He sighed.

“It wasn’t always because of fear. Maybe at the start but then usually one thing lead to another and I made it all worse and worse. I promised myself I wouldn’t ever do that to you but what if... what if I’m stressed and scared again? What if I pick the easy way out and don’t stand up for you when it counts? What if I hurt you?”

Cletus approached the door hesitantly. He reached for the door bell, then stopped and started to turn back. He hated having to ask for something. Especially asking him for something.

But losing Aurora... That would be even worse.

Taking a deep breath he finally went through with it and rang Octavius door bell.

Now he had really done it. Another chance at romance and he just had to throw it away. Maybe he could still get out of it by lying, but... he had vowed to himself he wouldn’t go that route again.

“You remember when you met Arron, my adopted brother?” he said slowly. “He told you I was horrible and... he might have a point. I did things that...” He shook his head. “I’m not a hero or what you’d call a ‘good guy’. I lied... to avoid trouble, to get what I want or sometimes out of fear. But I betrayed those who cared about me and I ruined their trust. And even though by now I have learned that in the end this will always be detrimental to me, I’m afraid that this will always be the core of me.”

Cletus approached the door hesitantly. He reached for the door bell, then stopped and started to turn back. He hated having to ask for something. Especially asking him for something.

But losing Aurora… That would be even worse.

Taking a deep breath he finally went through with it and rang Octavius door bell.

He looked into her eyes, mesmerized by their intense beauty.

And yet her words did nothing to calm him down. He felt his heart in his throat and took a shuddering breath.

She loved him. She really said that. He used to mock emotions like these, felt so secure in his aloof distance and now those words brought him to the verge of shaking.

Just tell her you love her back. he told himself. You know how this part is supposed to sound. Just act the part.

And yet...

“Because,” he finally answered her question hoarsely “it’s only a question of time. Until I mess up. Until you find out what I’m really like. It always was. And it always will be.”

Cletus approached the door hesitantly. He reached for the door bell, then stopped and started to turn back. He hated having to ask for something. Especially asking him for something.

But losing Aurora… That would be even worse.

Taking a deep breath he finally went through with it and rang Octavius door bell.

Cletus pressed his lips together to form a thin line and looked away. How was he supposed to explain this without appearing like a failure who needed someone else’s help?

“I ... I thought ... I wanted to ...” he tried before giving up. What was wrong with him? He used to be so eloquent. “I was worried because of you,” he finally murmured in such a low voice it was barely audible. “That you’d break up with me.”

Cletus approached the door hesitantly. He reached for the door bell, then stopped and started to turn back. He hated having to ask for something. Especially asking him for something.

But losing Aurora... That would be even worse.

Taking a deep breath he finally went through with it and rang Octavius door bell.

“Well, you did tell Octavius,” he said, unable to fully keep the displeasure out of his voice.

“I wanted to talk to him about...” he hesitated. There was that honesty issue again. He was unwilling to lie to her but talking about his insecurities was just out of the question. “... about something,” he finished lamely. “He was worried about you. We both were. So we decided to better go and see if you were okay.”

Cletus approached the door hesitantly. He reached for the door bell, then stopped and started to turn back. He hated having to ask for something. Especially asking him for something.

But losing Aurora… That would be even worse.

Taking a deep breath he finally went through with it and rang Octavius door bell.

Involuntarily, he gasped at Aurora’s embrace. He usually wasn’t one to initiate public displays of affection even though he wasn’t exactly shy about showing off his body. But expressing emotion like that always seemed so vulnerable to him.

Yet, to his own surprise, his earlier admission hadn’t made Aurora dismiss him with some mocking remark but brought her even closer to him. Maybe sometimes honesty and opening up weren’t so bad.

Tentatively, he wrapped his own arms around her and returned the hug. She felt nice. Soft and warm and her hair smelled soothingly fine. He also appreciated not having his nose at the height of her armpit as it was with those occasions he actually hugged Goal.

“I’m glad I came, too,” he murmured.

Cletus approached the door hesitantly. He reached for the door bell, then stopped and started to turn back. He hated having to ask for something. Especially asking him for something.

But losing Aurora… That would be even worse.

Taking a deep breath he finally went through with it and rang Octavius door bell.

He smiled thinly.

"Well, you know I'm not first in line when it comes to dealing with other people's problems. But the way I see it, this is already my problem as well. You heard him. Even before we arrived that buffoon was targeting me and Octavius. I assume the only way not to be involved would be to cut ties with you and I think I made clear that this isn't what I intend to do."

Cletus approached the door hesitantly. He reached for the door bell, then stopped and started to turn back. He hated having to ask for something. Especially asking him for something.

But losing Aurora… That would be even worse.

Taking a deep breath he finally went through with it and rang Octavius door bell.

Maybe Argus should be the one injured. Cletus needs him more than the other way round. I guess if Cletus was injured, Argus might just leave him there. Of course Cletus will still whine about plenty of stuff.

❦, ☁, ☤

Can't beat a dynamic like that with these two

He bit his lip. He didn’t want her unhappy he was just aching to get some answers.

“Don’t be. I know I’m not... the most... trustworthy... You know, with how my last relationship went. I only thought... You told Octavius and...” He sighed, unable to find the right words.

Cletus approached the door hesitantly. He reached for the door bell, then stopped and started to turn back. He hated having to ask for something. Especially asking him for something.

But losing Aurora… That would be even worse.

Taking a deep breath he finally went through with it and rang Octavius door bell.

I was thinking of something along the lines of an AU where Cletus managed to go to Deponia without Goal and he’s traveling with Argus and they get ambushed by Deponian rebels (probably not Janosch’s group - somewhere distant from the Porta Fisco area). They get cut off from the Organon, maybe one of them is badly wounded and they try to make it back to the Organon and have to actually work together to survive.

