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“I am sorry, WHERE?!” You exclaimed in almost panic as Harlequin literally dragged you by the hand towards the circle of smaller tents.
“Oh c'mon dear, trust me when I say it will be fine. Jester won’t hurt you.” He looked at you with an unusually polite smile and a look in his rounded green eyes that just barely managed to calm you down.
“Jester will hurt me very much. The fact that he trusts me enough to sometimes bring you to my place means nothing!” You planted your heels in the ground like they were brakes, but he still managed to drag you forward, leaving trails on the dirt.
“It does mean something. And the fact that he also jokes with you is proof enough. Now let’s go.” He rebutted, taking his tentacles out and manhandling you so you were now thrown on his shoulder. You tried to protest, but ultimately sighed seeing how he cut off every chance of an easy escape for you.
He strode all happy and merry towards the purple and black small tent at the center of the circle of what you understood being their private common area.
“Jester~ I brought the solution to your headache~” Harlequin announced himself, waiting for the ringmaster to allow him to enter.
“I hope it's a signed declaration of your intent to avoid provoking Pierrot from here to forever…” a tired voice answered him.
You barked a laugh out loud, clasping your mouth to stifle your giggles, feeling no remorse in the slightest. Harlequin’s smile dropped in a deadpan, squeezing you a little tighter in retaliation before he parted the tent and made his entrance. Jester’s gaze abandoned the book he was reading and arched a brow seeing you with his green eyed companion.
"Here's your solution. No Doctor needed.” Harlequin spoke as he used his tentacles to put you back with your feet on the ground. Jester sighed, massaging his temples as frustration added to his already plentily aching head.
“Harlequin, if this is another one of your stupid ideas I swear to-” he groaned but Harlequin interrupted him.
“I know it may sound stupid, but trust me when I say their hands can do a miracle for your problem.” The heart covered performer put his hands on your shoulders like he was showcasing you.
You looked at your hands, confused about what they were even talking about. When Harlequin came to get you he only said that Jester was in dire need of your help and added a quick “no you are not risking your life, silly dear” as soon as he saw panic appear on your face.
“I know you said you had the best night of sleep of your life that night, you wouldn’t stop talking about it and I had to hypnotize Pierrot to avoid him mauling you and causing a catastrophe at this little pet’s home.” Jester closed his book and put it near the lamp at his side.
‘That night’ ? What was he talking about??
“Come on, Jester, give it a shot at least! Who knows, maybe it will work~” Harlequin winked at him and patted your shoulders.
“Uhh… can I get some context, please?” You inserted in the conversation.
“Mr. Jester here is troubled by a stress induced headache and refuses to be medicated, stating that it will go away eventually.” Harlequin explained, using your head as a chin-resting spot.
“Because it will go away.” Jester side eyed him.
“You haven’t slept for two nights.” Harlequin glared back at him with a knowing smile.
“Because I have things to do. I can’t just ignore them because of my physical condition. I do them, just slowly.”
“Which leads you to sleep 1-2 hours tops per night. Surely that doesn’t worsen your situation...”
“You are being impertinent, Harlequin.”
“Oh sorry if I worry about you, Jester.”
“W-wait. So basically Harley brought me here for…?” You butted in, wanting to de-escalate their banter, but also to know what exactly you have been brought here for.
“To give our dear Jester one of those horn massages, like the one you gave me at your house last week.” Harlequin finally clarified before turning to Jester once again.
“I am sure he would get beneficial effects by letting himself experience the joys of your hands, if he so much wanted to get better in a reasonable amount of time.”
Jester’s purple eyes glinted menacingly, but the pained expression he donned as a wave of pain washed over him gave credit to Harlequin’s words. The purple haired ringmaster grimaced as the pain slowly dulled down to the annoying pulse he grew accustomed to feel lately. He rubbed his white face in his hands, throwing one last glare at Harlequin before closing his eyes. He muttered something that made the green performer chuckle, maybe profanities in Portuguese, but you weren’t sure.
