like the - they’re like little cups, they remind me a little of you? Oh- hng, be careful, please.”

“I am, I am. I didn’t know you liked those.” He tentatively brushed his fingers against the rod again, tracing it up through the left side of his torso, lightly unwinding another cable and plugging it back into its proper port. He watched as Tenna’s entire face lit up with rainbow bars for a moment before blacking out again, back arching slightly.

Oh.

Oh.

“Ten,” Battat’s voice was smooth as butter, low and almost raspy as he leaned into his chassis. The AC rod was cool to the touch, doing its job now that it had been freed from the half dozen wires and cables that had wound themselves around it. Battat could nearly fit his entire upper body inside of Tenna and he had to fight back a shudder at that realization, “I think you need to be a ‘lil more honest with me, right now.”

“About what, Batty?” Tenna’s hands stayed dutifully on his sides, tightening more as Battat lowered himself. Battat could feel his fingers trembling, could feel his fans whirring and trying to keep his head as cool as his torso was starting to feel, “Ab- oh mama-”

Battat lightly ran his tongue along that AC cable and smirked around an open mouth as Tenna let out a loud whimper, his tail smacking hard against the hard wood floor.

Maintenance as Mike had always been brief and cursory. Tenna had been watching, demanding that Mike get it done quickly. No candles, no music. Just get the tools, get in, get out. Battat almost wondered - no, he was certain - that back then, it was an event that Tenna hated. To have something so vital about himself in the hands of someone else. To have to be laid bare and exposed, to have someone else elbow deep inside of his own inner workings to make him functional again. Battat knew he had hated it, then, and assumed that had just kept going, even to now. Even during the previous few times he’d done it out of costume, he’d done it quickly, without looking much at Tenna, even though Tenna had been. Far more relaxed about the whole ordeal, now that he was looking back on it.

Egg on his face. 

“Batt- ahht-” Tenna whined as he shifted again, screen flickering through a few images before it finally settled on his usual one, lips pulled into a pout, “What are you doing?”

“What’s it look like I’m doing?” He pushed himself up and out of Tenna’s chassis, grinning up at him with the most devilish expression. His one hand was still wrapped around that AC rod, another around another thick bundle of cords that was bunched up near the left side of his body, “Maintenance.”

Tenna’s lips tilted into a scowl but Battat paid him little mind as he turned his attention back to the artistry that was open in front of him. He dipped back down into his chassis, pressing his lips to the AC rod once more before going to the bundle of cables. He knew these ones were those that led down into his legs, that would provide feedback up into his motherboard up top - sensory, his skin, pain, pleasure.

He was such an idiot - but who was he to ever turn down an opportunity when it sprung up?

“Tell me about the music, Ant.” His eyes studied the different ports that connected to the main wiring that led up through his back and to his head, similar to what he assumed a human’s spinal cord was like. He knew that he needed most of these to stay plugged in, so he was going to have to be creative when it came to untangling them.

Tenna barely got a moment to think before he felt a pair of lips on his lower set of wires. One hand flew off Battat’s side and to the upper part of the couch, claws digging into the plush leather as he whined, head thunking back into the pillows. He tried his best to think, to force his auxiliary systems to kick in and focus on the outside, to not think about Battat, to not think about the push and pull and those lips and that tongue-

“Ngh! Battat- wh- Bat- It’s um!” His antenna drooped slightly, “You’re a Weaver of Dreams, r-ight?”

“Good boy,” Battat crooned as he finally freed one cable from the rest, knowing that the others would follow suit shortly after.

That seemed to be the ticket - Tenna let out a long string of broken pleads, the single bit of praise hooking him in, “Battat please, I- please, I lied, I- I like it, I like when it’s you, only you, it’s - I want you, can you - please, please-” His body was trembling then, fans picking up speed and small clouds of steam starting to escape from the vents on the sides of his head.

“I got you, Tens,” Battat murmured low as he looked down at the bundle of wires, lips pursing. One of them seemed to be stripped slightly - the rubber casing had been worn through and he could see the copper on the inside. His fingers brushed against it and he felt a jolt of electricity go straight through him.

His eyes fluttered back and he let out a noise of his own, hips rocking uncontrollably against Tenna’s stomach. Tenna’s screen flipped back on and he looked back to the Pippins on his torso, panting, “What- did I shock you?”

