ZOMG A DOUBLE UPDATE

"Can you...grab that for me."

You came out through the reeds, holding the basket that Airy had taken with him. You weren't sure why you agreed to this. But being stuck in the shed and around the camp while you were recovering from your illness had left you bored, and you figured you were well enough to come with him anyways.

You winced as the slimy, brackish water rushed past your moving form. Biting back any complaints you had, you thrust the basket into Airy's waiting arms.

"Tha– Thank you for...helping me. By the way." Airy said, staring down at the basket to analyze how much you had collected.

"Yeah, sure, whatever." You said through gritted teeth, ignoring as the wet sand beneath you squelched grossly underfoot.

Airy looked at your expression, then looked around, then back at you quizzically.

"How do you stand this?" You finally blurted out. "This water is so— It's..."

"Gross." Airy finished for you. "I don't really...notice. It. The water."

"Don't your paws get dirty from it?"

"I can just wash them off later." He shrugged, staring blankly into the muddy water beneath the two of you. "It's no big deal."

It is kind of a big deal... You opted not to say this out loud. It was a useless thing to argue about. Infections, those were a big deal, not that Airy seemed to care.

Speaking of which, you broke out of your thoughts to see that the lantern was already a few yards away, walking back without you. "Wh– Hey! Do-Don't leave me behind!!" You scrambled after him, your legs suctioning awkwardly to the mud and leaving you with an awkward, struggling gait. Airy looked back as if he heard you, but continued to move ahead of you, unimpeded by the mud.

With a yelp, you tripped and fell into the water, splashing around awkwardly as you attempted to regain your footing on the slippery, marshy earth. That got Airy's attention. He set the basket down on the shore, turning and striding back over to you.

"Airy..." You said through gritted teeth. Your face was covered in mud and water. A slight twitch of his mouth betrayed his amusement.

"You tripped." He said.

"No sh–"

"It's okay." Airy knelt down next to you, grabbing your arms to hoist you up. "I made the same mistake, the first few times I...came up here."

You spat out a glob of mud that had gotten into your mouth, before spitefully giving Airy a tug and pulling him towards you. The lantern's eye widened slightly as he stumbled with a splash that soaked you both.

"There. Now we're both wet." You smiled wryly.

Airy didn't reply, shakily standing up and emptying the water out of his head. "That was...uncalled for."

"Leaving me behind was also uncalled for." You replied pointedly. "Now we're even."

Airy stared down at his body, now caked with mud. Then he stared at you, also caked with mud, and considerably worse off. He blinked slowly, a strained expression on his face.

Your cheeks flushed as you realized what he was doing. "H-Hey! This isn't funny!" You flicked more water at his face.

Airy squinted and stepped back, covering his mouth with a hand. "It's a little bit funny." He managed. You just splashed him again. All he did in response was stand there, letting the water wash some of the mud away. "What was that for?"

"Payback." You said simply, unable to keep a note of haughtiness out of your voice. You went around him to leave, but were stopped in your tracks as more gross water splashed against your back. You turned around, giving Airy a withering look. His hands were wet.

"Okay. I see how it is." With a grin, you launched more water at him, swinging an arm for added power. Airy shielded his face, taking a step back, before retaliating with a wave of his own. Eventually, the two of you were doused to the bone with lake water.

"Oh...ew." Coming to your senses, you looked down at yourself with disgust.

"Oh." Airy flung mud off of himself, earning a hiss as it landed square in your face. "We should...probably get cleaned up."

"Yeah...Let's get outta here before we both catch something." You stuck out your tongue. The water was cold, though not as cold as the pond by the shed. You hadn't even considered that the water might be bad for you.

Airy let you back to his camp, grabbing your hand as you both crossed the rickety bridge above the waterfall. You shivered as you stared down at the sharp rocks below.

You both came to a stop at the shore of the pond, where Airy began to wade. "H-Hey! We just got out of the water, what do you think you're doing?" You called out, hesitating where the waves lapped at the sand.

"Uh...I'm...washing the mud off of..." Airy trailed off. "You don't have to come with me."

You looked down at the mud that was now beginning to dry on your form and decided that catching hypothermia again was a preferable alternative.

Airy stopped when he was waist deep in the water, and you caught up with him, letting your legs rest as you floated on the water's surface and allowed it to clean the mud. The roaring of the waterfall was much louder now that you were next to it, and you closed your eyes.

"It sounds nice," Airy's voice broke into your thoughts. "The um, the waterfall."

"Huh? Oh, yeah." You sat up, shaking off the water. "It's nice. I was just thinking about that."

