Chapter Text
Natural light filters through the library's windows, painting everything in a soft glow. It's a welcome change from the tense energy of today. Karl's happy to be back, despite everything. He doesn't really like time traveling, anymore. Everything he's seen, everything he's done… He's definitely glad to be home.
Things have just been a little uncomfortable since his biggest secret was dragged out into the open a few days ago. Even more uncomfortable is the knowledge that he forgot his own fiancé. They're still trying to wrap their head around that one. His visits to the in-between have been fuzzing his brain at the edges, sure, but he never thought it would erase someone that meant the world to him.
It’s because Quackity was gone, they know it’s because he was gone, and it's not technically their fault. It still sucks. He hasn’t seen a lot of people in awhile, but they’re still in his head. He thinks. There are already so many people on the server, coupling that with everyone Karl has met in their travels means keeping track of everyone is… difficult, to say the least.
His travels… he can’t even be mad that Quackity was away for so long. Not without being a huge hypocrite, anyway. The in-between has been calling them for months now, and Karl has been disappearing at length. (Something they have in common with their fiancé, apparently.) No, they were never angry with him. Mostly he and Sapnap had just been worried, and apparently for good reason.
Quackity’s sitting on the arm of one of the chairs, today, knees drawn up to his chest. He looks awful, all drawn in on himself, sickly pale, with bags under his eyes that Karl just wants to kiss away.
Something must've happened, while they were gone. Karl just doesn't know what. If they knew, maybe they could do something, but to find out they’d have to talk to him, and Quackity hasn’t spoken since Karl came back, won’t even look at him.
No, instead he’s pretending to be very interested in the beams crisscrossing the ceiling, sitting apart from his fiancés but refusing to leave the room.
It sucks.
Karl leans back against Sapnap and rubs their thumb over their engagement ring for comfort, wishing they’d never taken off the other half of the pair. The ring Quackity had gifted him with was beautiful, and Karl had promised he'd wear it forever.
But apparently— according to Sapnap, who’d noticed their confusion upon realizing it was missing— they’d woken up one day not recognizing it, and just left it on the nightstand.
Sapnap, his poor Sapnap. Without Quackity around, he must’ve been left alone every time Karl was… somewhere else. (Somewhen else?) Time moves funny when you’re slipping through it, and even moreso when you leave it. They could’ve been gone for days or weeks at a time, leaving their fiancé all by himself.
They got to see some versions of their partners in those other times, so they’re kind of lucky. whether it was their ancestors or their past lives, Karl doesn’t know. Maybe he’ll never know. But he’d looked into James's eyes and seen Sapnap, and it had been a comfort. Sapnap didn’t have that.
He’s going to spend a lot of time making up for everything. He just has to figure out how.
Wilbur pokes his head into the doorway, interrupting their train of thought. They still can't figure out why he's around, and no one has mentioned it.
"Still not talking about it?”
Sapnap looks up and says, “Talking about what?” as Quackity says, “Nope!”
This is the first he's heard from Quackity since that moment his fiancés confronted him, and it does something funny to his gut that Wilbur of all people is the one to get him to talk.
Speaking of which, what the heck is he talking about? What did they tell him? It was weird enough that he was here— okay, maybe not weird, but certainly unusual— the fact that he also knows Karl’s biggest secret is not great, to put it lightly.
Wilbur nods, making an exaggerated face of consideration before pulling back and closing the doors. The key sounds in the lock and he sings, “You can come out when you do!"
"Motherfucker, I thought we had an understanding," Sapnap yells, jumping up from his chair. He completely dislodges Karl in the process— which, rude— and makes his way over to the dark oak door.
Quackity joins in, yelling, "I swear to god, Soot, when I get out there, I will—"
"Actually, this was my idea!" Charlie interrupts. (Another puzzle piece Karl has yet to find a place for.) "I've got the key right here in my goop, so unless Wilbur wants to reach in and grab it—"
“I don't!”
"—then you'll have to stay in there 'til you work things out!"
