“...this is ridiculous, right?” Doppio mumbled, still not…entirely sure how he and Arven had ended up back in a wagon. There had been some discussion among the group of what to do after lunch, and the royal family had decided to go visit the orchard, hyping up the farmland and fresh juice and friends to visit there for the kids. Well, Tim, Cali, and Kimiko, as Bianka and Cheri were meant to meet up with the rest of their family for some festival time, but Bianka had declared that ‘nothing could get in the way of her love for her wife’ and that one way or another she’d rejoin the party later. 

That had been entertaining to watch, and Doppio was glad that Kaito wouldn’t forget to stop by while he was apparently expected, but…

…he and Arven had already been to the Kiginko Orchard. How were they going back? 

Cali had dramatically shouted ‘nooooooo’ for a while, reaching out dramatically towards Bianka as she was tragically taken away, while Kimiko had waved, brightly telling Bianka to have fun. Timothy had been spending time fixing his extensions, he had accidentally stepped on one and dislodged it a little.

The kids were sitting at the edge of the wagon, letting their legs hang as they chatted idly about not much. The dogs behind them, acting as dual pillows for the kids to lounge on. Arven watched them– it was pretty cute– before he sighed, nodding to Doppio, “Should have ran for it. I mean, I know he would have dragged us back, but we should have at least made him work for it.”

Shuichi, Kokichi and Kaito were riding on another wagon, there not having been enough room for everyone on one wagon. 

It was the exact scenario Arven had outlined (at least in thought) before, and…well, sure, even last time he and Doppio hadn’t spent the ride making out, but…they were the ones watching the kids?! Honestly, learning that that was a thing, Doppio wouldn’t put it past Kaito to have arranged it so he could do gross old man makeouts with his husbands on the ride. 

…but, well, Doppio actually didn’t mind riding with the kids. They were cool. 

“What do you want to do while we’re there this time, then?” Doppio asked with a small sigh. “We mostly stayed by the competition area… I saw signs about people walking in the orchard itself, would you want to do that?”

Arven hummed, considering it, “Yeah, that’d be nice. Do a little walkabout… also,” Arven leaned in, whispering conspiratorially, “I bet we could get some ciders. Kaito has a ‘one drink’ per teen policy, right? I bet he’d buy us some. We could sip on it and walk around.”

Doppio blinked before grinning, leaning in as well. It was a one drink per teen given they have a full stomach policy, if he remembered right (iffy) but…they’d all just eaten lunch together, and there was no possible way Kaito would argue that they’d digested everything in about half an hour. So? “That’d be nice…if his husbands don’t have any protests.”

Looping an arm around Arven’s waist, just because he wanted to be closer, Doppio hummed softly. “Have you had hard cider before? I think it’d be a way easier thing to like, compared to beer.”

“I have,” Arven admitted, nodding, “I’ve tried making it too. It didn’t come out well though. Most of my alcohol attempts haven’t.” He said with a small shrug, “It’s tough to get right, especially if you don’t invest in a bunch of heavy equipment.”

Wrapping his arms back, Arven pulled him even closer, leaning in to kiss him on the cheek. “Cider’s nice as a seasonal thing, I’ve always thought though. And it’s tougher to get back here, then it was when I was traveling. People tended to assume I was older, covered in dirt and traveling alone.”

Cali glanced over her shoulder, before ‘whispering’ to the others, “...I think Arven has a crush on Doppioooooo.”

“They’re dating.” Tim said back.

“WHAT?” Cali gasped.

“I am not surprised by that,” Doppio chuckled softly. “Not that it didn’t come out well, but…well, making alcohol is hard, if your aim isn’t literally just for something to contain ethanol. But that makes sense--you see something you wanna try, and you do it.”

Humming happily at the hug and kiss, Doppio leaned against Arven more and returned a kiss to his cheek. “A nice spiced cider when the weather’s cold? Perfect. Though, I do know how that goes,” he snorted at the age thing. “Luckily we have someone we can bully. Or other methods.” He gave Arven an amused look. They hadn’t really had a reason yet, but Doppio was always going to keep his adult ID in his back pocket. …er, metaphorically. 

“...do you miss it?” Doppio asked after a moment. “Not Chief being sick, of course but…being on a long-term travel. That kind of independence… Being mistaken for being older?”

Arven snorted at the kids, who were now feverishly gossiping to each other, catching each other up on the rumor mill. Resting his temple against Doppio’s, closing his eyes as he considered it…

“...no.” Arven admitted, “Not yet.”

“I stopped traveling a little less than a year ago.” Arven said, opening his eyes again, his gaze a little distant, “And there’s little things I miss. I miss… laying on soft grass under stars. I saw so many shooting stars in a night that I couldn’t have possibly had enough wishes for all of them. I listened to wind that whistled like music.”

“I miss the way I felt strong, when I managed to get to a new part of the cavern. I miss those moments of victory, where I felt invincible. Unstoppable,” Arven said, petting Doppio’s arm a bit, “I miss the certainty of knowing I had one, definitive, all encompassing goal. I miss not answering to anyone, about anything. I miss a lot of that.”

“But I don’t miss sleeping in the rain.” Arven said, sighing, “I don’t miss how I got used to my body just hurting, all the time. I don’t miss the sunburns. I don’t miss going into town and not knowing what area was safe and every single person I met treating me like I was temporary. A temporary annoyance, a temporary novelty, or just temporarily apathetic… you feel alone, exclusively surrounded by strangers, for a long time. And I was never anywhere long enough to be more than temporary, to anyone.”

“...I think that’s maybe why, as mad at him as I get, as ridiculous as it all is… I can’t bring myself to really, seriously resent Kaito’s attention,” Arven admitted, saying it softly, not wanting the kids to hear, “He’s one of the first strangers I’ve ever met, who right off the bat, didn’t treat me like some temporary face breezing by his day. He wants to be in my life. That’s… really rare. And sleeping with a roof over my head every day, not worrying if the food is gonna run out, not slowly being eroded by the weather, with someone practically begging me to let him treat me like I matter…”

“I don’t miss it.” Arven said, “Maybe one day I will. But not yet.”

Snuggled into Arven’s side, tracing shapes on his hip, Doppio closed his eyes and let Arven paint scenes in his head. Doppio had traveled a lot, but not like Arven had. And…those little moments in nature? The wistful, ephemeral beauty that Arven spoke with touched his soul. The circumstances wouldn’t be the same, but that didn’t mean their experience of nature would be diminished, so…Doppio was looking forward to seeing those things and more with Arven. Maybe maddeningly slowly as time went by, but…in a way, it would just make those trips more special. 

He’d kind of known about the strength in Arven’s purpose too. How Arven had always talked about his travels to save Chief, it was apparent. And…especially after their talk about purpose and care… It was awful that Arven had been forced to take up a seemingly impossible task on his own. But accomplishing it… Doppio couldn’t think of anything that filled him with as much pride and energy as doing something purposeful. 

It was the sort of thing that got you through the annoying physical stuff. Sleeping in the rain and hurting and sunburns and…

…

…again, it had been different. But Doppio knew about that kind of loneliness too. 

Doppio smiled thinly. “He does fuck it up, but… I-it’s hard to really be mad at someone who just…so genuinely wants you. To care about you, and see you do well… I don’t always appreciate how he treats you…but the other part I’m really happy about. You should be valued and considered and it pisses me off that there’ve been parts of your life where you haven’t. So…I’m glad that’s something you can not miss now.”

“...” Doppio glanced away shyly, before sighing a little at himself and quietly asking, “...if one day you miss adventure so much you need to go on another one…can I come with you?”

“I’d never go without you,” Arven softly promised, closing his eyes and snuggling in close to Doppio, “If you wanted to be couch potatoes and never leave my basement again? Then we’d be boring basement dwellers, reading books and getting high. You only ever wanted to go to the dog park? Chief will love it, I’m down. You just never want an adventure? Then I’m staying home with you. No trip would be worth leaving you behind.”

“...so, yeah,” Arven smirked, peeking at Doppio. “I’d love for you to come.”

Blushing, Doppio smiled. It was…almost a sort of complicated feeling. He never wanted to be the reason Arven would hold back from things he wanted. He couldn’t really…remember it, but…there was the impression that someone had once told him that maybe things were ‘different’, with someone who had been ‘made to stay still’. Sure, what he was made for didn’t matter, but…well, if was something Doppio had been struggling with, since coming to the castle and having his life changed, and going to therapy. He didn’t know where to go. He didn’t know how to go. He knew how to do what people told him, and he could form his opinions of what other people did, but…left without a spark, Doppio didn’t know how to start it himself. And…he never wanted to keep Arven stagnating because of that. 

…but alternatively? …it was really nice, hearing Arven promise that he’d never be left behind. That whatever he wanted, even if it was the most boring shit imaginable, Arven would still be happy doing it with him. Doppio could go full tilt, always rushing and always having a growing to-do list that he still tried his best to get ahead of, and he’d be happy to do it! As long as there was a purpose that made someone happy, or even just satisfied, he was happy. 

…but it was a little like what Shuuichi had said earlier, about needing more breaks during the festival because he was overwhelmed. The maddening lethargy of the past few weeks had…prompted the idea, if nothing else, that…Doppio didn’t like always rushing around with no end in sight. Breaks to stop and breathe and…eat some good food and take a look around himself were…necessary. Along with the breaks he couldn’t help but take when his brain shut down. 

So...it was comforting to hear that he’d never be abandoned because of those breaks, or even if he needed to move a little more slowly sometimes. He wasn’t letting anyone down by stopping. 

Flushing more, Doppio pressed his lips to Arven’s for a few seconds. “...well, good thing I do want adventure. Then you get both.”

“Yesssss, score.” Arven snickered, before kissing Doppio back.

“...okay, but, ew?” Cali said, the three kids just now openly watching the teens, “Do we need to spritz you with water? I will spritz you with water.”

“I think it’s sweeeeeeet~” Kimiko coo’d, her hands pressed to the cheeks of her face, swooning.

“I’m kind of painfully use to this,” Tim admitted, sighing as he idly pet Chase’s head, his body otherwise buried in Chief’s fur, “Dad and Uncle Kokichi do this, like, allllll the time. It’s pretty gross.”

“Okay, seriously, who is babysitting these kids?” Arven pouted, “I don’t remember agreeing to anything.”

Grumbling a little in embarrassment, Doppio looked over and pouted at the kids. “If you think it’s so gross, you don’t have to watch. And us kissing isn’t like Kaito and Kokichi kissing at all--they’re old so it’s different.”

Huffing and grumbling a little more, Doppio smooshed his cheek into Arven’s shoulder. “...honestly I think the dogs are babysitting. Bleh.” Not really at the kids, but just finding more of an outlet for his embarrassment, Doppio blepped his tongue out.

Every single kid stuck their tongue out back at him. Chief licked his jaws. Chase didn’t, but that was because she was too busy chewing on Chief’s ear. Blep. 

Thankfully, all tongues were back safely inside when the wagon rolled to a stop, the kids hopping out, followed by the dogs, then out plodded the teens. 

The kids didn’t note anything odd about it, but as the adults came out of their wagon, there was a certain obvious fluster to them. Kaito in particular looked incredibly pleased with himself, while Shuichi huffed, fixing his hair. “Alright, we’re here!” Kaito said brightly, looking around, “Mmmm, love that apple smell. I missed this place, we should visit more often!”

Doppio gave the adults a sour, suspicious look. He knew it. 

Kokichi bounced out of the wagon, hair…uncertain if it was really messier than usual. He was thankful to the conversation he and Kaito had had last year, but wow, it was a much happier trip this time. Very fun. 

“We really dropped the ball on more visits, huh?” he laughed sheepishly, before stretching, looking out over the orchard…and trying to shuffle his family out of the wagon depot a bit. “But! We’re here now!”

Giving Shuuichi a sheepish but determined look, he reiterated, “Okay, I am not getting drunk this year, promise! …but I’m still looking forward to trying some of this year’s cider. And I have my ID,” he smirked. 

Seeing an in, Doppio shuffled over to Kaito, giving him an innocently curious look. “Oh, is the cider here really good? Arven and I saw it earlier and the line-up, but, well, obviously we didn’t try any…”

The family was herded out of the way of oncoming wagons due to the valiant efforts of Kokichi, which Shuichi thought was sweet. He went over to drape himself over Kokichi’s shoulders, being certain to adjust Miyako to comfortably lay against his chest, kissing the top of his head and then kissing him properly when Kokichi looked up, “So responsible. Not that I was worried. I can’t remember the last time you were drunk.” Shuichi paused, “...have I ever seen you drunk?”

Kaito raised an eyebrow– Doppio only ever looked cute when he wanted something– and his wariness doubled in fold as Arven followed, Arven turning up his puppy dog look as he nodded earnestly with Doppio, “I’ve never had cider at all, personally. It always looked really nice. Like, ‘festive’, you know?”

Kaito looked at both of them dryly…before smirking. “You little punks want me to buy you alcohol? It’ll cost ya.”

Arven’s eyebrows went up a little, surprised, “I mean, we can pay for it ourselves–”

“I want a hug, you little assholes.” Kaito snickered, saying it quietly. His expression suggesting he was this close to laughing maniacally. 

“Definitely,” Kokichi snorted, smiling happily into the kiss. “That night Maki-chan, Kai-chan, and I, got super drunk, and pulled Lake-nee into it too? With the Unicorn and chocolate liquor ‘n stuff? And we had those awful hangovers the day after, while Shuu-chan just laughed in pregnant sobriety. And I did get kinda tipsy last Harvest too. I don’t get drunk often, but! I’m continuing that tonight!”

Doppio looked similarly surprised, just blinking for a moment. That was…a lot easier than he had been thinking. Sure, Kaito was one of the more pro-underage drinking advocates that he knew, but…still. That was barely any convincing. 

“...okay?” Doppio said, a little confused. Coming forward, he hugged Kaito, before thinking about it and pulling Phanpy from his bag and pressing the elephant to Kaito’s arm as well. “Thanks for circumventing the system for us.”

Arven couldn’t bring himself to come in for a group hug– his pride– so he watched as Kaito grinned a thousand-watt smile, his eyes practically sparkling as Doppio brought out his stuffed animal homework, before wrapping his arms around them both and squeezing Doppio hard. “Awwwww, yay~” Kaito said happily, swaying Doppio back and forth a bit, before straightening up and patting Doppio warmly on the shoulders, “Great hug! Good job! Crimes earned!”

“Kaito, what are you talking about?” Shuichi called, mostly just seeing hugs and hearing about crimes. 

“One second, hold on, I gotta get my payment before you all knock me down!” Kaito said urgently, looking earnestly at Arven, “Come ooooon, earn some criiiiimes.”

Arven huffed, flopping forward, not raising his arms and just leaning on Kaito’s chest. Kaito, undaunted, wrapped his arms around him, squeezing tiiiiight… and then picking him up, shaking him a bit. “Hah! Another good hug! Alright… hey, ‘Kichi!?” Kaito called out to his husband, still holding Arven in the air, “Doppio and Arven want cider!”

Doppio nodded pleasantly, putting Phanpy back in his bag, safely, though…there was a certain pleased upturn to his smile. Kaito really did give good hugs and…well, Doppio got plenty of physical affection from Arven, but…different sorts were nice too. 

And in terms of facilitating a crime, this was one of the easier tasks he’d ever had. 

It really wasn’t as bad as Arven seemed to make it out to be, though, uh…Kaito was holding him up in the air for a while…

Raising his eyebrows, though amused by the hugs, Kokichi let out a concerned hum (while Doppio twitched a little. It was supposed to be on the down-low, traitor!). “Well…it’s not really that strong…and with that size…” he mumbled, looking at some of the food information across the way. 

Giving Doppio and…uh, well, Doppio, as Arven was still occupied, a serious look, Kokichi sighed. “...I know you know your way around alcohol. But you’re each just getting one, and please drink it slowly. And if either of you start feeling weird, come to one of us, okay? Or sit down and ask someone to get us, but don’t stay somewhere alone.”

Looking a little dry--he did know his way around alcohol, thanks--Doppio nodded. “Sure.”

Kaito, putting Arven down and giving him a grin and a pat on the head– Arven swaying a little from being shaken about– suddenly shot Doppio a genuinely hard look, “Let’s watch our tone with Prince Kokichi, yes? And thank him. His grace is looking out for you.”

Something a little frustrated ran through Doppio’s face before he sighed, giving Kokichi a nod and a more calm look. “Thanks for breaking the law for us, and wanting to keep us safe.”

Laughing softly, Kokichi gave Doppio an empathetic grin. “Hey, I was in your shoes not long ago, and I’m not looking to be that much of a hypocrite. Plus!” he cheered, looking excited, “The cider here is so good, I’d be excited to hear your thoughts on it, as a culinarily-minded guy.”

At that, Doppio blinked and blushed a little before shrugging. “I-I mean…sure. It’s not really my specialty, uh, obviously, so I probably won’t have anything groundbreaking but…sure.”

Arven glared at Kaito scolding Doppio–what?? How dare– though he didn’t mind on a practical level thanking Kokichi, as he grinned, “Thank you, Kokichi. Right, you’re a lot younger than Kaito, right? That’s hard to conceptualize, that you’re not that much older than us.”

Kaito’s nose wrinkled, “No, well, he’s plenty older–”

“Cradle robber.” Shuichi smirked over Kokichi’s head.

“You married him too!!”

“I wasn’t engaged to him before he was even legal.” Shuichi pointed out.

“...yeah, okay, let’s go get this cider, I need a drink.” Kaito huffed, before shouting to the kids, “Kids! The wagon has to keep going! Stop petting the horse!”

“But I LOVE HER!” Cali cried, as the wagon rider showed her how to brush the horses leg and chest.

“Thank you, sir, but we’re taking them!” Kaito shouted to the rider, gesturing for the kids to follow before leading the way to the farm itself. 

The orchard was actually a little busier now, as people were visiting more and more for the cider as the day went on. Kaito kept an eye out, looking for the hosts, but so far all he saw right away was Mr. Kiginko, working the cider stall. So keeping one eye on the kids, and asking Nazumi if she wanted a tasting cup of cider– she said no– Kaito got in line.

Timothy came by, and without a word hugged around Kaito’s stomach. Kaito was a little startled, but suddenly grinned adoringly, hugging back, “Awwwww. Ya saw all the hugging action and wanted to get in on it, kid?”

“I want to try cider too.” Timothy said into Kaito’s side.

“....you can have a sip of mine. Just so you realize you don’t actually want any.” Kaito said, now actively planning to get the most bitter kind that was available, rubbing Timothy’s back, “Are the girls gonna hug me next, you runts?”

“They don’t want any.” Tim shrugged, still hugging Kaito. 

“...you want to ride on my feet, don’t you.” Kaito realized with a sigh, snorting as wordlessly Timothy immediately stood on his feet, “Fine, fine, alright. Glad I’m wearing boots today, sheesh.”

Doppio’s eyebrows drew in, trying to…make sense of all that. Sure, Kokichi was younger than Kaito, that made sense. But…Kokichi was way older than him and Arven, surely? He was old. But…if he had been engaged to Kaito before he was an adult (weird) then…what? He was…20, 21? That couldn’t be right…

Snorting, Kokichi just took Shuuichi’s hand as they rustled the family to get cider. He supposed he’d take being thought way older than he was, to being mistaken for a teenager again. 

To keep the kids from dying from boredom, and to not implicate the Kiginkos in a crime, Shuuichi stayed with the kids and the teens, looking at the results from the giant vegetable competition with commentary from the teens about how it had looked that morning, while Kaito and Kokichi set about getting cider for everyone. Well…Kaito, Kokichi, and Tim. 

Laughing a bit, Kokichi gave Tim a grin. “Do you think Cali and Kimiko would like some fresh apple juice, then? And you can have some too if you’d like, of course. Honestly I might just get some for myself too--there’s something so special about fresh juice straight from an orchard.” 

“Mmmmm yes? Yes, thank you.” Timothy decided, looking over to Kokichi as he asked, “Do you want a hug for apple juice?”

Kaito lit up at that. Timothy could be a weird kid, but he wasn’t so awkward as to think hugs were actually payment for things. Awwwww, his kid wanted to hug his uncle! Little weirdo! Little adorable weirdo! Yessss, Kaito wanted to see this hug. Progress.

Kokichi lit up. He liked to think his relationship with Tim had improved a lot over the past year, but…something like this? It sent him over the moon. 

“I’d love a hug for apple juice,” Kokichi grinned, opening his arms. 

Timothy stepped off of Katio’s boots, and while there was still something a tad reserved in it, he reached around Kokichi to hug him for a bit… before wiggling out and then stepping backwards, back onto Kaito’s boots, bringing up his hands and looking up expectantly at Kaito. 

Kaito scoffed– it was entirely for show, he was still reeling over seeing adorable son hugs— before grasping Timothy’s hands, steadying him as he continued to walk the line.

When they got to the stand, Mr. Kiginko brightened, wiping his face with a neckerchief as he leaned against the stand, “Ah, royal guests! It’s good to see you both, Prince Kokichi, Prince Kaito! Happy Harvest! And who is this young’en?”

“This is my eldest, Timothy.” Kaito introduced, Timothy hopping off his feet and keeping quiet, shy in front of a new person, “And we’re getting three, no, four applejuices, and… five? Ciders?” Kaito asked, looking quizzically at Kokichi, “You still wanted a cider too, didn’t you ‘Kichi? Or do you and Shuichi wanna share one?”

Yessssss!!! Uncle affection! 

…and it wasn’t bribery but…it was a holiday, Kokichi was feeling generous. And he had been practicing his sleight-of-hand, after seeing Firenze continually take it to the ultimate level. Like…Kokichi could still feel that Firenze was there, but…he hadn’t been able to see the bodyguard at all. It was wild. 

But. Anyway. Tim would probably be happy to find an extra silver in his pockets later. 

“Hi, Mr. Kiginko! Happy Harvest!” Kokichi greeted, smiling widely, before giving Kaito a sheepish look. “I want my own, yeah. I’ll be honest, I’ve been thinking about this cider for a couple weeks now.”

Casting a glance around them, he amusedly added, “It seems like I’m far from the only one.”

“Ah, yes, I wish I had more time to chat,” Mr. Kiginko said, before just sheepishly gesturing around, “But, I’ll make your drinks and hope they live up to what you’ve been daydream about, Prince Kokichi. Though, oh, Prince Kaito, my mother is resting in the house! She’s been hoping to speak to you about something for a few months now. I’m not sure about what, but if you wouldn’t mind saying hello?”

“Oh!” Kaito said, like he hadn’t known that, looking pleasantly surprised, “Of course, I’d love too! I want to thank her again for my coat, it’s still one of the nicest things I own! And that is really saying something!”

“Heh heh, you certainly can’t find things like it anymore. For the best, obviously, I can’t imagine killing a wolf myself. Sweet little pups. Bitey pups, sure, but I’m a softie like that.” The man sighed, before shrugging, “But, what’s done is done, and those are nice coats otherwise. Maybe mama will show you the others. She inherited a ton of them, and it’s pretty rare for her to give any away. She must have liked you.”

Kaito grinned, and he didn’t know why the back of his eyes burned at that– (pack, kin, regret)-- as he said, “Aw, that’s nice. I liked her too. Alright… Timothy, grab the orange juices, there’s a good lad. Annnnd, I’ll take those ciders, ‘Kichi, could you grab that last one? Thank youuuu, alright! Happy Harvest Mr. Kingiko!” Kaito said, about to walk off, before saying, “Oh! Maki-roll come for the kids yet?”

Mr. Kingiko nodded, “Saw her about an hour ago. Kids are going to the haunted house with that whole pack of theirs. Happy harvest!”

Such was a service gig. But Kokichi was still happy he was able to say hello to at least one member of the family. Though they had plans with another too. 

…

(...he would not allow a slaughter of his people to happen like that again. It would never make up for those lives lost, but the future could be kinder. They already had a strong community and network but…so many of his people were left with only that. The law wasn’t built to protect them in certain important cases.)

(That was unacceptable.)

Rolling his eyes a little at only being given one drink to carry, Kokichi waved to Mr. Kiginko, thanking him for the drinks, and they started to head back to the others. “Do you want to go chat with Mrs. Kiginko by yourself, hun? I imagine it could get into quite a conversation so…how are you feeling about it?”

“Ummm,” Kaito hummed, uncertain how to answer, “...shoot, um…”

Kaito wasn’t sure, honestly. He didn’t want to bring his husband down on a nice day. And he honestly had no idea how this conversation was going to go. He wasn’t even entirely certain if the older woman would even actually have answers for him. He had no idea why she wanted to speak to him, and could only assume it was related, but…

How in the actual fuck would she know?

Kaito was Akane, in every way that mattered. But it wasn’t obvious to anyone else. Hell, he hadn’t known himself until, what? Two months ago? Why had she… how? Had she given him his own skin back? How had she known? 

Was it seriously, potentially just a coincidence? That seemed unfathomable.

And if it was, what did she want to say to him so badly that her family kept mentioning her wanting to see him?

And if she really didn’t know about him and it was all a pure coincidence… how was he going to ask about what had happened to Akane’s family? Assuming the older woman even knew?

And if she did, was that something Kokichi deserved to hear about? His husband took things so personally. It wasn’t his fault, whatever happened…

“...you don’t…” Kaito hesitated, “...have to. And maybe you even… shouldn’t?” Kaito asked, conflicted. “...you don’t have too.”

“I don’t have to,” Kokichi softly agreed. “But I’m offering my support, if that’s what you want. I understand if it’s something personal enough you want to have just for yourself. But if you would like emotional back-up? Then I’m offering that. You don’t have to have this conversation, whatever it may look like, alone.”

Kaito chewed on his lower lip, conflicted… before he sighed. A tad relieved as he nodded, “I’m reeeeaaaally sorry if it ends up sucking. This harvest is going great! So I’m sorry if this is going to be a bummer.”

“What’s going to be a bummer?” Timothy asked, looking up curiously as they walked.

“Eh, dad’s gotta go ask a lovely, somewhat scary woman named Danielle for some history stuff, and history can be depressing. It’s like I’m volunteering to go to school during my day off.” Kaito pouted.

“You probably need more schooling.” Timothy said absentmindedly.

“...rude? I am literally the only person in our family who’s been to college!” Kaito insisted, before pausing, “...I mean, entirely because I was rich royalty and your uncles and mom all were literally sabotaged from going. Hmmm… still! I’m educated!”

“It doesn’t show.” Timothy said, before running off to give the girls their apple sauce, before hurrying back, “You said I could get a sip?”

“After all that sass?” Kaito pouted… before handing Timothy his drink, “Fine. Go ahead, try it.”

Timothy took the cup, sniffed it, wrinkled his nose, before tilting it back a bit… and Kaito had to hold back a grin as Timothy seemed to suddenly shudder with revulsion. The kid handing it back, “It’s gone bad.”

“You’re not wrong. You want any more?” Kaito asked, snickering as Timothy just looked grim at that, “Alright, go back to your friends. And when you inevitably run around to cause trouble, don’t. Literally everyone who you know the name of? Is in charge of you, got it? And ignore strangers. Stay in Shuichi’s sight.”

“Okay, dad.” Timothy shrugged, heading off.

“Alright, drop off Shuichi and the boys drinks, then head over?” Kaito asked Kokichi.

Kokichi shook his head a little before smiling up at Kaito. “What would actually suck is you being bummed out and having to deal with it alone, or forbid, pretend that you’re not bummed. Your burdens are my burdens, and through sharing them they’re easier to carry. That’s worth it always, no matter the day.”

They probably sounded a little melodramatic to Tim, but…well, Kokichi supposed his nephew was used to that from them. And thankfully, it seemed like he just didn’t care that much to read into it. 

Snickering a little, Kokichi pointed out, “You won’t be able to keep that claim for long, with how Shuu-chan’s semesters have been going. Ah, I’m married to two college-level hunks~ Lucky me~”

Snickering a little more at Tim’s absolute distaste for the cider, Kokichi gave Kaito a nod. “Let’s do it. Hopefully the sense of wanting to help Shuu-chan look after three kids and a baby will keep the boys from trying to tail it back to the city before us.” Arven and Doppio were good kids…but Kokichi wouldn’t call them absolute altruists. Hopefully Shuuichi would be alright managing everything. 

“We’ll ask Nazumi to stay with him too,” Kaito assured, looking around, “...and I would ask Firenze? But?? Well, you know.”

Talking to Shuichi about it, who honestly seemed glad to have an excuse to sit around a bit, Kaito gave the boys their drinks– hey, yeah, by the way, see how my poor husband is surrounded by children and watching over a baby?? I’m not saying it’s your problem, or anything, but boy it’d mean a lot to me if you kept that in mind– before heading over to the house.

‘House’ was… technically. Correct. But Kaito would actually consider the place a small manor, more than anything. Farm homes, with the money behind them to expand, were Built Different, and Kaito was once again a little surprised at the quality of the place as he headed in. Glen, Piper and Gale were growing up with endless space to utilize. He hoped all three of them grew strong from it. Tall, strong, healthy, happy… he hoped this place gave them all of that.

The front door was open, and unlike most homes built this size, the kitchen was the first thing you stumbled across, the right side of it open for anyone walking into the front lounge to see. An older woman was fussing over some tea, the kettle brewing as she looked out the front window to fondly watch the festivities outside, before she looked curiously over to Kokichi and Kaito walking in. “Oh! There you are. You know, my wife’s been waiting for you. She seemed to think you’d visit her some months back.”

Why? Kaito grinned, “Oh, sorry about the delay! Is she around, mother?”

Riley tittered a bit at that– half the kids did the same thing. Apparently some Luminary custom, though out of fashion– before she pointed upstairs. “Second floor, head towards the back, the last door on the right. Danielle calls it her ‘grandma-cave’. Please wipe your feet before taking the stairs, thank you.”

“Yes, ma’am.” Kaito nodded, looking for the foot mat and brushing the bottom of his shoes off, before heading upstairs.

Riley watched them head upstairs, sipping on her tea, before sighing.

Interesting day.

Well…yes. But part of the system he’d worked out with Nazumi to find the right balance of safety while not feeling like he had a babysitter was…unless a safety thing happened, or one of them waved her over? Nazumi tended to stay in the background. So the kids would be safe (and other people would be safe from their antics) but…well. It’d be alright. 

“Sorry for the intrusion,” Kokichi waved in greeting, a little tickled as Riley repeated what they’d been hearing. They really should’ve made a dedicated trip sooner, huh… It was the kind of expectation that made Kokichi think that they really were about to have a magic conversation but…well. He shouldn’t make assumptions until it happened. 

Carefully wiping his shoes, Kokichi followed after Kaito, putting a gentle hand on his back as they got to the second floor and hugging his arm briefly before knocking on the aforementioned door. 

“WHAT?” an older voice shouted through the door.

“Mrs. Kringiko?” Kaito called through the door, “It’s Prince Kaito and Prince Kokichi!”

“...WHAT?” she shouted again.

Kaito frowned, shouting louder, leaning towards the door, “IT’S! PRINCE KAITO? YOU WERE WAITING FOR ME?”

“WAITING FOR WHO!?”

Kaito twitched, saying louder, “IT’S PRINCE KAITO–oh!”

“Would you stop shouting, you’re gonna wake the baby, ya damned fool.” Danielle said, opening the door and peering up at Kaito, her hair going out in every direction, her small size strangle contrasting with how each individual feature on her was slightly overly large. Big eyes, a long nose, big ears and mouth. All on a tiny little person, though her hunch might make her seem smaller than she actually was. “Ah, there you are. Took you long enough! Get in, get in, close the door behind you! I was just doing my exercises.”

Kaito  shot Kokichi a small Look, before following her inside. Staring at the floor, absolutely flummoxed at the bar-bell and weights in the center of an otherwise warm, somewhat overly packed library study. “Oh, like… exercise, exercise.”

“It’s important to keep your strength, especially in your golden years, kiddos! You don’t want to be the only old person around who can’t lift a pumpkin! Embarrassing.” Danielle scoffed, “And if any of you boys ever ask my Riley to lift anything heavier than a pot, just to see if she can, I’ll be dragging ya to a mud pit and showing you how to treat a lady, understand me?”

“Uuuuuh, yes ma’am.” Kaito said.

“Pish, posh! Call me ma! Fuck knows everyone else does.”

Kokichi did an admirable job holding in his snickers, to the point he could give Danielle a bright wave when she opened the door. “Happy Harvest, Mrs. Kiginko! Sorry for the yelling!”

Closing the door behind him as instructed, Kokichi raised his eyebrows a little at the weights, but…well, she had a point. Laughing softly, he mused, “I feel like we might be following in your footsteps one day. Even with a full dad schedule, Kai-chan still impresses me with his exercise routine, and I don’t see that changing.”

Smiling a little softer, Kokichi gave Danielle a nod. “I’m sorry we haven’t come to visit sooner. It sounds like you’ve been waiting on us for a while.”

“Tsk,” The older woman waved her hand, waddling over to her seat, gesturing for the boys to seat themselves. Kaito looked over the couch, which was covered in books and papers, and giving her an earnest, worried look. She waved him off again, and he sort of shuffled everything around, making a spot for Kokichi first before clearing his own seat, as the woman started to say, “I was expecting you, sure, I’ll admit it. Was all up in the air if you’d show up or not. Which leaves us with a bit of a gamble, huh?”

“Gamble?” Kaito asked.

“Mmmhm,” the older woman rumbled, peering at them over her interlocked, gnarled fingers, “Alright, little lads. Who’s gonna blink and sing their damned hymns first? Raise a little sermon? Praise be, amen, they be pleased, all hail the spaghetti monster?”

Kaito paused… before his eyes widened slightly, “You’re a prophet.”

“Pfff, prophet, templar, champion,” The old woman scoffed, leaning back, “If you’re her, you do a poor imitation. Have you forgotten your history, girl? I’m a–”

“Oracle.” Kaito suddenly said, the word slotting into his mind, like he had known it all along. “Of The Ram.”

Danielle peered at Kaito at that… before she sighed, leaning back a bit, “...Not the Caged One, thankfully. There’s too many gods, in my own humble opinion. I say let the Solus’s take care of it and let all these other busybodies retire. ‘Balance’ this, ‘pendulums’ that. What’s the point of a goddess of wisdom? Tell me, if the old bat kicked the bucket, would the literal concept of wisdom disappear? What sort of sense does that make?”

Kokichi gave Kaito a thankful smile before sitting down…and he was glad he did, as…the way Danielle was connected to everything wasn’t something Kokichi would’ve guessed in a million years. (Or maybe he would’ve, bleed-through was a heck of a thing, but Kokichi didn’t often do it on purpose.)

Still, he had to snort softly. “Well, if my understanding is right, I am glad to…yanno, be me, so I have that in favor of her. But things do seem a bit hectic in a cosmic sense.”

If he remembered right, The Ram of the Solus faith was…a protector of life, of sorts. Creator too, though not a creator of everything. Maybe that translated to souls of the living, or their bodies, but…Kokichi didn’t think the specifications were too important for this kind of conversation. Not that he entirely knew what the conversation was. 

…but he might be able to parse… “So…did you two know each other before, or?”

The older woman massaged her knuckles, licking her lips a bit, as she peered at Prince Kokichi, “...you know, when I saw the vision of today, your third husband was with you, sitting right where you’re sitting now. The future’s far from infallible, but I wonder what happened that changed the flow of time this way. Curious.”

“Oh, uh… someone had to watch the kids.” Kaito explained. 

“Makes sense. Still curious what happened. Though, it was later in the day as well,” Danielle said, glancing at the lighting of the window, “This encounter was promised, so it’s interesting even this much was left to chance. Your Atua is sloppy.”

Kaito frowned, squaring his shoulders a little, “He’s doing his best! …probably!”

“Akane certainly thought so. She was a follower of the Ram, like all wolf-kin did back in those days. The Ram gave us forests to shelter us or food to feed us and our very natures, brightened and emboldened by the moon, the grass, and our excited, thumping hearts. Wolves were strong, back then, and it was The Rams influence that gave us the strength to persevere over our unblessed cousins… by that I mean ‘real’ wolves,” she said, finger quoting, “Everyone always thinks werewolves start as humans and turn into wolves, but that just wasn’t how it was. In the early days it was wolf packs able to shift into human-folk due to a blessing, and us all figuring it out from there.”

“And Akane and I were cousins.” Danielle said, her eyes a little distant, staring at Kaito, “That’s not as unique or familial as it sounds, everyone was a cousin of someone, the nature of litters. But… we were close still…”

“I thought she was making up stories, when she first told me of her visions.” Danielle said, scoffing a bit, “I had just been promised the role of Oracle for the Dicean packs. I thought our Akane was feeling a touch of envy, as everyone was fussing and fawning over me being hailed as the future of our connection to the cosmos. I wouldn’t say we were young, but we were still somewhat impulsive and stupid and prone to little rivalries, and I thought perhaps she was claiming her own connection to a god as a bit of late stage chuuni shit. You know the word ‘chuuni’, Kaito? I believe it’s a Dicean word.”

Kaito glanced at Kokichi.

Kokichi shrugged a little, smiling softly. Personally, he thought it was pretty great that ‘this much’ was left to chance. People’s lives were their own, their choices mattered, and even if some things were forced or preordained by forces most of them could barely comprehend…it was very little. A promise here or there, but the paths there and away all a person’s individual choice. 

Maybe it made it annoying to set up meetings, though. But on the other hand…the mail really was reliable, and invitations were pretty standard. 

…sometimes that meant individual choices were horrible, but…well. A god could make an individual choice too, and it could be just as bad. 

Kokichi’s eyes softened and brightened, interested in learning more history of his people…and touched learning some personal history too. Though he could only huff a soft laugh and explain. “Chuunibyou - middle school syndrome. It’s a term to describe some of the wild identity stuff middle schoolers come up with. It’s not to dismiss the real feelings kids have but…a lot of the puffery and explanations are pretty rooted in imagination.”

Kaito lit up, “Oh, you know, you’ve told me about that before. Heh, I definitely went through that phase, but then, sometimes I still feel a little like that. It’s nice to be a little–”

“--outrageous sometimes.” Danielle said.

Kaito briefly looked startled… before pouting, “Fun trick, but you don’t get brownie points for seeing the future.”

“Hush child, I heard you say that easily a dozen times when I was girl.” Danielle scoffed, “I don’t need to see the future to see that you’re still just as predictably foolish, even in a new body.”

Kaito frowned… before stressing with a certain gentleness that was maybe a little surprising on him, “...I’m not the person you knew, ma’am. Parts of me is, I’ll admit, but… too much of me isn’t. I’m not Akane just resurrected, or even reincarnated. I’m a new person. I’m someone she became… but not her.”

There was, briefly, a flash of hurt in her eyes. An old grief tightening on her wrinkled face… before she scoffed. Waving her hand dismissively again, “I know that, boy. Still, I can see bits you inherited from her in the merge. And like I was saying, Akane was a Ram girl, like all wolves raised proper, but she started getting visions. She described the vision of a beautiful woman. Not beautiful, in an objective, social consciousness sort of way. Not even beautiful in a way she could quantify. But absolutely enchanting to Akane, specifically. The most beautiful woman she had ever seen. And she said it was the whore god, Atua, coming to whisper secrets too her.”

“She told her of her grand fate. Leader of the packs, which was expected, she was already well on her way, but not just leader of the packs. Chosen by The Ram itself! To lead them through a terrible time in our history. Akane’s bravery and efforts and intelligence pulling the packs together in a true act of unity that we would… did. So desperately need, in the face of long-term, concentrated aggression.” Danielle said, fussing with her knuckles some more, “A champion of our god… but that damned whore god had traded something, with our Ram, for the opportunity to present Akane a choice. A terrible choice…”

Kaito nodded, looking a little grim, “Akane could either live to be the pack leader, or die to be me. For… some reason.”

At that, Danielle looked a little surprised, “Gosh dammit, fuck me with a bar stool, boy, do you not know why?”

Kaito blinked at that colorful string of words, before shaking his head, “We can’t remember. None of us.”

Danielle seemed to deflate a bit at that, sighing, “Oh… I had hoped that the day I was reunited with you, girl, that maybe now you could finally tell me what it was all for… I guess not then.”

“I’m sorry.” Kaito whispered.

“...you know, I told her to turn your damned god down. No one knows better than a future seer, how damn near impossible certainties are in the future. If she was gonna take a risk on anything improving on its own, let it be the whore gods quest and not our packs. Choose the destiny of the Ram, and not the Whore… but whatever your goddess said? It convinced her.” Danielle said, glancing warily to a door on the farther end of the room, “She said it was barely a choice at all. That our packs would dwindle and fall in numbers, yes… but that wolf-kin would survive another thousand years. That it was a difference between hundreds and billions. And how could she say no, in the fact of that?”

“...I don’t understand.” Kaito said, a chill running up his spine, “What the hell can I do that would have that sort of effect? I’m actually kind of a coward, when it comes to going out and making change in a physical way, I’m not about to change the shape of history. I don’t even like paperwork. My main skill is giving really good feet-taps to my daughter.”

“Who the fuck knows?” Danielle shrugged, “And honestly, how some fates work? You may never know. Especially if they took the knowledge out of your head. At that scale, son, it might be something entirely inconspicuous. You a proverbial butterfly, flapping your wings and making a hurricane. It might not even be you specifically, it might be some influence you have over someone else. Or a descendent, even. I was hoping you would tell me. But if the gods are keeping secrets, than we cannot know.”

 “...” Kaito sighed, letting his shoulders fall a little, “...that’s alright. That’s not what I came here to ask anyway. I wanted–”

“To know what happened to your family.” Danielle nodded, “I know. That’s why this encounter was promised. It was one of the few kindness’s your whore god offered, in the face of our damnation. He swore that when the Light of Dicea wed, Akane would find me again. And I could give her soul closure. The last piece she needs to, well…” Danielle huffed, “Be you, I suppose. Without regret.”

It wasn’t fair. A lot of parts of…everything. The fact that the Werewolf Hunts even happened. That, maybe in another world, they wouldn’t have been so devastating…even if facing that level of hatred and violence from their countrymen would’ve been devastating either way. That…the entire choice between hundreds and billions was seemingly placed on a single woman…and that that choice forced her to abandon those who she valued most. That those people were forced to go on without her, into a horrific slaughter. 

That, maybe in Danielle’s case, though it seemed she’d seen too much of life and the god’s machinations to truly be too tormented by it, some were left with just…unanswered questions of ‘what if’. 

And unfortunately…they didn’t have a lot of answers to give. 

Kokichi looked over, putting a hand on his husband’s arm. Without answers, it did make things feel a little…pointless, but…well, people were rarely privy to grand plans of the universe. That was the realm of the gods. And earth was the realm of the people, so…they just had to focus on their own efforts under their hands. And watch the changes they could make from that. 

It was good that they could get Akane’s closure like this, it was what Kaito had promised her, but… 

Kokichi gave Danielle a soft, sorrowful look. “...and what were you promised?”

“...” Danielle turned her head away, “No one promised me anything. I just…” She paused, looking at the door to her study. Picking at her somewhat clawed fingernails,  “...I was young. I had only been an oracle a few years, and not even the main one, I was still apprenticing under the elder. I was told that it wouldn’t be Akane, not really, but… what can I say?”

Danielle looked at Kaito, a little sadly amused with herself, “I was young and in love. And I didn’t know who the ‘Light of Dicea’ was until about six years ago, when people started first sharing that name. I had grand daydreams of being reunited, falling in love in another life. You are a handsome boy, I will give you that. But a taaaad too young for my tastes now. And also, well… as I was waiting for my ‘grand fairytale’ to happen, I fell in love again the boring, normal way. Met a hunters daughter. Started a forbidden, whirlwind romance. Somewhat accidentally saved the last remaining members of my packs by marrying the daughter of one of the most influential hunters, who despite my best efforts, managed to get close to me anyway. Old bastard worked with me to end things, gave me my little coset funeral, and I hope in whatever hell he’s in, that he’s getting by alright.”

“Sounds like your feelings were complicated.” Kaito said, Danielle scoffing at that, “...wait, the hunts were a long time ago. You’re elderly, so I was willing to let it go to a point, but you’re not two hundred years old.”

“Hell yes I am, boy.” Danielle said, snorting, “I had a promise to keep, and a world full of magic. Considering I, and my lady love, should be bone and dust by now, I am aging fantastically.”

“Waiting for me?” Kaito asked, something heavy in the question.

“Yes, but not just that. At first it was waiting for you. But, well, like I said, life went on and the war ended and I was still here, just doing things. So I went and had new goals and desires and I’ve gotten through a lot of them. And while for most of my life I was certain I’d never want children, not wanting to risk bringing any new pups into the world to be hunted… well, the hunts are long over, and as you can see,” Danielle said, gesturing to some family pictures on the wall, “Eventually Riley and I had some kids of our own. All adopted, not everyone can pull off whatever the hells you three did, and only one of them wolf-kin. Wolf-kin don’t tend to need adopting. But now that we’ve started, we’re a little addicted. I’ll live longer still. Got three more grandkids I wanna see grow up. Then, maybe after that… we’ll see.”

Kaito nodded along with Danielle… before finally asking, “What happened to my family?”

“Don’t you mean what happened to her family?” Danielle corrected.

“...yeah, sorry.” Kaito sighed, rubbing his temple, “Yeah. What happened to Akane’s family?”

“Well, that’s what I’ve kept my morbid little graveyard for.” Danielle said, standing up, motioning for them to follow, “Let’s go take a look.”

Another unfairness. And…Kokichi did understand it, to an extent. It wasn’t fair, to make a deal with someone and ask them an unimaginable sacrifice, and then just…call it done. Not consider all the other people in their lives that you were taking something from, for nothing. But no one was alone, and, through enough connections, all lives touched each other. Trying to provide compensation for everyone a life touched was…a lot. A lot of preordained things that would replace choices. 

…but it still was painful. And that grief was still real. 

Even as life moved on. 

Kokichi’s eyes widened a little, hearing about maybe not the end of the hunts, but an end of some…and the start of a family. Of new chapters of life. Different, but still full. He smiled, looking over the family pictures and…well, he’d met the other Kiginkos still at the orchard. Maybe they didn’t see each other all that often, but Kokichi still considered them fondly. And with the youngest members, that connection could only grow. 

Rubbing Kaito’s back as they stood for…what could literally be a morbid graveyard, Kokichi tilted his head at his husband. Checking in. 

Kaito glanced down at Kokichi, before giving him a wane smile an a small shrug, before leaning in to whisper, “I know, I know, but… I feel okay? I don’t know why either.”

Still, he took Kokichi’s hand anyway. Because who knew, maybe he’d feel different in a moment…

Kaito wasn’t surprised that they walked into a closet. Maybe he should have been, but he wasn’t. It had felt as natural as when he had been passed his own coat. Like a part of him was just nodding. Of course. 

He looked at all the laid out wolf furs. Some were coats. Some were blankets. Some were… small.

Kaito stared at all the furs. He let go of Kokichi’s hand, his eyes wide and blank, as he ran his hand over some of the fur.

(...I know you…)

(You still smell like them.)

(Kin.)

“...why am I not?” Kaito said, looking at Danielle, “Freaking the fuck out right now? This is horrifying.”

“Humans do tend to feel that way,” Danielle nodded, “The hunters certainly thought it was disrespectful. But winters are long and deep. And our pups, half the time, are naked, cold little runts. I couldn’t tell you where in our ancestral history we started. But we keep our skins of our kins.The hunters forgot who taught them how to skin fur.” Danielle scoffed, baring her teeth, “Perhaps that’s merely historical folklore, but I believe it. Humans shy away naturally from the idea of use in their own bodies after death. I do not believe they would have taught wolves how to skin, so wolves had to come up with it first, and spread that knowledge. Our history is in the scent of our fur. For true, fullblooded wolf-kin, that sentiment is very serious. Our scents pass on knowledge. And our scents remain in our fur.”

Kaito nodded, still running his hands along some of the coats. There were many wolf furs in this room, all clean and well taken care of. But the coats. The coats specifically…

“Hunters made coats.” Kaito knew.

Danielle nodded, “To try to confuse our noses, when they hunted us. Thinking our kin was nearby. Now that is truly horrifying.”

Kaito agreed. Looking between the fabrics… before he looked at Danielle. His eyes red. “I can’t smell them. Can you help me?”

And Danielle went through the coats with him. This was Agatha. She lived to thirty-seven, she handled clay, she made homes, died trying to save those homes from burning.

(Agatha–mature–clay–sweat–fire)

(Kaito couldn’t smell it, but Akane remembered what those scents together smelled like, and knew, yes. That was Agatha.)

This was Koish. He was barely more than a pup, seventeen. He was adept at fishing, which kept him near the rivers. He was fishing. He did not know the hunters were there, and never knew.

(Koish–young–fish–river–calm–blood in the back)

This was–

(Thadish–old–pup–milk–stone.)

(Danish–prime–metal–fierce–battle)

More, and more. Coat after coat. And when she was done…

…Kaito smiled. A pained smile, but he smiled. 

“...I don’t remember who they were,” he said, “But a lot of them lived, then. More than I think she was willing to hope for. Which means they lived their lives. Had descendents. I did not lose all of them. Too many, still… but I was ready for all.”

Kaito looked down at Danielle. And though his eyes were red, he grinned with all of his teeth. “...thank you, Danni. I would never have been able to find them. Thank you for waiting for me.”

“...” Danielle leaned into the hug Kaito pulled her in. Wrapping her hands around his back and breathing in deeply. Committing the scent to memory, “...you’re welcome, love. You were always worth waiting for.”

-

They were not babysitting.

The kids had just straight up followed them.

It was a little surreal, honestly. The kids weren’t nearby or anything, they were just running through the apple orchard, racing around the trees with the dogs. The surreality was in the distant sounds of them playing. It was slightly covered by the wind, carried in odd, twisting ways. 

“...I wish I knew some sort of ‘children forest ghost’ story or something,” Arven said, catching another glimpse of the kids in the distance, running around and giggling, “I feel like this would be a perfect reference, for a story like that.”

He paused, before glancing at Doppio, “You know the story of King Vander?”

It wasn’t exactly a romantic walk through…well, not woods, but trees nonetheless, but…it was peaceful regardless. And Doppio was happy to intertwine his fingers with Arven’s and keep an eye on him as the afternoon wind blew, ready to offer his jacket at the slightest shiver. 

He actually found the slightly warped sound of the kids playing comforting--if he could still hear them, then they were probably alright--but Doppio would enjoy a spooky story or two on Harvest of all days. Though, uh… Doppio glanced over, cocking his head a little. “The…he’s the second king of Dicea, right? Mercenary guy that took jobs from all over the country to be more of a symbol people could rally under?”

Doppio smiled sheepishly. “...I don’t think I’d be blowing your mind if I mentioned history isn’t really a strong point of mine…”

Arven laughed, nudging him a bit, “I didn’t think you’d be super caught up in history, yeah. I’m actually a little curious where you learned that? Were you born with certain knowledge just innately in your mind? Including things like history?”

Doppio shrugged helplessly, grimacing a bit before he sighed. “...sort of? I think? Like…I don’t remember being made and I couldn’t pinpoint, like…the start of…whatever. But I really doubt my dad ever sat me down with a bunch of textbooks or whatever to teach me basic stuff.”

Gnawing his lip, Doppio looked down, unsure. “...I…might’ve just been made with… Like, his general knowledge? Maybe?”

“That would make sense. You’re a little too smart, honestly, to have only been studying for the last year.” Arven said, squeezing Doppio’s hand a bit, “I’m glad you didn’t have to start from zero. You’re doing way more with all that knowledge then your dad… and by that I mean being cool, cute and interesting.” 

Arven hummed, trying to recall the story, “So, yes, he was the Mercenary King. I’m not sure if he really meant to be folkhero leader or if it just kinda happened that way, but one of the famous stories about him is that there were these kids in the woods, right? And they had essentially started a small child civilization in there or something? Apparently he used to check in on them and bring them food, and some of those kids grew up to be leaders themselves.” Arven said, looking around the trees, looking for signs of the kids– he heard an excited bark, along with Cali doing some sort of battle cry– before musing, “How long do you think these kids would survive in the woods? My bet is… a week.”

“I’m glad I seem smarter than a 1-year-old,” Doppio drawled, rolling his eyes a little, though he squeezed Arven’s hand back with a soft smile. “...I’m glad too, though, even if it makes things a little confusing sometimes. Makes it easier to put things together.”

And it was always embarrassing when he didn’t know something that was apparently considered basic. Going with that transfer theory, Doppio wasn’t sure if those things were just…things his dad didn’t know either, or just that Doppio wasn’t granted that information when he was made. 

…probably the latter. Like, his dad probably knew what sex was, right?

Shaking his head of the matter, Doppio lit up, happy to listen to a story, whether historical or legend. “A child civilization in the woods seems far-fetched…but the king finding runaways or orphans or something and helping them out does seem exactly like the kind of legend people would pass down,” Doppio laughed softly. 

He looked up, looking around for the kids as well before he snorted. “I get the feeling that they’d do better than expected…but would end up coming home just ‘cause they got bored. I dunno how well they’d do hunting and all, but…” Doppio glanced over, bumping his shoulder against Arven’s. “You’re the foraging expert, so you’d know the skill and timelines for that.”

“Mmmm, maybe if they started in the spring? Had a whole summer to learn how to live in nature?” Arven said, looking around at the orange leaves, “Send them out now though? They’ll be buried in snow in a few months, no way they’d survive that. Though, to be fair, I’m not sure how well I’d do either. Food is so hard to forage in our winters.”

“Seriously, if we’re going to travel?” Arven said, giving Doppio a stern look, “I’d recommend always starting at the end of winter. Gives us plenty of easy weather to work with. You know Maki’s dad left only a little while ago for back to Luminary? That’s actually insane. I have to assume no one’s explained to them how serious winters get here. I hear that Luminary doesn’t have snow at all. That they just get ash snow from erupting volcanoes.” 

Doppio nodded, not quite solemn, but with a certain amount of seriousness that living on the road in winter demanded. “I think now might actually be the worst time to try living in the woods. There’s just enough of the autumn bounty that you might think you’re getting the hang of it at first, and then whoosh. Winter will humble that notion quickly.”

He frowned, shaking his head a little and…subconsciously pulling himself into his jacket more. Not quite memories, but…

(Doppio knew exactly how barren a winter could be.)

(How unrelenting of a foe cold was, making you slow and dumb and tired, stinging everything until you shook, until you stopped, making even breaths hurt as your throat turned to ice. How sleep seemed like the biggest temptation, but a fatal one.)

“Yikes… I hope they make fast time over the mountains before the snow hits,” Doppio murmured in concern. “I really can’t imagine a winter without snow, though… I know it’s not that heavy, and it doesn’t last long down south, but…you still see it.”

“Yep. I guess worse comes to worse they can hold up in a town if winter closes up the paths?” Arven said, shaking his head, “Still. Good luck to them.”

Arven glanced up at the trees. Filled with apples. The orchard encouraged visitors to take a basket and collect apples, but Arven didn’t want a bundle of apples. Just… “give me one second,” Arven said, placing a kiss on Doppio’s cheek, before heading towards a tree.

Arven wasn’t the most flexible person around– he was sort of on the ‘stout’ side of things, and that didn’t lend itself well to flexible types of exercises that he wasn’t pushing himself through anyway– but he was extremely used to climbing either way, so it wasn’t long before he was up. Up and up, peering at the apples, looking for something specific… before grinning, plucking one, “Aceto, catch!” He said, gently tossing it down towards him.

Given that Maki’s dad was an assassin who’d lived long enough to raise another assassin, and for her to have a kid…Doppio had faith that he wouldn’t make dumb decisions when it came to survival, even if they were unfamiliar with snow. It was always annoying to be stuck somewhere for months if you got caught in a particularly thick fall, but…annoying was better than dead. 

Giving Arven a curious look--though he smiled at the kiss--Doppio watched as Arven climbed one of the apple trees, laughing softly as he reached out to catch the apple. And, uh, fumbled it a few times, making a wobbly sound with his voice, but he managed not to completely drop it, and help the apple up in victory. “Got it!”

Chuckling, he grinned affectionately up at Arven. “Thinking about a little post-lunch dessert?”

“Mmhm~” Arven hummed, grabbing an apple for himself, before sitting at a branch. His legs kicking in the breeze, as he looked down at Doppio, taking a little bite of his apple, the warmth of the sun behind him, “...you’re really pretty, from this angle. Too, I mean.”

It was an honest statement. Doppio was slightly shadowed by the sun through the leaves, his braid blowing slightly behind his back in the breeze. The gold in his eyes was really obvious in this lighting, his gaze widened by looking up. It was very pretty. Aceto’s natural colors weren’t ‘fall’, perse… but he still looked gorgeous among the fall weather.

Doppio had been in the process of taking out a water bottle and a small cloth to clean his apple, before he blinked, looking up at Arven before blushing. Looking pleased and embarrassed as he shifted his weight a little. “As if you aren’t picturesque yourself right now…geez.”

Even wearing brighter colors, Arven very much did slot into a fall palette. Surrounded by warm-colored leaves, brightened even more by the sun filtering down between them… Even perched up in the tree, it all seemed so natural to see Arven like that. Like a symbol or…the art on a fancy package of maple or pumpkin pancake mix. 

Cleaning his apple, Doppio took a bite before looking up at Arven. The last time he’d followed Arven up a tree had been…disastrous. But…the apple trees were much smaller than the one in the crossroads, and his dad wasn’t…an issue. So maybe…

Smiling shyly, Doppio asked, “...think there’s room for one more up there?”

Arven smiled, nodding as he made a show of lifting himself up by his arms, walking down the branch a bit, before settling back down and patting the spot next to him, closest to the center of the tree. “Come on up~”

They could still hear the kids. Arven wondered where they got all that energy. It was like they never stopped moving, when they were together. 

Grinning, Doppio fit the apple in his mouth--he’d taken a bite so he couldn’t just put it in his pocket, potentially a dumb move--before starting to climb up the tree. He was maybe taking it a bit more carefully than he might’ve but…well, he thought he could be allowed that. 

They really couldn’t have been more than ten feet up, but Doppio still hummed happily at the height as he settled in, brushing his hands on his pants before taking the apple back out of his mouth. And, flushing red with embarrassment, having to slurp some drool back in his mouth, licking his lips. “Urgh, wow, sorry…”

It wasn’t the best view. They weren’t at the top of the tree, and all the apple trees were close enough together that it all was just a mess of fall-colored leaves in view. But…still. There was something special feeling about being above eye-level, tucked away among the branches…

“...think anyone’d be able to find us up here?” he half-smirked at Arven.

“I think that’s their problem more than ours.” Arven smirked back, leaning in to kiss him.

Mmm… sunshine and apples. Nice.

-

Rounding everyone back up was a bit of a process. They did eventually find the kids… but only because they discovered the kids had trapped the teenagers in the tree, hitting the center of the tree with apples every time the teenagers tried to climb down. 

After a bit of scolding by Kaito about the dangers of pelting objects at people in a high place, and a bit of scolding by Kokichi about wasting food (and then a small smirk by Shuichi, who thought the whole thing was very funny), they all headed back to the main part of the festival. 

Kaito had, admittedly, been thinking about it all day… to the point where he refused to be the one to bring it up. He felt a little self-conscious, for how much he was looking forward to the open mic, to the point where he might have honestly been less embarrassed to just let his family forget that the open mic night was a thing and miss it entirely, then asking ‘casually’ if they were ready to go take a look at it.

It was essentially what happened with the last open mic he had intended to go too. The closer it had gotten, the less he talked about it, the more embarrassed he was by how much he wanted to go. And, well, things had gotten really busy, several abused teenagers later and Kaito had just found himself in a situation where it had felt weirdly selfish to take an evening to himself to go perform in front of other people… even though the evening it had happened, Kaito hadn’t even been busy. Just hanging out with his family. 

But Kokichi brought it up, and Kaito had agreed, and now they were heading over. 

It was about time too. The sky was starting to tinge pink and orange, and despite what the kids insisted, Kaito knew they’d be exhausted by 10pm, and they still had the smaller haunted house at Temp’s to let them run through. Once they did that, Kaito knew he’d want to take the kids home and let them rest at the castle. Though, maybe he could ask Firenze to do it, before letting the guy go for the night? Kaito felt like he’d be fine at Temp’s house, and then going straight home to the castle after that. He’d talk to everyone about it.

 But for now… whelp. They were watching jugglers. Really, really enthusiastic jugglers. Who were about to introduce knives into the juggle.

“...Hey, kids? And ‘Kichi?” Kaito whispered, “Close your eyes. I feel like they’re overconfident.”

Kokichi was holding Miyako again, who had woken up on their wagon ride back into the city center, but in some clever arranging, she was quite close to Kaito as well, and handling it better than that morning. And…by that, it simply meant that Kokichi had claimed his favorite seat in Kaito’s lap. 

And it didn’t even mean that Shuuichi was out of luck and had to sit on the ground like the rest of them! The whole of the Trussen family, including Nela’s friends, which then also included Lluwyn, had met up with the royal procession at the park stage, and, while it wasn’t a chair, Cheri did offer Shuuichi one of the picnic cushions the family had brought when he had lamented his options. 

Doppio thought that was a little…astounding, just how things aligned to indulge Shuuichi, but…well, he couldn’t say he was mad about it. He was mostly just trying to make non-awkward conversation with Arven’s classmates and, who he was introduced to, Elthea. 

Smiling up at Kaito, Kokichi was a little more confident in the performers, and he returned his rapt gaze to the stage. “Juggling knives are pretty blunt, I think they’ll be fine. They’ve done some really cool patterns so far too! You have to respect a routine like this, for sure!”

Shuichi had smiled warmly and thanked Cheri for her consideration, happily accepting the cushion and settling in comfortably. On top of that, for whatever reason, both Chase and Chief– tired from a day of running around– had decided Shuichi and the cushion looked comfy, and now Shuichi was surrounded by comfy dog warmth, Chief bordering his back and Chase doing little puppy pants in his lap.

Shuichi wasn’t a big ‘dog’ guy, but sleeping dogs were pretty cozy, he had to admit. 

The kids were also watching, enraptured, apparently not even registering Kaito had spoken to them as they watched the knives start to fly with awed gasps. Kaito felt increasingly wary, watching the jugglers. Maybe he’d feel more relaxed if all his little loved ones weren’t here, all… blood-phobia’d and ‘impressionable-minded. He swore, if one of these morons got nicked and suddenly the kids were afraid to try cooking later in life…

The jugglers encouraged the crowd to hype them up, having the crowd count with them how many knives were added. “3! 4! 5! 6!!!”

Six knives flew between them through the air…and then one by one each juggler grabbed a knife, tossed it onto the ground, until all six knives were lodged into the stage, the jugglers grinning, posing in front of the roaring, impressed crowd.

Kaito sighed, but instead of clapping, continued to massage Miyako’s feet. Their baby was a little startled by the noise, but she wasn’t alarmed yet. Just looking around curiously as she drank from her bottle, eyes wide and exploring.

Kokichi was very much enchanted by the energy, but he merely sang-songed the numbers to Miyako, glancing down with every one and holding her bottle steady. She’d been doing so well that day~ He was so proud~ And just observing the excited crowd around them, he had hope that she’d be more curious than upset about this too. 

Giggling as the jugglers finished their set, Kokichi gently tapped Miyako’s arm with his index finger as a way of clapping. “Yayyyy~ That was super cool! Aw, Miyaaaa, do you think you’re gonna ask Dad to teach you to juggle one day? He hasn’t even done it for Daddy, when Daddy thinks it’s suuuuuper impressive. You’re impressive just being a little Mi-Mi, but a juggling Mi-Mi? It’d blow my mind.”

Nela glanced back at the princes for a moment before giggling softly and looking back at the rest of the teens, twirling some of the lightened bits of her hair. “That’s so cute… Cheri says Prince Shuuichi is always really proud of his daughter when they talk, but…are they really all like this? It’s sweet.”

Doppio nodded, his gaze bouncing between the stage, his lap, and the grass around them. “They dote on their kids a lot. It’s a Thing.”

Miyako blinked curiously at Kokichi, likely just listening to Daddy Talk, but Kaito liked to interpret it as Miyako being absolutely dazzled by this possibility. Juggling Mi-Mi? Her?? Could it truly be so???

Kaito snickered, placing a kiss at Kokichi’s temple, “Says the guy who took a year to even mention he could play the piano. Like that’s not something I’d have been absolutely obsessed with. Speaking of, babe, I want another performance soon. Little Miyako deserves to hear piano-time.”

“Not to mention me.” Shuichi pointed out. Kaito nodding seriously.

“Yeah, they’re a little ‘extra’ about it.” Arven agreed, who kept pouting at Chief. Really, Chief?? Such traitor behavior! Where was his dog snuggles?? “I think they’re addicted to childrearing or something. Watch yourself and Bianka, they like to kidnap children.”

Kokichi sighed, though he pressed back against Kaito affectionately. “I can’t really believe it either. Sure, it’s one of my less practiced hobbies, but I can’t believe I never mentioned it.”

“Sure thing,” Kokichi grinned at his husbands, eyes drifting back to the stage as someone going up to do a floor routine was announced. “Aw, if we built a pillow fort again, that’d be fun, even if I’d be out of it. But I have a few things I wanna practice more, so…sure, let’s plan something soon.”

Laughing softly, Nela glanced over at her sisters. “I think they’d have to fight Papa, and Light of Dicea or no, he wouldn’t go easy on them. But Bi-Bi might take it on as a reconnaissance mission anyway, if only because it’d mean she’d get to join in on the sleepovers Timothy, Cali, and Kimiko have more.”

“Maaaaan, your dad sounds almost as overprotective as Llu,” Elthea rolled her eyes, on her stomach with her feet in the air as she made a small chain out of the field daisies around them. “And the castle is super protected at night.”

She stuck her tongue out a little. “Guard Hayatsui keeps snitching on me when I come back late. I think Llu might’ve paid him off or something.”

Doppio blinked at Elthea, one of the few times he’d been able to meet the girls’ faces. “...you live at the castle?”

Elthea blew a raspberry. “Uh, earth to space cadet? I’ve been staying there longer than you two have! You guys just barely ever leave the castle,” Because of legal trouble, she’d surmised, sure, “And I actually have a social life.”

Minnie sent Arven a slightly incredulous, teasing look. “How’d you think we all heard all that stuff going on with you at school?”

Arven stared at Minnie, then at Elthea for a long minute, “...wait, you’re not one of my classmates?”

“UUUUUUGH!” Elthea groaned, just waving off the hushed start of a lecture from Lluwyn’s direction. “Oh my goddessss, your neck must be in constant pain from staring at the clouds all day. Are guys just all this dense?!”

Doppio’s expression tightened. “Arven’s not dumb! …a-and he was gone last year so…he could’ve missed someone moving into the school district…”

Minnie covered her mouth in a snicker. “Boy, we’ve been back at school for five weeks now. No, Arven just could only name everyone in our year if the stars align for maximum luck, nevermind actually remembering who everyone is.”

Nela smiled weakly. “...you do tend to just keep to your own company…”

“I think asking me to name everyone in our year is too much to ask a guy,” Arven said, entirely undisturbed as he shrugged, though he put an arm around Doppio’s shoulders, attempting to cool him down a little, “For instance, I’ve been getting away without knowing three of the rabbits by name, because everyone knows who I’m talking about when I mentioned the rabbits. Like, seriously, who’s the shaggy black haired kid? I only ever see anyone refer to him as ‘you’.”

Kaito was listening in on this, before sighing, whispering to Kokichi, “I have goooot to socialize this kid, holy crud.”

Kokichi leaned his head back against Kaito, holding Miyako’s bottle to her one more time before she turned away from it, signaling the end of meal time. “Baby-steps. He’s brought friends over--just baby-steps from there.”

Minnie absolutely couldn’t hold back her next snort, though she looked a little flustered at the sound. “A-Arven, his name is Yuu.”

“Hopeless…” Elthea shook her head with a sigh, before she looked up at Doppio, brown eyes blazing. “Even I know most people by now, and I don’t go to Mid-Valley. Doppio! Name as many people as you can!”

That shocked Doppio out of his tense expression, and he blinked widely, balking. “Wh-what?!”

Nela sighed, “Ellie, that’s not really fa--”

“U-uh, I-I’m kinda bad with names but, um, well, you’re Minnie, Nela, and Elthea, though, uh, you just said you don’t…um! W-well! There’s Giovanni a-and Trish, and Penny and Nemona and…the Rabbits, I guess, but…I-I haven’t really met anyone else from your class…”

Elthea nodded, already thinking that was enough for her point, but looking a bit worried, Doppio quickly barreled on. 

“B-but I know people from other grades! There’s Josie and Dimitri and Fiora and K-Khalid and Eden and Gerard and Dedan, um, from chess club, a-and Clay with, um, Wally and his blond friend, i-if they count, oh, and, uh, I think, um, Irene and Hugo go to your school too, and…Giovanni has a lot of siblings, but I don’t really…know them by name…”

The girls all blinked, before Minnie let out an enthused laugh. “Wow, guy! And you said you were bad with names! And you’ve only been around, like, what, less than a month. Not bad, spots!”

Doppio looked halfway between offended and relieved. “...spots?”

Arven was nodding along at first… before looking a little surprised. Genuinely taken off guard as Doppio listed name after name. Not that any of them were people Arven himself didn’t know, but, like, honestly if he had been asked to list everyone, he’d have probably given up a few names in. Wow.

“I’m still reeling a little that there was another teenager living in the castle this whole time.” Arven admitted, tilting his head. “I’m surprised Kaito didn’t set us up on a play-date or something.”

“And spots is pretty cute, for a nickname.” Arven grinned, poking Doppio gently on the cheek, “Freckles is cute too.”

Elthea shrugged a little. “Like I said, I have a social life. And Kaito doesn’t really talk to me much--Shuuichi and my brother are nerd friends, but that stuff’s booooooring,” she groaned, “So a girl has to take life into her own hands, you know?!”

“I’m glad you did,” Nela smiled softly. “Summer was a lot of fun, once we met.”

Flushing, Doppio looked down and shrugged a little while Minnie sent him a grin. “I thought Freckles was too literal. And it’s better than calling you Trice or something,” she scoffed. “Just unoriginal.”

Doppio looked up again, giving Minnie a confused look. “...why would anyone call me that?”

Nela shook her head, her usually soft, kind features drawn into a disapproving frown. “It’s just the Rabbits being jerks, don’t pay it mind, Doppio.” At his continued confusion, she sighed and explained. “‘Trish’ can sometimes be a short form of ‘Patricia’...and the masculine version of that is ‘Patrice’, which when shortened the same way again, makes ‘Trice’. It’s also spelled the same as trice, which means three and…your name means two, doesn’t it? It’s just them being jerks about getting your name wrong, and comparing you to Trish.”

