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 Posted: Wed Jun 28, 2017 12:07 am
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 Archaeus Chartreuse
Perfection Embodied
"Everyday I endure this horrible, painful curse. Forced to mask it all with a smile."
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Archaeus stood in front of Byron's car, gazing at the small house a mere few steps away from him. It was small and quaint, only one story with a lawn that didn't get enough care. There was a dog out back that was stopped from charging at them only by a fence, howling at them to alert the owners.
"My author lived much closer than I imagined," the character muttered. The house resided in a suburb of a city one and a half hours away from where he was. He gulped and licked his suddenly dry lips. "It's strange, being here. It's as though I am about to meet my long lost parent. Maybe even God. They are technically my god, I suppose, having given me life and, well, everything." He looked at Byron and gave him a thin smile. "I'm rather nervous."
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"I'm simply too perfect." |
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Posted: Wed Jun 28, 2017 12:15 am
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Posted: Wed Jun 28, 2017 12:43 am
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Archaeus Chartreuse
Perfection Embodied
"Everyday I endure this horrible, painful curse. Forced to mask it all with a smile."
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"Easy for you to say. You're not about to meet the person who literally wrote you into existence," Archaeus muttered. He looked at the hand on his arm then at Byron, reassured by his support, and walked to the door, knocking on it. It took a few minutes and another knock, and just as the character was about to turn hide and retreat, he heard a noise from the other side of the door.
The blinds hiding the glass of the door moved and inch to show one eye peering at them. After a minute the eye disappeared and the doorknob jiggled with movement. The door opened a creak, showing part of a chubby man.
"Hellooooo?" he greeted in a sing-song voice. Archaeus said nothing, turning pale and forgetting how to speak.
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"I'm simply too perfect." |
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Posted: Wed Jun 28, 2017 12:58 am
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Posted: Wed Jun 28, 2017 1:09 am
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Archaeus Chartreuse
Perfection Embodied
"Everyday I endure this horrible, painful curse. Forced to mask it all with a smile."
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The man leaned back when Byron spoke to him until recognition filled his exposed eye. "Oh, that's right! You're the guy that wanted to talk about my stories and learn all about my inspiration. Come on in!" He closed the door, and after a few clicking noises he opened it fully to smile brightly at the two. He was chubby, looked to be fresh out of high school, too. There was a beard on his face that was scraggly, and despite how little it was, there was a sneaking suspicion that it had taken months to grow.
"It's not everyday I get someone that appreciates my work. I like you already!" the guy laughed. He paused then turned to look at his barking dog. "WENDY!!" he yelled, the dog instantly getting quiet. The guy looked back at the two, smiling apologetically. "Sorry, she gets uppity around strangers, especially when her real master isn't around. Anyways, come on in!" Once the two were inside, he closed the door and offered them a drink.
"My name's Jake Tally. I've been working on that story for years. It didn't always get good reviews, not until I enlisted the help from my girlfriend! She should be back from work any minute now," the author explained as he set down the drinks. He sat down on his old couch, where Archaeus sat besides him, sweating profusely. "So what're your names?" he asked the two. The character got still. Should he admit it?! Should he reveal that he's this man's own work in living flesh?!
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"I'm simply too perfect." |
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Posted: Wed Jun 28, 2017 2:03 am
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Posted: Wed Jun 28, 2017 2:22 am
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Archaeus Chartreuse
Perfection Embodied
"Everyday I endure this horrible, painful curse. Forced to mask it all with a smile."
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"Boyfriend," Jake murmured, scratching his cheek. He began to look away uncomfortably. After a moment, he pulled out his phone and sent a text to his girlfriend. A moment passed before he gave up and set his phone down. "Sorry, my girlfriend takes forever to respond sometimes."
"Erm, c-could you tell me a bit about your story's main character?" Archaeus finally found the courage to speak.
Jake looked at him then broke out into a cheerful grin. "Archeyus-" he started, pronouncing the name wrong.
The character winced. "Umm... Do you mean Archaeus?" he corrected.
Jake shook his head. "No, Archy-us. See, a lot of people make the mistake of saying his name that way. Anyways, Archeyus was my very first OC. I originally based him off my soldier from Halo, but when I got around to writing about him, I wanted to make him more exciting. So I added Resident Evil's backstory to it..."
The author rambled for roughly an hour, talking about his favorite video games and movies and how he added it to Archaeus's backstory. He refused to mention any plot holes, ignoring any time they were brought up or any time bad reviews were talked about. He would laugh them off and say that they just couldn't understand his viewpoints.