What you were sure of was that Harlequin spoke the truth seeing how wobbly Jester looked as he stood up and walked to his broad bed. He slumped on it with an OUFF then he rolled over and lifted a hand to gesture to come closer.
“Go on, dear.” Harlequin gently pushed you forward, seeing you so hesitant.
“I’ll entertain your silly idea just this once, but if it doesn’t work both of you will be my personal helpers until I’ll be back to top condition.” Jester pointed a claw at Harlequin then at you. You gulped at his words, turning to give the green menace an accusatory glare for dragging you into this mess. He answered by blowing you a kiss and winking at you, which made you scoff.
You sank into Jester’s bed, realizing it was just a large puff covered in many soft blankets and pillows. You removed your shoes and climbed further in it, trying to find the best position to do what you had to do. A couple of tentacles brought some pillows behind you to help you stay upward, which you were thankful for. As soon as you deemed yourself settled enough, you saw Jester crawl towards you. You felt a chill running down your spine, not knowing if it was more for fear or for something else entirely.
Jester's frame hovered above you, caging your lower half with his body.
“You better be as good as Harlequin says you are, pet.” He muttered, but the threat in his voice was weak. This sounded more like a stern but hopeful demand more than anything else.
You just nodded and watched as he got up on his knees, removing his hat and handing it to Harlequin, the bells at the end of the long threads jiggling at the motion.
Your eyes went immediately on the curved four horns sprouting from his dark violet hair. The dip of their curve faced elegantly downward, with a final curve leaning outwards once it reached the tip. Given the length of his hat’s threads, you were almost disappointed to see they stopped above shoulder length.
It didn't go unnoticed to you that just like Harlequin, Jester’s horns had a soft coloration of violet hue, more vibrant towards the tip that faded the closer it got to the roots.
“Cool horns.” You exhaled a breath, staring with stars in your eyes. Sure, you have seen their horns before (even if just Harlequin’s and only once), but damn it if it wasn’t still a sight you wanted to appreciate, much like a pretty twilight sky.
Jester looked at your enraptured expression, scoffing at your reaction while internally he found it pleasant.
“Of course you think so, pet. Now quit ogling and do your thing.” He made you snap back from your wonder as he settled himself back down. He crossed his arms on your stomach, resting his pointy chin on his forearms. His downcast eyes told you he was lost in his own thoughts, violet irises unfocused with just the slit of his black pupil in the middle.
You smiled at him and made an affirming grunt before you moved a strand of hair back in place. You started by fixing his hair, raking your fingers in the long strands falling at the sides of his face, brushing the silky fibers framing his pale mask and unraveling them at your sides. Your interest was piqued by the little white horns sprouting from the asymmetrical fringe, wondering if they were part of the mask or a part of his group of horns.
“Jester, can I ask you something?” You saw his violet eyes change direction in the darkness of the eyesocket, now staring at you, signaling he was listening.
“Are these two visible white horns also part of the mask or are they... horns?” You asked, gently dragging two fingers on their smooth surface.
By the way he sucked in a sharp breath, it seemed like he felt the touch. He cleared his throat before speaking again, hoping the soft blush that blossomed on his cheeks went unnoticed.
“Not a mask. They are actual horns, but don't touch them too much.” His voice was betraying how much he wanted to hide the effect of your simple action. You smiled softly at him in response, not addressing how cute he looked all flustered.
Meanwhile, on the chair where Jester was sat on when you first entered, Harlequin hummed at the scene, watching with amusement as his ringleader got a taste of the remedy he got offered and, judging by the looks of it, was working exactly as he expected.
A small victory he savoured watching you do your thing.
Handling four horns instead of two was more difficult than you thought, but you were trying your best to give each of them equally the attention of your hands. Under your fingertips their texture reminded you of roots more than horns, feeling different, smoother than Harlequin’s.
You used your thumb to draw circles at the sides of the more external ones, starting from where they peeked out of the dark violet hair and running all over their length to reach the tips, dragging your nails gently all over their centers to come back and repeat it all with the internal ones.
