Eat Your Heart Out [Overindulgence]

Notice of invitation: The brisk wind beckons through the sepia-toned trees, caressing each branch with its chilled touch. Leaves dance their waltz together as they flutter to the ground. As we enter the month of October, autumn is finally in full swing. And with it comes the biggest celebration of the year; All Sinners' Day!

For the buns of Burrowgatory, big and small, All Sinner's Day is the most highly anticipated day of the year. It is a day made to honor the demons that helped Burrowgatory become the bustling society that it is today. Absolutely no expenses are to be spared. Bust out the alcohol, there’s fine wine and endless booze. Want to indulge in something sweet? It's a wonderland of confectionery perfection! And who could forget about the myriad of colorful costumes? From scary to silly to slutty, we've got it all. Come one, come all! Eat, drink, and be merry!

...Despite all the fanfare and revelry that came with the holiday, there was one little succubun who was determined not to enjoy himself. As with any event, Pepper had no intention of joining in the festivities. But this one was personal.

So what if the other buns get to eat and drink themselves sick? He could do that whenever he wanted, he didn't have to wait for some special day. He could do anything he wanted right here in his room. And besides, why would he want to spend a day celebrating the demons?

Just because he was able to live comfortably now doesn't mean it was always that way. And it certainly didn't mean that the demons had any part in it. Where were they when he was a baby bun being bullied? What about the times when he had nothing to eat? Or when he was sick and too weak to move? Nowhere.... Nowhere......... Nowhere! Everything Pepper had now was due to his own efforts and the kindness of other buns. Not. Demons.

...And yet, despite all of his huffing and puffing, here he was putting on a sexy chirop costume. Whatever, if he was going to be forced to go to this thing with Rikki then he was going to look good dammit!

As he waited outside the noisy venue to meet up with Rikki he felt a pang of anxiety. He really hated crowds and if it weren’t for the fact that he was being forced to go for ‘enrichment’ or whatever he wouldn’t even be here right now. He stuck his tongue out at the thought.

It wasn’t long before he heard a familiar voice calling out to him. Even without being able to see him past the crowd he knew it was Rikki, he would recognize that pretentious voice anywhere.

Although he would never admit it out loud, the truth was that Pepper was extremely glad that Rikki was here with him. Just the sound of his voice helped relieve some of the anxiety that had come over him. Rikki was his safe space. Well, one of them anyways. He had always been willing to comfort Pepper when he was lonely or afraid at night, and for that Pepper was eternally grateful.

As the older bun came into view Pepper noticed that he wasn’t in costume. In fact, he was still wearing his signature sleazy business attire. He went through all of the trouble of dressing up in a sexy outfit just for his date to show up to a costume party in fucking business attire. Typical.

“Rikki you dolt! Did you forget that this is a costume party?”

“’Course I didn’t!”

“Oh? Then what are you dressed up as, a third-rate con artist?” Annoyed, Pepper threw a piece of his favorite gum into his mouth and blew a bubble.

Rikki let out an offended cough, “Third-ra-!!! What do you mean third-rate!?”

He slicked back his black hair and adjusted his tie before continuing, “I didn’t come here to party, I came to get rich! There’s enough alcohol in this place to get all of Burrowgatory drunk. Their wallets will be looser than their lips.” As he said this, his voice took on a more mischievous tone and he rubbed his hands together greedily.

“All I have to do is slip in, get buddy buddy with ‘em, and I can sell them on practically anything! I’ll be a billionaire by the end of the night. And the best part is they’ll probably be too hung over in the morning to remember what happened.”

Pepper had to admit that although it was a relatively simple plan it was one of Rikki’s better ones. ...He’ll probably still manage to find a way to screw it up though.

He made himself a mental note not to have any alcohol tonight since he was especially lightweight. If Rikki could come up with a plan like that who knows how many other buns came here with the same intentions. Score one for Rikki in Peppy’s affection book.

As Pepper finished that thought a new thought suddenly occurred to him. “Wait, aren’t you supposed to be here to escort m-” Rikki was already gone. He fucking left him here all by himself. He knew that Pepper hated crowds and rarely ever left the hotel, and yet he still left him here. Minus one score for Rikki. Idiot.

Pepper sat curled up within a secluded corner of the venue. His anxiety was overwhelming him and he couldn’t help but want to cry. The only thing keeping him together was the fact that he could occasionally see Rikki flitting about here and there talking to various buns. He could tell it was him even in this dim lighting thanks to the bewitching icy-blue glow of his eyes. He’d always found them mesmerizing.

“...Maybe I should put him on a leash.”

To say he was disappointed was an understatement. He didn’t even want to come, he hated this holiday and he hated parties. But most of all what he hated right now was Rikki. His heart was splitting in two. He felt utterly betrayed.

Tears welled up in his eyes as he began to mutter under his breath, “Sniff— You’re supposed to tell me I look sexy. You’re supposed to hold me close so I don’t get lost in the crowd. ...You’re supposed to look at me!”

Small sobs turned into big ones and soon he broke down crying. It was only when he heard Rikki’s voice calling out to him that he stopped and quickly wiped away the traces of his tears. It seemed that the bespectacled bun was also crying for some reason?