Immediately Sapnap is reaching for an axe he doesn’t have, to break down the door and/or murder Charlie, Karl guesses, but they take his hand instead. The three of them were gonna have to have this conversation sooner or later, and Karl’s getting the sense that it’s about more than just his secret-keeping.
It might be time to actually talk.
Sapnap meets their eyes and carefully, Karl shakes their head.
We need to, they tell him silently.
Now?! he shoots back.
Karl nods and squeezes his hand. Sapnap sighs heavily and steps back from the door.
"If you're sure," he says under his breath.
Quackity is still hurling threats at the door while Wilbur and Charlie laugh them off.
"We should talk," Sapnap says, and immediately Quackity's mouth snaps shut. "Again."
He doesn't want to, Karl can see that plain as day. This has been a long time coming, though, and he gets the feeling that if they don't fix their relationship here and now, it might be broken permanently.
But better late than never. Karl's not giving up hope.
Before Karl can even open his mouth, Quackity speaks.
"Actually, I had something I wanted to say."
Karl and Sapnap exchange glances. Avoidance is his usual technique when heavy topics come up, so this is a surprise. Sapnap gives them a tiny shrug, and Karl nods to tell Quackity to go on.
"I never got to do this," he says slowly. "I know we agreed to get married and got the rings and all, but I never got to propose to you guys. Either of you."
Sapnap's hand flies to the chain around his neck.
"This isn't how I pictured doing it, but I don't wanna keep you guys waiting on me.” Waiting for what? “So… will you marry me?"
Oh. Oh, man.
Sapnap takes the lead, thank Prime. "Q, I love you. You know that." They watch him reach in his pocket to take out… Quackity's rings? How had Karl not noticed he wasn't wearing them? What happened there?— and holds them in his palm. He takes a deep breath and continues, "Charlie gave me these, the other day. If you want us to take them back, we won't be mad."
What?
Quackity gives a confused laugh. He rocks back and forth on his heels a few times and says, "Sap, are you listening? I just asked you to marry me."
A little needlessly, Karl thinks, they’d already agreed—
"But you won't say you love me!” Sapnap bursts out. Fire flickers between his fingers as he starts to pace. “You don't kiss me, Quackity, I… If you want to go back to Las Nevadas with Wilbur and Charlie, you can." Quackity frowns, the scar on his mouth tugging downward as his good eye tracks Sapnap’s movement. It's a terrible sight, but Karl can't look away. "It's okay if you don't want to be with us anymore."
He… doesn't want to be with them? Is that why he took off their rings? Has he really changed so much in the past few months? Or has he been gone for even longer than that? What aren’t his fiancés telling him? There's no way Sapnap’s just fine with Quackity leaving them, he can't be. Karl sure as heck isn’t. They’re not gonna let him go without fighting to stay together.
Quackity's frown deepens. "What part of 'will you marry me' screams 'I wanna break up' to you?"
"I don't wanna argue, dude,” says Sapnap. He stops in front of one of the windows, leans on the sill with both hands. He looks so tense, it’s awful. “You just… don't seem happy with me, anymore. I don't want you to be—"
"Of course I'm not happy, dumbass! The first time I hear from you in months is for you to tell me my fiancé has completely fucking forgotten about me, and you wanna act like nothing's changed? You wanna pretend like you did nothing wrong here when we both know that's bullshit .”
And there it is. Karl’s heart sinks. They’re definitely both at fault for letting so much time pass without talking to their fiancé, but he’s clearly hurting the most about being forgotten. That’s on nobody but Karl. This is what has Quackity looking like… like a man whose fiancé forgot he existed.
They have to let Quackity know how sorry he is, but they don't get the chance.
“I built an entire fucking nation to give us a home,” Quackity seethes, “Even made a whole place for us to get married in, and once we were there you spent the night with George instead of me. You think I'd be happy about that?"
Sapnap spins around so fast it would be funny if it weren’t for the look on his face.
“You know nothing happened between me and him. It’s George, and he was fucking drunk, don’t drag him into this. And even if it wasn’t and even if he wasn’t, I would never do that shit to you and Karl!” His expression darkens. “But hey, if we’re going there, what were you and Wilbur off doing at the party, huh?”
