#anyways the toy she’s talking about is Mason in case u were wondering

[peapod20001]

OC asks, for Felix : 1, 9, 18 ?

1. Do they sleep with a stuffed animal? If they have multiple, who’s the favorite?

18. Kissing: tongue or no tongue?

[creativeskullcreations]

Chapter 10: A Real Guilty Feeling

Hey everybody, here's chapter 10! But, unfortunately, it'll be the last chapter you see for a while. I need to take a break from writing for a while, do something else and recharge a bit. Maybe also knock out some drawings too while I'm at it.

Current timeline is looking like this: Couple of weeks without writing, and then maybe build up a bit of a buffer of chapters for <i>Outside</i>. But first, I'll be working on episode 2 of <i>Happy Times at Handeemen HQ</i>. Y'all are starting to show an interest in that, and I wanna put something new out for it.

If you want to keep updated, or even just see what I'm drawing, you can follow my art Tumblr here. Also check out my YouTube, in case of livestreams or speedpaints!(Am I plugging my own stuff too much?)

Whenever I'm ready to start posting again, I'll make sure to leave an announcement on here.

I'll see y'all later.

When Will got home, he dumped Stacy's stuff and scout on the couch. He then pointed out his locked workroom, and told her that she was never to go in there no matter what. That done, he left her to her own devices, and went off to bed. He took off his shirt and jeans, then crawled under the sheets. The last thing he did before passing out was shoot off a message to the group chat about how DnD Night was canceled until further notice.

When he woke up, far too few hours later, it was to a light weight on his chest. He stared at Scout for a moment, then picked her up and dropped her on the floor, rolling onto his front. He grabbed his phone, squinting at the too bright screen. Several messages were in the chat, and he sighed as he opened it up and scrolled to the top.

Masonary: um, excuse me?! i asked for that day off u can't cancel!!! somebody better be dead! D:<

Blooming_Stitches: Mason, shut up. We don't know what could be going on.

drWEED420: ugh, stacy. I told you to call me.

Masonary: y would stacy need to call u sam?

Masonary: is it because she hacked ur account and changed ur name again?

 drWEED420 has changed their name to DrSamIAm

DrSamIAm: no but it is something we'll going to talk abaout.

Will_and_a_Way: Stace is in the hospital for infected surgery stitches

Blooming_Stitches: I'M SORRY WHAT

Masonry: dude i was joking about som1 being dead

DrSamIAm: goddamit stacy

 DrSamIAm has left the chat We're ALL Idiots Here

Masonry: ok first of all what happened to stacy

Masonry: second who changed the chat name again?

Blooming_Stitches: lol

Will sighed, the went into his phone and pulled up his drop box, where he'd sneaked the file into a while ago. He hesitated briefly, then sent it to the chat. Stacy could be mad at him later, but he was too tired to think up a cover story for her right now.

 Will_and_a_Way posted a file in We're ALL Idiots Here

Masonry: ?

Blooming_Stitches: !

Will_and_a_Way: read that if you guys want to know what happned.

Will_and_a_Way: I'm going back to sleep now try not to kill each other

He clicked his phone off, dropping it to his mattress and letting his head fall on his pillow. Within seconds he was back asleep, completely oblivious to Scout Jumping back on his bed and climbing onto his back. She curled around the small Kirby toy, using it as a pillow as she settled back into sleep herself.

()()()

When Will woke up again, it was to a light weight in the center of his back, right below his shoulder blades. He huffed, glaring at the wall. He took a deep breath, then heaved himself up with all his strength. As predicted, Scout was catapulted off, and he quickly got out of bed, heading to the kitchen.

He made himself some toast, checking his phone on the way. The group chat was mostly just full of the various reactions from Lisa and Mason. Sammy had come back at some point, going on a rant about what Stacy hadn't told him.

He read over the various comments as he  ate, able to tell where they were in the document. Unsurprisingly, Mason finished it first, and Lisa was intent on meeting Scout. Sammy had told her Scout was nothing special, which Will privately agreed with. He finished the back reading and, seeing as nobody was online at the moment, locked his phone again. He picked up his toast and moved into his work room for the time being, deciding to get something done.

It was easy, really, for Will to get lost in his work. Dissecting the "toys" he brought home, taking them apart and recording it in his notes. He was currently working on the body of the head he'd been looking at last night. The brown, fuzzy thing was strapped securely onto the table, the front having been sawed apart and spread open.