Doppio narrowed his eyes in confusion. “...that’s…really involved for a mean nickname.”

Elthea rolled her eyes. “Tell me about it. I was going to throw up from boredom when I heard about it.”

“...but don’t you pronounce 3, ter-ice?” Arven asked, tilting his head against Doppio, the only annoying thing about the nickname the Trish comparison. Doppio wasn’t Trish! They were just both pink haired! That’s it!

Meanwhile… Kaito had buried his face into the back of Kokichi’s head… just quietly cackling.

“What a weird mean nickname,” Kaito snickered into Kokichi’s skull, his whole body shaking under his laughter. Miyako, in Kokichi’s lap, was astounded by the small earthquake happening beneath her. The world was vibrating. Woah. 

Suddenly, eyes alight with desire, Kaito peeked around to look at Kokichi, whispering, “Did you ever get a mean nickname?”

“Uh, yeah?” Minnie raised an eyebrow, “That’s why Nellie said that it’s just spelled the same? Like, seriously, it’s such a dumb stretch, but the Rabbits kept telling everyone like it was some high-minded, intellectual burn. More like they’re a bunch of losers desperate for attention.”

Doppio frowned a little, idly putting his hand around Arven’s waist. “...everyone I’ve talked to hates the Rabbits. How do they even get away with bullying anyone?”

Smiling softly down at Miyako’s wonder--though…hearing about bullying in school was…concerning--Kokichi huffed a small laugh. “If you want to call Denji calling me a peacock and a clown mean nicknames? I think that’s the closest I’ve gotten.” 

“They bully everyone. Heck, by this point, maybe they just don’t feel like they have anything to lose. No one likes them anyway.” Arven pointed out, “And every now and again someone knocks them down a peg or two. Especially Penny. Not that you can get her to admit it was her.”

“Hmmmmm,” Kaito said, closing his eyes, “I think the last mean nickname I ever got was… did you actually call me a chicken, or just imply that my hair looked like a chicken? I feel like you called me ‘cock-chan’ at some point, but that could entirely be me re-writing that memory.” Kaito snorted, “Like, that sounds like a joke I would make, not you.”

The kids, looking a little dead-eyed, watching the stage, looked to Kaito suddenly. “Will we get in trouble for boo’ing this one?” Timothy asked.

“What? Yes. Why?” Kaito asked, looking up at the stage. 

“And then the moon… looked over it’s boon,” the poet said, each line incredibly slow, and each rhyme stressed, like the audience might miss it, “...and it thought… man… too soon.”

Then the poet started to snap his fingers, wiggling his hips as he did… before leaning in to the microphone to continue, ‘And the lamb? Well, she said… man…that monarch don’t give a… damn… about Sam.”

“Okay, yeah, you can boo him.” Kaito agreed.

Doppio sighed, rubbing his temple a little. “Most people I’ve met from your school are really nice…but actually being there, um, regularly, I guess, sounds like a headache waiting to happen.”

Nela sort of nodded to that, considering the statement, while Minnie laughed. “It sure doesn’t leave a dull moment!”

“Even before I really knew you, I don’t think I’d open that can of worms,” Kokichi shook his head. “I think I said your hair looked like a chicken? I also might’ve just made chicken noises--now that sounds like me.”

Glancing up at the poet--...at least it rhymed?--Kokichi sighed before he looked up at Kaito. “Are you up after this, or is it one more? I’ll be honest, I’m excited,” he grinned, “Hearing the bits and pieces of you practicing still gives me chills!”

Kaito grinned a little nervously– while the poet on the stage talked about that cat… in that hat– before whispering, “I think it’s another person or two–”

“Thank you for that EPIC beat poetry!” the announcer called, the kids boos getting drowned out by everyone's somewhat polite applause. “Next up: Kaito Momota! Performing a monologue!”

Kaito gave a barking, excited laugh, before suddenly floundering, “Oh, Miyaaaaa~ Miyaaaaa~ Dad’s sorrrryyyyyy~”

Miyako had physically jolted at the sudden sound, eyes wide with surprise… before she pouted. Not quite crying, but giving Kaito a very disapproving look. You were on reeeaaaaal thin ice, Red.

“It’s alright, Kaito, we have her. Go have fun.” Shuichi smiled, sending Kaito off, as Kokichi shuffled off his lap. 

“Okay, okay! Alright, wish me luck!” Kaito grinned at them, before hurrying towards the stage. 

“Woo, you got this.” Shuichi said gently, giving Kaito another fond wave, before smirking at Kokichi, “He’s excited.”

“Oh, dad’s going?” Timothy asked, before shrugging, “Well, easy thing to follow up on.”

“Oh, oh,” Cali said, eyes sparkling as she turned to her friends, “Let’s sign up! I bet I’ve got the perfect performance idea now! Bianka, you wanna perform?”

“Aw, Mi-Mi, Dad’s so excited he wants you to be wide awake for his performance, huh? I think that’s an alarm clock you’ll get very used to.” Soothing his baby and stroking her arm, Kokichi grinned up at Kaito. “You’ll be amazing, Kai-chan! Go wow the masses!”

Lighting up, Bianka nodded excitedly. “Absolutely! I didn’t practice cartwheels all week just to only do it once!”

Looking over at the stage, Doppio squeezed Arven a little and gave the girls a nervous grin, not quite looking at them. “Oh, Kaito’s actually really good at stuff like this… I-it’ll be neat to watch, probably…”

“Is he?” Arven asked, raising an eyebrow, “Wait, I think I’ve heard something about that. He does goofy villain stuff in plays, right? Can’t remember where I heard that, might have been chatting with Shuichi. This should be… well, something, anyway.”

Kaito shuffled his feet a bit on the stage, looking around the crowd. He grinned, though briefly, there was clearly something nervous in his expression. A small giggle in his throat as he clapped his hands together and rubbed his palms a bit. He looked sheepish and a tad uncertain, but trying to smile through it. He didn’t look like someone who had performed on a stage before.

And then, still grinning, he leaned in– closer to the microphone, but not too close. Giving the impression that he was leaning in towards the crowd itself, like a friend across from a countertop– and ‘whispered’, “Can I tell you all a secret?”

There was a pause. It wasn’t that there was anything particularly ominous in just that, but… there was something interesting. In the foreign prince going onto a stage, looking nervous and sheepish but excited, drawing everyone into some sort of forbidden knowledge. It was hard to separate the Luminary Prince from whatever character Kaito was playing… assuming he was even playing a character at all?

With that thought in the back of their minds, the murmurs died down, people listening.

Kaito grinned. “I was in love once.”

“There was a shortcut, between my home and the market, that took me through a hiking trail in the woods.” Kaito explained, that small, sheepish grin still on his face, rubbing the back of his neck as he said, “I had known about the shortcut for years, but sometimes still I didn’t take it, because you had to go around some underbrush that, every other time you tried, undoubtedly ripped a piece of clothing, or scoffed your shoes. I liked to look my best at the market, and it was frowned upon for me to appear disheveled back home, so most of the time I stayed in the safer, more stable path of the roads and sidewalks, even if it took longer.”

“I wasn’t in a hurry. If anything, maybe that was why I took the shortcut that day. Because there was nothing urgent that I needed to be clean for,” Kaito snorted, “And I did end up losing one of my gloves to a thorn bush, pushing my way into the overgrown hiking trail. But that was okay. It was a warm day, and I didn’t mind being a little underdressed.”

“But if I felt underdressed just wearing one glove, you can imagine my shock when I came across a woman on the path, only wearing a skirt and a wrap around her chest, and nothing else.” Kaito said, his ears pinking, a flush burning from his neck to his face as he admitted, “The most beautiful woman I had ever seen too. Hair cascaded down her back, and eyes wide and imploring as she looked up at me. Honestly, I think I fell in love with her right then and there, but I rushed over because she looked injured, sitting on the side of the path. She couldn’t seem to stand, and there was something strange on her stomach.”

Kaito pointed to the lowest part of his chest, sliding his finger down to his abdomen, as he explained, “A line. From here, to here. It looked for a moment like a truly terrible scar. Like something awful had happened to her once. But when I asked her if she was injured, she put her hand to the top part of her scar and said,” Kaito put his hand to the top part of the line drawn, his eyes widening and his voice suddenly soft. Frightened. A demureness to his posture honestly made the six foot tall man seem frailer, almost small, “I’m so afraid to open it.”

“That was when I realized the line wasn’t a scar. Or, if it was, it wasn’t just a scar,” Kaito said, lowering his voice, eyes wide with nervous, frightened wonder, “It was a zipper. The front of her body had been lined with a zipper.”

Kaito suddenly giggled. Taking a small step back, the sound nervous and manic, as he explained quickly, suddenly, “See, that’s why it’s a secret. Because… because it’s strange, to fall in love so suddenly, with someone so strange, right? Oh, but guys… I was in love. Even with the zipper… no, somehow? The zipper made me fall more in love. She was so strange. A little scary! And she reached out to me and said, Please, don’t let me do it.”

“Let you do what?” Kaito asked, “Don’t let me open myself up. I don’t know what’s inside.”

Kaito paused. His eyes suddenly distant, far away… he fussed with the microphone a bit, fidgeting with it, as he stared at the floor, biting his lips… before he suddenly looked intensely back at the crowd.

“Okay, maybe falling in love isn’t really the… actual secret,” he whispered, nervous. Sweating a bit, it glistened at his temple, as he fidgeted nervously. He leaned in again, ‘whispering’, “But you already promised not to tell, right? My secret?”

Kaito smiled. It was oddly blank. Like a painting ever so slightly off balance, as he looked imploringly around the audience, “I can tell you guys, right? Just between us…”

Doppio raised his eyebrows, giving Arven a confused glance for a moment, though he immediately looked back to the stage, not wanting to miss anything. Arven…had been right there with him for several story times. He’d seen how Kaito could get while telling a story. Still himself, but…more than that. Like every character was in the room with you, and you could feel their every emotion. Feeling their fear and uncertainty and grief and struggle and exuberant triumph, each character not just words on a page and maybe an illustration, but…like they were a real person. And that even if the words didn’t quite do them justice, then…they were just around some unseen corner, and you knew there was so much more to them that the words failed to capture. 

Doppio might not remember all the pieces of the plot well…but he could remember how it felt to listen to Kaito lose himself in the telling of a story perfectly. 

(He liked to think it wasn’t just him being sentimental either, as a person that was also mostly ideas.)

Sure, Arven didn’t really give Kaito credit for much, but…he was a really good storyteller. 

Holding Arven close, Doppio was enraptured as he listened. Nela shivered a little at the thought of a woman with a zipper on her chest, and Minnie slung an arm around her, while Elthea puckered her lips in curious thought. Bianka narrowed her eyes in skepticism, while Cheri and Lio shared a slightly tired, but amused look, on the same page resolving to make sure neither of the younger Trussens would be left to nightmares from the Harvest-appropriate scary story. 

And Kokichi grinned adoringly, watching his husband put every bit of himself into a performance. 

Kaito suddenly laughed. His posture relaxing, grinning sheepishly as he said, “I know, I know I can. You guys will understand! It’s, ya know…” Kaito shrugged, waving his hand vaguely, “understandable.”

“So she asked me to help her resist the temptation to open herself up. And I’ll admit, at first I couldn’t understand why she was tempted in the first place,” Kaito admitted, brows furrowed, a slight wrinkling to his nose, “The zipper looked like a really badly healed scar. She said it didn’t hurt, but there was a redness in the skin around it that made me think she might have been trying to reassure me. The more I talked to her, the more I became convinced by that. She was… sweet.”

Kaito smiled, the blush coming back to his cheeks as he said after a moment, “She was really sweet. And kind. She seemed so afraid that I would be afraid of her. That I’d find her repulsive, or burdensome. I didn’t. I thought she was beautiful, and every moment I was with her? I liked her more and more. To the point that I didn’t just find her long hair and big eyes attractive, but also the way she spoke, and how gently she’d place her hands on me, and even the zipper…” Kaito trailed off, looking vacantly in the distant, “...even the zipper became attractive. In its own way. Another part of her.”

“And we got to know each other. I stayed all night and all day. I only left to bring her food. I offered to carry her away from that place, but she refused each time. If I leave? I don’t think I’ll ever be able to unzip myself. They’ll make me cover up, and I won’t see it anymore.”

“Isn’t that a good thing?” Kaito asked, concerned, before his face softened, sighing demurely, crestfallen and upset with himself, “I don’t want to open the zipper… but I don’t want to lose my chance to open it either. Not yet. I’m not ready to go.”

“So I stayed another night, and another day, and each minute I spent with her, I fell more in love. In love with every part of her.” Kaito gushed, a doey look on his face, “And I started promising her anything. Everything. That if she let me take her away, I’d put her in a beautiful home. And I’d make her delicious meals every day. And we’d cover up the zipper with soft, silken fabrics, and she’d never want for anything. I’d treasure every little piece of her.”

“And on the third day, she finally seemed excited by the idea!” Kaito cheered, grinning wide, eyes excited… and his eyes were still excited, but there was something off in his excitement. A mania bleeding into the expression, as he said, “And I got excited too, to love every part of her… but, but, here’s the thing, guys…”

Kaito leaned in, grin wide, eyes a tad desperate in their joy, “...I didn’t know every part of her yet. Did I?”

“She started talking about accepting my offer. I want to meet your family, that you speak about with such fondness! I want to meet your friends, who you dote on and dote on you! I want to share the life you talk about. And I wanted all of that for her too!” Kaito said, talking faster and faster, now pacing back and forth on the stage. Looking imploringly at everyone who’s eyeline he could capture, as he said quickly, “But I loved every part of her, and that included the dark, unseen parts too. How could I not? She might have been afraid of it, of the zipper, and what opening it up would reveal, but me? I already loved whatever was there! Every hidden thing the zipper kept inside? Whatever lay between the reddened, scarred edges of her flesh? I loved those parts of her too!”

“...Don’t I have a right?” Kaito suddenly said. Gritted teeth in between near feral grin, “To all those parts of her too?”

“We were talking about marriage, after all!” Kaito said, looking imploringly at the crowd. Nervous, but a strange confidence to him. Like they’d understand his reasoning and agree as a given, as he explained heatedly, “Shouldn’t a man know all of his wife!? Even the parts of her she doesn’t want to share? Especially the parts of her she’s afraid of? I already loved every terrible piece of her! I had a RIGHT to know all of her! Who was she, to keep secrets from me!?” Kaito snarled. Eyes alight with a tight anger, a deep rage… before he grinned brightly at the crowd, “Right?”

“So… when she finally asked me to pick her up?” Kaito said, calming down. His quiet eerie, coming so quickly after that bout of rage, looking at something only he could see in front of him, reaching a hand out slowly, “I reached to pick her up… and I truly did, in that moment, just mean to pick her up. To take her home. To love every part of her…”

Kaito reached, gaze soft. Contemplative… before he suddenly closed his hand with a SNAP of his fingers. Taking a moment to look up, like he was looking into someone’s eyes, a brief moment of uncertain hesitation on him… before his expression tightened in determination, and he brought his arm down in one violent pull.

The audience watched, as Kaito panted. Like the act had taken a great amount of strength. Staring wide eyed at nothing, before taking a step back. Then another. Looking at the ground. At his feet… before looking up at the audience, “...I don’t really know what it was I had been expecting,” he admitted. Stunned and shaken. His tone almost dismissive, were it not for the obvious shaking in his hands, the shock in his expression, “It was a zipper to her stomach. I don’t… know what I thought would be there. Other than…” Kaito grinned. Shaky and nervous, sheepish and shocked, but still certain they’d understand. “...the obvious, I guess.”

There was a silence… before Kaito grinned, giving the audience a wave. “I changed up some scenery to match Dicean familiarity, but otherwise that’s a classic Luminary horror story! Hope you guys enjoyed!”

There was a beat of silence… and then some laughter, and a generous round of applause. Kaito laughing and looking a little flustered, bowing a bit, before heading off, looking thrilled with himself.

Doppio let out a breath, murmuring a small “whoa…” in Arven’s ear. Nela looked just as disturbed, now holding Elthea’s hand too, and while the heat she felt between their palms was a comfort, even besides that, there was an interested glimmer in her eyes. An awe in hearing a story from another land. 

Bianka had blanched a bit, grimacing in disgust, while muttering about how, while definitely assault, that could definitely be classified as third degree murder, right? While Lio commented to his youngest that fantasy crimes weren’t exactly scalable to standard law systems. And, well, Cheri would suppose he’d know. 

Giving a shake to brush off the creeps, Kokichi giggled and gently clapped Miyako’s hands together, making sure that Kaito’s biggest fan could applaud him too. Glancing to Shuuichi, he laughed, “He really is brilliant, huh? He nailed it.”

Shuichi nodded, looking fond, “It’s actually not that common a story in Luminary, but Kaito’s performed it there too. I say ‘performed’, what he did was he’d start telling that story to whatever drunks he was hanging with that night and see how long it took them to realize he was telling a story. You’d think the ‘zipper’ thing would have been the obvious clue, but the times I’ve seen him do that, there’s always one or two people who seemed completely convinced it had happened by the time they were ordering a new round of drinks. Always eventually cleared it up, Kaito and Maki just liked messing with them for as long as possible.”

Kaito had been heading back, but had gotten stopped by a few people, who seemed to want to ask him some quick questions about the Luminary story. Kaito laughed, nodding and shaking his head, looking a little genuinely embarrassed now– there were subtle differences, to Kaito’s performing sheepishness and him actually being a bit sheepish– before he gave them a small wave and headed back to his husbands. Sitting next to Kokichi and giving him a quick kiss, automatically back to playing with Miyako’s feet as she peered curiously up at him. “That was fun,” Kaito whispered, still a little flushed red from how pleased he was, “Forgot how much fun that was. You sure you don’t wanna perform something ‘Kichi?”

Before Kokichi had a chance to answer, Cali piped up to Kaito, “So, what was in the zipper though!?”

“Hmm?” Kaito asked, a careful, cheery grin on his face, “You don’t know?”

“No? You never said what it was!” Cali said, pouting a little. 

“It was guts, right?” Timothy asked, “Cali won’t believe me.”

“Was it something magical~?“ Kimiko asked, looking excited.

“Oh, wow, sorry, I thought it was obvious.” Kaito chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck, “It was a tinier version of the woman, who had been puppeteering her from the inside. She was embarrassed by how small she was and wanted to present herself in a taller body, cause she was afraid I wouldn’t love her anymore. But, as you guys can see, I dig shorties too~” Kaito grinned, kissing Kokichi’s cheek, “So it all worked out in the end.”

Timothy narrowed his eyes… before huffing, “Guts would have been scarier.”

“What happened to her then? Why aren’t you married to her too?” Kimiko asked good naturedly. Playing along with Kaito’s first person perspective. 

“One of the usual reasons,” Kaito shrugged, “We ended up wanting different things in life. Sometimes even if you’re in love, a relationship still doesn’t work. No one’s fault.”

“You’re having too much fun playing,” Shuichi scolded, saying around Kaito, “It’s just a story, there’s no zipper woman.”

“Awwww, boo~” Kimiko boo’d, sticking out her tongue, “I totally shipped them, Mister Shuichi~”

Arven made a low whistle, arm still wrapped around Doppio’s shoulders, keeping him close, “If you ever grow a zipper? We’re super gluing that shut.”

“I can believe that,” Kokichi snickered. “I mean, to give a benefit, it’s hard to think critically while you’re drunk, and you never know what crazy thing medical advancements would look like.” Though, somehow he doubted a zipper would be all that helpful for most things. 

Lifting a hand to cup Kaito’s cheek as he returned, kissing him back, Kokichi managed to get in a, “Well done, Kai-chan!” before the kids took off. Bianka was still suspicious, and…well, regardless that was assault, but… “I guess the location makes sense, even if you’d think a mini-controller would be in the brain area. Less distance overall to everything.”

Glancing at Arven, Doppio’s face scrunched as he shuddered. “Ugh, I don’t need that idea…”

“It’s alright. If it happens to me, I’ll superglue it shut before you ever find out about it.” Arven promised, teasing a little a he held him a little closer, “Though, i wonder if Kaito actually gets the moral of that story. It feels like something custom made for him. I bet he heard it first from someone trying to give him a massive hint.”

Doppio stuck his tongue out, grossed out, though he gave Arven a concerned look as he leaned more against him, getting more comfortable. “That’s…kinda going far. And aren’t he and Prince Kokichi giant book nerds? I’m pretty sure something that blatant wasn’t lost on him the first time he heard it.”

“Actually…” Nela murmured softly, before speaking up, looking over at Kaito. “Prince Kaito? Where did you first hear that story? If it’s not actually that common,” she nodded to Shuuichi, “Then…how did you hear it?”

“Hm?” Kaito looked up, not having actually had a chance to speak to Arven and Doppio’s little friends, and… “Oh! Lluwyn, Elthea, hi!” Kaito greeted, while Shuichi rolled his eyes behind Kaito, shrugging at Lluwyn. 

“Where did I first hear it?” Kaito asked, scratching the back of his nape, looking up like the answer was in the clouds, “Geeeez, um… you know, the old fashioned way.”

(She was exhausting in a way Kaito couldn’t quite quantify, always feeling drained for days after, but there was just something about her. Especially in the dark. It was like she changed and shifted in the shadows. Her well trimmed fingernails feeling like claws as they trailed up the center of his stomach and running back down his chest. Bright white teeth looking oddly sharp in the shifting light coming in from the windows. Hair that cascaded around him like wings… because it had to have been her hair. Nothing else made sense.)

(Kaito watching, breath caught in his throat, both excited and a little nervous as she kissed up his front, that nail feeling like the edge of a dagger as she whispered to him, “And didn’t I have a right to all of her?”)

(That nail digging in, making Kaito gasp, as she whispered into his chest, “And all of you too?”)

“Read it in a book of short stories.” Kaito shrugged. A lazy grin on his face. 

It really was a story that circulated around Luminary… but it tended to be a cautionary tale shared by incubus and succubi. 

Don’t take what someone is not willing or ready to give. Not unless you want a body on your hands.

“Hello, Kaito, though my sister and I have been here since you all arrived yourself,” Lluwyn waved back, giving Shuuichi a shrug in return. “A wonderful performance, I must say.”

“Heeeeey, Kaito,” Elthea waved, before slinging a little loop of field daisies at him with a laugh. “Not a bouquet, but good job!”

Nela looked a bit confused at what ‘the old fashioned way’ could possibly be, but…a book of short stories was reasonable enough (and she didn’t catch the way Kokichi briefly side-eyed his husband, faintly amused). “I see… I really hope there’s something like that in the next book shipment from Luminary.” She smiled softly, looking excited. “I picked up a few volumes of a fantasy series last time, and while I hope there’s more of them too, it’s so interesting seeing what kind of short stories and folklore gets spread around different places.”

Sitting up with pride, Minnie smirked at the prince. “Nela is super into that stuff. She even knows traditional Wonderlandian songs!”

Nela laughed softly, blushing. “I’m working on it, more like…” Giving the princes a sheepish look, she explained, “It’s what I’m working on for my year project.”

“Oh!” Kaito said, nodding… “Do you want to go? To Wonderland, I mean, not Luminary. Give Luminary a few more years.”

“Kaito.” Shuichi cautioned.

Kaito waved him off, saying curiously, “I mean, the castle does fund expeditions sometimes. We could see what’d it’d take to get a research trip to Wonderland funded, send you across the ocean, fund a… what do you think you’d need to travel to a few key areas of Wonderland and collect the local stories, a month? Maybe two months if you wanted to take your time–”

Shuichi sighed, wrapping his arm around Kaito’s shoulders and covering up his mouth, leaning against Kokichi as he said to the girls between Kokichi and Kaito’s head, “Don’t let him put any pressure on you with his daydreams. My husband just says whatever’s on his mind, he has no way of making any of that happen.”

Nela giggled softly, looking a little touched that the prince would even think of it. “Maybe I’ll go travel one day, maybe if I’m working on a doctorate, or just as a vacation, but that’s way too much for a high school project.”

“If you’re going to Wonderland, I wanna come too!!” Bianka chimed in, almost bending over backwards to look at her sister. 

“Might as well make it a family vacation, hm?” Cheri laughed, giving their dad an amused look. 

Laughing softly, Lio ran a hand through his hair, the brown strands falling right back into place. “We’ll see about it.” It wasn’t so much they all had to stay in Dicea so…it was more a matter of arranging things so an off-continent vacation wouldn’t interfere with school. 

Doppio smiled softly, feeling a little…weird but…kind of a good weird, seeing a family…get excited and tease each other a bit? Sort of? Like he said, weird. “Uh, sorry, but…so you’re learning Wonderlandian songs for your project?”

Nela nodded, twirling the ends of her hair gently. “I really love folk stories and oral traditions…and Wonderland has a really rich culture of song and dance, so even with the little I know now it’s really interesting. There’s a lot of research into it, which is actually the bulk of my project, but…the cumulative presentation is I’m going to try and perform a traditional song and dance or two.”

“Or teach it to someone to perform,” Minnie nodded, grinning brightly. “Which will be awesome! Regardless of whether Nellie’s feeling up to doing it herself or not.”

“Oh, that’s quite impressive,” Shuichi smiled lightly, still leaning a bit between Kokichi and Kaito, “We’re very likely going to be seeing some of these presentations because of Arven, perhaps we’ll get a chance to see you perform. I’d be looking forward to it.”

“Do you play any instruments?” Arven asked Nela, “Or do you plan to sing them?”

Kaito’s eyebrows did a curious thing, in that they became perfect, little rainbow lines. Looking curiously at Lio. He looked, funnily enough, almost exactly like Miyako, who was doing the same thing in Kokichi’s arms, sucking on her pacifier as she looked at the weirdos talking to her people. 

This was the first time he had really noticed the man. He was handsome, in a general sort of way. Kaito liked his makeup, his eyeshadow was very bold especially. But, more interesting than any of that to Kaito was… oh…

…other dad.

“Hi!” Kaito suddenly said, wrapping an arm around Kokichi to keep him and Miyako from being jostled, Shuichi unfortunately getting bounced around a little as Kaito suddenly reached forward, around the teens– “Hey!” Arven said, he and Doppio ducking– as Kaito grinned, holding out a hand to Lio, “My names Kaito! Nice to meet you!” 

“You better not miss it, then!” Minnie grinned. “Nela’s will be the best one!”

Looking a little sheepish and shy, Nela gave Arven a small smile. “I’m going to try to sing them. Depending on the information I can get, I might ask someone doing a project in music if we could collaborate. Like…if they’d be willing to record some instrumentals, along with something for their own project. I’m not the best singer, but I feel like asking other people to both dance and sing would be taking collaboration a little far.”

“Your voice is so cute! It’ll be awesome!” Elthea encouraged, nudging Nela’s leg with a wink. 

Smiling amusedly, especially at the teens dodging, Lio turned and shook Kaito’s hand, using the hand that wasn’t in a brace. “We’ve met before, Kaito, when I’ve dropped Bianka off at the castle…but hello, I’m Lio, Bianka, Nela, and Cheri’s father. Great story, you have a talent for acting!”

“Thanks!” Kaito said, giving him a solid shake, before pulling his hand back, “Wow, three kids! Got a whole little fleet there, huh? I’ve got three kids too!”

Shuichi raised an eyebrow, looking back at Kaito, “Are we counting Addason? I don’t think you should be telling people you’re his father.”

“No, I’m talking about Feelings Baby,” Kaito pouted, “Who we will find someday. Actually, that’s a good point, keep an eye out duing the festival, ‘Kichi! I’ve changed my mind, I’m ready for another baby!” Kaito grinned, giving him a wink. 

“Noooooo.” Timothy muttered, flopping into Cali’s lap, who laughed. 

“They vastly outnumber me,” Lio chuckled, “But they’re a joy. I’ve been happy dad-ing all the way since this one.” Fondly he put a hand on Cheri’s shoulder, making her sway back and forth while she smiled affectionately back. 

How they met wasn’t the happiest. But it was more than trauma and Cheri simply needing someone to take care of her that had them stay together. While she did miss Clara, Cheri couldn’t ask for a better dad.

Straightening once Kaito brought his arm back, Doppio sent Kaito a confused and mildly disturbed look. “...you guys are having another baby? Already?”

“Well, I tried to get a pair of teenagers, but the world conspired against me.” Kaito snickered, just snickering harder when Arven rolled his eyes at him, nose wrinkling, “Uh-huh. Anyway, I didn’t get the two emo teenagers I was gunning for, so Kokichi, go premonition me a baby.” 

“Annnnd, that’s our sign to give Kaito Miyako back,” Shuichi said, starting to untie the baby carrier around Kokichi, “She wants to be held by someone else one day and suddenly Kaito’s getting baby fever again. Come on, Miya, back to dad.”

Kaito grinned, the three carefully watching Miyako’s expression as she was transferred over– apparently in comparison to everything else, at least new weird haircut was more familiar than festival shenanigans– coo’ing down at her a bit, before looking back at Lio, “So, you’ve been doing it for a while. Any advice? If it’s advice you can’t give in front of the kids, dooooo you drink? At pubs? Preferably with foreign dangerous princes?” Kaito asked with a grin, winking.

“Did you just wink at him?” Shuichi asked dryly.

“Hush, handsome, I’m trying to seduce my way into a friendship,” Kaito whispered.

Doppio glowered at Kaito before huffing and relaxing back against Arven. Okay, that was definitely enough Kaito Nonsense, it was Boyfriend Time. 

Rolling his eyes fondly, Kokichi gently scooped Miyako up to aid the transfer--hold…hold…hold… Okay, they were probably clear--and gave her a little parting kiss on the head. Ah well…it had been nice being a favorite for a while. 

Looking amused, Lio hummed, thinking, before he smirked. “Learning hairstyling is a worthwhile skill…especially before first days of school or birthday parties. And making sure their are safety ladders on high windows, because how many times you ask them not to sneak out, they will,” he smirked at Cheri, amused by her rolled eyes, “And just having a ladder is better than dealing with a broken arm at 2 in the morning.”

“I wouldn’t mind having a drink out, if you wanted to chat more though,” Lio smiled. “Trade dad tips…and I don’t think Bia would mind setting up more hangouts either.”

Lighting up, the youngest Trussen gave her dad a double thumbs up, like she was encouraging him. 

Kimiko preened, glomping around Bianka and saying excitedly, “HE SAID YES! YOU’RE SPENDING THE NIGHT~”

“Annnnd, nope, that is not what that meant.” Kaito said, before pausing, looking appraisingly at Lio, “Though, we do have room, if it’s… something her dad wants for the night?”

Lio snorted, giving Bianka a cool look--nice try--before giving Kaito a grateful but calm look. “We didn’t plan it beforehand, so I wouldn’t want to put you guys out. Though,” he sighed, “I guess if you wanted so badly to spend the night with your friends, that means your sisters and I would have to sort out all the leftover candy ourselves… Really leaving us with a tough job, Bia.”

While she had been hugging Kimiko back excitedly, Bianka froze with a grin on her face. The…leftover candy? That they always sorted so everyone got a fair share of the kind they liked best?

Kaito laughed… before his own expression became strained when Timothy looked back at his dad, “Wait, how come we haven’t collected candy?”

“You have! The candy you got for the games, and going through the haunted house, remember?” Kaito said, realizing the massive hold he had just stepped in as it seemed to dawn on the kids that there were entire candy giving spots that they hadn’t visited. 

“Bianka, how much candy do you have?” Cali asked, looking to Bianka, “Like, how much candy did you get doing the candy circles?”

“Cali, you did some circles this morning, I know this because your parents told me–” Kaito tried to start scolding, as Kimiko’s eyes suddenly went wide and watery.

“I didn’t visit any candy circles today, Mister Kaito.” Kimiko said. 

Well, yes, because Tsumugi was trying to avoid the sugar high’s for the next week, Kaito had been informed. She had confided she was going to see if Kimiko would even notice not doing the circles this year. Uuuuuh, whoops, “Well, don’t you think maybe you’re too busy for candy circles this year, hanging out with your friends Kimiko–”

“She can hang out with us while we go to the candy circles, can’t she?” Timothy asked, looking sternly at his father, “We didn’t go last year either. When do I get to go?”

Yep, there it was. The final nail. Noooooooo, Kaito had wanted to go to Temp’s party after this, get started drinking! Weeeeeeeeeeh, “Well, we could visit a few circles before I take you kids home.” Kaito sighed, rubbing his forehead as the kids cheered. Looking to Kokichi and Shuichi, Kaito grinned warily, “You guys could hang out at the party while I take the kids candy hunting for a bit?”

“I’ll hang out with Maki at the party, yes.” Shuichi agreed, zero guilt.

Ah, whoops. Lio grinned warily, rubbing his shoulder sheepishly. Now there was a candy domino effect. 

“Ohh, check it!” Bianka crowed, sitting up to display her pillowcase of candy to her friends. It was by no means stuffed, but there was a certain heft to it; partly because--

Leaning over to her friends, Bianka whispered, “One of the people doing trivia was giving out full size chocolate bars with nougat in them! They were really impressed by how quickly I answered so they let me pick what kind of chocolate!”

Kokichi snorted softly. He wouldn’t ruin that pride, but…a lot of candy spots usually let the kids pick from a variety, so no one would be out of luck if they were allergic to a certain thing. 

With a slightly apologetic look, Lio offered, “I could walk with you, Kaito, if you don’t mind.”

“Oh, then we can hang out more before you walk us home, Mr. Trussen?” Minnie said excitedly. 

“Sure, and that will actually take us closer to the castle, Elthea, Lluwyn, if you two wanted an escort home?” he smiled easily, before checking in with Cheri. “Your friend’s event doesn’t start until late, right?”

“Right. I have plenty of time, so I can chaperone too,” she smiled. 

“That all sounds like a part already,” Kokichi giggled, before checking in with Kaito. “...would you be alright if I stayed at Temp’s?”

Kaito was still grieving party drinking– weeeeeeeeeh– but he nodded without hesitation at Kokichi’s question, kissing his temple, “Of course~ You can keep the party warm for me till I get there. Also, you two,” Kaito said, looking to Arven and Doppio, who were both trying to pretend to be enraptured by the mime on the stage, who was apparently being quietly mauled by something. “What do you think your plans are after this?”

Doppio glanced over with a dry look before he huffed. Okay, if they were going to the small haunted house for the kids, then Kaito was going off with the kids for candy and going home, then…he and Arven could use that gap to prepare. But he didn’t want Kaito to know that they were (basically) going to their friend’s house party too, so…

He shrugged, looking a little dismissive. “We might hang around the graveyard for a while while you guys are doing the haunted house stuff. Some people from Chess club are having a party, so we might pass by to say hi before, like, going home or something…”

Minnie raised an eyebrow. “You’re going to Khalid’s party. You two.”

Doppio frowned a little at her, not…really knowing what that kind of tone meant. “...y-yeah? Maybe. You know about it?”

Nela laughed nervously. “Khalid’s parties are pretty infamous… He does invite a lot of people, but…well, they’re mostly the juniors and seniors that have been going for years. And, umm…”

Elthea rolled her eyes. “They’re ‘cool kid’ parties, basically. Not actually cool, obviously,” she winked at Nela and Minnie, “But…clique-y, you know? Not…exactly the vibe you two have.” Since what Arven and by extension Doppio had was like…the opposite of a clique. 

Doppio frowned a little more. They weren’t even going to crash that party, it was just something offhand he remembered that was going on that might throw Kaito off their tails, if they had a lot of plans. But… “What does that mean? H-he was nice to us during the club…”

Kaito had been about to tell them ‘fat chance’ and then prepare for a battle to actually get them to stick to Temp’s party, where they’d be good and safe… but…

Kaito’s eyes sparkled. Doppio and Arven were invited to the cool kid party???

Kaito was practically vibrating with heroic/paternal pride– look, look, his sidekicks had a healthy and exciting social life!! With the socially active crowd!!-- his vibration causing a little pumpkin-baby rollercoaster in his arms, Miyako sucking on her pacifier harder as she mentally prepared for another running session. That was usually what the vibrating sound meant. Little baby jogging time. 

“They’re chess nerds, how cool can they be?” Arven asked, unimpressed… and also a little genuinely uncertain. The older kids social dynamics had always been a bit beyond Arven’s notice. He didn’t really know who was ‘cool’ and who was not, beyond how the Rabbits treated people. And, well, how the rabbits acted was a bit of an anomaly. There wasn’t much outright bullying in the school, when it came down to it, outside of that group.

But, well, that didn’t mean there weren’t certain kids who found themselves with no weekend plans, even if they’d quite like to have some plans, in contrast to the kids who were hosting parties every other weekend. And the sweet spot in the middle, the kids who everyone was always excited to see at the party, in contrast to the ones who, well… maybe were there. Sometimes.

(The girls were right, ‘cool’ wasn’t always the right word for that particular social dynamic.)

(But it was nice to be the person at the party that people got excited to see arrive. For whatever reason that ended up being.)

“To be honest, Khalid’s going to be lucky if we decide to show up,” Arven said, shrugging, “We haven’t decided yet if we’re going–”

“No, what?? Why not!?” Kaito gasped. “Someone invited you to a party! You should show up!”

Minnie gave Arven a dry look. “The fact you don’t know just shows how out of the loop you are, and thus your opinion doesn’t count.”

“They’re definitely not for everyone,” Nela shrugged, “But…people do talk about his parties for months. Apparently the one he threw for the graduating seniors last year people talked about all summer.”

Leaning towards Doppio, because Arven would just forget, if he didn’t know already, Minnie “whispered”, “His dad’s Novan. So you can imagine how crazy bashes like that can get.”

…Doppio didn’t know what that meant, but he kind of froze, not knowing what to do with Minnie so close to him. 

But, glancing over to Kaito…he wasn’t sure if he’d found the perfect excuse, or had dug them into a hole it would be a pain to get out of. “I-I mean…it was kind of a loose invitation so…we’ll see.”

“Oooooh, his dad’s Novan,” Kaito said, nodding… before whispering to Kokichi, “Do you know who that is? Should we know who that is? The boys got invited to a cool kids party.” Kaito grinned, taking Kokichi’s arm and shaking him a bit, excited, before looking brightly at the boys, “Oh, you should take your new little friends with you! Lio, can the girls go with the kids? I bet they’d all have a great time, and Arven and Doppio are very responsible!”

Kokichi shrugged a little. He wasn’t exactly up on high school politics, and it wasn’t like he knew every immigrant from Novis off the top of his head. Especially if it was someone who moved likely more than 15 years ago. Though, he smiled at Kaito’s excitement. 

…while Doppio grimaced at it a bit. Oooookay, yeah, this was definitely more of a hole than an excuse. And…if the girls got involved… Seeing the girls exchanging glances, and Nela start turning to her dad…

Nope.

Nodǝ˙

…

„Mǝ ɯᴉƃɥʇ ɥɐuƃ ɐɹonup ʇɥǝ ƃɹɐʌǝʎɐɹp ɟoɹ ɐ ʍɥᴉlǝ while you guys are doing the haunted house stuff,” Doppio felt himself saying, a small wince going through him as he felt a snapping sensation over his skin. Feeling slightly out of breath, he stiltedly shrugged. “I-it’s…not like we’ve really done any actually scary stuff…yet.”

Kaito blinked, scratching his cheek a little… before he grinned, “Oh, great! Honestly, I was hoping you’d say that. I know you two would be fine, but I don’t love the idea of either of you being alone in the dark on harvest night. And no, being together doesn’t count.”

“Mmmm,” Shuichi hummed, leaning on Kaito’s shoulder, his eyes drifting to the stage, “So, Doppio and Arven will come with Kokichi and I to the house, Kaito, you let the kids run through the house once, then take them circling. Theeen, when you’ve taken the kids back to the castle, you can come back and finally have your second drink of the day.”

“Yes,” Kaito sighed, rolling his head back, before bringing it up and grinning at Shuichi, “You’re speaking my language, handsome.”

“How much longer are we watching this anyway?” Arven asked, gesturing up to the mime, who was currently either reenacting a therapy session or a funeral, something like that. “Can we go soon?”

“No, no, the baby assassins are going up soon!” Cali insisted, “We’re gonna re-enact the war!”

“And the maaaarriage~” Kimiko coo’d. 

Kaito grinned, “Oh yeah? Including the ninja attack?”

“Of course!” Cali shouted.

Kaito leaned to Shuichi and Kokichi and whispered, “Timothy asked me for help explaining what happened at the first wedding to the girls. I may have embellished a few things.”

…better not to over-complicate things. 

“Sounds like a plan,” Kokichi nodded, though he did glance over to Doppio in concern for a moment. However, he snickered in delight, hearing what the kids’ plan for their performance was going to be. “Oooh, I can’t wait. I have a feeling I’m going to enjoy it more, not being a part of things.”

Rubbing his arms through his sleeves a little, Doppio grimaced and just…tried to sort his head out. However, he was surprised to find that Nela had leaned in, and he eyed her blankly for a moment. 

“Do you want painkillers?” she whispered, stealthily showing a small bottle of on-the-shelf painkillers. 

Blinking, he blushed a little before smiling softly. “Thanks, but…I-I’ll be okay in a sec. Just…weird headache flash.”

Matching his smile, she nodded and straightened without a word, not needing any explanation.

Arven gave Doppio a concerned look, snuggling in a little closer and lightly rubbing his arm. 

“Alright, thank you to Mr. Mime–”

“Oh!” Kaito whispered to the boys excitedly, “I’ve got a new idea for your little monster game!”

“--for your fascinating and silent performance! Now, next up, let’s bring to the stage… heh. I remember these guys. The Baby Assassins!”

“LET’S GOOOOOO!” Cali shouted, the four getting up and running to the stage. Chase following them, because no one had told her to Stay. 

Kaito chuckled, leaning back to watch what he knew was about to be a very fantastical version of his first wedding. He knew Shuichi and Kokichi were going to get a side, secret kiss– who the hell could judge his husbands for it??-- showing they had been in love ‘all along’, and that Kaito was going to get an epic battle scene with some attacking ninjas, which then Maki was going to take over and lead as her secret ninja organization. And that Kokichi was going to get to make some cool speech about unity and responsibility and a bunch of other stuff that Kaito had made up on the top of his head, which would be fun to watch Bianka very likely entirely butcher, trying to remember off the top of her head. And then one more ninja attack by a ninja that hadn’t gotten the message, which all four would valiantly fight off and then convert.

All in roughly six or seven minutes! Ten if they went with the earlier version Kaito had seen– he had seen this a few times now.

But it’d all start with an epic battle scene between ‘Kaito’ and ‘Kokichi’, and Kaito fondly wrapped his arm around Kokichi, enjoying watching two tiny versions of themselves duke it out, knowing it’d be a happily ever after.

-

As scary as he looked, apparently Temp Lar was a pretty chill guy, and Arven and Doppio weren’t expected to just sit in line of sight of the adults the whole party. They were given the rundown of places that were meant for the party, and places that were off-limits, shown the bathroom and where drinks were (and, uh, okay, there was one scary moment of Temp specifically pointing out soft drinks), but…after that? Doppio and Arven were mostly left to their own devices. 

Which was perfect, because while Doppio assumed the kids would take their time getting candy and being walked home, he really didn’t know the timeframe they were working with. Huddled in (one of!!) Temp’s downstairs bathrooms, Doppio and Arven quickly shucked out of the outer layers of their day costumes, and pulled out their supplies from their bags. 

“It…looked like most people are staying around the kitchen and that sitting area,” Doppio hummed, folding his jacket and putting it in his bag. “So…should we even try in the house? Or maybe down one of the sides… It looked like there was a strip on one side that led to a backyard gate.”

“I think if we were to ask someone to let Kaito know we were hanging out in the graveyard, he’d inevitably come check on us. Right?” Arven said, looking around, “The graveyard is too big to leave to chance, but that path from the backyard towards the graveyard is pretty easy to monitor.”

Pulling out the white cloaks, Arven tied his around his neck, before flourishing Doppio’s over his head, stepping back as he grinned, “Alright, let’s see what it looks like. Mind doing the thing?”

“Hmm… Probably. It’s close enough that, like, I don’t think he’d really get too up in arms, but…it’s Kaito. And it’s dark out now, so…he’d probably…well, actually, try to convince us to come inside under the guise of checking on us. And he already thinks graveyards are creepy.” Doppio rolled his eyes a bit. 

Though, he softly giggled as Arven draped the sheet over his head, and Doppio adjusted it slightly to line up his eye-holes. Stepping back, Doppio nodded and took a breath, focusing. Feeling his mouth warm up slightly…

“...OooOoOoOo~” Doppio ooo’d, raising his arms a little. The sheet in the bathroom seeming to be floating by itself.

“Wow!” Arven said, clapping sincerely, “That’s really trippy looking, I think that’d scare anyone, honestly! So cool…”

Arven suddenly smiled, “Could you… try kissing me like that? I think it’d feel strange to be kissed by someone I couldn’t see.”

“It’s working out? I-I mean…it seemed kinda perfect with everything Kaito was doing at the store, and I haven’t noticed any weird stuff with my freckles, so…” Shuffling forward so he could look in the mirror, Doppio startled slightly. The sheet covered all of him down to mid-thigh but…even without purposefully observing, there was just something wrong about the eye-holes being empty, and the sheet lifting with his arms to…nothing. Creepy. 

Laughing softly, Doppio ducked out of the sheet--and that was much stranger-looking--with an unseen blush. “...I’m kind of hoping you mean a good strange, for why you want to try it…”

Still, he leaned in, gently cupping Arven’s cheek as he pressed their lips together.

“I think it’s kinda mysterious and exciting,” Arven was in the middle of explaining, before jumping slightly in his skin, a hand gently running itself on his cheek. Arven’s eyes widening… before he blushed. Feeling Doppio wait, giving him a chance to adjust… which made it no easier to guess when his lips gently pressed to Arven.

Arven breathed in deeply through his nose, kissing Doppio back. Leaning against what looked like the air, but felt like his boyfriend. And when they broke the kiss, Arven smiled, “Well, it’s always going to be obvious that it’s you, to me, apparently. I can’t imagine missing that sunshine smell. It’s kinda nice to know that I’d always know it’s you.”

Doppio huffed a small laugh, before suddenly appearing right back in front of Arven. “I think I’m happy about that? I’d feel weird, being able to, like…completely disappear from you.”

Gnawing on his cheek, he looked to the side. “...sometimes that does sound nice, being able to disappear from most people, but…not you.” There were times he wanted to be alone, but making it impossible for Arven to ever find him just…wasn’t something that sounded desirable to Doppio. 

Picking up his bag--Phanpy re-situated on top--Doppio gave his boyfriend a mischievous grin. “Alright. Let’s go put these in a closet, then head out. Never know when Kaito’s gonna show up.”

They put the clothes away, and headed out. The moon was starting to rise, and the sound of the party in the large house was in full swing, the last of the kids trickling through, though the bulk– almost all from Luminary– had started to head home, Maki and Elia starting the long journey of making sure everyone got home and back to their parents. 

The pathway really was perfect– it curved, which Arven thought would be an easy thing to utilize for a good scare, each side bordered by a hedge– and after looking it over, Arven peeked over the gate that lead to the hills of the graveyard. 

Arven, like all Diceans, hadn’t been raised to consider graveyards, or any places stamped for the deceased, as particularly ‘taboo’ or even all that sacred, and Arven didn’t find them all that particularly spooky. But he did find them a little interesting, in the little memorials imprinted on the stones. And the plants that grew on the graves were fascinating. When it wasn’t for religious purposes, people volunteered to let themselves be buried specifically to feed the unique plantlife that thrived on the nutrient rich ground, fertilized by Diceans who had enjoyed the gardens, and wanted to be a part of them in death.

Arven glanced behind him at Doppio, before asking, “Think we could risk a quick peek around? Or you want to buckle down and weight here?”

Sure, everything they had done that day was indicative of the Harvest spirit. Good food, good (mostly) performances, and little bit of the spookier side of things… But if Doppio wasn’t imagining a feast, the scene of the graveyard covered in memorial offerings both routine and seasonal as the moon rose was exactly his vision of Harvest. A scene of plenty…but a little ominous. Obvious signs of people, but no one actually there… It was like walking in a marketplace of a town that didn’t have much of a nightlife. Eerie in being a place that was for people, but without any. 

Doppio looked over the graveyard, feeling particularly festive, before he blinked at Arven and snorted softly. “Well…as much as he could show up immediately, it could also be a while… We could probably look around. We’d probably hear him coming down the path if we don’t go too far, right?”

“Exactly, we won’t go far,” Arven agreed, opening up the gate and holding it for Doppio, before taking his hand, heading in. 

Arven and Doppio were not afraid of death, enjoyed each others company, and had the endless courage of youth. They walked around the plants, memorials and offerings with ease and interest, Arven delighted as he pointed out, “Look, that pork is slowburning. That’s pretty ballsy, leaving a grill lit to continue burning. I imagine someone will be back to restock the wood at some point tonight.”

“Ah, so that’s what that smell is,” Doppio laughed. “We’ve passed a bunch of incense, but that obviously wasn’t… Wow. I wonder if Mr. Lar has had to make rules for this sort of thing, or if this is the first time… That’s kinda cute though, if it’s for someone that really liked barbeque?” Doppio looked at the name on the stone, smiling as he guessed about the person it was signifying. A memory passed on, even to a complete stranger. 

“...what sort of food would you want offered, like this? Or…I dunno. That someone would make in your memory on Remembrance or something?”

“I mean, obviously I’d be happy with whatever. It’s just nice someone wants to honor me.” Arven said, shrugging, though then he stopped to think about it, “...mmmm… I think… I’d actually want to keep it simple? Something that wouldn’t take anyone trying to remember me all day, you know what I mean? Something nice that could just be quickly put together, they could make themselves one too if they were feeling peckish, so…”

Arven shrugged, “A sandwich? A nice sandwich. Any kind is good. What about you?”

A sandwich… Doppio felt a little tickled by that, and he squeezed Arven’s hand affectionately. “That sounds really nice. Like…making it, a-and if someone made one for themselves it’s…kind of like sharing a sandwich with you again, right? I dunno, it just sounds sweet.”

…Doppio wasn’t…sure if he was going to die one day. If he could die. But…regardless of that, if someone wanted to make something to remember him by?

Blushing, Doppio chewed on the inside of his lip. “...I feel like it’s kinda… Well, after how good your reasons are, this is kinda different, but… tagliatelle al’Sumurra? A really good sauce like that takes hours to make but…I dunno. It’s always been a dish that makes me happy.”

“Ha!”  Arven laughed, bumping Doppio lightly with his hip, “If someone’s going to remember you, darn it, they’re gonna put the work in. You know what, that’s cool. You’re worth it.”

“Also… damn,” Arven smiled, leaning in. The cold, crispy fall air running through his hair, “That was kind of hot? Say some more Tsumarion for me. I can translate it pretty well, but it's still pretty impressive to hear how genuinely fluent you are… and I like the accent.” Arven admitted, blushing.

Smiling sheepishly, Doppio shifted his weight to lean against Arven for a moment before they continued on. “I know it mostly is just…hours of reducing the sauce, a-and I wouldn’t be an asshole or anything about someone using store-bought pasta…b-but, yeah. Not exactly as…accessible as a sandwich. Though I’d hope someone remembering you would use the best ingredients they could.” Doppio suddenly huffed a laugh. “Even better if they had grown or foraged some of the ingredients themself.”

Though his laugh soon petered out as Doppio choked a little, burning bright red. …honestly, he got a little embarrassed when his accent was…obvious. But Arven thought it was…

Blushing fiercely, Doppio looked to the side and murmured, “Mi piace poterti parlare in Tsumariani. Non dimentico le parole…ma a volte viene più facile così. E… Um… Sembri molto carino quando lo parli. (I like that you can speak Tsumarian. I don’t forget words…but sometimes it’s easier like this. And… Um… You sound really nice when you speak it too.)”

Arven leaned in, drawn in as he listened to that rolling, lilting maneuvering of the tongue. It really was attractive…

Arven didn’t have much of a grasp of the accent, but he tried to say back, “Adoro la lingua. Mi è venuto naturale. Forse era il destino.” (I just love the language. It came naturally to me. Maybe it was fate.)

Cupping the side of Doppio’s face, Arven kissed him. The wind whistled around them, Arven feeling bold and confident as he wrapped his hand around Doppio’s lower back, pulling him in closer as he stroked beside his ear, kissing him chastly, once after another. “Mmmm…” Arven broke the kiss, breathing lightly against Doppio, “...honestly, a part of me wants to make out with you, more than I want to prank Kaito. You look amazing right now…”

But as Arven leaned in to kiss him again, he huffed, hearing in the distance, “ARVEN! DOPPIO? YOU GUYS BACK HERE?”

“Speak of the devil.” Arven laughed.

Forse era il destino…

Doppio was practically steaming, bright red and eyes wide, mouth slightly parted in a sort of wobbly shape as he tried to process him and Arven knowing the same language as a part of fate aaaaaaaa-- And he could only make an indistinct, flustered sound as Arven pulled him in, kissing him. Though, Doppio quickly wrapped his arms around Arven’s shoulders and kissed him back, chasing every pull back with another. 

Godsdamnit Kaito! NOW?! Really, NOW?!

“We’re continuing this later,” Doppio shyly demanded, pecking Arven once more before he hid his flaming face under his sheet, the rest of his body soon blinking out of sight for good measure. 

GAH!

Shaking his head, Doppio trotted over to the path on light feet, trying to half-hide the sheet while he cupped his hands, trying to imitate a low, trilling owl hoot. 

“I’ll hold you to it.” Arven snickered, putting up his sheet, following behind Doppio. 

They knew Kaito would be able to see Arven’s feet, but then, Arven was wearing a much longer sheet to compensate. And hopefully seeing Doppio all floating would be distracting enough that Kaito wouldn’t question it. Entirely for the fun of it, he mimicked baby coyote sounds, alongside Doppio’s owl trills, and that seemed to be a wise choice, as he saw through the holes in the hedge leaves Kaito stop. Alarmed by the noise.

“...boys?” Kaito called out, sounding a little more uncertain now, walking down the path, “Guys, if you can hear me, I’m just… checking in! Everyone says you all went to hang out in the backyard! But, you know… obviously I... dooooo not see you.” Kaito said, clearly talking to himself by that point, huffing, “Geez, I bet those two idiots are making out somewhere.”

Rude! And inaccurate! At this exact second!

Doppio smiled for a moment, impressed by Arven’s addition to the nature sounds. Honestly, they could just keep doing that for a while, and Doppio was interested in hearing what other calls Arven knew (vague bird tweets were about all Doppio had up his sleeves), but…they had a show to continue. 

Rolling his unseen eyes a little--rude, Kaito--Doppio let out another hoot, before making a sound that was more…indistinct. Not a haunting moan, because he had a feeling that shenanigans-minded dummy would really think they were making out, but just something…strange. And unable to really be categorized as animal, or human. And, slowly, he started creeping towards Kaito. 

-

Kaito paused. 

…the hell was that sound?

It hadn’t taken long for Kaito to want to check on the boys, after he had arrived at the party from dropping the kids and Miyako off with Ikuo. Firenze had walked Kaito back, and Kaito had encouraged him to take the rest of the night off, now that he was safely with everyone, before going to check on his husbands. Husbands checked on, Temp hugged, people he recognized warmly greeted, and Temp bullied into letting Kaito into the nursery to risk giving the snoozy Addason a sleepy hand kiss, Kaito just wanted to make sure the teens were good too, before letting himself really relax. Knock back a few drinks, chat with everyone at the party, see how far his husbands would let him get when he was feeling frisky, before all three of them headed home. 

It hadn’t taken long to want to check on the boys, but it was still the last serious checkmark on his night, and honestly once he knew they were safe he’d happily leave them to all the obscene making out among the dead those two freaks would likely want to do. Weirdos. Geez, Kaito didn’t feel great being this close to a graveyard. Creepy…

And on top of all of that, what was that noise? 

He was sure he had heard a coyote earlier among the bird noises. Maybe it was the animal growling at him? Well, that wasn’t ideal, but that just meant even more Kaito should find the boys. And dog-like animals could be scared off. Kaito, clapping his hands, said, “Git! Git! …boys!? I’m serious, don’t make me look for you, I am going to nag you so much.”

The noise got worse. 

Among the growling noise, briefly, there was a laughing giggle.

“...” Kaito took a step back, a cold sweat breaking off of him. Something was there… the boys were missing, and something was there… “G-guys, if this is you being funny, seriously think again. I am not who you want to… to…”

Kaito hesitated, getting to the corner… before turning on it, looking towards the graveyard.

What the actual shit.

It was literal-ass ghosts! LITERAL FUCKING GHOSTS! FLOATING WHITE… GHOSTS!? No way no way no way something was up there was some fuckery going on– what are you talking about something’s up holy damn right something is up there are fucking GHOSTS right there how much more fucked up do you need! 

There’s no such thing as ghosts!!

TELL THAT TO YOUR FUCKING EYEBALLS.

“Hngg, hah!” Kaito half whimpered/half gasped. Stepping backwards. Glancing down to the bottom of the hazy, ephemeral beings, seeing how they (both?) hovered above the air. Fuck, he was gonna piss himself. He needed to run, he needed to get back to the house, he needed to get his husbands, tell Temp to grab Addason and–

–The boys are back here.

Kaito felt another shudder of fear run through him… before he bared his teeth. Suddenly squaring his shoulders and growling as he gripped his hands into fists, leaning forward like a charging bull.

With a scream, he bolted forward. Running as hard as he could. “AHHHHHHGHHH FUCK YOU FUCK YOU FUCK YOU!”

“Woah, shit!” he barely heard, charging forward… and then running down the middle of them, bolting past the things as he ran into the graveyard.

“DOPPIO, ARVEN, YOU FUCKING COME OUT RIGHT THE FUCK NOW!” Kaito screamed through the graveyard, “IT IS TIME TO GO!”

Honestly, that gasp would’ve been the perfect culmination. They’d done what they set out to do--Kaito had gotten scared by a sheet. But Doppio hadn’t even gotten a chance to laugh before suddenly--

OOPMH

One of the sheets was…knocked off something, and there was a thump on the ground, a flattening of grass where nothing was. And from that nothing came--

“OW, Kaito, what the hell?!”

Kaito panted, looking around the graveyard, still unable to see them. Wait, wait, that was Doppio’s ‘Kaito’, Kaito would recognize that exasperation anywhere. But where… Kaito looked behind him, panting, his mind buzzing as he saw the sheets disheveled. One flat on the ground, the other shuffling around as it seemed to look around towards the ground in alarm. Its movements jittery and random.

Kaito growled again, a deep, gutteral “hnnng” as one of the ghosts said, “Calm down already, and don’t move, Doppio’s on the ground somewhere–”

Kaito, looking around, grabbed one of the tombstones. Trying to lift it.

“...are you trying to throw a stone slab at us– HOLY SHIT PUSH IT BACK DOWN! KAITO KAITO IT’S US!”

Kaito had only managed to pull the slab up an inch, but that had been enough to send a thousand alarm bells through Arven, Arven pulling the sheet off himself and waving at Kaito exasperatedly. “HELLO??? IT’S US?? PLEASE DO NOT DESECRATE A GRAVE TO THROW IT AT US!”

Kaito panted, his brain buzzing… before he blinked. Once. Twice. The buzzing easing… Owwww, his biceps hurt… Blearily looking at the stone slab he had managed to pull up a bit. Oh, wow, that was… heavy. That had hurt to pull. Owwwww, he strained his biceps… and his lower back, dammit. That was his husbands pleasing muscles…

“... WHAT THE SHIT YOU TWO ARE YOU CRAZY!?” Kaito shouted, looking around, “DOPPIO, BE DOPPIO RIGHT THIS SECOND!”

“Could you shut up for a second?! You’re shouting loud enough to wake the dead!” Groaning, Doppio pushed himself up, reaching to take his sheet off…before only grasping at air. …huh? If his sheet was already off, then why was…

“Oh, oops,” Doppio muttered, before suddenly popping into view. Looking somehow both sheepish and sulky as he held his shoulder. 

“WAKE THE DEAD? YOU’RE LUCKY WE’RE NOT BURYING YOU BESIDE THEM! SHIT!” Kaito cursed, wiping some of the sweat off his forehead with another, sharp, “Dammit… fuck!”

As Arven went to help Doppio up, Kaito looked over the kid… before muttering, “Ah, shit,” before hurrying over. Waving Arven off as he squatted down, growling in frustration at Doppio. “What about the ‘forest fire’ story convinced you dumbasses this was a brilliant idea? Fuck… are you hurt? Why are you holding your shoulder like that?” Kaito demanded, looking him over. 

“It was…for a second. If you’d waited like five seconds we would’ve taken the sheets off,” Doppio pouted. Yeah…maybe the forest fire story had…kind of told them that Kaito never waited for five seconds before trying to do something absolutely crazy…but still. It had seemed fun. 

When asked about his shoulder, though, Doppio dryly said, “Oh, I don’t know, maybe it was the two ton rhino barreling into us that had something to do with it. Hmm, could be.”

“Kai-chan?!” a worried, nasally voice cut through the night. “Kai-chan, are you okay?!”

“Listen, you little dumbass, if you want to make yourself invisible, then it’s your own damn fault if you get bumped! Geez, what a dumb fucking… Arven, what about you?” Kaito snapped, already adjusting Doppio to be picked up bridal style, “Would you stop wiggling, I’m taking you inside.”

“You didn’t clip me, just Doppio,” Arven said, looking down at Aceto in concern… before stiffening when he heard the prince’s voice approaching. “Oh, whoops.”

“Oh, whoops he says.” Kaito muttered, before calling, “Over here beautiful! I caught Arven and Doppio wearing new ‘dumbass teenagers’ costumes! It’s convincing.”

“Don’t pick me up, my legs still work,” Doppio growled, though some of his ire eased as he heard Kokichi call out. Kokichi…who…ambiently picked up the emotions of people around him. And if Kaito had been shouting the dead awake on the outside, then…

Quickly, Kokichi jogged up to them, looking them over quickly (frowning a bit at the way Doppio was holding his shoulder, and how Kaito seemed to be about to pick him up) before sighing. “I…got a bad feeling. Are you guys okay?”

People assessed, Kokichi looked over the rest of the scene…and sighed deeper. “I did think it was weird you two changed clothes… Come on, let’s go inside, it’s cold out. Doppio, is your shoulder alright?”

“...twinges a little,” he muttered, looking to the side.

“Annnnd UP!” Kaito said, swooping Doppio up, staring blankly at the middle distance at any and all wiggling, before glaring at Doppio. “Okay, you done? Play stupid games, get stupid games. Damn, now we gotta take care of your shoulder. Doppio, I wanted to get drunk or laid tonight, and you are killing both buzzes!”

“Ugh, damn heart’s about to beat out of my damn chest,” Kaito muttered, taking the lead in leading them back to the house, scoffing with every other word. “What does a guy got to do to get his fucking phobias taken fucking seriously? Actually burn down a forest? Throw a stone slab at some poor dumbass kid’s head? You’re both grounded!”

“You can’t actually ground us, you’re not our guardian,” Arven pointed out, jogging to keep up with Kaito’s frustrated stride. 

“I will BURY you in the ACTUAL GROUND! From your shoulders down! Kokichi, tell the kitchen staff someone’s gotta start spoon-feeding them on the ground for a WEEK! I am a MOMOTA, I will pull some CRAZY BULLSHIT!”

Doppio squirmed, though he stopped himself before getting any actual good kicks in on Kaito. Still, though, he growled petulantly as Kaito carried him, trying to keep his shoulder still in wake of the quick strides. 

Picking up the…sheets (oh, these were goofy), not wanting to leave Temp more afterparty work, Kokichi shook his head a little as he caught back up with the others. “I love a good prank as much as anyone, but purposefully triggering someone’s phobias isn’t a fun time--it’s just mean. I’m disappointed in you two, I know you’re both thoughtful enough to consider others’ feelings better than this.”

Smiling shallowly at Arven, he said, “Well, actually burying you would definitely get us in trouble, legally…but I think we should have a talk, once we look at Doppio-kun’s shoulder.”

“Kokichi, I need you to back me up! We are burying them in quicksand! Every minute they argue and roll their eyes at me, fwoosh! The quicksand takes them another inch!” Kaito insisted, heading towards the house, “We pull them out once we get an apology! And knowing these two, that’s gonna be chin deep!”

“Actually, quicksand is pretty easy to get out of, once you know how to do it,” Arven said, ignoring Kaito’s insistence that there will be a GLASS DOME!! Placed over the quicksand!! No escape!! Yes there will be HOLES IN THE GLASS DON’T ‘um actually’ ME!!

Though, Arven’s expression dropped at Kokichi saying he was going to get a scolding. Nooooo… he actually wanted to impress Kokichi. Ah, geez…

Temp looked out the side door, opening it up as he saw Kaito stomping forward with Doppio in his arms, Arven and Kokichi following behind. “Everything alright?”

“Where do you keep your first aid kit? Gotta check on this comedian’s shoulder.” Kaito huffed, pushing his way inside. “Think scaring Kaito is soooooo funny. Know what isn’t funny? Me punching you both in the face. Damn lucky I didn’t. Knock a damn tooth out!”

“It’s in the first floor bathroom, back part of the house,” Temp called, “Follow the conga line of dancing skeletons, the bathroom is behind the curtain.” Temp looked down at the Kokichi, smirking. “Eventful night?”

As fun as it’d be to follow Kaito’s dramatics…Kokichi felt like he had to stay serious enough to drive home that this was something the boys Shouldn’t Do. …honestly it wasn’t the worst, and it was something Kokichi had literally done himself. In all likelihood, the boys had heard that Kaito was scared of ghosts and just thought it was a general unease with the undead--not realizing that it was a genuine phobia. Exactly as Kokichi had a year ago. 

It wasn’t fair to Kaito, because that fear was real, but…it was an understandable mistake for the boys to make. But given that they had a tendency to brush Kaito off, especially the more serious he got, Kokichi had to not break the illusion that it was Serious. 

Sighing as Kaito and the boys took Temp’s directions, Kokichi bopped his head against Temp’s arm. “I could do without feeling my husband’s utter fear that our whole family is going to die, yeah,” Kokichi sighed deeper, before shaking his head with a small smirk, holding the sheets out for Temp to look at. “These are cute, though, yeah? I really like the built-in shadowing they did with the paint… Hopefully Doppio’s shoulder isn’t too banged up, it didn’t seem like he was in a lot of pain…”

Though Kokichi shared a small grimace with his friend. “...he does have a huge pain tolerance though.”

That wasn’t exactly the problem Doppio was dealing with at the moment, however. Kaito had set him down on the toilet seat and demanded to see his shoulder, and Doppio had grumbled and reached for the hem of his shirt and…

Froze. Paling as he realized that getting to his shoulder meant…taking off his shirt. 

Kaito glared down at Doppio… saw the way the kid froze…

….uuuuugh, right. Right. Doppio had said he was afraid to let Arven see him without clothes. That had been a whooole convo. Alright, well, time to… time to…

“Shoo, shoo,” Kaito said, turning to Arven and Kokichi in the doorway, gently but sternly guiding them back a few steps. “Privacy?? Ever heard of it?? To Arven, not you beautiful, I love you and treasure you, please get out.”

“Wait, but I can help, just let me do it–” click. Kaito closed the door in their faces, huffed…

“...okay,” Kaito sighed, running his hands through his hair, before looking at Doppio. “First, let’s clarify: is this no one can see you without your shirt? Or Arven can’t see you without your shirt. There’s no wrong answer.”

Doppio had been still, but after the door click (after hearing Arven’s pleas) he blinked a few times before scowling at Kaito. “...n-no one. And…stop doing that. Arven i-isn’t yours to just shove around as you please. Neither of us a-are.”

His hands fisted in his shirt, Doppio continued to pale, chewing the shit out of his lip. “...could you…not look? And I could just…get m-my arm out of my shirt but just…um…”

“Oh, I’m sorry, am I being inconsiderate?” Kaito snapped, shooting Doppio a frustrated look, before looking around the bathroom, “Did you just miss me pushing my husband, who I love and adore and respect and who is my heir-apparent husband out of this bathroom to give you more privacy? But, sure, I’m being mean to Arven.” 

Kaito scoffed, opening up a counter, pulling out both a larger towel and a hand towel. Passing the regular towel to Doppio, Kaito made a show of putting the hand towel on his hand, showing Doppio the covering, before giving him one last dry look, covering his eyes with both his palm and the hand towel, squatting and leaning back on the wall, looking at the ground. “I’m not looking. If you think you can get yourself to a point where I can just double check nothing’s poking somewhere it shouldn’t? I’ll let you put bruise ointment on yourself, and I’ll wrap your shoulder. But we only move forward when you’re ready. Kay?”

Doppio pouted at the ground. It was still being mean to Arven. Kaito had just shoved both him and Kokichi away without talking to Doppio at all. And…honestly Doppio wouldn’t mind Arven being there…and Arven knew a lot of healing stuff, if it was more than a bruise. 

(...which it might be. Bruises didn’t twinge like that.)

But…he couldn’t exactly…blame. Kaito for being…like, imperfect right now. 

Huffing, Doppio took the towel and looked at Kaito for a moment, before muttering an, “Okay…”

Reaching again for his shirt, Doppio ducked his head through before worming his right arm through, trying to move his left shoulder as little as possible. Then, just his left arm left in the shirt, he folded it down the sleeve…before pausing a bit way through, his eyes widening a little. 

…that didn’t look good…

His eyes flicking to Kaito nervously, Doppio hurriedly draped the towel around his chest and right shoulder before clearing his throat, his voice more worried than annoyed now. “Okay. Um…I-I don’t think that double-check is gonna need long…”

Kaito sighed, lowering his hand towel and looking up… before wincing. Deflating a little, guilt rushing across his face for a moment, before he sighed, rubbing his eyelids with the hand towel for a second. “...damn.”

“...okay!” Kaito looked up, grinning. The guilt and disturbance safely gone and buried, Kaito just looking certain and relaxed as he said, “Oof, alright, I’d want to touch it to be absolutely certain, but man, that looks a lot like a dislocation to me. Lucky us! I’m old hat at these! Popped a thousand of these back in place!”

“Well, like, five, but five is a damn good number of times,” Kaito sighed, standing up and stretching his neck, rubbing the back muscles there. “Once on myself! So, yeah, I know it can hurt like a bitch, and it’ll be sore for a long ass time. But you’re okay. Phoo…”

Kaito looked at Doppio. “Have you ever done this before?”

Well…any experience was probably a good sign. Even five. Sure, getting his shoulder realigned by, like, a healer was probably better…eeugh. No. So…Kaito would do. 

