Demon Dads (DarkiplierXAntisepticeyeXIdkAnymore,Someone)

A Friend Over to Play

A few weeks later, I had a routine going. I woke up, went down for breakfast, played about the house, watched movies, read books, played games, and generally amused myself. I learned the signs of when Dark had guests and would stay in my room. Wilford didn't trouble me anymore, except for the occasional comment and threat. I learned to ignore it. Google didn't do much, and I didn't bother him. And I always obeyed the easiest rule on the list--stay out of the basement.
However, I soon began to miss my old life. I especially began to miss Ma and my friends. I remembered my promise to Kathy. I'd told her I would invite her over if I could. Maybe Anti and Dark would let me go to her house and invite her to Raspy Hill.
I went downstairs one morning for breakfast. Anti was cooking. Again.
"Why does Anti always cook if you both can?" I'd asked one day.
Dark had started to chuckle. "We made an agreement years ago that whoever doesn't cook brings food to the Host. It was supposed to just be an incentive to cook for each of us, but Anti doesn't like going to the Host, so he started cooking regularly, and I didn't stop him."
I'd wondered at the time why Anti didn't like the Host, but Dark and Anti didn't really like to talk about him, so I didn't ask.
I sat down at the dinner table and Anti put a plate of pancakes in front of me. Google sat eating methodically next to me, in his usual spot. I grabbed a fork and dug in. When I had finished about half the stack and Google had finished and left, I looked up at Anti, who stood in the kitchen doing dishes, his back to me.
"Can I ask my friend to come over sometime?"
Anti ceased all movement. He stood over the sink, holding some unseen dish in front of him. Then he slowly set it down in the sink and turned to face me. His expression was grave. His glow seemed brighter, his scar more vivid. He looked at me for a moment, then said, "Kid, do you remember the rule about telling other people about us?"
I frowned. Of course I did. What did that have to do with anything? "Yes."
Anti nodded. "Do you know why we have that rule in the first place?"
I was more confused than ever. "Dark said it was to protect you from humans. Or something like that."
Anti nodded. "Listen kid," he said, "we try to keep other people out of our lives all together, for our own safety. So maybe it's just not a good idea to bring strangers into our home." He paused a moment, rubbing his scar. "You see," he said slowly, "what do you do when you get scared?"
I thought for a moment. "I run to my room."
"Exactly," Anti said. "Your room is your safe place, your hidey hole. When you're scared, that's where you go to be safe. For us, this house is a safe place, somewhere we can go when we're scared or in danger. So having someone else here..." He stopped again. His glow seemed somewhat muted. He still rubbed at his neck. "Tell ya what," he said abruptly. "Bring it up at dinner, when Dark's here, and we'll see."
I nodded happily, then frowned. "Anti?"
"Yeah?"
"Where did you get that scar?"
Anti was quiet for a moment. Then he said, "I'll tell you when you're older."