He shifted through the innards, making careful, detailed notes about what was in there. He would compare them to the stolen blueprints later, figure out what was supposed to be in there and what wasn't. For now, though, the intention was to make a catalogue of parts.

When his phone alarm finally went off, signalling it was lunch time, he straightened up with a sigh. He pulled off his rubber gloves and, making sure the straps on the table were tight, went out to the kitchen. He made himself a simple sandwich, eating it in the kitchen as he glanced through the group chat. Mason and Lisa were on and currently discussing things, but Sam hadn't been on again since his rant.

He lurked a bit longer after he finished his sandwich, then got up to go back to work. On the way through the living room, he paused when he saw Scout sitting on the couch. She was curled up in the corner, Kirby plush on her lap as she stared at it. Even as a Puppet, he recognized the look on her face as one Stacy had often worn in the first year after her mother had died.

'Why the hell do I feel so bad for that thing?' He sighed, rubbing at his face. Making a snap decision, he went over to his DVD shelf and pulled out The Iron Giant.  He turned on the TV and player, then loaded in the movie, skipping the previews. When he reached the main menu, he selected play and dropped the remote near Scout. He then left, heading back towards the basement and his work.

Scout watched go, staring silently after him as he once again disappeared behind the locked door. She didn't even try to follow him, instead settling in to watch the show he'd turned on. With any luck, it would be violent and/or funny enough to take her mind off of things.

()()()

'That is the saddest shit I have ever seen...' She sniffed, rubbing at her frustratingly dry eyes. 'I can't believe he let himself get blown up like that. What the fuck.' She rubbed at her eyes some more, then tried to figure out how to choose a different show. When she couldn't figure it out, she threw the remote down in frustration. 'Fuck it! Where's Will?'

She Jumped from the couch, heading over to the locked door. She peered in the crack between the door and the floor, but couldn't see anything. She could hear, however, and what she heard were power tools. The sound sent a shock through her system, dredging up unwanted memories of Riley's lab. She drew back, then jumped onto a nearby table when the noise stopped. Thinking quickly, she opened the drawer that was there and tried to pretend that she had been going through it.

Will came out of the room a minute later, wiping his hands with a dirty towel. He glared when he saw what she was "doing". "What the hell are you doing? Get out of there!" It wasn't quite yelling, but his voice was definitely louder than it needed to be. Scout suppressed her fear and scoffed.

"Fine. There wasn't anything but batteries in there anyways." She slammed the drawer closed, feeling a small, petty joy in how the contents rattled around when she did. She watched him cross to his bedroom and, when he'd closed his door, opened the drawer back up in order to snoop for real.

Batteries, keys, some weird plastic clips, and other odds and ends she didn't have words for had been organized neatly in the drawer. Working quickly, she shuffled everything around even more, then shoved a handful of what was sitting on the table into the drawer. She then closed it again and sat back as innocently as she could, tilting the shade of the lamp next to her. When Will came back out, now dressed in different clothes, he sighed and fixed the shade.

She watched as he gathered up a couple of things, then came over and grabbed up a set of keys she hadn't dumped into the drawer. There was a pause, or maybe more of a hesitation, and then he scooped her up and left the house, ignoring her protests.

"Hey! Hey lemme go! H-mmph?!" He easily covered her mouth with one hand as he locked the door. He made his way to his car, not letting her go into he'd climbed in and dumped her in the passenger seat. "What was that for?!"

"Okay, here's the deal." He told her, ignoring the question. "We're going to go see Stacy. To do that, we have to go through a whole hospital full of people. And you will be quiet and good the whole time, or you will be going out the nearest window."

"We're going to go see Stacy..." That was the one thing she had really comprehended. Her Host was alive, Scout knew she had to be. If she wasn't, then the Puppet wouldn't have long to-

It didn't matter. She didn't matter, not after what almost happened. Not after what she almost did, accidentally or not.

She was jolted out of her thoughts as Will started the car, realizing belatedly that he'd continued talking to her. She hoped he hadn't noticed she wasn't paying attention. Whatever he'd been doing behind that door, she did not want to become his next patient.

In the silence of the car ride, Scout easily lost herself in the thoughts swirling through her head. The most prominent were thoughts of guilt, knowing she was to blame for this and wondering where she had gone wrong. Maybe she hadn't tried as hard as she should've to subjugate her Host back in the Studio? Or maybe she shouldn't have stayed with her after they escaped. Maybe she should have left after making sure Stacy was okay.

