Sabre's exploration of the garden was interrupted when someone tapped his shoulder. He turned around to face Rainbow Steve, who backed up instantly when Sabre turned around. He glanced at Sabre cautiously, a few flowers in hand.
"Those are pretty." Sabre said, his voice dry. God, why was he always so awkward? Rainbow nodded a little, holding the flowers outward. He didn't meet Sabre's gaze. "Why are you..." Sabre frowned, then it clicked. "Wait. For me?"
Rainbow nodded again, urging the flowers forward with more conviction. Sabre was a little more than shocked. He took the flowers cautiously. Their hands touched for half a second, but Rainbow immediately recoiled from the small ounce of contact.
"Thank you. These are really nice." Sabre said. Was his face red? Probably. He couldn't remember the last time he got a gift. He held the flowers, unaware of what to do with them. After a few seconds too many, Sabre gently placed them in his bag, the flower part sticking out. He hadn't l bothered with flowers ever before because of how fast they wilted. (How could something that quick to fade be beautiful?)
"I have to go find Light." Sabre said, clearing his throat. Rainbow nodded, stepping forward. Sabre frowned at that, since typically, Rainbow kept his distance. "I have to leave. So...goodbye." He turned away, beginning to walk in the general direction of the snow biome he last saw Light.
Sabre stopped in his tracks when he heard footsteps behind him. When he stopped, the footsteps stopped, he turned around to see Rainbow, a few feet behind him, watching curiously. "I'm going." Sabre said again.
He turned back towards the land ahead, continuing to walk and trying to ignore the footsteps that followed. But Rainbow was persistent. They walked a hundred or so feet before he finally turned around, looking defeatedly at Rainbow. "You want to come with?" He asked, though the answer was obvious. Rainbow nodded quickly. "It could be dangerous. There's this guy called Dark Steve, you wouldn't be a fan of him." Rainbow stepped forward again, still keeping his distance but looking determined.
"Fine." Sabre sighed. He let Rainbow tail behind him as they walked through the plains.
The whole time, Rainbow stayed a good distance away from Sabre, but never got too far away from him. Every few minutes, Sabre looked back at him to make sure he was still there. He couldn't shake the nervous feeling that Rainbow would disappear somehow suddenly.
Eventually, they reached the snow biome. Sabre could spot Light Steve's makeshift home in the background, but was reluctant to visit. The odds of Light being inside were the same as the odds of Dark waiting outside. Sabre really didn't want to risk anything. Still, Light was smart enough to return to his snow fort, and perhaps fortify it a bit more. Or...was he smart enough? Sabre began to doubt the small guy's brainpower.
Suddenly, he felt a tug at his hoodie. He turned to face Rainbow, who, per usual, stepped away again. "What?" Sabre asked, a little confused. Rainbow pointed at something past the snowy trees. Sabre attempted to see what Rainbow saw, but couldn't see much. He frowned. "I don't see anything."
Rainbow sighed and sprinted forward without waiting for Sabre. "Wait!" Sabre ran to catch up as fast as he could. As he got closer to what Rainbow had been pointing at, he was able to sort of register what it was. Some makeshift igloo, half submerged in the ground. Too tiny to be a full-on home, but just big enough to fit one little guy.
"Oh..." Sabre trailed off. Rainbow knocked on the half ice, half snow mound. Was Light Steve in there? The tiny igloo wasn't very hidden, anyone with eyes could have found it. Dark Steve could have found it. Dark could have gotten to Light-
Rainbow kicked hard down on the surface, breaking the igloo. Sabre opened his mouth to say something, but stopped when he saw the unmoving body of Light Steve under the snow. Light was completely asleep, his pale arm bruised and purple.
Sabre moved quickly, and a part of him didn't even know what he was doing. His hands wrapped around Light's body and pulled him up into his arms. He held him close—nearly cradled him, like how a parent would to a child—while inspecting his arm. Bruised and slightly burnt, maybe even broken. Damn it. It wasn't a life threatening injury, of course, but Sabre still felt like he owed his life to Light for letting this happen. Where was this feeling even coming from?
Rainbow watched silently, his face a curious frown. "We need to get him somewhere safe. Dark could find us out here." Sabre said, gritting his teeth. "I know we came all the way here, but could we walk back to your house?" There was an ounce of pleading in his voice Sabre hadn't intended. Rainbow just nodded.
Sabre held Light tight in his arms, not letting go. It would take a lot of walking in the open to get to Rainbow's house. He really wished Rainbow had the Purple Steve ability to teleport, but he assumed he didn't, since Rainbow probably would've used that ability before if he could.
Instead of a convenient teleport, they walked back to Rainbow's house. They stayed under as many trees as they could to stay away from potentially flying enemies, and it took a long time of walking for Sabre to just barely shake the uneasy feeling. The entire time, Light stayed asleep in Sabre's arms. And the entire time, Rainbow and Sabre were completely silent.
Finally, they made their way into Rainbow's house. Sabre laid Light over the bed, pulling the rainbow blanket over him, but keeping his injured arm over it. He didn't know what to do. He assumed with time, the wound would heal, but he was nervous. What happened if Dark Steve found them? What happened if Light was hurt?
Sabre stayed at Light's side as he slept. Occasionally, Rainbow came upstairs to watch Light and Sabre, never losing that curious look. Sabre did notice, however, that Rainbow was ever so slightly closer to him when he watched.
Rainbow brought Sabre a bowl of mushroom stew and set a bowl for Light at the bedside table. He looked incredibly curious of Light, and almost as worried as Sabre was.
"He'll heal, right?" Sabre asked all of the sudden, silently hoping Rainbow would have some answer. They were both Steves, right? And they were connected on a level beyond just being Steves.
Rainbow nodded a little. Despite that, he looked unsure. He turned to leave the room, mumbling something under his breath, but Sabre didn't catch it.
Sabre turned to Light again. He didn't understand why he felt the way he did about a Steve. Two Steves, now. Caring hurt him more than not. It hurts others around him. It was pathetic and for the weak minded.
...still, his hand gingerly went up to Light's injured one, gently holding his palm. The same way he'd seen fathers in his world hold the hands of their sons. That idea filled him with some sort of giddy joy, for some reason.
Chapter 8 - Light gets Snowman'd
Start from the beginning
