Two weeks later

Anti was busy putting pictures into frames, getting ready to place them in open spots on his living room wall.

Jameson's wedding pictures were ready and Marvin had just left Anti's place, delivering them all.

Anti volunteered to give Anthony his, though. He hadn't seen him since the wedding so he thought it'd be a good excuse to check in on him and Gab.

Putting his pictures in each frames, Anti couldn't help but smile at each picture, remembering how happy everyone was.

His fingers unconsciously trailed over his marble necklace.

'And soon, it'll be time for another wedding.' he thought to himself, 'I have no doubt Marvin and Evan's will be even more grand' 

He laughed to himself.

"Whatcha giggling about, loser?"

Anti jumped but recognized the voice. He whipped around, "Anthony! Hey! I was actually planning on visiting YOU later today. What's going on?"

Anthony looked a little tired and popped a few joints in his back and neck, "Nothing much . . . just thought I'd swing by" he yawned a little, "Wanted to make sure you were still alive, hadn't seen you since the wedding bullshit. Wanted to make sure Dark hadn't trapped you at his place"

Anti rolled his eyes, "Funny.. . . but oh! Here, I got a little something for ya. Jameson and Emily's wedding pics got done and Marvin delivered mine to me a little bit ago earlier. I got yours, too. That's why I was gonna come over later."

"MY pictures?" Anthony didn't remember.

"Well yeah, silly! You get to keep the pictures. Here, I already framed this one for ya" Anti gave him a framed picture.

It was one of just the two of them.

Anthony took it and gave it a look. Anti couldn't tell what he was thinking but Anthony looked like he approved it.

He finally nodded and cleared his throat, possibly getting a little emotional, "Looks good. Thanks"

Anthony looked up at Anti's wall of pictures, "Never uh . . .never noticed this wall, I guess. I don't tend to look around very much. . . you like pictures, I see"

"Yeah . .. well. . ." Anti only spoke once about it to Jameson a long time ago, "With the previous Septics, they took a lot of pictures. . . . but they didn't trust me in the beginning as much so they didn't want me in any of them with them.  . . . That and my glitching would fuck up any pictures they took digitally. They thought I was doing it on purpose."

Anthony felt a small swell of anger rise up in him but let Anti continue.

"I don't blame, them, though. . . . . I managed to sneak in some group pictures on the side. I used to have an album, too, but I put all those pictures up by now on the wall, you can see. The selfies with the previous Septics in the back behind me . . . . . I wish I was able to get a proper group picture with them. . . but I have MANY pictures with my current Septic brothers now. I treasure them. I want to always see them. That's why I have so many pictures on the wall. It's a constant reminder I have to have up to let me know I'm not alone anymore."

Anthony just stared, getting a little concerned which was another strange emotion he had been feeling more of lately, "You've been feeling alone lately?"

"Sometimes . . . " Anti shrugged, "I guess that's just how I am, though. Why I spend so much time with Dark and the Ipliers. I don't want to bother the Septics in case they're busy or whatever"

"Why don't you just visit Gab and I?" he didn't know why he said that.

Anti just snorted, though, "Well I wouldn't want to walk in on you two have sex again. Once was awkward enough."

Anthony laughed, "Yeah, that was hilarious"

"For YOU"

They were quiet for a moment. Anthony stared at all the pictures, seeing all story without having to even ask. He could SEE the sadness in Anti's eyes with the pictures with the previous Septics. Why did he love them so much if they always treated him like a monster?

He couldn't say a lot about that, though. He still didn't understand why they all welcomed HIM.

"Hey Anthony?" 

Anthony blinked and made a little noise to let him know he was listening.

". . . . You ever wonder who created us? Who 'programmed' us?"

That was a weird question.

"No. Why would there have to be a person that created us anyway? We could have just appeared out of thin air"

"I think about it all the time. I don't understand it. We were put here for the sole purpose of destruction. There HAD to be someone that put those thoughts in our heads, right? It can't have been just random"

"Random things happen all the time" 

"Do you think we'll ever find out?"

Anthony sighed heavily, too tired for all this philosophical questioning, "There's no use thinking about such things, Anti. Just focus on what's in front of you. What you KNOW is real."

". . .Yeah . . . yeah, you're right.  . . .  It's still gonna bug me, though"

Anthony smirked, "Focus on something else. . . . . for instance. . . . Did I see you leave the wedding night with Dark?"

Anti blushed, his whole face running red, "Well uh . . ..  I mean probably. . .. I was hanging out with him the previous day to get ready to teleport all the Ipliers to the wedding! I left my stuff at Dark's place."

Anthony gave him a look, "M-hm . .. . sure"

"Nothing happened"

"I don't believe you"

Anti just rolled his eyes.

"By the way" Anthony tapped on his cheek below his new eye, "You should take this. I tried giving it back to Marvin or Henrik but they wouldn't let me"

"Good. You SHOULD keep it. Marvin gave it to you as a gift. It's yours. Besides. . . you'd want it if anything serious like Mark or Dark were to happen again. You'd want to be prepared, right? To help protect Gab?"

Reluctantly, Anthony agreed, "I guess so"

He didn't share his suspicion that maybe it was this new eye that was causing problems with him being able to sleep at night.

He was just so tired lately since the wedding night. . . . 

Anti held up his own framed picture he had of him and Anthony together and put it up on a blank part of the wall.

Anthony breathed in and out heavily almost like a yawn and put his arm around Anti's shoulder.

Anti was surprised at the contact but didn't dare push him away. This was a rare moment he didn't want to waste.

"Don't ever tell anyone I said this . . . . but thanks again. I thought my life was about killing the alters, cursed to be forever alone with only murder and suffering in my soul. . . . you showed me otherwise. You were the first Antisepticeye to see something else in life . . . . and I truly admire that now. You gave me the chance I needed to see what you did. Thank you . . . brother."

Anti put his own arm around Anthony, "We WERE alone . . .I've always felt alone and I was always so scared to be alone again, especially after breaking my programming. . . but I know now . . . .we'll NEVER be alone anymore"

They looked up at the wall filled with pictures.

This wall was all the evidence they needed of that.

"And don't worry" Anti smirked, "I won't tell anyone you're secretly a big softie now"

Anthony just pinched Anti's neck with his fingers.

"Ow!" Anti whined, but also laughed. It was worth it.

Going back home that night to Gab, Anthony was too tired to even fool around. 

He'd been tired a lot lately.

Like he was being drained or something and he didn't know why.

Maybe it was just all the new emotions weighing him down.

Maybe it was all the new things he was trying to learn.

Whatever it was, it seemed fate finally took pity on him and he passed out in bed, his back to Gab who laid next to him.

As he laid there finally in a deep sleep, something strange started to happen.

Some strange bright green liquid started to seep out of the eye Marvin had given him.

It trailed down his cheek and onto the pillow.

It started to move and ungulate. It was getting bigger and morphing.

Until it finally formed into a new eye. It was bright green and sickly looking like it just crawled out of a nuclear waste dump.

Anthony was already looking a lot better.

It seemed that perhaps this . . . creature. . . had been draining him until it was ready to form on its own.

And it had an agenda.

In a flicker of sparks, the nasty green eye disappeared, teleporting elsewhere.

It was time to continue the mission.

To Be Continued. . . . .

The End.