“Wahhhh— Peppy!!! I lost all my carats!”

Upon hearing this, Pepper invited Rikki to rest his head against his chest and began to stroke his silky black hair, taking in the other bun’s scent as he did so. Partially to calm Rikki and partially to help calm himself. It was only for a moment, and even though he knew it was selfish and horrible, he couldn’t help feeling glad that Rikki had been brought to tears like this.

“What did you do this time you idiot?”

Through broken sobs Rikki recounted the events leading up to this point. The night seemed to be going well at first. He’d actually managed to make a few carats. They were given to him more so out of pity and annoyance than actually managing to scam anyone, but still.

The turning point occurred when his greed got the better of him, as it often tends to do. When he was offered a novel device that could generate infinite carats how could he possibly say no? All he had to do was part with the few measly carats in his pocket. Being the naive and trusting bun that he was there was never any doubt that he would fall for it. He snapped the offer up immediately and ran off to try it out. But of course, in the end it was a scam and by the time he’d realized that the device wouldn’t pay out the other bun was long, long gone.

As he listened, Pepper continued to gently stroke Rikki’s hair and placed a tender kiss on his forehead just the way a certain other bun would do for him. A slight smile graced his lips. He couldn’t help it.

“This is why you should have just stayed with me like you were supposed to, silly.”

“Besides, if it really did make infinite carats why would anyone sell it?” He watched as Rikki took in his words. He could practically see the cobwebs dissipate as the gears in Rikki’s head began to turn.

“...”

“........”

“I WAS TRICKED!!!”

It took everything Pepper had in that moment not to laugh in his face. He was still mad at Rikki for having left him by himself, but it seemed that he’d learned his lesson so he would forgive him. Just this once.

Once Rikki had finally calmed down Pepper grabbed him by the arm and began ushering him towards the exit of the venue. He was tired from crying earlier and just wanted to go home. He hated this holiday. If they went home now at least they could end the night on a nice note by having sex.

But Rikki stopped moving and firmly planted his feet before they could make it to the exit. “Hey, hey, why are we leaving? What’s the deal?”

“I’m exhausted and I’m not having fun at all. Let’s just go home.”

“Ha? Are you crazy? It’s All Sinners’ Day!”

“That’s exactly why I want to go home. I hate this holiday, Rikki. Sigh— I- I don’t like demons..... I hate them! I don’t want to celebrate them and I definitely don’t want to make them feel welcome in my home.”

“Oh, c’mon. I can only think of like three buns off the top of my head that actually care about that stuff. Everyone else just uses it as an excuse to party. Ah, come to think of it this is your first year celebrating it, huh? You were still a shut-in last year. Hmm, in that case we’re definitely not going home ‘til you indulge in something!” In a reversal of roles Rikki grabbed Pepper and began dragging him against his will deeper into the venue.

Pepper dragged his heels all while protesting, “W-w-wait!!! I want to go home! What even is there to indulge in here!?”

“All kinds of stuff! Shopping, booze, food, sex; you name it and we’ll do it! Here, I know. Let’s go to that dessert table I was at earlier, they’ve got some real classy stuff.”

Pepper felt himself being picked up and foisted onto a chair. “Wait right here, I’ll get you started.” He stared off into the distance as Rikki left him alone for the second time tonight. Well, at least this time he knew he was coming back.

He took in his surroundings for what seemed like the first time. He’d been way too preoccupied with his own self-pitying thus far to actually pay attention to what the place had to offer. Now that he got a better look at it he realized that there was actually all kinds of stuff here that might be fun to indulge in. While he hated the thought of actually enjoying this holiday, the more he thought about it the more he started to feel that he deserved to enjoy it.

So what if it was technically a holiday for the demons? Screw them. He had made up his mind. Tonight he would indulge, not just in gluttony, but in his feelings. He would eat away every bad memory he’d ever had until there was nothing left!

As Rikki returned with practically the whole buffet, Pepper took hold of a fork, steeled himself, and dove in. His loneliness? Shortcake! His bullies? Macarons! The painful memories of his early life sprang to mind one after another, each one morphing into a new dessert and disappearing down his throat along with the crumbs. A small voice resonated in the back of his mind steadily becoming louder, “Indulge. Indulge. Indulge!”

While at first his movements were powered by spite he soon found that it became harder and harder to stop until eventually it was impossible. Without even having to think about it he found himself reaching for the next dessert, his body no longer belonging to him. By the time he had processed having finished one another was already in his mouth.

The overwhelming sweetness mixed with the bitterness of his sorrows to create an addictive flavor unlike anything he’d ever experienced before. He felt that even if he searched all of Burrowgatory for the rest of his life he would never be able to taste this again.

One final ingredient made its way into the mix to produce something truly unforgettable; his tears. Once again he found himself crying, but not out of sadness or anxiety this time. No, this time his tears were out of self-love. For so long he’d been frustrated at having not been able to do anything for his past self. He’d begun to hate himself for it and it bore a hole inside his heart. But now that everything he’d kept pent up for so long was laid out on a plate he felt that he could finally, finally begin to mend it. Just a little bit.

Tonight he would indulge. For his past self who was unable to and for his future self who could never live in this moment again. Whatever consequences there may be, he didn’t care. There would be no regrets.