'Maybe I should leave anyways.'

She missed it when Will parked, only noticing when he picked her up. She let herself stay limp, though not so much out of compliance than a desire to try and keep working on the plan that had come to mind.

Vaguely, she was aware of the clean white halls Will was taking her through, as well as a nauseating smell that reminded her of Riley. A few other unclaimed Hosts like Will, though wearing clothing that, again, reminded Scout of Riley. She watched  those ones carefully, just in case. She may not like Will, but Stacy did and she didn't want something to happen to him.

Will came up to a door, opening it and peeking inside. Scout tried to look, but could only see the very end of a weird looking bed. Whatever he saw he seemed to like, as he fully entered the room, kicking the door closed behind him and approaching the bed.

"Hey Stacy." He began quietly, and Scout felt her stuffing go cold at the sight of her Host in the bed. Her normally warm brown skin was several shades paler, and there were dark circles under her eyes. She was mostly upright, though leaning heavily against the pillows behind her. The scariest thing, though, were the several tubes connecting her to various machines by the bed.

Scout felt another cold rush of guilt when she saw how Stacy's eyes lit up when she spotted them. She waited for her to say something, anything, but the Host didn't speak, instead lifting her hands to use that weird hand language.

"She can't talk right now." Will translated. "She had to be intubated and her throat still hurts. But, for some reason, she's happy to see you." He sounded annoyed by that, and Scout couldn't help but be confused. Surely Stacy knew about what she did.

'Unless she doesn't.' The Puppet realized. 'She doesn't know shit about how it works. She had no idea what I almost did to her.' Somehow, that didn't make it any better.

Against her will, she was handed over to Stacy so Will could go set down the bags. Stacy hugged her tight, and Scout couldn't help but curl up in her hold, clutching at the weird shirt she was wearing.

She ignored the humans as they talked, or rather as Will talked and Stacy did one handed signing. Instead she stared at the tubing connected to Stacy's arm, watching the clear liquid slowly drip it's way into her body. She didn't know how long she stared for, but she must've dozed off at one point because she suddenly became aware of her hair being stroked.

It couldn't have been too long, as the room was still bright, though she couldn't hear Will anymore. Instead there was a quiet, steady beeping that matched up with Stacy's heartbeat. It was relaxing, and brought up memories of when Scout had first woken up, all those years ago. Before she'd been made to take part in Riley's "tests", or found that TV. Even before she'd met her siblings and learned who and what she really was. Those first few moments when it had just been her and Daisy, enjoying the gift of life.

She almost wished she could go back to that point. Things were so much better back then, when her world consisted of Daisy's sewing room and her siblings. When she didn't have a Host to worry about accidentally killing, or her own people coming after her.

But she wouldn't have to worry about that for long. If her plan ended up working, Stacy wouldn't be in danger ever again.

[creativeskullcreations]

Outside chapter 12: Move Out!

Whoo, got this up in time! :D

And we're meeting Stacy's other two friends! I hope y'all like them, or at least grow to like them cause we'll be seeing them a lot more in the coming chapters. They're important to the story. ;D

The apartment was full of boxes of Stacy's stuff that Will had spent however long packing for her. To the young woman, who hadn't been home in weeks, it was an odd feeling seeing her home in boxes, with her shelves and closet empty. Currently she was helping to move said boxes into the U Haul outside. By which I mean she was holding the door for Will and Mason, who were the ones actually moving the boxes. While the boys were busy, Lisa was cleaning out the cupboards and fridge, which Will had forgotten about completely despite being there so often.

"Seriously, Will! You've been over here for how many days, and never thought to check the fridge for leftovers?" Lisa asked as she threw the food, Tupperware and all, into the trash. "What, were you just bringing food from home everyday?"

"Yes." Will answered seriously, not looking up from his work. The blonde woman stared dumbfounded before rolling her eyes.

"Unbelievable! Mason! You hearing this shit?" She called. Mason gave a thumbs up as he walked by, arms laden with shoe boxes. Stacy watched him closely, not wanting to lose her old games in case he dropped them. Not that she could do much to catch them with only one arm, but she could at least yell at him for it.

"It's not that big a deal, Lisa." She told her friend, after making sure Mason could navigate the stairs okay. "Really, most of the stuff in there had probably already gone bad anyways."

"That's not the point! It's still a waste!" The blonde insisted, dumping a bottle of juice with clouds of mold floating in it into the trash. Stacy winced, knowing she'd bought that back in December and then forgotten about it. It was still mostly full, too.