What party? Wilbur? Did Quackity leave them for Wilbur while he was gone? Is that why he’s here?
Karl had been at Niki's party, they saw the way Wilbur had looked at Quackity back then. It’s not a surprise to him if… if they wound up together. They remember watching the way Quackity had reacted to Wilbur’s every touch like it’d electrified him, feeling extremely jealous. (It's not like Karl had any sort of claim over Quackity back then, but the grip he'd had on his axe turned his knuckles white.)
But Wilbur had died, and not long after that Quackity had slotted into his and Sapnap’s relationship like he was always meant to be there.
They’d thought he was happy.
He seemed happy, but it’s been so long since Karl last saw him. Maybe he really did think he’d been left behind. It’s still hella crossing a line for him to be making those digs about George, though, that much Karl is sure of.
Sapnap wouldn’t even dream of trying anything with someone else, not before the three of them talked about it, least of all George, who's only ever had eyes for one person at a time, anyway. And that person’s never been Sapnap.
Sapnap, who sighs and says, "I don't know what you want from me."
"I want you to admit that it's not just me that's to blame for all this! I want you to stop fucking trying to use Charlie and Wilbur against me like I was fucking replacing you when you hadn't even spoken to me in months!" He's yelling, now, and Karl feels sick. He believes Quackity, that he didn't replace them, but the idea that they neglected him for so long he really believed they were broken up… "I want you to stop acting like communication doesn't go two ways, and I want you to tell me how the fuck you let Karl forget me!"
It takes seeing tears welling in Quackity's eyes for Karl to realize he's also crying. They sniff, louder than they meant to, and Sapnap turns immediately. He moves over to put a hand on their shoulder, but Karl shrugs him off.
It doesn't feel right.
They know he's hurting too, and he deserves an apology. He’ll get one, but Quackity needs them more right now. Slowly, they cross over to him, drawing in a shaky breath as they kneel in front of their partner.
"It's not Sapnap's fault I forgot," they begin, and their voice is wavering but strong. "I've been hiding so much. From both of you guys, and that's nobody's fault but mine. I should've told you about this from the beginning, and especially when things started getting worse."
Quackity's mouth twitches in the way it does when he tries not to cry, and Karl presses on.
"I didn't think I'd ever forget you, and I'm so sorry, Quackity. I never should've let it get that bad. I didn’t mean for it to be a secret, I swear, I-I was just so scared. I figured, since it was happening to me, it should've been my burden to bear alone."
"That's not how it works, dumbass," Quackity sniffs, and Karl laughs a little through their tears.
"I didn't want you two to worry." He sits back on his heels. “That was stupid of me, huh?”
“You’re not stupid,” Quackity says automatically. They’d all drilled that into each other over time, that negative self-talk was no good for mental health. Karl's pleased he still remembers.
"We're always gonna worry, baby," Sapnap adds. "We love you. But you gotta let us in, okay? We can't help if we don't even know you need it."
"I know," he says. He’s always known. "I'm gonna— I'll be better about talking to you guys, now. I’m not gonna let this happen again. I'm sorry."
Karl knows Quackity speaks for both of them when he says "Thank you." instead of 'It's okay.' They’re all a long way from okay, and that’s a shared blame. He and Karl have taken their turns, and now it’s Sapnap’s.
He walks over and rests a hand in Karl's hair, looking down at him for a bit of bravery before he speaks. They nod, trying to be comforting.
"I shouldn't have said that shit about Wilbur,” he begins. “Any of it. That was a low fuckin’ blow, and I'm sorry I was so shitty. I promise I’m not mad about it, Q. And I know it doesn't excuse anything, I just can’t— You were—”
His free hand clenches in frustration, and sparks begin dancing around it. Karl removes the other from his hair and kisses his palm. Sapnap struggles putting feelings into words when he’ s keyed up like this, and sometimes he needs a reminder to calm down enough to collect his thoughts. It works, and he goes on.
“All of a sudden you had this whole other life I didn't know about, and it felt like you didn't want us anymore. I kept trying to offer you outs, in case you really didn't want to be engaged anymore and just didn't wanna say so. I figured… you were done with us."
