I moved quickly throughout the room, tidying up while carefully staying out of Stephano's way. Stephano's chamber had become a disaster over the past few days. Stephano and I had been waiting all day every day for at least a week now for Felix to return. I worked quietly, reorganizing the book shelves, making Stephano's bed, wiping away the dust, and (to my dismay) mopping up a mysterious pool of blood. I peered into the crimson pool, unsure of it's origin.

"Hey, uh... Steph? Who's.. uhm... Who's blood is this?" I asked shakily, feeling faint at the sight of blood.

He appeared to be fighting something invisible. Stephano was indeed trapped in a battle with a foe in his mind. I tilted my head, not understanding what he was doing. He slashed at thin air, snickering darkly as he dominated his invisible enemy. "Stephano!" I shouted. He continued on with his fighting, now turned on what appeared to be another swordsman. "I admit, you're good." He growled at nothing. He struck the invisible man down, drawing his sword up and stabbing it into his invisible body. "But I'm better." He growled, dropping his sword back into the sheath.

"Stephano!" I repeated, finally capturing his attention. He stopped his training for a moment and looked to me, golden face drenched in sweat. He wiped his face, glancing back to his fallen foe before coming to my side. He shrugged.

"Well, it most certainly is not mine." He said, bending down and dragging two fingers through the thick substance. He examined it, eyes squinted as if the answer was dripping down his index and middle fingers, along with the blood.

"Might have been Pewdie's, actually...The man is so d***ed clumsy." He said, nonchalantly wiping it off in his golden hair. I gasped, shocked at such an action. I loved Stephano dearly, heck... he was kind of like a big, scary, crazy brother... but he was so barbaric sometimes!

"Stephano!"
"What?" He laughed, French accent distorting the word as he chuckled.
"That was disgusting! Go get a bath! You haven't showered in days!" I yipped, showing him to the door. He mumbled something quietly to himself, laughing a little at something incomprehensible.

"Alright, alright. I shall go, but come get me if Pewdie finally arrives." He laughed at that, a crazed look in his eyes. I was beginning to worry for my friend. "Stephano, are you okay?" I asked. He nodded, balling the fabric above his heart up in his fist. He looked to me, placing two fingers on the side of my neck. He counted the beats of my pulse before taking his hand away and nodding.

"Good. Your heart still beats." He muttered. I remembered him saying something about not having a heartbeat. "What happened to yours?" He growled something unintelligible and looked up at me, eyes stern. "Did the barrels take it?" I asked, now a little sad. He snorted. "Like those ba****ds could take such a thing away from me. No, I gave it up. I sacrificed it to protect the ones I love." He explained. My eyes widened. "So, I can sacrifice my heartbeat to save everyone?" I asked. Stephano scowled. "You will do no such thing. Your heartbeat makes you human. I won't let you give that up and be like me." He growled. I nodded. "Okay, okay. Sorry. Just go get a bath." I said, sending him to the washroom. I finished tidying up, finally eliminating that disgusting puddle of blood.

I sighed, looking for a book and sitting down, ready for Pewdie to randomly appear in Stephano's bed at any given moment. Something tugged at me, clicking around at the back of my mind. I tried to ignore it, sinking back into my favorite novel. The disturbance continued, snapping me back out of my fairytale dreamland. The question finally presented itself, no longer leaving me to wonder why I couldn't submerge into the pages.

"Where is Piggeh?" I mumbled to myself, now acknowledging his unusual absence. Sure, Piggeh and I weren't very close, but it seemed that he had almost disappeared. He usually appeared in the library, mind set to molest me. He would sit in my lap and ask what I was reading. I would try and ignore him and continue reading, only for him to make me flush in any way he could. He would run his hands up and down my thighs, smirking like a demon. Last time this had occurred, things took a turn for the worst.

"Mr. Chair, I wanna play a game. Play fire truck with me." He purred. I sighed, giving up and agreeing to the game. "Alright. I'm gonna run my hands over you, and when you can't take it, say "Red light". Okay?" As soon as he started, I was already irritated. "Red light." I sighed, going back to my reading. When he didn't stop, I cleared my throat. "Red light." I repeated. He shook his head, smirking deviously. "Fire trucks don't stop at red lights."

I shuttered at the experience, not honestly missing him. With Pewdie having been gone, things have started to get a little crazy. The barrels and the bro have become relentless. Stephano makes me stay close to him at almost all times. It's kind of annoying, but he says he has vowed to protect me. What can I say? I AM the little guy. The "bottom of the food chain", so to speak. Stephano is pretty much the boss around here. When Pewdie is gone, he's the big guy in the castle. Stephano is the king.