Jester sighed loudly at this, trying his best not to give you any hint of how much this was really affecting him.
You continued for a couple of minutes before your thumbs started feeling a bit sore, needing a change of pace.
“Jester, is it ok if I touch your hair?” You asked timidly. Those luscious long hair must take a lot of care to be kept in such good conditions and you bet the violet performer would rather be informed if your hands were to touch them before you tried anything.
“Uhmmm… do as you find fitting, pet.” He sighed, settling himself a little better over your chest.
His voice was groggier than usual, giving away how much your massage was working. You threw a glance at Harlequin, silently asking if he noticed that too. The green menace met your gaze instantly, winking at you. Yep, he saw that too.
Back with your attention on Jester, you moved your hands so they caressed his temples with your fingertips, raking through the silky mass up until you registered the root of the horns. There, you made small circular motions, pressing down gently, trying to give all four of them some attention before retreating your hands.
Jester’s head suddenly fell, making you retract your hands in fear of having done something wrong. He immediately jolted back awake, blinking fast trying to regain consciousness. He grumbled displeased, looking at your hands and then you.
“Why did you stop? Keep doing what you did, human.” He grabbed one of your hands and placed it back on his head, much to your surprise (and Harlequin too, who was still there).
“O-ok…” you said after a moment. As soon as your hands were back on his scalp he shuddered, letting out a soft groan.
“Yes…. this….. good…..” he whispered between a deep breath and another, slowly going limp on you, totally lost in your gentle ministrations.
You found that he was most sensible on the two smaller horns sticking out from the front because every time you touched them, he moaned a little, wriggling and slightly changing position. It made you blush every time you heard him, biting your lip to not dare laughing at the irony of the situation.
“Best not touch them too much.” You whispered in a low voice.
“I don’t know, he seems to like it~” Harlequin suggested standing up and walking closer to you.
“Don’t come here with ideas, Harley.” You side eyed him as he made himself comfortable beside you on the large bed.
“Hum hum hum, I wouldn’t dare, dear one, especially when it looks like your little hands did their job so well.” He kept his voice low, letting a tentacle slide out of the bright green blouse to point at Jester’s face, with his eyelids closed behind the mask and breath slow and even.
You took a moment to look at Jester’s features now that he was asleep, looking as relaxed and calm as you have never seen him before. Instead of the usual wide menacing grin, his thin lips were slightly parted, making you see his face in a totally new light. He looked ethereal in his rest, like a sleeping beauty.
“Pretty…” you murmured, gently nudging the fringe away from his forehead with a finger, showing the drawing on the right part of his mask.
“Yeah, he’s pretty good looking. Not as much as me, though. I am handsome, right dear one?” Harlequin’s prideful words shattered the trance you were into, making you roll your eyes.
“You are many things, Harlequin. Jealous mostly.” You teased him, calling him out. You felt him shift position, but refused to meet his green glaring eyes. You expected a verbal rebuttal, but got a physical one instead, getting a face full of his sleeve as he threw it over you, caging your face in his arm.
You chuckled at his reaction, getting a grumble in response, but also feeling Jester shift uncomfortably, adjusting his arms so he was now hugging you with his face smashed against your stomach.
You held your breath for a moment, mentally adjusting at what was happening and slowly making peace with the fact that you were not going to sleep in your own bed tonight. It distressed you less than you thought it would, finding it surprisingly fine to have this sleepover with the two horned performers.
“You are kidnapping me.” You joked.
“He did it first.” Harlequin replied, eyeing the sleeping Jester. “He really needed this, so please excuse us. Tomorrow he will bring you back to your house, but for tonight you’ll be staying here with us. Lucky you, huh?”
“If he will bring me back to my house…”
“He will. You earned it anyway. Now sleep dear one.”
You saw a green tentacle grab a blanket and drag it over all three of you, then another one turning off the light of the tent.
You gave them each a last gentle headpat, feeling the cozy warmth wrapping you as you fell asleep surrounded by the two horned performers, hearing a faint purring amidst the silence of the night.