❦, ☁, ☤

Can't beat a dynamic like that with these two

“Yes, yes, yes, I get that. I just... You could have told me.”

For the first time he looked into her eyes and mentally braced himself for the rejection he expected to come.

Cletus approached the door hesitantly. He reached for the door bell, then stopped and started to turn back. He hated having to ask for something. Especially asking him for something.

But losing Aurora… That would be even worse.

Taking a deep breath he finally went through with it and rang Octavius door bell.

He wanted to say no. But when had honesty ever paid off for him?

“I...” he tried again, desperate to get the cursed stammering under control. “Of course. Why wouldn’t I be? I was merely... surprised to learn you went out here to meet... him.”

Cletus approached the door hesitantly. He reached for the door bell, then stopped and started to turn back. He hated having to ask for something. Especially asking him for something.

But losing Aurora... That would be even worse.

Taking a deep breath he finally went through with it and rang Octavius door bell.

SEND ME A SYMBOL(S) FOR WHAT YOU’RE INTERESTED IN people struggle with plotting so i figured making it into an askbox thing could help! 

DYNAMICS: ✭ friends to lovers ★ rivals to lovers ✦ enemies to lovers ♡ found family ♣ rivals ❦ reluctant allies  ❖ platonic ☢ slowburn  ➤ love at first sight π partners in crime SITUATIONS ☁ one muse saves the other’s life  ☼ one muse (or both) is a single parent  ❆ our muses get shut in due to a storm  ☤ one muse having to patch the other up  ❦ put together through a common goal  ⎔ one muse asking the other to stay the night ϟ our muses work together  ♁ our muses are neighbors  ➽ one muse doesn’t have anyone else to turn to  SETTINGS ✚ crossover between our fandoms ☽ sender’s verse in receivers fandom ☾ receivers verse in sender’s fandom ☯ alternate universe / separate fandom than both muses are in

ODDLY SPECIFIC ⌲ one muse is supposed to kill/hurt the other but falls for them instead ✖ our muses work together and there’s a lot of tension and maybe we do the only one bed plot idk ＋ reporter/vigilante dynamic ∇ nurse/vigilante dynamic  ✿ innocent muse/morally grey dangerous muse  ❥ asshole/the one person they’re nice to ♛ bodyguard/person they’re protecting ◐ arranged marriage/match ◎ fake dating ¶ roommate AU ۞ one night stand turns into many and now we’re just kinda not sure what we are ❁ friends with benefits maybe some pining  © unrequited love except it isn’t unrequited ✡ unrequited love and it’s actually unrequited  ♖ i dated you to get back at someone in my life but i’m developing real feelings oh no ♮one night stand only to later learn we’re gonna be in some sort of setting together (professor/student, co-workers, etc)  ✏ we used to date and something didn’t work out but now you’re here and i’m still in love

Her touch made him flinch slightly but he didn’t try to shake her off

“I...”, he cleared his throat, trying to sound indifferent and nonchalant. “I’m fine. He didn’t even touch me. What about you?”

Cletus approached the door hesitantly. He reached for the door bell, then stopped and started to turn back. He hated having to ask for something. Especially asking him for something.

But losing Aurora… That would be even worse.

Taking a deep breath he finally went through with it and rang Octavius door bell.

Cletus waited until Kurt was out of sight before getting out of his stance. Just to be safe.

Octavius wasn’t back yet and for the first time Cletus almost wished him to be here. To be alone with Aurora now felt terribly awkward.

Should he ask her why she hadn’t trusted him with the information she was meeting with Kurt? What if she told him that it was because she’d never been serious about her relationship? And why had he made himself so vulnerable by talking about his feelings? He was usually so much more sensible.

Standing awkwardly, his arms dangling at his sides, he remained silent and didn’t dare turning to face Aurora.

Cletus approached the door hesitantly. He reached for the door bell, then stopped and started to turn back. He hated having to ask for something. Especially asking him for something.

But losing Aurora… That would be even worse.

Taking a deep breath he finally went through with it and rang Octavius door bell.

For a moment the audacity left him speechless. He poured out his heart and this was that uncultured pig’s response? The nerve!

He gaped at Kurt incredulously until the man made a move to grab Aurora. He stepped between them to block Kurt’s path and shoved him back, then went into his most practiced (and only) Shai-Hulu stance and did his best to look menacing. He hoped dearly it wouldn’t come to a brawl but it wasn’t like he had never thrown a punch before.

“Aurora is going nowhere she doesn’t want, you filthy...” a stream of profanity that would have been better suited for the dirty wastelands of Deponia escaped him but he was beyond caring.

“Octavius, go and get security before he tries to kidnap Aurora for real!”

Cletus approached the door hesitantly. He reached for the door bell, then stopped and started to turn back. He hated having to ask for something. Especially asking him for something.

But losing Aurora... That would be even worse.

Taking a deep breath he finally went through with it and rang Octavius door bell.

Having Aurora actually standing next to him felt invigorating.

He still didn’t know why she had kept this meeting from him but maybe not all was lost.

“We’ll stay and you’ll have to listen, bub. I don’t care what you think about me, but you are most mistaken about Aurora. You don’t deserve her. You don’t even deserve to be in the same place with her. Because you’re nothing but a small-minded fool who has talked himself into believing he matters. But she... she is good. She is clever and lovely and more kind than she should be. Even to someone like me. She’s the best thing that ever happened to me and even though I might not deserve her, I know that you definitely don’t deserve her.”

Cletus approached the door hesitantly. He reached for the door bell, then stopped and started to turn back. He hated having to ask for something. Especially asking him for something.

But losing Aurora… That would be even worse.

Taking a deep breath he finally went through with it and rang Octavius door bell.