Piggeh hasn't been around for the whole week. I haven't seen hide nor hair of him. Curiosity got the best of me, and I decided a quick look around wasn't going to hurt. Despite Stephano's warnings, I began to wander around the dark hallways of the West wing. The West wing of the castle was evil. All of the less... civilized citizens inhabited this part of the castle. I had often asked Stephano to move his belongings into a vacant room in my nice, safe, well lit East wing, but he always denied. He liked this scary labyrinth of dark hallways and demonic beings. I stopped at the doorway I knew to be Piggeh's, knocking politely and waiting for an answer. Nothing. I knocked again, thinking he might be asleep. When no answer came, I turned the knob and pushed the door open.

The room was in ruins. Bed sheets were strewn across the floor, soaked in blood. An overturned dresser and wardrobe raised my suspicions of a struggle. Bloody footprints led out of the doorway, and I had wondered how I had missed them. Yep. Now I'm regretting this. The evil laugh I've grown to fear more than anything sounded from behind me. Oh dear. I turned around grudgingly, knowing exactly what I was too see. Three barrels and the bro. The lead barrel lunged forward, and I ducked, running past them and down the hall. Oh no. Not again.

I ran for what felt like hours, trying to lose them in the labyrinth-like halls. Unfortunately for me, they knew their way around and I lacked Stephano to guide me. I sprinted into a large chamber, closing the door and pushing a dresser in front of it. I hid in a wardrobe and curled up into a ball, losing consciousness before I could process any thoughts. I woke to the sound of crying. Sobbing. Swears and prayers in a foreign language. No... two. French. Strong, stern, calm, and comforting French. And... Swedish? Pewdie.

I pushed the door open, looking around for my two dear friends. "Guys?" I whispered, glancing at the doorway, which was no longer barricaded. "MR. CHAIR! UP HERE!" Pewdie called, drawing my attention to a field of cages suspended in air by chains. Pewdie's head stuck out from the bars of his cage, eyes hopeful. "Pewdie!" I called back. Stephano stuck his head out of his cage, looking down at me from the bars. "Mr. Chair, je suis desole! We couldn't do it!" He sighed, looking over at the still sniffling Pewdiepie. Huh? "Do what?" I called back, not understanding the situation. Pewdie piped in this time. "The barrels did it. It's all their fault!" He growled, kicking the iron bars, causing his cage to swing. Stephano rolled his eyes at the now even more frightened gamer, hanging on to the bars for dear life. Stephano seemed to notice my confused face and began to explain. "The barrels have been up to something while Pewdie was gone. We knew that." I nodded. "When I got out of the shower, there Pewdie was. I asked him if he had seen you, but he said that you weren't there when he woke up. We went after you, and we knew you were in trouble when we heard your screams." He continued, waiting for me to respond. I nodded, showing him that I understood. "The barrels and the bro were chasing you, but they lost you. They soon found us. They claimed that we were in for a special treat. Bro vs. Bro, friend vs. friend, us vs. Piggeh." I gasped. What had they done to him?

"It's all up to you now, Chaise. Piggeh had some dirty tricks up his sleeves, so he got the better of us." Stephano said, seeming more annoyed at his loss than concerned for the bros' wellbeing.

"Up to me?" I asked, my voice colored with nervousness.
They both nodded. Pewdie dropped down a small bottle. "It's not much, but they didn't take this from me." Sanity potion. I nodded my thanks. Stephano lifted up his shirt, pulling a small, sharp dagger out. "They may have disarmed me of my sword, but they didn't know I had this." He said. "One. Two. Three." He said, dropping the blade. I reached out to catch it, then pulled my hands back, afraid I would be sliced open. The dagger fell, the hilt landing right on top of my head. "Ouch!" I yelped, putting a hand to my head as I knelt down to retrieve the blade.

"Mr. Chair! What if that had fallen blade first? Then we'd all be f***ed!" Stephano growled. "I'm sorry Stephano!" I yelped. Stephano pointed to the door, and I somehow understood. Was I going to half to kill Piggeh? I was still confused, but Pewdie gave me two thumbs up, a weak smile failing to hide the tears welling in his eyes. I looked to Stephano, who seemed to be praying. Well, that's comforting. I opened the door, stepping inside with extreme caution. All was quiet. I was in a huge chamber, about the size of a basketball court, with ceilings as high as the rim of a goal. In the back of the room was a simple wooden chair, occupied by none other than Piggeh.

I stepped forward, unsure of what was about to happen. His eyes were closed, blood dripping from the corners of his mouth. His pink hair was stained black by what looked like oil. His clothes were even more tattered than usual, blood staining his fluffy pink sweater. His face was blank, as if asleep, though his palm was outstretched. He moved his fingers as if beckoning me forward, two round stones dancing in mid air above them. I moved forward, about halfway across the room this time. He continued this, not moving a single inch. Did he know I was here? I moved forward still, involuntarily this time. I stood about 7 feet away before his unoccupied hand shot up, a loud boom sounding from behind me. He had somehow managed to drop a boulder in front of the door. Great. Thanks Jennifer.