It was probably better than…

Glancing up briefly, Doppio nodded shortly before his gaze returned to the bathroom tile. “...I tried to set it myself but…I think I just made it worse. I blacked out and…Dad said I was taking a few days off work.”

Doppio toed the ground, squinting as a familiar swoop of guilt settled into his stomach. “...he asked if I was…trying to lose an arm ‘n kill myself or something.” And…in hindsight? All that probably meant that, noticing Doppio was making the injury worse, his father had taken over his body and…either popped his shoulder back in right then and there, or had taken him back home and relocated his shoulder while not in his body. Probably examining the injury enough to surmise that Doppio was going to, like…rip his ligaments or something…

“Oh,” Kaito said, scratching his neck… before sighing. Knocking softly at the door, he called through, “Arven, Kokichi, I know you guys are listening in. Doppio’s shoulder is a bit dislocated, so I’m gonna give him some painkillers and some numbing ointment, and then we’re gonna pop it back into place. Even with the medications, he might make a sound, so I just want you guys to know he’s okay.”

“His shoulder is dislocated?” Arven called through the door, “Aceto, should I come in?”

Kaito gave Doppio a somewhat wary look, but just waited. Disapproving of the idea, but not about to insist.

Kokichi winced a bit, a sympathetic, “Ooo,” leaving him, but he nodded. “Eesh, that’s rough. Okay, I’m gonna go ask Temp for an ice pack, then.”

And he would’ve just left but…

Doppio looked up in surprise, a wash of confusion going over his face. “...what? Um…I guess so, but…why would I… Y-you could just pop it back in?” His eyebrows knitting more, Doppio tried to peek through the door around Kaito to see Arven. “...it looks kinda gross, carino. I…dunno if you want to.”

“I mean, I don’t mind–”

“Arven, maybe just let me go ahead and do the shitty part, yeah?” Kaito said, giving the teen a grin. “Doppio’s gonna be cussing me out by the end there, dislocated shoulders suck. Why don’t you get something ready for him to eat and drink when he’s ready to talk about what a bastard I am, yeah?”

Arven frowned… before peeking around Kaito, trying to see Doppio through his too big body. “Aceto? Do you… want food?”

Doppio frowned a little more. But his voice came out softly. “...I could eat, I guess…”

Kokichi put a gentle hand on Arven’s shoulder, and gave him an even gentler smile. “Let’s go to the kitchen, Arven. Doppio’s in good hands, Kai-chan will make sure he’s right as rain by the time we come back. Okay?”

Arven fussed a bit, briefly uncertain still… before nodding. “I’ll make you something to eat, a-and I’ll make something nice and cold to drink too. Don’t let Kaito bully you!” 

Arven turned, giving Kokichi a determined nod, and headed out. Kaito couldn’t help but roll his eyes a bit, before giving Kokichi a small grin. “Alright, time to do some bullying, I guess. I still would love to have that ice pack, babe, it’s a good call. Hurry back, kay?”

Closing the door with a click, Kaito turned back to Doppio, grinning. “Alright, let’s drink that painkiller first, so that it’s not total agony when I put the ointment on, okay? Between the two, the pop’s gonna be a piece of cake! Everything’s a-okay, Doppio!” Kaito promised, opening up the first aid kit and putting together the medicines in question. 

Letting the tablet dissolve in the cup, Kaito passed it to Doppio, wincing as he looked at the gnarled condition of Doppio’s shoulder. “...geez. I’m sorry. Man, I’m glad I didn’t full on tackle you. What are you doing, man, being so small and skinny? I need you my size and able to sock me, seriously.”

“Be back soon. I love you.” Kokichi waved, giving Doppio a soft smile before he hurried after Arven. 

“...it is good to be there for the people you care about…but it’s horrible seeing that person in pain,” Kokichi said quietly as he and Arven headed to the kitchen. “Kai-chan will take care of Doppio just fine, and then you can help with the aftermath, without having to watch a little medical horror. I’m sure he’ll be happy to have a nice boyfriend to sit with while resting his arm.”

Doppio still looked at the painkiller and ointment with a bit of confusion, but…well. He didn’t have any objection to using them. It was already late, so if it knocked him out it wasn’t the end of the world, and…well, the last painkiller he had didn’t make him super sleepy, so…maybe this was like that. 

Drinking the painkiller, Doppio sighed a bit before looking to the side. “...sorry for scaring you. We didn’t really want to…like, full scare you. Just do a jumpscare for a second before revealing. …sorry.”

Though Kaito always wanted to take an apology too far, and Doppio’s expression dried, his eyebrow twitching in irritation. “I don’t know, why don’t you ask my dad. Oh, wait, he didn’t want me like this either.”

“Hmmm.” Kaito huffed, wiping the ointment on a small cotton pad, intending to carefully dab it first, before spreading it around the twist of the bone, focusing on its base. “First genuinely stupid thing I’ve ever seen you do. You really either just have never dealt with someone else who has a phobia, or you thought I was full of shit. Well, no changing it now.” 

Kaito didn’t flinch at Doppio’s anger, dabbing at his shoulder a bit, before collecting more ointment onto it, dabbing some more. “How the hell do you figure that?” Kaito asked sincerely. 

No changing it now… Well. He’d provoked punching time and couldn’t get out of punching range, just like Diana had warned. That…okay, yeah, that probably was…really dumb of them… 

Sighing a little, Doppio didn’t seem to react to the ointment being put on, though he did glare at the ground. “...prevailing theory is he was trying to make another him, when he made me. And he just fucked it up. And…in every way that I’m dumber and weaker and…more broken than him…those were always the parts he got the most exasperated with. And mistakes from those were always when he’d wished for appropriate help…which would only be another him, but…instead he had me so…had to make do.”

“Yeah, that sounds like gaslighting bullshit to me,” Kaito said, carefully spreading the ointment, watching Doppio’s expression carefully. “...can you not feel this?”

Doppio glanced up, giving Kaito a mildly confused look. “...no? I-I mean…yeah? Um…I haven’t lost feeling in my arm, I mean.”

“Yeah, but does it hurt,” Kaito stressed, brows furrowed, “Are you not in pain, or are you masking like crazy right now?”

Doppio’s eyebrows drew in, the confusion growing. “...masking? I mean…I guess it’s kinda sore? That’s how I knew something was wrong in the first place.”

Kaito frowned, resting his elbows on his knees, staring curiously at Doppio. “...Doppio, man, do you not feel pain? This should hurt like a motherfucker. You’re not just pretending it doesn’t hurt?”

A frown had joined the fray, confusion starting to almost edge into offense. “Of course I feel pain! It’s just…not that bad? I mean, there’s way worse stuff, this is totally handleable.” Huffing a little, Doppio squinted at Kaito. “...what, can it not hurt if I’m not screaming or something?”

“It matters if your concept of pain is different from mine. Or Arven’s. Or healers’,” Kaito explained, biting his lower lip a little, before deciding to stay the course, back to rubbing the ointment on. “It’s something I’d want to know if your baseline tolerance or physical, like, ouchieness is super high. It means if you’re wincing on your foot, I should seriously be thinking you’ve broken your damn ankle or something, and want to have it looked at.”

“I’m not asking you if you can handle it, I’m asking if it hurts. Are you suppressing the urge to scream? Or you just can’t see why you would?” Kaito asked, putting on the last of the ointment. “Alright, do me a favor. Put a little pressure on your shoulder, trying to lift it. I wanna see how much I’ll need to maneuver you to get your bone lined up. Don’t push through if it hurts, kay?”

Doppio just squinted more. “...but… I-I mean…if something hurts, I can just…tell someone. Or show, I guess… It’s pretty obvious when a bone’s broken, or there’s a gash somewhere or something… Isn’t…everyone’s pain response different? So…I-I mean…I’m not gonna ignore someone if they’re wincing or something but…that shouldn’t be the end all be all.”

Sighing a little, Doppio nodded…before he paused, giving Kaito an unsure look. “...um… Like, don’t push through if it hurts at all, or…don’t if it’s to the point where I don’t want to lift it anymore?”

“Hmmm, mhhm, mhhm, you know what I’m hearing?” Kaito said, grabbing the wrapping and having it ready, unfurling it a bit, before mimicking in a perfect lilt of Doppio’s accent, “Geez willigers, Kaito, I’m gonna argue with every single thing you say tonight, and I’m not gonna listen to your perfectly reasonable concern until someone I actually think is smart tells me the same thing a week from now! Let’s place bets on who brings it up to me first! My boyfriend, my healer, or my therapist! Either way, it’s noooot gonna be you!”

Kaito glanced over to Doppio’s backpack, which had been taken off and put to the side, saying seriously to Phanpy, ”You see how he treats your poor uncle? Terribly, Phanpy. Beat up your father for me… also, let’s look away,” Kaito decided, reaching over to turn the backpack around, “Everything’s fine, Phanpy, dad and uncle are just having a conversation.”

“Anyway, before I would’a said lift it till you don’t want to anymore, but now I don’t feel confident that won’t hurt you either way. So just… how high can you lift your arm before it hurts at all?”

Doppio startled, almost a little freaked out by Kaito’s spot on mimicry…before he huffed. “...okay, I know how this sounds, but! I’m not trying to argue! I just don’t know what you’re saying! I don’t understand! Maybe I get it when other people explain the same concept because they can actually explain it to me.”

Looking frustrated, Doppio chewed on his lip and looked away. “I’m dumb. …a-and…I’m not even two. A-and apparently I’m made from the ideas of someone with an even worse social life than me. I don’t get it. Do…do you want me to say I can walk around with a knife in me?! ‘Cause I can! That’s…my scale?! Is that what you’re asking?!”

Gritting his teeth, starting to tear up a little from his frustration, Doppio let out a harsh sigh. “...this high.”

He hadn’t moved it.

“...yes?? Basically?” Kaito said, giving the kid an exasperated look, before thumping his forehead into his palm. “You. Are not. Dumb! You do dumb things sometimes, but guess what, that, Doppio, is called the ‘Human Existence’! And also the probably everything else existence! So far it doesn’t seem like anyone gets away with being totally infallible. Making mistakes doesn’t make you fucking dumb kid, cause I sure as hell will tell you when you’re acting dumb.” 

“And… yeah. As shitty as it is to hear that you’ve been through that? I want to know that, yeah,” Kaito said, his expression darkening. “If someone tells me you’ve been cut, and you’re saying ‘it hurts’? Then I’m coming running with a damn tourniquet. Just to be safe.”

…damn. Okay. Kaito was going to need to do all the maneuvering. Shit, it was a lot easier to not hit painful spots when the other person was helping guide. Alright, time be careful. 

“And look, I’m sure you have a lot of reasons to think that your dad genuinely tried to make a perfect clone of himself,” Kaito said, carefully putting his hands around Doppio’s elbow and around the thick part of his bicep, carefully starting to move it as he watched the bone shift little by little, looking to straighten it out. “Careful, careful, let me know if you need me to stop, I’ll freeze, okay? …hell maybe he even believed it. But you’re born from ideas. And as a fellow daydreamer? That shit can get away from you in the moment… Maybe he wanted a clone, but he created someone who was smaller than him. And had a high pain tolerance. And doesn’t like to fight.”

“...there’s nothing wrong with you,” Kaito said, after a moment, “You are who you are, and how you are is honestly perfect. But when I say things like I wish you were bigger? It’s me wishing you could easily slug me when I do things like this, that hurt you. I want you stronger than me. He just… didn’t.”

“...you’re not a failure,” Kaito said, “You were sabotaged. It’s not you failing, being smaller and thinner… I’m sorry I suggested there was something wrong with you. There isn’t.” Kaito sighed, “...can I talk you into biting the hand towel?”

Doppio grimaced, scrunching his face at the blow to his forehead. Well…yeah, he didn’t think someone needed to never make a mistake to not be dumb. That would really be a sign of excellence if that happened, but…Doppio had never seen it happen. He wasn’t dumb because he messed up a lot, though he did. He was dumb because he was…slow. And didn’t understand a lot. And with the sort of scope of things that people tended to talk about…sometimes it just felt like Doppio would never understand. So…that made him dumb. 

“Okay,” he huffed. “For saying I’m not dumb, you’re sure making me feel that way, when I’m telling you I don’t understand, and then I happen to come across the question you’re asking by blindly grasping at straws, only for you to just… Get pissed at me for only getting it then, like it should’ve been obvious. It wasn’t. Not to me…and I literally just told you that.”

Doppio kept still, just looking out at the floor as Kaito maneuvered his arm. Looking a little teary and frustrated, but…not like he was in any more pain. Er…physical pain. Because Doppio’s expression just darkened at the implication of Kaito’s words. “...punching you would just make this worse, ‘cause it’d jostle my shoulder. How would that even help…? I can just tell you if something feels bad.” Glancing over, there was a bit of venom in Doppio’s gold glare. “Or is this something too you need to actually come to blows to respect?”

Maybe he really should’ve anticipated how violent Kaito would get from the prank. That seemed to be the only way he knew how to act with people at all. 

“...I don’t need to bite anything. Just get it over with.”

“I’m not pissed at you that you don’t get it, I’m just pissed.” Kaito huffed, closing his eyes and breathing through his nose again, giving himself a second…

He could be mad later. He had to be alert and aware and ready to be whatever Doppio needed for these next few minutes. Fucking just… bury it. 

Opening his eyes, Kaito nodded. “I’m gonna count down to one, and do it on one, okay? No weird tricks or anything, it’s just what I’m doing. Alright. 3, 2, 1.” 

POP.

Kaito double checked quickly that the shoulder had lined out smoothly again– it had– before quickly grabbing the wrap, holding the arm in place. “You’re doing good, you’re doing great, Doppio, just give me another minute, we’re gonna set this guy in place,” Kaito said, quickly wrapping.

“It sure seems that way,” Doppio muttered. Doppio could…maybe admit he tended to assume most irritation and aggression was either aimed at him, or caused by him. It was the responsibility he had taken on as his father’s caretaker. If his dad was displeased with something, then it was Doppio’s fault for allowing that situation to occur, regardless of whether it was some action he’d actually taken. 

…but this really did feel like Kaito being mad at him for things Doppio had already admitted. 

(...his father hadn’t just wanted a punching bag. Generously, Doppio was small so he’d be unassuming, and would have an easier time working undercover and avoiding exposure. More likely…his dad had just messed up. Doppio had a high pain tolerance, because violence and pain was just the world they had lived in…and his dad hated the sound of him whining, especially when patching him back together. Doppio didn’t like fighting because…because needlessly getting into fights was a waste of energy, time, and connections. And Doppio had still been able to fight when he needed to.)

(It wasn’t because his dad wanted someone to lash out on.)

(His dad wanted someone to help him.)

(...because he needed help.)

(...and…and Doppio hadn’t been able to be that help. But…he had at least been able to keep Dia--)

Doppio winced, gritting his teeth for a moment before letting out a highly controlled stream of air. “...s’ fine.”

“Good, good, you let me know when it’s not,” Kaito said, finishing the loops of the wrap, “Tighter? Too tight? Alright, now I’m gonna make a makeshift sling for now, and we’re gonna get you a proper one when we go back to the castle. I’m hoping if we did a good enough job, the healers will only tell ya to wear it for a few days. If you don’t mess it up, or, if I didn’t mess it up, that should be all it really needs.”

Kaito started to roll out the sling, sighing as he went over the argument they were having in his head… before deciding, “Look, regardless of anything else, I’m still sorry I hit your shoulder. I should have been more careful. You’re not too small, you’re not dumb, none of this shit was your fault outside of the, ya know, scaring me bit. I still shouldn’t have clipped you.”

“Hold on, annnd… how does that feel?” Kaito asked, maneuvering the sling on, “I can make it higher if it helps.”

Doppio wrinkled his nose a bit. A sling… That was going to suck. And on his left arm too… But, well, a few days wasn’t the worst and…well. He’d seen how impatience could draw out annoying rest before, so…he’d actually rest. 

“...I’m sorry for turning invisible and trying to scare you with a phobia,” Doppio apologized after a moment. “...I’ll stop with the ghost shit.” He knew it was a horrible thing to say to a person with a phobia, so he wouldn’t but…it was hard to really look at Kaito’s reactions and acknowledge that they came from a phobia, when…shouting really angrily and trying to punch something was…stuff people did when being normally scared. Maybe not to the extent of…throwing fire into the woods, or trying to desecrate a grave, and maybe that was the sign, but…with how ridiculous Kaito was, like, always, it was hard not to just roll your eyes and brush that in with him being extra as usual. 

Which was like saying it was Kaito’s fault that they hadn’t taken his phobia seriously, which it wasn’t, so Doppio didn’t…but. Still. He’d just…stop. 

Doppio looked at his sling, wiggling his fingers a little…before he grimaced. “...the sling is good--um, thanks--but…I still have my shirt off.”

“Man, I got you that damn tongue ring too, ya really couldn’t have pranked anyone else? I’m not begging favoritism, but also, like, damn Doppio, where’s my favoritism?” Kaito scoffed, before he pouted, looking Doppio over. “Ah, right… I’ll take the sling off and cover my eyes again?”

Picking up the hand towel again, Kaito leaned back, holding the sling and covering his eyes. “Alright, well… at least the painkiller and the ointment will help any aches and pains too. Still worth giving to you. Just cause you have a high pain tolerance doesn’t mean, like, whatever, you don’t get to benefit from any medicine. You guys have a first aid kit in your bathroom, right? Just to keep taking care of that shoulder, is the only reason I ask.”

“Sorry… Um… The invisible stuff I only thought of recently. We planned the ghost stuff for a while before that. …sorry.” 

Sighing, Doppio waited for Kaito to cover his eyes before he shrugged off the towel…frowned at it for a moment before folding it, and then began the hassle of getting his shirt back on. Which, again, wasn’t too bad for pulling it on initially and getting his right arm through, but as he tried to fish his left arm through the sleeve… He did try to keep the little grunts of pain to a minimum, but…well. It was pretty quiet in the bathroom. 

Shirt on, he called out to Kaito again. “Done… Yeah, we have a first aid kit. And Arven has a ton of different balms and medicines he’s made too. They’re really good,” Doppio said, smiling softly. 

“Good, that’s good,” Kaito said, putting the sling over Doppio’s head, and helping him put his arm securely back in the sling, looking him over, “Alright, there we go! This time you’re ready to be the life of the party! …iiiis what I’d like to say,” Kaito said tiredly, “You ready to go home though? I can walk you and Arven back. You have to be exhausted.”

Doppio glanced up, his smile fading into worry. “...you haven’t gotten to do anything at this party yet, though. Arven and I will be okay, we were just planning on finding some corner and hanging out after the prank anyway. …you go find your husbands and have fun, just let us know when you’re heading back.”

Almost on cue, there was a soft knock at the door. “Ice delivery!”

Kaito grinned somewhat warily at that– cute– before standing up, stretching a bit, letting his spine do little snap-snap-snaps, before opening the door. Not surprised to see Arven sitting against the opposite wall, holding a plate and a drink. Kaito looked down at Kokichi, giving him a warm, grateful look, “Heeeeey, there’s our ice-guy~ Kokichi~ he is so speedy~ with the bag of freezy~”

Stepping back to let Kokichi in, Kaito said over his head to Arven, “Doppio’s doing great! Popped his shoulder back into place, he took it like a champ! He’s got a bit of a sling, and I’ll want a healer to double check my work tomorrow morning or tonight, but! I think he’ll be out of the sling in a few days.”

Arven glared at Kaito, “Why did you charge at him like a crazy person anyway?”

“Ya know what? I do noooot feel like answering that.” Kaito decided, shuffling out, calling back to Kokichi, “Babe, I’m getting a drink, do you want anything?”

Kokichi came in, his expression softening as he saw the slight redness in Doppio’s eyes. There weren’t tear tracks on his face, so he hadn’t been crying, but…it looked like it had been close. 

“I’m sorry that you’re ending your night like this, Doppio,” Kokichi said softly, offering up the ice pack. It seemed to be in a tube of cloth, of sorts, and he helped Doppio arrange it to rest against his shoulder, explaining that the sling would help keep the pack in place so Doppio didn’t have to constantly hold it there and subsequently lose the use of both his arms for the night. 

“S’ kinda my own fault…” Doppio muttered, going in for a shrug before he stopped himself with a grimace. “Um…thanks for the ice.”

“Temp said to not worry about giving it back tonight, so…don’t worry about that,” Kokichi laughed gently. “I can bring it back whenever, so you just focus on getting some rest, okay? Do you want one of us to walk you back home? I really wouldn’t mind--”

It wasn’t a sharp cut-off, but Doppio shook his head. “Thanks, but I-I’m okay. You all can enjoy the party and, um, I told Kaito but just…lemme know when you’re ready to head out.”

Kokichi gave him a moderately worried look, but respected that…and it seemed like Kaito had too. There was, in fact, something Kokichi would want, but…maybe it was better not to let the boys know. They’d already had alcohol that day anyway. 

{There’s a drink that looks and tastes like a frosty lemonade, but it’s a punch. Don’t think I want more than half a cup, but I’d love some, if you’re heading over.}

{^3^ I love you, Kai-chan} 

Aloud, Kokichi looked over with a smile. “I’m good for now, thanks, Kai-chan.”

Kaito paused, looking briefly confused… before he smirked, shaking his head a little. Little sneak. Cute~

Arven hurried inside, hovering a little as the refreshments waited outside–he didn’t wanna bring them into the bathroom– frowning at the sling, “It was that bad? Or is Kaito overcompensating? Are you okay?”

Getting up--and picking up his bag with his good arm--Doppio gave Arven a soft smile. “I’m okay. I don’t think it was a full dislocation but…still. It’s better to take some precautions around this kind of stuff.” Looking a little apologetic, Doppio ducked his head a bit. “I…probably shouldn’t move my shoulder around much until it heals more.”

Kokichi shuddered a bit before starting to escort the boys out of the bathroom. “Well, ice, rest, and painkillers will do you well in the meantime. Even if you don’t want to head home, let me help you guys find a place to settle down in, okay?”

Doppio gave the prince a tiredly amused look. “So you can have that talk with us?”

“Maybe,” Kokichi said, returning the smile, “But I think it can wait, if you’ve already gotten it once.”

Arven still didn’t really feel like they had done anything wrong– who charges at something they’re afraid of??-- but in the name of not getting scolded by one of his childhood heroes, Arven kept it to himself. He shuffled along with Kokichi’s herding, before he and Doppio found themselves at a love seat near the fireplace, still relatively isolated in that ‘sitting in a corner’ mentality kind of way, but on the edge of one of the busier rooms in the house, Temp’s guests sitting around and chatting mostly here. They were also filing in and out of the backyard, sitting on the lanai, and Kaito, grabbing drinks for himself and Kokichi, briefly considered going to the fireplace as well… before heading out into the lanai instead. Sitting by a firepit back there that Temp had setup for the event.

“Everything alright? Shoulder back in place?” Temp asked, going to sit with Kaito.

“Yeah, think so. Should make the little moron go get it looked at by a healer, but fuck it, I’ll have that fight tomorrow.” Kaito huffed, leaning back on the wood-laced chair, “Little assholes.” He cursed, while Temp laughed a little at that.

“Are you sure you want to stay?” Arven asked Doppio, looking around. He only recognized a few people here. Some of them just from around the castle. “We don’t have to wait for them, we can get back ourselves.”

While Doppio didn’t consider himself a party guy--this was…huh. The first one he’d actually been to--there was something nice about the atmosphere. They were surrounded by people that…he didn’t really know, but there was enough…party-mindedness, he guessed, or maybe just alcohol, that classic neighborly nosiness just…didn’t seem to draw people towards them. Surrounded by chatter and fun, but not really having to engage with it. And…that was pretty nice. 

“Yeah…but if we said we were going back, one of them would insist on coming with us regardless,” Doppio hummed, leaning against Arven a little. “And if we just left now, they’d either figure it out partway through our walk and come running after us, or get freaked out when we’re nowhere to be seen when they’re heading back. And…I think that’d be pushing our luck, stressing them out today.”

Tipping his head to rest against Arven’s, Doppio sighed. Closing his eyes as he admitted in a low murmur, “...and…I’m tired… I could make it back to the castle but…I don’t really want to think about trying yet.”

Maybe he did really have a high pain tolerance…but as he and Kaito had argued, that didn’t mean he didn’t feel pain. And regardless of his reaction to it, experiencing that much had left Doppio a bit drained. 

Chief trotted over from where he had been given some top-notch dog food– Temp had been spending quite a bit of this party literally just fussing and coo’ing over the big, happy dog– considering the two boys in the love seat and deciding, yep. That looked like plenty of room for Dog.

Jumping up, ignoring his boys protests, “Chief, you’re gonna jostle Aceto’s arm!” the dog nustled himself cheerfully onto their respective laps, resting his head on the arm rest next to Doppio, Arven getting a lap full of doggy butt. Yessss… luxury…

 Arven sighed, “Sorry. He can be such a brat sometimes. And… I’m sorry my dumb prank idea got you hurt. And that you’re tired. And that you got scolded a bunch… I just thought it’d be fun. I didn’t want it to ruin your night.”

Doppio opened his eyes, recognizing those familiar plods, though quickly they widened and he held his arm, keeping his shoulder steady as Chief jumped up. Letting out a little sigh, he smiled fondly at Chief and let his arm rest against Chief’s shoulder, petting his back a bit. 

“Chief’s always good,” Doppio was quick to reassure, though more was to follow as he gave Arven a soft look. “It’s okay. I know it…might sound weird, with everything, but…this doesn’t feel ruined to me. Yeah, it sucks I’m gonna have to baby my shoulder for a few days, and that we upset Kaito so much, but…I’m always happy spending time with you. And today felt really special, all the way through.”

Giving Arven a sheepish look, Doppio nudged him slightly with his good shoulder. “...I think the only reason Prince Kokichi hasn’t scolded you more is cause he could tell Kaito and I got in another fight. So…I dunno. Think you should be prepared for that, at some point.”

“Kaito’s lucky I have a sleepy boyfriend and a dog on me, or I’d go give him a real piece of my mind.” Arven muttered, still worrying a bit over Doppio’s shoulder, “He didn’t have to react like that. I think he was just looking for an excuse to fight something, honestly.”

“But,” Arven smiled, giving Doppio a warm look, “...everything else really was fun. Dislocated boyfriends excluded, I had a lot of fun with you today. And you’re right, it feels special. It’s our first festival together. It makes me really look forward to all the festivals we get to do together from now on.”

That was really sweet and all, and Doppio felt the same, but…

He looked over at Arven, his eyebrows pinching together a little. “...why? Kaito had a good festival today too. And…you heard him, all he wanted to do tonight was enjoy this party, why would he be looking for a fight?”

“A-and…that’s the point, Kaito and Kokichi said,” Doppio frowned. “He didn’t have to react like that, and I don’t think he wanted to. But phobias make you act like a crazy person--that’s just what the princes said to us, and why it was shitty to scare Kaito with his.”

“...Kaito told me in the bathroom that…it was such a dumb move, he could o-only theorize that I’d never met anyone else with a phobia before. And…I dunno if that’s quite right, but…he’s right that I’ve never met anyone with the same responses to one as him. Which…is why we just thought he was a little squicked out, right? But…that’s not what it is. And that’s why they’re mad at us.”

Arven paused the nuzzling he was doing, frowning a little… oh, whoops. “Sorry, I’m not really trying to drag the guy for us pranking him. I’m just… well, I don’t like looking at you in a sling like that. I’m annoyed with him. Like, okay, yes, he only did that because we did something first. But still, like…”

Arven huffed, leaning back a bit, petting Chief’s stomach, “We were in sheets. Even with extra illusion stuff, he seriously bought two guys walking around in painted sheets were ghosts? If he wasn’t looking for a fight, then he’s just kind of dumb then. Like, what, if I were to take one of these paper skeletons Temp has hanging off the wall and threw it on him, I should expect him to punch a wall trying to fight it? There’s just a level of common sense I’d expect here.”

Doppio gave Arven a wary, tired look. “...if I was in the medical wing at the castle, and someone wearing healer’s robes told me a surgery room was ready for me, I’d still meltdown. It wouldn’t even matter if I was there for a check up in the first place, or if I knew I’d never seen that person in the medical wing before. If Chief wasn’t right next to you, and someone stopped you in the road pointing to a roll of black fur and said a dog had just been hit by a carriage…what would you do?” 

Arven frowned at the first situation, mostly just feeling a little pissed on Doppio’s behalf… but he tensed at the second example. A freeze up in his body, glancing down at Chief, his grip tightening in his fur a bit.

“...yeah,” Arven sighed, deflating a little, “I’d be upset. Okay.”

Tilting his head on his should a bit, Arven pouted at Doppio, “So, what, we did the equivalent of pretending to kill Kaito’s dog? Cause… that sucks. If we did that.”

Arven was clever and intuitive and kind, Doppio knew that…but something in his chest relaxed as it became apparent that his point struck true, and Arven wasn’t going to fight him on that point. He didn’t want to fight with Arven. Now, of course, because he was exhausted and worn out from his fight with Kaito, but…like, always. He never wanted to fight with Arven. 

Putting his good arm around Arven, Doppio held him close and nuzzled him. “I think so… I only know, like…the general things people say about phobias, so it’s not like I’m a psychologist or anything. But with how Kaito and Kokichi reacted…I think that’s what happened.”

Doppio glanced up. It looked like they were alone in the room, so… He whispered in Arven’s ear, “Kokichi can kind of read minds, you know? I don’t think he would’ve run after Kaito like that in other cases… A-and he said ‘are you okay?’, rather than ‘what happened?’ so…I think that might imply that…Kokichi felt that Kaito was in danger. That Kaito felt like he was in danger.”

“Ooooooh,” Arven said, brow furrowed, reconsidering the context. “...I guess maybe… okay, so if Kaito thought he was in danger, like, actual danger, I guess it’s not really that out there that screaming like a madman and running through us was an answer. Also, I really thought he was going to throw that tombstone at me. I don’t know if he’s actually strong enough to lift and throw something like that, my guess is ‘no’, but I didn’t think he could move it at all either. Scared the heck out of me when it shifted.”

“...hah,” Arven suddenly laughed, before admitting, “I think that’s another reason I’m so ticked off at Kaito. He kinda scared me there, for a second. Is that irony? It might be.”

Doppio nodded guiltily. He was still a little miffed about his arm, but…much less so, since his ire before was mostly from the pain, and right now he mostly felt, like…vaguely achy. But…being able to process it more? It was…a really shitty thing they had done. And Kaito being pissed about it made a lot of sense. 

Snorting softly, Doppio nuzzled Arven a little more. “I think it might be… I think Kaito’s back would’ve snapped if he lifted the tombstone, but…well. Reactions to phobias make you do crazy things…and if you’re scared into a ‘fight’ stress response, getting a weapon to fight that thing is kinda common…”

Closing his eyes again, Doppio sighed softly, a small hum buzzing in his throat. “...you might get to skip some of the lecture if you apologize to Kaito before he can get on a roll. Might save you an hour tomorrow.”

“Maaaaaybe,” Arven said, snuggling back into Doppio’s side, “But, I still have a tired boyfriend and a now very sleeping dog on us. And you guys take priority, so, Kaito’s apology can wait. Besides, aren’t we trying to let them have a good time at this party or something? Kaito’s in the backyard, drinking with his friends, I’m sure he’s stopped thinking about all of this.”

-

“No, see, when I say I’m grounding them, I mean I’m going to find a cavern somewhere, right?” Kaito explained to Temp, who was sipping on his drink, nodding along every now and again in amusement, “It’ll be a nice cavern! Dry! Warm! And I’m shoving those two nimrods inside, and pushing a boulder in front of it! For a week! They’re cavern-grounded for a week!”

“Sounds reasonable.” Temp nodded, “What about food?”

“What, like I’m not gonna leave a fridge in the cavern? I’m not a monster! They’ll be fine!” Kaito huffed, sipping his own drink before looking around, “Where is bigger husband? He and Maki wander off to be mean to people?”

“Basically as soon as she got back, yes.” Temp snorted. “I listened in for a while. They’re kind of hilarious together, if I’m honest.”

“Tsk,” Kaito scoffed, leaning back on his chair, crossing his leg over his knee, “Teenagers. I’m done with teenagers. I’m telling Timothy now, he’s not getting any older. He’s gotta knock that shit off.”

“Mmm, teenagers can be a little rough,” Temp agreed, nodding, a small, nostalgic smile on his face, “Though, I’ll admit, by the time I finally was allowed to have kids that grew to be teenagers? I was pretty grateful just to get the chance.”

“Oh, careful, someone could be listening,” Kaito frowned, looking around.

“Don’t worry about it. I tend to always be ‘listening’, to see who’s listening,” Temp said, giving Kaito a small wink, “It’s a bad day if someone manages to sneak up on me.”

“Mm, we should leave a whole kitchen space and cleaning supplies in the cavern too,” Kokichi added, sticking to his promise of not getting drunk on Harvest, but definitely pink-cheeked from his slushie cocktail. “Even as a punishment, I think it might be too cruel to leave Doppio-kun to have a conniption over living in filth. Hmm…have to make sure the cavern isn’t connected to a bigger cave structure either, otherwise Arven-kun would just start exploring the whole thing, and we may not get him out in a week.”

With the boys away and settled, there was no reason for Kokichi not to play along. He knew Kaito’s ire was genuine but…it was a little fun to play like this. 

His smile softened, sharing in the sentiment of Temp’s nostalgia before he snorted, giggling softly. “I always forget how nosy you are. I can’t say it doesn’t seem helpful, but still.”

“It’d be a clean cavern! Everyone keeps talking like my caverns gonna suck! They’re gonna love this cavern!” 

Temp laughed a bit, Kaito’s outrage pretty funny, if he was honest. Kaito expressed his anger with his whole body, his drink spilling over his hand a few times because he kept moving his arm in big, sweeping explanations. Kaito, when he wasn’t being self-aware, tended to eat and drink things quickly, an almost aggression in the mere act of consuming something, and each time he brought up the drink to drink again, Temp was amused to watch him swallow it hard, a gulp down that only added to the theatrics of his frustration. 

Temp could see why Kaito was the kind of person that people got tempted to play pranks on. His reactions were fun, once he was relatively calmed down. The boys had probably just messed up going so hard on their prank choice, more than anything. 

Smirking at Kokichi, Temp did a little shrug, clearly a little pleased with himself, “I will still be the first to argue to you, Kokichi, that our abilities are fun. While I can argue that I only use them to keep myself safe… it wouldn’t be true,” Temp admitted, “I enjoy little peeks at the conversations going on around me just for its own sake. People have interesting conversations! It’d be boring, if I only ever heard the ones I myself was a part of.”

“I guess I could understand that a little bit, though man, that’s with the caveat of me hoping you bail when you realize it’s something you shouldn’t be listening to,” Kaito said dryly, “...though, personally, I’d love to see peoples daydreams. I have to imagine that’s wild.”

“So…we’d basically just be keeping them in the castle for a week again, but with different decor, and we wouldn’t even be insisting that Arven go to school?” Kokichi summarized, grinning a bit. “I don’t think that would be much of a punishment for them at all, then.”

Sure, Doppio had confessed to being a little bored, but without the stress of the arrest of his father…Kokichi could guess he’d be pretty fine, stuck somewhere nice for a week. And with him and Arven there together…it’d just be a week of making out, probably. 

Laughing a bit, Kokichi gave Kaito a fond, yet teasing look. “You could only understand it a little bit, huh, Mr. Pro-Eavesdropper?” Shaking his head, Kokichi sipped from his drink. “I mean…your daydreams are fun sometimes to get glimpses of. Kinda startling more often than not, but mostly because I’m not trying to listen in on purpose. I’d think looking purposefully would be interesting.”

“Who’s a pro-eavesdropper? I don’t eavesdrop!” Kaito said, pointedly looking away and sipping his drink again, the lie obvious to anyone who even wasn’t an empath. “People just talk around me sometimes. How’s a guy meant to mind his own business all the time?”

“You are actually maybe one of the nosiest peoples I’ve ever met.” Temp said, pointing to Kaito, who determinedly looked away some more, “But not like how Shuichi is. I feel like if you had our abilities, it wouldn’t occur to you, to turn them off. You’d just listen to whatever you could on instinct, until someone mentioned it was a bad idea.”

Kaito clicked his tongue again, “Weeeelll, we’ll never know, so there. For all we know, I’d be totally mature and restrained, able to do what you guys can…” Kaito suddenly looked to Kokichi, a small grin on his face, “You let me know if you ever see something you like, beautiful~ I’m happy to give a proper performance for any sneak peeks.”

“See, exactly what I mean.” Temp said, “You just lean towards the careless use of these  abilities on instinct. You’d make a very fun, wildly irresponsible empath.”

“Yeah, yeah. How’s you drink, babe?” Kaito asked, “Want me to get you anything else?” 

“Mhmm,” Kokichi hummed, fond, his eyes sparkling as he looked over his husband. “People just talk around you…in separate rooms, behind closed doors, away from any place you normally go when certain people aren’t in those rooms. Can’t help just hearing things with your ears pressed to doorframes, right.”

Laughing, Kokichi shook his head a bit before grinning at Temp. “It’s really good. Temp, this is dangerous. I can slurp down lemonade like no one’s business if the mood’s right, and this is just that but sneakily alcoholic. I was glad to walk with Arven while he was getting things for Doppio, because I don’t think he’d even be in the spirit of teenage rebellion getting a big glass of this, just thinking it’s a refreshing, cold drink.”

“That said,” he smiled at Kaito, “I’m good with this much. I’ll probably get water next time I head for refreshments.”

“I’m glad you’re enjoying it, they’re surprisingly easy to make, for being as potent as they are.” Temp said, preening a little. 

Kaito pouted, swirling his mead, like that was a normal thing to do, “...did I overreact? I mean, yeah, I know in the moment I did, I can’t help that. But afterwards?”

“I don’t know. How did you react?” Temp asked.

“I called Doppio a moron about a dozen different ways.” Kaito admitted, sighing as he rubbed his temples, “And I messed up, like, trying to tease him for being on the smaller side, and then not backing down when he got pissed… ugh. Dammit. Please don't tell me I owe those two jackasses an apology, my pride can’t handle it right now.”

“Then why’d you ask?” Temp asked.

“Because I proooooobably owe them an apoooooology.” Kaito groaned, sinking in his chair, “Auuuuuuuuuuuugh.”

Kokichi raised his eyebrows a little, surprised by Kaito. Not for how he’d treated Doppio (it had been a dumb move from the boys, though in line with typical teenage dumbassery), and…well, there was a lot Kokichi would bet on that Kaito already apologized to him in the moment, but…

He smiled softly. “Therapy and self-reflection are some real powerful tools, huh. …alright, this is gonna sound weird coming from me, and I’ll own that, and still insist it isn’t because I’m drunk…but you don’t have to apologize to them tonight. I don’t think it would hurt anyone to just take tonight to rest and process and have time to feel our emotions…while spending good times with good friends,” he nodded to Temp. 

“...and then tomorrow, once we’ve had that time? Then you can evaluate what you want to apologize for, and how. And I’d hope the boys would do the same for you. I still have a lecture built up if they need some prompting.”

“Yeah? Yesssss,” Kaito grinned, raising a glass in celebration, “Alright, then it’s time to get down and dirty and–”

“You’re tired.” Temp said.

“Fuuuuuuck I’m so tired,” Kaito laughed. A full, belly laugh as he rested the bottom of his glass against his forehead, cooling himself down a bit, “Those kids ran through those circles. And then they were all hyped up on sugar when I was walking them back to the castle, at some point Cali was on my left leg, Timothy was on my right, Kimiko was on my back, and I was literally carrying Chase because the puppy decided she was done and did not feel like walking anymore. Thank goodness Miyako handled the day as well as she did, if she had started crying on the walk home, I’d have started crying too. Fuuuuuuuuuck, I wanna cry now, I need a nap and a coffee, at the same time.”

“You know, I can make you a coffee, if you want?” Temp offered, “A good one. You just might not sleep later tonight.”

“Nnnng…” Kaito watching the stars sparkle above them… before taking his hand off his drink, it balancing on his forehead, ‘Ta-daaaaaa… ya know what? Yeah, please, Temp. We still have to get home after this, I need to not be half asleep on my feet while walking everyone home.”

“Will do,” Temp nodded, standing up, “Kokichi, same offer.”

Kokichi snickered, having heard a little more of the kids’ candy exploits earlier when Kaito had first returned to Temp’s house. “It’s really been a full festival day. It’s a kind of satisfying fatigue, isn’t it? …I guess other than fear adrenaline,” he gave Kaito an apologetic look. 

Taking a breath, Kokichi stretched a little and shook his head. “Hmm, thank you, but I think I’m looking forward to a good sleep tonight. People are pretty accommodating the day after a festival, but I still have a lot of work to do.”

Particularly in that Doppio’s father’s court case would, well, start in court the day after. Kokichi wasn’t a lawyer, so he wasn’t going to be presenting anything…but there were still certain laws and codes he wanted to brush up on the day before. Not to mention that Arven’s birthday was the day after that, and while Kokichi had heard about the boys’ plans to go hiking, he wanted to double check the details of that plan with them. 

A lot to get to. 

Giving Kaito a mildly concerned look, Kokichi asked, “Do you think you’d skip out on your sleeping meds if you’re having a strong coffee now? I imagine that would have some effect on…like, your metabolism or something, probably. Have you and Seiko covered this ‘what if’ in your medication consultations?”

“No, but I just won’t take my sleeping meds tonight. Maybe I’ll just pull an all nighter,” Kaito shrugged, “and I’ll just stick close the room tomorrow. Do full Miya duty. She’s probably tired too, maybe we’ll luck out and just sleep all day tomorrow.”

“Babies are rarely that convenient!” Temp called from within the kitchen. 

“Yeaaaaah yeah,” Kaito sighed, taking the drink off his head and sipping it, before snorting, “Why do I keep drinking this, I’m literally exhausted. It’ll just make me more tired.”

“And if I do fall asleep, well, tis the season?” Kaito tried, looking back to Kokichi, “I mean, my night terrors only disturb me, right? You and Miya aren’t… wait, are you? Getting, like, ‘night terror’ vibes when I’m off my meds?” Kaito frowned, considering the idea, “...I could keep myself busy through the night while you guys sleep. Maybe I’ll go wander the castle and bother night people.”

“Mi-Mi is our little stinky lucky charm,” Kokichi giggled, before snorting. “But…yeah. Most likely she’ll be just as energetic tomorrow as any other day. She might get energized by people being happy after a good festival, but I don’t think she was overly affected by the buzz of today so…who knows.”

Their baby was a true mystery of overwhelming ego. But if anything changed, he hoped that she would’ve had enough time to get more used to Kaito’s haircut by tomorrow and she’d be happy spending a day with Dad regardless. 

Looking over in slight surprise, Kokichi’s expression softened as he shook his head. “Not really, no. You’d mostly wake me up by getting out of bed, and then since I was already awake I’d notice how anxious you’d get, and that would worry me. But I haven’t gotten it while I’m already asleep, no.”

“Still, if you want to not just sit in the dark all night, we’ll be alright without you. Well…I’d miss my favorite pillow, but I’ll live,” Kokichi sighed dramatically.

“Pffff, like you wouldn’t end up rolling over right on top of Shuichi,” Kaito laughed, giving his husband a knowing look, “Which is very cute, by the way. Sometimes I’ll pull myself out from under you, and you’ll do this cute little stretch and yawn, pat the bed a bit, and then fwoomp,” Kaito rolled his index finger through the air a few times, little loops, “You’re crawling right on top of Shuichi, who doesn’t even flinch. Soooooo cute. One of my favorite things to watch in the morning.”

“...” Kaito grinned a tad vacantly… before his eyes went a little distant… and then he snorted into his hand, covering his face as he went red, “God, I’m so easy. Where is my handsome Shuichi? I wanna touch his butt.”

Kaito looked around, like sudden booty would appear, sighing in disappointment when his desire did not manifest itself in the form of sudden Shuichi, “Besides, if I’m totally honest, this our first, like, ‘adult’ party since… I don’t know, Remembrance? And by ‘adult’ party I mean not like a ceremony or reception or festival or… like, this specific vibe, I mean,” Kaito said, gesturing around, the laughter and sounds of conversation and music happening around them, “I’d really rather not spend it half asleep or arguing with teenagers. I want to spend it chatting with peeps I know! And maybe dancing with you a bit?” Kaito grinned, “I saw some people dancing a bit in the living room. We could join them, I’d love that. And I don’t care if I’m successful or not, I wanna try to make a move on my two very sexy husbands, even if one of them is determined to only spend time with Maki, apparently, and the other one is a clown. This pirate wants his booty, dammit!” Kaito laughed.

Kokichi shrugged with an unapologetic grin. It was true, but he could be greedy and prefer both of his husbands in bed with him. Kaito’s arms hugging around his waist and Shuuichi’s neck to nestle his face into…ideal. 

Snorting, Kokichi finished off his cocktail, letting Kaito’s daydream play by at lightspeed, before nodding. “I get it. Like…a house party that isn’t for the kids. They’re cool! But I do just want to talk to adults sometimes, yeah.”

Giving Kaito a wink, Kokichi got up and walked over to Kaito, kissing his forehead before rubbing his shoulders behind him a little. “Let’s get you a coffee, and I’ll get a water, then let’s dance. We didn’t really go see any concerts today; I still want my husband dancing time.”

“Yeeeeeess,” Kaito grinned, leaning into the forehead kiss, before stealing a small, quick kiss, before standing up. Stretching his back a bit, before taking Kokichi’s hand, and with a sudden flourish, spinning him a little. Grinning at the little giggle, “Yep, that’s what I’m looking for. Lead the way, beautiful.”

-

It was getting late, and while Kaito was doing a lot better with a really good cup of coffee in him, Shuichi and Kokichi, while enjoying their night, did start to drag as the clock got on the other side of even towards morning. And it was Maki who finally told Kaito, “Unless you want to go get a carriage to get them all home, I’d bet we have an hour, maybe, before Shuichi and Kokichi end up asleep in a corner.”

“Right, right,” Kaito laughed, reaching around to hug her, holding her close, “Awww, shame. I was chatting with this guy named Gail about train stuff. I lost him somewhere, but he had some really interesting ideas of, like, what kind of material trains would need to be made of? He’s convinced wooden trains would be faster. I just don’t think they’d hold together!”

“Yep, sure.” Maki said, patting Kaito on the back a bit, before disentangling herself, “The boys are passed out, by the way. Want me to go wake them up?”

“Yeah, I saw that earlier. They’re still out, huh?” Kaito said, rubbing his face a bit, “Mmmm… wanna help me hoist a teenage brat onto my back?”

“Sure,” Maki said, “I’ll go find your husbands too.”

-

…Arven blinked his eyes open. A little confused. It was rare, for the scenery to change from before and after you fell asleep. “...?”

He watched Doppio be laid out on their bed, Arven’s legs hooked around someone’s waist almost with an instinctive strength, while his arms were being held by a big hand. “...” Arven sniffed, “You smell like coffee.”

“You get three guesses why, and the first two don’t count,” Kaito sighed, squatting down a bit to let Arven drop down, since the kid was awake, “You two fell asleep hours ago. Figured I’d let you rest. Help me get your boyfriends shoes off.”

“We might just want to wake him up,” Arven yawned, still trying to process was Kaito said. Let them rest… since Temp’s house? Temp wasn’t exactly next door. “I think he’d be freaked out if we changed even just his shoes for him.”

“Yeah, that’s a good point.” Kaito said, scratching the short shave of his hair, before reaching forward to jostle Doppio, “Doppiooooo~ Doppio. Hey, you gotta get ready for bed.”

With a sharp, but almost silent intake of breath, Doppio’s eyes snapped open, his body jolting. His right moved up in a defensive motion, trying to push the arm on him away, while his left reached behind, trying to…

Well. It didn’t really matter what his intent was, because as soon as Doppio moved his left arm a more audible and surprised groan left him as he winced. And that took enough time for him to truly wake up and take stock of what was happening. 

Castle room. Kaito reaching for him. 

…ow, his shoulder…

“...?” Doppio grunted, blinking tiredly at Kaito.

Kaito raised an eyebrow, though he put his hands up in blatant surrender. Waiting patiently for Doppio to settle down, figure out where he was– “You alright, Aceto?” Arven said worriedly, leaning over Kaito’s shoulder, peering down at Doppio in concern. 

“...yeah,” Doppio said in a sigh, carefully maneuvering his shoulder back into a more comfortable position. “...um… What’s up? Did…something happen?” he asked Kaito. 

The pain was a pretty glaring reminder of their prank, and everything related to it, so Doppio remembered that. And…that happened at Temp’s, so they were at the party…but they were obviously in the castle now. So…obviously he’d gone to bed at some point, so…

Why was Kaito waking him up? And why was Arven up?

Arven lit up, clearly happy just to see Doppio, while Kaito valiantly kept himself from rolling his eyes as he said, “You’re not dressed for bed, kid. You need to go do all the ‘going to bed’ stuff. Sleeping clothes, teeth, taking a piss. The works.”

Arven guessing what might be wrong, said, “Kaito just brought us here from Temp’s place. I just woke up too.” He looked over to the dog bed, and Chief had only just now settled into his bed to fall asleep, “Chief’s been up, apparently.”

“At least one dog can walk itself back to the castle.” Kaito sighed, standing up, “Alright, let me leave you guys too it–”

“Oh, uh, Kaito!” Arven said.

“Hmm?” Kaito asked, “What’s up, Arven?”

“Um…” Arven hesitated. This was not something he was used to doing, “...sorry about the scare.”

Kaito stared dryly at Arven.

Arven, unaware of what Kaito might be waiting for, stared back.

“...” Kaito sighed. Whatever, good enough. “Thanks kid. Seriously, both of you brush your teeth. You both have ‘funky teenage boy’ smell going on.” He said, heading to the door.

Doppio blinked before looking down. Oh. So he was. Giving a grateful look to Arven for clearing things up, Doppio carefully swung himself up to peek over at Chief, smiling fondly. “Big guy knows how to conserve his energy well, huh. The best sleeping strategy I’ve ever seen.”

Stifling a yawn, Doppio stood, before blinking. Smiling softly as he saw Arven take his advice and apologize to Kaito…even if it was a truncated version. But, it was late and they were all tired, so…he got that. And it seemed like Kaito did too. 

Not that he seemed particularly appreciative with his parting words. 

Turning red and squeaking in embarrassment, Doppio hunched into himself and quickly trotted over to the bathroom. “I-I’m taking a shower before bed!”

Arven watched Kaito leave the room, watched Doppio run to the bathroom… before lifting his arm and sniffing under his armpit. “...yeah, I’ll do that too.”

-

Kaito wandered out of the boys room, taking a deep breath. Tapping the front of his boot on the tile. Scratching his stomach a bit, having managed to keep pretty comfortable in the torn vest, even when the night had gotten a little chilly.

It was his first moment alone all day… it was quiet…

Kaito tapped his boot some more against the tile, enjoying the small click-click-click sound of it… before he grinned, suddenly doing a spin, jumping around in little steps, enjoying the sound of the boots as he did a little lively two step down the hall, before sliiiding one foot behind him. The little hopping dance turning into Kaito just moving his hips a bit, lifting his arms up to let the rolling waves of his hips ripple up his stomach and chest, going up his biceps, like his body was made of water…

Before, chuckling, he jumped. Stomping his feet into the floor a few times, just trying to jump higher and higher– “Everything okay?”

Kaito spun around, hands behind his back, giving Arven down the hall a small grin, “Sorry, tripped. Could hear it all the way back there, huh?”

Arven gave Kaito a confused look– he had heard stomping, how did a trip lead to that?-- before shrugging. Closing the door. 

Temp’s coffee was fantastic. Kaito was full of energy. Like, the kind that wanted to rip through a guy. He felt pent up and full of potential, doing quieter little two steps down the hall, before getting out of the hallway and, in the pathway towards the larger reception room, making a bit of a game of with himself, using the small markings on the floor as new goals to step towards. Easy, easy, streeeetch, easy, jump, two close together ones, tap - tap.

Kaito walked normally when he heard the distant sound of footsteps. The castle was pretty dead by this point of the night, but it rarely was a ghost town. Kaito whistled innocently, waiting for the footsteps to disappear into the distance… before he chuckled, hopping on his feet, legs outstretched in front of him, looking briefly like he’d fall backwards, before catching himself by his ankles and swooping back upright, rolling his shoulders like that was how he was winding himself back up straight, before hopping on one foot, spinning in lazy circles a bit. 

“Repeat after me, I’m over it,” Kaito quietly sang-songed to himself, enjoying the fun of having so much space to move around, little hops to the beat of the song he had pulled from his teenage years, “Yeah we’re so over, oh-ver.”

There was more to the song, of course, but Kaito just kept having fun singing that little chorus, moving until he finally felt some of that cooling relief of sweat, a fun, burning energy running through him as Kaito huffed, looking around the entrance hall. Brushing his hair back with his hands, before chuckling…

…alright. Responsible dad guy time. 

The trial was starting soon, right? Tomorrow or the day after. Kaito should go check in on the Diavolo situation, find out the timing of stuff. Maybe he could send the boys off to do something outside the castle when the trial itself was happening. Yeah, that might be a good idea… 

Kaito, taking another breath, knocked on the guard office door. “Hello?” 

Kaname looked up from the front desk, right across from the open door. They usually tended to only take day shifts, as captain of Usott’s guardforce (and thus needing to be easily reached for any sudden situations) but holidays were a little weird. The vast majority of people had Harvest off, given it was a national holiday, however it wasn’t like the city could just entirely shut down to revel in festivities. And among the necessities, things like custodial duties and certain maintenance needs, security was actually at a high demand during festivals. 

That was something every guard knew ages before even applying to enter the Guardforce, so there wasn’t exactly resentment that they couldn’t enjoy the holiday like the vast majority of people, but it would be foolish to disregard any desire at all to enjoy holidays. And with their numbers bolstered even more than it had been prior to the Fifteen Year War, and day to day work schedules had the guards working shorter shifts with more days off than ever, accommodating that was…easy, really. 

Kaname trusted all the Guardforce, so asking someone to stay in the office for the nightshift would be reasonable…but Kaname was the captain, so they could take over one of the more boring jobs during the nightshift, and leave sleep, merrymaking, or rounds to the rest of the force. 

Still, they’d finished processing the reports of the day about an hour ago, so an interruption in the middle of the night was, if maybe not welcome, then well-received. 

“Kaito Momota,” Kaname shortly nodded, getting up from the desk. “What can I do for you?”

“Good morning captain!” Kaito grinned, striding inside, before posing in a theatrically aggressive manner, “I’m here to be stealing your treasures, matey!”

“Happy Harvest,” Kaname nodded again. “For yesterday, I suppose.”

Kaito relaxed his pose, grinning, “Mmhm! Happy Harvest! Hey, I wanted to check in on the trial coming up. Is that tomorrow or the day after, I’ve gotten myself confused about it.”

“It’s starting on Tuesday, so…tomorrow, unless you still consider today Sunday, which in that case it’s the day after tomorrow,” Kaname answered. Frowning a little, they said, “...there isn’t actually a legal rule to keep Aceto Doppio from sitting in on the trial--unless specifically classified as a confidential trial, any citizen is allowed to watch. If he wants to enter, we cannot actually force him away.”

“Nope, you most certainly can’t.” Kaito agreed, nodding sternly, “It’d be an incredible abuse of power, and also a waste of much needed resources, to keep him from a trial that is open and available to be observed by even those not specifically, personally affected by its outcome. I’d never, ever ask you, or any member of Dicea’s esteemed guardforce, to bend or waiver in the delegation of performing their duties properly.”

“But, what time is the trial going to start and end, exactly, so I can try to force him away?” Kaito grinned, “As, like, your average irresponsible citizen?”

Kaname closed their eyes, crossing their arms. “...Kaito Momota, are you admitting to a member of the Guardforce that you are willingly planning on coercing a citizen of Dicea? With, an admittance of ‘irresponsibility’, which someone could logically take to mean excessive force, suppressing the free will of another person?”

“Okay, okay, okay, but see, when you say it, it sounds like I’m going to throw him in a dungeon somewhere,” Kaito pointed out, putting up both his index fingers in a ‘hold on’ moment, “But when I say it, I say it like I’m gonna send them to get ice cream for an hour, oooooor to aaaaaaaa spa?? All day? Depending on how long these trials go for??”

Kaito paused, before scratching the inside of his ear, looking away, “Also, on that note, is this whole thing a ‘one day’ sorta trial or… like, the guy’s soooooo guilty. How long could it possibly last? Like, three… foooour hours before…” now Kaito looked a little more confused, “...Aiichi? Says he’s guilty? You? He is so guilty. I will say it on the stand even. Guy whose name I still don’t entirely know? Guuuuuilty.”

Kaname opened their eyes and nodded, Kaito making their point exactly. “See how different the interpretation of your words can be? If you’re asking me for information based on a premise, I need you to declare that you’re not intending anything illegal.” Their expression softened a bit. “Personally, I don’t think Doppio’s presence in the courtroom would result in anything but pain for him. If I saw him heading towards the room, I would personally try to dissuade him, as many of my comrades did when he came here to speak with his father last week. But, as what happened with that visit, we can’t force him to leave, if he’s intent on doing what he likes.”

Giving Kaito a mildly dry look, they explained, “A trial of this caliber I wager would last a week at the shortest. Despite the overwhelming amount of evidence against this man for many crimes, each has to be proven to the court beyond an assumption of reasonable doubt. Which takes time, along with the fact that Aiichi Ouma and other attending members of administration still have their regular duties--at least those that cannot be taken over by others.”

Kaito sighed, scratching through his mop of hair, “A week? Man, it’s gonna be hard to keep the kid busy for a damn week… shoulda sent him on vacation to the beach or something. With, like, a full militia. Sailing! Should have sent him sailing, shoot, he’d be perfect in the middle of an ocean right now.” 

As Kaito muttered to himself his entirely sincere regret that Doppio was not currently sleeping on a boat after a long day of sunning and light fishing, he snapped out of his half-daydream, glancing at the door that led to the holding area, “... what’s your read on this guy, captain? I haven’t actually met him. I’ve been holding back introducing myself mostly to not freak out Doppio. I have a feeling he’d take it real personally if I visited his father. He’s, like… a really successful gangster, essentially, right? Mafia head, drug dealer, the works? Does he seem that intelligent?”

Distractions would likely help, especially for a duration as long as a full week--and possibly longer, depending on how the case went--but…the way Kaname had heard the story? There was no person that was better at convincing Aceto Doppio to do things (other than his father) than Kaito Momota. Convincing the boy to seek medical help multiple times, despite a debilitating medical phobia, convincing him to seek refuge in the castle even before Doppio was taken on as an official ward, one time of that which happened after Doppio and Arven had run away, and while this one was more rumor, in the mouths of the guards, potentially being part, if not the reason the boy had exposed the corruption of CPS Agent Leif, along with pivotal knowledge about his father’s movements, which aided in his arrest. 

Kaname had no interest in delving into Kaito and Doppio’s personal relationship, but they did have a feeling that Kaito could just talk to him and likely convince Doppio not to sit in on the court case. But that was none of their business, yet. 

“I can’t give you any specific information that will be discussed and proven in court, nor anything that would endanger a person in my protection,” Kaname prefaced, “...but I believe this man is a significant danger that leaves not only Usott, but Dicea in a safer situation with him in custody. His capabilities are not to be understated.”

“Damn.” Kaito said, frowning at the door, a genuine sense of unease at that… before he shrugged, “Ah well. He’s caught now, and I trust you guys have it under control. Now!” Kaito said, grinning as he clapped a little, “You’re on the night shift! Do you need any coffee? Black tea? Coffee mixed with black tea? A shit-ton of candy? Candy is everywhere right now, I can get you some candy.” Kaito said, smirking at them.

It was always a relief to get criminals off the street. Of course there was always the chance they’d be sent right back there, should their lawyer work magic, but Kaname had enough faith to believe that if the courts allowed someone to return to their lives relatively unhindered, then the danger they posed was functionally minimal, and would be addressed through other avenues of recompensation and rehabilitation. Which, essentially, meant that that particular criminal was put away anyway, as those crimes wouldn’t be committed again. 

…it’d still have to be proved and discussed, but…Kaname had a feeling the man in holding wouldn’t be heading back to any self-owned home anytime soon. 

Smiling slightly, they said, “I believe that. Thank you, but I’m set for the night. Be well, Kaito.”

-

Kaito looked at the safety railing, connecting  the second floor to the reception.

All the stairs were large, to Shuichi’s endless annoyance, but the first floor staircase was easily the tallest. It was designed, even for the humble castle structure, to have a sense of grandeur. Kaito got the sense it was meant to be ‘welcoming’ more than impressive. The staircase seemed to widen from both ends, as if inviting you to walk in and walk up, explore, this place is for you.

Kokichi had broken an arm once, Kaito was pretty sure, sliding down it. Broken an arm or at least had hurt himself in some way, Kaito couldn’t entirely remember. Apparently he just hadn’t slowed down in time.

…

Kaito was pretty sure he could do better. 

-

Kaito’s pirate headband was working exceptionally well as a clotter, as he held it balled up to the corner of his forehead. The fall hadn’t actually been that bad, all things considered! It was clipped his head on the damn edge of the safety rail that was the real sticking point. And head wounds were always gushers, so it looked a lot worse than he was, fairly certain, it was, as he called into the medical ward, “Hey, when anyone has a minute…”

Nell came trotting over quickly, a sterile cloth in hand already as she frowned at Kaito. Holding it out to trade with Kaito, she put a gentle hand on his shoulder and steered him over to one of the cot stations. “Having an interesting evening, Kaito?

“Are you experiencing any dizziness or nausea? Any loss of sight?”

Most nightshifts were, thankfully, uneventful. Nell had a loose theory that the castle healers were some of the most well-read members of the castle, just from the sheer amount of downtime they had. Which was good, if on top of drills and clean up and preparation, they still weren’t filling the wing with patients, but…it did get a little boring, time to time. 

A head wound, though, wasn’t exactly something Nell would’ve wished for to spice things up, but she was there and prepared, all since she’d smelt the stench of fresh, drawn blood from down the hall. 

“Nah, nah, I’m fine, no dizziness or nausea.” Kaito grinned, allowing himself to be led and sitting down easily on a cot, letting out a bit of an exasperated huff as he let his hands fall into his lap, trusting Nell to take care of it, “Just had a bit of a spill. Safety rails, am I right? They’re menaces! Just innocently walking up and down the stairs and then bam! Just jump out right in front of ya.”

Glancing around, Kaito observed, “Skeleton crew tonight? I hope you got traded something nice for working harvest night.”

“Hmm, not the first time I’ve heard of the safety rails posing a threat to people. Perhaps I should make a petition for redesign.” Nell smirked a little, starting to clean up Kaito’s head and taking a look at the wound. It didn’t smell like deep-vein or arterial blood, so he probably had just nicked himself, but…still. Proper confirmation would only help him and his family sleep better tonight. 

He did look like his eyes were focused too, but… “Kaito, could you follow my finger with your eyes, please?”

Humming lightly, Nell explained, “I don’t particularly mind it. There were some years I enjoyed Harvest’s nightlife, but by this point I don’t feel like I’m missing out. And if I’m just as happy reading in here, I’d rather let someone with plans actually be able to go to them. It works out too, since I’m here to help you out.”

“...alright, it doesn’t look like you have a concussion, and I don’t think you need stitches. I can apply a proper bandage to it, but…are you planning on taking a shower tonight? If you are, a more temporary bandage would be better, before putting on cotton and a plaster.”

“Nah, no plans to shower tonight. I’m trying to avoid going in and out of our room tonight, my husbands and baby are all tucked away asleep and I don’t want to wake them just because I’m still restless.” Kaito said, giving her a thumbs up, “Plaster me up!”

Looking curiously over Nell, Kaito asked, “I’m sorry if I’ve asked this before, but how long have you worked here? For as long as Kokichi’s, like… been?”

Nodding, Nell got to work, cleaning up the trickling blood one more time before warning Kaito of the antiseptic wipe and pressing medical cotton to the wound. “Still riding high off the Harvest energy, then? That’s kind of you to leave them to their sleep…and probably more interesting for you.”

Taping the bandage on, Nell gave Kaito a little nod, before looking amused. “I actually just had my 16th year anniversary two weeks ago. So not quite as long as Kokichi’s entire life, but I’ve been here for the majority. As you may know, Aiichi put out the call for all talented healers in the country to come to the castle around Prince Kokichi’s birth, and while, compared to some, I arrived rather late, that is the reason I was hired.”

Nell shrugged. “It’s a good contract, and I enjoy living in Usott, so I’ve stuck around.”

Kaito’s eyes lit up with interest, leaning in as Nell pulled back, “Oh, so, you’re like one of the best in the country then? That’s really impressive! No wonder Doppio feels so comfortable going to you. Well,” Kaito said, shrugging, “As comfortable as he ever feels going to a healer. He seems to trust you, at least, so good job there.”

“A ranking like that is always in flux, as is the nature of knowledge…but I like to think I’m pretty good,” Nell smirked. Though, she sighed a little, her usual tired expression bleeding in more. “I certainly could’ve revised my strategy in earning his trust…but I’m thankful it worked out. With a phobia as strong as his, and given that he grew up in a situation that entirely dissuaded him from seeking medical help, he needs an ally to go to for medical needs.”

She shrugged a little. “I’ll admit, giving a tongue piercing was new and unexpected, but I’ve never been one to shy away from a new challenge.”

Kaito had no idea what he should say about the tongue piercing– he had no reason to entirely trust that Doppio hadn’t made up some sort of lie for her– so he decided to swerve away from it as he grinned blankly, “Well, I trust that if you’re still here, you’ve proven yourself capable over and over again! And Kokichi’s never totally hated you, which is way more than some of your colleagues can say. Mind you, the main issue healer seems like she left the position ages ago? I haven’t seen…”

Kaito paused, “Shoot, I can’t remember her name. You know who I mean though, right? She was this awful healer, enjoyed bossing Kokichi around? Man, I hope that’s enough to narrow it down, if there are others that’d be,” Kaito’s grin had more teeth, “a shame.”

Nell nodded, smiling a little grimly as she started to clean up everything she’d used for Kaito. “Kokichi certainly hasn’t had the most reasons to enjoy this part of the castle. But I’m pleased to see his health growing better and better, over the past year. The new formula Dr. Kimura has made for him is truly a work of genius.”

Snorting a little, Nell gave Kaito an amused look. “Dr. Somewan is still a good healer, if perhaps not in bedside manner or management style. Though, you’re right. She moved on from her tenure here a few months ago. I believe she was looking into practices further south, to settle into for a short time before retirement. Some swear by it, but many people come to resent the harsher winters in older age.”

Kaito would argue that any healer that made his good and proud husband scared and sad was a shit healer, but then, there was no point in arguing it now. Things had improved in a way Kaito sincerely believed was irreversible. It’d take a lot more than a stern word to make Kokichi bend now, and any person, rightfully or otherwise, who’d dare physically overpower him had some serious oversights they weren’t prepared for. Like his husband being totally capable of being a full-on body snatcher, if he wanted to. 

Kaito didn’t really think Kokichi would ever do that… but he sorta hoped his husband always kept it an option, if people were being cruel to him.

So, yeah, Kokichi was extremely arguably, entirely fine now, when it came to people being bastards to him. He didn’t need Kaito rearing up to defend him, not really. So Kaito was much more relaxed about it, in a general way, as he nodded along, “Makes sense, makes sense. Man, I’m not even close to old, and your winters are still just absolutely terrifying. My Shuichi loves to talk about how he finds it ridiculous people made cities here.” Kaito chuckled, reaching up to lightly touch the plaster a little, “Heck yeah, doesn’t even hurt. Thank you, I appreciate you taking care of it… though, shoot. I guess I’m not gonna go sit in the jacuzzi now, huh? Was half considering doing that next.” Kaito laughed, hopping to his feet.

“There is a difference considering you moved into it, from a much warmer climate, and people who’ve lived here all their lives. …though, yes, it can be a little ridiculous,” Nell laughed. “I hope you get to enjoy a calmer winter than last year--I heard that Kokichi, Shuuichi, Hajime and his girlfriend had quite the snowball battle last year that you and Maki missed. I have the feeling you might appreciate our winters at least with one new insight if you get to be a part of something similar this year.”

Giving a nod at the thanks, Nell gave a small shrug. “I don’t think the steam would do you well, even if you don’t have a concussion, but as long as you don’t get the bandage wet? It wouldn’t be against healer’s orders.”

“Enjoy your night, Kaito. I hope I don’t see you again tonight.”

-

Arven yawned, squeezing Doppio a bit– mostly by accident, just moving in his sleep– before he sighed, opening his eyes. Sniffing slightly, before letting out a low, happy sound in the back of his throat, snuggling in closer. Sunshine.

There was an answering happy hum before Doppio tilted his head, nuzzling Arven. He’d barely woken up, so that probably meant…

“...do you want me to make you something for breakfast before school?” Doppio softly hummed. “...prolly have to get up soon for that.”

“I’mma skip,” Arven decided, nuzzling himself back into Doppio’s side, no doubt in his voice as he said, “We fell asleep really late. They really should expect students to skip the day after harvest. It’s way too optimistic to have school today.”

That was reasonable, honestly. Doppio had seen several times the sluggish haze towns turned into the days after festivals--he had a feeling most people were sleeping in that morning. However…

Lifting his arm, Doppio gently carded the tips of his fingers through Arven’s hair. Tangled from sleep but…ooh. The fluff. “I still have therapy today.”

“Tsk,” Arven clicked his tongue, before sighing, “...I’ll walk you there then. What time is it?”

“9:30,” Doppio hummed, now just pushing around Arven’s bangs. “So…basically we have an extra half hour from usual. Though…a little less, since her office isn’t closer to here than your school is.”

A gentle trace around the shell of Arven’s ear. “...hanging out in the tree was a lot of fun, yesterday. You looked so…divine. Surrounded by a golden glow…”

Arven made a little groan at that. That was barely sleeping in at all. He almost wanted to try talking Doppio into just skipping therapy too, but… blegh. Doppio probably needed to go. Lame.

Arven had been perfectly content with the idea that Doppio would just keep playing with his hair until Arven fell back asleep– sounded ideal, really– but he couldn’t help the small blush of red that burned through him, both at the light touch and the far too forgiving praise. Him, divine? D’aww. “You looked really nice too,” Arven yawned, letting his fingers lightly trace Doppio’s back, “...okay, but if we were to oversleep, who’d even blame us…”

Doppio smiled softly, craning his neck to kiss Arven’s head before he sighed. “Blame, I don’t think so… But I don’t want to be late. And…I should probably stop by the medical wing so they can check on my shoulder before I go…”

Doppio scrunched his nose a little, somehow weaving his fingers through Arven’s hair enough to stroke his neck a bit. “...which means I should probably get up soon, to have enough time for everything. And…wear, like, a tanktop or something without a left sleeve…”

Damn. He had lost the war. 