“I thought you were pushing me away, man," Quackity says. “I wouldn't have come to Kinoko in the first place if I didn't still give a shit, you know? Even after everything. And maybe—" He stops and sighs. "Maybe I shouldn't have gone off like that without telling you guys, and I definitely shouldn't have started anything with them before we talked about it. So I'm sorry too. For both of those."
Them?
…Charlie?
Both of them?
It’s not totally surprising, they figure. Probably when they get to know it better, Karl will see what Quackity does, at least a little.
“I'm not, like, mad about it, Q. We already knew our boy had a big heart,” Sapnap says, fond. He lifts his hand from Karl's hair, but only for a moment. By the time Karl looks up they're being offered the ring they'd made for Quackity. He must’ve had it the whole time. “So do they. It makes sense.”
Karl turns the ring over in his hands, staring at it. Sapnap’s still holding his own, and it seems like they’d decided to ask Quackity to be part of their engagement years ago instead of a few months. Together, they’d worked to find the perfect way to propose, but in the end it had never been one big moment; instead Quackity fell into their relationship and it had always been an unspoken agreement that they would marry him too.
But now… that might be changing.
He's said he shouldn't have done anything with Charlie and Wilbur without talking to them, which does give Karl hope for their own relationship, but he still has to know: "Where does that leave us?"
“I never wanted an out,” Quackity says, voice low. His eyes flick between the rings. “I never wanted to break up with you two.”
Oh, thank god.
“We should have been trying to reach out the whole time," Sapnap admits. "You're right, this isn't entirely on you. I'm sorry."
Karl leans forward to wrap their arms around Quackity's knees. “Love you,” they say, and he laughs. He bends down to take Karl's hands, then meets them in a kneel.
Karl butts their head into Quackity's chest a few times before leaving it there. Prime, they missed him.
He's not sure what it is about him that makes his body fill with that restless energy, but his brain quiets at his partners' touch every time. He’s so lucky to have both of them, two people that understand him and love him. Speaking of which…
"Love you," Karl repeats stubbornly when Quackity remains silent. They need to hear him say it back to know it'll be okay.
"I love you, Karlos," he murmurs, hand coming up to stroke their hair. "I love you, I love you, I love you."
Blindly, Karl reaches out for Sapnap. He kneels too, pulls them both close.
“This isn't gonna… magically fix everything,” Quackity mumbles, but they can hear the smile in his voice.
“Oh, we need hella therapy,” Karl agrees, pressing kisses into his neck. They really need to learn how to talk to each other, because clearly none of them have been, and process the absolute circus of the past several months.
“But…”
“We're good,” Sapnap finishes.
Las Nevadas is a den of vice and sin that Quackity loves with all his filthy heart, and it's been good, so good, staying in Kinoko, seeing the safe haven his fiancés created for them to share, he can't lie.
For the past few months, it's been home: a place full of people that love him endlessly, and he almost likes it better there. Almost. Part of him is always going to live and breathe in the nation he made, and he thinks he’s alright with that.
A significant amount of the income generated from said city goes neatly into Puffy’s pocket— Sapnap thinks they don’t pay her enough for all she's been doing for them, but given that they have relationship therapy and two of the five of them see her individually? Quackity gives her nearly double what her set rate is.
It's in the privacy of her office that the confession is made:
"I don't think I want to stay in Kinoko."
He'd braced for judgement, for questions, but she'd just nodded, clearly waiting for him to elaborate.
"Karl and Sap made such a cool country, but… I miss Las Nevadas. I can't just give it up, y'know?"
"Why don't you try splitting your time between the two?" she suggested matter-of-factly. "If you're attached to both places, it doesn't have to be one or the other. You guys, of all people, should know it doesn't always have to be an either/or situation. Give it a go, and if it doesn't wind up working you can always reevaluate."
Whoever said therapists were common sense filters needed their dick sucked, Quackity decided.
So that's what they're doing, headed to Las Nevadas after their latest group therapy session. Quackity's been in Kinoko since Karl came back, but after enough pestering from Karl he's given in and decided to take his boys home, properly show them the country he built. He's still a little nervous about Karl seeing it for the first time, but his other partners have been endlessly reassuring that he'll love it.
