Three months after the fall...
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Benny liked it when it got foggy. The mood of the village when fog rolled in was the complete opposite of Glowfly time; everyone kinda just...meandered around town, tranquil and quiet. It was surreal. And calm. Unlike Glowflies.
Not that the Octocopter had to worry about Glowflies much anymore. Two months ago he'd inked some sticky paper and hung it above Deco's hut's door, which made the flies flock to that instead of trying to get inside the house. Also ended up being a feast for the other Salmonids, since the flies got stuck. They'd had to buy new paper each time Glowflies were in town, but he and Deco agreed it was worth it.
And, just last month, Deco had finally agreed to letting someone do repairs on his hut! Emm and her Cohock buddies came by once a month to attempt it, and prior to Benny's arrival, they'd apparently been screamed away every time. But Deco agreed to let them fix the holes as long as Benny watched them and made sure they didn't take anything. So now the shack was a proper house, and it was too much effort for the Glowflies to follow the smell of his ink!
Speaking of his ink, that too was starting to change. Most non-Octoling Octarians had a hard time changing their ink color from its natural reddish-pink, and Benny was no exception, but the spots around his eyes were starting to turn green! His mouth too! Soon his ink would be a dead-ringer for the secretions of the Salmonids, and that would make him infinitely safer around them. Not that he was really worried about that any more, but still. The less likely something would happen to him by accident the better.
Where was he again? Oh yeah, fog. Fog was nice. The fish in town all seemed so zen when the fog rolled in. It drew out all sorts from their abodes, folks he never saw otherwise. Just last month during a foggy evening he met an elderly Maws with no teeth. It was incredible.
Everything felt relaxing about fog...except for one thing. Just one thing that was weird about these peaceful times in the village: Deco wanted to part of it.
Each and every time it was about to get foggy, Deco would demand to be alone and shut himself in his room, and Benny wouldn't see him again until it was over. Usually it wasn't much use trying to stay inside the house, because the fog always managed to seep in anyway, so he'd go out by himself and observe the wandering fish. Jule always loved to talk during fog, and even Hiko was surprisingly bold. Everyone seemed to come out of whatever shell they had when it got foggy...everyone but Deco.
And Benny was in no rush to pester him. Deco had been kind to him, it would be rude to question him about this of all things after all this time. So he left him alone.
However...just as the fog rolled in again, and Benny was about to leave to say hi to a new Salmonid friend he'd met last time...he heard a crashing sound come from Deco's room. He took a step in that direction, but then shook his head. It wasn't his place. And if he was mad about something, then it was even less of a good idea to interrupt him.
But then he heard another sound: a single, choked sob.
And all thoughts of his own safety went out the window.
Benny approached the door slowly, step by step, trying to make as little noise as possible. The door was shut...which posed an issue. His comical lack of hands became less comical by the day. He tried to jump up to grab the handle in his mouth, only for the door to be pushed open as he brushed it. It must not have been closed all the way.
He peeked his head inside, but before he could utter his prepared words of apology followed by comfort, he realized what he was looking at.
That wasn't a Snatcher. That was a Goldie.
Benny didn't know much about Goldies, admittedly. Literally all he knew from hearing about summits from Garratia was that Goldies were incredibly rare, and that they were usually the ones who were the smartest, best at negotiations. As such, there was always at least one at every summit. He knew nothing aside from those two things.
There weren't any Goldies in the village as far as he knew, so what was one doing in...Deco's room...?
It was then that several things about the Goldie's appearance jumped out at Benny. There was a notch in their tail fin. A feather-like fin hung at the front of their crest. The edges of their crest looked rusted, off color. Pinkish maybe? Most importantly, though, there was a cluster of brown scales under each eye. Seven scales each, to be exact.
When the Goldie whipped their head around, realizing his intrusion, Benny saw their eyes. And he knew immediately who he was looking at.
"...Deco?"
The Goldie, shaking, hissed at him. "What octo doing! Get out!! Out!!!"
And just like that, Benny knew his guess was right. "I'm sorry, I just...you sounded upset and...I just wanted to help."
The Goldie stared at him, unblinking, and then bore his teeth. "Octo make fun! Thought octo better! Make Deco feel worse!!" He shouted, tears starting to gather at the corners of his eyes.
Benny was taken aback. "Wh-what? I'm not making fun of you, I just thought I heard you crying and-"
"BENNY LIE!!!" Deco screamed, tears streaming down his face now. "B-Benny...Benny hate Deco too! Fish all hate Deco when find out! Why octo any different?!"
The Octocopter blinked and stumbled back at the accusation. "Why, why would I hate you?? You've been nice to me and let me stay here and taught me Salmon and...and..." Benny knew not the words, for he knew not what Deco was so upset over.
Deco arose, just a tad, so that he was upright. His gold ball, which had been resting on the floor beneath him, was quickly scooped back up into his arms. He growled again, but through his shaking and crying it was clear to see his desolation. "Octo really not get it..." He whimpered.
Benny took a chance, and stepped closer to him. "Yeah...I don't get it. You're a good fish, and I don't see why you being shiny would change that."
Deco sucked in a breath through his teeth, and sharply turned his head away from Benny. "Octo stupid...Deco wrong."
"...about what?"
"No, Deco wrong! Deco not right! Deco bad! Deco...Deco mistake..." He sobbed, glaring at his wall as tears streamed down his face.
Benny didn't know what to say to that. He was still confused. He still hadn't the context to properly comfort his...friend. Where they friends? They must've been at this point, right? "Deco...I don't know what's going on, but...I don't think there's anything wrong with you..."
Deco sniffled, still looking anywhere but Benny's direction. "What octo not see? Deco...Deco Goldie." He hissed out, the word vile on his tongue.