“You’ve got ah- a wire needs some fixin’,” Battat leaned out of him, face completely flushed as he swallowed, “Sorry about that.”

“No, no!” Tenna shook his head and then reached for him, picking Battat up and holding him up and over his open chest, bringing him closer, “Please, it - I liked it. I liked it, do that. While you-”

“S-sure,” Battat laughed, knowing exactly why Tenna had lifted him up. He reached and grabbed him by the balls of his antennae, yanking his head closer. Tenna let out a strangled noise as Battat kissed him, licking into his mouth. He’d always felt so much smaller than Tenna when he was with him like this, but having him so pliant and open under him, while Battat held the sides of his head in place, knowing that Tenna would do absolutely nothing to throw him off?

It gave him a dizzying sense of power, really.

It was even more difficult the second time to pull away from Tenna’s intoxicating kisses, but somehow, the Pippins was able to do so. He brushed his thumb against Tenna’s lower lip and then smiled down at him, “Gotta fix that wire. You gonna keep being a good TV for me? Let me fix it while you sit pretty for me?”

“Yes, yes,” Tenna immediately responded, nodding quickly, “I c- ahnn be good for you!”

Battat loved the sound of that.

He reached for his tools and found some new casings and a razor, “I’m gonna have to really focus here, Tens, so you can’t move. You can sing me lot’sa pretty songs and make all the noise you want, but ya can’t move. Ya stay still, I’ll give you a reward. Like the sound of that, okay? This wire’s probably why your leg’s been botherin’ ya lately.”

“O-okay,” Tenna took his hand off the couch, then, and wound it back into Battat’s waist, the other still firmly placed on his hip. He knew that if he tried to hold onto anything else, he’d end up reaching for the diceboy on his chest anyways, “I’m ready. I’m ready.”

Battat pressed a languid kiss to the edge of the cavity and then to his primary AC rod, relishing in the hitch of breath as he moved down to the stripped wire. It was one of the thicker ones that helped move his left leg, and Tenna had been complaining of a pain in his hip as of lately, though only in private and when he believed Battat was barely listening. Battat ran his thumb along the copper once more and let out a little noise at the delightful thrill of electricity that ran through him again, his own hips rocking once against the flat plane of Tenna’s stomach.

“Fuck, alright,” Battat laughed, though it was choked, “Gonna be hard for me, too. You drive me up the goddamn wall.”

“Makes us the best pair in the studio– oh-”

Tenna’s voice caught when he felt the razor gently cut through the casing and then around the thick copper wire with practiced ease. He did his damnest not to move, though the tip of his tail shuddered and his screen flickered when he felt the ruined casing be pulled off and the copper wires become exposed to air. 

Battat chewed on his lower lip for a moment before he fully pressed a finger against them, letting out a proper moan, throwing his head back and rocking his hips against Tenna a few times. The voltage wasn’t strong, not like it would be if it were closer to Tenna’s head, but it was enough to rip through Battat and set each of his limbs ablaze. It hurt, but angel, it hurt so good.

“Fuck - fuck,” he panted as he forced his hand back, blinking several times to clear his vision, “Never gonna get used to that, I don’t think. Shit. Okay.” He sat up, head feeling a bit fuzzy and woozy as he looked at Tenna.

Tenna was looking back at him as though he had hung the stars in the sky and named them all individually. His lips were pulled into a soft smile, dazed and his nose had a daisy perched right on the tip of it, antennae curled into a heart on the top of his head. Battat felt heat rush to his face and he scowled, reaching for a lighter from his toolbox, quickly ducking back down into his chest.

He was careful to avoid touching the wires as he resealed them back into the rubber, using the lighter to seal the new case against the old one. He pried it back into place and then tilted his head up, meeting eyes with Tenna’s screen as he plugged it back in.

Tenna’s screen flashed with rainbow bars and his back arched as Battat resumed plugging everything that he had unplugged back in. Usually, he did this quickly and methodically. But this time? He took every care to blow into each port, thumbing around them, gently easing the cables in. He could feel the electricity building up inside of the wires around him and his breath caught.

“Battat, Batty, please, I’m-” Tenna’s voice was higher pitched and almost glitchy as he shifted underneath him, fingers still shaking as they gripped his hips and stroked his sides with big thumbs.