As is their routine, Charlie and Wilbur are waiting outside. Usually from here they take awhile to figure out what they plan to do for the rest of the evening. If Quackity thought making decisions with two other people was hard, doing it with four is almost impossible. They always get it sorted eventually, and if there's one thing Quackity can say it's that his life is never predictable.
Today, though, Charlie launches himself into Quackity's arms as soon as he's through the doorway.
"Quackity! How was therapy?"
"Good, good." Charlie's weight has him stumbling back a bit, and Sapnap is right there behind him, steadying him. He slips his arms around Quackity's waist and hooks his chin over his shoulder, familiar as anything. Quackity can't help but lean into his fiancé for a moment, before he remembers to keep talking. "We got a lotta stuff to work on, still, you know?"
They really do. Puffy's been a godsend ever since they started coming here, helping them work through… everything, giving them tools to communicate better before things turn into the silent treatment or a shouting match. (He's thinking of asking Wilbur to come to a session one of these days. They don’t argue much anymore, not like they used to, but he’s learning that both of them defaulting to yelling isn’t an effective way to resolve conflict. He also remembers the way Wilbur spoke and thought, back in Pogtopia. Therapy is actually definitely a good idea for him.)
It's hard, remembering that being vulnerable won't lead to a bottle thrown at his head or a knife in the back or being left behind. Quackity knows they have a long way to go, but—
"I think we’re gonna be okay, though," Sapnap says, completing his thought. He steps back and holds his arms open, and Charlie goops onto him gladly.
"We will be," Karl agrees cheerfully.
Wilbur, who’s been unusually quiet, reaches out to take Karl's hand.
They look at their joined hands, then up at Wilbur, and smile.
He's so fucking glad they get along. At first Quackity had been worried the four of them would hate each other and everything would implode. Which was dumb, of course. Even if they can be bitchy and argumentative sometimes, Quackity's partners are good people and would never.
The chances of all of them falling in love with each other are pretty slim, and he doesn't expect them to. That's rarely how polyamory works, he's learned, but Quackity's honestly just happy they're friends.
He trails behind them quietly, watching as Wilbur begins talking. Something about the rock cycle, he thinks, and Karl listens intently, interjecting every now and then with questions. They’re always looking to learn, never picky about what, and Wilbur is full of random knowledge that he loves to share.
Sapnap is walking beside them, with Charlie now glommed onto his back. The two of them look like they’re off in their own world: Charlie's resting its cheek on Sapnap's head while it plays with the ends of his headband. It’s mumbling something about tennis and bones while he dutifully listens.
Wilbur’s wings spread wide as he gestures, and Karl, transfixed, reaches up to drag a hand through his feathers.
"Hey!" He swats at them playfully, and Karl dodges, knocking into Sapnap. Charlie reaches over to the top of Wilbur’s head to steady himself, getting slime into his hair. Sapnap cackles while Wilbur complains about how long it’ll take to get out.
Charlie has his signature mischievous grin on as he jumps off Sapnap’s back and takes off.
It reminds Quackity of the first time he saw them kiss as Wilbur chases Charlie once more, but this time Sapnap is here, tackling Wilbur before he gets a chance to catch up to Charlie.
He put a little too much force into it, Quackity thinks, because they both tumble to the ground laughing. Karl skips around them as he walks, catching up with Charlie and taking its hand.
"Quackity," Wilbur whines as he finally catches up. "Your fiancé is trying to kill me." Quackity rolls his eyes fondly.
Sapnap is straddling Wilbur's thighs with pink dusting his cheeks. "Aw, Wilbur, if I was trying to kill you, you'd already be dead," he says, faux sweetness dripping.
"Hot," Karl comments. They keep a straight face for approximately four seconds before bursting into giggles and collapsing into Charlie's side.
Wilbur sighs dramatically. "Everyone's out to get me," he announces, giving Quackity his patented sadboy face. It doesn't work.
