Work Text:
The Heiter family’s laundry pile only got bigger and bloodier with every new child. They all would help out, dragging baskets and scrubbing stains, every Saturday of every week.
But, as Medic’s pregnancy neared its end and the kids-turned-adults slowly filled up their schedules, Josef was left to do it all on his own.
He just really, really wished that everyone would stop dumping the clean clothes on his bed to be folded.
Josef sighed, closing the door behind him as he approached the pile of fabrics. There were no faded stains, which instantly made him suspicious. This was either clothes cleaned by the hand of a god, or a mimic waiting to eat him.
He slowly moved closer, his mind lingering on the eldritch entity that could lay waiting for him, and he realized he’d never seen these fabrics outside of the daily displays in the Where & Wear windows.
Where could these have come from? A gift? No, certainly not of this size. The family water bill was big enough already, and they didn’t need to make it bigger by washing all these new outfits.
He reaches out to grab a cardigan, but as soon as he touches the fabric, the pile shifts and something grabs onto his wrist.
If Josef said he didn’t scream, he would be lying.
Josef’s hand was let go, and muffled laughter came from under the pile. After a bit of shuffling, Medic’s head popped out of the pile. “I’m so sorry, did I scare you?”
“You are absolutely not sorry,” Josef muttered. “Where did you get all these?”
“Oh, Rehlein gave them to me! He dropped them all on top of me, though, and I’m too tired to try to move.”
Rehlein was the island’s keeper, who was responsible for throwing islanders across the street, for teaching everyone about grand larceny and medical malpractice, and for turning the island into the communist country Arstotzka because he thought it would be funny.
Despite his tendencies to treat the islanders like toys, families or couples were spared, or at least treated a bit better. A good life in Ireveil-turned-Arstotzka meant sticking together.
Josef and his family had never been on the receiving end of Rehlein’s “fun”, so they were treated to the being’s odd form of affection.
So, Medic had received a tuck sized pile of new clothes as a gift.
A blessing, Josef supposed, as some island residents were still in the clothes they arrived in.
“Do you need help getting up?” Josef asked.
“Oh, nein, not at all. This is very nice and warm. Like a nest.”
Josef watched Medic begin to shuffle back into the pile with quiet acceptance, knowing he wouldn’t be moving the pile anytime soon.
He was fine with that.
As long as he didn’t get banished to the couch again.