“A few more, big guy,” the Pippins murmured, digging in for a cable that had fallen deeper in. He picked it up and then fished out a few more and realized he needed to set them somewhere, so in a stroke of genius, he set the thickest one between his teeth. Tenna gasped and he grinned around it, tongue slowly laving a circle against the rubber.

It wasn’t bad, not really. Tasted like Tenna, all things considered. What he was mostly interested in, however, was the pulses of electricity that he could feel right underneath. This cable connected a little higher up, closer to where the thicker cords ran up into his head, which meant that the voltage was a bit stronger. He wiggled his way up, stroking fingers through some empty ports on his way up and hearing Tenna start to plead and whimper more nonsensically.

There it was. Coaxial cable, connected his VCR to his head. Pretty important, but not necessary. He could toy with that.

He lifted it from his lips and dragged his lips along the side of the adapter port, legs trembling when he felt a small shock get delivered straight into his skin. He couldn’t help but let out a small whimper for himself, adjusting to try to get some friction between his legs. 

One of Tenna’s hands slid down from his waist and down his ass, squeezing once before two of his fingers pressed flat against his pussy from the back, creating something for him to grind against. He gave an appreciative little kiss to the adapter on the cable, murmuring a low, “Good boy.”

He could hear a breathless giggle from Tenna before it was washed away when he turned his attention to the RCA port on the VCR itself. Battat took a moment to blow into it, dislodging any dust that had built up from the connector not being plugged in and relishing in the way that Tenna tensed up. 

Battat turned the RCA cable and then lightly twirled it around the port, lips brushing against where they met. He felt another, stronger zap meet him and he let out a groan, hips arching back into those fingers that were pressed tightly against him. Tenna dutifully, automatically, began to move them and he gave another kiss to the cable, feeling the voltage nip at him right back.

*Please, please,” Tenna pleaded then, at the second pass of the cable over the port, and Battat couldn’t help himself any longer.

He jammed it inside, not hesitating and certainly not being gentle with it. Tenna’s entire body froze up and another wire, somewhere inside of him - Battat would realize later, another one needed replacing - sparked alive with electricity as Tenna came.

Battat felt that copper brush his arm and his body seized, a surprised shriek leaving his lips. Those fingers pressed against him, Tenna’s cry against his ears, the build up, the voltage rampaging through him and he felt so alive. It burned, it made him feel alight and like he was on top of the world. His fingers gripped Tenna’s cables tightly as he shook, unable to really tell if he was screaming, cumming, or some holy mixture of both. Everything was perfect and holy and it hurt too damn good and he hoped it never would end.

When Battat felt the world come back to him, he was sprawled out on Tenna’s chest, his panel back on and his head pressed to his collarbone. Tenna was panting still, fingers brushing up and down Battat’s back, his head tilted to be able to watch his partner’s face intently.

“You’re - oh thank the angel you’re okay, I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean for it to get that - Battat, I’m so sorry-” 

“Ten-”

“You went limp and all frozen all at the same time and I had to pry you off-”

Battat reached up and lightly knocked against the side of Tenna’s head, “Tenna!”

The showman paused and cupped the back of Battat’s head, fans whirring, “Batty..”

“Tenna.” The Pippins snorted and flopped his head back down, shaking his head and yawning, “I liked it. Idiot. I wouldn’t have fucking jammed my tongue down the damn cables the first time if I didn’t. I’m fine. How are you feeling?”

Tenna’s tail twitched a few times, as though he was quickly processing what the hell Battat had just confessed to him before he let out a little giggle, “Much better, actually. My hip doesn’t hurt anymore.”

“Good,” Battat scrubbed a hand on his face, “I don’t know about you, but I need a change.”

“I definitely do!” Tenna laughed then, brighter than the smaller giggle he’d just given.

The two lay there, both unmoving.

“...Maybe we just. Take a nap first?” Battat mumbled, prying one eye open as he looked up at his partner.

Tenna’s fingers gently curled into the pips on the top of Battat’s head, lightly rubbing them and Battat could not fight the boneless feeling that was taking over him, “Mm, yes. Okay, I think so.”

Battat took a deep breath and that same scent of the candle flooded his nose. It really was a good pick by him. The music was still playing, and he felt as though his limbs didn’t quite belong to him. Not to mention? 

He knew Tenna’s dirty little secret, now.