"Yeah..." She moved back to the couch, where she'd left her bag. Inside the bag was Scout with the Switch. It was a risk bringing her while they did this, but somehow Stacy felt it would be a bigger risk to leave her behind. So she'd brought her along, making her she had the Switch to stay entertained, even if she had to keep the sound off. And so far, nobody seemed to have noticed.

She opened the bag, peering inside. The Puppet was curled up in the bottom, the Switch off and sitting next to her. "Hey, you okay in there?" She asked quietly.

"I'm fine!" Scout hissed back. "Close the fucking bag!" Stacy did so, zipping it all the way shut and leaving it on the couch. She sat next to it, watching the others work to pack up her home, moving the boxes down to the U Haul in the street. She wanted to help, but the few times she attempted to she dropped stuff, and then Will finally made her stop.

Still, she felt restless, so much so that eventually she grabbed her bag and stood up. "Hey, I'm going for a walk! I'll be back later!" She called out. Mason, who was nearby, gave her a wave of acknowledgement.

"Don't get eaten by the gators." He told her. She waved back, but ignored him as she went down the stairs, pausing just at the door to open it back up and grab Scout out of it.

"Hey!" She protested, but Stacy ignored her, holding her in the crook of her right arm as she swung her bag back on. It was difficult to do one handed, and she did need to try and maneuver around Scout, but she managed to get it back on

"We're going for a walk. You need some air." She told the Puppet as she did this. Said Puppet still struggled to try and break free, pounding fabric fists against her arm.

"No I fucking don't! I need to go back in the bag!" She fought against her Host, but was ignored as Stacy continued out of the lobby and walked down the sidewalk outside.   Eventually she gave up, realizing that her fighting would only attract the attention of strangers. Instead she huddled back against Stacy's body at the largeness of the world around her, that she only now viewed completely unobscured. She stared with wide eyes as the human hurried her way down the street, crossing it periodically, until she came to a place empty of buildings.

Greenery covered the area, a shade the Puppet had never seen before in fact. There was a large body of water in the middle, and some odd, colorful object in one "corner" of the area. Tiny Hosts, children, were playing on the objects, but Stacy went right by them. Instead she headed down the path to a more secluded and wooded area. She sat cross-legged by a tree, finally letting Scout go. The Puppet flopped over in her lap.

"Why are we even out here?" She griped, staring at the grass. There was a weird red bug not far away, that she hoped wouldn't come close to them. If it even tried she would smack it.

"Because you need fresh air. You can't just hide in the bag all day, no matter what Will says." Stacy told her. "Besides, I don't like watching them do all that for me, knowing I can't help them." She very much did NOT look at her stump, absolutely not. Instead she stared through the trees at the still somewhat visible lake. There were ducks on it, and she could see a couple of people feeding them.

She wondered if Scout would like feeding them.

Rather than getting up, though, she stayed seated, letting Scout look around instead. She'd been meaning to bring the Puppet out here, but hadn't had a chance before the hospitalization. And then there was the remainder of the healing, taken place at Will house - now her and Will's house - during which he'd barely let her out of sight. It was only after an intense, whispered argument that he'd even begun to let up and allow her to do stuff for herself again, though he'd still hovered.

And now they were finishing packing up her apartment, ready to make the move complete. It was a shame, in her mind. She really did love her independence. But, it was better for everyone involved if this move happened. Especially Scout. If her and Will staggered their schedules, someone could be with her at all times.

(Stacy didn't know yet why that was so important, though. She just knew she didn't want Scout alone.)

But now, at least, she could take Scout out to enjoy some nature. And even now she had crawled down to the ground to pick at the grass, and Stacy winced when she thought of the grass stains that would form. But, she didn't stop her, letting her explore around a little, and look at things. Scout even picked up a stick, though she only used it to swat a ladybug.

Soon the Puppet climbed back into her lap, looking mildly disgusted and agitated. "I hate it here. It smells fucking weird, and I want to go back to your house."

Stacy snorted, but complied, getting up with only a little difficulty. Scout climbed up to her shoulder, stick still in hand. "Fine, we'll go back. It's almost lunch time anyways. Also what you're smelling is the trees and grass."

"The trees and grass fucking stink." Scout grumbled, and Stacy did laugh quietly at that, and got smacked lightly with the stick for it.

"Well, you're not wrong." She admitted, grabbing the stick away from the Puppet and dropping it on the ground. "It can be kinda an acquired taste, so to speak."