"I'm pretty sure you could get up if you tried, Wilbur!" Charlie says. It has its arms wrapped around Karl as the two of them rock back and forth, looking down at their respective partners on the ground with matching grins.
"Yeah, Wilbur," echoes Sapnap with a smirk. "Go ahead, try to get up."
He just whines again, flat on his back and face going red. Quackity is so gonna roast the shit outta both of them for this later.
For now, though, he's having a fucking great time watching the two of them try to flirt.
"This is a hate crime, I think." Wilbur pouts up at Sapnap. "Biphobia at its finest."
"I'm literally engaged to your boyfriend, but go off."
"Biphobia!" He pushes at Sapnap's shoulder ineffectively.
"Oh my god, you're like, actually flirting with my fiancé," Karl interrupts. "I can't believe this."
"Wow!" Charlie chimes in. He doesn't quite understand the dumbass jokes the three of them run with, not yet, but he likes trying to play along.
"Karl, my darling. Light of my life, sun in my sky?"
"Yes, Sapnap? My future husband, my angel?"
"How 'bout you shut the fuck up or help me out, huh?"
“I think I'm good here, babe! Hangin' out with Charlie,” he says sweetly. “I don’t think you need any help keeping Wilbur right where he is.”
Gods, but he’d forgotten just how evil Karl can be when they want to. It's fucking great, but still, Quackity figures it’s time to step in. “C’mon, Sap,” he says, nudging his fiance. “Quit teasing him.”
“You’re no fun,” he grumbles, but Sapnap does listen. He moves off Wilbur, offers him a hand and pulls him up.
"Stealing my man," Karl announces, and Wilbur swats them with his wing.
"He started it!"
The three of them launch into an argument as they start walking again, and Charlie immediately slips away from them to latch onto Quackity.
"I know, they're fuckin' loud," he murmurs to the slime, sympathetic.
"Have they tried shutting the fuck up?" Its tone is so chipper Quackity can't help but laugh.
Normally he'd be right there with them, yelling nonsense and trying to win the argument by being louder than the rest. It's all part of how they show love, but that doesn’t change how overwhelming it can be for Charlie sometimes.
So he wraps an arm around its shoulders and kisses its cheek, and they follow their bickering partners home.
Las Nevadas shines at night, Quackity thinks. It’s still impressive during the day, don’t get him wrong, but seeing every building all lit up and casting the entire place in a golden glow always makes his heart soar. It looks beautiful, and he’s so fucking glad Karl can finally see it.
Karl's eyes are lit up and the spirals in his pupils are spinning as they take in the city together. The looming clouds, almost invisible in the dark sky, open up as it starts pouring.
Of course.
With no hesitation, Wilbur scoops up Charlie, his wings snap open, and before Quackity can say a word they’re gone.
He’s going to have to find some water protection enchantment for it, Quackity thinks vaguely, and then he realizes. He and his fiances have momentary privacy, before the three of them head inside as well.
He knows what to do.
Quackity takes Karl's hand as Sapnap grabs the other, and he leads them in a sprint to the pavilion in the center of the city. It’s all moss, soft light, and still water; Karl looks around with a huge smile, twirling at the center of the bridge.
Quackity hangs back, leaning against the railing apprehensively. "What d'you think?"
"I love it," he gushes. He bounds over to Quackity and grabs his face. "Beautiful."
They probably mean the pavilion, or the city, but Quackity can feel his face heating up anyway. He lifts onto his toes to kiss them before they can notice, and barely a moment passes before Sapnap's arms encircle them both.
"Been waiting for you to see it," he says, and Karl laughs, turning to kiss him. "All I could think was how much you'd like it."
"I do." And gods, how do they know without being told exactly what this place is for?
"Gonna marry the shit outta you," Quackity promises them both. His voice breaks, and he ducks his head, burying his face in Sapnap's chest. Karl kisses the top of his head.
"Gonna marry us so hard," agrees Sapnap. "Right here, gonna give us our rings and tell us how much you love us."
"So much," he says, vision blurring as he looks between his fiancés. "Gonna spend my whole fuckin' life showing you."
"I can't wait," Karl says softly.