Groaning, Arven sat up, rubbing his eyes with the back of his palms as he nodded, “Fine, I’m up, I’m up…” before flopping backwards, “in fiiiiiive minutes. Five minutes and then I’m up. And I will be a good boyfriend and be up with you. We are getting up… soon.” he said, turning over, wrapping his arms around Doppio again, “sooooo soon.”

Doppio giggled, turning more on his side and aiming to wrap his arms around Arven…but a wince came over his face as he tried to move his left arm, and he tapped Arven’s arms, signaling his release before he sat up. “Ogh… You make it tempting but…yeah. Kinda takes some of the niceness out for me if I can’t hold you too.”

Gently touching at his shoulder, Doppio sighed, letting his head loll forward, defeated. “...I think seeing Nell is gonna be first.”

“Ugh, fine,” Arven said, thoroughly defeated. Getting up against, rubbing his eyes… “Amaina? You around? I could use some wake-up music.”

-_-

OoO OKAY LETS GET THOSE TUCKUS’S MOVING UP UP UP MOVE MOVE MOVE

OOO TO THE GROOOOOVE

Arven blinked as the room was suddenly full of colorful disco lights, music thumping through the room as many, many Amaina’s, all different colored, danced around the room. He watched this for a bit, before giving a tired thumbs up, “Thanks Amaina, it helps. Why don’t we just go eat at the food hall after the trip to the healer, Aceto? Save you some work, especially with that arm?”

Turning his head, Doppio grinned, something fond going over his face as their room lit up with light and sound. There was something nice to the peace felt in mornings…but when they were a little harder to deal with, something this…energizing was incredible. And set the mood for the day as something filled with fun potential. 

Even if he didn’t have much planned, beyond therapy. 

Getting up, Doppio stretched a bit, aside from his arm, before heading over to pick out some clothes for the day. Looking back, he stuck out his tongue a little before sighing. “Yeah, that sounds good… The last time I dislocated my shoulder, my dad had me on forced sick leave for days. So…I guess not cooking would be good…even if I think I could do a lot one-handed still.”

“Yeah, but just because you can doesn’t really mean you should,” Arven said, moving out of bed and rotating his shoulders a bit, stretching his toes against the floor, “And while I could help, we’re also just running on limited time. Getting ready, eating, healers, walking, waiting on Chief when he needs to go to the bathroom. Alllll adds up. Plus, we gotta account for ‘Kaito being nosy’ time, since he’ll want to make sure we’re doing all the things we’re supposed to do today…”

Arven paused, looking at the door, before laughing, “Really thought he’d start knocking right then. The timing would have been perfect. You wanna pass me one of my fleece’s?”

“I guess so…” Doppio muttered softly. Though because he could, he usually wanted to. But…well. It wasn’t like any of the castle breakfasts he’d had were bad by any means. 

…hm… He did have a sleeveless top…but it was also a croptop. And there was no way he was wearing that, even under a jacket. But…maybe over a thin sweater and just…not wearing one of the sleeves, and using the other top to just…secure the collar and stuff? Hmm…

Even glancing at the door at Arven’s cue, Doppio snorted. “He does tend to have uncanny timing like that. And…I can’t even guess that he’s still pissed, since I think he’d just bother us even more if he was mad. …yeah, um…blue today?”

“I wouldn’t be too surprised if he was still pissed,” Arven admitted, reaching down to give Chief some pats and pets, before heading to the cabinets and pulling out some of his jarred dog food, passing him a small treat to tide him over as Arven set up his actual meal. “But, we both already apologized, so now the balls in his court when he wants to forgive us.”

Mixing the food with some spices that would turn bad if Arven left them mixed in with the meat too long, Arven called over his shoulder, “Yeah, blue please. Just toss it on the bed, I’ll get to it in a second. Do you think you’ll want any help with your clothes? With the shoulder, I mean?”

“I guess so,” Doppio hummed. Hmm… He could undo his jeans’ button and fly easily enough with one hand…but maybe not pulling them on. A skirt would be a lot easier…but then his legs would get pretty cold. Could he pull up long socks with one hand? Probably… “...it’s weird. I’ve never really had anyone be mad at me for…an extended amount of time. Just trying to blow it off kind of feels shitty but…maybe I should do something for Kaito…”

Nodding, Doppio tossed the fleece on the bed before collecting his own clothes and heading towards the bathroom. He paused, looking back at Arven before looking at them. “...um… M-maybe. I’ll let you know if I do.”

“Kay,” Arven nodded, patting Chief’s head again as his dog started to eat, before heading to the bed, pulling his folded pants from the edge bed corner and pulling them on, before grabbing his fleece. 

Maybe he would go to school then, if he was up anyway. Or maybe he’d find a park and sleep in it until Doppio was done with therapy. Maybe he’d just… shut his eyes for ooooone moment…

…darn it, he was awake. “You’ve never had an argument with someone that lasted longer than a day?” Arven called out, not actually that surprised, just awake and making conversation by this point. “Not even with coworkers?”

“Well…” There was an unsure pause from the bathroom. “Not…really? The only things I’d really classify as ‘arguments’ with them were them bitching about orders I was passing along and, like…that’s not from me? I’d either just leave or tell them to take it up with Boss and that would kind of end it.”

And, well, obviously until recently, he had never argued against his father. 

As Doppio got ready--it was extra convenient to do it in the bathroom, past just not changing in the same room as Arven, since he could wash up and all--there were the sounds of shifting fabric, and after a moment an occasional grunt, before a quick hiss. And, blushing, Doppio opened the door and peeked out. “...I think I need help.”

His sweater was half on, just as he had been intending to wear it, actually, with the wide neck open across his chest and his left arm completely out of it…but Doppio hadn’t been able to raise his arm enough to get the cropped tube top on, and instead was just holding it to his exposed collarbone, embarrassed with how much chest he was showing. And deciding that any skirt would definitely be too cold, Doppio was wearing a pair of culottes that went just under the knee, while his long socks were pulled up and disappeared under the hem. He’d mostly judged right what he’d be able to put on himself, but…the last bit he couldn’t.

…and that wasn’t even beginning to get to the issue of his hair.

Arven looked up… and couldn’t help but snort a little. Sitting up and giving Doppio a small grin, “You look a little tangled up there. Alright, I’m coming.”

Heading over, Arven looked over Doppio’s outfit, “This is a cool look. I don’t think I’ve seen you in something like this before?” Arven said, reaching over to place his hand on the crop top… and then closing his eyes, “Alright, I can probably do this like this, but let me know if I’m just wildly off course.”

Pulling the croptop down and around Doppio’s arm, needing to let the croptop drag down more to do so– largely why he was closing his eyes– Arven asked as he worked, “So, wait… was I the first person you’ve ever had an argument with? Or… Kaito?”

Doppio blinked before his blush softened, and he smiled to himself. Arven really was a great guy. “Thank you.”

Laughing awkwardly, Doppio did his best to align himself with Arven’s pulling, trying to get everything into the right position. “Yeah, I don’t think I’d ever pair stuff like this normally… A-and I don’t even know why I have pants like this. I-it’s a little weird, I guess, but…not totally outlandish, I don’t think. And it’ll be easier to change the bandages around my shoulder if I’m not wearing sleeves on that side.”

“Um… Well, like…prolonged argument is definitely Kaito. And you weren’t the first person I had, like…not a shouting match, like, literally, but that kind of emotion…with. Just some assholes needlessly getting in my way…which I did kinda classify you under, at the time. Sorry.”

“It’s alright. You can pay me back by being my boyfriend. And kissing me.” Arven smirked, smoothing out the sleeve on Doppio’s shoulder, “Can I open my eyes? We set up?”

Glancing down, Doppio adjusted the top of the croptop, laying at smooth against his chest, before smiling and leaning in to press his lips to Arven’s. “We’re set. Though, um…”

He gave Arven a sheepish look and held up his scrunchie from the bathroom counter. “...could you tie my hair up too, please? I can’t do it one-handed…”

“Suuuure,” Arven said, looking over Doppio’s hair, “...do you mind if it’s just in a ponytail? Or a bun? Or you can try to teat me how to do your braid, but it’s not something I’ve ever really tried myself. I just kind of let my hair, ya know… floof.” Arven said, shaking his head a bit before grinning as it puffed out a bit at the movement. 

“Th-that’s, uh, kinda what I meant; I wouldn’t ask you to, uh, do my whole thing,” Doppio gestured vaguely before pulling a smile that could equally be called a grimace. “Sorry. I-I mean…I could just keep it down today, but…I’m gonna be doing things so…s-sorry…”

Arven raised an eyebrow, taking a hair tie from the countertop and moving behind Doppio, balling up his hair into a fist, “Why apologize? I just didn’t want to show off how ugly a braid I would make. I don’t mind helping you.”

“How high do you want it?” Arven asked, adjusting his grip through Doppio’s hair, so that the center of balance was more to the top of his skull, “Here? Lower?”

“Sorry,” Doppio murmured. Though, he couldn’t even contemplate why he felt so…nervous (he felt a little bad asking Arven for so much help, sure, but Arven had offered it) when a flinch tensed his shoulders and his heart started beating rapidly. Doppio’s eyes widening a little as he breathlessly stuttered out, “L-lower, please.”

“Alright,” Arven said cheerfully, adjusting the center down more towards Doppio’s nape, “Here? And seriously, it’s fine. I kind of like getting to play with your hair a bit. It’s really silky.”

“Mhmm,” Doppio hummed feeling…dizzy. And shaky. And like he wanted to cry and piss himself. And…fuck, why was his heart beating so fast?! It felt like he could barely breathe, he was gonna…

“...mmm’gonna pass out…” Doppio rasped, his legs starting to give out.

“Woah, woah!” Arven gasped, seeing Doppio’s weight start to stagger and, abandoning his hair, quickly reaching around him to catch and steady him. “A-Aceto, are you sick? Oh, shoot, your shoulder,” Arven winced, trying to adjust his grip so that he wouldn’t jostle him, “Are you going to throw up?”

Doppio just managed to shaking his head a little, eyes spiraling a bit, though…with just a few moments of Arven holding around his middle (and not his hair) Doppio steadied a bit. Panting softly as he felt his heart start to slow, things start to stabilize. 

“...m good…s’okay…”

“Uuuuuuh, okay??” Arven said, not feeling like Doppio was good OR things were okay, “Can we s-sit down for a second? You almost toppled there, I don’t want to let go and you fall. Let’s sit down.”

Doppio nodded, and by the time Arven dropped him on the closed toilet seat, taking a seat on the bath rim close by, he was just…panting, and holding his chest with his good arm. Color returning to his cheeks. 

“...sorry,” Doppio said softly, closing his eyes for a moment before focusing on Arven. “...I don’t… I-it felt…almost like I was about to have another panic attack or something…”

Arven looked Doppio over worriedly, before wincing a bit, “Did I… hurt you?I don’t really understand what happened. Why were you about to have a panic attack? Because we’re going to a healer after this?”

“I…don’t know?” Doppio said, sounding more like he was asking a question. “I wasn’t thinking about going to the med bay… O-oh! A-and you didn’t hurt me!” he quickly added, eyes widening in worry. “S-sorry I…I don’t know what happened. Everything was fine but…then my heart just started beating really fast and everything felt shaky…”

Arven frowned, trying to think of what might have happened. He had been pulling Doppio’s hair up into a ponytail, had moved it around a bit, when Doppio had suddenly started sounding a little sick… “Was it me touching your hair?”

Doppio frowned, thinking about it. “...but I like it when…um, you just run your fingers through it if we’re, uh,” he blushed, “Hanging out and stuff. A-and I do my hair every day. I don’t know why that would…do anything.”

“Well, I never actually grab your hair, when I’m playing with it,” Arven said, looking like he was trying to solve a puzzle. And he kind of was. He wasn’t very good at reading people, he knew that about himself. He just wasn’t the most empathetic person around, honestly.

But something he had done had really scared his boyfriend, to the point of collapse. Arven didn’t want to risk it happening again, as he said, “Should I… try it again? See if you get the shakes again?”

Doppio gave Arven an uneasy look, but nodded, turning to face away from Arven. “...I guess it’d…be good to know… Better than just knowing there’s some mystery thing out there that can send me down at…any fucking moment…”

Arven nodded, picking up the hair tie and, motioning Doppio to turn himself a bite, wrapped his hand through the long base of his hair. Gently bundling it into a point, before warily looking at Doppio, trying to get a read on him.

Doppio fussed with his fingers in his lap, kind of…anxious and nervous. What the hell was this all about? He did his hair practically every day of his life, and…well, the purpose of the braids he’d chosen were to be tight! Secure! Able to keep his hair out of his face without worry for a whole day, though Kaito sure loved to put a wrench in that. If having his hair pulled gave him panic attacks, then…why wasn’t he constantly having them?

…well, okay, it did sort of feel like he constantly had them, but…not like that, and--

He frowned a little. “...I-I feel a little uneasy…um, like beyond just… Y-you know, like something extra. But I’m not… It doesn’t feel like I’m going to pass out or anything.”

“Huh.” Arven said, stretching the hair tie and, holding the grip tight enough to let him secure the tie around it, wrapping it twice before letting it go. Holding his hands up almost like a surrender, leaning back, still studying Doppio’s expression and seeing… well, Doppio, but he didn’t know! Signs of discomfort? Another upcoming panic attack?? Whatever that looked like? “Now?”

Doppio curled his hand into a fist, that uneasy, falling feeling in his stomach intensifying for a moment…before it all just went away as Arven let his hair go. And, looking a little puzzled, he turned back to face his boyfriend. “...I think…this might have something to do with it, but… I-I don’t know. I don’t know why it didn’t just happen like before.”

Sighing, he rubbed his face tiredly before giving Arven a small smile. “...thanks for helping me. A-and sorry for freaking out on you. I, uh… I guess the extra half hour this morning will be pretty helpful…”

Arven gave Doppio a stern, worried look… before his bottom lip quivered. His face scrunching for a moment, before huffing, he wrapped his arms around Doppio. Pulling him into a hug and hiding his face in his good shoulder. 

“I scared you.” Arven pouted against him. His voice tight and frustrated. “I’m sorry.”

Doppio’s eyes widened, a bit of panic leaking in slightly, before he wrapped his good arm around Arven’s side and started rubbing his back gently, even bending his left arm at his forearm to touch Arven’s side. 

Gently, Doppio kissed his ear and held him tighter. “Apology accepted. And…it’s okay. I asked you to help--neither of us knew that would happen. So…it’s not your fault, okay? I know you wouldn’t want to scare me on purpose…a-and you immediately sat me down and tried to help me after, right? That’s a good thing. So…it’s not your fault, and I’m not upset with you at all. Okay?”

“Yeah, I know.” Arven said, still sounding a little wet and frustrated, holding Doppio tighter, “I just… felt bad in general. That sucked. I don’t want to scare you.”

Sighing, Arven pulled himself a way. Rubbing his eyes a bit, still pouty and frustrated, “I’ll get better at telling when something is up. I just sort of thought you were sick for a second. I’m glad it didn’t happen again…” Arven sighed, slapping his cheeks a bit, “Okay! Let’s go, now I kinda want you to see a healer. If only cause I was worried I knocked your shoulder at one point.”

Stepping back, Arven held out a hand to Doppio, offering to help him up from the toilet seat, “You ready? Do you want to double check your hair in the mirror?”

“I know,” Doppio smiled, kissing Arven’s head again. “It’s a good sign that you don’t want to scare me, I think.”

Gently, as Arven pulled away, Doppio more gently swiped under his eyes, looking at Arven affectionately. It really wasn’t all that bad, but…something about just how genuinely upset Arven was just made him feel…warm. Which was weird, because he didn’t want Arven to ever be upset, but…

…well. Good thing he had therapy today. 

“Yeah, let’s go.” Accepting Arven’s help up, Doppio peered into the mirror, fussing with his bangs a little, smoothing them out, before heading out. Grabbing a jacket and his bag with Phanpy before…

Ugh. Going to the med bay. 

-

Arven’s morning brightened a little bit when they found Kaito with his head down on one of the small tables of the sitting areas next to the stairs, the guy just straight up drooling onto it when Doppio and Arven went to go check if he was dead. Doppio had been less than pleased by all the drool, saying some colorful things in Tsumarian as Kaito had just blearily listened, before finding out where the boys were heading.

Then Arven’s day got worse when Kaito had said, like it was obvious, “No, of course you’re going to school.”

There had been plenty of bickering as they escorted Doppio the medbay, Arven reminding Kaito over and over that he couldn’t actually make Arven go to school, and Kaito wasn’t his guardian, and it was the day after harvest NO ONE was gonna go to school, and–

Arven had no idea how the hell he ended up going to school, but he ended up there after dropping off Doppio. 

At Dr. Mariah’s office, she beckoned Doppio to take a seat, “Did you manage to get any sleep last night?” She asked.

“A good amount, actually,” Doppio nodded, carefully placing his bag down--he couldn’t wear it normally, since he didn’t want to mess with arranging the strap over or under his arm, or put extra stress on his right shoulder--before sitting, his sling showing as his jacket parted. 

There hadn’t been any muscle or ligament tears in his shoulder, thankfully, but there was some swelling to be concerned about, and the bruising had spread over his whole shoulder. He’d been given some stern recommendations to let it rest but…if he did, he was estimated to be out of the sling by the end of the week. So…yeah, he was in a proper sling now, with a re-ointmented and wrapped shoulder, and given another dose of painkillers, which he had been prescribed. So…while a little disgruntled, Doppio was doing fine, pain-wise. 

“Did you? I…don’t actually know the operating hours of the haunted house--did you get to enjoy other parts of the festival too?”

“I did,” Dr. Mariah said, her eyes glancing at the damage, before refocusing, “How was your homework assignment? I was quite pleased, I’ll admit, when I saw a little elephant peeking out at me while the hoards of the undead beat upon our door. I see you made an effort to follow the experiment. Tell me what that was like.”

Doppio perked, visibly lighting up at hearing that Dr. Mariah was pleased, and he gave her a shy smile. “It was…pretty fine? I’m used to carrying things around with me all the time, a-and I already make smaller meals for Angioletto so making two was pretty easy to get used to. Oh, and Kirumi, she’s a housekeeper at the castle, she gave me some tips on the best way to clean Phanpy, so, um, it’s actually really fluffy! And I made sure that none of the, like…fluff threads were fraying or getting matted or anything.”

Chewing his cheek, he gave her a sheepish look. “...I know that how I treated Phanpy was supposed to be like how I wanted to be treated…but it was really hard to not…see it as a stuffed animal. But I did try to take good care of it.”

Dr. Mariah smiled lightly at that, “You don’t have to be convinced of the reality of the child, to enjoy the experiment of care. And in truth, there’s plenty of comparisons that can be drawn, I believe.”

“For instance,” Dr. Mariah said, tapping against her journal, “Let’s explore the first two things you were excited to share. You created little meals for Phanpy? Tell me more about that.”

Doppio nodded, feeling a little relieved he hadn’t completely bungled the assignment. “Um, well, Arven and I only eat in the dining hall, like…for maybe half our meals. Though…I guess that number’s gonna rise mo…” Doppio trailed off, blinking before his expression scrunched, something frustrated and hurt before he took a breath and closed his eyes, focusing back on the conversation at hand. 

“Um…yeah. So I cook for us a lot. And…like I said, I usually make smaller portions for Amaina anyway, because she likes to eat with us. So I just…doubled that, to make a meal for Phanpy, and…oh, gave it a place at the counter, I guess. And if we did eat at the hall, it was actually easier to put out a literal plate for it than I do for Amaina, since it’s easier to explain that I’m pretending that I need to feed this elephant for an exercise, than it is to say, like…I have an imaginary friend.”

He frowned a little. “Angelo hates being called imaginary too, so I don’t think I’d wanna use that as a lie anyway.”

“That’s very considerate,” Dr. Mariah said, making a mental note of the frustrated look and the meal changes. Come back to that, “To both Phanpy and Amaina. What about the cleanliness. You were quite proud of its fluffiness. Did that take a certain amount of effort to accomplish?”

Doppio gave Dr. Mariah a slightly confused look before nodding. “Y-yeah? Cleaning anything takes at least some effort. And since you wouldn’t tell me what Phanpy was made out of, and there isn’t a tag on it, I had to go find other help. I mean…I guess it wasn’t super difficult, since I already know Kirumi, and she’s agreed to help me out before, but…that’s still something.”

“And, um…” He gave her a nervous look. “A-actually cleaning it properly would wear down Phanpy’s fabric quickly, so I only did light cleanings twice, but…um, I kinda mimicked wipe downs every day, to match how often a person would need, like, a shower, since…you told me to do that.”

Dr. Mariah smiled again, nodding, “Again, very considerate. Phanpy was well taken care of… tell me, wouldn’t it have been easier to keep the doll clean, if you hadn’t taken it to festival? What was your thought process there?”

Doppio nodded, his eyebrows drawing in to parallel the same questions he’d asked himself. “That’s true, but…this assignment wasn’t just about keeping Phanpy clean. And…worrying so much about keeping something clean that you never use it, o-or just…lock it in a box or something kind of defeats the purpose of having that thing in the first place. Things get dirty through use, but…that’s the point. And just cleaning up after yourself isn’t a big deal at all.”

Doppio went to shrug before quickly stopping himself. “If I was supposed to treat Phanpy like a person, then…it’d be pretty mean to bring it to everything else I did that week, except for the festival. People wait months to enjoy them.”

“So, to summarize, here is what you decided, when contemplating the needs of Phanpy.” Dr. Mariah said, holding up a finger for each point, “Phanpy needed personal, well-proportioned meals, to be eaten with everyone else. Phanpy needed to be kept clean and cared for, to the point of being comfortably fluffy. And Phanpy, finally, needed to not be left out of good moments. If everyone else was having fun? It’d be cruel, to leave them behind.”

“This is an excellent way to treat a child,” Dr. Mariah said, “...now, I’d like you to perform the second part of this experiment. I’d like you to take a moment, and try to imagine the last week from Phanpy’s perspective. Put yourself in the dolls shoes. Nothing else changes, it’s just you trying to empathize with their experience.”

“How does it feel?” Dr. Mariah asked, “And how do you feel, from Phanpy’s perspective, about you.”

Doppio’s eyebrows raised a little. It…was? A good way to treat a kid? …maybe a baby. Like, of course Doppio would never just put Princess Miyako in a bag, but…like a baby carrier? And being held, like he did do with Phanpy? She never seemed upset with that. 

Chewing on his lip, Doppio…tried to think about the past week through Phanpy’s perspective. “...um… I think I’d just be…really bored. And kinda…lonely. Kaito always talked to Phanpy, like…directly. And like it was real. But doing that just never felt…natural to me, so I didn’t really. But…I’d feel really lonely if I was always dragged around to be with other people, and I couldn’t do my own things, but no one ever talked to me.”

And…how did Phanpy feel about him??

Doppio looked a little confused and distressed. “...bewildered? About why anything was happening? But…I guess it wouldn’t have been bad, really…”

Dr. Mariah smiled, again. She did love this experiment. It was often very cute.

But more importantly, she found it useful, “Doppio, you know when I usually give children this experiment, they almost always decide the toy is an infant? They cradle it in their arms and insist on little songs and when they get tired of carrying it around they tuck it away to sleep, like an infant with an erratic sleep schedule.”

“But, the older the participant, the older their ‘inner child’ becomes. You say Kaito had conversations with it? Kaito, when projecting the idea of a ‘child’ onto something, might have naturally projected someone around the age of four to eight, which is usual for someone of his age. When he gets older, the projection will get older. It tends to cap out somewhere in the early teens, though I had one lovely older woman talk to her experiment like she was insisting it needed to seriously consider college.”

“I think it’s important, Doppio, for you to keep in mind that while you are entirely developed in many ways, intellectually and physically, your sense of nourishment? Your ‘inner child’? Is still very young. And you need a different sort of care and compassion, then others in your same age-range might. Most of our ‘inner children’ aren’t stagnant, like people think, they get older. And they need their own sort of development. This is usually when we’re at our most emotional, or afraid, or overwhelmed in some way, regressing to the sides of ourselves that need the most help.”

Dr. Mariah paused, considering something… before asking, “Are you hugged, often?”

Doppio blinked. “...oh. …then…I don’t think a baby would be as bored. Kaito and Kokichi and Shuuichi talk to Princess Miyako directly a lot, but…she doesn’t seem any less enthralled by just…existing. So… Hm.”

An…inner child? Doppio didn’t…really know what that meant, though he thought that anecdote about the woman considering college for her experiment was kinda sweet. But…okay, a sense of…nourishment? He had a feeling Dr. Mariah wasn’t talking about nutrition…

Chewing his cheek a little, trying to sort that out in his head, Doppio nodded a little. “Arven hugs me a lot. And while he’s getting better at not just grabbing me all the time…kind of. Kaito gives good hugs too.”

Thinking for a moment, Doppio added, “...I don’t think my dad ever did, though, so…I think the first hug I had was from Kaito, the day we met Arven.”

“At the risk of a cliche,” Dr. Mariah said, placing the tips of her fingers together, leaning forward, “How does that make you feel?”

…Doppio wasn’t sure what was a cliche, but he tilted his head a little. “The…first one?”

He looked down, blushing a little. “...it was really nice. I’d been having a really shitty few days, and…Kaito asked me about it, then he hugged me. And… I don’t know. I like hugs. And that one was really nice.”

Dr. Mariah nodded, deciding to leave that thread for now. She still thought there might be something there, but nothing Doppio was ready to think about. Perhaps it was time to talk about the other elephant in the room.

“I see, good… was Phanpy there, for whatever happened to your shoulder?” Dr. Mariah asked, glancing down at the damage again, “It seems quite an event occurred, between the haunted house and now.”

Doppio sighed, looking down to the bit of the sling he could see through his jacket. “No, Phanpy was inside for that…” Sighing again, he started to explain. “Arven and I had been planning a prank on Kaito for…a while. We’d been able to guess for a bit that he’s not the biggest fan of ghosts and creepy stuff, so we wanted to see if we could spook him with just a bedsheet.”

“There was a party at Mr. Lar’s house last night that the princes and Maki went to, a-and his house is right over a graveyard? So Arven and I made those sheet ghost costumes, and I turned myself invisible to sell it better and…Kaito flipped out.”

Glancing up, he winced at Dr. Mariah. “...we didn’t really get that he has a ghost phobia, or something like that so… He charged at us and started trying to pull up a gravestone even but…he knocked into me while he did, and my shoulder got dislocated.”

Pouting a little, Doppio sighed. “Which…I’m, er… I’m going to have to wear a sling for…probably the rest of the week. I dunno if jostling it this morning made it worse, or if that’s just how it was gonna be anyway, but…it’s how it is.”

Dr. Mariah kept the confusion off her face.

…Kaito had a ghost phobia? How on earth had that not come up when they were discussing his misgivings with Shuichi becoming a supernatural detective. Also, that was… well, not something Dr. Mariah would have guessed about him, in a general sort of way. Sure, it wasn’t uncommon for the deeply religious to actually have more anxieties about the afterlife, in a general sort of ‘belief’ sort of way. But Kaito very sincerely believed in the trials, even before it had been more or less confirmed for him. Was this a new phobia? Since he had learned the trials wasn’t the only afterlife available to people? Learning about supernatural things in general?

Perhaps it was something he had inherited from one of his shards.

Still, that was a concern for a different time, for Dr. Mariah, if it was even a concern for her at all. Kaito had a lot of group dynamic issues, but a ghost phobia might not play into those relationship issues. Likely Miss Crystal was already aware of it, by now.

What was actually more concerning, in this moment, was that Doppio had been somewhat badly hurt by the man who had just a moment ago been confessed to be the very first hug Doppio had ever had. Hmm. “I’m sorry to hear all of that, Doppio, that sounds like it was an event indeed. Were you frightened?”

Doppio made a small frustrated noise, though it was softened by an exaggerated sigh. “No… I was kinda pissed, ‘cause it hurt, and…Kaito and I got in another fight while he was looking at it, but… I mostly just feel bad about what we did to him. Like…I can argue we didn’t really know it was a full-blown phobia, but…in the same way we figured out he had a thing with ghosts in the first place, I guess we could’ve come to that conclusion.”

With a bit of a dry expression, he tilted his head in lieu of shrugging. “Like he’d just told us the story about how he almost set a forest on fire because Kokichi played a ghost prank on him. I…kind of thought he was just being dramatic, or overexaggerating things, ‘cause that’s how he tells a lot of stories, but… It was our fault, in the end.”

“You know, I’ve said it before, but I am more often these days a relationship therapist, above all else.” Dr. Mariah said, “It’s not my field of expertise, that would be childhood addiction and trauma, which is why I have that children’s room to begin with.”

“I bring that up to stress that when it comes to relationship issues, including however you and Kaito’s relationship can be best defined? It’s rare for anyone to be solely ‘at fault’, for something, and it’s unhelpful to think about it that way. Relationship is communication, and while it’s important to recognize how you failed on your end to communicate, you do not need to fault yourself entirely in the exchange either. That simply means you’ll fail to recognize what hiccup in communication happened.”

“For instance,” Dr. Mariah said, considering what she should share, before deciding that it might actually be helpful for Kaito in the long run, to share this, and that the others likely wouldn’t consider it a betrayal. “You are not the only one who has had this bit of communication issue with him. And I don’t mean the forest story. I have had to stress, to multiple people, multiple times, including to Kaito himself, that his thoughts and concerns aren’t to be dismissed out of hand. It’s something he’s only slightly aware of himself, but Kaito fosters that mentality in others, whether he means to or not. There is an aspect to his mannerisms and how he interacts with people that invites them to dismiss him as a serious part of the conversation. The people who love him most in the world often find themselves getting lured in by that illusion as well. It is not outrageous that two young men who barely know him would find themselves listening to that subconscious invitation as well.”

“But you’ve already mentioned one aspect of communication you could have used, to navigate through that illusion,” Dr. Mariah said, “You knew about a story where Kaito reacted strongly to a ghost story, dangerously. If you didn’t trust Kaito’s word on it, in the future, perhaps it’d be wise to confirm the events happened the way he explained them with the others who were there. Such as Prince Kokichi?”

Doppio’s eyebrows knit together. It wasn’t helpful to claim fault? But…he and Arven had messed up. That was why Kokichi wanted to talk to them, and said he was disappointed, and why Kaito had gotten so angry. And Kaito had called it out immediately, how it had been dumb of them. It couldn’t be something dumb if he and Arven had never known of Kaito’s phobia in the first place. 

Even…if Kaito did encourage people not to take him seriously?

…ugh, that was so confusing… Kaito already teased him all the time for not having a sense of humor, so taking everything seriously was obviously not what he wanted. Uuuugh, why couldn’t he just say what he meant…

Though, for other avenues… Doppio winced a little, looking away. “...a-actually, Kokichi was the person I heard the story from in the first place. I was the person to bring it up, and then Josie asked for the full story and that’s when Kaito told it.”

Dr. Mariah considered that, “I see. Well, that actually makes it even more understandable then, that you didn’t realize the full scope of what you were doing. Kokichi also treated the story lightly? If that was two people acting like Kaito’s phobia was a minor one, then you and Arven merely showed small signs of casualness, rather then anything cruel. With full respect to my other patient, honestly, Doppio, it might just be a matter of bad luck, in this case. Sometimes these types of miscommunications do just happen.”

Doppio chewed on his lip. “...I don’t remember it that well, but… I mean, Kokichi told it like…something he regretted, and that it was kinda dumb to do? Like…he didn’t tell it like it was the worst thing ever, but…I don’t think he just brushed it off…”

“...but I don’t think he really wants to get into like…horror stories with us,” Doppio softly mused. “Arven asked him about the war and ending it ‘n stuff, and…while he spoke with a certain gravity, and obviously like it wasn’t a big deal… I dunno. It felt like…well,” he rolled his eyes a little, “Political speech. Not detached, but…like he’d written a speech, that was personal, but then had a committee helping him edit it.”

“Like…I heard that Kokichi almost died on his wedding night. That could just be a rumor, since people said that a lot, but…he didn’t mention that at all. It could just be personal, I guess.”

That did sound like Kokichi, honestly. The young prince could sometimes be very particular and protective in his speaking. A good trait in an Ouma, likely a difficult trait for his social life. 

That was alright though. Dr. Mariah was just, ultimately, trying to prep Doppio to be a little more generous to himself, not suppressing his own concerns in a sense of guilt, as she asked, “Still, even disregarding if there was more you could have done to avoid the situation, you mentioned that you were angry, in the moment. I’d like to explore that more. Was the anger physical? A direct response to pain?”

Doppio nodded a bit. “Yeah… I’ve had my shoulder dislocated before, and that was a lot worse than this one, but it still hurt. And that one I was in a fight, so…I kinda was expecting pain? And I wasn’t for this… It was surprising, I mean… So…”

Here he looked a little sheepish, really looking back at what happened the night before. “...so I got pissed at Kaito, for yelling at us ‘n picking me up ‘n stuff.”

“I see,” Dr. Mariah said, trying to envision what Doppio was describing, “Was some of that anger specifically at Kaito’s anger? A mirrored response?”

“...maybe?” Doppio said unsurely. “...I don’t think I was mad that he was mad…like…that was our fault. But…maybe how he expressed some of it, which…in some cases I guess is the same thing.”

There we go. “I’m actually a bit relieved to hear that,” Dr. Mariah said, leaning back into her chair, resting her hands onto her lap, “Considering I just had us experiment a whole week with your concept of standards for being treated well by people with influence over you, your anger at how Kaito expresses his anger is very healthy. I doubt it was pleasant, to either feel or express to him. But you are someone who is still developing a sense of what boundaries are, from person to person. Kaito, at least currently, is one of the closest people to you. You both expecting and establishing boundaries, even against opposition, is very good.”

“I know it’s not new for you either, especially with Kaito, and especially in this last month. You’ve been forced to establish boundaries and demand expectations over and over again. Both with Kaito, and with your father.” Dr. Mariah said, “The reason I keep finding myself relieved to see you explore this tension with Kaito, is I’m very aware of what kind of man he is. His sense of duty towards people he cares about is one of his best and most consistent traits. You can honestly test these new standards you have with him pretty extensively, and I strongly believe no harm would come to you. Which is the type of person every young person should have in their life, at least for a time. It’s an important part of developing.”

“On that note, the opposition part is also an important part of your development.” Dr. Mariah said, “It’s not enough to rebel against an authority. You have to see what consequences those actions could have, and how those consequences can sometimes not be personally yours. Your words and actions can hurt people. Can make them angry. Can depress them. They say that no one hurts you quite like your children do, and that is for good reason: they’re still learning what it means to harm someone. They will make a thousand mistakes, and unfortunately, someone has to be on the other side of that. For many children, it's their parents, or siblings. For you, it seems to be Kaito.”

“That is partly why I wish to stress so much, that your error was communication, and not some personal moral fault.” Dr. Mariah explained, “Emotionally, you aren’t entirely mature yet. ‘Fault’ is an even more nebulous term for younger people than it is just in general. To put it bluntly, you’re not quite at a point in life yet, where anything is really ‘your fault’. You don’t really know better yet. You’re still learning.”

Doppio looked up, a little confused and a little skeptical. …it was healthy? Kaito had talked a lot about the work he’d done in anger management, and talked a lot about how it was perfectly fine for him to be angry, as long as he expressed that anger in ways that didn’t hurt other people. So…wasn’t Doppio being mad at those expressions like…saying that Kaito wasn’t good enough? That…didn’t sit right with Doppio…

Sure, Kaito wouldn’t hurt Doppio (intentionally, anyway) but…Doppio knew he’d hurt Kaito a lot. Which…

“...that doesn’t seem fair, that I’m given free reign to hurt him just because I’m younger,” Doppio muttered, tracing the edge of his jacket. “Like…sure, I’m not the worst person ever for scaring Kaito like that. But…it still did hurt him in a way that everyone kept saying that Arven and I should’ve known better than to do.”

An annoyed, hurt twitch went through Doppio’s face. “...I don’t know a lot, but I can still get by most of the time. And using ignorance as an excuse to just…wave away harm doesn’t seem right.”

“You’re not entirely wrong,” Dr. Mariah said, her expression blank, “So, tell me this. Who is holding you responsible? For how you treat Kaito? Is there any repercussions you faced after the event in question, other then your injury in the chaos of the moment, and Kaito’s ire?”

“...he said he was gonna ground us, but Arven pointed out he can’t, since he’s not our legal guardian, and he said he was just going to bury us in the castle backlot,” Doppio said after a moment. “And…um. I don’t remember entirely, but I think Kokichi was going to talk to us about actual grounding, or talk to King Aiichi about it…but I think he let us be last night after Kaito set my shoulder, and we didn’t see him this morning.”

His expression hardened a little after that, though. “...but I’m holding myself responsible for how I treat Kaito…o-or anyone. I’m not… I don’t want to treat people the way other people say I should treat them. I can think for myself.”

Dr. Mariah nodded, “Exactly. That is a benefit of being young. There are social, and sometimes legal, ramifications for, to simplify the actions to a single word, ‘bully’ someone, one adult to another, or an adult to a child. I can assure you, if you and Arven were both older? There’d have been more of a reaction for sending Kaito into a panic attack for fun, from the people around you outside of gentle chastising. It’d have been considered cruel.”

“But it wasn’t. Cruel, or considered as such, because again, there is a certain leniency to someone you and Arven’s age,” Dr. Mariah stressed, “It was simply another folly of youth. You’ll do quite a few of them, no doubt. Everyone does. We, as a society, allow children to get away with things that that members of the society in their adulthood would sometimes consider atrocities. We do it recognizing that development requires trial and error. Stress on the ‘error’.”

“And, in truth, if I were to be treating you as ‘younger’ than you are… and the age we’ve decided on is 14,” Dr. Mariah gently reminded him, “then I wouldn’t mention any of this at all. Young children have no real concept of all the ways society makes exceptions for them, they only see the restraints. But teenagers start to notice. They need to notice. Because there is a time limit, to this allowance. And if you were to make this mistake at 25? People would sigh less, and openly resent you more.”

“Your childhood is a benefit, Doppio,” Dr. Mariah said, “In more ways than this, but this is a major one. Yes, hold yourself responsible. But also forgive yourself for being a child, and learn from the small mistakes.”

Doppio frowned, looking at his feet. Just his regular shoes, since he could slip them on. Arguably he could adjust shoes or even tie laces letting his arm hang down, but…it was easier this way. 

“...Kokichi said it was cruel,” he said softly. “...but…I guess there weren’t any…actual consequences we faced. And Kaito did accept our apologies.” …even if he did just seem a little tired at Arven’s. 

He sighed. “...it wasn’t a purposeful punishment or anything, but…if I did want to be blamed more…I do have a shoulder injury that’s gonna suck for a while.”

Dr. Mariah tittered a little lightly, the laugh not cruel, just mildly amused, “Hopefully it won’t take a dislocated shoulder, every time.”

Dr. Mariah paused, considering what she was saying… “You actually haven't done anything worth correcting in this conversation either. Apologies, Doppio, I may have lost myself in a bit of a tangent. While it is important for you to recognize society will treat you differently for your age, that’s not really what I wanted to talk about with you. Your acknowledgement of your part in the accident and your personal conviction to do better is exactly what one would hope you’d learn in your situation.”

“Originally, my concern was how you felt about how Kaito treated you. I lost that thread.” Dr. Mariah explained, looking a tad regretful, “Kaito is the adult, and there’s certainly allowances he doesn’t have because of that. It matters, that he hurt you in his fear. And you would not be wrong, to express your concerns about it. Has Kaito apologized to you?”

Yeesh, he hoped so too. 

(Though…his dad had seemed to think that some sort of physical injury was exactly what Doppio needed to learn from his mistakes…)

Making a sort of indistinct murmur that the tangent was fine, Doppio blinked before nodding. “Yeah, he did. While he was setting it.” Doppio let out a puff of air that puffed his cheeks out a little. “He made a big fuss about putting on ointment and giving me painkillers and trying to set it without hurting me… He got really confusing, and that’s kinda what we fought about.”

“I see. So is some of your argument from how Kaito attempted to make amends then?” Dr. Mariah clarified, “Which is another excellent way to explore standards. Can I ask you to expand on that? Was his communication too vague, or contradictory?”

“U-um… That’s…” Doppio stuttered, trying to sort things out. “Not from him apologizing. Um, no, he… He was asking me about pain tolerance stuff and…I didn’t understand. I just wanted him to set it, but he kept stopping and asking if it was alright, o-or if I felt pain at all and…I said I did, and…just because I wasn’t crying didn’t mean I didn’t feel pain, and… Then he started talking about how it was important to know how different pain tolerances work and I was like, yeah, but everyone’s is different, so…if I say I’m okay, then…that should be good? Like, for knowing, because everyone feels pain differently, so you should trust what they tell you about it, but…he just got mad at me, and…”

Doppio let out a huff of annoyed air. “Mocking me, about how I never listen to him and will take whatever he’s trying to say to heart only when someone else says it. But…then, as it pertained to my shoulder, I just…threw out a bunch of interpretations about what he had been asking about in the first place, and when I got it, he got pissed at me, like what he was asking was obvious, and…I basically explained all that to him, ‘cause I told him it wasn’t obvious and…I was just…confused and pissed off.”

“‘N we had some whole…stupid argument about him calling me too small ‘n shit,” Doppio grumbled, looking to the side.

“...well, now I feel a bit put on the spot,” Dr. Mariah admitted with a small smirk, “Because my instinct was to interpret your explanation for what he was saying about pain, and attempt to clarify what I think he means, or at least why it means something to him, but… I do worry that is me playing into his side of your argument then. Both in regards to pain, and to whether you’d listen to someone else explain it. Which is not my intention.”

Doppio was quiet for a few moments, very obviously loading and processing what Dr. Mariah said before he gave her a small, tired smile. “You still can. ‘Cause I said maybe I listen when other people make the point because they can actually explain it in a way I understand.”

“Well, keeping in mind that this is simply me trying to decipher where he might be coming from. A guess, though I’d like to think an educated one… it sounds a bit like he might have been concerned you were sandbagging a bit. Do you know the term ‘sandbagging’, Doppio? It’s when you present your abilities as being different to what they actually are. For instance, presenting yourself to be less strong, or more strong, than you’re physically capable of, to create a desirable reaction in someone.”

“If Kaito was trying to decide if you needed a healer, or if your arm wound was worse than what he could physically see?” Dr. Mariah said, “And he didn’t trust you would tell him, or show him signs of it? He might believe you were sandbagging.”

“Like…bluffing,” Doppio hummed, though he frowned. “I wasn’t, though. I told him my arm was twinging, and that it hurt enough for me to know something was wrong without looking at it. And…I guess I could’ve said so, but I definitely would’ve spoken up if I felt my fingers going numb or something.”

He frowned a little more. “...I don’t think it’d occur to me to, like…fake crying if something hurts, just to…give people a more vague sign that something’s wrong than just telling them.”

“Ideally you shouldn’t have too,” Dr. Mariah agreed, “And I know most healers are specifically trained to gauge who’s being honest with them, about the extent of their illnesses or injuries. However, they’re also trained to look for signs of repression as well. Not that Kaito is a healer, but it might be something he’s encountered enough in his life to worry about it. An underselling of injuries, to the person in questions detriment.”

“But, between you and him? You are correct, if you don’t have a history of hiding your injuries? Then Kaito should trust what you say.” Dr. Mariah agreed, “And that’s something he will have to become comfortable with. So your irritation there is understandable.”

“And Kaito getting irritated with you for not understanding his concern… well, admittedly, that was probably a side effect of being put into a panic not that long before the care of your shoulder, I assume. In truth, Kaito probably should have left your healing in someone else’s hands, and should have sat down somewhere until he was calm. But Kaito is the type who feels the need to spend nervous energy, for better or for worse, so I’m certain he barreled his way through this process. And it’s not your responsibility to tell him he needs to stop and take a breath. So, again, your irritation is understandable. Kaito was likely not in a reasonable mood in the moment.”

“...I say that, aware of the irony of me being the one who keeps having to tell people that Kaito’s moods cannot be dismissed as unreasonable out of hand.” Dr. Mariah said after a moment. Before continuing on, “He made a comment on your size?”

Doppio paused, eyes flicking away for a moment. He would argue (probably against Kaito) that he didn’t have a history of hiding his injuries. Sure, he’d literally hidden his arm…but that was when he’d barely known Kaito and Arven, and he had been terrified of being taken to the Guardforce or to a hospital. And when he had been sick and had water in his chest, he told Kaito almost immediately. He hadn’t told anyone about him…choking up his gear but…that had been apparent in itself. And he told Kaito and Arven immediately about his shoulder. 

Compared to how he had been expected to treat injuries all his life, Doppio had been incredibly forthright about them. He just…was good at getting through treatment without complaining.

…it was just a dumb situation. 

Sighing, Doppio’s lips twisted a bit as he nodded. “He said he wished I was bigger so I could punch him off when he gets too nosy and handsy, and did that whole…thing he does where he’s like ‘just stop being the thing you are.’”

“And I was already mad, and…made some comment about him having to ask my dad why I’m what shape I am and…” Doppio grit his teeth, anger and hurt still flashing in his eyes. “...he made some…dumbass comment about h-how my dad probably daydreamed me like this just to have someone he could hit.”

“Ah,” Dr. Mariah said, some of the amusement bleeding from her face, a little sigh, “Now that is a very cruel thing to say. I’m a little surprised, actually. He knows better than anyone, the cruelty in that statement. Hmm.”

Dr. Mariah closed her eyes, tapping her fingers together, “...Forgive me, Doppio, allow me one moment. That has me wondering if I should clue Kaito’s personal therapist that she might need to reach out to him soon. That is… certainly a thing for him to argue. It can be a bit conflicting, sometimes, juggling my concerns for your arguments. Nothing that I would argue makes me ineligible to be your therapist, but enough that I feel the need to apologize in this moment anyway.”

As she made a bit of a mental checklist for herself, tapping at her journal, Dr. Mariah opened her eyes, refocused, “That said, you are correct. That is a ‘dumbass’, as you put it, comment to make. Let’s explore it more. Not the validity of the argument, it isn’t one. But your feelings on it. Walk me through what hearing that was like. ”

Doppio didn’t know. He hadn’t been…like, just waiting for Dr. Mariah to agree. To second-handedly psychoanalyze his father and come to the conclusion that Kaito was right, all his dad wanted while he made him was someone he could overpower and belittle. But…a little part of his chest uncoiled, relaxing having heard her agree that it had been…wrong and mean to say that. 

Nodding a little, Doppio lightly fussed with the front strap of his sling. “...the idea that my dad just tried to make a clone of himself, a-and that I’m the failure of that attempt doesn’t…really make me happy. But…without asking him, I don’t really know if that’s true…even if another him is definitely something he wanted in some capacity.”

“But… I-I know for a fact he made me to help him,” Doppio pursed his lips. “Maybe…with his mental stuff, like we talked about before, but…help in at least some way. A-and I did! I was a huge help! And…my dad was happy about it. Sometimes he didn’t really…have a reaction, like whatever I did was just the natural course of the world, things done that should be…but knowing him? He felt like that because he…believed so much in himself, a-and thus his creation of me, that…of course I’d get things done!”

“...he never enjoyed hitting me,” Doppio murmured, his eyes squinting. “It was just…a waste of time, on top of whatever I messed up enough to warrant it.”

Doppio sighed, pressing a hand over an eye. “...I…know my dad isn’t…a good person. But he wasn’t like that. I feel…like I’m making the same argument that…that people have been shooting down this whole time, but…Kaito’s never even met him. My whole…purpose in existing wasn’t just to be a punching bag…”

“It wasn’t,” Dr. Mariah agreed, “And for anyone outside of yourself? To suggest it was is wildly irresponsible, and borderline personally insulting. That is not an assessment others can make for you, on your behalf. Especially when the subject is something as all encompassing as the reason you exist.”

Dr. Mariah sighed, that grim look still on her face– yes, after this, she was reaching out to Miss Crystal. It was Bad if Kaito’s thoughts had wandered into that belief system– before continuing to explain, “And no one’s existence is both stagnant and entirely up to someone else either, just to be entirely clear where I stand in this sentiment. People are multifaceted, and so is your father. He’s not a two-dimensional cartoon villain, he’s a person. A complicated one, who did terrible things, to you and others. But not without his own reasons, and not without a variety of potential insights to those reasons. You were not created by someone who was mindless, is essentially what I’m saying Doppio.”

“Unfortunately, people will likely only ever know certain things about your father, if they know anything about him at all.” Dr. Mariah said, her expression softening into sympathy, “and one of those things will be the drowning. At least for now, around here. The trials will make that knowledge available, and people will make their own snap judgments on who your father is, from that. Both in general, and to you. And… unfortunately, if people are cruel enough to vent those judgements to you? There is little I can advocate for you, other then patience and distance. It will not be your job to correct anyone and everyone with a judgment on your existence or life, and you may find yourself just needing to separate yourself from anyone who would insist on doing so. It’s just an unfortunate drawback to some of the public nature of the social system. Time will help, though you shouldn’t be experiencing this with your own inner circle already. I am sorry to hear that, Doppio.”

Doppio looked up, still looking a little hurt, and nodded a bit. Doppio was sure Kaito didn’t care about any insult towards his dad, but…it was insulting to Doppio too. Sure, Kaito was big, and strong, and loud, and stubborn to a fault, when it came to overpowering other people. But…Doppio knew he was strong in his own right, and while he may not ever be able to, like, pick up Kaito, he could certainly push him away if he was determined to. And…Doppio was quick, and he liked to think he was clever, when it came to figuring out a fight…or, more importantly to him, avoiding a fight. And…maybe he was softer spoken, and his gain/cost analyses often pointed him to following the demands of others…but Doppio never thought those things made him weak. Or were signs he couldn’t protect himself, or others. They were just choices he made that seemed the best. 

(Choices he actively made not from the thought that they were the only things he could do, but things he considered desirable. Not choices that were weak…like Kaito seemed to think they were.)

And…his father was…a lot of things. More than Doppio had thought and defended for a long time. But…a lot of the things Doppio had been in awe of were still there. And the parts Doppio had truly loved about their time together wasn’t a lie either. There wasn’t some nefarious undertone to snowy days they had spent by the fire together, sipping hot drinks. 

Doppio knew those peaceful moments didn’t negate or even lessen all the awful things his father had done, but…they hadn’t been a lie either. And Doppio wasn’t wrong to hold them dear. 

And…if everyone was intent on taking them away from him…

He deflated a bit, sitting back against his chair. “...his trial starts tomorrow.”

Dr. Mariah had heard that through the official channels, yes. It was established that no one actually knew the defendants name, so John Doe had been used as a placeholder until an official name could be determined. Doppio’s father was fairly insistent on not giving his name, or age, or where he was from… Dr. Mariah could assume, since none of that information was available.

She supposed for her, it didn’t really matter, beyond general nosiness. What mattered was how Doppio felt about it, as she said, “Have you given any thought as to how you wish to handle the next week? In regards to the trial?”

Doppio made a sort of unsure noise, back to playing with the edge of his jacket. “I mean…Arven and I are going to be out of the city on Wednesday for his birthday. And…I wasn’t planning on going to observe the trial tomorrow. I…don’t really think there’s anyone who’d want to tell me anything about it unless I asked and…I don’t really know if I want to.”

With a slightly dulled expression, Doppio gave a small half shrug. “I mean…I know what he’s done already. I don’t need to watch it be exposed to a room of people.” (...or watch people be…shocked and horrified hearing what his dad had done to him.)

“That’s an entirely fair way to feel about it,” Dr. Mariah said, “There’s no obligation or expectation to go. In truth, I’d really only recommend going if it’s something that you felt like you needed to do as part of the ‘letting go’ process. I know you spoke to your father at one point already… was that conversation enough? That you won’t feel regrets about seeing more of him?”

Doppio went quiet for a moment, looking down as he frowned. “...I think…even if I spent every second of every day until the trial was over with him, I’d still regret things. But doing that would just…suck, for the both of us. He’s done with me, he’s made that clear. And I’m not going to get a better goodbye than the one I already got.”

He fiddled with his sling strap, eyes lowering more. “...I think I’m always going to miss him. And there’ll always be a part of me that’s…worrying? Or hoping…or… I don’t know. Concerned about how well he’s eating and sleeping ‘n stuff. And…I know I can’t just…let that be my life. That how he’s doing can’t be a factor in my own choices or happiness or…anything.”

“...but even with us off living our own lives separate from each other…I think those feelings are still going to be things I’m thinking about. At least sometimes. And…I don’t think that’ll change if I see more of him or not.” He frowned a little more. “...I mean…my dad seemed alright with me seeing him some of the time, but…even if it’s me, I think the fewer eyes on him in court the more comfortable he’d be…even in a horrible situation like that.”

“Considering how tightly the man holds onto his privacy, that seems like an apt observation.” Dr. Mariah agreed, “The trials being open to the public doesn’t always make their spectacle the kindest decision. And maybe some would argue your father does not deserve that courtesy. But this is someone you love, still in your life or not, and knowing the act of being observed will hurt him is a priority that is very understandable for you to have.”

“...how do you feel about knowing that the information closest to you, in regards to his crime, will be more widely known?” Dr. Mairah asked, “That’s intimidating for anyone. And you can be a very private person yourself, Doppio. Any anxieties?”

Maybe they’d have, like…a curtain, or something his dad could sit behind for the trial. It wasn’t like the lawyers would have to see his face, or any of the jury, for that matter, for the case to go on. Even for criminals, they were still people, and still had rights and rights to accommodations.

His nose scrunching a bit, lips twisting, Doppio sighed. “...I’m not exactly thrilled about it. I know people were pushing for me to be legally a minor specifically so I couldn’t be tried for anything I did for my dad’s group, but…it still feels like I’ve just…gotten away with it. Even with the, like…check-ins and stuff CPS has mentioned…” (Though…nothing had happened with that yet.)

(Sure, Doppio didn’t think he was a naturally violent person, and had no reason to commit any crimes of his own volition, which…essentially meant he was already rehabilitated, and thus didn’t require any of the stricter penalties of the law…but still.)

Chewing on his cheek, Doppio looked over at the aquarium, just watching the fish for a moment. “...I don’t know why anyone would… I don’t think a lot of people are interested in law just…as a hobby. But I… It’s… I don’t…feel…great. About Arven’s friends hearing about the stuff my dad did to me.”

Quickly, he followed up, “I-I mean, Josie said he knows CPS, so maybe he’d get it and not…I dunno, ask stuff, and Giovanni doesn’t really seem to care about anything but art, but…I dunno. There’s a lot of people.”

“It might not end up being a very high profile case,” Dr. Mariah said, “And even if it becomes well known, there’s no need to believe people would automatically connect it to you. There’s rarely a name that’s truly unique, and even if it is, most people wouldn’t assume so. To them, you’d always just be one more potential Doppio, who just as potentially was mentioned in a trial.”

“That said,” Dr. Mariah sighed, “It can be traumatic, just knowing such things are being discussed, somewhere. Exposing. There’s nothing wrong with any negative feelings about the act itself, even without considering how others might use it to reflect on you.”

“And could I ask, the sort of thing you feel like you got away with?” Dr. Mariah asked. “Is there something you wish you had made amends for?”

He nodded a little. “I mean…disrupting a cartel is a big deal, especially with the epidemic last year. But with that…if people do end up hearing about the case, they might just hear that the organization was disrupted, but not anything about the people involved, and…most people aren’t that nosy to go find the court records and read up on it. A-and…I know my name is on the more unusual side but…there are the possibility of more.”

“...even if practically Arven’s whole school knows that we’re in some sort of legal trouble right now,” he mumbled. 

Doppio sighed. Was there anything about his time in Passione he regretted? That he’d want to make up for? Doppio had never had any second thoughts about his work--it was necessary and things he could do well, which made him happy. He hadn’t had any need to have any sort of deeper understanding about what he was doing, and the few times his dad had explained more beyond the literal acts Doppio needed to accomplish, he’d always just gotten confused, and had decided to simply trust his father’s mission. 

So…

Doppio gnawed on the corner of his lips. “...I feel bad about the people I killed, but…that wasn’t even me. And…I don’t exactly want to volunteer myself for a murder charge just because I feel bad…”

“Considering what you’ve told me about that subject before, I’m not sure that’s a responsibility that, morally speaking, you actually have a right too,” Dr. Mariah admitted, “If those who died have loved ones seeking vengeance, offering yourself up as a scapegoat would just turn their ire away from the actual culprit. If its about rehabilitation, well, I don’t believe you ever actually committed that crime without needing to be put to sleep through it, which makes the odds of you ever repeating your offense very low. And if it’s about justice, then… well, it’s not just. You’d be in the wrong to offer yourself up for it.”

“The only exception is the perspective of knowledge,” Dr. Mariah added gently, “If it’s about offering knowledge? That may be worth giving someday. But knowledge, in this circumstances, can wait, even at the cost of someone’s peace of mind. You arguably need time to reflect on what being in the cartel was like for you, and what knowledge you’d have to offer others. Going out and doing so without that time to reflect? Would damage you. You have no responsibility to harm yourself, to offer knowledge to others. I would caution you waiting until you are better prepared.”

“You’ve mentioned Arven’s friends and then the school. I can’t help but feel that this anxiety is the drawback of my past homework assignment, asking you to open yourself more to community,” Dr. Mariah mused, “Perhaps it might have been wise to wait and have you socialize when things had quieted down. I apologize if I jumped ahead too quickly. Has community integration come with setbacks?”

Doppio nodded a little. Sure, he at one point fully believed he had killed those people…but the reality was he hadn’t. Doppio had merely been the body through which someone else acted…literally. And that…wasn’t a crime, and wasn’t even really his fault. As he’d explained before, even if he hadn’t gone to where those people were, his dad would’ve just taken him over earlier to make the walk himself. It wasn’t Doppio’s fault they were dead. 

…and…he didn’t even know who they were. At one point he had been given names and addresses, and maybe they had even been coworkers he had interacted with multiple times, but…by now? That knowledge was gone. So…even if he wanted to inform the Guardforce that certain missing persons cases were actually murders…he wouldn’t know where to start. 

…he didn’t know what Ms. Shnaps wanted from him. He didn’t have any peace to offer anyone. 

Chewing on his lip, he slowly shook his head at Dr. Mariah, before finishing with a more assured one. “Um, no, not really… Oh, uh… Arven and I went to his school’s chess club last week, a-and it was actually a lot of fun, and the members are really nice. They even invited us to join…um…costumed, like…people chess during Harvest yesterday. And Arven and I have come up with a whole…story-line, project…thing, for it, that I-I’m actually really excited about!” he smiled shyly. 

“For the most part, people are really nice… If a little overwhelming sometimes. Really the only thing, I guess, is that apparently people are still weird about me and Trish looking alike, but…I haven’t heard any of it directly…like, mean stuff anyway. And I don’t really run into the Rabbits myself, so…that’s fine.”

“That’s excellent, Doppio.” Dr. Mariah said. 

And, because Doppio was one of her younger patients, and it was sometimes wise to give them small, uplifting breaks, she asked about this project of his. Listening attentively as he explained the work he and Arven had already done, the way it worked for chess, the lore they had imagined behind the costumes.

She smiled warmly when he seemed to lose steam, “A creative project like this, especially with friendly engagement, is an extremely positive step, Doppio. I have told you before that you’re coping very well with all of this, and this project is another sign that you’re more than suited for the life you’ve started etching out for yourself.”

“If I can go back to something you mentioned in passing earlier, which may relate to some of the things you’re enjoying more,” Dr. Mariah said, “You mentioned that you’ll be eating in the dining hall more often, and you seemed frustrated. Is this simply because of the shoulder? I bring this up because you also mentioned hiking with Arven’s for his birthday in two days…” she said, pointedly looking at his shoulder again, “It’s good that your schedule is full, but it can be wise to move things around when you’re otherwise struggling.”

It was like day and night, really. Often when Doppio spoke, it was reserved, dry, or filled with insecurities. But speaking about a project he was passionate about? He lit up, speaking quickly with an almost bouncing rhythm, his accent bleeding through more noticeably, and, while this time it was only one, he often gestured with his hand. His eyes sparkled and he relaxed into an excited grin whenever there was a pause, though as he slowed down, he seemed to get more self-conscious about how animated he’d gotten, and slowly he curled back into himself, voice softening. 

Though, he seemed pleased with Dr. Mariah’s approval of their project. It was something he and Arven would do on their own regardless of what other people thought, but…it was nice bringing other people into it, especially when they seemed excited about it too, like Giovanni and Dimitri, and the chess club as a whole. 

Slowly, Doppio was gaining a social life. But combined with everything…

He sighed softly. “I mean…I’ll miss cooking, but… Yeah. It’s my shoulder. I really don’t want to postpone our hiking trip--it’s for his birthday, and we planned out a lot of stuff to do to celebrate. And I don’t care if it’ll take forever one-handed, I’m still making him his birthday meal,” Doppio pouted, determined, “But…well. My shoulder is kind of a bump in the road. And…there’s one part of the hike that Arven said was like an obstacle course, sort of, and…I won’t be able to do that part. But…everything else should be fine…I hope.”

“Have you thought about just postponing the celebration for the week?” Dr. Mariah advised, maybe even a tad more urgently now that she heard ‘obstacle course’. “It might be something you should speak to Arven about. Celebration and joy are not limited resources, and Arven doesn’t strike me as the type to feel slighted by not celebrating precisely on time.”

Doppio huffed a bit. “...it feels like we’re always postponing stuff… And…I guess he wouldn’t mind. Arven said that he hadn’t celebrated his birthday in years.” Doppio frowned more. “...but it keeps… It seems like Arven disproportionately gets put to the side with…everything. That’s been happening. And pushing the celebration dedicated to his existence just because I can’t do one or two things feels…gross.”

“That’s worth exploring in and of itself,” Dr. Mariah agreed, “But this particular instance might be the wrong example for your concern. Delaying the celebration, at least this specific type of celebration, for when you’re healed will likely mean that that you, Doppio, would be less the focus of the day. Arven cares about you very much, as you care about him. If the situation was reversed, would you be capable of not fretting over him during a difficult hiking path?”

Doppio glanced up, his eyebrows scrunching together, before he looked down, considering it. “...no. I mean…when he got his toe re-set, I insisted on helping him walk around to not put more weight on it. I don’t like him being hurt…”

Doppio’s expression saddened as he gripped the side of his jacket. “...don’t like him being sad or scared either.”

“I see… has this been something on your mind?” Dr. Mariah asked, “I imagine, with everything that’s been going on recently, it’s been difficult to not keep certain things from being alarming to your boyfriend. Is this something you two have discussed?”

“Sort of?” Doppio murmured, tilting his head a little. “It’s… It’s something we’ve mutually acknowledged. And I’ve apologized for just…everything around me being a shitshow. But…neither of us really know how to…g-grow? Or, um… Have things…stop being so scary and difficult? That’s not just…waiting things out.”

Sighing, Doppio closed his eyes and rubbed the side of his nose a little. “...we think he might’ve triggered a panic attack in me this morning? He was helping me put my hair up, and I just…freaked out. We tested some stuff, but…he just…got so scared and upset over scaring me. And…like, I’m happy he cares, but…I hate that. I hate seeing him about to cry because of me…”

“Unfortunately, it’s difficult to protect our loved ones from the difficult things going on in our lives. Especially when they make up our personal support system,” Dr. Mariah said, the words echoing familiar to her. She was fairly certain she had relatively recently helped the Ouma family through the same issue. “And it would be unwise to suggest that these are things you could hide from Arven, for his comfort.”

“Does Arven, if you are aware, have someone outside of you that he can lean on, when things have gotten difficult?” Dr. Mariah asked, “Anyone he can turn too? Because that is one aspect that can alleviate the difficulties of sharing the more troubling events of your life with him.”

“And while I do still want to explore your feelings of sharing difficulties with Arven, I do wish to touch upon this ‘hair’ discussion before we lose track of it within discussion. You experimented with a panic attack this morning? Did you come to any conclusions?”

Doppio nodded a bit, a worried expression on his face. Just hiding everything from Arven was…dumb. And unfeasible. And…honestly, Doppio needed Arven’s help. Whether it was his plan to run away from Usott together, or these days just…being able to talk to each other about what was happening. Or just spending time together. Arven was precious to Doppio in a lot of senses, but his help and insight and presence was invaluable, likely always, but especially as Doppio’s world had crumbled apart. 

And…unfortunately, that just meant Arven was exposed to…some pretty terrible stuff. 

Stuff that he couldn’t really talk to anyone else about. 

Sighing softly, Doppio worried the inside of his lip, his eyebrows drawing in in an almost pained expression. “...no. Arven said that all his friends had drifted apart, and that even before that, he’d basically…cut everyone off while he was traveling around for the Titan Herbs. And…he doesn’t really care about anyone else in his school. He said there was one teacher that looked out for him, but he doesn’t have any of their classes this year, and he hasn’t mentioned talking to them at all since we’ve met. Kaito tries to be there for him but…most of the time Arven just brushes him off.”

Doppio winced a little, tasting blood, but he couldn’t stop grinding his teeth against his cheek. “...I’ve talked with him before, about…how him being alone scares me. I know it’s not the same as my dad, but…I know how being alone can really hurt someone and I don’t want that to happen to him. Arven points out that he has me and…that the royal family is really nosy ‘n stuff, so it’s fine but…I’m worried.”

Sighing, Doppio looked to the side and smoothed his bangs back from his face. “I…think people pulling on my hair might do something? When Arven did it on accident, it…was a lot slower than a lot of panic attacks I’ve gotten. And when we tried again, I got nervous but…not anything dangerous. We were already a little late so we didn’t try past that.”

“Hair pulling, I see…” Dr. Mariah said, tapping at her journal a bit, “Do you have any strong desires to work through this potential phobia? There are a few options we could discuss, though it’s also perfectly reasonable to just default to avoidance. I imagine people pulling your hair is not something you’d have to deal with often, and not without knowing it was coming.”

“And, on that note, I’m afraid I’m guilty of the ‘when all you have is a hammer’, mentality,” Dr. Mariah smiled dryly, “Though, in my defense, Arven likely needs therapy for… many things, that we’ve discussed. He’s not a young man without trauma himself, though yours has certainly taken precedence in the last month. You would be far from the main reason he’d likely need therapy. Perhaps I should send him some literature on the subject?”

Doppio thought for a moment before giving an awkward half-shrug. “I mean… I think I’d just like to avoid people pulling on my hair even if it didn’t freak me out, yeah. And…while I’m still not super sure… At least now that I know it could be a thing for me, I could ward people off it. Um…can I think about it?”

Though, what Arven may think…

Doppio sighed. “I don’t think it could hurt. I’ve asked him before if he wanted to think about finding a therapist, but he’s said he wouldn’t be able to think of anything to talk about. He’s always just said he’s fine, and when he’s not…he tells me and…it doesn’t really seem like stuff he’d need to discuss with a third party. But…I could ask him again.”

“I’ll have some pamphlets mailed to the castle,” Dr. Mariah promised, “With a few specific therapist suggestions. I’m excellent at what I do, it’s not too immodest to say. But I’m not suited for everyone, and sometimes I can get a good initial first instinct for that. Arven might not immediately respond to my dramatic whimsy and sense of playful wonder.” Dr. Mariah said, eyes cold and serious… before she smiled lightly, “And some don’t respond well to slow, calm professionalism either.”

“And yes, we can discuss the possibility of phobia therapy in the future, if you find yourself struggling with any of them. Getting rid of a phobia entirely, as far as averages go, is basically impossible. But finding useful coping techniques that allow the individual to perform the action anyway? There are many options and resources for that, it’s an entirely reasonable goal.”

Looking down at the elephant, Dr. Mariah asked, “As we have a moment between topics, Doppio, would you like to keep your stuffed elephant? Or leave it behind for the children's room again?”

Doppio snorted softly, matching Dr. Mariah’s smile. “He doesn’t really like authority… He’s never really had to deal with it outside of, like, school for a long time and…even more than me, Arven’s solution to a lot of stuff he doesn’t want to do is just…to leave and not do it. It’s kind of impressive, really…”

Arven was incredibly impressive in every facet! …Doppio just wished he had more people in his life, was all. 

Blinking, Doppio looked down at Phanpy before blinking again, his eyes widening in surprise. “Oh, um… T-thanks for the offer? But it is yours; I-I can bring it back to the children’s room.” Leaning forward, he opened the flap of his bag and pulled the blue elephant out--indeed quite clean and fluffy-looking--, starting to get up to bring it back.

“You are allowed to keep it,” Dr. Mariah said, tilting her head a bit, “Do you have any tendency to decorate your living space?”

Doppio paused, looking a little sheepish. “Um, well…I did put my gear up, like I told you… Um…sometimes I’d bring in cool rocks I’d find and put them in my window sill, if I had one where we were living but… I don’t decorate much, I guess. I…do like Arven’s perspective on it, but…until now I’ve only lived in places that were really temporary and…kinda needed to be ensured that no one knew we were there after we left. So I never really…did anything with space that’s mine.”

“Well, you’re welcome to do what many people do with their toys, once they’ve grown out of them. Why not substitute Phanpy as a decoration somewhere? Perhaps as a lovely little reminder of a harvest that, with the exception of one incident, seemed to have gone well for you?” Dr. Mariah advised. “Again, you don’t have too. I just don’t want you to feel like you have some obligation to return the toy either. It’s a cute but cheap thing. I wouldn’t even bother to replace it.”

Doppio blinked again, before looking down at Phanpy. Worrying his lip a little before he gently sat back down, just holding the elephant for a moment before setting it on his lap. “Um…well, okay… Thank you. …it is really cute,” he smiled softly at her.

…if she wouldn’t even replace it? It would be nice to be able to decorate their room a little more… And a reminder of Harvest, and…maybe even of the experiment, trying to decide how he wanted to be treated, maybe…that would be nice. And, well…if the gear was something added to their room that Doppio could take with him to remind him of these days, then…maybe Arven could take Phanpy--like if Doppio gifted it to him. I-if Arven wanted it…

“...I don’t remember if I told you, but… When we got that anonymous delivery of my clothes? There was a gift in it for me,” Doppio explained. “A pillow in the shape of a cat head. I-it’s actually really comfortable and cute, I really like it… I dunno. Is there something funny about a bunch of people giving me stuffed animals?”

