Work Text:
Stelle: Hey Sunday could you do me a favor? It’s about the games
Sunday: Of course. What is it you needed?
Stelle: Well, I sorta kinda told Pearl that you and Sparxie are both my allies in the games. So it’s gonna look bad if I don’t know anything about what Sparxie is up to
Stelle: I have her mask, so she can’t do a whole lot, but I’m still worried
Stelle: I was hoping you could send one of your bird thingies to find her and keep tabs on her?
Sunday: I see.
Sunday: That’s certainly something I can do.
Stelle: I sense hesitation
Sunday: To clarify, do you wish for me to tail her without her knowing?
Stelle: Basically yeah
Stelle: I mean you can tell her if you want, but idk if you really want to deal with her the whole time
Sunday: Noted. I’ll try to locate her.
Stelle: Thank you!! I’ll buy you Robin’s new CD!!
Sunday: There’s no need. I have it already.
Stelle: LOL I’ll get you the vinyl then
Sunday: I have that as well.
Sunday scrolled through his message history again, feeling a little regretful that he’d agreed to Stelle’s request. But, there was no backing out now.
He scanned Duomension City through the eyes of a crow, all while sitting outside at a cafe, sipping at a sweet drink.
It didn’t take long to locate Sparxie. Even among the flashy fashion styles of Planarcadia, she stuck out like a sore thumb. She was crouched in an alleyway, giggling to herself as she typed something on her phone.
Sunday was a little curious what she was laughing about, but he settled his crow a good distance away so it wouldn’t be spotted.
Now, all he had to do was keep tabs on her every now and again to make sure she didn’t try anything like what she did at Graphia Academy again.
He should have asked Stelle how long he was meant to keep tabs on Sparxie. All day? A week? Several weeks? The last thing he wanted was to become Sparxie’s stalker for the rest of the Games.
His crows could follow their targets without constant input, but for now, Sunday manually positioned the crow and watched through its eyes. He should get a little bit acquainted with Sparxie’s routines before he tried to let the crow operate on its own.
He watched as she left the alleyway, walking through the street. She wandered like she didn’t have a care in the world, smiling as she looked through the windows of every shop. She was constantly stopped by fans for a picture or autograph, but she seemed to relish the attention.
When she turned a sharp corner, Sunday followed her with his crow. When he saw around the corner, it turned out to be a low underpass, so he guided the crow lower. Then, a hand appeared right in front of him.
“Gotcha!” Sparxie cheered. Disoriented, it took Sunday a moment to realize she’d grabbed the crow with her hand.
Sparxie brought the crow to eye level, and her face filled Sunday’s vision. Sparxie tilted the crow this way and that, observing it from all angles. “Hmm. Now, what do we have here?”
The crow didn’t react, but Sunday shivered. He hadn’t realized being picked up by the relatively giant Sparxie would feel so… visceral.
He gripped the table, reminding himself that he was still sitting at the cafe.
“Crows, crows. Who do I know who likes crows? Maybe it’s just some weird fan who’s also a Pathstrider?” She opened her fingers a bit to get a better look at the crow’s stomach, which had the pattern of an open eye on it. “You’re a creepy one, aren’t you?”
Sunday wanted to correct her, but he held his tongue—or rather, mind. Maybe Sparxie wouldn’t figure out who he was.
Sparxie broke into a smile. “Chicken Wing Boy!”
So much for that.
She tapped the crow’s face with her free hand. “Can you see me in there? Hellooooo~? Sunday?”
“You don’t need to raise your voice so loud,” he said in her mind through the crow’s telepathy. “I can hear you just fine.”
“Is that really you, Chicken Wing Boy?”
“Of course not. This is just a manifestation of the Harmony. I can see through its eyes and hear through its ears, but it is not me.”
Sparxie laughed. “You really believed I thought you turned into a bird? Should I take that as an insult to my intelligence?”
“Take it however you wish.”
“Huh. You’re no fun.” She moved the crow even closer to her face, and Sunday physically recoiled in his chair.
“Let go of it,” Sunday said.
“Why would I? You’re the one who sent it to spy on me.” Sparxie suddenly gasped, hiding her smile behind a hand. “You were stalking me, weren’t you? Eww, you’re such a little creeper, Sunday! Were you so enchanted by my streams that you turned into one of my stalker fans?”
