An Unscratched Surface: Part 12

By the time Gamzee all up and got a sister patched, Karkat had managed to get the sister shooshed and chilled the motherfuck up. Before that she'd been all up and ranting about this Vriska that she was obviously sort of all up and black for. Except Karkat obviously wasn't letting that black go, not right now. Now when it'd wound a sister up like this. But, now that she was all up and chilled and padded with little spots of white—and those peeking through with hints of teal—Karkat had changed from trying to be all conciliatory to something else.

"What the fuck started this particular brush with black up?" Karkat demanded of Terezi, perched as he was next to her on the edge of the ablution trap.

Except Terezi'd all up and buttoned her mouth up to be all quiet like. Apparently she really didn't have any desire for Karkat to all up and get his ashen on with her and Vriska. And Gamzee couldn't blame her. She was flushed with a brother, and didn't want him all up and sliding himself into the wrong quadrant.

"She was up and talking to Vriska about Spided," Gamzee offered. "Sister said she'd try and get Vriska to see it as in her interest to see Spided out of the way."

"And why the fuck would a legisticator want to do that?" Karkat demanded, turning his attention to Gamzee, obviously shocked by his answer.

"Because she's all up and helping me deal with the situation."

"She's what?" Karkat shouted, leaping to his feet. "No. No. Gamzee this is not what I motherfucking agreed to. You're bringing others in on this shit?"

"A brother can't handle this all alone. It's a bigger thing than I could have really gotten my know on about. Tried to find some way to help you, thought a legisticator might help. Didn't even know that ya'll up and knew each motherfucking other. Her and Nepeta..."

"Nepeta's in on this too? Geez, Gamzee, you don't even fucking understand the concept of secrets, do you? Has your pan completely rotted through? Or is it just made of something too fucking dense to even come up with basic understanding?"

"Chill brother, just get your chill on," Gamzee whispered, reaching out like he was going to pap a brother, but Karkat just jerked away, looking all up and offended. As for Terezi, the sister was just grinning at him, cruel and sharp and full of corners and sharp edges.

"Don't you even dare try and fucking pap me, you fucking chuckhead. If I didn't want you telling your guardian..."

"Shoosh man, just up and shoosh," Gamzee hissed out.

"Shoosh? You want me to fucking shoosh? You're kidding, right? Could you be any more of an asshole? You knew I didn't want my fucking situation relayed to the whole goddamn planet. Wouldn't that be just fucking wonderful. Spread the story of a mutant blood and his struggle against some asshole hemohierarchist guardian who just wants to turn him into some work hoofbeast. Did you get off telling how he hits me? Some fucking moirail you are..."

As he spoke, Gamzee couldn't do much more than shake his head, especially with how Terezi's eyes went wider and wider behind her red sunglasses. She hadn't known, of course she hadn't, because Gamzee wasn't the kind of brother to all up and talk about that shit. That accusing his temporail was getting on hurt, motherfucking hurt like someone'd knocked his horns into stone or something. Made his blood-pusher ache.

"Karkat... Spided... He..." Terezi asks in a whisper, and it makes Karkat's beautiful red-black eyes go wide as wide can be.

"You didn't..." Karkat mumbles in shock and Gamzee shakes his head and sighs, "You did."

"Fuck."

"Damn motherfucking right."

"FUCK."

"You said it, brother. All I did was look for some help. They came to their own damn conclusions about your guardian. All up and decided to help me because of those conclusions. Nepeta's trying to talk to your olive-bro about how he's treated, and Terezi all up and decided she could make Vriska betray her guardian out of her own desires. I've been working with Goatad."

"I told you not to bring him into this..."

"He hasn't, not really," Terezi mumbled. "If he had, I think Goatad would have just grabbed you and  beaten your guardian to a pulp."

Which was what Gamzee wanted to do to that psychotic fuck, but there was no saying that out loud.

"There's this thing that a guidance adjustor of his level and pull can do," Terezi continued. "I pointed it out to Gamzee, and he's been working on getting his guardian to do it for you."

"And just what is this fucking plan?" Karkat demanded, obviously trying to ignore his slip up.

"Temporary transfer of guardianship. You'd all up and be Goatad's ward for a while until he could help you figure out what you want to all up and do. It..." Gamzee sighed and shook his head. "Anyway, he's all up and filling out the last of the paperwork now. Filing tomorrow evening. Already getting the trolls together to hear the case."

"Really? Wow, he moves fast," Terezi said, obviously appreciative.

"Yeah, ain't one to ignore the chance put down in front of him," Gamzee agreed, glad Terezi was on this vein instead of the one that might have come from Karkat's revelation.

"Why? What the fuck does he expect? It's not like I want to come here anymore than I wanted to be there," Karkat snapped. "Doesn't what I want fucking matter?"

"Sure it does, brother. But the truth is that you don't seem to fucking want out, and there's no way I'm up and letting you stay with that bastard," Gamzee countered.

"Why do you even fucking care? More of your damn high blood nonsense?"

The words were like a motherfucking slap across the face. A backhand that got him right in his blood pumper and made him back up a step.

"Naw man. I care. It's what a palebro's for, ain't it? Caring and helping?" Gamzee asked, and Terezi gave him another hostile, disbelieving look at the implied relationship.

"I never asked for a moirail," Karkat snapped.

"Sometimes a brother gets what he needs, not what he asks for."

"Shut up, Gamzee. Just shut the fuck up."

"Where the motherfuck is all this wicked noise all up and coming from?"

The roar of Goatad's voice made them jump, all three of them, though none so much as Terezi. Karkat, at least, had heard Goatad bellow before. In the office he was all up and quiet to not upset others, so Terezi'd never known his guardian to raise his voice, or just how motherfucking powerful it was. She was shivering now, on the edge of the ablution block, and Karkat had moved back to her side and was wrapping an arm around her shoulders. It was friendly, far too friendly for Gamzee's liking.

Moments later the hygiene block's door was opening, and Goatad was framed in its pale-purple paint. The older troll stood there for a minute, taking in the motherfucking scene before him with his ever seeking eyes. He must have taken the sight wicked fast, but still he stood there, looking at them like his motherfucking thinkpan couldn't get this all up and get this reasoned out.

"Gamzee. Karkat. Miss Pyrope. May I inquire as to what the motherfuck is going on here?"

Only took the briefest glimpse to see that Karkat was still getting his comfort on, and Terezi couldn't find her words, leaving it to Gamzee.

"You didn't really hear it, but there was some wicked knocking at the door, and when I went to check it I found these two. Apparently Terezi all up and got herself in some trouble, and her guardian's out of town. So Karkat all up and brought her here. Ain't really a thing."

From the look on his guardian's face, it was clear that Goatad no more believed Gamzee's story than Terezi believed his words about pale romance. Unlike her, though, his guardian was willing to take them. He shook his head and shrugged, then backed away from the door.

"Was going to order up some wicked dough-with-sauce-and-grub pies from the delivery place anyway, so they might as well stick around for some motherfucking food. Can even stay the day if they want. We can find some room. How's that all up and sound?"

"Fine," Terezi mumbled.

"No fucking reason not to," Karkat sighed.

As for Gamzee... He wasn't even sure what he was all up and going to do now.