Dr. Mariah laughed a bit at that, before admitting, “It’s not strange inherently, but your stories for how you’ve gotten both of yours are a bit unusual. Most people don’t have this experiment, for one, and two, it’s still… very strange someone broke into your home to steal all your clothes for you. And got you a gift on top of it. Perhaps stranger that no one’s ever figured out who it was. It most certainly wasn’t Kaito or Maki, as Shuichi would have told on them to me one of our latest therapy sessions, just for the hells of it.”

Dr. Mariah smiled at that, something fond in her expression… before her expression evened out, “But the fact it’s stuffed animals specifically? Not necessarily. They’re very comforting items, especially during difficult times. And I’m personally of the sentiment that they’re not the sort of item you really outgrow. Even among the most serious minded of folk, there’s a reason colorful throw pillows are as popular as they are useless. People like soft, pleasant looking things.”

“Is there a reason you were concerned?” Dr. Mariah asked.

“Kaito seemed kind of freaked out about it, actually, so it really wasn’t him,” Doppio hummed. He’d gotten the impression that after the initial set of testing, no one was really bothered enough to find out who had gotten his clothes, but…well, it wasn’t like he had been trying to keep up with what the Guardforce was doing. And he figured Kaito or Lake would tell him if anything had been found. 

But it was strange no one had figured it out. 

Making a sort of curious sound as Dr. Mariah explained that him receiving stuffed animals was pretty reasonable, Doppio nodded slowly before he shook his head. “Um…not really, I guess. Like, yeah, it’s weird how I got the pillow but…no one seems to think it’s dangerous, so I guess that’s fine. I just thought it was kinda funny that the first few presents I’ve ever gotten were some of the same type. More if you want to extend it to animal stuff, if you count the raincoat Prince Kokichi got me, and maybe the pajamas Kaito got me.”

Dr. Mariah’s smiled warmed, “I haven’t heard of this, explain.”

When Doppio did, Dr. Mariah laughed lightly, soft and girlish, “You’re right, you do seem to be getting a very specific type of gift from people.” She said, before looking over Doppio curiously, “Do you enjoy it?”

Doppio tilted his head a bit. “I mean…all the gifts are nice! And I appreciate that people want to give me things. And I do like them… It’s just…a little weird, I guess?” Doppio squinted a little. “I mean…I guess you don’t really need a reason to give someone a present, but…I dunno. It catches me off guard.”

“What were the reasons?” Dr. Mariah asked, “I know for you it’ll just be a guess, but I think it’d be good as a mental exercise for you to consider it from others perspective. Let’s start with… Prince Kokichi’s. Why do you think he got you what sounds like a delightful raincoat?”

“Um,” Doppio hummed, fiddling with the clasps of his jacket, “He said that he knew all…this was gonna suck, when Kaito and Lake brought us back to the castle. A-and that a gift wasn’t going to make up for that but that he wanted to get me something anyway. Not…”

Doppio’s brows drew in. “...not like it’d soften the blow, and then he could just…dust off his hands and say he’d done all he could and I was okay, but…softening things like…an expression of care and consideration…I think. …and I think that did sorta work.” Blushing, he explained, “My dad always told me to avoid Prince Kokichi ‘cause he was dangerous and Kaito talked a lot about how dangerous and scary he was, but…I dunno. Getting a stranger a cute and useful gift like that, just because you know they’re having a rough time didn’t…sound like something a scary and dangerous person would do. So…I started reconsidering what I’d heard about him. A-and he got gifts for Arven too, just because he didn’t want him to feel left out when I got my gift. That’s…a really nice thing to do.”

“It is,” Dr. Mariah said, considering Doppio’s aside that Kaito called Kokcichi ‘scary and dangerous’. That was either adorable or concerning, depending on the context. Considering she knew how Kaito felt about Kokichi, it was probably drifting more towards ‘adorable’, but still, she’d keep an eye on it. “Excellent. So, from Prince Kokichi– who is a very nice young man, maybe one of the nicest I’ve met– a gift to lift your spirits a bit during a hard time, showing care.”

“How about Prince Kaito?” Dr. Mariah asked, though knowing Kaito’s obsession with cutsie pajamas, she could actually guess why, “What did his gift feel like?”

A complicated expression scrunched Doppio’s face. “...I felt kind of…unsure and confused. He got me clothes and, like…toiletries and stuff when I first started staying at the castle, ‘cause I didn’t have anything. A-and…at first I thought the castle was some sort of safehouse, since I didn’t know where I was. And…I was super gross, since I was sick so…while I didn’t really want to, it was either stay in gross, sweaty clothes, be naked, or accept the clothes people said were for me.”

“And then Arven and I decided to run away, and I still didn’t have any clothes, and we couldn’t go to my house, so…I just took the rest of them. And then when we came back, Kaito said I could keep them, so…” He gave Dr. Mariah a relatively helpless look. “I dunno. I’m grateful he got them for me, but…it just felt like a necessity, against options that were unacceptable.”

Dr. Mariah nodded, “So, a practical gift, for your convenience and comfort. Another form of care. Entirely acceptable.”

“Now, for maybe the more difficult one. What do you think may have been the motivation for the pillow?” Dr. Mariah asked, “And I do understand if the answer is just a ‘shrug’. It requires a bit more projection and imagination than anything else, to make a guess for that one. Just remember there’s no wrong answers.”

Eyes widening, Doppio blew out his cheeks a little, and he had been about to shrug before Dr. Mariah called it out. “...I have no idea. I don’t even know why anyone would break into my house to get my clothes!! I-I mean…I did tell people that only having a few changes was becoming an issue for me, but… I don’t know. It’s the kind of crazy thing I could believe Kaito would’ve done, but I know he didn’t. And then, for someone to do that, and then get me a gift too?”

Lost for words for a moment, Doppio looked up with a helpless expression and did indeed do that half-shrug anyway. “...maybe to try and make a point that they hadn’t gotten my stuff, like…maliciously? Like…the Guardforce tested them to make sure they weren’t laced with anything, and the pillow was hidden halfway down so…it was obviously just a sign for me and not anyone else… I don’t know.”

“I’d accept that as a reasonable possibility. So, how to summarize that… a peace-offering? An invitation to trust?” Dr. Mariah said, testing out the waters as she asked, “Would that ring true for you, in how the experience of receiving it felt?”

Doppio paused before nodding slowly. “...I think so. Like…I can’t think of a reason anyone would go through the trouble of getting my clothes for a malicious reason, but I really can’t think of why they’d add in a cute pillow too, for anything nefarious.”

“Good,” Dr. Mairah said, leaning back into the chair, “And, for the sake of the exercise: why would I have stressed you keeping Phanpy? What was my motivation?”

Doppio opened his mouth before closing it, looking down at Phanpy as if the answer was written in blue fluff. “Be…cause I might’ve formed a bond with it, through treating it as a reflection of myself this past week? And if you don’t have a certain bond with it, then…why not give it to someone for whom it means more?”

Dr. Mariah smiled, entirely pleased, “Perhaps your earlier three guesses were more on the mark than we could assume. You certainly nailed mine. Yes, I wouldn’t want you to feel obligated to give up a toy you may have bonded with by now, which really is the point of the experiment. Its only real value is in its sentiment. And more than that, I’d have hated for you to experience any disappointment, no matter how mild or how brief, over it. Keeping it would not have been worth any pain on your end.”

Clapping her hands together, Dr. Mariah smiled brightly, looking invigorated, “I didn’t actually have that thought experiment in mind today, but I’m very pleased at how well it went. These are real examples of people showing you care, Doppio. If you enjoyed that style of care? Consider them when you’re establishing boundaries and standards for yourself.”

“Let’s discuss homework,” Dr. Mariah said, “And considering that it will likely play well into your plans for this week anyway, how about this? I would you to… get… four people gifts. Consider it symbolically compelling, four gifts out into the universe for having received four gifts. Who you pick and why, outside of the homework assignment itself, is up to you. Would you be amendable to that?”

Doppio brightened slightly, still a little surprised to hear he had been right--and…for someone to take that as a sign he might’ve been close to the other guesses as well--but…pleased by that. And, well…Dr. Mariah’s offer of Phanpy was kind. Doppio wouldn’t really say he’d ever started thinking of the stuffed animal as ‘his’ over the week…but he did like it. And…well, at least while he could move both arms, it had been very comfortable to hug.

Gifts were a form of care… Just like what Kaito had been talking about, actually. Maybe just material joy but…a lot of them were just…conduits for other meanings, all intertwined with the physical objects themselves. Hm…

Doppio started to nod slowly before gently clearing his throat and shyly speaking up. “O-oh, um… I won’t count what I got Kaito, since that already happened, but…c-can I count the gift I got for Arven, since I haven’t given it to him yet? I-I mean, I can do four new ones but… I-I thought I’d ask…”

Dr. Mariah raised an eyebrow, before nodding, “You are more than welcome to count a gift you were already planning. Though, I am curious, what did you get Kaito?”

Dr. Mariah listened to Doppio’s quick answer, humming a bit, “Ah, the little page markers? Actually, I do believe I saw two of those in our last group session, Kaito making a show of using his journal through it. Kaito seemed quite proud of it, I got the sense it made him feel more prepared for the session. Kaito enjoys the idea of ‘doing well’ in our sessions…”

Doppio brought out something to show her, and Dr. Mariah smiled warmly as a slightly familiar looking fish appeared, “Yes, they were like that, though different colors. He had you keep one? That’s very sweet… actually, this is not the first gift of your you’ve given Kaito. I recall Kaito saying you bought him flowers. He was quite pleased with that as well, though it started a whole debate as to why only Kaito’s non-partners ended up buying him flowers.”

“Considering the nature of what we’re discussing, I have to ask, did sending gifts feel like a natural instinct to you?” Dr. Mariah asked, “Did you get gifts for others?”

Doppio smiled softly, happy to hear that Kaito enjoyed his gift enough to use them regularly and show them off to people. He knew page markers weren’t the flashiest thing, or…maybe even in line with Kaito’s interests, but…he really had tried. And he was happy to hear that his efforts were put in the right place. 

He nodded, confirming that he’d bought Kaito flowers before (though he raised an eyebrow at the debate he apparently sparked), before smiling softly. “Yeah. I don’t like leaving debts unpaid, even if it’s stuff people don’t really consider debts. So…if someone helped me out, I tried to get them something nice in return. I didn’t really have a lot of spare time in my job, so I couldn’t really do something myself for them, and…now I don’t really know anything I could do that’s worthwhile, besides cooking for someone, so… Gifts.”

“Interesting,” Dr. Mariah said, because it was. The idea that Doppio had decided a way to repay debts of favors was by sending flowers was very endearing and… very strange. From the son of a cartel. Hopefully this next weeks homework would explore that a bit, even if just in its absence, as she said, “well, you can decide who gets what next gift for any particular reason you want. I just want to hear about it next week, if you manage.”

Glancing at the clock, Dr. Mariah said, “Well, it’s about time to wrap up. Was there anything else on your mind? We don't have much time left, but we can extend if there was anything you wanted to get into?”

Doppio nodded. “I-I’ll be sure to write them down, so I remember everything. Hmm… It might be a good idea to go shopping today, actually, since…it’s gonna be kinda busy this week.” Because…even if he and Arven did postpone their hiking trip, Doppio was still going to spend Arven’s birthday celebrating him as much as he could. And…hey, they had talked about extending the celebrations through a few days anyway. 

Following Dr. Mariah’s gaze to the clock as well, Doppio hummed and nodded, quickly thinking through everything on his mind and the past week…before he perked, eyes going wide. “O-oh! Um, quickly… I-I guess you would’ve noticed but…I found a solution to my freckles thing!”

Dr. Mariah smiled, “I did notice that. Apologies, I should have asked this earlier, I just got caught up in our discussions. If you feel comfortable sharing, how did you manage it?”

Doppio offered her a sheepish, nervous smile. “I-it’s fine. Um, I have an illusion stone. Kaito took me to a place that does magic stuff and…this was an option, so… Er, it’s a tongue piercing.”

“...” Dr. Mariah raised an eyebrow, “Prince Kaito Ouma Momota… got you a tongue piercing? How on earth are you explaining that to people?”

“....Iiiiiii’m not,” Doppio said slowly. “I mean…I told Arven, and I told you, but…not anyone else. A-and when Josie asked about me having a piercing, Arven said I’d always had it, and the subject kinda dropped.”

“Ah, well.” Dr. Mariah nodded, appeased by this, “I’m glad you were able to clean up that situation nicely. Do you feel better, to be able to present as you intended? Without the makeup that I know you weren’t entirely a fan of.”

Smiling, Doppio nodded. “I know it is just an illusion and…I know that the colors ‘n stuff weren’t actually, like…hurting me, or anything…but I feel a little more like myself. Prince Kokichi talked to me for a while about body image stuff and…I dunno if I’m really at a point where I can accept all the stuff I want to that he talked about but…this feels better.”

“Very good,” Dr. Mariah said, incredibly pleased, “We’ll discuss that more in our next session, since body image can probably be its own session. Otherwise, you’re doing really well, Doppio. I’ll see you next week.”

-

Kaito, still a little confused at the message, met up with Miss Crystal at his favorite diner (and he did note she had picked his favorite diner. Miss Crystal thought everything here was a tad too greasy to enjoy, but Kaito tended to salivate over their chicken tenders that crunched like a damn waffle cone between teeth. That only raised his suspicions) warily, sitting down as he apologized, “I’m on Miya duty this afternoon, so the little princess had to come too.”

“Ooo-hohohoho, that’s so bad for your focus~” Miss Crystal tittered, giving Miyako a little wave, who stared wide eyed back at her, “But I know this is all pretty unorthodox anyway. I do appreciate that you were willing to do an emergency session with me this afternoon.”

“...yeah, about that.” Kaito frowned as the waiter brought them drinks that Miss Crystal had ordered beforehand. “Am I?? Having an emergency??”

“Maybe!” Miss Crystal said brightly. 

“...Please, I’m begging you to not make me drag it out of you. Why do you think I’m having a crisis?” Kaito sighed. “I swear, if you say the ‘crystals’ told you–”

“I heard it,” Miss Crystal said, looking up into the ceiling like she was staring at some heavenly being, moving her hands palm out like a rising sun, “in the crystals.”

“You heard a rumor about me and don’t want to admit you called me here based on second hand information,” Kaito said, staring at her dryly. “I know you’re not allowed to do that. It’s in the pamphlet. This is just like the extra session you made me come to when you somehow heard about me breaking down after rescuing the boys.”

“Fine, yes, it’s unethical. To be fair, it’d be unethical of me to base my second-hand information on crystal readings too,” Miss Crystal pointed out, “Could we call today’s session a fortune telling? That legally puts me in the clear. Ever had your palms read?”

“...”

“...?” Miss Crystal smiled brightly, as Kaito narrowed his eyes at her.

“...ugh, you’re lucky I like weird sketchy bullcrud.” Kaito sighed, adjusting Miyako on his chest before putting his hand on the table towards her. “Alright, fine. What’s my ‘palm’ telling you about me, Miss ‘Totally Not Being My Therapist Right Now’?”

Miss Crystal tittered, taking Kaito’s hand and running her finger down the line in the middle of his palm, closest to his thumb. “See this? This is your life line. And ah, what do I see in your life line? I see youuuuuu… earnestly trying to explain to people that sometimes you’re just designed to be abused!?” Miss Crystal gasped, smaking one hand on her face as she gave him this face: o0o;; “My goodness! Now, for some people, this could be dismissed as a bit of dramatic pessimistic philosophical nonsense. But for some of us, whose existence was, shall we say, a bit more… intentional?”

Kaito’s brows furrowed, taking his palm back and looking at his hand, as if he was actually expecting to see all of that there… before giving her a confused look. “So?”

Miss Crystal smiled. “How do you mean?”

“Is that the emergency?” Kaito asked, genuinely bewildered, “That I said some people are designed to be abused? Also, how did you hear that? I said that to Doppio.”

“I heard it from your palm.” 

“No, I mean… whatever, I don’t actually care,” Kaito sighed, leaning back, “But I still don’t get it. Why is that an emergency?”

“Your palm seemed to believe that you explained it fairly earnestly, as a fact of life,” Miss Crystal said, leaning in to purposefully give Miyako her finger, the baby grasping on it with a small look of triumph– it was a triumph, Miss Crystal hadn’t actually made the ‘choice’ to give Miyako her finger, though she wasn’t aware of this– and cooing at her a bit before refocusing on Kaito. “As someone who has confessed to me several suicidal ideations over the recent months, casually dismissing some people’s entire existence to being essentially stress-balls for other people is a concerningly depressive thought.”

“I mean…” Kaito scratched the back of his neck, “Maybe it’d be a worrying sign for people who literally weren’t designed to be abused, yeah? For Doppio and I, that’s just a fact though? Well, okay, I guess I don’t really know if Doppio was designed to be abused, but I know I was. I don’t see how stating a fact is a sign of suicidal ideation or depression. Honestly, I feel great lately! I think the latest batch of pills is really working–”

“Kaito, not three sessions ago you said your purpose in life was to love your family,” Miss Crystal reminded him gently, “You were very excited by the idea. This new purpose is quite the downgrade.”

“Oh… oh! No, no, I didn’t mean, like, I was literally born to be abused as, like, a baby,” Kaito explained, “I guess maybe it’s better to say I was… re-designed? To be abused? Later?”

“Right, that. Explain that to me.”

“I mean…” Kaito pointed to his head, wiggling his fingers against it. “Look, we’ve talked about this. Tengan went in and messed me all up. Like, I don’t know who I would have been before he messed around with me, but me-me? This guy?” Kaito said, waving his hand up and down himself, before petting Miyako’s head, “He was designed to be abused. Like, that’s just literally what happened.”

Miss Crystal frowned, her thumb lightly petting Miyako’s grip around her finger. “Kaito, you were abused. That doesn’t make you specially designed for it. There’s more to you than that, far more important things.”

“Sure, stuff that was added on top of what Tengan did,” Kaito nodded, looking genuinely baffled, “I don’t get why we’re arguing about this? Are we even saying different things? Tengan made someone, me, and like… yeah! I’m more than what he made me. But he still made me.”

“He did not make you, Kaito. He forcibly influenced some of your thoughts, yes, but–”

“Empaths can literally make new people,” Kaito said. “And Tengan used my head as a playground, from what I understand, my whole life. He probably changed me whenever he saw fit. No one would have even noticed. Every kid acts different as they get older. Heck, he might have even added some of the nice things about me,” Kaito said, shrugging, looking a bit worryingly unconcerned by the idea. “I mean, think about it, right? I have been… such a bummer, ever since Tengan got kicked out of my head. Always, like…” Kaito rolled his eyes, “crying and depressed and freaking out about stuff. I bet he made me more fun before all of this to make it more fun to mess with me–”

“Kaito,” Miss Crystal said, voice stern. Soft. “Explain to me how you have been feeling under the latest medication.”

“...fine,” Kaito said, “...I don’t know. I really am happy. But sometimes I just sort of feel numb all over too. But in weird ways. It’s hard to explain.”

“Now, I’m not trying to suggest these aren’t concerns you have, and we will talk more about them in our sessions,” Miss Crystal sighed, “But I think your acceptance of these fears as a ‘fact’ in your life might be a sign that we need to adjust your medication dose again. Lessen the dose a little. One symptom of higher doses can be a sort of nihilistic depression, where your feelings become so muted sometimes that they seem to stop mattering. It’s good we caught this, it can be a harder symptom to notice. I’m going to write you a new prescription for a lighter dose, alright? We’ll keep track of the numbness.”

Kaito sighed, “Yeah, alright. But I swear, I am not going back to crying all the time. This is way better than that.”

“It just feels like that because your negative feelings don’t feel like much,” Miss Crystal said, “But ignoring how bad negative thoughts can feel is how we end up not talking about how you’re worried about just being something Tengan made until now. A thought like that should hurt, not just be something you’re resigned to. It should hurt so that we can talk and work through it, until you’re actually okay, and not just waiting for the pain of it to sneak up on you when you’re vulnerable. Do you understand?”

“Yeah, yeah…” Kaito pouted, looking around, “Did you put our order in for us already? No one’s come to take it.”

“I did,” Miss Crystal agreed, “I got you chicken tenders.”

“Yes.”

-

It wasn’t like Mid-Valley High and Wolfrun High hated each other. All things considered, each school was relatively small--purposefully so, to give each student proper attention and support--and if you were the sort that didn’t leave your home city much, then the pool of people your age in Usott was small enough that it was kind of dumb to limit yourself arbitrarily to an even smaller pool.

That said, as two high schools in the same city, they did have a certain rivalry, especially when it came to sports, and the utter swagger Kiba Inuzuka walked with past the front gates of Mid-Valley High during their free lunch period was akin to that of an enemy general striding into a lesser opponent’s camp, ready to demand a surrender. 

Though, uh, he wasn’t there to cause trouble, really. His ma would drive him into the dirt if he tried to pick a fight at another school. No, Kiba was there for…honestly a pretty mundane and altruistic reason. 

There was a taijutsu tourney at Mid-Valley later that week, and his friend Hinata was feeling anxious about trying to find her way around an unfamiliar school, and while Kiba had assured her that there was no getting lost with him, Akamaru, and Akemaru around (and Shino too, he guessed), he decided to just go to Mid-Valley and get a map. Better than having Hinata work herself up so much she dropped out of the tourney, like she did as a freshman last year. 

So, basically. Kiba was being a damn hero!!

Looking down at the red, furry head poking out of the collar of his jacket, Kiba grinned fondly, fangs out on display. “What do you think, Akemaru? Where would you put campus maps?”

The small puppy looked to the much larger white dog beside Kiba before sniffing around, looking in several directions before pointing his head to the left and yipping. 

Arven was not skipping class. He had gone to class! He had gone to the first half of class! He had gone to the first half-hour of class.

Then he had left to use the bathroom, saw a perfectly good corner stairwell not being napped in, and decided to take a little nap. Just a small one. He’d make it to the second half of his next class! Maybe!

Snoozing with Chief as his pillow, Arven woke up because said pillow looked up, sniffed twice… before unceremoniously getting up, letting Arven fall with a small, startled yip, before calling to his dog, “Chief? Chief, where are you going?”

Arven sighed, hurrying up to follow his dog. It was rare for Chief to leave Arven’s side without permission, but it did happen sometimes. You had to prove your dog was non-leashed trained in every city by some pretty strenuous license tests, and one disruptive report on a dog could lose you the license, so even though Chief was always well behaved, Arven still got nervous when he left his eyesight. He hated leashing the old man, especially when sometimes Chief wanted to trot ahead a bit to check out their path.

Chief, in turn, glanced back to see if his boy was following– good boy– before trotting over excitedly. His older dog instincts encouraging him to check on the Puppy Smell.

Always good to check on the Puppies, if one was around. 

But the puppy had another old man already trotting around with it, Chief quickly found. Still, he had come all this way, may as well say hi. Wagging his tail, Chief trotted up, gave a small little bark as greeting for the other two dogs’ boy, before moving on to promptly sniff the bigger dog’s butt. As a ‘how-do-you-do’, of course.

Arven ran over, huffing a bit– he had just been peacefully napping, dammit– as he apologized to the new kid. “Sorry about him… wow!” Arven said in shock, as he realized that the moving furry table he had thought the new kid was pushing around was, in fact, a dog. One that made Chief look borderline small. “What breed is that!? I’ve never seen a dog that size before! He’s like a polar bear!”

Gamely following Akemaru’s instructions--Kiba was just going to wander around anyway, and if his puppy ended up being right, that was a huge confidence boost for the little guy--Kiba paused when a large black mastiff plodded up to them. He grinned as the dog (older, but seemed to be doing just fine in that matured age) barked a hello and left him and Akamaru to say their hellos, circling each other in greeting sniffs. 

Kiba had just been about to take an excitedly wiggling Akemaru out of his jacket to greet the other dog as well, when a guy ran up. Sniffing subconsciously, Kiba grinned wide. “Hey, no harm, man--what, I’m gonna be upset with some old jii-san coming over to say hello?”

Laughing, Kiba pulled Akemaru out and crouched, keeping the puppy on his knees. Akemaru didn’t usually just run off, but he did get over-excited around new dogs sometimes so it was better to let the mastiff come to them for hellos. Puffing his chest out a little, Kiba patted Akamaru on the back as he proudly told the other kid, “Right?! My ma says Akamaru still has a couple inches left in him too. He and Akemaru are ninken--think wolves that are just barely domesticated to not eat your face off.”

“Your guy is a mastiff, right? Not too shabby in the size department himself.”

“Wolves,” Arven said, raising his eyebrows, a hint of awe in his voice, “Wow. I’ve heard of this breed, but I’ve never seen one in real life. Aren’t they famously difficult to train?”

Chief, entirely pleased to get to know Akamaru– seems like a lovely chap, wonderful smell– then turned his attention to get a look at the puppy. Moving slowly and gently, Chief leaned in to sniff at the puppy's nose a bit– ah, little Akemaru, well met– before giving the puppy a few friendly licks. It’s alright, little fella, Chief was a friendly dog.

Arven couldn’t stop looking between the two dogs– they were both incredible to look at, for different reasons– before glancing at the kid again. “...sorry, do we share any classes? I feel like I would have noticed you before. Or, well, your dogs anyway. I’m Arven. No last name.”

“Hm, maybe, if you don’t know what you’re doing,” Kiba said irreverently, “But my folks have been trainin’ ninken for years--doing that rescue dog stuff, you know? Akamaru and I have been together forever, and now that we’ve gotten the hang of it, we’re showin’ the ropes to Akemaru here.”

Akemaru, who seemed to be nearly vibrating with how quickly his tail was shaking as Chief leaned in. His little snuffles loud before Chief licked him, to which he gave an excited, accepting yip--COOL GRANDPA!! NEW FRIEND!--and licked him back in little laps, before Kiba laughed and scratched down his excited puppy’s body, hoping to distract and calm him enough to put the dog back in his jacket before the damn sun set. 

…or before lunch period was over, though Kiba didn’t mind skipping. And it wasn’t even just him messing around with the other guys in his class either this time! Kiba was on a MISSION!

Standing back up as Akemaru settled down--helped with a lick and a huff from Akamaru--Kiba shook his head with a fanged grin, offering a hand. “Kiba Inuzuka, and nah, I don’t think we’ve met.” His grin growing a little more sinister, he said, “I’m an infiltrator, actually. Not that Wolfrun needs any insider info to kick Mid-Valley’s ass.”

Quickly calming, Kiba scratched his cheek with a sheepish chuckle. “Though a campus map would help. You know where any are?”

Arven scratched his chin, his expression blank for a moment… before recognition lit his eyes. “Right. There’s another high school.”

He said this like he was sincerely proud to know this information. Plopping his fist into his palm, a ‘eureka’ moment. He knew that. They played sports games against them. They had a cool name. Maybe even the best name. “Why on earth didn’t I go to the school called ‘Wolfrun’? That’s so much cooler,” Arven muttered, before giving Kiba a genuinely warm wave. He was kind of a sucker for other dog suckers. “Nice to meet you. A campus map? Where could you get… a campus map…”

Arven muttered, looking around. And while maybe the first thing that should have come to mind was the administration office… his first thought was, “Oh, you know, I think the Cartography club meets during lunch periods during this time of week. I bet one of those weirdos has a map. Come on.” Arven started to lead the way down the hall. 

“So, why a super secret spy mission to get a map of our school?” Arven asked, politely curious. 

While Arven lit up, Kiba deflated a bit. “C’mon, man, why is that a revelation?? Fifth, I know I haven’t been competing much to put our name on the map, but we’re not that inconsequential.” Still, he bounced back easily to give Arven an approving grin. “Definitely cooler. What even is a ‘mid-valley’ anyway, huh?! Wolfrun is way better.”

This guy…was kinda scattered, but kinda cool. Like, he had a cool dog that he brought with him to school, so that was obviously cool; Kiba was willing to give extra points to any other dog-lover. Especially since Akamaru and Arven’s dog were looking quite stately, following along together. 

Putting his hands in his hoodie pockets as they walked, Kiba’s expression went dead serious, eyes sharp. “If I told you, I’d have to kill you.”

…before he snorted, relaxing again. “That taijutsu tourney this week? A friend of mine is competing, but she’s got mad anxiety. So I thought I’d be the best friend and take some of it off, getting her a map and maybe drawing directions or something on it so she doesn’t have to worry about getting to the tourney area. I know, I know, I’m the coolest, really, hold your applause.”

“Oh, that is nice of you,” Arven said, considering it, before deliberately clapping. “You know what, little applause, just for you. Yeah, my boyfriend has a bit of anxiety too. Actually, can I get your opinion on that? Me and him are trying to go to events and stuff that aren’t too socially stressful, to kind of help him get used to going out to things? I did consider the taijutsu tournament, but I worried the type to go see fighting stuff might be too, like…”

Arven tried to think of the right word, “...’jock’-y for him to have fun with? He’s not a big ‘oorah, go sports’ kinda guy yet. But I don’t know, maybe I’m wrong and martial arts types are a buncha dorks. What do you think? Serious sports? Or bunch of dorks? I’m just thinking dorks might be easier on him.”

Kiba puffed up and preened a little at the applause, bringing up a hand to hold Akemaru steady as he shallowly bowed, the puppy letting loose a few soft yips to accompany his boy’s pride. Though, he gave Arven a mildly surprised look. That was a little personal for, like, literally just meeting each other…but Kiba did give good advice. Maybe Arven just felt it on vibes. 

“Ah, yeah? That’s a bummer, anxiety sucks. Hmmm, well…” Kiba snorted a little. “You kind of get a mixed bag with the taijutsu crowd, at least. Like, this guy in my grade that’s going, Naruto? Man’s a laugh and a half, and super dorky. And Lee takes taijutsu seriously, but he’s an upstanding dude, literally one of the nicest people I’ve ever met.”

“Then you have your Neji’s,” Kiba rolled his eyes, a snarl in his throat for a moment. “Dude has the biggest stick up his ass I’ve ever seen. And he’s a real dick about it too. I can’t wait to see someone hand his ass to him in the tourney--I hope it’s Hinata, my friend.”

“Energy might be a lot for your guy, but everyone gets pretty focused on the matches, so it probably wouldn’t be that socially stressful,” Kiba shrugged. “And you could always dip if it gets to be too much.”

Arven nodded, considering all this… before he admitted, “I’ll be honest, I said all of that, but before you even started talking, I looked at you and was like ‘yeah, it’s probably dorks’.”

“... kidding?” Arven grinned, “Kinda, though I think I’m allowed to make that dig. I’m part of the chess club, if you have any decent jokes back at that. Like, a roleplaying chess club. It’s extremely dorky. Almost insufferable. One of my upperclassmen literally monologues dramatically through most of his matches. It’s super weird, but honestly a lot of fun.”

“Also, your friends sound cool, except Neji,” Arven agreed goodnaturedly, turning the corner, “Fuck Neji. Neji’s the worst. Did you hear Neji litters? That guy litters all the time. He literally carries around trash in his pockets, just to find nice places to litter.”

They got to the room Arven was thinking of, before knocking on the door. “...man, I hope it’s lunch time and I didn’t just invite myself into a class full of kids,” Arven muttered, realizing he had no idea what time it was.

“...WELL? SERIOUSLY? YOU DUMBASSES OVER BY THE DOORS MANAGED TO GET INKPADS IN YOUR EARS!? DON’T LOOK AT ME LIKE THAT, YOU’RE LITERALLY RIGHT THERE, JUST OPEN THE FUCKING DOOR… OH FUCK YOU I DON’T HAVE TIME FOR A GOD DAMN HOUR LONG DEBATE OF WHICH ONE OF YOU TWO NOOKSUCKERS ARE GOING TO WALK THE THREE FUCKING STEPS TO– whaddya want?” Karkat said, glaring at Arven. 

Not that either of them knew the other. Karkat, and all of the members who had gotten suckered into the cartography club by the cartography upperclassmen at the beginning of the year, were freshmen. They had been sold on dreams of basically using the cartography official clubroom as a makeshift hangout spot, just needing to hang a few maps up to ‘study’ in order to keep the club going.

Every member in the room looked god damned exhausted. Turned out that the upperclassmen had started a bunch of grand, overly complicated world mapping and world building projects over the last few years, and had entirely failed to finish all of them. And had decided to shove their legacy at the next generation, essentially peer pressuring them, bribing them, or just straight up bullying them into trying to finish it themselves. It had worked, more or less. The work ethic of the cartography club was only as legendary as the sheer drama that came out of that group, as its current vice president scowled at them, literal bags under his eyes and his skin a little gray from exhaustion. “Seriously? What, did you just come to fucking stare?”

“Maaan… who is it, motherfucker?”

“SHUT UP GAMZEE IF YOU WANTED TO KNOW YOU COULD HAVE TAKEN THREE FUCKING STEPS!” Karkat shouted behind him, before looking back at Arven and Kiba, “Seriously, what?”

“My friend here needs you to make a map of the school,” Arven said, undisturbed.

“...WHAT!? LIKE WE’RE NOT FUCKING BUSY ENOUGH!? MAPPING THE WHOLE FUCKING WORLD!? WHAT ARE WE, YOUR SLAVES!?! WHY DIDN’T YOU GO TO THE FUCKING ADMINISTRATION OFFICE!? OUR WONDERLAND MAP IS A GOD DAMN NOOKSUCKING MESS AND NOW WE HAVE TO DEAL WITH THIS SHIT!?” Karkat shouted, backing up and letting them in, “FINE, FUCK YOU, FINE! Sollox, I have a job for you!”

“Fuck off,” one of the kids lisped back, not even looking up from the map he was working on.

“FUCK YOU I AM YOUR LEADER!!”

“What?!” Kiba yelped, looking affronted. Like it shocked and baffled him that anyone would take a look at Kiba Inuzuka and not immediately swoon and/or think he was the coolest guy in the world. (Even if most of his friends had known him forever and thus just treated him like a regular person, and the group from Tanuki Glade had kinda thought he was a loser until that whole mess a while back, but…whatever. Kiba enjoyed a healthy ego.)

Though, he let out a breath, sniffing a little as Arven revealed it to all be a joke. “Fifth’s tits, man, warn a guy, you could dry seaweed with humor that dry. Always gotta watch out for the nerds, I guess,” he grinned, good-natured in his teasing as he bopped his knuckles into Arven’s arm. “I’ll keep that in mind, the chess club’s lethal.”

Chuckling as Arven took up Neji-hate without skipping a beat, Kiba raised an amused eyebrow as he professed to not knowing what time it was, before they were hit by a wall of shouts. Kiba’s back straightened, and he stood a little in front of the dogs, keeping a hand on Akemaru as the puppy whined softly and dipped his head fully into Kiba’s hoodie. 

Geez, some lungs on this kid…

Hm. Maybe those rumors about explosions and clique warfare coming out of Mid-Valley weren’t all that exaggerated after all. 

Letting out a little amused noise as, despite seeming like a huge hassle (and making an entirely new map kind of was) their request was accepted, Kiba shrugged at Arven and followed him in. “I mean, I don’t need a whole union trade’s day of work. If they have school maps in your administration, I’d be happy to get one…if someone could point me to administration,” he raised an eyebrow at Arven.

“What!? Now our maps aren’t good enough for you!? Shut the fuck up and wait five nooksucking minutes, we’re the god damned professionals!” Karkat shouted, while around him a few of the members of the club looked awed and amazed at Sudden Dogs. 

Nepeta, Tavros, and Terezi hurrying around them, though Nepeta looked more in awe of their size than she was astounded at friendly dogness. Tavros though just politely asked if he was allowed to pet them, before giving gentle pats, and Terezi leaned over to deeeeeeply sniff their fur. “Oooooh yeah, that’s some good dog smell right there.” Terezi snickered, sniffing them again, “The biggest one and the puppy are the same breed huh? I love that sweet white fur smell! Smells like the snow tastes! Yummy!!”

“Hey, bro, I could make the motherfucking school map,” Gamzee volunteered, smiling lazily from where he was sitting by the door. He had ink stains all over his face and hands, and when Karkat looked over the map Gamzee was currently working on, scowled. 

“Gamzee, what the actual fuck have you been doing for the last hour? You’re supposed to be working on the coloring of the ocean around the northeast! What’s with all the colors!?”

Gamzee blinked dazedly, before looking down at his rainbow colored, shimmering ocean. “...’s what it motherfucking looks like, Karbro. Duh??”

“It most certainly fucking does not, you druggie moron! Also, you can’t just invent islands! We’ve talked about this, you inebriated nooksucker!”

“But Karbro, that’s what’s there…” Gamzee said, looking disappointed as Karkat took the map and balled it up into an angry ball, throwing it at the wall, “Aw, damn…”

“Try again! Just make water! That’s all I’m asking from you! And drink some water, I can smell that shit you eat from here!” Karkat shouted, before looking around fiercely. “...KANAYA!”

“I’m already almost finished,” Kanaya said, her hands moving quickly, before looking to the intruding upperclassmen, “I am assuming you will want all rooms properly titled with little notes of their overall functions? Give me one more moment and that will be done. Would you like any sort of artistry added to the borders? It’s a bit superfluous, but I do find it adds a sort of gravitas to maps that I personally find makes being seen trying to navigate by them much less embarrassing.”

Well, shit, okay then. He was getting a hand-drawn map. Man, Hinata and Shino were never going to believe this. 

Though Kiba got his stride right back as some of the cartographers came over to gawk and fawn over the dogs. Akamaru was gentle, leaning into the pets only once the younger kids seemed more comfortable doing so, though Kiba looked amused at one of the girls sniffing at their fur. He’d never heard of someone being able to sense color from a scent, even with a nose like his, but that was pretty cool. 

Looking a little surprised as one of the underclassmen that hadn’t come over had…apparently already almost finished the map?? Kiba just scratched behind Akemaru’s ears with a sheepish grin. “Uh, hey, thanks! Mostly I just need it to help navigate to whatever gym or practice room your school’s holding the taijutsu tourney this week? Uh… If you wanna, you can decorate it with like…mystical fire lions or somethin’?”

He gave Arven a shrug. “Hinata likes ‘em.”

“Of course,” Kanaya said, before looking to her left, “Equius. Add some fire lions.”

“My specialty… is horses,” the taller, buff underclassmen growled.

“Indeed. Make them lion-like horses,” Kanaya said, no room for argument as she passed the paper towards him. The other teen grumbled a few things– one of them sounding a tad misogynistic, though he notably started to sweat and flinch when that earned him a glare from Kanaya, which might have actually been the goal– before quickly drawing into the borders a truly artistic, visceral, and metal border of fire and beasts, all reluctantly lion shaped. 

Between the clear, efficient but elegantly drawn lines and calligraphy and the border artwork that seemed like at any moment could jump off the page and into the world, the map was, honestly, a work of art in itself, one of the most beautiful maps Arven had ever seen… and he raised an eyebrow when Karkat snatched it up and looked it over with clear disdain, sighed, before saying, “Fine, fuck, this’ll do for a quickie I fucking guess. Let’s just show the whole damn fucking school we have no standards, great, love that! Here! Here’s your damn map, you ingrates!” Karkat said, shoving the map into Arven’s arms, likely picking the non-puppy holder for obvious reasons, “Next time you need a favor you better come with fucking bribes! We take snacks and comic books!”

“And gold!” Vriska shouted from the back.

“Yeah, fucking whatever, gold too! Now get out of here, we’re busy!”

“Wait, before I go… I have to know. What the heck is a ‘nooksucker’?” Arven asked. 

“It’s a person who fucking sucks nook fuck you goodbye!”

As the door slammed behind them, Arven whistled low, “...it’s gonna bother me all day, wondering what the heck a nook is.”

“Damn,” Kiba whistled, looking at the map. “Maybe there’s somethin’ true about turning into a class-a weirdo if you get good at shit. Or just practice making perfect.”

Shaking his head a little, he gave Arven a grin. “Hey, thanks for the tip, man! Most helpful school traitor I’ve ever met!” Laughing, he settled Akemaru before giving Arven a curious look for a moment. “...if you didn’t know it’s lunch period, then would I be off in guessin’ you haven’t eaten yet? I should probably head back to Wolfrun, like, eventually,” he rolled his eyes, “But you wanna go get lunch somewhere? I know all this has riled Akemaru up, and I don’t think you’d be too upset at stretching your legs, huh, Akamaru?” Kiba asked his other dog, Akamaru perking up and giving a soft ‘boof’, trotting in place for a moment. 

“Whaddya say?”

“I’ll happily be a school traitor, if your school shirts have a cool wolf logo on them. If they do not, I’m sorry, I can’t be associated with a school that would fail to take advantage of such a cool opportunity,” Arven said, before smirking a little, “Sure, I’d be up to that. I was just going to nap through lunch anyway, but the screechy yelling kid woke me up pretty well. Lead the way.”

Kiba snickered. “Well you’ve just given me a challenge to convince as many people as I can to wear our school jackets to the tourney. And that means you and the boyfriend have gotta show up to see ‘em!”

Starting to lead the way back out how they’d come, Kiba grinned at, possibly, a new found friend. “Okay, another test--how do you feel about ramen? You a chili oil guy, or lacking any and all taste buds?”

“The hotter the better,” Arven said, smirking as he said, “Controversial opinion, but I think fried tofu is the tastiest protein for ramen. The tofu sucks in all the flavoring, and it holds its shape better than most meats, which gets all soggy. I’m not into that.”

Kiba snorted. “Controversial is right! Look, I can get down with tofu, but you’re tellin’ me a good chashu isn’t gonna turn your mouth into a waterfall?! Okay, c’mon, I know the best place we’re going, and I can hear it now. ‘Oh Kiba, you’re soooo right, I want to give this meat my firstborn child’.”

Snickering a little at the way-off impression, Kiba then paused, before giving Arven a shrug. “...unless you’re a vegetarian or something?”

“Not a vegetarian, just a man with a refined and sophisticated pallet.” Arven snorted, raising an eyebrow at the impression. “Is that meant to be me? What, did I just suck a helium balloon? Ya know what, here’s an impression of you. Chief, speak.”

Chief barked. Tail wagging as he was invited to Make Silly Sounds to make his boy happy. He glanced at Akemaru, panting as his tail wagged when Arven laughed at that. Isn’t his boy easily amused? He loves his boy. Was Akemaru’s boy also amused by Tricks?

“Hah! Perfect impression, good job Chief.” Arven laughed.

“HA!” Kiba barked, laughing loudly. “Okay, you’ve got me! Nice one, Chief, very close,” he winked at the mastiff, petting Akemaru’s head as the puppy got excited, looking between Akamaru and Chief as he tried to tell if it was playtime yet. 

“But, good to know,” Kiba nodded. “Some of the guys basically live at that table barbeque place on Greenwood? Gets real awkward when someone new with diet restrictions gets invited and no one thinks to ask beforehand.”

Tilting his head a little, Kiba closed his eyes with a hum. “...yanno? You don’t really seem like a newbie, but I feel like Akamaru or I would’ve seen you two at the dog park or somethin’ before this. Just coincidence?”

“Oh, I’ve just been out of the city for a while. Little over a year,” Arven explained, shrugging a little. “Went on a grand and epic quest to dig up wrongly-believed mythological magic herbs grown by the centuries-old corpses of the titan beasts that used to walk the earth. It took me into deep, unexplored caverns, and tall, deadly mountains. I sailed out to a tiny island that I doubt are even on those psychos’ we just met maps, formed in the middle of a whirlpool, shaped like a spiral and in its very center a single, blooming sample of the herb. My ship couldn’t get close to the main land of the island because the sand bed was so far out, so I had to dive out and shimmy knee deep through the current of the whirlpool, fighting the tide until I finally collapsed on land. Each herb was a trial of endurance and mortal danger.”

“...Chief was feeling under the weather,” Arven explained, “The herbs made him better.”

Chief barked cheerfully. 

Kiba’s eyes widened a little as he listened to Arven’s both nonchalant and epic tale, letting loose a whistle which both Akamaru and Akemaru joined in on with soft howls. “Damn, dude. That’s somethin’. Though mortal danger ain’t shit when it comes to our partners, right?” There was something fond in Kiba’s voice and eyes as he gave Akamaru a pat, and then leaned over to give one to Chief too. 

Giving Arven a bright thumbs up, he praised, “Looks like you brought him back to full health, too. Hell yeah!”

“I did, yeah.” Arven grinned, returning Kiba’s thumbs up. 

In truth, Arven was admittedly putting on a bit of a show, making himself appear more calm and casual than he really felt. Kiba seemed cool, and Arven liked his dogs. He kinda wanted Kiba to think Arven was cool too. So, he was maybe acting more suave and aloof than he really felt. It was really only mimicking the thumbs up that made Arven a little more aware that he was trying pretty hard right now. He wasn't a natural ‘thumbs up’ kind of guy, and he felt himself cringe a little trying to do it. He hoped it hadn’t looked as awkward as it felt. 

Look, Arven knew he was kind of a flighty, grumpy asshole. He knew it in the most abstract way possible, since people had very rarely ever said this to him. But that was entirely because other than hanging out with other disengaged, flighty assholes, he really hadn’t engaged enough with other people enough to make all the ways he was anti-social a real obstacle. It just rarely came up.

But now all his flighty friends had, indeed, taken flight. And Arven wasn’t traveling. Or even living alone, not currently. And while he seemed to be handling socializing with his new boyfriend like a champ, the other new constant in his life, the wannabe paternal figure, he was constantly messing up with. And, annoyingly enough, said wannabe paternal figure kept pointing out that Arven wasn’t always the… nicest guy. To the people around him.

Which was making Arven frustratingly conscious of it, even if he had always kinda known it regardless.

All that to say, Kiba seemed cool… in a self-confident, happy, loud kind of way. And Arven liked him, but kept having to fight himself from his instincts of wanting to joke with the guy in a way that took the wind out of his sails. Basically, he was making a conscious effort to Not Be Mean. And was feeling a little awkward in the attempt.

Which lead to awkward comments such as, “So, the taijutsu stuff. You participate yourself right? Any good?”

“Ha, am I any good?” Kiba scoffed, for all intents and purposes looking like he was about to brag about sweeping the whole competition…before he chuckled sheepishly, giving Arven a calmer grin. “I can hang with my friends, and I did ‘graduate’ into intermediary ranges, but, man, there iiiiiiis a reason I’m not competing this week.”

Sighing, Kiba tipped his head back and scratched his head in frustration under his hood. “It was humiliating. I got knocked out in our school pre-lims. I was talkin’ like I was gonna take the whole thing, and I’m still saying it’s cheating…” With a little growl, he shook his head. “I got a certain weed allergy or somethin’, and wouldn’t you know it, for some damn reason Naruto was, like, rollin’ around in tall grass or something. Got the little punk in a pin, and next thing I know I’m wakin’ up on the bleachers with a mad rash. It’s bullshit, I’m tellin’ ya.”

Snorting, Kiba rolled his eyes a little before lighting up again, giving Arven a grin. “So, if you’re not comin’ in with herbal warfare? Bet I could getcha in three seconds.”

“Me? Yeah, you could get me,” Arven agreed, not even bothering to hide it as he shrugged a bit. “I’ve been in just enough fights in my life to know that I don’t have a fighting bone in my body. Chief, though? Chief’s a badass, he doesn’t back down from any danger.” 

“...wait,” Arven pouted, “Did this Naruto kid know you have a weed allergy? Because ya know what, I think you’re right. That sounds like bullshit to me.” He paused, before adding in, “Actually, if you ever have another fight with him? I have this ointment that you can coat onto your skin. It’s no good as a long term allergen medicine, but it basically closes up your pores for a good two hours, so you could temporarily touch things you’re allergic to without it getting into your skin. You’d want that?”

Well…Kiba was more used to fighting with dogs than against them. What kind of asshole fought a dog?! “I bet!” Kiba laughed, giving Chief a proud look. “You can just tell you two have a bond, yanno? Bet Chief makes sure you get outta all sorts ‘a trouble.”

Rolling his eyes, Kiba gave a shrug. “I mean, like, abstractly he might know, it’s not the first time it’s ever come up, but… Look, Naruto’s a buddy of mine, you know? But his head is just full of taijutsu moves, instant ramen recipes, and everything Sasuke’s ever done to inconvenience him. Guy isn’t the type to pull anything underhanded just to win either--I believe it when he says it was an accident. What I’m sayin’ is bullshit is that the match was considered valid and I was knocked out, instead of getting a proper fight.”

Regarding Arven curiously, Kiba considered that for a moment before a sharp, wide grin crossed his face. “Hey! What a guy! Hell yeah, dude, I’ll take you up on that! Who knows if that’d be an issue again, but never hurts to have an ace up your sleeve.”

Arven nodded, looking a little proud. “Alright, yeah. I’ll bring a jar of it to the tournament this weekend to pass it to you… Well, assuming my boyfriend wants to go. If he doesn’t, sorry, you’ll probably never see me again.” Arven shrugged. “We’re one of those ‘do everything together’ couples. Always told myself I was never gonna be that guy, but here I am, that guy. Just wanna spend time with my boyfriend.”

“What about you? You date?” Arven asked. Not entirely sure if that was a personal question or not.

“Damn,” Kiba dramatically sighed, “My leg up in extremely niche battle combat strategies is dependent on couple energy. This feels like some fancy metaphor for somethin’.”

Turning the corner, something…weird happened. Kiba immediately turned red, the markings on his face providing much less of a contrast, and he wobbly smiled, his fangs poking out. He seemed to lose all idea of what to do with his hands, adjusting his sleeves and tapping his fingers together as his gaze darted around. Akemaru looked up, sniffing him a bit before licking his cheek, as Akamaru just chuffed, tilting his head at Chief. 

His boy was pretty silly, don’t you think?

“Pff, h-ha, dating, like, pah,” Kiba stammered, always sounding like he was on the verge of some self-assured laugh, like several he’d given in their conversation before, but getting cut off as his throat strangled the noise. “Like, I could if I wanted to, b-but who has time for dating? You said you were that guy? I am not that guy.”

Definitely not a guy that had had a very clear image of a face pop into his head the second Arven had asked the question. 

Arven narrowed his eyes. Peeeeeering at Kiba’s face, trying to decipher what all that fluster was about… before deciding what he was seeing was maybe offense? “Sorry, I didn’t mean anything by it,” Arven said, warily raising an eyebrow, “Do you hate dating then? Like, that’s pretty interesting if yes. I think I sorta felt the same way before I met my boyfriend, but ya know, maybe that just meant my standards were really high, rather than I just hated dating. Is there any type of person you would date, hypothetically?”

“...is that a weird question?” Arven said, suddenly looking a tad uncomfortable, “My small talk skills are a bit all over the place.”

Chief did a little dog snuffle that could have been a sneeze, which was his version of a little snorting laugh. Was there a boy alive who wasn’t? They were such goofy things. They were lucky to have good, sensible dogs looking after them.

Kiba cleared his throat, trying to get his fluster under control. C’mon, man! Turning bright red is so not cool. “N-nah, you’re good. It’s a normal question! I mean, everybody’s dating everyone, it’s on the mind…”

Clearing his throat again, a little embarrassed squeak came from the bottom of Kiba’s throat as he rubbed the back of his head. “I-I guess I don’t hate the idea of dating--super not some ‘love is evil’ type. Just…you know…”

Kiba’s gaze went a little distracted. “...Iiii’m t-training Akemaru! So that takes a lot of time! A-and, you know, people with…crafts. And hobbies. That they care a lot about, like…putting their heart into, they get that… A-and…it’s a little weird when most people you spend time with you’ve known since you were toddlers but…ahem, traveling out of town is…infrequent. And…you don’t have a lot of reason to do it, like…casually…”

“I dunno. They’d have to be cool,” Kiba mumbled, his face flaring up again. Resolutely not saying other things like…very cool. And artistic. And older. And funny, and…maybe saved your life once, and show up in your dreams, but the sensation of their arms around you were anything but imagination, even if the lack of pain and cold water was…

A high-pitched whine left Kiba’s throat as he practically steamed, Akemaru whining with him before giving his face more licks. Aw, there, there, it’s okay.

Arven gave Kiba another raised, confused eyebrow. “Man, you think maybe you just caught something from the gray kids? You are bright red. And it sounds like something’s in your throat. We need to get you out of the sun?”

“I’m fine!” Kiba said a little too loudly and a little too strangled, resisting the urge to cinch his hood around his face. Look, he had never made fun of Hinata for how flustered and embarrassed she sometimes got, but…being on this side of it? He was extra glad of it. While also like…stop??? What’s wrong with you, man, get yourself together!!

Speeding up, Kiba opened a door to, apparently, the place he had been leading them, jerking his head for Arven to go in. And, with a breath he…tried to calm himself. “Well…okay, you said you weren’t sold on dating ‘til you met your guy. What’s your boyfriend like, that told you, aw shit, this is the one?”

Arven walked inside, enjoying the slightly warmer air as the smell of food warmed and combated the fall chill. The place smelled, of course, like the heated spices of ramen, and as Arven took a deep, appreciative breath of that, he sighed, “He smells good.”

“I mean, not just that, obviously.” Arven shrugged, heading to go sit down at an open spot on the serving counter, the dogs trotting along behind. “We bonded through cooking, actually. He’s a great cook, and he’s really enthusiastic about it too, it’s hard not to get caught up in his excitement. But that’s not really why I wanted to date him,” Arven admitted, resting his elbow on the counter as he considered it. “...I’m actually not entirely sure when ‘hanging out with him’ turned into ‘wanting to date him’. By the time I realized I wanted to, it was because I had been feeling like that for a while and had only just noticed. I’m not sure where the shift happened… Man, maybe it is because he smells good? He smells amazing. Am I talking too much about how good my boyfriend smells, because seriously, I could honestly talk about that for a while.”

“And he’s really sweet, and interesting too,” Arven said, still trying to pin down exactly what it was that had turned the tide for him, nothing feeling entirely wrong, but also not entirely right, “...he’s got these freckles all over him? They’re great. He’s really pretty…”

Arven peered at the middle distance, still searching… before huffing, and flopping his head onto the counter with a small thud. “But he seriously smells fantastic,” he said into the counter. Clearly a little embarrassed that he kept coming back to that point. “Like, auuuugh.”

There was a reason Kiba chose this particular ramen shop. Well, obviously, it was because their meats were incredible, and he was making a point! But also because this place was super dog-friendly. To the point there was a pet section of the menu, and, as Kiba made a stop by one of the counters, self-serve water dishes. Getting three, Kiba peered around the side of the counter, and not seeing an opening or a door to the back, decided it was Dog Space, and laid the bowls down, taking Akemaru out of his jacket and telling his puppy to be good and listen to Akamaru. 

Joining Arven at the counter, his eyes widened a little as he raved about his boyfriend. It was all a little…vague, though enjoying cooking and being covered in freckles were a little more specific, but…honestly, Kiba nodded in complete understanding not from those parts. 

Obviously you couldn’t just blindly trust everyone who smelled good, or hate everyone who smelled bad. Anyone who said that they could fool-proof tell personality through scent was high off their own bullshit. But…there was something to it. And Kiba had grown up hearing all sorts of fairytales about people knowing their future partner was The One because of their scent. Like…soulmates, almost. 

Sure, it hadn’t worked out for his parents, but his ma didn’t believe in that stuff anyway, and while Kiba didn’t really believe in it…there was still something a little magical about the idea. 

“Well, ya can’t go wrong with that,” he nodded, not getting Arven’s embarrassment, and instead just wholeheartedly accepting it. “And sometimes you just go with the flow, right? If it feels right, probably is right.”

Sniffing a little, Kiba hummed curiously. “...alright, I gotta know, then. He the kinda woodsy smell, or the…like, sunshine-y one?”

Arven looked up, his face bright with joy as he said in a gushing, breathless word, “Sunshine.”

He then went into a long, in depth explanation of the exact kind of sunshine smell, making lofty comparisons to warm air on sunny beaches, only interrupted as their food was ordered and then delivered. The ramen was quick, most of it pre-made with just waiting for the extras to be added, and by the time the ramen bowls were placed in front of them Arven had started to chuckle a little sheepishly, “Yeah, so, I don’t know… I guess if we’re going by my weird standards, anyone out there who just smells nice to you?”

Kiba could only laugh brightly and listen eagerly to Arven passionately expound upon the specific scent of his boyfriend. He’d already thought the guy was kinda cool, but, well, it was nice hanging out with almost anyone when they got on a roll with something they were passionate about. …honestly he hadn’t been that sure if Arven was from a pack at all, but this was pretty iron-clad evidence. No one with a weak ass nose would get this excited about smells. 

Though a good listener, Kiba eagerly looked at their food, watching the dogs for a moment to make sure their meals were all good before vigorously digging into his own, a hot pot ramen special with chashu, chicken meatballs, and thin slices of beef that had literally just been cooked by the heat of the broth. He already had a mouthful as Arven asked him a question, and Kiba swallowed quickly. 

“Mm, not to the extent you’re talkin’ about, but I think it’s different with someone you’re with,” he hummed. “Like, course I like how my family smells, just cause it’s familiar. But mostly I just kinda like how my friends smell ‘cause I grew to like them first, and so their scents remind me of people I like…you get it?”

“I suppose so?” Arven said, rolling up his noodles before slurping it off his chopsticks, giving a small, appreciative hum at the taste. “Okay, yeah, I can see why you like this place so much. They definitely started this batch yesterday morning, that is strong. And, honestly, I don’t get too close to that many people. I don’t know if I’ve ever even really noticed how someone smells before this. I mean, sure, everyone smells notably different, but,” Arven shrugged, like ‘obviously’ (Arven was of the belief that everyone could smell as distinctly as he could. He had never questioned it before), “it never really struck me as anyone smelling better or worse.”

Arven suddenly laughed, looking a little embarrassed. “We’re really just seriously discussing how people smell, huh? Sorry, that’s a pretty weird topic. You feeling any better, by the way? You really were looking overheated for a second there, which is weird since it’s kinda cold today.”

“Eyyy, he comes around!” Kiba nodded proudly, even if his point hadn’t been the broth at all, but he was not a guy that left any wins on standby. “That’s five for five customers satisfied,” he laughed, peeking around to look at all the dogs enjoying their meals. 

Though he did look a little surprised hearing that Arven didn’t get close to people (...how did he stand it??) and even more hearing that he hadn’t really thought much of smells, but…well, that’s where stereotyping got him, probably. Still, he snorted loudly, “Oh come on, I’m sure you can tell when someone smells worse. Look, I’m willing to give a pass and not mention it, but school locker rooms are actually the worst place on earth.” Kiba stuck his tongue out, looking a little ill just thinking about it. 

As nice as some people’s inherent smells were, BO was a devastating factor, especially for teens. 

Giving Arven a shifty look, Kiba huffed, turning a little pink just from being reminded. “I am all good, dude. Look, my face is just the way it looks,” he paused, before dramatically winking, “Devastatingly handsome.”

Arven’s nose wrinkled. Okay, yes, Kiba had a point on that one. Arven had found himself skipping a lot of sporting events and physical classes, just because going into the locker rooms could be agony, sometimes. He didn’t understand how the others weren’t also gagging on the scent, whenever he went in there. It was overwhelming. There was a reason Arven liked to be in nature more than crowds.

Arven shot Kiba a look of dry amusement, before making a point to look him up and down… before slurping at his ramen. “Sure, you’re a good looking guy. Though, would it be mean to ask about the face markings? The two triangles looks pretty deliberate. Mean anything, or you just like triangles?”

Kiba snickered a bit, unoffended--they had literally just been talking about Arven’s boyfriend, after all--before he waved off any idea of ‘mean’. “Nah, you’re good. They’re birthmarks. Something, something, like…some pigment or vessel thingy, I dunno. Sis’s got’em, ma’s got’em, like half my cousins do. A real Inuzuka trademark!”

“I…have thought about facepaint before, though,” Kiba said almost too casually, a bit of pink bleeding into his face again as he chewed through a meatball. “It can look cool. You can do some interesting, like…geometric designs ‘n stuff. Really suits some people. …but for me, I don’t tend to mess with perfection.”

Shaking himself a little, Kiba looked over with a small smirk. “Okay, same question to you, then, for your hair. You killin’ it with the striped look, or goin’ natty?”

Arven was surprised at that– wow, that was a really vibrant birthmark, he wouldn’t have guessed– before running a hand through his hair a little. Each curl floofing up a bit as Arven pulled his bangs down a bit, like he was trying to remember what the color of his hair looked like. “Oh, no, it’s natural. It’s actually still a little new to me. When I was a kid, my hair was a lot lighter? Like I was almost entirely blond. But it’s gotten darker and grayer as I’ve gotten older, and some parts of it darker than others. It still surprises me when people point it out, in my head I’m still just basically blond.”

“I think at some point it’s all just going to turn this same shade of gray,” Arven said, pointing to the stripe, “My mother had a similar shade of gray hair, I think it’s just genetic.”

“It’s funny, cause something similar happened to Chief, actually,” Arven said, looking down at his dog, who was now patiently cleaning the puppy, licking him up and down. “Chief’s fur was almost red if you can believe it, when he was a puppy. It just got darker as he got older too. Don’t know what it says about me, that I color like a dog,” Arven said, rolling his eyes, “A coincidence, but a fun one.”

Looking back over at Kiba, Arven guessed, “If the face markings are natural then I’m guessing you don’t spike your hair? Does it just go up like that?” 

Kiba snorted, wholly amused by the ‘color like a dog’ comment, before he shook his head a little, slurping more noodles. “Genetics are weird, man. Ugh, I have no idea if our schools teach the same thing, but are you guys doin’ the dumb square things in science? I swear, shit makes no sense.”

Raising his eyebrows, Kiba lowered his hood fully, running a hand through the spikes, though they just popped right back up. “Uh, yeah, actually. I mean, I do gel ‘em sometimes, if I’m goin’ for a specific look, but if my hair’s short, it’s going up.” Rolling his eyes a little, he gave Arven a small nod. “I could never handle your length, man. If I grow mine out it does stay down, but at the cost of lookin’ like I’ve been rootin’ through garbage bins. Trust me, it’s no good.”

Arven laughed at that, genuinely amused. This guy was funny. “I’ll admit, I didn’t grow it out like this on purpose. I just sort of didn’t notice it was growing until it was already past my shoulders, and after that I was just used to it. I don’t think I’ve had a haircut since I was 5,” Arven admitted, combing his fingers through his bangs a little. “A proper one I mean. I’ve had to cut this side of my bangs a little myself just to keep seeing. Otherwise it’d be all over my face, I’d never be able to keep it off.”

Snorting a bit, Arven smirked. “I know a guy who until not even four days ago had, like, hair that if it was down would easily brush his neck, right? And he’d take just fistfuls of gel and–” Arven took some of the strands of his hair and brushed it all the way, holding it into a point above his head, “He’d made his hair these long, hovering spikes? It was really goofy looking. He looked like if he headbutted someone, he was basically stabbing them. He’s apparently had that hairstyle since he was a kid, I don’t know how no one ever told him how weird it looked.”

“If it works for you it works.” Kiba nodded, and, hey. It worked for Arven. Sure, the long fluff and curls didn’t exactly look neat, but why would the guy want to go around looking like a dweeb? “Ah, for seein’ though… I barely notice it until I’m not hangin’ out at school, but ton’a folks are really into headbands? Like, cloth ones, I mean. Could be somethin’ to experiment with if you’re annoyed with the bang cuts.”

Raising his eyebrows a bit, Kiba chuckled as Arven described a fashion disaster. “Oh no, really? Poor fool, though ya gotta give some props for commitment to the bit. Geez… Like, one of my teachers has got a sort of long spike thing goin’, but he makes it look cool. I can’t imagine how goofy it’d turn out emptying a pot of gel every morning. Yikes.”

Hearing the pattering of little puppy claws, Kiba looked over, smiling a bit at how well it looked like Akemaru was getting along with Chief, though he slid off his seat to pat the puppy. “You all done, Akemaru? We’ll go running after this, promise. Doesn’t that sound good, you can sleep in my jacket after, when I get back to class. You’ve done really well, bud.”

Arven couldn’t help a small bit of envy, watching Kiba speak fondly to the puppy. Arven knew puppies were a lot of work, and he wasn’t really ready to take on that responsibility, but a part of him did sometimes want a second dog. Someone Chief could fuss over and play with, a new dog to watch grow and fill Arven with pride as he trained them well…

Maybe someday soon. For now he had too much on his hands with his new boyfriend. And going back to school. And he wanted to be sure Chief’s recovery was long term, that he wouldn’t need to start traveling again. For now, he’d just admire other people's puppies.

“If you need to get going, I’m just about done eating anyway,” Arven said, taking another slurping bite. “And, I dunno. Maybe I’ll come to this tournament thing this weekend even if Doppio doesn’t want to come with. You’re, uh…” Arven shifted uncomfortably, having no idea how to suggest he wanted to be friends, “pretty funny. I’d go just to hang. If one more guy’s not too much of a crowd.”

“Probably soon, yeah,” Kiba said, offering an apologetic smile as he gave Akemaru one more pat. Well…one more as the puppy flopped over and rolled on his back, because who could resist a puppy tummy?!? Taking his seat again, Kiba started quickly working through the rest of his ramen. “Mmh, ‘kemaru’s properly trained for bein’ in public like this, but he’s little, yanno? Kid gets restless sitting down for too long, especially after a treat like this. Should work through some of that energy before he tries himself.” Though Akamaru generally kept his protege in line, if that started to happen. 

Slurping through the broth, Kiba set his bowl down and soon lit up, grinning widely at Arven. “Hey! Nah, dude, come hang out! The more the merrier, and don’t worry,” Kiba laughed, “I’ll tell ya who to root for. Really nail in that school traitor status.”

Putting down money for the meal, Kiba scooped up Akemaru, though he didn’t stow the puppy away in his jacket again. “I’ll see you then! I’ll even plan on it, bringing along some Inuzuka secret family recipe dog treats.” Kiba laughed through a wink. “You wouldn’t let down Chief, not coming then, right?”

“Okay, boys, let’s not tear this place down. Akamaru, Akemaru, say goodbye.” Looking at Arven, both inuken boofed, before Akamaru gave a more fitting goodbye to Chief--it’s been a pleasure, sir--while Kiba held out his wiggling puppy, not forcing Akemaru into Arven’s personal space, but very clearly giving him the option to have goodbye puppy kisses.

Chief’s tail wagged– of course! He hoped they met again soon! A delight!– while his boy, grinning wide, gave Akemaru little enthusiastic face rubs and ear scritches before pulling away his slobbered on hands with a small laugh, assuring that dog treats were a damn good lure and proming to see the three of them there.

Watching them go, Arven stuck his hands in his pockets, giving Chief an amused look, “Think they’d be fun to run around with at a park at some point, old man?”

Chief barked. His tail wagging enthusiastically. 

-

Kaito stood outside Kokichi’s office for a bit, his hands behind his back, popping his joints a bit as he tapped his toed boots against the tile, re-thinking this impulse. His husband was busy. Had been busy for a bit now. But that was no excuse. Kaito had spent time with Kokichi during harvest! Well, he had spent time with everyone during harvest…

Kaito pouted, bit his lower lip… before knocking on the door. And then, thinking better of it, threw a grin onto his face, leaned against the door frame with one arm, his other one resting on his back hip as he jutted it out a little, Mentally readjusting minutely second by second until he was almost certain he had a great, seductive smirk and inviting posture for Kokichi when the door opened… and trying not to visibly deflate when Nadya opened the door. “Oh! Hey~” Kaito grinned, keeping up the pose, because fuck it he was committed, “The, uh, heir-apparent around?”

Nadya smiled, looking quite amused. “Good afternoon, Kaito.” Turning, she looked back into the office. “Kokichi, your husband is here. Would you like me to finish tidying up the office for the day?”

“Hm? Oh!” There was a small shuffling sound from within the room, before Kokichi came into view behind Nadya. “Hi, Kai-chan! Is…everything okay?”

Able to guess quite accurately that Kokichi wouldn’t want to immediately take her up on the offer, Nadya stepped back and patted Kokichi’s shoulder, nudging him towards the door. “I insist, it is close to the end in any case.”

Kaito…didn’t have any particularly urgent feelings about him, so Kokichi didn’t think it was an emergency. And if it wasn’t an emergency, he didn’t really want to leave Nadya in the dust, even…if they hadn’t been working on anything particularly strenuous, considering it was the day after Harvest, and Kokichi was going to be relatively busy in the coming days, so they didn’t want to start any large projects together. And it was almost quitting time…

Sighing a little, Kokichi gave Nadya a thankful smile and tidied his desk, before heading closer to the door. “Thanks, Nadya-chan. I’ll see you in the morning.”

Kaito lit up seeing Kokichi– Husband!!– before grinning, back to his cool, casual lean against the door frame as he said, “Everything’s fine, beautiful~ Just a guy who wanted to come see his grace,” Kaito grinned, admittedly trying something new with Kokichi’s titles and honorifics… well, his Luminary honorifics, anyway. 

Though, he frowned as he saw Kokichi waffle and hesitate at Nadya’s offer to finish cleaning up. Kaito torn between feeling a bit guilty to have pulled Kokichi’s attention away from work, and feeling a little… well, jealous. Handling the conflicting feelings by staying quiet while he waited for Kokichi to decide one way or another.

Though, as Kokichi got closer, Kaito couldn’t resist reaching out for Kokichi’s hand, beaming down at his husband excitedly, pulling him out into the hall a little more quickly, like he was snatching Kokichi from works metaphorical hands before some task or another could pull him back…

He grinned down at his husband, before saying sternly, “You promised to take me on a tour of the haunted house.” 

Kokichi gave Kaito a curious look--was he in trouble? Kaito hadn’t called him stuff like that since the early days--but relaxed a little as he was pulled from his office, squeezing Kaito’s hand affectionately, happy to see Kaito regardless of…whatever was going on. 

Which was…a hanging out demand?

Looking a little surprised, Kokichi nodded. “I did. I wasn’t gonna take that back, Kai-chan, you’re not working on a tight schedule,” he smiled softly, “Though…asking for a full lights tour, or a scenery one is…kinda something to do while they don’t have a bunch of people going through it. It’s only the day after Harvest, I don’t think it’ll be that empty…but we could still go see, if you want.”

It was clear that Kaito wasn’t carrying Miyako, but Kokichi still looked at him and asked, “Did you drop Mi-Mi off with Shuu-chan? He has short days on Monday, right?”

Kaito deflated a little, having sort of thought the haunted house would be a perfect excuse to get some Kokichi time. Darn, he should have guessed that the house would still be running tours. And then he fidgeted uncomfortably at Kokichi’s question, looking away, “He does, but I think he’s with Himiko doing all of that stuff in his office. No, uh… I asked Ikuo.” Kaito grinned sheepishly, a twinge of guilt in the confession. 

It wasn’t that Kaito was tired or anything. He wasn’t, and Miyako wasn’t being difficult or anything that day, and Timothy was off playing with his nanny, and he was pretty sure Arven was on the way home from school, which meant Doppio would be waiting in his room for him, it wasn’t like anything stressful was going on…

“...I need a break from being the adult,” Kaito admitted, squeezing Kokichi’s hand a little desperately, “Can we go out somewhere? Anywhere? Take me out? Please?”

