2D was so grateful once Plastic Beach was over and done with. He felt a pang of sadness when he saw how it killed Murdoc to watch his island be torched to the ground. Yet a part of him really didn't care, because Noodle was alive, Russel was back, and they had found a new temporary home in England. It had been nearly a year since what had happened and for the most part things were normal; Russel was able to fit inside of the home Noodle's eye was all healed up, but things were odd between himself and Murdoc. The bassist kept to himself, often staying in his oblivion blacked out bedroom; 2D checked on him every morning mostly just to see if he was even still alive, he'd hear the sounds of dying animals, a man crying, and Latin being spoken. He felt bad for him, he loved him still, and a part of him was sort of scared.

Sometimes he just thought about it; thought about how maybe he could have changed something, prevented something years ago before things got too out of hand. He didn't know every detail, but he knew that Murdoc wasn't fully living or fully mortal any longer; he knew those things put a distance between them, he was tired of the distance. There had been a few nights at Plastic Beach when they could be close, when he wasn't scared of Murdoc and what he had become, and when he could pretend everything was alright. Nights where he was shocked by how warm and hot the demonic man's skin was, shocked by the sweet words he would whisper to him while they were intimate.

He was tired of the distance growing since coming to Wobble street.

2D got up from his bed and went to Murdoc's bedroom; he went to knock on the door, but decided against it. The door was unlocked like it generally was; he stepped inside of the room expecting an abyss, but there was a small bit of light emitting from eight candles sitting around the floor. In the middle of the candles a pentagram with symbols at each point was drawn in white on the floor, Murdoc was kneeling in the center of it with his face buried in his hands as he cried sounding beyond frustrated. Blood ran down both arms from where he had sliced into the palms of his hands for the ritual he was trying for. 2D wordlessly went over to him, kneeling before the older man.

"Still isn't working?"

Murdoc looked up at him; he looked sick and he'd looked that way for years now, his doe brown eyes had dark circles around them, his green skinned looked off, his teeth nothing but rows of sharp fangs like some animal, his ears slightly pointed at the tops, and if 2D looked closely enough at his brown eyes there were specks of red like blood.

"You know how I feel about you coming in here, now fuck off."

There wasn't much conviction in his voice, tears stained his cheeks.

"You scare the hell out of me."

Murdoc smirked.

"I scare myself, I don't want this; I thought I wanted this, but I fucking don't. I just want it to go away, I want the demon to go away; there's a fucking I don't even know what sitting in our living room and these voices in my head and when I look at myself in the mirror I look off. I don't know what this is, I want it to fucking go away."

He sounded so frustrated and angry, so pissed off with himself for letting this happen.

"I don't mean how you look, well a little bit, but how you keep to yourself a lot. You need to accept it."

"I don't want to; I actually want my soul back."

It was so much like the story of Faust; the man who wanted so many riches and so much fame and talent, but wanted to take it all back by the time it was far too late. He reached out gently touching his fingertips to the older man's cheek, just barely touching his skin still amazed at its intense warmth. He expected death to be cold, but he had heard that hell was hot.

Murdoc flinched away from him.

"Can't you take the soul of somebody else?"

"Yeah, that's about the only way it'd work, but I'd be fucked if it went wrong."

"You always used to tell me that I owe you my soul." He said smiling sadly.

Murdoc looked at him.

"No, I'm not taking your soul."

"I love you Muds, I owe you that much right?"

"No you don't, stop thinking stupid shit like that."

"It's just a thought."

"I don't want it, keep it; fucking enjoy it, I also think you should stop worrying about me and go do something better with your time."

"I've spent a good part of my life wasting time on you; I enjoy it a good bit. You were there for me when my dad died and when my mum stopped talking to me because I started to date you. Isn't it my turn to be here for you, you always told me you're mine, I'm yours too y'know."

The older man just barely smiled, his eyes were locked on the floor.

"Disgusting aren't I?"

"No you aren't, I still see you the way that I used to back before all of this."

"You still mad about what happened?"

He never said it flat out; never said Noodle's almost death or Plastic Beach, but even without it being spoken he knew well enough.

"Yeah, but not like I was; even if you aren't sorry I forgive you, because I love you and I don't want to just give up on you because of this and God knows what else is going on. I'd give anything for you, I'm willing to give my soul up for you; fuck Murdoc don't you ever think you should actually be happy?"

"I don't know, I haven't done much to earn it."

2D moved closer, he took hold of the older man's hand looking over the pale green flesh and the long sharp claws coloured like beetle wings; he didn't mind, he didn't care.

"Don't think, don't stress; I love you, I'm all yours." 2D whispered as he stared into the older man's eyes.

He looked like he wanted to run and hide, like if things proceeded then something bad would happen, but 2D knew better than that. He kissed Murdoc, gently just in case the bassist really did plan on bolting. He could feel him relax, felt the demonic man begin to kiss back. His lips felt hot, everything about him felt heated like a furnace; it was something 2D didn't mind. He allowed Murdoc to lay him back on the floor, he moaned at the feel of the black haired man's hands on his body. He didn't care about this; he didn't care about the fucked up future, or the past that lead them here. He just wanted him, he needed him, and he loved him.

Murdoc pulled back, he kissed along 2D's neck.

"I'll be yours; I need you to help drown my demons."

At once that was the ending and the beginning of something and everything.

'Well I've seen you suffer, I've seen you cry for days and days

So I'll be your liqour demons will drown

And float away'