Benny tilted his head a little. "I...don't think I get it, Deco...aren't Goldies important and stuff? What's to be upset about?"
"That problem!" The Goldie snapped back, bearing his teeth but still not looking at Benny. "Deco hatch wrong, not pure egg. Not s'posed be Goldie, take space for rare. Not good..." He paused, leering as his tears continued to fall. "...not enough."
"...what?" Benny replied dumbly. At this point he wasn't sure if Deco wasn't explaining well...or if he just wasn't getting it.
Deco whipped his head back, glaring at the Octarian. "Benny stupid?! Deco half-gold! Look like both! More like Mum in fog, Pap in clear. Mum teach Deco Octo, want make Deco dip-lo-mat, like Mum, but Deco...Deco bad learn! Deco bad learn not good!" He shouted, growing increasingly more distressed. "Disappoint Mum! Disappoint every fish when learn Deco half-gold! Try learn be like others, save egg from egg takers, but Deco find egg..." He clutched it close to his chest. "Mum say Deco egg look like...Deco know if eg hatch they take...make sad. Say Deco not good for keep egg safe. Not allowed anywhere."
Benny was silent. He still felt like he was missing something.
"Deco not good. Not s'posed be stupid fish bad-talk, s'posed be important Goldie, like Mum. Fish find out Deco Goldie, disappoint in Deco. 'Waste resource', say. Could be good. Not good." Tears pooled anew, and he started shaking again. "Deco tell octo; octo know now why Deco bad! Leave be! Don't want look anymore!"
The Octarian was quiet for a moment. Then he took another step towards the Salmonid. "You're not bad."
His jaw trembled. "What?! Why Octo say lie?! N-not make Deco feel better!" He sobbed, holding his egg tighter.
Benny gave a tiny smile, hoping the other found it reassuring. "I'm not lying. I don't think you're bad, Deco."
Deco's breathing became shaky. "B-Benny lie!" He cried, disbelieving. "Why care 'bout?! Deco not good enough!! Pure say so!!"
Benny took one more step. "I think...you don't owe anyone anything, Deco."
Deco looked confused, but no less upset. "Wh-what...what octo mean..."
Benny continued to smile softly. "I may not get what you're saying completely, but I do know...that you're worth more than what others think of you. You don't need to...to prove yourself to anyone. You're allowed to just be you."
Deco stared at him, dumbfounded. Then he shut his eyes and trembled.
"Wh-why Benny not get it...Deco not good..." He whimpered. "Deco...disappoint...why Benny nice...to Deco...when Deco bad?" The distress in his voice was genuine, and it was heart-wrenching.
Benny wanted to fix it. He wanted to make Deco feel better, and he knew only one way how.
So he rushed forward and pressed his face into the Salmonid's side. Without arms, it was the closest thing to a hug he could manage.
"Because you're my friend, Deco." He replied simply. "And that's what friends do."
Deco shook, and Benny could feel him shift to glance down at him. He heard a tear drop onto his pan.
"Fr...friend...?" Deco murmured, sounding as if he'd never heard the word before. "Benny is...friend?"
Benny smushed his face closer. "Of course I am, Deco. I...you've been nice to me. You could've kicked me out ages ago, but you didn't."
Deco scoffed, and then sniffled. "Benny can leave if want. Not need kick out."
"I didn't want to leave. I was nervous in the beginning, but I realized that...you just weren't used to needing to be kind. And that's not your fault."
"...No one call Deco kind before." He whispered.
Benny looked up at him. "Then they must not know you very well." He replied with a smile.
The Goldie gave a dry laugh. "Others not want get know Deco. Never, after find out Deco half-gold."
"Well, that's their loss then. Because I think you're pretty cool."
Deco hiccuped, the tears in his eyes rolling fatly down the side of his face. His shaky fins dropped his ball then, making a heavy sound against the floor, and then the fins wrapped around Benny. The hug was returned as the shaky Goldie sobbed into the top of the metal pan.
Benny stayed where he was, closing his eyes and smiling as he was embraced. And they stayed there until the fog receded.
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By the time the fog was gone, it was the dead of night. Deco's appearance has changed back to how it normally was; with his purple crest and brown scales. While it appeared that he'd shed some of the gold scales onto the floor, most of them seemed to have simply changed hue over the course of the past hour. He hadn't let Benny go in that time.
Benny let out a sigh, and turned to look out a window. He could see the moonlight filtering through the blinds...
"Do you feel better, Deco?" He asked, voice gentle.
Deco didn't respond.
He shifted a little, craning his head to try and look at the fish that still had a tight hold on him.
The expression he saw on his friend's face was a confusing one. He looked...contemplative, conflicted, and probably another c word that Benny couldn't quite place at that moment. But his eyes were open, and he wasn't looking at Benny.
"...Deco? Are you alright?"
The Salmonid looked down slightly, glancing at him sideways. "Benny here...cuz wait, yes? Wait other friend?" He asked, voice quieter than the Octarian had ever heard it.
Benny nodded.
"What do when friend come? Leave village? Go with friend...?" He continued, quiet, unsure. The look on his face was a sad one.
Benny blinked. "...I...I don't know. That was the plan before, but..."
He looked into Deco's eyes, and he noticed that they were glistening in the low light. Was he going to cry again?
...he really didn't have any other friends, did he?
"...I think plans might've changed." Benny conceded. Right now, at the very least, Deco needed him. And he wouldn't leave him alone.
Deco's lip quivered. "Deco...D-Deco glad...Benny friend..." He said, and his mouth twitched into something like a smile.
Benny closed his eyes. "I'm glad you're my friend too, Deco."
The night drifted on.