Parvill

I stare at the message from Lewis, from Yogslab. They are shutting down, and all master clones are returning to take their place. They should have all of our memories, assuming they will be fine when Lewis unfreezes them. Rumor has it that Duncan’s master clone went a bit. . .psycho.

Will should be back soon, he wanted to be with me when we disappear. He told me how he really felt when we got the message from Lewis, and we have spent nearly every moment together since. He had to run over to Strife Solutions, I think it had something to do with the machinery over there.

“Parv?”

“I’m downstairs Strifey.” The blood in the altar is oddly calming.

“Uh, Parvis?” I turn around, and I can tell something is really wrong. I know this is not my Strifeykins.

“You are the master clone, aren’t you?” He nods, avoiding eye contact. “Where’s mine?”

He looks at me, quickly looking away. “There was a bit of a malfunction with your tube.”

I sit on the steps, putting my head in my hands. “How much do you remember?”

“Not a lot when it comes to you after we found this place. There are certain things that I know I did, like that garden outside. I know I did most of that. You do blood magic, that much is obvious.”

Tears pool in my eyes. “You should probably go back to Strife Solutions. There isn’t anything here for you to do.”

“Why don’t I believe you?” I squeeze my eyes shut, trying to keep the tears inside.

“You need to start learning to trust people, Strife. This is the perfect time to start. Please, just go.” My voice catches on the word go.

“Parv?” He takes a few steps toward me.

“I just need to be alone for a little while, okay? Please leave. Someone else needs you.” I get up and walk into the bedroom, trying not to look at the two beds that are pushed together. I crawl into the bed in the corner, pulling the blanket over my head.

The tears run down my face as I sob quietly to myself. I hear Will walking around, the tears slowly coming to a stop. “Too bad this

I roll onto my back and stare up at the ceiling, counting the dots. My eyes start to droop and I roll over, pulling myself up. I sit on the edge of the bed, chin in my hand.

“Alex?” I look up, see Strife standing in the door looking slightly concerned.

I stare at this man, this guy who looks so much like the man I love, this person who knows next to nothing about me even though I know almost everything about him.

“Are you staying? I think I might go to bed. I don’t feel very good.” I look away, smoothing the blanket.

He walks over and sits down next to me. I move as far away from him as the bed will allow, but we are still less than a foot apart.

“Do you remember when I first met you, and we only had one bed? Before Lewis came to bring us to Yogslab?”

“Yea, you tried to teach me how to smelt stuff.”

“That was obviously pointless. You have a terrible set up. Your chests are completely unorganized.”

“I know, you would tell me that all the time when I couldn’t find something.”

He is silent for a minute. “Hey Parv?”

“Hmm?” I look at him, resisting the urge to throw my arms around him and press my lips to his.

He looks around the room. “What happened between us that caused you to get quite upset when I said I didn’t remember?”

“Don’t worry about it. Your clone had to have gotten it from somewhere, right?”

“Does it have something to do with the two beds that are pushed together?”

I look at the beds and smile. “It gets cold in here.”

“That’s what Sips and Sjin say.” I watch as his eyes go wide. “Did we. . . ?”

“No. You- no. Just no.” We never went that far, Strife was always embarrassed about his alien anatomy.

“Parvis?”

I smile sadly at him. “Don’t worry about it.”

I stand up and wiggle past Will, going outside and walking around on the catwalk. The sun has almost set completely, the torches Will placed everywhere the only thing lighting the way.

Picking one of the taller flowers off its stem, I sit down with the flower in my lap.

“I remember when you planted these. It was during one of my bad periods in blood magic, they helped me whenever I started going a bit crazy. When the voices got too loud. You were always there when I needed you. You would show up and save me just as I was about to go too far, past the point of no return.”

I stroke the petals, a smile pulling at my lips.

“So you don’t remember our first kiss, or the countless ones after that. So you don’t remember falling in love with me. That’s okay. You did it once, you can probably do it again.

“Honestly, I’m scared. Scared that you are going to leave and I’m going to go too far, that you won’t be able to save me. Scared that you will find me in time, but you won’t know what to do.”

“Parvis?” Will yells.

“I’m up here Will,” I call back.

“Come inside, monsters are coming out soon.” A single tear falls down my face.

“I’ll be right there Strife,” I whisper. Then louder, “Give me a sec.”

I pick all the petals off and drop them over the edge into the ocean, putting the last petal in my pocket. “Just so I always have a piece of the Strife I once knew.”

Back inside I find Will making the bed I was earlier. “You didn’t have to do that, I would have gotten around to it.”

“I doubt that.”

“Wouldn’t hurt to have a little faith Will.” He turns around I start taking off my pants, not thinking anything of it.

“Uh, Parvis?” I look at him and see he is blushing green.

“I’m not sleeping in my pants. I’m not letting you either. I don’t care what you say.” Standing there in my boxers and Area 11 shirt, I get a weird sense of Deja Vu.

“Why does this seem oddly familiar?”  I sit on the bed facing away from Strife.

“Because this happened before.” I turn and pull the covers up. “Night.”

I lay on my side facing the door, closing my eyes and trying to go to sleep. I hear Strife moving around behind me, stiffening when I feel the bed dip.

“Goodnight Parv,” He whispers. I don’t say anything, pretending to be asleep.

I lay there for a while, not wanting to move. I hear Will roll over behind me, jumping when I feel an arm brush my back.

Mustering up enough courage to roll over, I find myself inches from a sleeping Strife. Leaning forward I press a soft kiss to his forehead. I shrink back when he groans and wiggles closer to me.

“Parv,” Strife says in his sleepy voice.

“Yea Strifeykins?” Even though I know he isn’t really awake, I find it amusing to see what they have to say.

“Come cuddle with me.” His hand finds my waist, brushing the exposed skin between my boxers and shirt. I involuntary shiver, scooting closer to him as our legs tangle together.

“Strife?” Will shifts so I’m now laying on his chest, my arm draped across his stomach.

“Mmm?”

My eyes fill with tears. “I love you.”

“Love you too,” He mumbles. I smile, and fall asleep.

~~.~'~'

I wake up to find myself alone. Quickly getting up I put my pants on and walk over to the furnaces. “Will?”

Grabbing some bread to munch on I walk around calling out to him. Not finding him anywhere inside I go outside and find him on the small beach area by the farm.

“Come sit with me Parvis.” I don’t question it, sitting with my legs out in front of me. “Do you want to tell me what happened last night?”

“I didn’t do anything. You started talking in your sleep again and you wanted to cuddle.”

Will doesn’t say anything right away. “I love you Parv.”

I turn to look at him, find his face inches from mine. “Will?”

“Parv?”

“I love you too.”