His eyes snapped open, no longer their usual flirtatious pink. His eyes were cold and black as soot, with fiery red flecks around the pupil. His face remained blank as he dropped his arm, his other still working the stones. I watched then for a minute before turning and locking eyes with him. The more I stared into them, the more I could feel myself growing unable to turn away. I could feel evil heat radiating off of him in waves. He remained perfectly still, not even a breath coming from his dilapidated lungs. Finally, I tore my gaze away, after what felt like a lifetime. "Piggeh?" I asked, the shaky nervousness amplified by the way I could feel my body quivering. He finally moved, standing up from his old wooden chair. His face was perfectly void of emotion, impassive to the most extreme degree. He circled me with his arms behind his back, the only sound coming from his leather boots hitting the ground with an almost silent 'temp' 'temp' 'temp'. I noticed Stephano's golden sword, covered in blood, hanging from the belt loop of Piggeh's black skinny jeans. No matter how much I wanted to move, wanted to say something, wanted to do anything, all I could do was stand there. I stood in silence, barely able to take a breath.

He stopped in front of me, the impassive expression melting away to reveal the most demonic grin I have ever seen. He stopped working the stones, sending them flying against the stone wall behind me. I turned to see them leave two gaping holes where they had hit. THUNK! I fell, crumpling to the floor as his boot made contact with my skull. I let out a sharp cry, curling up into a ball as my head slammed on the cold stone floor. He stood over me, then crouched down and laughed the most sadistic laugh possible. My eyes met cold, black ones, only showing one emotion. Amusement.

He drew Stephano's sword, running his tongue along the blade. He kicked me in the ribs hard, then dragged the sword along my thigh. I cried out, bringing a more satisfied look to his face. My body was already screaming in pain. My head pounded, blood soaking my hair. My ribs stung from the steel of his combat boots piercing my side. I felt a numbing pain in my left leg from the deep cut in my thigh, but I knew I had to get up. He drew the sword back, ready to slash through me, but I rolled away and staggered to my feet. He lunged at me, thrusting the sword forward. I ducked, taking the blade to my shoulder. I drew the dagger and backed away, waiting for his next move. He leaped into the air, turning a flip before landing on my back. He obviously hadn't considered the weight difference, because I collapsed with him on top of me. He held the blade of the golden sword to my neck, grinning evilly like he had just won the devil's lottery. I swung the dagger blindly, slicing up his chest and part of his left shoulder. I somehow managed to shove him off of me and scramble back to my feet, at the cost of him grabbing my ankle and snapping it like a twig. I screamed out in pain as he raised his right hand, suddenly causing me to levitate in mid air. He flexed his index finger, sending me flying into the ceiling. I heard a few fragments of stone drop to the floor as my body crashed against the stone. I landed, somehow on my feet, and charged at him. He sidestepped me, but I turned on my heel and stabbed him in the shoulder. He hissed, turning around and pinning me to the ground. He punched me in the throat and kneed me in the stomach, earning gasps and sputters that brought an evil gleam into his eyes. He continued his assault, and I cried out, more and more ready to give up after each blow. I couldn't take any more. I was done. I had taken such a beating, and hadn't even caused him to miss a beat. I couldn't win. Stephano was right.

"No, I gave it up. I sacrificed it to protect the ones I love."

Stephano's words rang in my mind, almost blocking out the noise of my cries of pain. Tears poured down my face, washing away the bits of blood I had coughed up. I wasn't sure how this was supposed to work. I wasn't sure if I was doing it for angels to help, or if it were for some obscure warriors curse, but I raised the dagger. I brought it down, silently praying to whomever to accept my sacrifice.

"NO!" Piggeh screamed, grabbing the dagger just before I plunged it into my heart. Shock flooded his face, and his eyes glowed their usual flirtatious pink. He pulled away the dagger and tossed it, rolling off of me as he did so.

"What are you doing?" Piggeh shrieked in a deep, deranged voice, eyes turning back to black. He wasn't talking to me, though, because he began struggling against something.
His eyes changed again, and his voice went back to normal. "You can't make me do it!" He yelled defiantly. His eyes flicked back, full of rage and a hellish fire. "You have no choice!" The deep voice yelled back. His eyes flicked once more, pink with a defiant look of determination and intense anger. "Get out of my body you f***ing d**k!" He screamed, seeming to strangle himself. He jumped on something unseen by myself, struggling against something that wasn't there. He cursed at it, growling obscenities as he fought the invisible demon. He fought like Stephano had been earlier, almost as if there was a real opponent. I sat there in confusion, now sure what to do. I could feel myself slipping, but I knew something had to be done. I reached into my pocket, pulling out the Sanity Potion. Praying silently, I ran at him, tackling him and uncorking the bottle. He struggled against me, true fear and hate in his eyes as he glared at the being. I poured the potion into his mouth, and he began to calm down. The being seemed to not bother him anymore, as his eyes cleared and he stopped struggling.