Airy stared down at the water, drawing a finger across its surface. "Sometimes I like to come out here...when I want to think. Or plan challenges."

"Challenges? Oh. Yeah." You had forgotten about his competition. "How long has it been going on for, anyways?"

"The...the um...ONE?"

"Yeah...ONE? What, are there any other competitions I should know about?" You felt yourself start to drift off again.

"...No." Airy looked over at the waterfall. "Um...I've been doing it for about a week, maybe. Or just a few days. I dunno. I was gone for a few months after I was injured, so..."

"What?" You bolted up. "Airy, how long have those people been there?"

"About the same amount of time." He replied, giving you a look that seemed to ask why you were upset.

Your lips tightened into a thin line. "Airy...you can't just..."

"You told me already." His voice came out rushed.

"Why can't you just...cancel the competition and send them home?" You asked, brow furrowing.

"I can't do that. Until the competition is over." He fiddled with his button. "Sorry."

Your mounting anger faded at this. You shifted so that you were standing up, dipping your head under the water to clean your face of the mud. "I guess I can't convince you to end it early then."

"Uh...no." Airy shook his head. "There's...um...seven more eliminations. After that they can go home..."

"Seven. That's like, a week, right?" You looked up at him with budding hope in your expression.

"Uh...yeah. I think so." Airy gave a slow nod.

"And you'll send everyone back?"

"Yeah. And then I can start the next one..."

"And then you can start the ne– wait, what? Airy, you can't seriously be thinking of doing another competition?!"

"Why not?" Airy's expression changed with your tone and he moved a few inches back.

"I don't know, Airy, maybe because kidnapping is wrong." You said dryly. "This has to be it, okay? You can't keep...taking people from their homes for god knows how long."

Airy looked away, fidgeting with his button. "It's...all I have to do here." His voice was quiet. "Th...There isn't much else..."

Your expression softened, and against your better judgment you felt a twinge of sympathy for the lantern. "I know it isn't easy, living here." The words were falling out before you could stop them. "But you're not completely alone. Not anymore, at least. Just...don't keep doing this. You can finish the competition, that's fine. But...but make it the last one you host." You bit your lip and turned away. "You're not really alone anymore, are you?"

Airy took a long time to reply. You didn't dare look at him during the silence that lapsed between you, letting out a breath you hadn't realized you were holding as he finally spoke.

"I can...do that. Yeah." His voice sounded kind of far away. "After...after the winner gets their wish I'll send them home."

"Do you promise?" You looked over to meet his gaze, moving over to close the gap between you two. "You've gotta take this seriously."

"I– uh...y-yeah. I know. Yes." Airy gave a shaky nod. "I'll send them home," he repeated.

You relaxed a little, figuring that would be the best you'd get out of him. "Don't worry. You don't have to kidnap people to entertain yourself, you know that, right?" You offered a smile. "I bet that computer of yours can do lots of things. Plus...you have me."

You reached out and placed a hand on his arm. Airy seemed to tense up, and his gaze shifted to where your skin touched, then back to your face. He bowed his head and relaxed, finally relenting with your touch.

Pulling away, you began to make your way to the shore. "Well, we're all cleaned up now, so I guess we'd better get dried off before one of us gets sick again."

"Oh, right." Airy began to follow you, the water leaving his metal body shiny and cold as he stood up and waded after you.

The two of you spent the rest of the evening by the fire, warming up and drying off from your time in the water earlier. Snow had begun to fall lightly, leaving the area colder than before.

"It's a good thing we got out when we did, huh?" You noted as you watched the white flakes drift down. Airy gave a noncommittal grunt, too focused on trying to roast some of the reeds he had collected earlier.

"Do you...want some of these." He offered to you, holding out the charred reeds. It was his attempt to try and make the plants more edible.

"Uh...no thanks. I'll be fine." You turned your head away. "You can have 'em."

"O...Okay."

You inched a bit closer to the fire, shivering as a chilly breeze swept over you. Airy didn't react to it at all.

"I guess you...don't really get cold, huh?" You looked back up at him.

"No...Not really." Airy shook his head, speaking through a mouthful of reeds.

"You remember what we talked about earlier? Right?"

"The...yeah. I remember." He nodded, staring at the fire and not at you. "I'll do it."

"Can you...promise me that?" You turned around, meeting his gaze. Airy shifted away slightly, but didn't look away.

"Um...I...promise. I'll send them back when the...when the competition is over." Airy's voice was hollow. The firelight reflected dimly in his eye.

Your shoulders slumped and you sat back as the weight lifted from them. It was the best you could do for now. Worst case scenario, you'd have to make him do it, but you were going to get those contestants home one way or another. Things were going to be fine.