Kokichi nodded and brought Kaito’s hand up to kiss his knuckles, giving his husband a soft look. “That’s more than fine with me, hun. I just want to keep myself updated on where our daughter is--I trust you to make decisions about her. Aw, Mi-Mi’s getting some good grandpa time~”

He squeezed Kaito’s hand again. Really feeling that ‘need’ as a…well, need. Things were pretty stressful lately, and even if they had gotten time to just be themselves last night…it had been less so for Kaito, between coming to the party late, making sure the kids got all the candy they wanted and got home safely, to that whole mess with the teens’ prank. They had watched Tim and the girls the year before but…comparatively? They’d had a lot more space to goof off. 

“Let’s go have an adventure, Kai-chan,” Kokichi smiled, popping up to kiss Kaito’s cheek…though he did give him a sheepish look right after. “...I need to stop by our room first, though. Get a coat and put shoes on,” he nodded downwards, indicating towards his socked feet. 

Kaito let out a soft sigh of relief as he bent down accommodatingly for the kiss, before looking down at his husband's feet, “Babe? What if someone important had come by!” Kaito scoffed, following his husband towards their room, “You’re gonna give me a terrible reputation, you know what? What kind of consort lets their little doofus husband go to work barefoot?” Kaito asked… though he couldn’t help but snort, saying that aloud, “Geez, at least wear slippers or something.”

Getting back to their room, Kaito grabbed his own jacket as well, before drifting over to the mirror as Kokichi got ready behind him. Leaning in and looking himself over, flopping his hair this way, that way, poofing it up a bit and then trying to smooth it down, pouting a bit… “Should I change my clothes?” Kaito asked, wondering if maybe that was the issue, “Or maybe I should wear one of my capes? The weathers cool enough now.”

Kokichi raised an eyebrow. “Who could be more important than you? And, also, I’m not barefoot, it’s too cold. Though…I probably can break out the fuzzy socks soon…” Mm, fuzzy sock season was the best~ Even if Kokichi had to change socks if he wanted to wear anything but his winter boots over them. 

Predictably, Kokichi did exactly as he said, grabbing a coat (and a scarf for good measure) and pulling on some shoes…and already heading to a chair to wait for Kaito. “If you want! Though if we want to, like, go to somewhere, I’d recommend nothing too bulky. Just gets kind of annoying in heated buildings…”

Tilting his head and swinging his legs a little, Kokichi thought. “So, we definitely can see if the haunted house can do a lighted tour… But, otherwise, what are you in the mood for? I’d love to go record shopping with you again…mm, maybe one of the museum parks?”

Kaito decided what he really needed was to put some of his earrings in. Fussing with his jewelry, Kaito lit up at all of those ideas, glancing back at his husband as he said, “Oh, record shopping could be fun! Maki’s been saying she wants to prepare some more battle dances anyway. We’re not fighting or anything, it’s just easier to have some in our back pockets for when things start to get tense between us, y’know?” 

Kaito leaned back, looking himself over the mirror again, grinning… before going to change his jacket out for a different jacket. Something that would fit the earrings more. And then for good measure he grabbed a different pair of boots. He had to match! 

“Okay!” Kaito said, a very reasonable five minutes later, coming out of the closet with only half of his clothes changed, “Ready! Ready?”

“Sure,” Kokichi nodded. “And you guys seem to enjoy just figuring out choreography together too, so new music will be fun for that. Hmm…I have a few bands I’ll be on the lookout for, but I’d love to find, like…a piano anthology or something. There are already a lot in the music room, but…it’s always nice, isn’t it? And if I’m learning a new song, it helps a lot hearing how someone else’s performed it.”

Looking up in surprise at the indeed very reasonable five minutes, Kokichi blinked before grinning brightly and hooking his arm around Kaito’s. “Ready!!”

Out of the castle and down the road, Kokichi made a sort of ‘brrr’ sound in the wind. “Geez, we’re really in the turning point of the seasons, huh? Are all your winter clothes still good? We could do some shopping since we’re out already, if there’s anything you think you need.”

Kaito bit his lower lip a little, considering the appeal of doing some clothes shopping… before he reluctantly shook his head, “No, they’re still good,” He admitted, being Very Brave About It, “Though, we should probably get Miyako at least one or two little baby snow outfits. I doubt we’ll take her out much once things get painfully cold, but I am curious to see how she reacts to snow for the first time! Maybe she’ll be a winter gal?” Kaito wondered.

(She wouldn’t be. Miyako would eventually have a begrudging acceptance of the winter cold, but she was a little sunning gal to her very core.)

Kaito, in turn, shivered a little, moving a little closer to his husband, his coat unhelpfully left open in the middle to show off his shirt, which clung to him in a way that was also unhelpful for the cold. Kaito being quicker to choose his outfit hadn’t meant he had made better choices. “Y-you’ve been busy babe! I get the sense that the trials messed with your workflow a bit?”

“That’s a good call. She’s growing so quickly I’m nervous about doing any pre-emptive shopping, but there are some decent guesses we can make,” Kokichi laughed softly, his expression growing a little adoring as he thought about their daughter. “Aw, baby’s first snow… Temp and I have been getting excited about it, seeing Miya and Addie’s reactions. I don’t think either of them will appreciate the cold, but amazing sparkles falling from the sky and blanketing the world? Oooo, I can’t wait.”

Looking over at Kaito fondly, Kokichi hugged his arm more. Just as unhelpful as leaving your coat wide open, but…well. They were the choices they made. 

Sighing, Kokichi nodded. “Yeah. Considering the charges being considered, I need to sit in on the case starting tomorrow, so Nadya and I have been putting our noses to the grindstone, finishing up as much as we can before she goes to work for Hideki-jii’s team while I’m away. Each day of court isn’t a full day, but…it is going to be around my working hours anyway, so I’m not doing extra hours on top of it.”

Kokichi looked up, mild worry drawing his lips down. “I know we discussed it, but…you gonna be okay with my change in schedule? I know it puts more of a strain on you since I can’t take Mi-Mi in the mornings…”

Well…he could. But Kokichi didn’t want to bring his daughter to court, with all the feelings he could guess the charges would provoke in the court members. There would be time to explain the darker things in the world, but…Kokichi didn’t want Miyako to have to face so much of it yet.

“Of course!” Kaito said, standing a little straighter, a touch of urgency in his voice as he said, “Hey, I swore to you that I’d accommodate stuff like this, right? I’m happy to get my first real chance! Miya and dad are going to be cheering daddy on, while he goes and kicks ass! …legislatively! Or, administratively?” Kaito paused, before pumping his fists, “Kicks ass in general!”

“And tomorrow I gotta swing by Doppio and check in with him, see how things are going with him, try to… ugh,” Kaito groaned, rubbing his temple, “Try to be really, really gentle and sympathetic. He’s going to be going through it tomorrow. I need to be Safe and Approachable and Not To Much but Definitely Not To Little… fuck, I’m gonna just send that kid on a boat. Babe, how do I commission a sailboat from here? Can I throw him on a sailboat on a lake? Gonna send this kid on a lake trip…”

Kaito massaged his temples, gritting his teeth a little… before he grinned brightly at Kokichi, “You know what, that’s tomorrow’s problem. Today I just wanna spend a little time with my incredibly sexy, good husband.”

Leaning down to steal a quick kiss from Kokichi, Kaito smiled into the kiss, “See? Rejuvenated, already! You have healing powers babe, I’m happy to be the one to break it to you.”

Standing up, Kaito gave Kokichi a slightly concerned look, “What about you? Are you nervous about tomorrow? Have you ever done a case like this before?”

“You did,” Kokichi smiled, pressing a kiss to Kaito’s arm. “And I appreciate it…but you supporting my work doesn’t mean we can’t do what we can to make things the best they can be. Still…I’m going to be very happy to get baby time when we close for the day.”

Miyako could be demanding, but her wants were rarely ever nuanced or difficult to balance. Kokichi had a feeling that sort of simplicity, even if Miyako was in a bad mood when it was his turn with her, would be a breath of fresh air. 

Though she definitely wasn’t the only kid they had to worry about. 

Giving Kaito a soft look, Kokichi pressed to his side. “It’s not going to be easy on him tomorrow…but you’re not the only person looking out for him, Kai-chan. So don’t feel like you have to put everything on your shoulders, okay? Honestly I’d be surprised if he and Dr. Mariah didn’t discuss a plan for him to cope with the next week…though beyond just asking if he has an idea, it’s not really our business to pry. Just…to be there if he needs an ear.”

Kokichi wouldn’t be able to discuss the details of the case as it was ongoing, but…well, he could still be there for Doppio in other ways, if not information. 

Smiling into the kiss, Kokichi then let out a small, mildly nervous sigh. “Not this big before… I’ve sat in on dozens of small claims cases, and even a few multi-day cases, but…nothing on a national level, like this. It’s mostly why I’m going at all, so I can get experience on what a case this big actually looks like. Even if not a lot is expected of me…it’s a little daunting. But I think the experience will be helpful.”

…because if he could make it through and understand a case this close to home? Or, rather, one that he was this personally invested in…then Kokichi would be able to navigate all future cases he could possibly imagine.

“You’re gonna do amazing, beautiful.” Kaito said, no doubt in his tone, his gaze both earnest and entirely assured. “Honestly, if it wasn't specifically this case, I’d want to come and just watch you work. I get impressed, when you tackle stuff like this. It’s intimidating! I’d be intimidated.” Kaito huffed, shaking his head, “But you? You always keep your head when it comes to stuff like this. I just know you’re going to be calm, cool and collected tomorrow.”

“...byyyyyyyy the way,” Kaito said, straightening up and scratching the back of his nape a little, looking a little sheepish, “You haven’t, um… I don’t really know how it works… do you hear about little legal things? That come up in the castle? Like, Firenze said he was gonna report some dude for some thing…”

“Thank you, Kai-chan,” Kokichi said softly, hugging Kaito’s arm more. “I appreciate your faith in me. Even if I am just…mostly going to be observing…I hope so. I know I can get heated when people are in danger, but…high emotions don’t belong in a courtroom.” Because even if Doppio’s father had done every single charge they were presenting, he still deserved the grace and respect of a person, and to be given the best chance for the help he needed. 

Looking up, Kokichi gave Kaito a curious, worried look. “...I don’t, usually. Unless I need to handle paperwork for legal stuff, mostly that’s not my department.”

“...why?” he warily asked. “What happened?”

Kaito had been a little wary that Kokichi might hear what had happened and get a little cross with Kaito for not bringing it up himself at some point, which was largely why he brought it up. Though, damn, maybe he could have gotten away with never mentioning it then, if Kokichi didn’t hear about small things like that. Ah well, Kaito had to figure it out somehow. Besides, Harvest was over, so there was no harm in making Kokichi upset… outside of upsetting Kokichi on a normal day. Which did suck.

“Okay, honestly? Almost nothing happened at all.” Kaito insisted, grinning wide, “Firenze took care of it! Some guy… well, I guess not just ‘some’ guy, I kiiiinda know him?” Kaito said, looking uncertain about that before bringing up his hand and see-sawing it back and forth a bit, “Like, sorta. You remember me telling you about that jackass Waku had to step up too last year? Negging guy? Okay, so that jackass apparently thought it’d be fun to throw something at my back from across the fountain I was chilling out at. While you guys were in the haunted house?”

“But! Like I said, Firenze stopped it before anything happened at all.” Kaito grinned, looking a little proud of his bodyguard, “Grabbed his wrist straight in the air! It was cool! Send the guy off shivering and shaking to the guards… well, maybe,” Kaito laughed, “He said he was gonna go talk to the guards, but I’d have probably said the same thing in his position. Which is why I know Firenze was gonna report him this morning. Which is why I thought maybe you’d have heard about it.”

“... I’m fine, and I’m sorry I didn’t tell you when it happened,” Kaito frowned, “I just didn’t wanna upset you during harvest.”

Kokichi still looked wary. He did trust Kaito…but his husband saying that ‘nothing had happened’ had…a broad array of meaning. But, he just took a breath and listened. Grimacing a bit and nodding, dredging up the memory of the guy Kaito mentioned (that…honestly at this point Kokichi knew more as the guy Maki brought up in points about Kaito venting to strangers), before glowering as Kaito explained the actual incident…before sighing. 

“I’m glad Firenze intervened… That’s exactly the sort of circumstance that you wanted to have a bodyguard for, right?” Kokichi sighed a little again. “I’m not happy that someone tried to throw something at you, because that’s always going to piss me off. I love you, so people trying to be mean are in my bad books. But…I’m glad things were resolved.”

“If it’s additional information to an on-going investigation…yeah, that’s not really something I’d hear about,” Kokichi nodded, before leaning his head on Kaito’s arm. “Thanks for telling me now. I would’ve liked to hear it yesterday, so I could check in with you, and it wouldn’t have been something for you to carry on your own…but I understand why you didn’t. …you’re okay?”

“Yeah,” Kaito said automatically, barely thinking about it… before he grit his teeth and growled, “Though, that guy was lucky Firenze was there to take care of things. I swear, ‘Kichi, when I saw he was gonna throw something and Miyajo was right there… I mean, I have to assume these people just aren’t seeing her, it’s the only thing that makes sense. I’m gonna start wearing a damn, like… ‘Baby on Board’ shirt or something. Who throws food at a baby!?” Kaito snapped, looking increasingly frustrated, “She’s itty bitty?? She’s so small! She deserves to be showered in edible confetti, and that’s the only bit of food that should be tossed on her sweet little baby body! When her mouth is covered in little baby nectar spills, that’s when she should be covered in food, all happy and fat and waiting for one of us to wipe her off, our little princess…”

Kaito’s face glowered, and while he was careful not to squeeze the hand holding Kokichi’s, he did squeeze his other one into a fist as he snarled, “She is a god damn princess and people are going to treat her with respect.”

“...Ya know!?” Kaito said, floundering at Kokichi a bit, “Like, right??? It’s crazy he was gonna throw it with her there, right??”

While Kaito did spiral into his anger a bit, Kokichi wasn’t as quick to temper it as he usually was, his own expression just darkening as Kaito ranted. “You’re right. It’s already unacceptable that someone would throw food at you, but it’s unthinkable with Miyako there.”

Kokichi huffed, closing his eyes in anger for a moment. He tried to be understanding of other people’s anger, if just to comprehend the acts people took, though not condoning it, but…he couldn’t fathom it. Hurting a young child, a baby like that…

“...well. Hopefully the guards will be able to track down the guy that assaulted you, if he didn’t go himself, and…from there, they’ll be able to confront the network of people that somehow think this is acceptable.” Glowering a little, Kokichi’s expression went cold. “Maybe I should check in with the investigation soon and see if I can join that confrontation.”

…Kaito couldn’t help the small, pleased look at Kokichi’s desire, the mere act of Kokichi wanting to defend him soothing in a way that actually watching him do it wasnt. It was nice to be cared about. 

Reaching down, Kaito wrapped his arms around Kokichi, chuckling a little and peppering his husband with little cheek kisses before briefly picking him up, hugging him, before putting him down. A warm flush on his face as he said, “You don’t have too, babe, but I like that you want too. You already do a lot, both for me and in general, and I’m okay with you leaving the food weirdos to the guardforce.”

“...man, you ever just,” Kaito grinned lazily, a distant, pleased look on his face, “Wonder if Cedar is having a shitty day? I like to imagine she’s having a shitty day.”

Kokichi glanced up, snorting through a few giggles as he withstood the barrage of cheek kisses, hugging Kaito back. There were some choice words he wanted to say to anyone who thought harassing his family was appropriate…but, well. The law would do just as well. 

With a bit of a dry look, he mentioned, “Most days I don’t think of her at all,” before he sighed softly and leaned against Kaito’s arm. “...yeah. I mean…I can’t imagine being internationally known as a quack makes for easy living, most days.”

Kaito preened a bit at that idea, chuckling darkly, “I’m so much more petty than you are babe. I’ll never get over how different we are, when it comes to stuff like that. You really let things go. I still daydream about people who have done shitty things to us like… falling down stairs. Or having some sort of like… painful epiphany. Or getting sunburnt. I find myself on the sunburn one a lot, when I’m feeling really spiteful. Could you imagine Chisa with an awful, bright red sunburn? She’d be so uncomfortable and ugly.” Kaito scowled.

“...” Kaito smiled, giving Kokichi a fond look, “Hey, you know… I think I’ve cooled down with everyone at the castle now. I haven’t even wanted to do any petty bickering with the kitchen staff! I did try to steal a whisk from them the other day, but not in a mean way. Just in a ‘I wonder if I could get away with it way’. So, just… if you’ve been still worried about any of that? I think it’s okay now. Me and the castle inhabitants aaaare,” Kaito grinned, moving his hand from his chest out into the air with a sort of flowy swagger, “Chill. I think your brute of a husband is no longer being a brat to anyone. Congratulations~”

Kokichi hummed softly. “I mean…I kinda consider it meaner to disregard people. The whole concept of the opposite of love not being hate, but apathy, kind of thing. If I despise someone to the point of wanting to hurt them in some way, them not caring about me at all would drive me crazy. And…I think I’m happier living my life unaffected by the people who’ve hurt me too. They’re just not worth the energy needed to form a thought.”

“Even for petty revenges,” Kokichi smirked, bopping his head against Kaito’s arm. 

Though, he soon smiled wider. “...I mean, I would be happy if you didn’t steal things just to test limits either, but…that’s great, hun. I’m happy that you and people at home are more comfortable together. I’ve always wanted our home to be a space you can relax in so…I’m happy that’s coming true.” 

Kaito snickered, looking entirely too pleased with himself, “Come on, you can’t tell me it’s not a little impressive when I manage to swipe something from a room that busy? I’m still high-fiving myself over the cookie sheet. Could you imagine if I managed to smuggle a cake?” Kaito said, eyes wide and shining with potential, “Kokichi, we should do a cake heist. They’d never see it coming.”

“...but only if Chako’s not working the kitchen that day. She’d destroy me if she saw me stealing the pastries.” Kaito said, no doubt in his voice, “Like, you’d find me in the freezer babe. Or at least some pieces of me, anyway.”

Kokichi snorted, giving Kaito an amused look. “I didn’t say I didn’t find it impressive. I think I told you I spent years trying to sneak stuff from the kitchens, it was a life goal at one point. I’m just saying, it sucks when you’re trying to work and someone messes with you for fun. Especially if it’s taking your tools or your work.”

“And Chako definitely feels that way,” Kokichi nodded, shuddering a little at the idea of there being pieces of Kaito. “She wouldn’t even put you in the freezer, it’d have too much cross-contamination. Someone would find you in the garden. And maybe even the first person wouldn’t think much of it, just that you’re testing holes to put the boys in.”

Talking about them, Kokichi glanced around curiously. “...school is just about out, huh? I wonder if we’ll run into them, actually… I still have to talk to them about last night…”

Kaito laughed, genuinely tickled at Kokichi’s scenario, “Well, you shouldn’t put someone through a punishment you wouldn’t be willing to go through yourself… or something? Something like that?” Kaito laughed, looking fondly at his husband. 

Before he sighed, rubbing his temples– something he now often did, thinking about the teenagers– as he said, “I… I don’t know if you have to do that, babe. I don’t know. I still think I should apologize properly for the shoulder and for yelling, and, like…is it fair to be mad at them right now? I mean, it was so shitty what they did… but this next week is going to be hard on them. Maybe I should just suck it up and let this one go.”

“I mean, it’s not like they don’t know they did something bad… I think?” Kaito said, looking admittedly uncertain at that, “I dunno, knowing Doppio, I’m gonna have some weird random gift at our door at some point. More flowers? I like flowers, that wouldn’t be so bad. I wish flowers came with the understanding that I have limits… but they’re both just kids at the end of the day. Kids fuck up.”

Kokichi returned the fond gaze, his eyes sparkling. “Something like that, yeah.”

And…well, he had been through both sides, sort of, for purposefully triggering someone’s phobia, and having his phobia be triggered, so…maybe he did have some credibility in talking to the teens. 

“You have every right to be mad,” Kokichi affirmed first, giving Kaito a nod. “They tried to harm you, you were hurt, so you can be mad. But…yeah. They’re kids and kids mess up…so I think they deserve to be heard out once you process that anger.”

“And I think they would anyway, but…I want to talk with them, because the thing they should be heard out of, is a proper apology.” Kokichi sighed softly. “Neither of them are unintelligent, so I think they do understand they did something wrong…but I want to make sure they know why. And…just because things are difficult, it doesn’t give them a free pass to be assholes. It just gives me more understanding and context to the kind of stress they’re under.”

Kokichi closed his eyes and nodded a little. “The goal is for all of us to better understand each other, and learn from our mistakes. That realization isn’t a punishment, it’s just the growth of self and community.”

“...” Kaito considered that… before smirking down at Kokichi, “I’m guessing I’m hearing from the perspective of the other asshole teenager of the castle? The infamous mean Kokichi I hear about every now and again?”

“Not that I would know what a mean Kokichi is like,” Kaito snickered, pretending to lean against Kokichi a bit, letting his elbow rest on Kokichi’s shoulder as he kept in step with his husband as he said, “My Kokichi is the best. Absolute champion. Unstoppable in the consideration department. Well, barring one or two minor incidents. But seriously, if you were anything like these kids?” Kaito said, giving his husband a dry look, “...well, I would have still had a massive crush on you. But man, we’d have fought through that crush. Ya cute little terror.”

Kokichi smirked, something amused and regretful in the expression before he snorted, reaching up to lace his fingers with the hand pushing down on his shoulder. “You could say I have a good amount of empathy towards them, yeah.”

Kokichi’s expression softened. “...being a teenager is hard. And I know I barely have the perspective for that, but…still. And it’s even harder when it feels like your whole life is coming down, or you feel so lonely it gnaws you hollow.”

“Honestly, I think some of the best lessons I learned growing up were when my dad made me own up to my mistakes. Not allowing other people to let things go because I was sick a lot, or because I’m the heir, and not allowing me to just brush past others’ feelings, thinking they were being overdramatic. Opening that dialog, and making me confront exactly what I’d done to someone, while giving me the opportunity to make it up to them, or earn my forgiveness?”

Kokichi sighed softly. “...I really wish that had continued into my teens. There were a lot of mistakes I think I would’ve already learned the lesson of. So…I want to be better for the boys than my own life was.”

“I get that,” Kaito nodded, taking Kokichi’s interlaced fingers and bringing his hand up to kiss his pinky, before letting their hand swing between them, “Ya know, sometimes I wonder if I’d be different now if I had more discipline too. General Juzo would try, but he wasn’t around all the time and honestly there was only so much he could do to the second son of Luminary. Byakuya tried, but, well… he was only older then me by a few years and his idea of discipline was so wildly all over the place that the only thing I ever really learned was just to be scared of him.” Kaito admitted, shrugging, “If I could get away with it? Without him knowing? Then everything was fine, I didn’t really think I had done anything wrong.”

“And I didn’t trust any of Tengan’s attempts at discipline, once Byakuya told me they were bullshit,” Kaito said, looking away uncomfortably, “So for a long time, I really was just… totally wild. Honestly, ‘Kichi, you’d have probably found me really obnoxious and annoying. And I’d have been constantly hitting on you too. Mmmm…” Kaito’s eyes went a little distant, trying to imagine being an obnoxious, wild teenager hitting on an angry, mean teenage Kokichi, “...yeah, all the time. You’d have hated me.”

“I think that’s why I really don’t know when enough’s enough, with Doppio and Arven,” Kaito mused, “Your ideas of disciplining them are probably way more realistic than mine are. When I try to draw from my own experiences, I keep jumping back and forth from wanting to put them into massive, soft bubbles and locking those bubbles up into towers, cause fuck, how else do you keep teenagers safe from all the things that could hurt them, including themselves… to wanting to just, pow!” Kaito said, mimicking slapping the back of someone’s head in the air, huffing, “Just knocking some damn sense into their heads. Admittedly, I don’t really want to do that, I hate the idea of either of them being scared of me in any real way. But, like… I just don’t want them to be as wild and out of control as I was. That shit wasn’t good for me.”

“...hoooooooow are we going to discipline Miiiiiiiyaaaaa??” Kaito suddenly wailed, eyes suddenly shimmering with tears, “‘Kichi, she is going to walk all over me. You have to do it! I can’t!”

Well, quite literally they would be different people if there had been major differences in their childhoods…but Kaito’s point was solid. After a certain point, Kaito just…didn’t have any real disciplinary figures in his life, and thus was left to his own devices in figuring life out. And, like any teenager with every choice in the world open to them…those testings of boundaries were pretty wild. 

Kokichi sighed, stroking his thumb down of the side of Kaito’s hand as he nodded sagely. “I would’ve terrorized you out of anger. It would’ve been a bad time for us.”

With a small snort, though, he shook his head. “...I don’t think anyone really knows the ‘right’ answer…and I don’t think there’s a singular ‘right’ answer out there. Every person is different, and all their circumstances are different, so…what it means to guide them into becoming a better person, and what a ‘better person’ even means is going to be unique.”

“I think it just comes down to…shielding as much of the impact of that hurt from them as possible,” Kokichi mused, “But being honest about that existence of hurt. Like…letting the boys know that you’re angry and hurt, and why you’re feeling that way…but without punishing them. At least on a grand scale. Like…we wouldn’t take them to court, or purposefully try to hurt them, I mean.”

“We’re not perfect either, and taking the brunt of pain does wear us down…but I think that’s more fair than having someone young and unprepared and ignorant have to take the brunt of their…experiments of what it means to be a person. They can’t be so insulated that their takeaway of that experiment is that it’s totally fine, but they shouldn’t be thrust into a crisis because of something they didn’t know better than to do. …that’s what I think, anyway.”

Chuckling softly, Kokichi patted Kaito’s hand. “Well, I’m certainly going to work on it. Shuu-chan’s just mostly going to teach her how not to get caught, so one of us has to cover personal accountability.”

Kaito threw his head into his hands and groaned, “Oh, god, he is though. Babe, I’m not gonna stand a chance. She’s gonna get away with so much shit. You know she mind-knapped one of the housekeepers the other day to go pick her up, and then give her to me??? We were out sunning! I was literally right next to her! You can’t mind-knap a whole person just because you want immediate dad cuddles! At least whine first, damn kid, give me a chance before we go to extremes!”

Kokichi sighed, though it was fond. “That is something I’ve been trying to work on with her…though it’s kind of unreasonable to teach a 5-month-old ethical quandaries. Right now, all she knows is that she has a method that takes little effort for a guaranteed effect, so…why wouldn’t she use it? Crying out takes more effort and takes longer, and might not get her exactly what she wants…even if it’s the better thing to do.” He sighed again. “...it’s a work in progress.”

“But, we’ll figure it out,” he smiled softly. “Miya deserves our bests, so…we’ll try our best.”

Kaito huffed. He knew, but still, damn. Raising Miyako was gonna be a trip. Had he told Timothy he loved him today? Because right now his ten year old was the easiest going kid in his life. Shocking the kid that had tried stabbing him three times now was his ‘easy going’ kid, but there it was.

They got to the record store, and Kaito had lit up at the sheer number of records the store had available. “Wow, I knew these were getting easier to make, but I didn’t think we were at this point yet,” Kaito admitted, looking through the rows and rows of available records, he and Kokichi sorting through it all shelf by shelf, “Oh, babe! I found your squid guys! Come check it out, they actually have a few records out, I guess?”

“The industry really boomed, huh,” Kokichi marveled, just taking in the sheer volume of product in the store. “It’s really cool. Like…there’s nothing like a live performance, and that experience is something all itself, but being able to share music so prolifically is…incredible! And I have to imagine that it’s good for concert sales too, because more people know about the music in the first place.”

Perking, Kokichi peeked over at Kaito’s indication, grinning excitedly at the familiar name…and more at the sheer colorfully whimsical design of the album art. “Wow… I mean, they did seem like a pretty established band, but this is super cool!”

He gave Kaito a sheepish look. “Wooould it be too much if I got all three albums?”

“Whaaaat?” Kaito gasped, giving his husband a shocked look, “You think you’re allowed to, gasp,” He said aloud, “buy nice things for yourself? Babe, I’m sorry to tell you this, but you have to save every copper now to spoil me with. More money for more crazy awesome rooms, and paint supplies, and massive parties to show off to the world how much you love Shuichi and I…”

Kaito grinned, giving his husband a wink, “Please get all three albums. I can chip in if money is tight! It’s just… you’ve been spoiling me for months now. I’d love to see you spoil yourself a bit. Or let me spoil you, though…” Kaito grinned, his face reddening a bit, “I tend to get a bit self-indulgent, when I’m trying to spoil you. Your brute of a husband, being himself, I’m afraid.”

Kokichi giggled and bopped his head against Kaito’s shoulder, reaching into the rack to look at the three albums it seemed that Wet Floor had put out. “Well, in fairness, birthday and holiday times are ripe for spoiling. And I like being able to spoil you, my precious husband.”

“And these might be a bit self-indulgent in another way too,” Kokichi snorted, “as I’d love to have a dancing partner as I listen through these. What we heard before was just so electrifyingly energetic, I don’t think I could sit still even for a first listen!”

Admiring the contrasting color choices for each album, Kokichi suddenly hummed and looked up. “Oh…I promise I’m not trying to constantly bring the kids up, but speaking of birthdays… Were you thinking of doing anything for Arven’s birthday?”

Kaito burned red at being told Kokichi liked to spoil him, a warm affection running through him, as he snickered, “Is this one of your hyper-speed songs though, ‘Kichi? Dicean music is so fast, sometimes I have a hard time finding a rhythm. But, hell, if there was anyone I wanted to practice with? You and I will figure it out! We can practice it as long and often as you want, beautiful!”

Though, at the mention of Arven’s birthday, Kaito winced, “I keep going back and forth on that. Arven sounded like he already had a bunch of birthday plans when I brought it up to him, so I don’t want anything I do to mess with that. So I thought about maybe getting him a bunch of gifts? But the kid has a more stocked and tricked out kitchen than we do, babe, I have no idea what cooking stuff I could possibly get him that he doesn’t already have, and outside of that…”

“Does he like clothes? Like, shopping? I don’t know, he doesn’t really dress like he does,” Kaito frowned, “Is he too old for toys? I keep trying to think of what I would have wanted at fifteen, but, well, what I wanted at fifteen was clothes! Because I wanted to look hot! Cause I thought that would make me happy… does Arven want to look hot!?” Kaito sputtered, before groaning into his hand, “...could I get him a sword? Fifteen-year old Kaito also liked swords. Swords are cool to fifteen year olds, right? Would you have wanted a sword at fifteen, ‘Kichi?”

“And if there’s anyone that could keep me on beat, it’s you,” Kokichi giggled, pressing against Kaito again as they continued through the aisles. 

Kokichi nodded sympathetically. He’d struggled too, thinking of birthday gifts for Arven, for all the reasons Kaito said. The teen already had a lot of the things Kokichi would think to give him in line with his hobbies, and…well, all he seemed to want other than that was time with Doppio. So Kokichi didn’t think he’d appreciate something like a surprise party. 

A sword, though… Kokichi’s eyes widened as he nodded. “Oh, absolutely. I’d want a sword now, swords are cool, even if I don’t want to become a swordsman or fight anyone. And he might like clothes, he seemed to like the tie I got him before…”

Smiling softly, Kokichi looked up at Kaito. “You can combine with my gift, if you want. I got two tickets for the zoo, and I’m adding in money for souvenirs and meals--my gift is basically funding a zoo date for him and Doppio. I thought it was something that Arven would enjoy, and the tickets I got are valid for a year, so it wouldn’t feel like a rush to squeeze it into any other plans.”

“Awwww,” Kaito said, eyes swimming a bit, wrapping his arms around Kokichi and peppering his head with kisses, “You’re so cute. Look at you, wingmanning the babies. That’s cute… ya know, I’m gonna do the sword idea, but I’m gonna have Doppio pick out one he thinks Arven would like. That way it’s kinda like a gift both from me and Doppio, and that’ll probably make Arven happier than getting a weird weapon from the weird Luminary.” Kaito said, running his fingers lightly up and down Kokichi’s back in the hug… as he added in blankly, “And a box of condoms. All sizes, I can’t make any assumptions. Drown that kid in rubbers.”

Kokichi grinned, basking in the kisses. He loved his friends dearly, but he could relate with the boys in that the person they were with romantically was the person that they were always excited to spend time with. So…why not facilitate that? It was a much nicer gift than just getting it for Arven, since he would undoubtedly invite Doppio anyway. 

Nodding with an approving hum at Kaito’s idea, Kokichi could only snort at the end and give his husband a fair look. “At least wrap it, or put the box in a bag, and don’t have him open it in front of other people, okay? It’ll be embarrassing enough as is.”

Pulling back from the hug a little, leaving one of his hands on the small of Kaito’s bag, Kokichi hummed curiously. “...I wonder if their little friend is planning anything. They didn’t mention her when I asked about their plans before.”

“I’ll just leave it on their bed for them to find the next time they go back to their room,” Kaito huffed, sarcasm laced through his words as he added, “Right alongside a damn tub of lube…ugh. The only thing I hate more than how your dad messed us up is allllll the ways I’m mirroring him. Man, who’d have thought me and your dad would have so much in common?” Kaito mused, before shuddering again.

Letting the small touch to his back lead him forward, Kaito sorted through more boxes of records, looking mostly for covers that caught his eye than anything else as he mused, “Little friend… oh, Amaina? Hey, do you have any idea why she keeps calling me ‘dungeon prisoner’? What is that? She mentioned it… mentioned it…”

Kaito paused, looking confused, “...I know she did say that at some point… when did she…?” he murmured, looking around a bit, but more like he was searching around his own brain than he was looking through the store, “...she, uh… hmmm… oh!” His eyes cleared, “I bet she said it to King Kaito. Yeah, that’d make sense, you said they hung out together when I needed help, right? Apparently the nickname threw him for a loop, cause I’m still wondering about it.”

Kokichi huffed softly, shaking his head a little. “I’m not saying what my dad did was right…but maybe this is more of a sign that sometimes trying your best when you’re out of your depth looks like some pretty nasty mistakes. Or just…attempts that don’t pan out.”

It was mortifying but…encouraging sexual health wasn’t really the worst thing. Especially if the person you were encouraging was too confused or embarrassed to seek it themselves. 

“Hm?” Kokichi glanced up, a little confused. “Dungeon prisoner? I don’t know about that… Maybe she did just say it to you, though.” Thinking for a moment, Kokichi tilted his head. “...well, if you’re wondering about it, do you wanna ask her?”

“Oh, really?” Kaito asked, lighting up a little. Kokichi didn’t often think idly about his powers, and as many times as Kaito had enjoyed general empath stuff, he still got excited seeing it in action, as he asked, “Is it okay to try that here? I mean, I don’t want to look super zoned out in the record store,” Kaito said, looking around. 

They had been keeping their voices low and were conscious of who was around them, as they always were when they got to talking about this stuff in public, but Kaito knew them just staring into space would eventually attract attention, if that was how it worked in the first place.

“Though, I guess the boys do talk to her all the time, and I think I’ve maybe only noticed them acting odd, like… once?” Kaito shrugged, “And that’s even knowing it's happening, so maybe it’d be fine. I’ll defer to you, babe.”

Kokichi smiled lightly and nodded. “Amaina-chan is really strong, and talking to the boys about it, sleeping doesn’t seem to be a requisite. So…I’ll ask if she’s free to chat. Maybe just keep in mind where you’re facing while you’re talking, though.”

Now, Kokichi knew that Amaina didn’t exactly keep tabs on him, not like the boys, so he couldn’t just call out and Amaina would show up. Kokichi actually had to reach out for her…which meant reaching out towards Miku, since Kokichi couldn’t contact Amaina directly. Still, he hoped he wasn’t interrupting anything. 

Gently, he reached out. {:o)}

{Hello! Hope you’re well. I was wondering if Amaina-chan was free to chat?}

{Oh god, what’d she do this time?}

Then there was a pause, but a pregnant one. The equivalent of a bubble popup showing up, as someone composed a text…

{Okay well she seems to think she’s done nothing, but!! You can tell me if she’s being a nuisance, I’ll reel her back in. Just say the word.}

OoO I CANNOT BE REELED I AM P O W E R!!!

O.O

OoO Okay but did I do something???

Kaito had to stop himself from jumping by putting a hand on Kokichi’s arm, still a little unprepared for Amaina to just ‘appear’, despite knowing she was coming. Letting out a small breath of air, Kaito went back to shuffling through the records. Not able to communicate like they did, but generally thinking, uh… could they hear him? Should he talk aloud? He didn’t want to look weird…

ooO what, to these freaks?? I can make them all see you just being all cute and giggly with your husband in the corner, upgrade 

OOO I CAN MAKE ALL THESE PEOPLE SEE GIANT BUTTERFLIES

Don’t, Kaito thought dryly.

OoO okay fine but still I could

{Oh, no worries!! Sorry, she hasn’t done anything, my husband and I were just curious about some stuff she’s talked to us about before. Sorry for the anxiety, Miku}

Smiling fondly as the chibi popped into view, Kokichi leaned against Kaito’s arm and gave Amaina a nod. “Hi, Amaina-chan, it’s nice to see you. Though I’d appreciate it if you didn’t cause a mass panic here, while it’s entirely feasible for you.”

“How have you been? I know you talk to the boys a lot, but it’s been a little while for us.”

OoO I’ve been good I’ve been 

{A series of images, both filled with feeling and context, but so quick as to feel almost incomprehensible. Songs and music to wake Arven up and get him feeling strong and ready for his days, dancing and whimsy to lower Doppio’s anxiety and help him destress. Miku meeting an idol of hers and both being thrilled to discover she was very nice and a little disappointed to see Miku was actually much better at writing lyrics than her idols unedited first drafts. Dancing with Miyako while the baby learned to float in her own mind. A house full of potential upgrades that Amaina was keeping a close eye on. The thrill of cliff diving in the mind of an adrenaline junkie. The busy mind of a novelist as Amaina inserted herself as the main character to her rom-com. The cathartic rage as a woman beat down in a cage match the man she was pretty sure had been the reason Kaiden had been so despondent lately, Amaina able to feel the satisfying burn in her own knuckles, even if she knew Leanne didn’t have the full story. That’s what you got for getting in the ring though.}

OoO keeping busy.

Kaito struggled to sort out all the mish-mash of memories, both entirely understanding them and entirely unable to comprehend them… before finally sorting out a few that stood out to him. “Was that Miya?” he said aloud, forgetting himself.

OOO SHE FLOATS

Kokichi let himself be swept away in the flurry of scenes and sensations. It was still quicker than he usually experienced, but being more used to intent Kokichi was still able to glean and appreciate what was going on, able to feel Amaina’s love and curiosity as a constant thread throughout. It really was a wonderful existence…if intrusive. 

Giggling delightly, Kokichi half-hugged Kaito around his back. “Aw…she’s taking to flying a lot better than I did, at the beginning. I know you’re not doing it for us, but thanks for being such good support, Amaina-chan. That does explain a few giggly moments I had been wondering about…”

“Kind of on that note, though,” he tilted his head a little at the chibi, “Kai-chan said you called him ‘dungeon prisoner’ at one point? What’s that about?”

O.O ?

O.O 

OoO Oh yeah cause

{“Are you really sure you don’t want to take back what you said, Kai-chan?” ‘Kokichi’ snickered, a menacing look on his face as he held a leather nine-tailed whip, resting it against his shoulder as crossed his arms, resting on his hip, “This isn’t going to get any easier, you know… well, on you, I mean. It’s very easy to me.”

Kaito squared his shoulders as best he could against the wall, valiantly glaring at Tyrant Kokichi, even as his arms hung uselessly by his head, the chains keeping him from doing anything but stand there– whether Kaito was standing on his toes or comfortably on his heels always rapidly changed moment to moment, as Kaito could never quite decide if he liked it or not– as he said defiantly, “What, you think a little whipping is going to make me back down!? I’m a lot tougher than that, your grace.”

“Ooooh, good~” Kokichi coo’d, stepping forward, “It’s so much more fun when my prisoners fight back–”}

Amaina suddenly squeaked. Looking like a rubber duck squeezing toy in Kaito’s palm as he managed to reach out through the haze of the intent to grab her and, bringing her to his chest and covering her head with his other palm. Somehow in his mind this equalling as a way to ‘shut her up’, like literally covering her brain would stop her projection. And, because Amaina was nothing if not accommodating, she let all of this work. Looking appropriately grabbed and squeezed, the intent cutting off there as she simply pouted in his hand OmO.

Kaito, in turn, was beet red. Knowing that ‘Tyrant Kokichi’ wasn’t new to Kokichi, but ahhhhhhhhhhhh.

Kokichi was similarly hued, looking at his husband with wide, accosted eyes. And, yeah, Tyrant Kokichi wasn’t new to him, but not like that. The bits he’d seen (and played) from Tyrant Kokichi was…just being bratty and demanding. Not actual, like…BDSM stuff. Though…he guessed the crop could just be a prop, since it hadn’t actually been used, but…

“...I see,” Kokichi said after a moment, his voice a little high. “That makes sense, then. …um…Amaina-chan? Do…you see a lot of those daydreams, or…”

OoO Nah I just saw that one cause I had to go grab him for

O.O ?

OoO heck I don’t even remember something or other and that’s what he was thinking about

OoO Why?

Kaito considered squeezing until her cute little head popped off… before he sighed. Opening his hand and letting her flutter off, rubbing his face, glancing around to see if anyone had noticed his freak out… and well, no, didn’t look like it. Or if someone had, no one was pointing and laughing at his fluster. That was something at least.

Kaito noticed the scandalized expression on Kokichi’s face and felt a sharper rush of embarrassment at that. Wondering if maybe he needed to explain himself later, he whispered to her, “Look, I get it, you're a mind chick, there’s things you probably stumble on all the time. That’s… ya know what, what’s fine. It’s just how things work for you,” Kaito whispered, because he felt like that was probably true. And as someone with an empath husband and an empath little girl, he didn’t want to insist that if they sometimes saw things they shouldn’t, that it was worth blowing up about. But, “But you can’t share that sort of thing with other people without permission. To, like, both parties. It wasn’t fair to me to show Kokichi that unprompted, and it wasn’t fair to Kokichi to make him see it. You… do you understand that? Things you stumble upon in other peoples mind aren’t things you can just give away for free. You need permission.”

O.O

Q.Q 

QoQ I thought you diiiiiiid asssssk

Kokichi’s expression softened. This…really felt like a learning opportunity, huh. “I did…but I didn’t understand the context of what I was asking. And I bet you didn’t understand that I didn’t get that, right? So we miscommunicated. That’s not your fault, since even talking like how we do, it’s hard to communicate with absolutely no lost information--it just means this is something to learn from.”

“Since I didn’t know where the…nickname came from at all, telling us, ‘it came from one of Kai-chan’s daydreams’ covers the explanation without giving away any private information,” Kokichi gently explained. “And, if we were still curious? Then you could ask Kai-chan if you could show us, since it’s his imagination, and that way no one is caught off guard seeing anything they weren’t prepared for, or having something personal shown off. Does that make sense?”

QmQ 

As Amaina’s little eyes wobbled and shone, Kaito realized that at some point in the future, probably sooner than he realized, Kaito was gonna be having a similar conversation with Miyako, with a similar reaction. Defensive hurt that she hadn’t done anything wrong, while at the same time alarm that they were displeased with her. Kaito knew Amaina wasn’t one of the hoards of children he seemed to be determined to pseudo-parent, and he vaguely knew that Amaina wasn’t actually even all that young, Mika their age, but…

Huffing, he reached out– still glancing around to see if anyone was staring. No one seemed to notice anything. Had Amaina done the illusion thing she was talking about earlier?-- and wrapped his hand around her back, bringing her into his chest and patting her little back a bit as she wobbled and messily sniffled against him. Big, cartoonish tears rolling down her cheeks as he said, “Hey, ‘Kichi and I aren’t mad at you, would you stop that? There’s nothing to cry about, kid, we just want you to do it differently next time.”

QoQ You were too mad at me you wanted to pop off my adorable little head!!

“Yeah, well, I’m an asshole, but otherwise we’re not mad. You listening to what Kokichi told you?”

QnQ yes

“Yeah? Explain to me what he said.”

Amaina sniffled… When it comes to stuff like that use my words first and intent second, with permission??

“Hey, yeah! You got it!” Kaito grinned down at her, petting the back of her head a bit as she looked up at him. “That’s exactly it! Good job!”

Q.Q

QuQ

Kokichi nodded, seconding that they weren’t mad at Amaina, though he smiled warmly as Kaito brought her in for a hug. Heh…and they were just talking about how to discipline kids too. And this was a pretty good example of Kokichi’s musings too. All things considered, this was a gentle mistake to make. Kokichi already knew about Kaito’s daydreams, and…well, they were married, so the content was far less shocking to Kokichi than it would’ve been to practically anyone else. It was an invasion of privacy, so it was a mistake, but…it was a world Kaito had already invited Kokichi into parts of, so…at the end of it, no harm no foul. 

A safe place to make mistakes. 

Leaning against Kaito’s side, Kokichi reached up to pat Amaina’s head. “Wonderfully summarized. And I’m sorry on my part for being vague. I need to work on my communication too. Hopefully we’ll both get better from this together.”

Amaina, quickly, recovered. Now that neither of the princes were scolding her, she immediately cleared up, pulling away from Kaito unphased and looking as stoically cheery as she usually did. Kaito suspected that was also another way this moment was going to reflect a future of Miyako. Kids were such flighty things. 

As Amaina now tried to negotiate seeing Chibi Kaito– the main reason it was a ‘negotiation’ was because she had specifically worded it OoO I wanna go noogie that brat in your head–  Kaito took Kokichi’s records and, heading to the front counter, went to go pay for them. Asking the counter keeper one, if he and Kokichi had disturbed anyone… no? Their giggling had been cute? Oh, okay, cool. And asking if he had any records of this one particular band…

Coming back with four records, Kaito asked Kokichi, “Hey, before we head back, can we grab a coffee and walk the park a little? I’m kinda exhausted, but I’m on a ‘second wind’ exhausted, so, like, I wanna spend all the second wind before going home and just conking out, ya know? And, uh…” Kaito shrugged sheepishly, “Also, I wanna check in on the daydream thing.”

Kokichi was more than happy to facilitate a playdate--as long as he was aware of it--though he wasn’t giving up his chance to politely ask Amaina not to terrorize Chibi Kaito, and he simply gave Kaito a squeeze as he left, pretending to look through more records as he chatted with Amaina. And by the time Kaito returned, Kokichi could happily feel Amaina…well, indeed giving Chibi Kaito a noogie. Oh well. 

Taking Kaito’s free hand, Kokichi looked a little surprised but nodded as they walked out of the store. “Of course! I hope this has been nice and…not entirely having to be an adult for you,” Kokichi smiled crookedly, “I’d feel kinda bad if we spent the time you had energy for, like…not doing stuff you wanted.”

“...and while I am sorry for…being privy to something private?” Kokichi said more softly, hugging Kaito’s arm, “I’m not upset. Your daydreams are yours, Kai-chan.”

“I’m a Momota, ‘Kichi. I never do anything I don’t want to do.” Kaito huffed, raising his chin a little, both being a tad theatrical and also a tad genuinely prideful in the assessment. Before he let his head lower, giving Kokichi a warm smile, “I just wanted to spend time with you, really, that’s all. I know we spend a lot of time together already, but… I guess it’s just nice having your undivided attention, sometimes. Or letting you have my undivided attention, for that matter. You’re not the only one who’s been busy, these kids make my head spin. And I just… yeah. I just wanted to spend time with you.”

Bringing up Kokichi’s hand to kiss his pinky, Kaito let that be the last word while they got their coffees, a place nearby and a window out on the sidewalk, the two peering at the menu and Kaito, curiously, getting a ‘rose’ flavored coffee. Sipping on it, he wasn’t sure if it tasted like a flower, but it did taste nice, and he did find the red color fun, and he supposed maybe the scent could be floral, a little? …but otherwise it was just nice tasting coffee.

And as he finished explaining that to Kokichi, offering him a sip to confirm, Kaito said, “...and I know you’re not ‘upset’ by what you saw. But you did seem really surprised. Like… really surprised.” Kaito said, “And before you say it, I know it’s not really your business, and that’s fine. I’m offering to explain myself, that’s all. If you had any… questions? Concerns?”

While the rose coffee did seem intriguing, Kokichi opted for a tried and true hazelnut coffee…in decaf. Thankfully Kokichi didn’t really notice caffeine affecting him strongly, but he didn’t want to sabotage himself in any facet trying to get a good night’s sleep that night. The start of court was actually later than he usually went to work, but…still. He wanted to be ready. 

…oo, but the rose really was a nice addition. 

“I mean…most of that surprise was just…not expecting to see a daydream,” Kokichi said with a bashful grin. And while it wasn’t Kokichi’s business and Kaito’s daydreams could be whatever he wanted (or even what he didn’t want), given the offer to talk about it…

“...I know you don’t like being hit,” Kokichi said softly, just leaving the ‘during sex’ implied. “And…I know daydreams don’t really reflect reality. So…is it just the threat of violence that’s exciting?”

Kaito nodded– that had been the question he was expecting– as he said quickly, “I don’t like being hit. It makes me panic… I don’t like being hit with people’s hands, though, is the caveat.” Kaito explained, sipping at his coffee, “It just never really came up, to kinda expand on that thought. I feel like I’ve got a pretty good grasp of what you like, Kokichi, and I don’t think even if I had ever said I didn’t want to be hit, it’d have ever occurred to you to do it. So I never really thought about explaining it more than that.”

“But, like…” Kaito glanced down at Kokichi, “...I mean, did I ever actually explain to you? What Korikyo was like? I feel like I’ve brought him up so much, I must have once. He was the longest relationship I ever had, after all, he was a huge part of my life. And he, ya know…” Kaito flushed a little, another long sip of his coffee, “...liked chains and whips and stuff like that. And, ya know… so did I. Do I.”

“But, like…” Kaito paused, trying to think of how to explain something that he and Korekiyo had figured out a little bit through years of careful trial and error, “I also don’t like being called names. I don’t like… being humiliated in certain ways. I don’t like being treated like something disgusting, which is what a lot of those name callings end up being. Or at least the kinds I’ve learned I don’t like. I don’t like being made to feel like I’m garbage. I want it to be fun, ya know? Like it’s obvious I’m playing a game.”

Kaito paused, before explaining, “That’s maybe the easiest way to explain it. I like when it’s obviously fake. Ya know? I don’t like when it feels real. I like the playfulness of that sort of stuff. Does that make any sense?”

Kokichi nodded a bit, listening. And Kaito was right--he’d never explained that it was just hands, but as soon as Kaito said he didn’t want to be hit…that was kind of it in Kokichi’s mind. No hitting of any kind, and it never occurred to him to ask about different kinds. 

Even knowing a little about Korekiyo. “Mm…you’ve mentioned some of the stuff you did together, and it did point in that direction…but I don’t think it’s ever come up explicitly,” Kokichi hummed. …a lot of the time, at least trying to think back on it now, Kaito had explained a lot of…awful stuff Korekiyo had done. Some great things, that regardless of anything else Kokichi was grateful for…but some pretty awful stuff too. 

A power imbalance that definitely hadn’t been like a game. 

Though Kokichi could understand that desire. 

Nodding, he hummed his understanding. “I think so… I mean, we’ve talked about acting before. And I can get the appeal of…experimenting with certain things, but with the firm knowledge that none of it is going to bleed into regular life.” Kokichi thought for a moment. “...is that anything you want to explore together, that you just haven’t gotten around to bringing up? Or just fun for daydreams, these days?”

Kaito glanced down at Kokichi… before suddenly smirking, “Okay, do me a favor. Just, I’m gonna picture what Korekiyo was usually dressed in. Like, just casual daywear. Peek into my brain and just look at my guy. I think seeing it for yourself might clear some stuff up.”

And maybe even just calling Korekiyo, without really thinking about it, ‘my guy’ was what sparked it. But at least in this moment, Kaito was imagining Korekiyo in his casual dress, but in that imagination was full of the warm feelings of when Korekiyo had been at his best. Before Korekiyo had gotten too comfortable pushing Kaito’s boundaries, before showing Kaito off to his friends had become an uncomfortable part of it all, before Kaito had found out the ‘arrangement’ with Korekiyo’s sister… when Kore had made Kaito feel understood and accepted. When his brutality had been constantly offset with gentle check-ins and coaxing Kaito to confide about things that had deeply hurt him, things he had successfully buried and let poison himself, until Korekiyo had come along like a balm that Kaito had needed. 

There was nothing quite like having both trauma and a masochistic side. Kaito had felt broken and disgusting, for a long time before Korekiyo had come by to add context and validation to some of Kaito’s conflicting desires and feelings. To reassure him that Kaito was allowed to want different things, while also still allowed to resent the pains forced onto him. That it still hadn’t been Kaito’s fault those things had happened, regardless about how he felt about those sorts of things in general. 

That there was a difference in being harmed and playing.

Sure, Korekiyo hadn’t lived up to it himself, in the end. But Kaito had left that relationship still assured that that was Korekiyo’s flaws, shining through. That Kaito still hadn’t invited that sort of abuse into the relationship, even if they had been in an ‘alternative’ relationship. It was funny, that it was the lessons Korekiyo had instilled in him about that sort of thing, that had given Kaito the confidence and self esteem to decide enough was enough and to leave him. But sometimes that was just how things happened. 

And it also gave Kaito the confidence to want to roll his eyes a little at how his old boyfriend had used to dress, even if Kaito had thought it was very sexy at the time, “He’s so extra. Like, in everything he does. He has… or, had,” Kaito winced, “No chill. May his trials go well.”

Rubbing the back of his neck, Kaito gave Kokichi an appraising look– he wasn’t always good at guessing when Kokichi was trying to accommodate him, or when he was trying to express a desire to him– before explaining, “Actually, not gonna lie, babe, but I’ve been slooowly trying to seduce Shuichi into that sort of thing. Our Shuichi absolutely has a dom side to him, and I see him play with it every now and again. Now if I could just convince him to step on me.” Kaito said, eyes shining with desire… before he snorted, “And, just so we’ve got all this out in the open? Though I don’t think this will surprise you? But I’ve also got ‘dom’ urges. I like to play both sides of the game, I just…” Kaito looked a little grim, “...well, I really fucked up with you, babe. Badly. So badly… honestly, if you ever even wanted to explore that with me in that role, I’d need it to be so planned out beforehand, because now I don’t really trust myself. And I can’t ask you to trust me if I don’t trust myself.”

“If anything, I think that’s why I indulge the ‘Tyrant Kokichi’ daydream so much,” Kaito admitted, shrugging a bit, “There’s no possible way for me to mess up and hurt you in those daydreams. You’ve literally got me tied down, so… it just makes me feel safer to indulge that side of me, if that makes any sense.”

Kokichi nodded and waited a beat before ‘peeking’ in. Trying out something he’d been toying with the idea of, giving the impression of a red light flicking on, almost like the lock indicators on public restrooms. Overtly projecting something that non-Empaths would sense, to let them know when Kokichi was ‘looking’ at them. He was still working the concept out, but…this seemed like as good a time to try it as any. 

(It was…strange. Korekiyo looked…familiar, but not entirely just because of the warm, familiar feelings Kaito had upon thinking about him. There was something more distant to that familiarity, like having passed by someone in a crowd and…well, Kaito was right, he was extra, and his style wasn’t one that would easily go unnoticed. But Kokichi knew it was impossible that he’d ever physically seen Korekiyo in life.)

(Maybe he’d caught a glimpse in a memory once, that wasn’t immediately coming to mind.)

“May his trials go well,” Kokichi echoed, stroking the side of Kaito’s hand gently. “I think I see your point, though. I don’t think what people dress like is necessarily, like…proof of anything, but if you’re using it to back up what you’ve already told me about him…yeah.” Kokichi smiled softly. “...he signed off to you, as ‘your favorite dungeon master’ or something to that effect, right? I can see that sense of playful drama.”

That maybe at times forgot how playful it was meant to be, but…well. 

Snickering a little as Kaito confessed to slooooowly bringing those sorts of ideas up with Shuuichi, Kokichi looked up at his husband fondly…even as he professed the issues with the opposite side of things. “I know it doesn’t necessarily help your trust in yourself…but I trust you. And I trust us both that we’d have, just, the longest conversation about things, if we decided to explore more,” Kokichi snorted. “An aggravatingly long conversation. Shuu-chan would look at us making spreadsheets and he’d roll his eyes and go to bed.”

“But I’m glad you enjoy your daydreams too.”

Kaito laughed, absolutely able to see that mental image clear as day… before pausing, “You know, when you did that just now? Like… I could feel that. Did you mean for that? It was like I could feel you poke inside my brain. I don’t think I’ve ever noticed that before.”

Kokichi perked up, looking delighted. “It worked? Aw yes! I meant for it, yeah, and it’s something I’ve been considering for a bit. I just…felt like it’s a little kinder? I mean, I try to give you guys heads up, but…this feels a little more precise, like you know exactly when I start and stop…you know? Did it feel alright?”

Kaito lit up, looking a little dazzled, “It did! It just felt like… ‘pressure’ is the wrong word, but it’s the closest one I have. And I liked that it felt like you… though, I think I’d have a hard time explaining how it ‘feels’ like you,” Kaito admitted, tilting his head a bit, “Maybe if I was an empath I’d have the words for it, but I feel like if someone else tried that, it… wouldn’t feel like you. Ya know?”

Kaito was pleased Kokichi was learning–and trying– new things and trusted Kaito with the exploration of it. But, that brought something to his mind. Kaito glancing down at his husband, biting at his inner lip a little as he considered if this was something he should bring up.

“...’Kiiiiichiiii?” Kaito sort of sang-songed, squeezing Kokichi’s hand a little, “...you can say no. Really, it’s the most idle of things, and honestly I don’t even know if I’d like it in practice? But, uh…” Kaito bit his lower lip, rocking on his feet a little, while still managing to take a step in that rock, keeping pace, “...I have wondered if it’d be fun to let you sorta… uh… mess with me. Empath-wise.”

“And before you ask ‘how’, I don’t entirely know what I mean by that,” Kaito admitted, “You can do all this really cool stuff! And, well, ya know… I think powers sexy. And that’s kinda superimposed itself into all the stuff you can do. I can’t help but think it might be sexy, you using those powers on me, in some way.”

“Hmmm… I think I get what you mean,” Kokichi nodded. “Like a presence or a signature? Sorta? But I’m glad that it didn’t feel weird or startling, and still, like…let you know I was there.”

He wouldn’t just leave it at that, but…well, it was nice to know he was off to a good start. 

Looking up at Kaito curiously as he sang, Kokichi tilted his head a little…before humming softly. “I dunno… I feel like it’s fun hanging out in dreams, which is the extent we’ve done so far. I feel like what I’d be able to do otherwise would be…more like messing with your sense of reality, which,” Kokichi winced, “I don’t want to do, really. I think it’d be more scary than fun.”

“But I’m not saying a blanket no,” he clarified, squeezing Kaito’s hand back. “Just that I think I’d want to brainstorm more for something that…well, actually sounds fun.”

“I guess messing with my sense of reality was kinda my first thought,” Kaito admitted, though there was something that relaxed in him at Kokichi’s response. Kokichi was not a Korekiyo. Kaito could relax and offer him more without worrying that Kokichi was just gonna suddenly go running with it and Kaito wouldn’t know how to pull back, “When we hang out, you usually let me control everything. Which, is a lot of fun,” Kaito admitted, grinning a bit at the memories, “But, I don’t know… it’d be fun to let you control the environment, and what we’re doing. See where you’d take us.”

“Also, I’m a little curious what it’d be like to be puppetted,” Kaito admitted, looking down at his free hand, still holding his coffee as he left Kokichi sooth his other hand with the pet of his thumb, feeling assured in the gesture, “I feel like I’d either love that or hate it. Just because it’s surprising, you know… I guess I think there’s just something interesting in my choices being taken away from me, to an extent.” Kaito said… before shooting a dry look at Kokichi, more rolling his eyes with Kokichi than against him as he added in, “With the caveat being that obviously I don’t like my choices getting taken from me unwillingly. Like… as a blanket statement.”

“But that’s just me,” Kaito said, “Is there anything you’ve ever wanted to do with your abilities?”

Kokichi smiled softly. “That’s true… Mostly it’s just…because you can’t do it on your own, so I wanna give you that chance, you know? But I can take the lead more, definitely. And hopefully even for things that work out,” he snickered, unwilling to directly bring up slime, because Kaito was holding onto that for just way too long, but…yeah. It was a prime example of an idea that didn’t pan out.

He looked a little more worried at Kaito’s other idea, but nodded along with his caveat. “I mean…if you’re all on board, I guess it’s something we could try. The idea just makes me nervous because there’s so much of it that’s…implicative of unwillingness, you know? But…if we go slow, and keep talking to each other…we could give it a go.”

Raising an eyebrow at Kaito, Kokichi hummed. “Something in this vein that I’ve wanted? …not really, honestly. Not beyond what we’ve already done. The most enjoyment I get out of it with other people is being able to go anywhere--there’s not really anything else that comes to mind.”

Kaito smirked, leaning down to kiss Kokichi’s cheek, “You’re so nice to me when you can be so mean. To be honest, it’s an easy thing to love about you. One of these days I’m gonna convince you to get a little reckless and wild with me.”

Straightening up, Kaito eyed Kokichi a bit… before sipping his coffee, “And, ya know… even knowing I have to be a lot more careful now. If you ever wanted me to be more wild with you? Like… I want to.” Kaito said, looking away a little, looking a little tense at the confession, “I’m still endlessly worried about hurting you for real again, but it’s not like my tastes have changed since we first got together. I… well, I’ve told you before. I like being an asshole, sometimes. It’s fun. I just…” 

Kaito huffed, staring at the clouds pass a bit, “I just want it to be fun, that’s all. I want you to be having fun with me. Which is not me saying you were ever wrong to not be having fun with me, or letting me know that, I just… shit, babe, my skin crawls sometimes, thinking of the ways I hurt you. I don’t know, sometimes I think I should never bring this stuff up with you at all, because fuck me, if I ever make you burst into damn… fucking tears again…”

Kaito scowled, rubbing his cup against the bridge between his eyes, “...fuck. I know I can’t apologize again in a way that means anything. But that image flashes in my mind and I always wanna just throw myself at your feet. I know you’ve forgiven me, but I’ve never even come close to forgiving myself for it. I wish I could beat the shit out of myself… you deserved so much more.”

“You’re nice to be nice to,” Kokichi grinned, pressing into the kiss. “A happy Kai-chan is my favorite Kai-chan, and while flowers need both rain and sun to bloom, I love giving you sunny days to bask in.”

Though he was happy to open up the side of a blanket to snuggle under on rainy days too. 

Sighing softly, Kokichi carefully held his coffee and hugged around Kaito’s arm, closing his eyes peacefully. “I have a lot of fun with you, and if I want to try something wilder, then I know we’ll discuss a fun way to do that.”

“If you say I deserved more, then…damn,” Kokichi chuckled, opening his eyes and looking up fondly, “That’s exactly what I have now.”

Kaito looked down, catching Kokichi’s blatantly fond look… and Kaito couldn’t help the warm chuckle. Leaning down to capture that fond look with a kiss. “So damn nice to me,” Kaito scoffed, smirking at his husband, “You’re insatiable.”

Straightening up, Kaito tried to sip his coffee and, seeing it was done, sighed, “Alright, well, if you’re gonna insist on being sweet and cute and doting, then I say you take me home and put me to bed. I have a long burst of Miya duty this week, and I gotta serve our little tyrant baby without getting to see much of my beautiful husband, which is unbearably cruel, just so we’re clear. You need to spoil me to make up for it. You should definitely pet my hair while I go to sleep.”

Kokichi let out a heaving sigh. “Ah, if that’s the price to pay, then I must. It’s a heavy burden I bear, giving my beloved a fraction of what he’s due… Truly, this is the cruelest world.”

Grinning up at Kaito, Kokichi squeezed his arm. “Think it’ll sweeten the pot to give you a lullaby too?”

Kaito considered this… before flushing a bit. Looking away, embarrassed, “Yeah, that’d be nice too. Tsk. Insatiable.”

“...” Kaito snickered, “Or maybe the better word is ‘greedy’.” he said with a wink. 

“A song request already, hm? I think I can make that work,” Kokichi laughed.

-

There was waaaaaay too much that was different, but…in a way, Doppio almost felt like things were…normal. After therapy, he’d gone around the city, trying to think of nice gifts he wanted to give people, and…in doing that? It almost felt like a normal errand day. And then meeting up with Arven, walking back to the castle together, hearing about his day (being overjoyed to hear about the new friend Arven had made, and open to going to some martial arts tournament later that week), spending a little time together before going off to deliver a few of his gifts? 

Doppio felt…good. Himself. 

And it was with a calm confidence that he found Kirumi on one of her (mandated) breaks, approaching her with a soft smile. “Miss Kirumi? Could I have a second of your time, please?”

Kirumi was dutifully sipping at some tea, just as dutifully enjoying the air of the garden. Breaks, even after all this time, still came unnaturally to her. A part of her sighed at them, knowing that if she kept pushing through, she could work all day without rest and feel fine at the end of the day. The boss had, in fact, sat her down more than once to explain that the breaks weren’t a ‘take it or leave it’ sort of thing, but a requirement. 

So, dutifully, she took them. She even tried to enjoy them, thus the tea and the garden, before peering over her cup at Doppio, letting her cup rest on its small plate with barely the smallest of ‘tinks’ as she nodded her head at Doppio, “Young Doppio. Of course, I am not otherwise busy. How may I serve?”

Lighting up--though his countenance was already pretty bright--Doppio nodded once before holding out an elegant muted purple box, tied up with a silver ribbon tied in a bow. He did feel a little disappointed he couldn’t use these gifts to practice his wrapping skills, but…well, he wasn’t going to strain his arm for something he was pretty used to getting in town. And the people offering wrapping and arranging services did have quite the honed skills. 

“I really admire you!” Doppio declared, making it clear what the box was for. “You’re amazing, and…I wanted to express that. Please don’t feel an obligation to accept if, um, these aren’t to your liking, but…my message is the same either way.”

Inside the box, cushioned and displayed, were a set of silver collar pins styled to look like spiderwebs, while the link between them were chains so thin and fine they would look like gossamer threads. When Doppio saw them, they just…looked so elegant, that Kirumi immediately came to mind. And, well…he did really appreciate her, and he thought she was great, and…there wasn’t really more of a reason he needed to get someone a gift. 

“These are very charming,” Kirumi said after a moment, considering the pins, “Why don’t you have a seat with me, Young Doppio. If I won’t be keeping you from whatever your next task might be.”

Regardless if he sat or not, Kirumi took out the pins, looking them over with steadied appraisal, before expertly finding the spots they’d most compliment around the high-rise of her blouse. Pinning each side so that the spiderweb chaining would more elegantly and flatly lay across the high of her chest and her lower neck. Placing the tips of her fingers to it, though she made no move to try to peer back and see what it might look like across her neck, “Do they suit me?”

“Oh, sure!” Doppio chirped, gently sitting down across the garden table, keeping his arm steady. She didn’t sound upset with the gift, not that he really expected Kirumi to--she was just…so professional, if anything he expected to be thanked for the thought. Though, as she immediately tried the pins on?

Doppio lit up and nodded, grinning. “I-I mean, I think so. I wouldn’t really call myself, like a designer or anything, but…they look nice on you. Elegant and…special, without being, um, super flashy, or anything. I know what I said before, but…I hope you do like them.”

“I do,” Kirumi said, running her finger across the web, “Thank you, this is very thoughtful.”

“You may feel free to run off now that the gift has been delivered,” Kirumi said, taking her cup and sipping at it again, “But, may I make an inquiry that may seem like a bit of a non-sequitur? This is a true request, I would not keep you if you have other things pulling at your attention.”

Doppio beamed brightly, looking like he was on cloud nine. “You’re welcome!”

And…well, it had been nice of her to offer a seat just so he wasn’t standing while she was putting the pins on, but…it really hadn’t been that long, and he felt a little awkward immediately getting up… And that was of course not to mention that he was happy to take on any request! So…

“I have time! Though, I’ll have to preface,” Doppio said with a little embarrassment, “that, um…I’m a little limited in what I can do right now. I’d always do my best for any request! But I got some pretty stern words from the castle healers this morning about really letting my shoulder rest.”

“As should be expected.” Kirumi said, nodding with a certain reserved amount of pride, “Especially from anyone with the experience of performing in the service industry, as a healer and a housekeeper is. Attempting to do two things at once is simply asking to do two things very poorly. If one tries to preform tasks at the same time as one is healing, than you are both delaying your healing process, and performing more poorly than you otherwise would have. It is far better to do one first, and then the other. As is true for most things.”

“This is a philosophy you should take to heart, Doppio,” Kirumi said, giving him a stern look, “It will not be the last time you are injured, but wish to be useful. The most useful way to vent those feelings will be to heal, in the end.”

“But then, that is merely my opinion.” Kirumi admitted, sipping her tea again, “...Is Young Master Kaito aware that you are seeking me out for advice and help? Explicitly, I mean.  I know you spend quite a bit of time with him, which is why it’s important to me to know if he knows.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Doppio said, serious, but with a certain amount of sheepishness. “I know it’s something I’ve struggled with--I’ve…spent a long time with a sort of ‘ends justifying the means’ outlook. But…you’re right. Even if I do manage to push myself into doing something well, it’s just delaying sabotage onto something else. And…I know no one around me wants to see me hurting myself either. I’m hoping that this recovery is going to be one in a solid streak of allowing myself the time I need to heal, without trying to faultily multitask.”

Of…everything Kirumi could’ve asked him, though? Doppio wasn’t expecting the question it turned out to be, and he blinked for a moment, face in blatant surprise. “Um…I think so?”

Tilting his head, Doppio’s eyes wandered as he tried to think back. “I…can’t remember if we’ve had a conversation about it, but…I did ask for your tutelage in front of Prince Shuuichi, and I’d think he would’ve mentioned it to Kaito. And…we have passed him in the halls, while I’ve been shadowing you.”

Kirumi nodded, “That is why I thought perhaps he already knew. Still, it felt prudent to double check to see if he’s had some sort conversation with you.” She explained, “Young Kaito and I have had a history. Young Shuichi even moreso, I’m afraid. And more recently with Miss Harukawa and young Timothy.” She said. Her titles a little ‘telling’. Clearly a certain level of respect for Maki, that she didn’t entirely have for her male companions. “And since they’ve taken to attempting to mentor you, I would be remiss for you to be blindsided by their concerns, if they had any.”