Sunday felt a prick of irritation and a whole deluge of embarrassment. “I’m not being creepy. I was sent to keep an eye on you, seeing as you’re still a Supplicant in the Games. Besides, I don’t watch your streams.”
“But I bet you do! You’re just so in love with me that you couldn’t help yourself. Oh, the woes of being an internet celebrity.” She wiped an invisible tear.
“We only needed to make sure you won’t cause any trouble like you did at Graphia Academy.”
“Who’s ‘we?’ Did that Madam Yao Guang send you? I bet it was her. I bet you do her favors because you’re soooo enchanted with her. Wouldn’t that make you… a double creeper?”
“That doesn’t even make any sense,” Sunday said as calmly as he could. Telepathy was always harder to control than his speaking tone, though, so his annoyance came through.
“No matter how you phrase it as being for the ‘Games,’ a stalker’s a stalker and a creeper’s a creeper!”
Hot shame heated Sunday’s face, and he reminded himself not to correct her. She was just trying to get a rise out of him—nothing more.
Sunday mentally said, “I will leave if you so request. However, if you permit me to, I will continue keeping tabs on your whereabouts.”
“Asking for forgiveness rather than permission, is that it?” She put a finger to her chin. “But Sunday, you haven’t even asked me for forgiveness yet!”
“Please forgive me for my behavior.”
“You mean ‘for stalking you.’ And say my name.”
Sunday put his hot face in his hands. Someone at one of the nearby cafe tables looked at him strangely. In his mind, he said, “Please forgive me for stalking you, Miss Sparxie.”
Sparxie giggled with glee. “Ooh, I wasn’t expecting you to call me ‘Miss!’ Bonus points for you.”
Sunday didn’t say anything. He just sat with his head in his hands, wondering what life choices had led him to this situation.
Sparxie said, “But, I don’t know if you’ve done enough to repent. You’re looking at me through this birdie’s eyes right now, right?”
“Yes.”
“Ah! Then…” Sunday waited in suspense as she paused. Then, she shook the bird really hard.
Sunday’s vision went blurry, and he felt an instant sense of vertigo. He needed to cut the connection, but his nausea-
He finally managed to cut the connection, and his consciousness fully returned to his body. It was a relief to be in the peaceful shade of the outdoor cafe.
He felt a headache coming on, though, and he was still nauseous.
He knew he should dispel the crow and tell Stelle he’d failed, but annoyance bubbled up in his chest. In a fit of immaturity, he connected back with the crow.
“-I break it?” Sparxie said, staring closely at the crow.
Irritated, Sunday said, “What is wrong with you?”
Sparxie gasped in delight. “You’re back!” She giggled. “I always love when Chicken Wing Boy is mean to me. So angry~!”
“That was completely uncalled for. Was any of that necessary?”
“I was just punishing a stalker, that’s all. Besides, I can’t resist the opportunity to see you all angry.”
Sunday took a deep breath. He needed to cool off.
Sparxie said, “But I guess that’s a little unfair to you, isn’t it? I’ll apologize for my behavior too.”
She didn’t continue, so Sunday said, “Go on.”
“So, you really do want an apology! Well, then, Sunday, I’m sorry for my actions.” She brought the crow to her face. Her puckered lips filled Sunday’s vision, and she kissed the crow’s beak with an exaggerated sound. “Mwah! I hope you can forgive me!”
There was no hope of cooling off anymore. Sunday was grateful that Sparxie couldn’t see his flustered face. “You… you’re…”
Sparxie laughed at his expense. “Look, as a real apology, I’ll let you keep stalking me like you wanted. I just hope that if I ever get in trouble, you’ll repay me by swooping in and saving this sparkling damsel.”
“We’re on the same side. That’s a given.”
“Oh. We are?”
Sunday didn’t know if he was supposed to let her in on this, but it was too late now. “Stelle told Pearl that us three Supplicants are allies. She wanted me to make sure you don’t do anything that contradicts that statement.”
“Well, why didn’t you say so? Hop right on my shoulder, birdie.” She finally let go of the crow, and Sunday guided it to flutter onto her shoulder.
Sparxie said, “It’s us against the world, Chicken Wing Boy. Hmm, maybe I should use your bird on one of my streams. I can show off my tame crow who knows how to do telepathy! That’s got to get me some clicks.”
Sunday slumped in his seat, realizing the fate he’d resigned himself to. At least he’d gotten her to cooperate, but at what cost?
He really hoped he wouldn’t be stuck talking to Sparxie for weeks.