"Oh my God... Mr. Chair." He whimpered, shaking as he eyed me up and down. I looked down at my body. I looked as if I had been the one fighting a demon. Well, actually I had been... but the demon was in Piggeh. Blood seeped through my clothes and I once again felt as if I was about to slip into darkness. He scooped me up, cradling me in his arms as he rushed to the door. He kicked the boulder in his way, Jennifer morphing back into human form. "Ow! You could've just asked me to move! Like, what the hell?" She growled, stepping aside. You mean it was that easy? I wanted to scream, but I couldn't muster up the energy. He set me in the middle of the floor, bringing down the cages with a hidden lever and setting Pewdie and Stephano free. He pulled up one of the floorboards and took out Pewdie's backpack, retuning it to him as well as the golden sword to Stephano.

"Piggeh! You're back to normal!" Pewdie squealed, wrapping his arms around the pig-human.
Pewdie tried to pull away, but Piggeh held him for a few moments longer, merely to freak him out. Stephano patted Piggeh on the back. "Good to see you aren't a barrel demon any longer." He said, smiling warmly. Piggeh turned back to Pewdie, asking him for bandages and laudanum. "Sure thing." Pewdie said, handing over the supplies.

Piggeh set down beside me, leaning me back to where my head rested in his lap. "It's okay. You're gonna be okay. I'm so sorry. The barrel demon made me crazy. That wasn't really me." He babbled, trying to calm me down. I nodded, putting on a smile despite the fact that I was going to pass out from all the pain. Or blood loss. He made me drink three bottles of laudanum, and I no longer felt any pain. He bandaged up my wounds and was careful not to apply and pressure to my ribs. Now that I wasn't on the verge of bleeding out, I was on the verge of dozing of into a deep, narcotic induced slumber. Piggeh shook me, now urgent for some reason. I fought against heavy eyelids, trying desperately to listen to him.

"Don't every pull that stunt again."
"Wha?"
"Your heartbeat. Heh, funny thing about that. Keep it. You'd regret losing it." He pressed his ear up to my chest, listening to the quiet beating of my heart. He picked up my hand and pressed it to his, showing that he had none. "I do. I miss it. It keeps you sane. Makes you human. Don't give it up."

I nodded, sleep almost taking over.
"And thanks, by the way... for saving me. I guess it took almost losing someone I really-" He said, blushing a bit. That was really uncharacteristic of Piggeh. I didn't catch the last part of it, but Pewdie and Stephano did. They glanced at each other, a mixture of surprise, admiration, and discomfort flooding their faces. I squinted, leaning in so I could hear. "What?" I asked, feebly. Piggeh sighed, shaking his head. "I tried to hurt the one I love." He whispered, leaning down and kissing me. Surprised, my eyes shot open, but I soon melted into his warm embrace and sweet kiss. He pulled away, smiling like he was unsure. Afraid.

"Percy." I yawned out, arms around his neck.
He nodded. "Yes, Chaise?"
"I love you too."

Stephano and Pewdie gaped, totally caught off guard by the sudden display of fluffy love and affection.
"Aweh! Iths sow cyute!" Pewdie exclaimed, in his usual, loud and obnoxious (in an endearing way) manner. Stephano merely crossed his arms and smiled, uncharacteristically quiet for the golden statue that could ramble on about anything.
Pewdie's eyes widened, face now covered in shock and... fear? Is that what it is?

"STAHPHANO! WE'RE THE ONLY TWO HETEROS LEFT!" He screamed, burying his face in Stephano's shoulder.
Stephano smirked, wrapping his arms around the loud, energetic gamer.
"Actually Pewdie, I um... have something to tell you."
Pewdie looked up, blue eyes drowned in fear.
"I'm just kidding, dumb***!" Stephano chuckled, tousling Pewdie's blond hair.
Pewdie laughed, wiping his forehead with his sleeve. "You scared me, Stephano. You troll!"
Stephano laughed. "You really fell for that? I have a girlfriend for Christ's sake."
"STAHPHANO HAS A GIRLFRIEND?" Pewdie shouted.
"Maybe if you weren't such a little b***h and played more often, you would know."
Pewdie looked down, eyes sad as if he was truly hurt. Then he looked back up, laughing happily. "Let's go home." He said, slinging an arm around Stephano.

Piggeh stood up, cradling me bridal style. "I love you, Percy." I whispered, no longer able to fight off the sleep.

"I love you, too." He purred, kissing me softly as I drifted off to sleep.