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Mercury stands at the sink, hands covered in foam. He's tired after scrubbing a singular dish for hours. For some reason, Caduceus decided to play a prank on his host planet, and switch out the soap in the dishwasher with whatever random concoction he made.
Mercury could've sworn the hot pink stain was permanent before he saw a slight sign of the white ceramic that was hidden underneath the... Whatever it was. Probably some permanent paint or sharpie ink. But then again, how would it survive the washer? Doesn't matter.
Mercury groans, head falling foward as his eyes slightly close. A yawn follows, head lifting and turning towards the clock. ‘10:56 pm..’ he registers. Barely. His thoughts are muddled with tiredness.
He can barely feel his hands. They're numb and tingly. Probably filled with water. Wait. Huh? How can hands get full with liquid? Jeez, he can't even make one coherent thought. Is he that tired?
He turns back to the pink foam. It was supposed to be white. That's what happens when Caduceus decides to annoy you, though. Mercury reminds himself to scold his moon once he comes back from the mall.
“This thing is out for blood, I swear to Cyra. I'm going to do something violent if it doesn't come off.” Mercury tells himself, eyes slamming shut in frustration. His hands grip the ceramic tighter, the sides of the plate digging into his palms.
He absolutely hated Caduceus for this. Who knows if Hermes was in on it too? He probably was.
A loud bang! interrupted his thoughts. The door flew open and Mercury's two moons barged into the house.
“Mercury! I have snacks!” Hermes exclaims loudly. Probably loud enough that the whole Solar neighborhood could hear.
“And I have drinks and games!” Caduceus butts in, no remorse hidden behind it.
‘Of course.’ Mercury thinks. Why would someone who pulled a prank as cruel as this have any guilt?
Mercury keeps his eyes on the sink, hands still furiously scrubbing at the plate. Luckily, a chunk of whatever came off and now almost a quater of the plate is freed.
His silence didnt go unnocited, as he heard the crinkling of bags and the thumps of cans falling onto the table.
“Merc, you okay..?” Hermes asks hesitantly, worry in his tone.
Caduceus just walks up behind the planet and stares at the sink, a smug smirk growing on his lips. Mercury couldn't see it, but it was obvious it was there.
“How're you hanging in there, buddy?” The joke asks, his tone smug and sarcastic. He pats Mercury's back once. He obviously means it as another one of his horrible fooleries, but it only pushed Mercury past his point.
“Stressed. All because YOU couldnt keep you IDIOTIC THOUGHTS to YOURSELF.” The planet snaps, dropping the plate with a loud thud into the sink. His hands slam onto the counter and he grits his teeth, absolutely just tired of everything.
Hermes and Caduceus cower back, momentarily caught off-guard by his outburst.
“It's not that big a deal—” Caduceus starts.
“Not that big of a deal..? I HAVE BEEN SCRUBBING THESE—NO, NOT EVEN THESE, THIS. THIS ONE PLATE FOR HOURS, CADUCEUS. HOURS.” Mercury interrupts, voice echoing through the house and just making it all louder.
“THE ENTIRE TIME YOU TWO HAVE BEEN GONE I'VE VEEN STUCK AT THIS SINK SLAVING MY TIME AWAY.” The planet shouts, stopping for a moment to breathe.
The silence that followed was deafening. It was as if everything stopped. The only thing that was left was the ringing in Mercury's ears.
And then... A chuckle. A giggle. A laugh. Something so out of place broke the quiet. It was coming from Hermes, who was leaning over wheezing. It only fueled the fury in the planet.
Caduceus followed and Mercury found himself tighetening his jaw and gritting his teeth together.
“Mercury, I'm sorry, but that was honestly hilarious-” Hermes said through gasps, unable to keep his composure.
All tension dropped from the planet. It was hard to stay mad at his moons.
He collapsed over the sink and took in s few more deep breaths, continuing to stay silent.
“Come on, let's play Scrabble. You seem like you need some stress relief.”
Mercury just nodded, not bothering to register who said it, and let himself get pulled along to the living room, getting handed a 7-Up and bag of chips from Hermes.