The longer he talked, the more Archaeus began to feel off. This was his creator? He was hardly a sight to take in, and he lived in a dump. And his thought process... that was the worst part. There was no coherence, no reason for any of his skills or memories other than that being the movie/game Jake had played right then. So that was Archaeus- No, Archeyus's purpose- to be who Jake wanted to be and then some. Well, he certainly felt like him- a loser.
Archaeus gazed away, his expression distant and pained. He didn't want to be here anymore. He got up and masked it all with a smile. "This has been quite refreshing. I learned many things," he praised. "However, it's about time for us to go."
"Already?" Jake blinked then pouted. "Aww shucks, time really passes fast, huh? I'm sorry my girlfriend didn't get around. Sometimes she forgets things, y'know? Anyway, feel free to visit anytime! It's nice getting to talk to people who appreciate my work."
He waved the two off as they walked out, and once they got in the car, Archaeus mumbled, "Get us far away from here." His eyes were hidden behind the shadows cast by his hair.
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"I'm simply too perfect." |
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Posted: Wed Jun 28, 2017 2:38 am
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Byron Simmons
"I like you well enough..."
The entire visit was painful. It was like that moment when you're waiting to see the doctor and you see all the sick people around you, and you want to leave before you get infected with something worse than what you already have, but you have to stay because you pray the end-result will outweigh the risks. Plus he was pretty sure that this guy was the type to hold up signs outside of Pride parades and not the good kinds. By the time Archaeus had decided it was time to leave, Byron was already moments away from doing something incredibly gay in order to excuse himself and get the hell out of there.
Taking the character by the arm and smiling, he waved goodbye to the chubby little manchild. "It was so nice meeting you, Jake!" He waved a little more, then jumped into the car and buckled himself in. He started the car, offered one last wave, then sped away and kept his eyes on the road. He drove in silence for about ten minutes, at least until the house was out of sight, then slowed as they approached a stoplight. As the cars passed in front of them, he turned his eyes over to Archaeus.
"You... You okay?" he asked gently, not sure if he should touch the man.
"... so let's skip the romance~"
................................................................................ |
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Posted: Wed Jun 28, 2017 2:46 am
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Archaeus Chartreuse
Perfection Embodied
"Everyday I endure this horrible, painful curse. Forced to mask it all with a smile."
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"No, I'm not," Archaeus said quietly. He looked over at Byron, pain filling his eyes, yet no tears filled them. "Even in my world I wasn't meant to be anything special. I was just some... some placeholder for whatever interest caught my author's attention! These false memories that haunt me everyday, that make me question who I am, they're just from some video game or a movie?! I don't have a backstory! I don't even have a place here! I was never meant to exist, and I was never meant to be an actual character!" He looked down at his feet, shame gnawing at his face. "Everything I've known is a lie. What purpose is there for someone that should never have existed in the first place? What am I supposed to do now?" he asked quietly, looking very small.
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"I'm simply too perfect." |
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Posted: Wed Jun 28, 2017 3:05 am
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Byron Simmons
"I like you well enough..."
The sight of such pain in the character's eyes panged at Byron's heart like none other. He caught his breath, glancing up as the light turned green. Driving forward, he glanced around before pulling around to a fairly empty road and off to the side. Fortunately, it was that time of day that most everyone was off the roads that lead into the city, so there was no one around for miles, and no one to bother them as Archaeus dealt with this crisis.
Reaching over, Byron took one of Archaeus' hands and held it between them, his other touching the side of the man's face tenderly. "You're supposed to see this for what it is: an opportunity to be the incredible Archaeus." His thumb brushed the character's cheek, a small smile on Byron's lips. "You may not have a past, but that doesn't mean you can't make an amazing future. The world is so big, so full of possibilities, and you've been given a blank slate to paint on as you wish. Sure you have a rough beginning, but that doesn't have to mean anything. You can start over right here, right now. With me."
Byron gently squeezed Archaeus' hand, inching just a little closer. "Let this be your backstory: you were brought to this world and managed to survive three years before finding out the truth about yourself. Instead of letting it destroy you, you decided to learn more about it, even at the cost of it not being what you expected. You fought on, Archaeus. You are strong, really strong, and brave. Not because some loser with a computer from 1994 wrote you that way, but because you chose to be." His hand on Archaeus' cheek fell to his shoulder, the genuine smile on Byron's face and the growing blush on his cheeks creating a warm, glowing atmosphere between the two. "I believe in you, Archaeus. And I'm so happy that you exist."
"... so let's skip the romance~"
................................................................................ |
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Posted: Wed Jun 28, 2017 3:13 am
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Archaeus Chartreuse
Perfection Embodied
"Everyday I endure this horrible, painful curse. Forced to mask it all with a smile."