"Ew." Scout muttered, covering her nose as they started back the way they'd come. She glared suspiciously at the plants as they passed, as though she was worried they'd spray their stench right at her.

Stacy wondered what she'd think about skunks when she found out about them.

They made their way back to Stacy's apartment in silence, though it was a more comfortable silence than before. As Stacy made her way back upstairs to her apartment, Scout took the chance to hide in the bag. Stacy may believe her friends were good, but that didn't mean Scout did. Not that it mattered much, anyways.

Soon after Stacy got back, the group decided to go for lunch, which really just meant that Mason went to get McDonald's. Stacy asked for a Happy Meal, then slipped the opened toy into her bag for Scout when no one was looking. She didn't know if the Puppet would even want the little Barbie, but it certainly didn't hurt to offer it up.

They all ate quickly, talking and laughing as they did. Lisa ribbed Will on when he would propose, now that they were living together. "You only have so long before her other hand goes." She pointed out jokingly. "Then where will you put the ring?"

Will just shrugged, and Stacy pelted her with chicken nuggets. Mason laughed.

"The neck, obviously. She'd need a nice collar to help keep her out of trouble." He explained. "I could even make you a fancy chain for night time if you need it."

"Wow!" Stacy gave an over exaggerated gasped, though she wasn't really offended. Far too often had she sneaked out at night to go explore some place or another. "And right after I threw my nuggets at Lisa, too!"

"Don't fault me on my timing!" Will smacked a ketchup packet on the back of his head, making a horrid squelching sound. "Ew! Will!" The man's voice jumped up several octaves, but Will just kept on chewing his burger.

"Oof. That's gonna need a shower. You're showering when we get home Mason." Lisa said as he tried to clean his hair with some napkins.

Eventually, though, they managed to finish eating and get back to packing. And after that it wasn't long before all of the boxes loaded up into the U Haul. As they filtered out, Mason, Will, and Lisa carrying the last few boxes, Stacy paused to take one last look.

The living room looked just like it had before she moved in. Kind of sad, really, even with the memories it brought back. She could almost see herself and her family helping her move in four years ago, and remembered the excitement she'd felt back then. Or when she'd bring Will over, before he'd moved out here himself, and how much fun they'd have.

She didn't want to leave. Will had to come back up and lead her out, then drop the keys off at the office with her.

Stacy got into the U Haul with Mason and they made their way to Will's house. They would unload it tomorrow, with another fast-food lunch somewhere in there. Until then they were all due for a good night's sleep and some real food for supper.

After Mason and Lisa left and Will started on dinner, Stacy opened up her bag to finally let Scout out. "Finally!" The Puppet gasped out dramatically, flopping out onto the couch. "I though I was going to fucking die!"

"Oh please, you were fine." Stacy snorted. "And don't worry, tomorrow we'll be working here and you can stay in the bedroom. I'll make sure Lisa and Mason stay out of there."

"Uuuuugh!" She groaned, rolling onto her back. "How much longer do I have to deal with them?!" She yelled at, and Stacy almost did laugh at that.

"You aren't dealing with anything but being in the bedroom." She told the Puppet, standing up to go set the table. "Do you wanna eat supper with us tonight?" She asked, more than a little hopeful.

"Nah, you guys go on ahead." She said, already making her way across the couch to the remote. "I found this cool show I wanna watch instead."

"Oh. Did you want me to bring you some food, then?" Stacy hoped she would say yes. She didn't know for sure if Scout needed to eat, but didn't want her to go hungry either way.

"Nope." The Puppet said, in a tone that signaled the end of any discussion on it. Stacy didn't push, and instead went into the kitchen herself. She leaned on the counter on her good hand and sighed heavily.

"You can't make her eat or join us if she doesn't want to." Will told her, deadpan. Stacy pouted.

"I know. But!" She shot up. "What if she needs to eat? What if she starves herself because of something I did? Or because she hates it here?" Will stopped stirring the meat in the pan, fixing his girlfriend with a hard stare.

"Stop freaking out." He told her, then blinked as he realized something. "Wait... Did you take your meds today?" He asked.

"No they need to be refilled. But I'm fine without them, these are real concerns, Will!" She insisted, and he just sighed, turning back to the pan.

"Yeah... we're getting those refilled as soon as possible." He muttered, though not quietly enough.

'Will!" Stacy smacked the counter, but was ignored.