“Oh…” Doppio said softly, thinking that over. Well, the concept of Kaito having a rough time in Dicea when he first moved wasn’t new, by this point and…well. He had his own history with Maki, though he did think they had moved past it well by this point. 

“Well, thank you for giving me a heads up,” he nodded to Kirumi, “Though… Well, I don’t really know him that well. But Prince Shuuichi was actually the person who brought you up first, for the, um, favor we needed before. He seems to have a lot of respect for your abilities. Which,” Doppio laughed softly, “makes sense, since he’s pretty smart.”

“But if any of them have any issues with you? They haven’t made it known to me,” Doppio half shrugged, before dryly sighing. “But given a heads up, I think that’ll help me not just, like…laugh in their faces or get pissed off. Even if they might deserve it.”

Because…who would have an issue with Kirumi??? She was amazing! Sure, a little intimidating, maybe, but a lot of great people were. 

“Did he?” Kirumi said, running her finger along the edge of the teacup, “Perhaps that is something I should discuss with him at some point then. Shuichi had always been a practical sort. Perhaps I shouldn’t be surprised that he’s found his own peace with our history. Thank you for telling me.”

“Oh, and, Doppio,” Kirumi said, “If you do have any issues with Prince Kaito, and you do feel you need some… additional help,” she said, sipping at her tea, “Please feel free to keep me in mind. I have experience navigating Kaito’s worst impulses. I can negate that… unfortunate personality of his. Please never feel like you have to ‘accept’ it.”

Doppio nodded, looking pleased to…possibly help Kirumi and Shuuichi out? It really wasn’t his business what their history or even current relationship was but…if they found something positive, and he helped to facilitate that, then…he was happy. 

It didn’t seem like anything he’d manage for the others, though. 

Sighing softly, he gave her a grateful look. “I appreciate the offer. Kaito and I haven’t exactly had the easiest history either…though I think mine is much more recent.” He sighed again, adjusting his sling strap. “...I actually stopped by his room before I found you? He’s not home, apparently, so I just left it there for him later… An apology I needed to make. I-I mean, I already gave him one in person, but…it was kinda big, so it’s the kind of apology that needs time.”

Doppio winced, looking a little shamed in front of Kirumi. “Kaito and I argue sometimes, sure, but…I was just a jerk to him yesterday for no real reason. So…I’m hoping to make up for that and not just piss him off more.”

Kirumi’s grip around her cup tightened ever so slightly, as she said evenly, “Well, that is another way that Prince Kaito can be a tad… difficult. He does have a way of convincing otherwise reasonable people that somehow they’re in the wrong for simply reacting to his anger.” A trait he got from his father. The filth. 

“But, if apologizing to him eases your day to day in some way, you should feel no guilt in doing so.” Kirumi said, “While we all have a certain expectation to fight back against a difficult or oppressive system, taking care of yourself as an individual within that system sometimes requires a sacrifice of your pride, and anyone who would judge you for that has not been in your situation. Just know, if he demands too much, Prince Kokichi is also an ally to you, and a useful resource.”

Doppio blinked, once, twice, a slow puzzled look coming over his face. “Oh, um… I just mean, like…being too demanding of his forgiveness. I was the one who wronged him in the first place…and it was kinda big. So…it’s normal that he wants some time to, like…process and stuff. So that’s what I mean by trying not to piss him off--like, I don’t want to say we’re cool just by throwing things at him. It’s…just one of the ways I know how to apologize.”

“I actually feel a little bad about Prince Kokichi too,” Doppio admitted, that same wince in his expression. “I think he was fully planning on lecturing Arven and me last night, but…after I messed up my shoulder, I think he felt bad trying to have a serious conversation like that. And we just haven’t seen each other today yet.”

Kirumi relaxed, smiling lightly, “Ah, yes. Prince Kokichi would try to mediate. As an Ouma, he is a natural at such conflict de-escalation. In truth, I have seen Prince Kaito improve dramatically under Prince Kokichi’s influence. Though, of course, if anyone could make a difference in that man, it’s undeniably the Ouma heir-apparent.” She said. Adoration and respect obvious, even in her even tone.

And, on a subject she approved of, she added almost a tad shyly, “You know, I served in another house, quite some time ago, with a boy quite like Prince Kokichi. He was the young master of the house, another type both raised and inherently suited to the task of ruling. I see him quite often, when I look at our young prince. I have… heard he had a spot of trouble, in his own position, but I entirely blame that on the influence of others,” Kirumi said, her expression briefly darkening… before she smiled lightly, “But now that he’s moved to a new area and taken a new position, I am certain the greatness in him is going to truly shine. I am quite looking forward to seeing him progress.”

“Ah, but here I am, reminiscing over old employments,” Kirumi said, looking relaxed and a tad amused with herself, “You’ve indulged an old housekeeper long enough, Doppio. Thank you again for my gift, it is well received. And please let me know if you need any assistance, especially in the recovery of your shoulder. I am happy to help.”

Doppio nodded a bit. “Prince Kokichi’s so nice it’s hard to…not at least try, I guess, around him. It can be a little scary but…well, I’ve seen for myself now how genuine he is. I don’t know the first thing about ruling a country but…I think Prince Kokichi’s someone I can have faith in.”

Raising his eyebrows, Doppio listened attentively as Kirumi talked a bit about her personal life…even if it was just past employment. He hadn’t known her all that long, Doppio knew, but…even in that time, it was rare for Kirumi to get into anything that wasn’t the job at hand. 

And how she described the…kid in the place she was employed (sometimes Kirumi’s verbiage was a little hard to follow)...it was so warm and proud and…

…reminded Doppio a lot of how he felt about working for his dad. Seems that even the fall from grace was the same, though Doppio doubted Kirumi’s person had been arrested for national crimes. 

There was a bit of an ache in his heart, but Doppio smiled kindly at Kirumi. “If you have such a high opinion of him, I’m sure he’s doing exceptionally. I’m glad you like the gift, and I’ll be sure to let you know if I need help.” He gave her a nod and rose from the table. “And I won’t rush! But I hope to be back in action soon. Have a good afternoon, Miss Kirumi.”

Kirumi smiled, giving him a warm nod of farewell… before returning to her tea. Lightly tracing her finger across the chain. Such a thoughtful young man… it was unfortunate, how Kaito had taken to him. She did hope Prince Kokichi really was keeping an eye on things. Kaito already had far too many children entrusted to him. She had been relieved to hear that Kaito could even manage diaper changing. She hadn’t expected that much of him, honestly. Prince Kokichi really did work wonders.

-

Kaito could admit, the meats were certainly a nice touch. It was certainly a change from flowers, and even better, he had gotten to share them with Shuichi, Kokichi, and Maki. Any gift that could be shared was a great gift! And he was sure to tell Doppio that… waaaaay too early in the morning. After knocking for way too long. Using the meat gift as an almost shield from the boys being too irritated at him bothering them so early. Was it manipulative, showing appreciation for a gift in a way that would subtly remind them that they had upset him not that long ago, so maybe let him get away with an early greeting? 

Yes, yes it was. Kaito was very proud of it, thank you. 

“But, I was thinking, Doppio,” Kaito grinned, as Arven grumbled off, going to take a shower, “Why don’t you come with me this morning to help me pick out my gift for Arven’s birthday? I could use your expertise!”

Doppio was usually an early riser but this…this was ridiculous. This felt pointed. And cruel. And a whole machination of Kaito’s that he was willing to give up literal hours of sleep for. 

Needless to say, Doppio was suspicious. …though happy that Kaito had enjoyed the gift. 

Sitting up in bed, Doppio was squinting at Kaito both in distrust and bleary sleepiness as Kaito explained his plan. “...after we drop Arven and Tim off at school, right?” he rasped, voice still not completely awake. 

“Yeah, of course!” Kaito said brightly. “Also, Miya’s coming! I’m on Miya duty basically all week. So, come on, eeeeeh?” Kaito grinned, giving Doppio a wink, “Little bit of Prince and Princess time? What isn’t great about that! Great way for a teenage boy to spend his day, right!? Hanging out with the old man and the bitty baby!?”

Kaito leaned in, nudging Doppio’s arm with his shoulder. “Eh? Eeey?”

Doppio squinted more at Kaito, leaning away from the nudges while bracing his injured arm as he did so. Clearing his throat, he grumbled, “...I’d already say yes if you wanted help gift shopping. Why are you selling this so much? …if you’re planning something while we’re out…I’d really just prefer if you told me. ‘M not in the mood for surprises…”

Sighing, Doppio rubbed his face a little, wiping some residual sleep from his eyes, though he seemed no more awake. 

…it still didn’t feel real. It wasn’t like Doppio was even going to the trial, but…even thinking about it for more than a second… His stomach felt like it was filled with churning knots.

Kaito snickered, giving the guy an amused look. “Selling it? Come on, please don’t tell me I seem that unself-aware, that admitting I’m on baby duty all day isn’t a turnoff to helping me out. I’m teasing myself, kid! A bit of goood ol’ self-ribbing,” Kaito explained, thumbing his nose a bit and sniffing in amusement, “Easiest way to take a joke is to make it yourself!”

“And, no surprises!” Kaito promised, putting his hands up in surrender, still holding the now mostly empty box of meats, “I just need help going to get Arven’s gift. I know generally what I want to get him, but I thought it’d be fun to have you pick out the specifics!”

Looking Doppio over, Kaito said, “I can come back with some coffee? Sweeten the deal?”

Doppio’s brows furrowed a bit, his brain lagging even a bit more than usual. “...n…nnno? I mean…someone has to stay with Miyako, right? And…I-I’ve never been bothered when you have her, when we’ve spent time together before… Except when you had me hold her, I guess, ‘cause I’m still not sure how I didn’t drop her…”

He sighed softly, rubbing his neck into his shoulder, trying to gently stretch out the muscles there. “...whatever, sure… Already said yes…” Blinking up at Kaito, Doppio held up two fingers for a moment. “...two coffees. For Arven too.”

Kaito grinned, reaching down to lightly tap the tip of Doppio’s nose. “Coming up~”

“Is he gone already?” Arven said, opening the bathroom door and coming out with a towel around his waist, steam briefly leaving the bathroom as Arven, still yawning, fell back onto the side of the bed they didn’t use much. “Ugh, Wasn’t he literally sleeping on a bench yesterday morning? What the heck is wrong with his sleep schedule? Why is he up so early?”

Doppio scrunched his nose, looking unamused…though he softly said, “Thank you,” as Kaito left. 

Turning towards the opening bathroom door, Doppio blinked…before blushing, trading between flusteredly looking down at the bed and peeking back up at Arven. It wasn’t even a rare thing that he saw Arven shirtless but…hoo. It was a sight every time. 

Covering his face a little, Doppio grumbled in agreement. “I think he runs on ideas to inconvenience other people. He could be fast asleep, but as soon as he thinks of something that’d bother someone else, he’s up immediately, filled with energy and weird jokes that don’t make any sense.”

Peeking over again, Doppio shuffled over, lying back down next to Arven again, fingers just barely touching Arven’s arm. “...he’s getting coffee for us.”

“Well, at least we’re getting coffee out of it,” Arven said, closing his eyes and idly tracing his fingers up and down Doppio’s arm the moment his boyfriend was in range. 

Then, looking over at Doppio, “...you alright?” Arven asked softly. “Feel any differently about it today than you did yesterday?”

“I feel like I’m gonna throw up,” Doppio said flatly. 

Tilting his head down, he pressed against Arven’s shoulder. “...I’m still not planning to go, but…I feel sick. It’s not a surprise, I knew this was coming… Ever since I told CPS the truth, and…I-I even called them to help my dad be arrested…everything has been building to this for weeks!”

“...but it still feels…shocking. Like…this is it. My dad’s facing a court case…” …and he knew people were sick of hearing him say it, so he wouldn’t, and it wasn’t even…like, true in the way of ultimate truth, but…

His dad was in court, and it was his fault. 

“...want me to skip school?” Arven asked, finding Doppio’s hand and interlocking their fingers. “I can. We could go do something fun. Go cause trouble somewhere?”

Doppio smiled softly and squeezed Arven’s hand. “Thanks, but…weren’t you planning on skipping school tomorrow? Even if we’re postponing the hike.” Doppio suddenly snorted a soft laugh. “...I know the thought of skipping two days in a row doesn’t bother you at all, but…especially if it’s for me, I’d rather you kept up at least some attendance.”

“...I’ll be okay,” he said quietly, having a debate in fluster for a moment before gently kissing Arven’s bare shoulder. “Kaito’s set on having me help with some shopping anyway.”

Arven lit up a little red, grinning wobbly at the kiss against his shoulder. Scooting closer to Doppio, hoping Doppio didn’t mind his slightly damp body pressed to his side as he leaned in to kiss him–

BANG BANG, “Could one of you open the door, my hands are full of coffee!”

“Muori, Momota!” Die, Momota!

“Morning, Arven!” Kaito called back.

Doppio sighed, closing his eyes. Energized by bothering people and cockblocking them. 

Leaning in for a brief peck, Doppio rolled on his hips to stand up, staggering a little as he trudged over to the door, pressing his left arm to his torso in lieu of, yanno, not having his sling since he didn’t sleep with the damn thing on. Looking a little flushed, he opened the door, letting Kaito in. 

Kaito peered down at Doppio… before scoffing. “Seriously? I was gone for, like, not even ten minutes.”

Passing Doppio his coffee, Kaito strolled inside, before raising an eyebrow at Arven. “...you going to school like that, kid?”

“Just give me my coffee already,” Arven demanded, turning bright red and grabbing his coffee, before trying to walk as confidently as he could to the closet, shutting himself inside. 

Kaito laughed the second the door was closed, pleased with himself, before saying brightly as he headed past Doppio, ruffling his hair on the way out, “Alright! Drop off, then shopping! It’s gonna be a good day today, Doppio!” Kaito promised, heading off and spinning on his heels at the door, giving him a double thumbs up, “The impossible is possible! All we gotta do is make it so!”

“Oh, please don’t tell me he’s trying out catchphrases now,” Arven said, poking his head out the closet and rolling his eyes at Doppio.

Doppio just glared at Kaito, taking his coffee with a grumbled thanks. He sipped, before hissing quietly, tongue peeking out between his teeth, evidently burned. Just another step in this kind of morning, huh. 

Shaking his head, he settled in a chair--he’d get clothes once Arven was out of the closet and take a brief shower--and just…watched Kaito prance and twirl away…though his expression softened a little as the prince left. Glancing over to Arven, Doppio smiled softly. “It’s actually been one of his for a while.”

-

It had been a little difficult and a little embarrassing, having Arven help him re-bandage his shoulder after his shower, but…at least today, there weren’t any incidents, and eventually they met Kaito and Timothy (and Miyako) in the front courtyard, dressed, caffeinated, full of breakfast, and, in Doppio’s case, freshly absorbing a new dose of painkillers. Given that he hadn’t needed to get his shoulder checked out again, his outfit was a little more like his usual, though his hair was in a low ponytail and he still just had his jacket partially snapped over his slinged arm. 

Used to the routine so far, the five began their walk to their respective schools. 

“...mm,” Doppio said softly, getting Arven’s attention. “Um, sorry, I forgot… Was the thing you wanted to go to this weekend, or during the week?”

“The hiking trip?” Arven clarified, before realizing, “Oh! You mean the tournament. I think it’s this weekend? I’ll double check with someone, but I’m pretty sure. We’re gonna go either cheer or harass the other team, depends on the vibe that night.”

“What kind of tournament?” Timothy asked, yawning on Chief’s back.

“...I still can’t believe he’s letting you do that,” Arven admitted, Timothy having declared he was too sleepy to go to school. He had flumped into a hug on Chief for dramatic effect when Kaito had tried negotiating with him again to just, come on, start walking kid! And instead of Chief just licking his face like he usually did when Timothy hugged him, Chief just instead started walking, taking Timothy with him. Chase running around them in circles as he did.

Timothy, briefly stunned and awed, had quickly decided this meant he was getting a nap in before school. Snuggling into Chief’s furry back and holding on as he closed his eyes. Timothy wasn’t even that small a kid. Chief was just such a big dog.

“We’re watching a taijutsu tournament,” Arven explained.

“Oh? What’s that?” Kaito asked curiously, using his hand as a makeshift ground beneath Miyako as she kicked the air. She was probably just kicking in general, but Kaito liked to think she was valiantly attempting to walk, and wanted to encourage her efforts.

Doppio was…honestly kind of awed and envious. Sure, he’d ridden a horse before, so the idea of riding an animal wasn’t completely out there…but a dog?!?! A big fluffy friend?! That you could just ride on???? Oh, to be a 10-year-old…

…well, he had about eight years to get there, technically. 

“Um, it’s a martial arts discipline,” Doppio explained, though…that was about where his expertise ended. “And apparently there’s an inter-school tournament going on this week. Um…Arven brought it up yesterday, and it sounds interesting so… I just wanted to make sure what day it was.”

Smiling a little, he said a little more quietly, meant just for Arven, “And anyone you think is cool I’m interested to meet too.”

“Yeah, some sort of fighting style. That’s really all I know about it too,” Arven admitted, nodding along with Doppio and smiling at his boyfriend’s small assurance that he wanted to meet Kiba. “You will~ Hopefully it’ll be fun, though we can always bail if it sucks.”

“A fighting style like… kickboxing? Or wrestling?” Kaito asked, sounding curious, “How’s it different?”

“Really couldn’t tell you. It might not be different?” Arven guessed, “Maybe it’s just another word for what you just called it. Kickboxing?”

“Well, do they kick a lot through it?” Kaito asked.

“Maybe?” Arven tried.

“...hmm, well, cool!” Kaito said brightly, “Do they allow any weapons?”

“I really cannot express to you any clearer how little I know about it.”

“You know, I have a lot of training in sword-fighting,” Kaito said, grinning at Arven, “Do you think you’d ever wanna learn something like that? Learn some stances, some swings, some jumps? I was pretty good! I mean, not as good as Maki, but that’s barely a comparison.”

“I feel like you’d accidentally stab yourself wielding a sword, and I wouldn’t want your kids to lose their father,” Arven said.

“No, he–” Timothy yawned, “– he can take a stabbing really well, he’ll be fine.”

“Grim, but I appreciate the vote of confidence, Tim!” Kaito grinned, before looking somewhat warily at Arven, “Though, all jokes aside, I have a lot of formal training. I’m just saying, if you ever… wanted to learn?”

Arven shrugged non-committedly. Kaito tried not to look defeated. Maybe Arven would feel differently once he had a sword.  

Doppio nodded a bit, matching Arven’s smile. It was reassuring that they could just leave if…well, for any number of reasons, really, though…at least now, he felt a little nervous about it, since Arven had been invited by a new friend. It wasn’t like Arven was all that interested in taijutsu, so that meant he wanted to go to the tournament just because his friend was going to be there. Which meant that Arven was choosing to socialize on his own terms, and not just…unbothered existing somewhere for Doppio’s sake. 

But Doppio knew that if he got overwhelmed and wanted to leave, Arven wouldn’t think twice. Which meant that Doppio would be an obstacle to Arven getting new friends and…

…well. He just hoped he wouldn’t get overwhelmed. 

As Doppio silently fretted to himself about his boyfriend’s social life, he eventually tuned back into the greater conversation, raising an eyebrow at Kaito’s…oddly eager offers. “...somehow I’m not surprised you’ve formally learned how to sword-fight. It does seem like the kind of aesthetic you’d lean into.” Considering some of the other stuff Kaito said, Doppio tilted his head. “...did Maki just have to learn as, like…rounding off knowledge? I really don’t see her as someone that’d take it up out of necessity or even in interest… She fights too efficiently.”

Kaito’s grin twitched a little, before he laughed, rubbing the back of his neck. “Aw, come on! Sword-fighting is a totally reasonable fighting technique to learn! Timothy, you learned some sword-fighting in the military, right?”

“Spears.” Timothy yawned.

“Okay, well, that’s close! That’s just swords with length!” Kaito grinned. “And Maki does daggers, which are really just tiny, tiny swords! Punching is sword-fighting but without the swords! Ya know, like…” he took Miyako’s arm, miming the action of sword swinging, “pow, pow! Basically a punch! Sword-fighting is really versatile, actually!”

Kaito paused, thinking about it, before adding, “You could make an argument that cooking is a type of sword-fighting. If little chopping motions is a type of sword technique. It could be!”

“...anyway!” Kaito grinned. “Maki learned it because she was trained to learn a little bit of everything, at least everything Luminary knows. She leans towards certain techniques because she’s better at them, but she knows technically how to do almost anything, fighting-wise! She even knows how to fence! All… pop, pop!” Kaito said, holding Miyako to himself as he mimed out fencing moves.

Doppio’s expression went a little dry as he half tuned Kaito’s nonsense out. Sword-fighting was reasonable to learn, sure…but it really wasn’t an effective fighting technique for anything serious. If you needed range, but not a projectile, then types of spears and hammers would do more damage while keeping you farther out of harm, and if you needed to be up close, then daggers gave you more versatility and movement, not to mention could allow you to fight in even tighter quarters than a sword…which was likely to be the situation you found yourself in, if you couldn’t use the range of a spear. 

Sword-fighting was just…showy. 

Doppio hummed softly, nodding. “Makes sense… I wonder if she knows taijutsu, or if that’s more of a Dicean thing. Though I don’t think it’d matter if we went to the tournament not knowing anything. It’s not like anyone would ask us to commentate or anything…”

“She might?” Kaito said, not really sure she would. He felt like he’d have heard of it, if she had. “Well, I guess if you did ever want to learn a fighting style to play with your friends with, Maki would be able to help you with most any of that… but, sword-fighting! Very cool! Impress the ladies!”

Arven raised an eyebrow, before pointedly looking at Doppio.

“You’d impress Miya!” Kaito insisted, gesturing to Miyako, who had that stunned baby look to her. “Wouldn't you be so impressed with their sword-fighting skills, princess? Yes!” Kaito said, pulling down at Miya’s bottom lip, mimicking her talking, “I would be sooo impressed! I’d make you my knights! Sir Arven! First of his name!”

Arven smirked, huffing a small laugh at that, before heading off to school. Timothy was soon after, picking up Chase and carrying her, perhaps as karma for his doggy ride. 

Heading off into town, Kaito hummed a bit… before saying quickly, “Soooo, what do you think about me getting Arven a sword?”

…okay, Doppio did give Kaito a bit of a stink eye for that one, though his chest only warmed seeing Arven’s complete dismissal of ‘impressing the ladies’ too. And while he wanted to be fair to the baby…Miyako was impressed with being turned upside down. 

Kaito was really in A Mood today. 

(...though Doppio supposed he was too, and that’s why he was being a little less generous than usual.)

Following Kaito’s lead once school drop offs were done, Doppio raised an eyebrow, and all he could think to say was, “Why?”

Kaito refused to allow his grin to strain, as he excitedly said, “Because swords are awesome! They’re, you know, all… swift swift! Hah!” Kaito said, swishing in the air, before miming out stabbing out with a sword, “Parry, parry! And then you can like… hang it up on a wall! And it, ya know… looks cool!”

“I…guess so…” Doppio said slowly. “I mean…he’s never really said that he cares about them, but…Arven’s house is filled with neat display stuff that his mom has sent. He could’ve just put it all in their basement or something so…I guess he likes them enough to display. Maybe he’d like something of his own like that…”

Frowning a little, sounding unsure, Doppio gave Kaito a questioning look. “...if you already knew you wanted to get him a sword then…why did you ask me for help? I don’t know anything about swords.”

“You don’t need to know anything about swords to be able to look at one and go, like… yeah! That one has an ‘Arven’ vibe,” Kaito grinned, reaching over to ruffle Doppio’s hair a bit, “I wanted to get him a sword because swords are cool, but you’d know better than I would things like… if he likes something really flashy! Or if he likes particular colors! That sort of thing.”

“I mean, it’d be cool if I could teach him how to actually use one, but, wellllll… I think I can pretty confidently say now that Arven’s not exactly jumping at the bit to learn how to use it. But it still would make a cool decoration! …I wonder if he already has swords?” Kaito mused, realizing this was a distinct possibility, considering Arven’s odd homelife. “...well, you are still the element that makes this sword special! He’ll love knowing you picked it.”

Doppio grumbled as Kaito ruffled his hair, already feeling a few strands coming loose and resting by his ears. Gods, he was going to look like a windblown mess by the end of the day…or maybe just in an hour or two. Ugh… If he wouldn’t just get annoyed even faster, and would still look like a tangled mess, he might consider just pulling his scrunchie off right away. 

Pouting at Kaito, Doppio considered his point. “...so you’re just using me as, like…a proxy to ensure that it’s something he’d like?” An odd sort of grimace went through Doppio’s face before he seemed to consider it and settled on a half shrug. “...I mean…as long as he feels appreciated, that’s kind of the point.”

“...he likes purple and yellow,” Doppio noted after a moment, “And…um, not particularly flashy stuff, but…it’s not as if he’ll hate everything that’s saturated. But…going with something, like…not plain, but simple, I think… I don’t think he’d be that worried about it being sharp, since he wasn’t that worried about his bear trap…”

“...geeeez, what’s wrong with that? I’ll admit, I thought you’d be excited, Doppio.” Kaito sighed, patting Miyako’s belly a bit, “Look, I’m not great at gift giving. I just tend to try to find something fun, usually. Every now and again I manage to hit gold, but most of the time I’m just the ‘fun’ gifts guy.”

“But then, I can’t always guess what’s gonna be a deep and meaningful gift,” Kaito huffed, “You know what my last ‘good’ gift was? It was inspired by this little miss!” Kaito said, patting a rhythm onto Miyako’s knees, “I got myself neutered! Cut open my dick! Or my balls? I didn’t ask any hard, scary questions, just told them to stab what they needed to in order for no more little misses like this~ Oh! Another use for sword-fighting! Neutering!”

“I just said it was fine!” Doppio snapped, already feeling exasperated. “Fun gifts are fine! A-any gifts are, really, because it means you’re thinking of someone.” Sure, there were more self-serving gifts, but Doppio thought that you kind of had to go out of your way a bit for those--like, you couldn’t just stumble into a gift like that accidentally. And…maybe gifts that were off-base kinda…meant you weren’t really paying attention to what the recipient liked, but…sometimes that was hard even if you were paying attention, so Doppio didn’t think that badly on it. 

It was only a split second that Doppio looked over, curious what Kaito thought his last good gift was, before he turned green, flinching away from Kaito in shock. “Oh god ew! Stop talking! Stop! Just--”

A harsh sound coming from his throat, Doppio stopped before turning in a different direction. “I don’t even know why I agreed, go find a sword yourself.”

He really didn’t know. Kaito was a loud, abrasive jerk that just…made so many things worse when he was in the constant mood to, and Doppio didn’t have the patience for this. Not today. 

Stalking off away, Doppio bit the inside of his lip, feeling something uncomfortable and nauseating swell up in his throat. 

Kaito pouted, watching Doppio storm off. “Guess that wasn’t funny, huh princess?” Kaito whispered to her, sighing, fretting a little, “Geez, geez, okay, uh… well, I’m sorry for what you’re about to see, Miyako. Dad’s gotta do the ol’... stalking begging strategy! Wish us luck!”

Begging would have to wait, though. Kaito just followed behind fretfully for now. Looking for an opening, not trying to hide the fact that he was following. 

Doppio wasn’t sure where he was going. Just…somewhere away from Kaito. And not the castle, obviously. …how pathetic would that be, just…wandering the halls like a dejected, neglected pet, knowing better than to go there but just…circling, in orbit. Or holing himself up in his room, going right back to the days of sleeping and crying until Arven was done actually having a life, since…since he couldn’t work with a messed up shoulder…not that anyone wanted him to do anything anyway, since he was just so--

“Hhhhrrk! Hrrk!” Doppio winced, putting a hand to his chest as deep, wheezing coughs bursted out of him. Not as desperate or breathless as that time after he carried Arven, but…painful and vibrating. Almost clogging his airway, but not quite, feeling like…something in his chest that was trying to come up, but was just barely stuck farther down by the thinnest, yet most stubborn threat of sinew…

Shuddering, Doppio covered his mouth and glanced around before quickly going around the side of a building, getting out of the main street before he doubled over, coughing. Bracing himself against the wood siding…until something clinked and cluncked with a heavy, metallic sound on the stones below, accompanied by a mouthful of liquidy vomit.

“Ooookay, okay,” Kaito murmured worriedly, hurrying forward as he saw Doppio duck into the alley, though he hesitated at the entrance. Listening to Doppio wretch something, that little clinking sound echoing against the floor. 

Kaito frowned, worry running through him… before he grinned softly, moving forward. “Hey, hey now, I’m sorry. Did I make you sick? Let me… let me go get you some water. You want some seltzer water?”

Doppio leaned heavily against the building as he panted, grimacing and trying not to get nauseous again from the taste of bile in his mouth. Gross gross gross!! His eyes were scrunched shut, and…hearing Kaito, Doppio shook his head a little, before nodding. A shudder going through him, before…

…

…fuck, why?? Why?! This was so embarrassing, why were his eyes burning? Why did he feel like crying?! 

Useless, piece of shit, crybaby… Throwing up out in the city, couldn’t even tie his hair up or… Looks like shit. Stupid…

There was a small sniffle as a few tears escaped his scrunched eyes. 

Kaito frowned, patting Miyako’s stomach a bit… before he sighed softly. Going over quietly to Doppio, and reaching out to try rubbing his back a little. 

“It’s okay, it’s okay,” Kaito whispered, rubbing small circles into his back, “I’m sorry, it’s gonna be a tough day after all. Here, come on, let’s at least move away from your sick a little, come here. I definitely smell a bit nicer, why don’t… Do you wanna lean on me a little?”

A tiny, weak, pathetic sound rattled out of Doppio’s throat, though he did shuffle away from the splat of vomit and…thing. Covering his face, he shuffled a little more, coming towards Kaito, though he shook his head. 

“...’m sorry,” Doppio whispered, hating himself more for every hot tear that dribbled out of his eyes. Kaito just wanted to get Arven’s birthday present and…fucking, surprise surprise. Doppio was making everything about himself again. Couldn’t…fucking go anywhere with him… Even Miyako was better well-behaved in public…

“Nothing to be sorry for,” Kaito said, and because he couldn’t stand looking at the face of sadness and just not doing anything, reached around Doppio and pulled him in. Holding him against Kaito’s shoulder, rubbing his back some more as he said, “You’re having a tough day, that’s not something you should feel bad about. I’m sorry, I was just… making stupid jokes. I forget that you don’t like those jokes. I’ll cool it, okay? I didn’t mean to do this…”

“We can go get water?” Kaito offered again, “Go sit down somewhere nice? Let you sip and catch your breath?”

Doppio winced a little, both from Kaito nudging his shoulder, and from being pulled against him, and…at the same time? There was still something comforting about that solid warmth. And something gross about it too. 

“S’not you,” Doppio mumbled, before sucking in a shaky breath. Pressing at his eyes with his wrist. Sure, Kaito made a bunch of gross, annoying jokes, but…Doppio didn’t throw up just because of that. Maybe he lost the patience for it, but… 

…he said he’d help Kaito too. Dumb…ungrateful…

Sniffling, Doppio nodded a little, hesitating before pulling his hood up, even now just feeling too embarrassed to fully face the public looking as he was. An utter disgusting disgrace…

Kaito glanced over his shoulder briefly, curious about the clinking noise… before ultimately deciding it didn’t matter. Doppio needed fresh air. That was the priority. “Come on, we’ll go to the park. It’ll be nice,” Kaito promised, hand on Doppio’s back, guiding him out.

-

They found a bench in the park, and Kaito had gone to get them drinks. He ended up finding somewhere selling ginger ale, and hoping it might settle Doppio’s stomach, had brought that to him, sitting down next to him and sipping at his own cup of it. 

“...Phooo,” Kaito blew out, giving Doppio a worried look, “Not feeling our best today, huh?”

Doppio was curled up on the bench, knees only not pressed as firmly as they could be to his chest to allow his left arm to comfortably sit in that space, while he pressed his face to his knees and allowed his jacket to hide all but his shins from view. He had managed to calm down a little, though his eyes were still wet and his lips were still wobbly, threatening to spill over into weeping at any moment. 

He sipped shallowly at the ginger ale, finally washing the acrid bile taste out of his mouth…and he considered the drink for a moment. …Kaito had talked about how he swore by ginger ale for stomach problems. Because of a friend. He guessed he was seeing that in action now…

Closing his eyes for a moment, Doppio took another sip before peeking out from his hood at Kaito drearily. “...sorry… I thought I was fine.” …well. Not fine. But…enough. Not…entirely like he was going to…fall apart like this. 

He should’ve known. Since he was so inept at everything and couldn’t handle anything.

“It’s alright. I mean, you are fine,” Kaito said, “You’re just… going through a tough time. You can be both.”

Kaito pouted, before glancing over at Doppio. “...wanna talk about it? Cause, honestly, I wanna hear about it.”

“...I’m really not…” Doppio muttered, though he just…didn’t have it in him to have that argument all over again. All sorts of arguments that he and Kaito seemed to have over and over and over again. Two people that couldn’t take a hint, he guessed. 

Did he want to talk about it? Did he want to, to Kaito? Of course Kaito wanted to know, he was the nosiest person Doppio had ever met, but…just because he wanted to hear everyone’s woes, didn’t mean he wanted to process them, or…not get entirely pissed off by them. 

…did he want to go through all that? Again?

Doppio sighed, cradling his head between his knees. “...’lready told Arven. I’m not caught off guard, literally everything has been leading up to this, a-and I even contributed to it… But it just…feels so… Too. Real, all of a sudden. I even felt sick earlier, but…I thought I was okay.”

His lips trembled as his voice wobbled. “...but now I just want to cry and… I don’t know…” …maybe have someone kill him. Actually take action for this all being his fault. 

“Ooof, yeah, I get that,” Kaito muttered, reaching over to scratch Doppio’s back. Just light little scritches down his spine, as Kaito said, “It’s weird, how, like… unreal it can feel. For so long. Then, bam, something comes around and makes it this whole… in your face thing…”

“It’s tough. It makes it really hard to come to terms with everything that happened, because suddenly it hasn’t been happening for months, suddenly, it’s just all happening at once!” Kaito said, running his hand through his hair a little, gritting his teeth, “But it’s been happening for months for everyone else, so, like… why are you freaking out? Why is it ‘suddenly a big deal’? It was always happening, why are you only now reacting?”

“At least, that’s what it seemed like on my end,” Kaito shrugged, “I don’t know, you can tell me if I’m projecting.”

Well…at least the first stuff felt like what was going on, but…

“It hasn’t even been a month,” Doppio muttered, his eyes squinting, lashes sticking together with residual tears a bit. “And…it’s always been happening to me. More than other people in a lot of ways. And I’ve been freaking out for…every stupid step of the way…”

He sniffed and took another sip of ginger ale. “...it’s just…hit me in another new way, I guess…”

“...I know he’s gonna be okay,” he said quietly. “The justice system isn’t meant to hurt people…’s the opposite.”

“...so why do I feel so bad?”

“Cause something bad is happening to someone you love?” Kaito guessed, sighing as he patted Doppio’s back a bit, before resting his arm on the back of the bench, “Geez, man, why else? It’s awful when anything negative happens to someone you care about. Doesn’t matter if they had it coming and everyone saw it coming. Still like a damn punch in the guts. What else could it be?”

“...but it’s not bad…” Doppio murmured, a few tears leaking from his eyes. “...it’s…good. You’re the one who said that they could help my dad in the first place. And…getting rid of another black market system is…good, probably. Court systems are supposed to find the truth ‘n help people…”

And yet…Doppio felt an unyielding, crushing sense of failure. Failure so utterly complete, though not because the task was so difficult, but because he was him. Like anything Doppio ever tried or would want to achieve would only result in failure because he was a failure. A failure that only ever made things worse for people, or got them hurt…even if he knew that wasn’t true, but…that’s how it felt. 

And how it felt kept making his guts feel like they were dropping out from him and that he was both creating and mired in sludge and instead of fighting it or fighting to get out or thinking through it or just pretending to be okay until he was…all he could do was curl up and cry. 

(Maybe with the odd wish that he’d never been created thrown in here and there for good measure too.)

“Tsk,” Kaito clicked his tongue, giving Doppio a somewhat dry look, “Those things are true. But life’s more complicated than that. You can’t, like, objectively look at where something places on the great, grand moral scale, and if it’s on the right side of morality, well, then our feelings will fall right in line. That love you feel? That disappointment? It’s…”

Kaito hesitated. Doppio might take this the wrong way… before he sighed, just deciding to follow through. “It’s a selfish feeling. It’s just wishing their individual happiness, our individual happiness, was happening, on our terms. Yeah, it’s absolutely, one hundred percent better for him that he’s getting help, and it’s better for everyone, that there’s one less black market out there. But… it wasn’t what he wanted. And you love him. So of course you wish he had gotten what he wanted. At least a little bit.”

“It’s a…” Kaito hesitated, before covering Miyako’s ears, “Shitty way to feel, sure. It doesn’t make us ‘good’. But it sure as hell still makes you ‘normal’,” Kaito said, taking his hands away from her ears, leaning down to kiss the top of her head before leaning back again with a tired sigh. “Course you feel like that. Like I said… why wouldn’t you.”

Doppio gave Kaito a miserable look, his lips shaking a little before he attempted to still them by drinking a little more of his ginger ale. “...if it’s normal, then…why does everyone keep telling me those things to make me feel better? Like knowing all that would help? O-of course I didn’t think what we were doing was good, I-I’m not braindead! I knew what we were doing was illegal, a-and that stuff is illegal because it gets people hurt…”

“It doesn’t feel any better acknowledging that…but people keep acting like it should.”

Doppio scrunched his eyes closed again, grimacing into his legs. “...national cases take forever… How am I supposed to survive this?”

…did he even deserve to? Sure, his dad’s life wasn’t ending, but…everything he’d ever worked for was. And more. And Doppio…

(Was more than he was made to do. Was making a life for himself outside of his father. Had people happy to see him, regardless of what he did.)

…but he couldn’t just…keep going, feeling like this.

“Because, honestly, Doppio?” Kaito said, looking at him tensely, “That was what you needed to hear in that moment.”

“It’s… complicated. It’s all complicated. The answer changes from day to day, second to second, depending on who you’re talking to, and none of those answers ever end up being wrong,” Kaito explained, looking tired, “Though some of them aren’t exactly comforting either. But it was still what needed to be said, in that moment. Sometimes what you need to hear is that things will get better for him. Sometimes it’s things will get better for everyone else. Sometimes you just have to hear that it has to happen, and that’s it, that’s the answer you have to live with in that moment…”

“...and sometimes it’s okay for the answer to be that it sucks, and it’s hard, and even if it technically is fair, it’s just, also… not,” Kaito whispered, his eyes reddening, briefly, gritting his teeth… before he took a steadying breath, playing with Miyako’s feet. “...it’s okay to need to grieve. To need to sit down and cry or kick a wall or just… feel bad for yourself, for a while. Sometimes that’s the answer! It sucks and it’s awful and it’s not fair, and screw anyone who ever said that it was!”

“G’wah!’ Miyako shouted, her little baby face furrowing in frustration.

“Yeah!” Kaito agreed, petting through her hair as Miyako pouted in irritation at nothing in particular. “Ya know what, screw the sword, that kid doesn’t want anything from me anyway. Let’s just focus on you today, Doppio, you sound like you need it. You wanna…” Kaito hesitated, before offering, “Wanna get a drink? And go destroy stuff at a dump?”

Was it? 

Doppio wasn’t an altruist, and like he said, he wasn’t a complete moron. He knew that Passione led to awful things happening to people who were otherwise leading normal lives. Making the world a little safer wasn’t…really something that swayed him. It was a point of good, but…if it had been the only reason for him to do anything, he would’ve just ignored it. 

…and his dad…

…he hadn’t believed Kaito for ages, when he said getting his dad arrested would help him. Honestly, he still had a hard time believing that Kaito had believed that when he first said it. But… But talking with Dr. Mariah, and talking with his dad again…

His dad did need that help. And it was help that Doppio knew he’d never be able to give his dad. He just…wasn’t capable, for all that he wanted to be. Had he needed to hear that?

…did it matter at this point? Listing out all the individual things that people had told him over the past month and judging case by case if he had needed it…as if they were each individual events. And as if coming to any sort of answer would…change anything. …maybe none of the answers ended up being wrong…and maybe if they did, maybe that didn’t even matter. 

Doppio clenched his jaw for a moment before sniffling into his drink. “...Dr. Mariah said that…there’d probably be more days where I just…need to stay in bed and eat ice cream, like I did before. Having bad days. …I guess this is proof, maybe…”

But. But life would always, always keep moving. 

A guilty wince went through Doppio’s face. “Please don’t throw Arven away for me. Again. I know you won’t but just…listen to me for once. If y-you hate him so much, I…I don’t care how much you care about me. If you hate him, just…leave us alone.”

Kaito frowned… before leaning in towards Doppio. “I do not hate Arven.”

“And honestly, kid?” Kaito said, frowning, “It hurts that you keep saying that. Like, I get that I keep making mistakes here, but it’s killing me that every freaking attempt I’m making with him apparently is reinforcing some idea you guys have that I resent him. I don’t resent Arven. I’m still just trying to figure out how to talk to him.”

“He doesn’t need me. At least, he doesn’t need specifically me. He desperately needs someone looking out for him, shielding him from the brunt of things that should have never been his problem to begin with, but for Arven? Anyone would have done. I’m just the one who did it.” Kaito frowned. “And unfortunately, I can’t just magically turn into some version of myself that will, like… I’m not even sure. Will suit whatever standard he has for me that I keep missing the mark on. Whatever I’m not enough on? I can’t just suddenly be it. It’s a work in damn progress.”

“I don’t know what Arven wants for his birthday, but I do know what he feels lukewarm about, and that’s the only gift idea I had,” Kaito huffed, “But you know what I do know about Arven? Is that if he knew I took you present shopping, when I thought you might need to vent your feelings somewhere? That the kid would spend the next week calling me an idiot for specifically that. And that’d just be one more hole I have to dig myself out of with him. Which, fudge, Doppio, is already really damn deep. Could you hold back pissing on me while I’m down here?” Kaito muttered… before blanching, looking down at Miyako. “Ooooh, is the ‘p’ word a bad word? Shoot, I don’t actually know… Let’s just tinkle for now, Miya~ We’ll talk to people about it, see how people feel.”

“I’m the one that keeps telling him you don’t hate him!” Doppio huffed, voice raising a bit as he sat up a little, teary eyes searching Kaito’s in desperate frustration. “H-he thinks it’s nice, having someone to rely on a-and that cares about him, even if he says it’s a weird thing he can’t quantify, but he’s told me multiple times that you hate him! J-just like it’s a fact of life. And I know you don’t! But!”

“But then you keep doing stuff, like telling him to be quiet and go away, a-and it’s you even being gracious if you manage to tell him!” Again, another set of tears started flooding Doppio’s eyes. “More often, you just shove him away, or pick him up and shut doors, a-and if you don’t manage to do that, then you act like he’s inconvenient and that he’s a mistake to be there…a-and you say that in front of him! You talk about Arven like he’s not literally in front of you! And then any time you actually talk to him, you just tease and insult him, so…s-so what is he supposed to think?! What am I supposed to argue when what you claim to feel and how you act are at complete odds?!”

“Not anyone would’ve done for him! H-he’s special!” Doppio cried. “He deserves to be considered and cherished and…a-and to be fussy and picky about! Not just treated like an after-thought! O-or like it doesn’t matter what you give him, because he’s been fine with nothing--it doesn’t matter if he’s fine, he still deserves everything!”

Lips shaking, Doppio gripped his shirt and jacket with tight fists. “Maybe he’d be upset hearing that you dragged me around when I’m upset, sure. But I don’t need you, specifically, I can go to any number of people. But hearing you say that you’d just disregard any opinion about his life because ‘he doesn’t need it’...” Doppio growled a little. “He would just act like it doesn’t matter, because he already thinks you hate him…but that’d hurt anyone, Kaito! And it would just be you showing him again that he’s an afterthought to you!”

Kaito’s lips thinned, and he had to grip one of his hands against his leg to not accidentally squeeze Miyako… before he sighed. Rubbing the bridge of his nose. These kids were gonna give him a damn aneurysm…

“...okay, well.” Kaito huffed, rubbing his hand hard down his face, giving Doppio a tired look, “...why don’t we… why don’t we go poke the kid and see if he wants to spend the day with us? You’re having a tough day, he can miss a day, I’ll get his assignments and… I don’t know.” Kaito sighed, rubbing his fingers on his forehead, “I don’t know. Maybe he’d want to pick his own sword? Or his own… anything, really.”

“...I can’t speak on Arven thinking I hate him, because he’s not here.” Kaito sighed, “And, I don’t know, like I said, I can just keep trying to be better. I don’t know how I can prove I don’t disregard him or that he matters to me beyond just continuing to try to be there for him…” Kaito closed his eyes, pinching the bridge of his nose. “...nevermind. I’ll be better, okay? I’m sorry that I haven’t respected Arven like I should. Do you wanna go get him?”

Sometimes it felt like talking to Kaito was like talking to a brick wall that was frequently graffitied. Doppio would pour his heart out, trying to be heard, and Kaito would sigh or yell or nod and solemnly say something mournful…

But nothing would actually happen. 

Maybe that was Doppio’s fault for thinking he could…do anything. For thinking that…some haphazard stitching of the idea of ideas could ever affect a real person. Maybe he was just talking nonsense, and anything that felt special or vulnerable was like…a mask set in a frown that anyone could pick up and play with. Only given actual meaning when a real person emoted their own life through him. 

“...I don’t want to pull him from classes…” Doppio said softly, before he sighed. Uncurling enough to stretch out his knees, before he stood, giving Kaito a tired, empty look. “...I think I want to be alone, Kaito. …thanks for the drink. I’ll see you later.”

Kaito grit his teeth again… before nodding. “Yeah, alright. Okay, just…”

Kaito wanted to tell him to be safe, to maybe head home soon, or at least just try to be home before the sunset. But Kaito figured Doppio would be back by the time school was out, and hell, maybe he really did just need to be alone for a while. It didn’t matter anyway, he wasn’t listening. Kaito just watched him walk off. Fighting off the urge to follow him.

Doppio trudged off, just…hunching into his jacket, not wanting to show his stupid blotchy face around. Why did he even try… It’s not like he’d ever amounted to much…ever. 

(You kept your dad alive.)

While entirely failing to be the help he made you for. Oh, on the contrary, Doppio just…enabled him. Believed every word his dad ever said about his infallible greatness, repeated it back to him. He never even hinted to his father that…that maybe hiding in the dark all the time wasn’t good for him. That he needed someone else in his life. 

That he needed a real person and not just some…dumb, broken puppet.

(That wasn’t your fault.)

Sure, because you actually had to be sentient to have fault. No, Doppio was just…there. A waste of space. A waste of…emotion. Basically tricking people into feeling things for…something with as much meaning as a sock. 

(Arven’s feelings are meaningful, and so are yours.)

…

…he was going to ruin Arven’s birthday, wasn’t he. Arven could never actually get his time to shine, it was always about Doppio. Weak, pathetic, disastrous Doppio. 

…why did Arven even like him? He was basically just…some sort of parasite. But at least he was someone to talk to… 

(Was he enabling Arven too? Letting Arven form bonds and connections with a stupid doll, and…letting him point to that, instead of forging actually…meaningful relationships with real people?)

…was Doppio’s only point to just…cling to the first people that smile at him and ruin their lives like--

“!!” Doppio staggered, stumbling forward as his vision whirled, a bright pain cracking through his skull. 

“Found you~ Little boss.”

-

Kali wrinkled her nose. For multiple reasons. Well…the monster likely had a mouth, then. And some sort of stomach. And it was part mechanical… Some bastardized mix of organic and mechanical, probably, too many signs of the other to ever truly seem one of them. 

She had to admit, the fact that the odd, fleshy cog smelled like watermelon was surprising. Not really in that it was atypical of a Tulpa, since they could be literally anything…but an odd, small detail to exist. It wasn’t her forte to speculate on the creation of Tulpa--she was more into ending them--but…her best guess was that a tiny, irrelevant detail like this meant that the creature was likely some conglomeration of quite a lot of people’s thoughts. A cross-section of collective consciousness that got scooped up into a grotesque physical shape. 

Kali’s eyes flicked up, sharp, as she was pulled from her musing by a short, cut-off shout. Quickly, she moved, almost able to feel the whip of an extra boost behind her (feeling nostalgic, she guessed), but…by the time she got there? And it was “there”, there was a splatter of blood on the ground… 

Nothing was there. 

Narrowing her eyes, Kali sniffed the splatter. 

The Tulpa was in Usott. And it had just reformed.

-

With a gasp, Doppio jolted awake, eyes wide as he looked at the ceiling of the room he and Arven shared in the castle. Slowly, he sat up, looking around as if the familiar room he’d spent the last few weeks in was foreign, and, after a moment, he glanced down at himself. Realizing he was shaking. 

…why was he scared?

Gnawing on his lip, Doppio scooted to the edge of the bed and pushed himself up, before blinking. Looking down at his left arm and holding it up. Rolling his shoulder. Feeling…nothing. Well, not nothing, he could feel his shoulder normally, but…that was just it. Normally. No pain. 

Doppio looked around their room again, lightly hugging himself. Why did he feel terrified?

“...Maki,” he muttered softly to himself, “Sh-should find Maki… Upstairs, third floor…”

The air was cooling into nightfall, while out in the hall, Shuichi and Maki whispered lowly to each other.

“I need you to go out there and bring him back,” Shuichi hissed, the two having clearly gone out into the hallway to talk about this in private, “I don’t care if you have to drag him, he needs to be here.”

“Kaito’s not going to come, and I don’t know what you expect me to do about that,” Maki said, her expression stoic, borderline cold. “Even if I physically drag him back, he’s just going to leave again. If you want him back, I need to go back out and find the kid then.”

“There are enough people looking for him, and my husbands are both miserable, we can at least make one of them happy by bringing the other one back,” Shuichi insisted, clutching his hands into fists, “Someone else will find Doppio, that’s the point of a guardforce.”

“You want a quick fix solution? Go comfort Kokichi yourself,” Maki said, crossing her arms, unswayed at Shuichi’s frozen anger. “Firenze is out looking with him, he’ll be fine. If you want a very quick fix solution, just ask Kokichi to–”

“He tried, there was nothing out there,” Shuichi whispered, “Kaito’s looking for nothing. He doesn’t need to be out there looking for a corpse, that's my job.”

“Then go,” Maki said.

“...”

“Or go comfort Kokichi,” Maki huffed, rolling her eyes as Shuichi turned away from her, frustrated, “Kaito will come in when they’ve found him. Corpse or not.”

“You were better when you just listened,” Shuichi whispered harshly, heading inside.

Maki sighed… before she felt the hair raise on her arms. Feeling eyes on her, her hands immediately going to her skirt.

Doppio was…worried. For everything that felt off when he woke up, ie. his shoulder being fine, not remembering anything from before he woke up, and the overwhelming sense of utter fear that surrounded him, but…now? It was getting dark outside… Sure, he was used to losing time or blacking out or…whatever, but… Maybe he shouldn’t be nervous, Prince Kokichi proved that nothing could take over his body anymore…

…but then why did he feel scared? That wasn’t…a direct match to how he felt after blackouts, but…it might’ve been something! 

Just more reason to find Maki. 

And, thankfully, he did find her in the third floor hallway, and despite the tremors that hadn’t completely left him, Doppio sped up, coming closer to her. He tried to call out, and found that his voice died even before he could rasp, so he swallowed and tried again. “M-Maki?”

Maki’s eyes narrowed, looking behind her, her hands close to her skirt… but a quick glance at him, and then around, had her just sigh. Turning around and crossing her arms as she said, “You’re going to need such a good excuse for where you’ve been, or I’m going to cut something off.” She threatened, “Warning given: Where have you been?”

A slightly puzzled look went through Doppio’s face before his worry expounded, his heart beating furiously in his chest. “...I don’t…know? …I just woke u-up and…”

He glanced down, a little embarrassed but… This kind of terror transcended pride. He sought Maki out because he knew her to be capable and kind and on his side, and…he needed that right now. Needed the reassurance of stability. 

Doppio needed an adult. 

Looking entirely like a frightened child, he admitted, “...I’m scared.”

Maki raised an eyebrow… before waving him over, the gesture expected to be obeyed, before she started looking him over. “Does anything hurt?” she demanded, taking his head into her hands and tilting his face left, and then right, each move slow but insistent. “Where did you wake up? …” She glanced down at his shoulder, not seeing the vein in his neck throb like it should. “Your shoulder is better,” she observed. 

“I won’t cut anything off, since ‘I don’t know’ is a valid reaction for you, specifically,” Maki admitted, “But you’re staying in the princes’ room until everyone knows you’re back and safe. Understand?”

Quickly shuffling over to Maki, Doppio allowed her to move his head around, feeling exponentially safer in close proximity. Though…it didn’t really solve…whatever it was that was going on. 

“No…that’s s-some of the issue,” he mumbled, before answering, “In my room?”

…alone. As it was getting dark. And…sure, he and Arven didn’t spend every moment together, but…

Doppio nodded a bit at Maki’s order, before he gave her a worried look. “...did something happen?”

“You had a fight with Kaito this morning after dropping off Arven and Timothy to school, and promptly disappeared,” Maki explained, deciding Doppio wasn’t about to drop dead any second, as she turned, taking his hand and sternly guiding him to the princes’ room, “People started looking for you around 3. That was just shy of four hours ago. Come on, we’ll get this all sorted out.”

Opening the door after a quick knock, Maki called in, “You won’t believe who came stumbling up the stairs.”

Shuichi, who had been sitting with Kokichi, looked up… and gave a small sigh of relief. “Oh,” he said, “You’re far more alive than I feared. That’s good.” Shuichi said, standing up, “You’re also shaking like a leaf. Sit down; Maki, has he eaten anything?”

“He’s not dehydrated,” Maki said, closing the door behind her, “He looks perfectly healthy, actually. Now can someone please tell at least Kaito and Arven to come back?”

Doppio’s eyes widened. He’d been missing for four hours? Or…probably longer than that, if he fought with Kaito right after dropping Arven and Timothy off at school. Maybe…nine hours? That…definitely was something happening. 

His worry only grew when they opened the princes’ door and Shuuichi…thought he was dead!? Sure, nine hours was a long time but…e-even for runaways they didn’t tend to jump to that conclusion on the same day, right?

Kokichi, on the other hand, looked up with swollen red eyes before in a blur he was over at Doppio’s side in an instant, all three of the others able to feel a brief, yet powerful sense of relief as Kokichi wrapped his arms around Doppio in a squeezing hug. “Doppio! Oh fuck, you’re alright!”

Doppio looked startled for a few moments before he gently put his arms around Kokichi, feeling…guilty, for the obvious signs of crying, and kind of…touched that Kokichi was this worried about him. But if Kokichi was this worried, then…

He looked over at Maki, distressed. “Kaito and Arven are out…?”

“Yeah, yeah, I-I’ve got it,” Kokichi sniffed, pulling himself off Doppio just to bracingly hold his arms, before guiding him over to a chair. Soon, Kaito would get the sense of that looking sensation, before ‘hearing’:

{He’s back he’s back he’s okay Doppio’s in our room he’s alright please come back Kai-chan, tell Arven, he’s okay, oh, hun, he’s terrified and confused but he’s okay and here I love you}

Though, aloud, Kokichi looked over Doppio again. “...are you okay?”

Doppio glanced between the adults before giving them a small and uneasy look. “...I-I guess so, but…I feel really scared…”

“I bet,” Maki said, staring at Doppio, her face tense, calculating…

“I’m going to make us some tea,” Shuichi sighed, hurrying over to their hotplate, starting to fuss with the makeshift tea-station Shuichi had started slowly putting together in the corner. ”Everyone’s getting tea, I don’t want to hear any arguments.”

“Fine,” Maki called, before looking to Doppio, “I want you to start patting yourself down. One limb at a time, make it obvious where you’re touching so that I can keep track,” she told him, “Start with your arms. Pat yourself down. Let me know if anything hurts or feels odd.” 

Maki could do it herself, but Doppio had always seemed to function better when given a task. So Maki gave her instruction and waited, still with the air of someone expecting to be listened too.

Meanwhile, out on the market rooftops… “Oh for fucks, god, augh!” Kaito shouted, scratching furiously at his head as he felt both Kokichi’s presence and heard his message, jolting as he leaned back to the side of the bell tower from where he had been peering down, “Ah, fuck… good! But fuck!”

“What, what’s happening!?” Arven called from down on the rooftop he was waiting for Kaito on, “Do you see him!?”

“No! I mean, but… hold on! I’m coming back down!”

“You barley looked!”

“I’m coming back down!”

Kaito climbed back down the bell tower, taking a deep breath and moving slowly, not wanting to fall. Ugh. “Give me a second,” he asked, catching his breath at the base as Arven ran up to him.

“If Aceto’s up on one of these rooftops, you’ll be able to see him from up there! Why didn’t you look?” Arven demanded.

“Nngh,” Kaito huffed, poking at his forehead, “Message. They found him.”

“They…” Arven paled, fear staining the edge of his eyes, “they did? Is he…”

“He’s okay, he’s okay,” Kaito was quick to reassure, doing his best to sort what Kokichi had given him, “He’s… apparently a little freaked out? But he’s back at the castle and he’s fine.”

“Then we have to go back! We have to go check on him!” Arven said, gritting his teeth as Kaito sat down, “What are you doing!?”

“Arven, please, give me a second, I almost fell up there, I just need a second to catch  my breath.” Kaito huffed, looking back up at the bell tower, “That would have sucked.”

“You’ve fallen out of a tree twice that height, can we go!? I won’t wait for you.” Aren insisted. “I’ll take the horse.”

Kaito let out a little breath… before nodding, getting up, “Alright, we’re going. Oh, fuck, I am so glad he’s alright… you’re both grounded. Forever.”

“You’re not funny.” Arven growled, fists clenched.

“Yeah, I’ve heard.” Kaito said tiredly, heading to the side of the roof, “Come on, let’s get back, I’m sure Doppio’s just as worried about you right now as you are him.”

“Are you sure he’s alright?” Arven asked, before looking around, “Amaina?”

Like before, there was no sign of the little chibi. Arven felt his chest tighten in anxiety at that, following Kaito down. 

-

The ride home was quiet. Their search together had been mostly quiet, the two focusing on finding Doppio. Kaito at first too worried to even think about trying to talk to Arven about everything Doppio had said, outside of admitting they had had another argument and Doppio had stormed off. Past that, it just never felt like the right moment, not while they were still looking.

It still didn’t. Hearing Doppio was home and safe had punched all the air out of Kaito, and while Arven was bursting with energy, hopping off the horse as soon as they were at the gates and running to the castle, Kaito was slower to follow, dropping the horse off with the staff and hurrying behind, but not running. Not really having that in him in the moment. 

Kaito did eventually get to the door, which had been left open, and he sighed in renewed relief when he saw Arven had crashed into Doppio, holding hm tight and sniffling. “Th-they couldn’t ‘see’ you and everyone was talking like th-that was a worst case scenario a-and–!”

Kaito ran a hand over his face, closing the door behind him, as he quietly asked the others, “Has anyone told the guards?”

“I wanted to give us a minute to figure out what was happening first.” Maki explained quietly back. “His shoulders healed. I’m thinking of dislocating it again.”

Kaito winced, immediately shaking his head, “No. We’ll put it in a wrap for a day, just while people are thinking about him today, and say he made an amazing recovery after that. He can fake it.”

Doppio had calmed down a little more, between the body check (he was perfectly fine. Alarmingly so) and the tea, but as soon as Arven and Kaito returned he burst into tears, holding Arven tight. Partly from Arven’s worry, and partly just…being tipped over from being frightened and shaken straight into bawling territory. Hiccuping constantly apologies to his boyfriend as he clutched him tight, as much for his own comfort as to reassure Arven that he was right there. 

Kokichi rose again as Kaito caught up, pressing himself into a hug. “It was already on the road to healing anyway--a wrap just for the next day or so would be more than fine. I-I’ll head to the guards’ office in a moment, just… Maybe he was upset and hiding somewhere and just fell asleep, so that’s why… I’ll think of something.”

Kaito felt a twinge of guilt, as Kokichi buried himself in his side. Wrapping his arms around his husband and holding him tight. That day being hard on Kokichi as well.

Kokichi had reached out and felt… nothing.

Kaito hadn’t wanted that for his husband. When Kaito himself had heard it, it was… well, it was a great deal like all the other times Kaito had been stuck in the sidelines while someone he cared about was harmed, or disappeared. Everything became distant and numb, Kaito only able to do things, rather than feel them. Kokichi could not feel Doppio? Then… then they had to look the old fashioned way. And Kaito had to assume that there was a reasonable explanation why. Had to assume that there was more than just a crumbled… form. To find.

Kaito couldn’t think about how likely it was they were looking for a corpse, if Kokichi could not find him awake or asleep.

It was why he had insisted Arven search with him. If Arven had found… something. Then Kaito couldn’t stand the idea of the kid seeing that on his own, or with a guard he didn’t know. Kaito would spare Arven the sight entirely, if he could, if he was lucky enough to see Doppio first. Arven didn’t need the nightmares.

“‘Kichi, let’s ask Maki to–”

“I’m not going anywhere until I’m reasonably sure he’s safe.” Maki said plainly, “All of your bodyguards are out searching. I don’t care that we’re here, someone needs to stay.”

“Then…” Kaito looked warily at the boys, “...let me come with you, ‘Kichi. I’m just freaked out, I’d rather someone was both with them and with you.” 

It had been terrifying. Kokichi knew what dead people felt like…or, didn’t feel like. And he knew what Doppio felt like. If Doppio was nearby, it was almost impossible to not feel him. The defenses they’d given him just kept people from going “in”, not from Doppio expressing “out”, so…whatever it was about Doppio’s nature that made his emotions feel so powerful and raw and unfiltered to an Empath, it made him distinctive. Like a bonfire on a dark empty beach. 

But Kokichi hadn’t been able to find him. He’d looked and looked, thinking (hoping) that maybe he’d just…skipped over Doppio. Maybe the kid was asleep, so his emotions were more muted, so that’s why he didn’t stand out like he always did. Maybe…Kokichi was just messing up his search. So he had pinged his friends, desperately asking them to look for Doppio too because they usually had better control over their abilities and Kokichi couldn’t find him. 

…and if no one could find him, then…that surely meant…

(Of course Kokichi knew today was going to be difficult on Doppio. How could it not be? But Kaito and the boys had already left by the time Kokichi made it downstairs and…and the first day of court was usually one of the most strenuous, since it was establishing every matter at hand and…)

(Doppio always felt such horrible things after he and Kaito argued. Kokichi feared… He was scared that maybe…)

Squeezing Kaito tight for a moment, Kokichi then let go, glancing back at the boys crying and tangled in each other. Scared and upset but…alive. Vibrant and visceral in ways that set Kokichi’s nerves on edge even more than they were just from his own emotions…but that was a good thing. 

Even pain was better than nothing. 

“Okay, let’s go, Kai-chan.” Kokichi looked up, giving him a strained, wobbly smile. “I’m sure a lot of people are going to be relieved.

“I’m so s-sorry,” Doppio whispered again in Arven’s ear, something in the back of his head starting to get a little worried he was bruising Arven’s sides with how tightly he was holding him, but…Doppio needed this. Arven needed this. No space left between them to foster any doubts.

“Me too!” Arven sniffed, clutching him back, “I should have stayed, I just thought…” Arven had thought it’d be a normal day, despite himself. Despite everything. Doppio had been down, sure, but he had been otherwise okay! Arven had thought he’d get through the school day, get home and the two would snuggle for the rest of the day, if Doppio was feeling down about things.

Arven didn’t know what to think about it, when Doppio hadn’t been in their room when he got back. Hadn’t known what to think when he asked Kaito if he had seen Doppio, and seen the panic start to build in the older man right up until that panic seemed to disappear all at once, when Kokichi had squeaked that he couldn’t feel Doppio. 

And then suddenly it was just go, go, go. Kaito and Maki insisting to Kokichi that he needed to send out guard members to look, Kokichi agreeing to go to the captain about it, before Kaito had grabbed Arven from his attempt to run off to search, insisting Arven would search with him. And then hours of that, Arven feeling more and more raw and panicked while Kaito just got quieter and more focused. 

And the more grim Kaito looked, the more freaked out Arven felt. Because… because what did that mean? Was Doppio…

“I looked everywhere for you, where were you?’ Arven asked desperately, clutching Doppio, “You scared me!”

“I’m sorry!” Doppio cried again, and…as much as those words didn’t feel like enough, they were most of what he was able to say. Because… “I-I don’t know, I just woke up in our room, a-and then I came here and Maki and the princes said stuff that happened this morning b-but I don’t remember any of today! I’m sorry!”

He hooked his arms around Arven’s shoulder, getting a better, more solid grip around his boyfriend as he buried his face in his shoulder, feeling Arven do the same in his neck. Already Arven’s vest was damp and tacky from tears, but Doppio couldn’t even bring himself to worry and fuss over cleaning it later. 

He just…didn’t know what happened. So nothing felt like enough for the terror he saw in the people around him. Nothing to explain the terror he felt in himself either. 

Maki frowned, peering over the boys, before looking at Shuichi, who gave her a grumpy look back over his tea. Seeing Maki give him a sterner look, Shuichi sighed, “So, you don’t remember today at all, Doppio? Can we ask what you do last remember? To get a sense of how much time has been lost?”

Sniffling, Doppio peeked a wet gold eye out from Arven’s shoulder, his chest trembling for a moment as he made a small sound in his throat. “Um…”

…what was the last thing he remembered? It was always hard mentally retracing his steps… Okay, he had therapy yesterday and…got an assignment to give gifts for people and…he gave gifts to… 

Doppio looked around the room (as much as he could without moving his head at all) before pausing. No, he left the box here, because Kaito was out, and he went to Kirumi after, but…he had been thanked, hadn’t he? When was…

“...I-I think…maybe first thing this morning? …Kaito…woke us up, didn’t he?” he half-asked Arven, unsure. 

Arven nodded, about to elaborate, when Shuichi held up a hand to stop him, “Let’s see if you can explore that memory more,” Shuichi coached, reaching over to the counter and putting on his hat, adjusting it over his eyes a bit, “Try to walk us through it. No detail is too small. How did Kaito wake you up, for one?”

“Um…” How? It was hard enough even grasping at vague events, how was he supposed to remember any details?! But…well… Arven had helped him remember something he’d completely forgotten before, so…

Doppio closed his eyes and took a shuddering breath against Arven, trying to think. “...I know…he woke us up…well, partly because you told me we walked Arven a-and Tim to school, but… He thanked me for the smoked meats I gifted him. Um… He said something about it being nice to share…I think.”

“...we had…” Doppio’s brow furrowed. “...no, um… He got us coffee? Before breakfast. As…an apology? F-for waking us up…”

“That’s good,” Shuichi said, putting his hand up to Arven again, encouraging him to not fill in any details, “Let’s see how far we can go before you hit a blank wall. He got you coffee. Do you remember actually drinking it? Can you remember what type it was?”

Coffee…

“...Arven was in the closet?” Doppio mumbled, his voice muffled from how squished into Arven he was, but still audible. “...it was too hot, I burnt my tongue. …I don’t think… I think it was just black coffee, nothing in it. I don’t…remember pouring it so…I think he got us mugs, so…he didn’t put anything in them before giving them to us. He…”

Doppio trailed off for a time, only broken by a small, frustrated grunt as he pushed himself against Arven. 

“...I think Kaito asked something, but…I don’t remember what it was.”

Shuichi paused, waiting… before now looking at Arven. Prompting him for a clue.

“Shopping,” Arven said, not even kind of sorry for squishing Doppio against him, and not letting go either, “Kaito wanted to take you shopping.”

Shuichi had known that, but that wasn’t the point. He was trying to help Doppio reconstruct his memories, as he asked Doppio, “Did you go shopping with Kaito? Can you recall?”

“Oh…”

There was quiet for another long stretch, before the gold eye nervously, timidly, peeked out again. “...I don’t…sorry.”

Shuichi sighed, adjusting the hat on his head a bit, leaning back. Before he glanced at Maki. 

“He has no injuries, including the injuries he should have.” Maki shrugged, “He also has no signs of dirt on his shoes, wear and tear on his clothing, dirts or stains or scent. If I had to make a guess? He’s been in bed all day.”

“We checked!” Arven insisted.

“I’m saying from a deduction side, Doppio’s just been in bed all day.” Maki explained, “Not that he actually was. I couldn’t guess where he actually was. For as much as I could figure out, Doppio walked away from Kaito this morning and promptly disappeared into thin air.”

“He gets lost sometimes.” Arven mused, giving Doppio a worried look, “It hasn’t happened for a long time, but… maybe it’s just that? Maybe you just got lost and confused till you got home and went to bed?”

It really was like he just…disappeared. From what he’d been told about Tulpa, it was possible, he guessed, but…he didn’t think this had ever happened before! Surely his dad would’ve been worried if Doppio just dropped off the face of the planet and…it wasn’t like he had been overly concerned about making sure Doppio thought he was a human. He probably would’ve said something…

He might’ve, and Doppio might’ve forgotten. 

Doppio gave Arven a worried, unsure look. “...maybe. I-I mean…that doesn’t sound more impossible than anything else, but… Well…I guess maybe people…might’ve not seen me.” Even if Kokichi had alerted the Guardforce, and so the guards watching the front gate would’ve had to have seen him if he just strolled back home in a daze. And…if it wasn’t the front gate, then…surely there would be signs of scuff and dirt if he’d climbed over the walls or something. 

But that still didn’t explain his shoulder…

That healed. 

Blinking, Doppio looked up. “...Angelo?”

She still didn’t appear. “I’ve been calling to her too.” Arven whispered, “She won’t answer.”

“I know the chibi once disappeared into Kaito to ensure that his injuries from the tree fall wouldn’t break him.” Shuichi mused, “Perhaps she’s the reason your shoulder is healed, Doppio? It could be Amaina is inside of you right now performing maintenance, the way she had Kaito.”

Arven frowned. “What, from the tree fall?”

Maki raised an eyebrow, “What, you didn’t know that? You think a guy can drop twenty feet and get kicked into the base of a tree without so much as a broken rib?”

“Well, he… landed on a backpack.” Arven explained, though saying it aloud, that sounded a tad bonkers to him now. “Aceto was okay.”