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Archaeus looked at Byron when he held his hand and face, giving him encouraging words. He searched his eyes, half-expecting to see pity or lies. Instead, all he saw was authentic care. His heart swelled, and his own eyes widened slightly at the new backstory he was given. "A future with you," he whispered more to himself. His own cheeks turned a light shade of red, but before he could allow his feelings to carry him away, he looked away.
"I can't be around you," he muttered. His heartbeat was beating quickly, loud enough to deafen him. It felt overwhelmingly hot all of a sudden. "Bryon, lately I have been feeling... strange around you. I lose my breath too easily, and everything you do occupies my thoughts for too long. I've given it thought, and I think... I think I'm in love with you," he confessed quietly without looking at the man. "But I'm not real. No matter what story I build, I wasn't meant to be in the same world as you. When we get back, I'm going to go travel and decide on what future I can make. You should find someone for yourself, like that Iggy fellow. Or Greg."
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"I'm simply too perfect." |
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Posted: Wed Jun 28, 2017 3:31 am
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Byron Simmons
"I like you well enough..."
The young man expected several different kinds of reactions. Denial that he was a character again, getting angry, crying, but this? This was, uh... Well, unexpected. He held his breath as Archaeus lay his heart out for the man to see, and just like that, took it away. Byron felt all the air leave his lungs and his heart beat loud enough to drown out everything but them two. He'd been infatuated before and dealt with that rejection. He'd had crushes and managed to smile through losing them to another. But this? This was actually painful. His chest felt tight and uncomfortable. He almost wanted to cry. Was he-
Yes. He was.
"I don't want them!" he insisted, moving the armrest between them up and out of the way so that there was nothing between them. "I want you, Archaeus. You're real to me. You're not perfect, but nobody is, and your imperfections make you real. They make me-" He cut himself off, bowing his head. Was he really going to say this? All this time, he'd been looking for love through intimacy, was he really going to commit himself to this before knowing how this guy was in bed? He didn't have to think twice. "They make me love you."
Byron lifted his head, eyes looking at Archaeus. He reached to touch his chin, tilting his gaze back to the blue-haired male sitting so close to him. "I love you, Archaeus. I don't care if you don't think you're real. I do." He pressed a little closer, placing his hand over the man's chest to feel his heart drumming under his fingers.
"... so let's skip the romance~"
................................................................................ |
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Posted: Wed Jun 28, 2017 4:08 pm
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Archaeus Chartreuse
Perfection Embodied
"Everyday I endure this horrible, painful curse. Forced to mask it all with a smile."
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Archaeus looked back at Byron when he burst, talking about wanting him instead. He hesitated, his eyes widening slightly. His chest began to hurt, and after second he had realized he'd been holding his breath. Whatever breaths he took at the time were caught when he heard the confession. Byron loved him? His feelings weren't one-sided?
Archaeus stayed silent and stunned for a moment, letting it all hit him. When they met years ago, seeing each other again, all these adventures they went on. Was it Fate? He found himself leaning closer in reaction to Byron's movements, one hand moving to hold his face. His thumb brushed against the skin delicately, like he was afraid of breaking a porcelain doll. Byron's skin was as smooth and soft as he'd thought.
His eyes closed as he broke the distance between them and kissed the man. He had memories of kissing people, but he knew this was real compared to the others, and this was his actual first kiss. This was a memory he would keep, one that wouldn't rewrite itself every five minutes, and he'd treasure it for years to come. Byron's lips were soft and warm, and the longer he kissed them the more he got addicted. The need for air drove him away, but he leaned his forehead against his friend's, smiling breathlessly at him.
"I've no skills, no talents, not even any education," Archaeus whispered while looking into the man's eyes. "You would still want to be with me?"
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"I'm simply too perfect." |
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Posted: Wed Jun 28, 2017 4:17 pm
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Byron Simmons
"I like you well enough..."
The man bit his lip as Archaeus touched his cheek, tilting his head just a little and allowing himself to relish in the sensation. This was unlike any seduction he'd taken part in, this was something altogether new. Feelings confused and dazed him, but he enjoyed the light feeling his head was getting. He wanted to keep this high, to feed this new love and keep it present as long as possible. Was it even possible to lose it? He couldn't tell, too distracted by his trembling hands and Archaeus' closeness to worry about that just yet. When their lips finally touched, his mind completely cleared of anything but the character's mouth against his own, fireworks exploding behind his closed lids. Who knew a first kiss could be so wonderful?
As Archaeus pulled away, Byron held back his whine of protest. The hand on the character's chest rubbed gently, chuckling at the question as he opened his eyes and looked into Archaeus'. "I can teach you," he said with a smile. "Besides, you're pretty good at making pancakes. That counts for something." He laughed lightly, then pressed close for another kiss, free hand cupping the side of the man's neck.
"... so let's skip the romance~"
................................................................................ |
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