#❮ the collector / verse.02 ❯ ━━ ❝ we'll play forever me and you when you paint the land in nine bright hues !

[missallanea-a]

The shadows continued to warp and bend, pooling down the walls in a dramatic display of impatience before reforming into the Collector's own two-dimensional form. An irritated whine bubbles up in their throat, nothing that ever fully evolves into any real words, as they half-heartedly listen to Philip's words.

— until that last little detail catches their ear. Perhaps, if they were a little bit older, or a little bit wiser, or a little bit less naive, they could have seen the distraction for what it was... but as it stood, it only served to split their face in a bright smile.

"Games with disguises?" 

It always felt as if they were begging, BEGGING Philip to tell them more about the Human Realm games they remembered. They would have asked that other human, if they had half a chance. Surely she wouldn't be so stingy with her details, right? But alas, with no way to break free from their imprisonment, they were forced to continue hanging off of Philip's every word.

Not for too much longer. Soon, soon, the Day of Unity would come, and the Draining Spell, and THEN — then they'd get to play for real. Pinkie swear.

"Wuh-well, what kind of games? C'mon, c'mon!" The Collector's form split apart once more, reforming in front of Philip, a crescent moon smile plastered on their face. Moping and whining gone, it seems, for the moment. "Ooh, I've got it!"

A snap of their fingers, and they stare at their hand a moment — seemingly disappointed in something, before their attention returns fully to their one and only friend. "If you tell me about your silly little human games, I'll tell you... hmm..."

Sitting in the air, their legs cross as a hand lifts to their chin, clearly thinking deeply. "...Whaddya wanna know?"

@missallanea asked:

There's a quiet, CHILDISH humming through the unoccupied space buried so deep beneath the castle halls. Shadows twist across the walls, manifesting into the only visage that he was able to take from within their prison. If his humming is bothering the only playmate they have, Philip was keeping it carefully concealed away — much like the rest of him, behind that mask of his.

"Y'know, now that I'm thinking about it... I think all your time wearing that demon mask makes this history's looongest game of dress-up. Aren't you bored with it yet?"

There's something so childish about the Collector, despite the fact that he was immensely powerful. Philip found himself wondering how old the being would be considered among his peers. Was he still a child? Did such beings have a concept of age or were the rest of them like this, forever wanting to play games and have fun? And how much longer could he continue to string the being along, offering him empty promises he never intended to keep?

At least a while longer, it seemed, if the humming coming from the shadows is any indication. For if the Collector did not intend to continue playing Philip's games, he would have simply fallen silent. But Philip has come to realize that he craved companionship and fun more than just about anything else. And as long as he indulged in those whims from time to time, he could placate the creature within the tablet. After all, they had to complete the Draining Spell in order for him to free the Collector.

Or so Philip had told him. While it was true to a certain extent (he would need the power from the Draining Spell in order to free the Collector without Titan's Blood), he had no intention of following through with that plan, certainly not when the Collector could take everything away from him, everything he'd worked so hard for, with a mere snap of his fingers.

Philip had worked too hard, done too much to let it be taken away from him, especially when he was so close to finishing what he'd started so long ago.

He looked up at the Collector's voice, lifting a hand to take off the mask, so he could offer the child-shaped shadow something of a smile.

"Oh, I don't know, Collector," he started, keeping his tone mild, warm, as though he was truly considering an answer to his question. "Disguises can be quite fun, after all. There are all sorts of games in the Human Realm that involve disguises, you know." Because if there was anything that could distract the Collector, it was the mention of a new game.