“Perhaps she did the same for him then too,” Shuichi guessed, “Or having a one hundred and sixty pound buffer of a person wrapped around you is a decent enough push cushion. Anyway, it follows her MO. She disappears, a person heals. Maybe she’s the reason you don’t remember today as well.”

That was…also worrying. Sure, Amaina had her own life, but…she usually gave them something if they called. Even if it was just to tell them to shut up because she was busy. And if Arven had been calling…a-and surely Amaina would be able to tell how scared he was…

(He didn’t like this)

Doppio looked over at Maki and Shuuichi in surprise…though Amaina’s healing abilities weren’t news. But not like…

“...no, she sings a song and kisses me to heal me,” Doppio said softly. “And…I asked her not to anymore, since I got worried about her giving so much power to me. She’s always seemed okay, but…that’s what she is, I think. I don’t want to hurt her…” Or ever see her hurt. 

“And Amaina’s never done stuff with my memory. S-sometimes she tells fun stories when I can’t remember stuff, but…she’s never been the reason for it.”

“We’ll ask Kokichi to reach out to her,” Maki decided, scowling, “I swear, she better still ‘exist’. If I see that look on his face one more time, I’m forbidding him from using empath powers from now on.”

Shuichi smirked tiredly at that, “I don’t think that’s your call to make, Maki.”

“Watch me.” Maki huffed, turning to the boys, “Are either of you hungry? The question’s  a formality, you’re going to eat soon.”

A tremor went through Doppio’s body as he scrunched his eyes shut, his heart pounding as it felt like it was going to fall apart. Angel please be alright… He didn’t know what happened to him, but if anything happened to her because of it…

A small whimper cracking through his throat as he clutched Arven tighter, Doppio shrugged shallowly. “...sure…”

There was a small knock on the door before a tired-looking Kokichi walked back in with Kaito, worriedly looking at the boys before he sighed. “The search is called off. I said that you’d fallen asleep in a hollow bush in the garden, Doppio, and have a bit of a chill so that’s why we’re keeping an eye on you.”

There was a small, comprehending hum muffled by Arven’s shoulder. 

Maki might have thought of food by now, but it was Kaito who had asked Kokichi for the detour, grabbing two plates from the dinner course, bringing it up in a tray. Kaito felt as tired as Kokichi looked, but walking with his husband had helped as Kaito threw a grin onto his face, bringing over the tray, “Hey, there he is~ alright, I have food and some warm drinks! I figured after a day like today, some cocoa might be nice? But also try to drink the water too guys, it’ll help.”

Kaito put the tray on the desk next to the boys, before squatting down, peering at Doppio, who was still tucked into Arven. “Status report?” Kaito idly called out.

“He’s uninjured, to the point where I’d say he’s newly healed.” Maki called, “No signs of dehydration or delirium, nothing to suggest he’s sick or starving.”

“His memory seems to end at breakfast this morning,” Shuichi said,  “No further clues as to where he might have been, though his clothes don’t have any signs of travel at all.”

“Breakfast?” Kaito asked, blinking tiredly… before he grinned at Doppio, “Oh noooo, does that mean you don’t remember Tim riding Chief? That’s tragic, please tell me you do. It was so cute, you looked dazzled.”

Food always made things better, and…admittedly? Smelling the plates Kaito brought up (smelled like a braised, mixed rice dish, though with something extra buttery so…maybe a stuffed bread too) did make his stomach pipe up a bit. Not terribly, he didn’t feel starving or anything but just…normally hungry. 

…but eating would mean letting go of Arven. 

Hydrated, sated, uninjured, clean… He seemed perfectly fine…

Doppio peeked up at Kaito, before glancing skeptically at Arven. “...isn’t…Tim too big to ride Chief?”

“He had to scrunch up, but Chief was weirdly ready to carry the weight.” Arven admitted, “I was a bit jealous he could do it, honestly.”

“It was so cute, Doppio,” Kaito grinned, “He was all scrunchy and cute and warm on Chief’s back, my guy refusing to wake up for school, but Chief was so strong and confident beneath him. And Chase was running around in circles around them, I think she was jealous she wasn’t big enough for Tim to ride her. Totally adorable.”

Maki whispered to Kokichi the request, sitting him down, “Or at least get one of your friends to do it,” She insisted, “Make that golden walking rug earn their keep.”

Doppio hugged around Arven’s waist, his eyes crinkling a little. “...that sounds incredible. I wish I remembered that… Riding on Chief sounds like a fantasy…”

Sighing softly, Doppio rested his head back on Arven’s shoulder. Feeling…a little embarrassed, which was probably a good sign, all things considered, but… He whispered in Arven’s ear, “...do you think we could manage to eat with you still in my lap?”

Kokichi nodded gently, smiling faintly. “I might ask Alter Ego if it turns out to be something bigger, but…I’m grateful for their help already.” Even if everything Kokichi had gotten back from his friends was similarly nothing. 

Taking a deep breath, Kokichi tried to calm himself. He didn’t want to frighten Miku unnecessarily if it was just that Amaina was in a different mind right now. Still a little worried, and tinged with the sort of relief that only came after dodging disaster, he reached out. 

{Heya, are you doing alright? We had a bit of a scare with Doppio-kun today, and the boys are worried that Amaina-chan hasn’t responded to them. I just wanted to check in if things were okay on your end.}

-

Miku was snoring, feeling a little worn down. Drooling as she clung to her pillow, lightly kicking the air. Having a funky dream about… the forest? Walking through the forest? But also the desert…

-

-_-

O.O

It was like Amaina was suddenly looking back at Kokichi. But larger. Far larger than she had been before, peering inside of Kokichi’s mind like each eye was a massive search light. 

O.O

OoO 

I ‘ M  B U S Y

{The person was still walking. They didn’t know where they were. They weren’t sure how they had ended up in a desert. All they could do was keep walking and hope they hit somewhere.}

{They went moving, moving, moving, forward, through the forest, towards the mountain.}

{Good luck, Amaina-chan. The boys are worried about you.}

Opening his eyes, Kokichi gave Maki a complicated look, before speaking up to the room. “Amaina-chan is okay. She said she’s busy, but…I hope I wasn’t intruding too much to let her know that you two are thinking of her.”

Doppio peeked over at Kokichi, his eyes wide, before he sagged, holding Arven tighter. “...s’good, ‘zie Kokichi…”

If she was okay, then…good. He hadn’t… He didn’t even know. 

Kaito glanced over at Kokichi, trying to make a judgment call if Kokichi needed him. His husband seemed okay… “Okay,” Kaito grinned, clapping his hand together, “Now, I know, Doppio, Arven, you’re both okay. But. I’m a little frazzled from looking for you today. So, for my nerves, would you be alright spending the night tonight?”

“Kaito, can I talk to you?” Shuichi called.

Kaito winced, before clarifying, “In the nursery! Just… next door? Just in the hall, just for tonight.”

“Kaito, there’s no difference between here and on the first floor.” Shuichi insisted.

“There is a thiiiin difference,” Kaito murmured, bringing his hands together and peering through the gap, “It’s about this big… and it’s functioning as the laaaaast line of my fraying nerves.”

Arven pouted at Kaito a bit, adjusting himself on Doppio’s lap, before reaching out for the tray of food, “Let us think about it while we eat.”

“Fair enough!” Kaito grinned, standing up and looking around, “Is my baby awake and needing cuddles?”

“No,” Shuichi said.

“Well, shoot.” Kaito laughed, “‘Kichi, I need snuggles!”

Doppio frowned a little at Kaito. As much as he did get it… And as much as being by people felt like what he needed right then? Thinking through actually spending the night with the princes, or even in Miyako’s nursery was…weird. But…

Thankfully, Arven being the true little king he was gave them an out for the time being. Doppio gave him a little squeeze and a weak, yet grateful smile as he took the curved plate Arven passed over, taking a deep breath. Mmm… He was…definitely going to eat this whole thing. And all of the herby cheesy bread Kaito had gotten too. 

Seeing the boys start to eat, Kokichi let out another little sigh of relief before he grinned lovingly at Kaito and opened his arms, patting the area next to him on the bed. “Good, because I’d like some too. C’mere, hun.”

“Good. Augh.” Kaito groaned, laying out next to Kokichi and wrapping his arm around his husband waist, pulling him close for a moment… before peeking over his shoulder. Double checking that the boys were still there. Yeah? Good. Oooof.

Shuichi and Maki went off to the corner to talk quietly to each other, debating how to handle this situation in the future. Maki was advocating a collar with a bell on it, and Shuichi was counter-arguing a collar with a flashing light instead.

“...but seriously,” Shuichi sighed, “...maybe a temporary bodyguard? At least until the trial is over?”

“If it’s temporary, it might as well be me.” Maki said, rolling her eyes, “God knows we don’t need another series of trials.”

“You’re right.” Shuichi said.

“...”

“...”

“...ugh, great,” Maki muttered, “Guess I’m out of retirement.”

“Maki, you’re 23, you can’t be retired.” 

“I was certainly going to try.”

Kaito listened to the boys eat and whisper to each other, and blinked tiredly. He’d have liked to have hugged Doppio by now, but… it didn’t feel fair. The guy couldn’t even remember the fight, apparently. So… well. It was only Kaito who knew they were fighting. So… yeah. It’d be shitty for Kaito to grab him. Not when Doppio didn’t know he was angry at Kaito.

So, well…. Well… yeah.

“...you okay?” Arven whispered, after he and Doppio had gone through some of the food, sipping on their cocoa. 

Smiling, Kokichi waited until Kaito was settled before shifting slightly, leaning over to kiss Kaito’s shoulder before gently running his fingers over the bristly shaved parts of his hair, then through the longer top. Not trying to work through any tangles, but just maintaining a soothing rhythm. Every now and then tracing his thumb along the shell of Kaito’s ear. 

…for a while there…Kokichi thought that a child in his care had died. And just that was bad enough, but… Doppio wasn’t his kid, but Kokichi had still grown to care about him quite a lot. The thought of Doppio just being…gone. Kokichi took a deep breath and let his nails gently graze Kaito’s scalp. 

Kaito wasn’t the only one starting to see parallels between himself and Aiichi. 

One arm back around Arven once plates were no longer an issue, Doppio glanced up at his boyfriend and, after a moment of thought, he nodded against Arven’s shoulder. “...I think so,” he whispered back. Looking pointedly to his hand holding his cocoa mug, he smiled thinly. “I’m not shaking anymore, so that’s…something.”

“...are you?”

“No,” Arven said plainly, his expression growing grim… before he leaned forward to kiss Doppio’s cheek, “But I’ll feel better soon. I wanted to turn this city upside down. I was actually really mad that I couldn’t just…” Arven pouted, taking his bread and flipping it, glaring at it, “Do that, to every building. Shake you out of it. It was so…”

Arven deflated, “Scary. I didn’t know what we were going to do if we couldn’t find you. The cities never seemed so big before…”

Doppio’s eyes lowered in guilt and sadness, and he reached over to cup Arven’s cheek. Just tracing his cheekbone for a moment before leaning in, giving his boyfriend his own cheek kiss, but then staying in proximity, tilting his head into Arven’s. “...I’m sorry. I never want to scare you, especially like this…”

He attempted a small smile. “...at least we’re spending all of tomorrow together, right? I… I know this sucks and…I feel like I…” He sighed. “...I really want to make your birthday amazing tomorrow. …I’m sorry.”

“Yeah… is your shoulder really alright?” Arven frowned, “How? Did Amaina heal you?”

Doppio frowned. “I hope she didn’t… But…yeah. It feels totally fine.” His brow furrowed and his lips scrunched a bit, and speaking even more quietly, he admitted, “Um…better than fine, actually. When I woke up, I didn’t have any muscle tension there at all. Like…physically? Other than the shaking…I feel perfect.”

Arven sighed, “That’s wild… I can’t believe that at this point, we really have no idea what happened, and we might just… not know?” Arven frowned, “... I guess this is just something that might happen sometimes? I hope I don’t get to a point where you’re missing for a day and that’s just… normal?”

Arven huffed, looking frustrated… before leaning against Doppio, “Well, I guess as long as you always come back? That’s enough.”

Doppio’s face scrunched a little more and he held Arven closer. “I don’t want to… I’d rather not…ever be missing if I can help it. I don’t want to worry people…and I don’t like the thought of just…being some mystery place. Even if I end up okay from it…”

“...but I’d always want to come back to you. No matter what,” Doppio murmured, nuzzling against Arven’s collarbone a bit. 

“...” Kaito blinked against Kokichi’s hair, before glancing over his shoulder again, checking on the boys, before laying down again, “...okay, hey, what do you think about, like… locks outside bedroom doors?” Kaito whispered, blinking tiredly, “I’m pretty sure, if I can convince those boys to go into the nursery, that I can get a locksmith here before morning, and lock them in. This…” Kaito nodded, “This feels like a fool-proof plan with no downsides.”

Kokichi had increased his little massage down to Kaito’s neck, trying to soothe the tension there…or just be a comforting touch, at the very least. “I feel like there’s some fire hazard code that would beg to differ. As well as keeping them from reaching out to us if they need something. Putting a lock on the nursery would actually be keeping them farther away than letting them sleep in their room normally, I think.”

“Tsk. Fine,” Kaito scoffed, “How about… we cuff them together? They can get the key in, mmm… a year?” Kaito paused, “...nah, two years.”

“I think,” Kokichi smirked, “you are asking for ‘shenanigans’ with that solution. Not that I think they’d mind, until it was time to change clothes or use the bathroom.”

“You know…” Kaito leaned in, glancing over his shoulder, before whispering to Kokichi, “I don’t think they’re actually having sex?? It’s been weeks. How are they not having sex?? I think the longest I ever waited to have sex with my partner was…”

Kaito paused, thinking about it, “...I don’t think I’ve ever dated someone before I slept with them the first time,” He realized, “I do not understand how they’re waiting.”

“I am not going to speculate on their sex lives like that,” Kokichi whispered back. “It’s their business, and I only care if they’re being safe. And…” Kokichi huffed a small smile. “...I’m one too. But I think you might be an outlier on that, hun. I think it’s pretty normal to date before doing anything sexual, especially at their ages. I’d think there wouldn’t be anything special to the term ‘one night stand’ if people regularly had sex with strangers, before turning those strangers into friends or partners.”

“You’re not wrong about that,” Kaito murmured, rubbing his thumb along Kokichi’s waist, “...but it was a very efficient way of figuring out if they were interested in me.”

Kaito looked up to check on them again, before letting his head flop down. “...I haven’t felt like this since you disappeared at the carnival. Which is dumb, it’s so different, it’s not like he was in mortal danger or anything, I just… I was the last one to see him again. And I just…” Kaito bit his lower lip, gnawing on it, “...I just look away from you guys and you’re gone. And I just… in hindsight, it’s so obvious… and I don’t even know why I feel like that right now. He’s fine, he probably stayed out late because he was pissed at me and his brain stressed out on him, it’s not the same as what happened to you, but I think I just…” Kaito gripped Kokichi’s shirt, “...it just feels like back then. Things kept happening to you, to everyone, and I could only just… try to clean up the aftermath…”

Kaito closed his eyes, “...oh shit, I might be freaking out a little. I might need to go see Miss Crystal again, or, at least just sit in my shrine for a bit. Maybe that one, I literally just saw her yesterday. Um… can I lock them in my shrine? I’m going to lock all of you in my shrine, that feels like a solution…”

Kokichi’s expression pinched as he nodded a bit. It was different, since he was on the other side of it, but…he completely got what Kaito meant. Just…the utter panic of someone going missing. And while Doppio might’ve not been in danger…the fact that Kokichi hadn’t been able to sense him? Sure, it was harder to feel him when he was dissociating, because Doppio quite literally was dissociating from his feelings and perceptions, but…he was still…not nothing. 

…but maybe being as far away as he was, if his brain went out on him… Maybe…

“I think,” Kokichi said softly, “feeling like you want to lock us away, so nothing bad ever happens is a sign you should check in with Miss Crystal. Honestly I’m going to see if Dr. Egami has an afternoon opening I can get in on, hopefully tomorrow.”

Considering that the official story was now that Doppio had just hidden for a while, and that his father was being tried for more than just his abuse, the trial would still continue tomorrow. So…Kokichi would be there. But a scare like this definitely warranted an emotional check-in. 

“...it’s scary,” Kokichi whispered to Kaito, rubbing his thumb over his forehead, like he did with Miyako. “He’s fine, and probably was fine…but scary things have happened when we couldn’t find people in the past. So it makes sense why it scares us. That’s not a grand mystery. It just means that…we’re scared. So we do stuff like this, staying with our loved ones and calming in their presence. And talking with someone who can help us think through the long-term scariness. And maybe being a little overbearing checking in with each other for a while,” Kokichi grinned softly. “...but these feelings will pass, and it’ll be okay.”

“Yeah…” Kaito closed his eyes, holding Kokichi close, enjoying the feeling of Kokichi’s hand in his hair, his thumb over his forehead. It was one thing he really liked about the new haircut. He liked the feeling of fingers through his hair, “...I love you. Thank you for being strong. I hated the fear on your face, but… I was proud that you did it. My brave Ouma…”

Kokichi’s expression softened. “I love you too, Kai-chan. I know it’s something you never would even dream of not doing…but I’m happy you stayed with Arven while you searched. Always keeping people moving forward. …I just hope we don’t have to go through something like this again.”

Leaning forward, he kissed Kaito’s forehead before sighing, looking up at the boys. It looked like they were done eating and had resumed full cuddle positioning. “...Arven, Doppio? How are you two feeling now?”

Tilting his head, Doppio looked over, clearly looking a little sleepy now. “...better.”

“Mmm,” Arven hummed too, eyes closed as he rested against Doppio’s previously injured shoulder.

Kaito looked up and peeked… before whispering to Kokichi, “Shhhhh, if they fall asleep, I don’t even have to lock them in anywhere. It’s foolproof.”

Kokichi smiled fondly, before taking in the boys’ positioning. “...sleeping like that is going to ruin their backs. And Arven’s knees. And…I’m not entirely sure that Doppio’s legs haven’t already fallen asleep.”

Kaito whined, took a deep breath… before grunting as he detangled himself, sitting up. “Fine, but I’m walking them there. And I’m… I don’t know, I’m pushing a damn bookcase in front of their door–”

“I’ll watch their window tonight.” Maki said.

Kaito stiffened. Looking, briefly, like he wanted to argue, concerned for her… before Kaito sighed, “Thank you, Maki.” he said, before turning to the boys, “Alright, you two, pull yourselves together. Your Ouma and my Maki, not to mention the needling of my Lord Saihara–”

“Ooooh, he’s grumpy at me.” Shuichi whispered to Maki, who nodded.

“--has convinced me you two will be okay in your own rooms… or, or, hear me out! I could pull the mattress from the nursery in here! Put it down in front of the crib! Plenty of space, really!” Kaito said, looking genuinely earnest.

Doppio blinked sleepily up at Kaito, his arms tightening a little around Arven. “...no thanks. Just wanna go back to our own room.” And…not be watched by Kaito all night. Or be in the same room as almost the whole royal family for a night. And with a baby. 

…plus he wanted to wash his face. 

Pretty much…unable to get up until Arven did, Doppio regarded Kaito with a complicated expression for a few moments. “...I don’t remember us fighting. But…I’m sorry that it happened. And that it was the last thing that happened before all this.”

“It probably needed to happen. You sounded like you had a lot to get off your chest.” Kaito admitted, “It’s actually a shame you don’t remember doing it. I won’t pretend I handled it well, but half of fighting is just venting feelings anyway. It’d have been nice if you had gotten to keep that.”

Kaito scratched the back of his neck… before smirking, “Well, knowing us, you’ll get another chance. I am very annoying, all the time. I’m sure I’ll give you another excuse.”

Maki rolled her eyes at that, getting up and, seeing Arven was perfectly content keeping everyone waiting, headed over and pinched his ear. “Come on.”

“Ooooow,” Arven whined, rubbing his ear and getting up, muttering, “Being around you people is a hazard.” As he took Doppio’s hand and headed to the door.

“I’m still coming, want to make sure you all get there safe! Alright, Kokichi, Shuichi, I’ll be back in a second. Neeeeeither of you two go anywhere. Cool? Cool! Gonna check on Tim before I come back!”

“Then you’re taking your medicine!” Shuichi called as Kaito closed the door. “I’m gonna force that medicine down his throat. He is not staying up to do his night checks.”

Doppio offered an awkward smile. He wasn’t too prideful to admit that some of his arguments with Kaito had been…pretty much entirely his fault. But some of them really were genuine and…well, he had no way of knowing which one this was. But at least Kaito didn’t seem that hurt by it, so…it was probably a better fight. 

…or Kaito was just too freaked out by him going missing that he was willing to just ignore everything that happened. But Doppio couldn’t prove that either. 

Following Arven to the door--wincing a little as he kind of tottered, Kokichi’s speculation that his legs had fallen asleep spot on--Doppio yawned as they went out to the hall. 

Kokichi sighed a little, glancing at Shuuichi, but nodded in agreement. The worry was intense, but Kaito losing out on sleep would definitely just make it worse, even if it felt worse in the moment.

-

It was actually easier to fall asleep than Arven might have guessed before they settled down. There had been a lot of adrenaline that day, even if the memory of that adrenaline was rather brief for Doppio, and both of them had been basically half asleep after being herded to their room by Kaito and Maki.

Arven had heard Kaito field some questions by a few concerned passerbys on his way out– no, you heard right, Doppio was found, he’s fine, kid just needed some time to himself and had no idea people were looking for him– and Arven thought he would stay awake and chat with Doppio a bit when his boyfriend headed to the bathroom. But in reality, his lights went out almost as soon as his head hit the pillow. It had been a long day.

He probably could have slept till morning and then later into that day, birthday or not. But a sound he couldn’t identify in his haze of sleep woke him. “Hmph?”

Doppio was curled on his side, hands over his mouth as he heaved choked breaths, eyes wide but unseeing. 

More often than not, Doppio did just sleep straight through the night, and especially since staying with Arven, his sleep had been calm and restful and even better always waking up to his favorite person. But…maybe it was just the stress of the day, even if he couldn’t remember a lot of it, or just his luck running out. 

All Doppio knew were the shocks of terror running through his body once more, forming a cold pit in his stomach as he gasped into his hands, poorly trying to muffle any sounds while his eyes filled with frightened tears. The feeling of pure danger and…and failure shocking through him. 

“Aceto?” Arven murmured sleepily, shifting onto his elbows, his hair hanging into his face for a moment before he pushed it back, alarmed at Doppio’s obvious, well… alarm. “Hey… what’s happened? Are you feeling sick?”

He asked this because while he could tell Doppio was alarmed, he wasn’t sure if he had seen his boyfriend this particular kind of panicked before. Doppio’s heaving into his hands set off the ‘nausea’ warning for Arven, though even as he said it he knew that wasn’t going to be quite right as he sat up, “Did something happen?”

A violent flinch went through Doppio’s body. 

(someonebehindyoubehindyouAcetoLOOKOUTalwayscheckblindcornershedidn’thedidn’tleftalliesdangerousaloneBEHINDYOU!!)

The pants started to include frightened, whimpery little, “...hah, hah,”s as Doppio turned around, the movement more of a thrash as he looked up at Arven. Just terrified for a moment before a scared sob ripped out of Doppio’s throat and he launched himself into his boyfriend’s chest. He desperately clutched Arven’s shirt, for the second time that night crying into him. 

“Oof,” Arven whispered, catching Doppio but falling backwards onto the pillow. Still, that didn’t dissuade him from immediately wrapping his arms around his boyfriend, holding him tightly. 

For a moment there, Doppio had looked wild. Like he didn’t entirely know where he was. But any unease that might have inspired was quickly overwritten by concern as Arven felt Doppio sob into his chest. “A-aceto, it’s okay? You’re okay?” Arven tried to reassure, though he couldn’t help but let it be a question. Because Doppio certainly didn’t look okay. His boyfriend looked terrified, and Arven still wasn’t entirely sure why as he looked around. “M-Maki’s watching outside, remember? You’re safe?”

“Uuaaaahaaaaug!” Doppio wailed into Arven’s chest, curling into him. Somewhere in the back of his mind he registered the worry in Arven’s tone, but there was no chance of him even acknowledging it in the slightest. All he knew was fear, and a safe person right there that was the only possible option for…anything. 

(Doppio had learned quickly that going to his father after nightmares was an exercise in futility. But that didn’t mean the impulse wasn’t there, to scamper and press to someone that was safe.)

“Maahaaaawaaaa!” Doppio continued to cry, almost rivaling Miyako a bit with just sheer incomprehensible wailing. 

Arven floundered a bit, not sure what would make Doppio feel better. His boyfriend was in hysterics. Still, all Arven could think to do was to hold him. “I’m sorry,” he whispered, because it felt like the only thing to say in the face of Doppio’s fear and heartbreak, “I’m sorry. You’re okay.”

Arven couldn’t help how his chest tightened up with grief, and his own eyes reddened. He was far from the most empathetic person around, but Doppio had always proven to be an exception to that for him. It felt like a physical blow, Doppio’s pain. Arven hoped Doppio wouldn’t notice his own tears on the top of his head, as he kept trying to be reassuring, “You’re safe. You’re here. It’s okay.”

And Arven blinked, and they were somewhere else.

He had never seen a place exactly like this before. It looked like a long green field, with mountains bordering the distance, and large, red trees, whose leaves shimmered golden when the wind blew through them. There were horses running in the distance, and Arven in his startled scan of the area noticed a fox sniffing the air, before darting around a tree. There was a golden glow over everything, the sun setting for the night.

Arven, partly by instinct and mostly by habit, immediately assumed this meant Amaina was here… but he startled when a women huffed to his left, past where Doppio was clinging to him, before she flumped back onto the slight hill they were laying against. “Quiet your man baby senpai he is being too loooouuud,” the blue haired girl whined, pouting as she stretched against the hill, before sticking out her tongue, “Blegh.”

Doppio didn’t really notice the scenery change, too busy crying his eyes out, but…between the soft reassurances and, eventually, the breeze around them and the taste of grass and woods in his mouth (as his nose was pretty clogged by this point), Doppio quieted slightly, hiccuping into Arven’s chest. Again, though, he flinched at the sound of someone behind him and he held Arven closer, whimpering into him. 

“Amaina, I think you’re scaring him,” Arven whispered– because he recognized her now. This is what she looked like when they had danced– cuddling Doppio to him and sighing a bit, his own tears drying on his face a little, “You can’t just brain-knap us whenever you want.”

“I soooooo can.” Amaina said, gesturing vaguely up and around at everything, “LOOK AT YA! KNAPPED!”

Arven sighed, curling around Doppio more, murmuring, “It’s okay. Hey, look, Amaina’s here. She’s safe… Amaina, where the heck were you? We were worried, and I really could have used your help finding Doppio earlier.”

Amaina didn’t say anything to that. Just laid out on the grass, staring at the orange and pink shifting classes.

Arven and Amaina. A big open space, the taste and sounds and feelings of nature around them. 

(Safe, you’re safe, it was just a dream, your friends are here.)

(Was it?)

Sniffling through more hiccups, Doppio didn’t even try to look up, but his arms did relax around Arven slightly, gently rubbing down the parts he wasn’t sure if he’d clutched too hard on. He didn’t want to hurt Arven…

“M’sorry,” Doppio softly sniffled. 

“It’s okay!” Arven said, startled at Doppio’s apology. He didn’t really know what Doppio had to be sorry for. It was Arven who couldn’t figure out what his boyfriend needed right then. “It’s okay… did you have a nightmare?”

There was a deep, snotty sniffle as Doppio nodded a bit into Arven’s chest. “Mhmm… M’sorry f-for waking you up…’n-’n scaring you…”

“Oh, no, that’s… don’t apologize for that?” Arven frowned, resting his chin on top of Doppio’s head, “That feels bad to be apologized to, for. Like I did something wrong, if you don’t think it’s okay to wake me up when you’re upset. You know?”

Doppio just made a small wounded sound at that. Feeling like that was wrong, and so he was wrong…but calming down enough to know that Arven did have a point. And just…not having the words to express that, so the noise it was. 

More gently, he circled his arms around Arven’s waist. Sniffling and letting go of a shaky sigh that still hitched a few times. “...I-I don’t remember what I was dreaming…s-sorry. M…you’re probably tired…”

“I mean, now I’m not,” Arven huffed, leaning back into the hill, bringing Doppio down with him, “I am soooo awake now. Phew…”

Amaina flipped onto her stomach, kicking her legs in the air with slow, easy swings. She rested her head in her arms, her hair pooling around her shoulders. “...you’re real dumb.” She told Doppio. Reaching over to poke his forehead. “Sooooooo dumb. Liiiiiiike the dumbest man alive! You’re dumb.”

“Amaina,” Arven frowned, “Doppio’s had a rough day, could you stop?”

“Dumb~ Dumb~ Dumb~” Amaina sang-song, poking Doppio some more.

Another apology got muffled into Arven’s chest, though he didn’t make any movements to keep his arms from being trapped under Arven’s back, or from his legs getting jostled to the side. Though, that did make it so he was facing Amaina.

Peeking up and barely blinking at her different appearance (wasn’t it tiring for her to be big?), Doppio sniffed and nodded a bit, agreeing with her. 

Dumb. 

Useless. 

Crybaby that just made trouble for everyone else…

“Amaina, knock it off!” Arven insisted, whacking Amaina’s hand away from poking Doppio again, “You’re being an ass!”

“He died.” Amaina said. Her hand hanging in the air, her expression large and empty, “I watched. It was soooooooooooo,” she let the word linger, blinking, “dumb.”

“...he what?” Arven whispered.

“He died~” Amaina softly sang-song, reaching over to poke Doppio again, “I watched. It was…” Amaina blinked again… before her face suddenly thundered. Her hair shifting to red, along with her eyes, as she shouted, “SO DUMB?? WHAT I GET YOU THE UPGRADE FOR IF YOUR GONNA WALK AWAY THE DAY THINGS ARE WEEIRD?? I LITERALLY PICKED THE GUY WITH BICEPS THE SIZE OF YOUR HEAD! DID YOU THINK I PICKED HIM FOR HIS TRIANGLE CHEST??”

Poking Doppio’s forehead rapidly, steam rising from the spot, she insisted, “STOP BEING DUMB! STOP DYING!”

Doppio blinked, that just…not processing. 

He…

Died?

But that wasn’t… People, when then they died… They…

Doppio’s eyes widened in the face of Amaina’s fury, shrinking back a little and…honestly feeling a little scared. Taking her shouts with wide eyes before--

ಥ~ಥ

இAஇ

Fat tears welled up in Doppio’s eyes again as the starting signs of wailing revved up in his throat. 

(╬ Ò ‸ Ó)

<(｀^´)>

｡゜(｀Д´)゜｡”STOP CRYING YOU BIG STUPID JERK WHAT ARE YOU CRYING FOR YOU WERE BARELY THERE FOR IT!”

Arven was still trying to process what she was saying too, as he helplessly watched an angry Amaina shout and batter-poke a sobbing, wailing Doppio. This was… a lot. Arven did not know how to calm this down. “Uuuuuh,” He murmured, looking between them. 

A strangled shriek cried out of Doppio as he just shrank and wailed under Amaina’s barrage, crying like…well. Someone that had died. Someone that was being yelled at by their best friend. A young child with a fear so much greater than them. He could barely even manage any sort of sounds, everything being taken over by his sobs.

Amaina, in many ways, was a bit of a child herself. And Doppio’s wails just continued to enrage Amaina, who had watched her best friend die in front of her without a chance to save him. And then he had the audacity to STAY DEAD. ALL DAY! WHAT THE FUCK!??

So as Amaina continued to pummel Doppio and Doppio continued to wail, Arven finally shakily called out, “M-Maki? Help?”

It was weird. He called for Maki because he knew she was there. But in truth he kind of wanted Kaito in that moment. Kaito didn’t always know what to do, but he did always do something, and Arven felt lost and overwhelmed, and he kind of just wanted someone to come in and fix this situation. Cause it was just getting to a point where he wanted to curl around Chief and just wait it out until everything was less overwhelming. 

And indeed, he heard the sound of a window open, and when he blinked, for a moment, he saw their room again. Chief licking Maki’s hands, while she stared at them on the bed… and when he blinked again, Maki was still there, but they were back in the field. Maki having been pulled in, apparently.

Maki, in turn, looked less than pleased by this. “...Amaina, this you?” Maki said, gesturing to the field, “Turn it off, I can’t see.”

(ᗒᗣᗕ)՞ “NOOOOOO I WANNA STAY HERE I WANNA STAY WHERE I’M POWER WE’RE ALL STAYING HERE!!!!-- eep. omo;;”

It was always the risk, of tapping into Maki’s mind. The sky went redder, and Maki’s eyes seemed to glow as she stared at Amaina. “Amaina,” she said, the temperature rising, “I can’t see.”

Behind her, one of the mountains, ever so subtly, shifted.

And with that, the room popped back. And Amaina, small again, huddled into Doppio’s chest, their expressions matching. இAஇ Weh

Maki looked at the two– well, really three, though Arven wasn’t full on wailing– sobbing children, irritated. Why did she always get the crying kids? Kaito always got them when they needed simple things, like rescuing or a pep talk or a body to physically tackle. Why did Maki always get the sobbers? Ugh. “Someone explain to me what’s happening.”

“Th-they’re… sad?” Arven tried, shaking like a leaf.

“... fine.” Maki said, “You all have too much energy, apparently. Get up. Get dressed. We’re going out.”

At first, Doppio barely registered Maki’s presence, but, well. Especially in the realm of the mind, Maki was difficult to ignore. And at that rush of heat, the kind that could char bones…just like that room in the haunted house, a kind of inferno so all-encompassing that only ash could remain, Doppio’s voice cut out. His chest still heaving and his tears still pouring, but his throat just clicking. 

(Remembering a threat etched into the insides of his skull like a bad sunburn.)

Doppio could barely bring a hand around Amaina, his body both like jelly and stuck stiff as he quivered. Hearing Maki, but not really hearing her. Because--

(̰̖̇̋͗̇͑͘h̵̨̛̥̼̲̫̉͛̒͠͝ḙ̵͈͂̌́̋̿̏͋ͅ’̴̬̝͍͆̽͛ͅd̷̟̠͊̏͗͝d̷͉̖͚̗̳͑̀i̵̘̤͔̥͑̀̊͊̿ͅė͔̭̭͂̎̔͏̛͍̋d̵͔͛̄͏̟̬̲̏h͕͛͏̡̮͊è̸̫͙̟̭̳̻͂̏̚’̶̢͕̭͂̿̀͛͗͝͞͠d̛̯̉̎̅̊ḋ̜̟͎̥̍̐͢͝ͅì̶̶͇̠̺̯̋͞ệ̤̣̺̲̏̀̋̕d̮͍͖̭̝̽̀̉h̨̓̏̑̉̕e̴͈̅͏̧͉̤̈́́͌w̢͚̰̱̻̒a̶̵̛̩̦̅̃̈̈́̈̌s̢̥̹͕̪̿͡͠d̡̮͓̼̎̐e̼̹͗̆̃ͅą̥̠̙̱̆͑͋̕ḓ̩̯͖̹̃̆͑he’d--

“MIAO,” a loud meow insisted, an orange furry head cocking as the cat sat on the open window sill. The green eyes a little too wide, even for seeing in the dark. 

(“What do you mean you can’t find him?” It was rare Firenze’s voice actually sounded stressed out. 

“There were no souls waiting for pick up out there,” Lazaro had repeated, blowing out smoke on their balcony, only the slightest narrowing of his eyes giving a mild warning to Firenze. The cat wasn’t shouting at him, and it would remain that way. “No one hanging, no one in distress. Nothing anywhere else, either.”

“I couldn’t see him.”

And that just distressed Firenze even more.)

Hopping down from the sill, the cat nudged Chief--c’mon, old guy, your boy needs you--before just hoping to walk past Maki, hopping on the bed to nose at Doppio’s tears. Provoking a small gasp from the boy, though, ever sweet, he did briefly cup a hand around the cat’s head, before returning to hold around air.

“And now there’s a cat.” Maki said, narrowing her eyes. What was the chance it was just a cat? Not high. Frankly, Maki didn’t trust any coincidence these days. A cat shows up the second Doppio’s having some sort of meltdown alongside his mind friend? Yeah, bullshit. “...Chief, don’t get comfortable. You’re all going on a walk.”

Chief whined, nuzzling into Arven’s lap, flopping his way alongside Doppio. Arven, still trembling, worriedly started to pet Chief, his other arm still around Doppio. 

Maki’s eyes narrowed further as she saw no one getting up… before she sat down at the edge of the bed. Giving them all a stern look. “I’m not being cruel. Tears are its own sort of adrenaline. And they’re more exhausting than actually moving around is. You can sob yourself to sleep tonight if your heart is set on it, I can’t force you to go. But you’ll go to sleep dehydrated and exhausted, and wake up feeling like death tomorrow. Walking will get rid of that energy cleaner.”

Feel like death… Arven blinked. Tears trickling down his face. “Amaian says Doppio died.”

“...the first time is always hardest.” Maki said, “Get dressed.”

Firenze’s ears flicked. Yeah, yeah, this was way more obvious than he usually would ever dream of being. But…peh, call him a sucker, he’d grown fond of the kids. And after looking for Doppio all day, seeing the frantic panic on Kaito and Arven, and even other folks in the castle… What, he wasn’t just going to leave a kid to cry his heart out! 

…even if he had every reason to. 

He’d found that blood splatter, and while he was no bloodhound, Doppio was distinctive. But when the kid showed up with better connected pieces even than he’d left with… That’s why he’d gone to Lazaro after being dismissed by Kaito for the night. If anyone knew about soul fuckery going on, it’d be Laz…but he didn’t know either. 

Heh, guy was going soft. He didn’t even need to tell Firenze to go back and spend the night at the castle, keeping an eye on the kid, and Lazzy wasn’t usually one to waste words. He knew they’d been contacted by the UAA, but, well… Firenze knew where he was placing his bet. 

Giving the kid’s wet cheeks a few rough licks, Firenze meowed again more softly…and Doppio sniffled. Clutching Arven tighter for a moment before shakily trying to sit up, still gasping around his tears a bit, even as they started to fall on Amaina with the change in gravity.

Maki was relentless, in her watching. Heavy with expectation, as the boys managed to pull together some clothes. Maki then said, “We’re going out through the window. No one else is entitled to your tears.” Before herding them out into the night air.

Then she took them walking.

It was a strange crowd. Doppio with his arms curled around a cat, somewhat lurching in his movements, while Arven walked slowly behind him, Chief at his heels as Arven kept worriedly looking at Doppio. 

Maki didn’t tell them where she was going. In truth, she didn’t have much of a plan beyond get them up and moving. But she knew a spot where there wasn’t going to be anyone else, there was a view, and more importantly, it was a bastard to get up it.

Maki wasn’t above developing her own habits. She took them to the watchtower.

She and Timothy had scaled up it, but she told the boys, “The doors blocked. At some point a boulder seemed to land in front of it. I say ‘boulder’, it’s about half the size of me.”

Maki looked to Doppio, “Can you get us in?”

Doppio…didn’t feel much better up and walking. His body felt shaky and like it wasn’t responding right, and he felt nauseous from all the crying. Which, while greatly toned down, as he wasn’t outright sobbing anymore, still existed in small tracks of tears coming down from his eyes every few lurching steps. His breath was heavy and stuttered, and especially as they walked through the more metropolitan areas of the city, it sped up as he shuffled closer to Arven. 

But…all the while the cat in his arms gently purred and rubbed his head on him, seeming to know perfectly when to almost headbutt Doppio with insistence whenever he started to get pulled back into his head. 

And by the time Maki stopped them, Doppio was left panting, looking between Maki and the huge rock in front of the tower. Just entirely uncomprehending before he blinked. Voice coming out in a rough whisper as he said, “...are you crazy? That’s gotta be…l-like 800 pounds or something…”

“I’d rather not hear excuses.” Maki said, giving Doppio a cool, even look, “You were the go-to errand man for an organization that demanded competence and efficiency. You can open a door. Get it done, Arven needs a break.”

“Me?” Arven asked, looking up. Lines starting to dip beneath his eyes, the adrenaline of… everything having started to drain out of him halfway through the walk. Sure, he was tired, but, “...you don’t have to worry about me. I can keep up.”

“I know you can. But your boyfriend can give you a break,” Maki said, looking back to Doppio, “So he should.”

Doppio continued to look at Maki like she was insane. Sure, he did a lot for Passione (everything ever asked of him) but…moving giant rocks wasn’t something that came up, really. (Moving bodies, maybe, but…)

A shudder went through Doppio’s body, though the purring by his ear revved up for a moment. 

He looked over at Arven, worry deepening in his eyes at what he saw. …even for years not celebrating…he was sure getting off to making this Arven’s worst birthday. Crying in the middle of the night, scaring the shit out of him… Who wanted a…a fucking dead boyfriend for your birthday…?

Another round of tears falling from Doppio’s eyes, he worried his lip and looked back at the stone…before giving Maki, Arven, and Amaina a worried, shy look. “...can you close your eyes for a sec?”

“It won’t make me easier to stab.” Maki warned him, before closing her eyes. 

“Um, sure.” Arven sighed, sitting down and leaning against Chief, closing his eyes.

O.O

. Amaina’s eyes literally disappeared from her head. Though honestly that was mostly performative. She was a ‘mind chick’, she didn’t see that way anyway. She just ignored what Doppio didn’t want her looking at… sometimes. When she remembered to.

…well, he didn’t say ‘cat close your eyes’, sooooo~

Doppio let out a little nervous breath and gave the cat a pet, before shifting to hold him with one arm. …he wasn’t sure if this would…work. Sure, he…kinda did something like it before, but…that was little and… He didn’t know. He hadn’t thought before grabbing that snitch. He just…hadn’t been able to let her threaten Arven…

Closing his eyes for a moment, Doppio put his palm on the boulder. Concentrating. That awful peeling feeling… But just fo̸͈̭͒̓̉r̡͎̥͔̬̃͟͝--

“Hh!!”

Doppio stumbled back, before landing hard on his ass, looking in astonishment as in an instant the rock became a large pile of sand. His palm stinging fiercely, like it’d been flayed. 

“Doppio?” Arven called out, worried as he heard his boyfriend yelp, “Are you okay?”

OoO Amaina gawked for a second, before remembering her eyes were closed, .o.

Maki tapped at her arm, resting on her hip. Waiting.

(workthroughitworkthroughityou’refineyoudon’t stop until the job is done)

“Y-you can open your eyes…” Doppio stuttered, voice tight as he shakily pushed himself up, refusing to look at his hand. Not noticing the curious gaze of the cat in his arms either…though the affectionate headbutt under his chin did help a little. 

Maki did so, looking around a moment. Confused… before noting the sand. Walking over to it and lightly running her heel through the sand, “...how on earth did someone manage to assassinate you?” Maki asked genuinely, “I wouldn’t risk it. You’re a bad job waiting to happen. Impressive.”

“Oh, woah…” Arven said, looking at the sand… before heading over to Doppio, wanting to help him up. Doppio was up before Arven managed to move, so Arven just compensated the desire by hugging Doppio. Resting his head on Doppio’s shoulder, “...wow.”

“Anyway, good work. Let’s get up there.” Maki said, before whistling. Chief’s tail wagged, and he bounded after her, Maki leading the way up the circling staircase inside.

The boys could take their time climbing, but Maki pushed aside the chair she had set up with the stacked clothes for Tim, all that time ago, dumping the clothes and taking the chair for herself, sitting in it with a huff as she rested her feet alongside the cumbled walls edge. The view was still as good as she remembered, at least. The moon was a pretty crescent, but that just meant the stars were burning the sky. She should bring Kaito out here at some point. He’d get all gooey and sentimental.

Doppio shuddered, feeling a wave of nausea so powerful he saw spots in his vision even when his eyes were closed…but he just leaned into Arven’s hold. Pressing his cheek against his boyfriend’s head. Fluffy…

(He was…very difficult to assassinate. Even before he knew about the magic bullshit. While a bit of an airhead, Doppio was careful. Always adhering to his father’s endless paranoia, and overly-aware of dangerous spaces. Knowing the schedules of dangerous people. So much of the time, just cowering let him get away, since people couldn’t believe that someone like him was a higher up of Passione, but if it came down to it, Doppio fought with tooth and nail. And maybe it wasn’t graceful or three steps ahead, but…his battle acumen wasn’t poor. He was always, always paying attention to his opponents, taking every chance to push the offensive when he didn’t see it falling into a trap.)

(...he just hadn’t been thinking.)

(He’d been hurt and upset and just…)

(...kind of wishing for something like that to happen.)

(Not really. In another world, Doppio would’ve found himself on a roof somewhere, and lamented that he’d been told painkillers were a much better way to go. And thinking about that would force him to consider the people he cared about, and while still sad, he would’ve walked back home. Maybe tried to make cookies one-handed.)

(But…instead he had been hurt and distracted…and with some surprise, that’s all it had taken.)

By the time Doppio and Arven had climbed the stairs, Doppio was drooling through his pants, eyes only half open, and the small nudge he gave the orange cat to shift onto his back was the only warning he was able to give before collapsing on the floor, gasping breaths.

“Aceto!” Arven gasped, scrambling to catch him,

Maki frowned, looking over her shoulder. Standing up, she went to kneel down in front of Doppio, peering at him. Reaching over to touch his forehead, checking his temperature, looking at his eyes and skin, “...still with us?”

The cat’s fur puffed slightly for a moment, taking the hint and quickly following the form of Doppio’s collapsing body with a small, alarmed, “mrrp!” Though, after a moment, he lightly kneaded Doppio’s sweater and then settled down on the teen’s back, tucking his paws into a loaf.

“...uh-huh…” Doppio panted to Maki, peeking a hazy eye open before going back to just trying to catch his breath. 

…he still didn’t understand why she was having them walk. Or had them climb a whole tower’s worth of stairs. 

(But you don’t ask questions. You’re not meant to understand, you’re just supposed to get the job done. Even bloody and broken, you cross that finish line if it kills you.)

“Good,” Maki said, sitting down. “You all good and worn down now?”

No one answered her. Arven looked at her warily. It had occurred to him by now that this was all a strange way to end the night–start the day??-- and that it wasn’t really what he had thought would happen when he called for Maki. But in truth, he was still relieved that she was doing something. It was something weird, sure, but it was still… he didn’t know. Less overwhelming than Doppio sobbing in his arms while Amaina progressively lost it. 

Amaina, in turn, had gotten quiet. Riding Doppio’s shoulder, arm, cat, for the most part. She was tired too, in her own version of it.

Chief flopped down next to Arven, tail wagging, panting lightly. He felt pretty okay!

“Seems like it,” Maki said, leaning back on her hands, “Alright. If we have no more energy for wailing? Let’s talk about what happened then. I hear Doppio died?”

“...that’s what Amaina said, yeah.” Arven said softly. 

It took a little bit, but (making a horribly gross slurping sort of noise that, later, Doppio would be mortified by) eventually Doppio’s voice, even rougher than it had been before, chimed in. 

“...Dad said… I respawn…like Flora,” he croaked, still panting. “...’s why he wanted to…kill me before… S-so… So it’d be…definitive for…anyone that saw…and then we’d move…”

“Ah. So not your first time dying then.” Maki gathered, taking out her blade and playing with it, just spinning it idly in her hands, “Do you feel dead?”

“No,” Doppio whimpered, though it was just a bare squeak of a noise. “...never have.”

“Then you didn’t die.” Maki said, brushing her fingers through her hair, “...but you were attacked. And you were injured. That’s still hard to go through itself. You don’t need to distract from the things actually bothering you, by calling it something it wasn’t. It just makes it harder to talk about what happened.”

“How would you know?” Arven asked defensibly.

Maki gave him a tired look, “It’s not even exclusively an assassin training. Lots of careers in Luminary make it a point to ‘kill you’ in some way. Make your heart stop. Teaches you to not be afraid of near death experiences… or at least teaches you how to pick yourself up from them. And the thing that everyone always has to get into their heads is that if you can pick yourself up? You didn’t die.”

O.O

OoO He looked like he died

O.O

QoQ It happened too fast. I couldn’t stop it in time.

“Sometimes you’re hit with a problem you’re not ready for.” Maki said, “It happens to everyone. Learn from it.”

Firenze, little vibrating heater on Doppio’s back that he was, observed Doppio curiously. Injured…yes. Because Firenze didn’t know of a way for Doppio’s blood to end up in that alleyway if he wasn’t, since it wasn’t like Doppio was going to patiently wait for someone to draw some of his blood with a needle. But also…no. The kid had been tender and wincing over his shoulder that morning, but now? He was moving it without a thought. And there didn’t seem to be any other injury on him…prior to whatever he did to freaking vaporize that rock. 

Still, Maki had a point. Calling it a death if the kid was going to argue that point was just fussing over the words at that point. 

But it seemed the kid didn’t get that. 

“...but…I-I think the whole…respawning thing exactly is picking yourself up after death. A-and you’re still…fucked up f-from the process since…i-it’s still your body…and…you can’t…” Doppio trailed off into something incomprehensible for a moment before speaking clearer again. “...can’t meaningfully separate mind from body at…point of death…”

His face crumpled. “...’m sorry, ‘Maina…”

“Do you remember it now?” Maki asked, “You didn’t before. Is that why you were wailing?”

“He’s still allowed to be freaked out by it even if he doesn’t,” Arven frowned, sweating a little, “Hells, I’m… freaked out about it! Someone killed him!”

“Someone attacked him.” Maki agreed. “I’m not asking to force him to justify crying. I’m asking because I’d like to know who.”

OoO They’re gone now.

O.O

OoO I don’t think they’ll be back.

O.O

OoO I didn’t connect to their mind fast enough… but I still did.

“Good. So long as you’re right that they’re not coming back, I don’t really care how you managed it.” Maki said, “But I still want their name. I want to make the guardforce aware of them, in case they have friends.”

“But you have no proof they did anything–”

“Let me worry about that.” Maki said, looking to Doppio, “Though, I am still curious if you remember now.”

Firenze looked over at Chief, almost jerking his head towards Arven. Sure, the boy had never been unkind when the teens had come across the ‘friendly orange cat’ in the castle gardens…but he was obviously a dog person, and, well…Chief was that dog. Go comfort your guy, man. 

Doppio opened his eyes, looking over at Amaina with a soft look…before he cringed into himself as much as he could without actually moving. “...no. Just had a dream…”

“Just…someone behind me.”

Chief’s tail wagged. Shuffling forward and resting his head on Arven’s lap. He knew his boy was upset, but, well, he was on Maki’s side. A good walk tended to make things better. This was a really good walk!

Arven gave a shuddering sigh, petting Chief’s head. “...I’m glad you don’t remember, honestly. I hope that memory doesn’t come back.”

“You should own anything that comes from you,” Maki said… before admitting, “But I have memories I hope never come back too. There’s no need to torture yourself in the name of coping. Though, it seems like you at least remember the fear of it, unless you’re just very easily startled.”

A halting, pitchy laugh came from Doppio, though, maybe contrary to his point, he didn’t react much when he felt a cold kitty nose against the back of his neck. “I think this is a c-case of both? I-I would think you notice how I jump whenever you guys walk into a room I’m in…”

“...I don’t want to remember,” Doppio whispered after he got his breath back from the laugh, grimacing. “Who wants to remember dying?”

Firenze’s tail flicked. Kid made a damn good point, and Firenze liked to think he’d gotten some of the best opinions of that point to make that call. 

“You’re not as obvious as you think you are.” Maki said, bringing up a leg to rest her arm against it, “And honestly, I don’t really think you’re as afraid as you think you are. What, do you think people are going to be mean to you, if you don’t shake and shiver on demand?”

“Hey–”

“It’s a serious question.” Maki said dryly, endlessly annoyed with the guard dog by this point. Just let them have a conversation. “I don’t care if that’s how you coped with things before, your situations changed. People around you will be nice to you just because you ask them to be. Arven is attached to your hip, Kaito literally throws himself at you, Kokichi feels a responsibility to you, and that’s just those three. Lake, King Aiichi, half the house keepers and guard force are tripping over themselves for you, and the way I hear it even Arven’s classmates are fussing over you.”

“Even this cat, and whatever its deal is,” Maki said pointedly, narrowing her eyes at it for a moment, “Came in your moment of need. You do realize that Amaina was screaming at you because she was scared for you, right? People are literally rallying around you. Why are you performing being too pathetic to notice?”

Well…to a point, people who were going to be mean to him were going to be mean regardless, but…being pathetic usually circumvented the ‘superiority’ types. Those who constantly looked around themselves for anyone with an ego to take down a peg, and walked into any room already with a plan to establish themselves as ‘the top’...in whatever way that meant to them. 

…though, being easily startled wasn’t something Doppio did on purpose. And…for the most part, these days, it really was just a moment of being startled, before he relaxed into whoever was around him. 

(...probably why he got jumped so easily.)

Firenze met Maki’s glare with a lazy blink, while Doppio just cringed, looking over to Amaina apologetically for a moment again. “...it’s not performing with you guys,” Doppio mumbled, just looking…hurt and tired. “I don’t think any’f you’ve seen that ‘cept maybe…Kaito, when we first met.”

“...just uncomfortable with being noticed…” he mumbled after a moment. “Know I am, so…’m not trying to avoid it. ‘n…I am thankful for your kindness. …try to repay in my own ways.”

“...but trying not to push good people away doesn’t mean that…everything still isn’t loud…’n scary. And…so much.” He looked up at Amaina, voice falling to a whisper. “...every single thing, beautiful and scary.”

Amaina just looked at him for a moment… before sighing dramatically, flopping down by the cat on Doppio’s lap, I diiiiiiid hope it’d be more frog poking than murder-deaths, she admitted.

“I’m only saying that,” Maki paused, considering it, “That you can be vulnerable in ways that actually help you. Though, I’ll admit, I’m not sure how to clarify that thought. It just felt right.”

“...” Arven sighed, not even sure what he’d be arguing with this time. He got the impression that this was the culmination of Maki’s attempt to comfort them. A long walk and then a talk. But she didn’t seem to know what to say, and Arven sure as hell didn’t either. Doppio’s grief had been massive. And even if he couldn’t remember the event itself, it was still stemming from an experience that was just… what do you say? To someone who died? Condolences?

“...I’m with Amaina,” Arven said, resting his head against Doppio’s, “I wish your days were more filled with frogs than murder. Frogs are pretty cool.”

Vulnerable in ways that ‘actually’ helped him? Doppio felt like he’d been nothing but vulnerable in various ways ever since… Maybe since Kaito found him passed out in that alley, the first time. Vulnerable in asking for help, in admitting his fears, in openly expressing joy and hope and excitement, in freely being angry. So much of the time since his life had been ripped open, Doppio felt like there was nothing he could repress even if he tried. 

…his dad always had said he was too volatile, that way. 

…he still didn’t get what Maki was doing, but…he supposed he was grateful she tried. 

“Me too,” Doppio whispered, lifting a heavy hand to put on Arven. 

“...I don’t know if I can make it back,” Doppio admitted after a moment, something tight going through his expression. “...wanted to make you something special for your birthday breakfast…”

“If I’m honest, Doppio, I think I could literally sleep the next twenty-four hours.” Arven admitted, slumping against him a bit, “Don’t get me wrong, I still want to do birthday things, but… today? You died yesterday. That’s, it’s just…I’m not exactly feeling up to ‘celebrating’.” He admitted.

“Could just sleep here,” Maki offered, glancing out the window, “Kaito’s going to have a fit when he realizes we’re all gone, but that’ll get cleared up pretty easily. And it can be nice to get away from things, when you’re overwhelmed. It’s quiet out here.”

Something sad went through Doppio’s eyes. 

Yeah, he did understand that, Doppio wasn’t exactly feeling festive either and…he knew forcing cheer would just feel even worse… But it was Arven’s birthday. The day that was supposed to be an expression of…of joy and revelry and gratitude that Arven was alive. And…having that be overshadowed by Doppio’s mistake? Having it instead just be a day of…grief and lethargy…

(...Arven didn’t even call him by his first name…)

With weak fingers, Doppio fisted the back of Arven’s coat, opening his mouth, still unsure, but the offer to go back on his tongue…

(Dr. Mariah had said his ability wasn’t just a way to get out of consequences, though. That it wasn’t truly a stipulation-free undo. That…the greatest evidence of the timelines that never were was…him.)

(If he went back, and prevented his death? …then Doppio would still have to deal with the feelings and vague memories of it, but he’d be doing it alone. The others would have a hazy impression of something, but if the point of him going back was to get rid of those feelings in the people he cared about…it wouldn’t work. And not telling them would leave them with an unease they couldn’t identify, and telling them would…just be the same as exactly what was going on now. And it’d still be him.)

(...going back wouldn’t fix Arven’s birthday.)

Doppio’s jaw clicked shut with a defeated sigh, and he tilted his head on the floor, nose bumping against the floorboards that he couldn’t even begin to think about how filthy they were. “...I’m sorry.”

Arven frowned at that, pulling Doppio away from rubbing his face into the floor. “It’s not your fault.”

…Maki should have just woken up Kaito.

She had thought about it. She had reeeaaaally thought about it. Doppio wasn’t an indentured, she couldn’t just tell him to get over it and wait for him to realize that really was the only option. He needed something Maki wasn’t entirely equipped to give him, even if most of the children in her life weren’t indentured’s anymore. And, hell, it was Kaito who had forced Maki’s hand that she couldn’t just treat Timothy like an indentured kid anymore either.

But Maki didn’t know a better way to process things other than ‘yes, it sucked. Move on’. She could try to force Doppio to learn from the mistake and be better prepared next time, but Doppio didn’t have any memories to learn from. She could tell the kid to toughen up, but that was going to lead to Kaito pulling her aside to chastise again for the thousandth time about telling all the traumatized children to just be stronger already.

Maki, vaguely, wanted to just kill Doppio again and see if this time he’d wake up more used to it. It’s how Nekomaru would have trained her. It’d probably be more convenient by this point. Just slit his throat and he’d wake up back in the castle tomorrow, feeling rested and better.

But the kid would probably have, like, trust issues and panic attacks or something after that, which would really just put them back to square one. Plus, Arven would object. Kokichi would scold her. It was so hard to help people, sometimes.

Arven held Doppio, frowning at the misery on his boyfriends face. “...we can do my birthday stuff later, but honestly, it’s the last thing on my mind right now. I just want to be with you. That’s not something I think you should be sorry for. I think you’d feel the same, if it was me.”

His chair disrupted, Firenze hopped off Doppio’s back as Arven pulled him over, licking a paw to clean his face as he watched the boys. Well…if they did decide to spend the night in the tower, he’d probably go back to the castle to leave a note for Kaito and his husbands. Last thing they needed were more people disappearing, even if Maki was staying with the boys. But the princes didn’t know that, so damage control it was. 

Doppio’s face just crumpled as he let himself flop onto Arven. “...well…yeah, but… You’re special, and your life is special… ‘course I want to show that everyday, but…birthdays are supposed to be dedicated days for that and… And I hate just making another thing about me…”

“How about this?” Arven smirked a little, “When I die, we can make the next day all about me, alright? In fact, I insist! Even if it’s your birthday. Any day after the day we die, gets to be a day about us. We’ll make it a tradition.”

“Again, no one died…” Maki huffed, “You’re far too much like Kaito, Arven.”

“What? I am not?” Arven insisted, holding Doppio closer, “He freaks out over everything. Not to brag, but I am handling my boyfriend dying way better than he would.”

“It’s not a competition,” Maki said, even if it sometimes sort of was. She just didn’t feel like putting Kaito’s business out there for scrutiny when he wasn’t there to defend himself. “It’s cold. Do you want me to start a fire? Or is that something you two can handle?”

Doppio’s eyes went wide and wobbly again, though it didn’t really look like he had more tears to spare--it seemed that Maki’s plan had worked in that respect. Clutching desperately to the back of Arven’s coat, though putting that much strain through his hand made it shake and ache, Doppio made an upset sound. “You’re not dying. You’re not allowed to die. I’m not allowed to die, even if I come back… Dr. Mariah said that it makes you…severely depressed with a bunch of mood swings and disconnect from reality and…a bunch of awful stuff…”

Relaxing back--just releasing the tension he couldn’t hold, really--Doppio was…momentarily very confused. The tower was made of wood, starting a fire would burn the whole place down… But then his eyes latched onto a small alcove in the side that was…very much a fireplace…and if this was a watchtower in use at some point then…it made sense that the people using it would have a way to combat winter weather. 

“...I can’t move,” Doppio mumbled. 

“Let me do it,” Arven volunteered, jumping at the chance to make things more comfortable for his boyfriend. Giving him a kiss on the cheek, he disentangled himself from the pile, before hurrying over to the fireplace, “...I’m going to need to collect some wood.”

“That won’t take long, let me come with you.” Maki said, standing up and stretching. Chief, now free of Arven, shuffled over to Doppio, flopping his head into his lap. Sniffing the cat smells on there. Chief had never had any issues with cats, or other animals in general, but he still sniffed it curiously. Smelled… weird. 

She turned to Doppio, “We won’t be ten minutes. Can you be alone that long?”

OoO What am I, chopped liver?

Doppio gave Arven a thankful look as his boyfriend propped him up against one of the walls and gave a similar look to Chief when the dog took up cuddling duty, lightly resting his…uh, not-in-pain hand on the dog’s head. Seeming to judge the space left over, the cat reclaimed some Doppio space and laid across his ankles, and all together it seemed that Doppio didn’t exactly need the fire to keep warm like this. 

Though it’d still be a good call. 

Glancing over to Amaina affectionately, Doppio offered Maki and Arven a small, shaky smile. “She’s right, not alone…but I’ll be okay. You guys be safe.”

Maki nodded, heading down the staircase to follow Arven. 

She was mostly there to watch, though, as Arven hurriedly moved around, collecting sticks and looking for larger pieces of fallen wood, before considering some of the lower hanging branches. If he noticed she wasn’t helping collect, he didn’t say anything, and instead just moved quickly, like the collection of wood was vitally important.

“...you really should talk to Kaito about this.” Maki finally said, crossing her arms, “I’d offer it myself, but it won’t be any good.”

“About what?” Arven asked, collecting some more branches.

“About your boyfriend being attacked.” Maki said, “About him being this near-immortal, all powerful being. About being in love with someone who’s going through the ringer. Take your pick.”

“I’m fine. And what would he know about it anyway?” Arven muttered.

“He’s literally done everything you’re doing in the past month for the last year.” Maki said, “Longer than that. There is literally no one better equipped to relate with this very specific situation. Bond with him, let him help you.”

“It’s not my fault we don’t get along. Kaito’s weird at me.” Arven insisted, “He’s been weird at me since day one.”

“Kaito’s weird ‘at you’ because Kaito’s weird.” Maki said dryly, “He’s a weird, awkward person. It doesn’t mean he doesn’t understand what you’re going through, or want to hear about it.”

“I really am fine. I’m good at coping with things when they’re bad.” Arven said, brow furrowing as he came back with his arms full of wood, “I’ve always had to be. Just because it’s a different kind of bad thing doesn’t mean I’m going to suddenly fall apart. I’m handling this.”

“Gee, you know where I’ve heard that one before?” Maki said, voice like sandpaper, “Kaito. Talk to him.”

“Why do you want me to say yes anyway? Kaito’s going to butt his way in either way. I barely have a say in it.” Arven said, moving past her to the tower.

“Because maybe if you sought him out for once, rather than getting defensive when he tries to help, you’d actually let yourself listen to what he’s saying.” Maki said, following him up. “Since I’m not allowed to cut anyone to get their full attention, it’s probably the only way you’ll actually get any help.”

“...you wouldn’t actually cut anyone though, right?” Arven asked, looking over his shoulder.

Maki didn’t answer. She hoped that said enough. Perhaps it did, as Arven hurried up the tower faster.

-

Amaina stared up at Doppio.

O.O

Just staring. Like she was memorizing him.

O.O

OoO I wasn’t sure if you were coming back

Doppio stared tiredly back at Amaina, guilt tinging his face. “...I know you don’t want more apologies from me… I know…like, no one does,” he said quietly. “...but I’m so sorry, Angelo.”

Doppio’s face crumpled in remorse. “Of course I didn’t want that to happen…but you having to watch…” He closed his eyes, shuddering a little. Lightly scratching Chief’s ear. “...I’m sorry I scared you. I really did want our…our adventures to be looking for frogs or…trying new drinks at cafes or going on hikes to beautiful places. I never wanted to…”

He sighed, opening his eyes slightly with a dull look. “...have my life just be…me getting beaten up and scared by things.”

OOO WHO THE HECK SAID I DONT WANT AN APOLOGY??

OOO I JUST SPENT ALL DAY SENDING SOME LOSER FREAK MURDERER TO THE MOUNTAINS DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW HARD THAT IS!?

OOO YOU SHOULD BE ETERNALLY GRATEFUL YOU JERK

O.O

OOO YOU CAN THANK ME ANY TIME

Doppio’s eyes widened a little before it broke down. Still too exhausted to cry, but getting a little glimmery as he reached out to Amaina with heavy arms, pulling her into a hug. 

“Grazie, Angelo,” he whispered, voice rough. “Per tutto quello che fai. Sei tutte le parti migliori delle cose belle, e non riesco a immaginare la mia vita senza di te. Non vorrei. Sarebbe troppo incolore.” (Thank you, Angel. For everything you do. You’re all the best parts of the beautiful things, and I can’t imagine my life without you. I wouldn’t want to. It’d be too dull.)

For just a moment, Doppio hesitated. It wasn’t something he’d told Arven just…because there was a lot that came along with those words. Sure, it was things he felt, but…there was a promise and expectation that were intertwined with that particular…setting, he guessed. 

But with Amaina…well. He figured she already knew his feelings. And if there was ever a time to actually say it, it’d be now. 

“Ti amo, Amaina.” (I love you, Amaina.)

His first friend. 

OoO Yeah of course you do

O.O

Q.Q 

QoQ You’re not about to distract me from what a big dumb dumby baby loser you’ve been all day with sappy stuff!!

QmQ

QOQ WAAAAAAAAAAH I LOVE YOU TOOOOOO THAT WAS SO SCARY DON’T DO THAT AGAAAAAAIIIIIN WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!

Amaina wailed into Doppio’s chest, just as Arven came back with the wood, suddenly distressed as he looked between them again. “Oh, god, are we crying again?” He asked, starting to sweat, “We were only gone for a minute??”

Doppio held Amaina closely, nuzzling her head (much to Firenze’s bemusement. He’d gathered by this point they were talking to something either invisible or psychically linked, but it did look pretty silly for Doppio to be nuzzling air.) as small tears beaded in his eyes. “I won’t, I won’t, I promise. I’m sorry…thanks for always looking out for me.”

Glancing up as Arven reentered, Doppio offered up a crooked, shaky smile. “I think it’s kind of a crying night so…could we get a freebie on this one?”

OOO DO NOT SILENCE US 

OoO our emotions are beautiful artwork blazing through the air

O.O

OoO No seriously watch

And Maki watched, vaguely amused, as Amaina closed her eyes for a moment. And around them, little flecks of color started to shift through the air. Vibrant with glittering emotion. Energy radiating off of them, that to some would have tasted, and to some would have odor, and to others could be absorbed and entered and explored.

Arven looked around at the lights dancing off of him– dark blues, pinkish reds, nervous greens– and though he had no idea what the colors represented, he could admit that it was beautiful. Waving his hands through the shimmering vapor, watching it mix and spin around each other into vague, beautiful shapes. He glanced at Maki and– “Oh, that’s a lot of red.”

Maki, swarmed by different shades of red– mixed with light blues and soft pinks and sharp yellows– just shrugged. She had never considered herself all that emotionally complicated.

Doppio blinked, for a moment worriedly looking down at his skin--still normal--before observing all the…emotions, he guessed. The mix of colors off Arven, the predominantly red cloud around Maki, like festival lanterns, even the calm greenish-blue coming off of the cat, reminding Doppio of ocean waves. And…the dull grey around himself, mixed with bits of pink and white and green and dark yellows. Kind of…an ugly mix, in his own opinion, but Doppio wasn’t kidding himself that he was exactly feeling good.

Looking down at Amaina, Doppio hummed curiously. “...is this how you see it? Or…some other people do?”

OoO It’s just what it looks like what do you want from me??

“It’s pretty,” Arven said, running his fingers through the vapor some more, before looking over Doppio’s. Keen interest in his eyes.

Maki rolled her eyes, taking the bundle of wood from Arven and just going to do the fire herself, as Arven went to sit down in front of Doppio. He glanced at Chief, who was emitting warm, calm greens and oranges– good boy– before looking at what was coming off of Doppio. Shifting, dancing grays. Doppio looking almost lost in a fog…

Arven reached forward, gently spinning the air with his hand. Mixing his own blue with the dense gray. “...I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything like this before,” Arven admitted, watching the colors spiral against each other, “Look at that…”

“Fair,” Doppio half laughed, giving Amaina one last nuzzle before letting himself lax more against the wall again. At this point, he could…probably. Move. If he had to. Like…if there was an emergency, but not one that spiked his adrenaline. But, barring that, was Doppio going to move comfortably at all? No. 

…next time he definitely wasn’t going to use a hike as a way to calm down from a crying fit. 

Watching Arven join him, Doppio smiled faintly at Arven’s wonder. “...it kinda looks like galaxy colors…sorta. Like when you’re far out in the country and can see all the colors in the sky…but if the stars were colors too, and they moved around. Neat…”

“Oh yeah, I could see that.” Arven agreed, spinning the colors around some more. Finding the shifting smoke endlessly fascinating. “Hey, let me try this.”

Gathering some of the vapor’s hand in hand, Arven created little swirling balls… before clapping his hands together. The smoking puffing back in both of their faces. “Hah!” Arven grinned, looking a bit proud, “That worked! Try that, Aceto.”

Doppio watched Arven’s experiment with a sort of muted interest, smiling softly at the cloud produced. And…well, he couldn’t very well deny his boyfriend… 

Raising heavy arms, Doppio tried to swirl up the colored specks in his hand…only to kind of waft them to the left, unwilling to actually clap, and kind of funny when he considered his previously injured shoulder, his right hand having quite a bit more strength (relatively. Considering both arms felt like lead). But…it still swirled in a pretty way, so…that was nice. 

“Ooooh, nice~” Arven said, spreading his arms wide as he said, “Let’s see if I can build up more, make it a little explosion. Hold on… Amaina, you good?”

Wheeeeeeee~ Amaina squealed, floating with the smoke, spinning around Arven’s arms as he spun his arms in tight circles. 

“Yeah, she’s good.” Arven decided, building up speed.

Maki watched this as the fire started to build. Honestly… and the boy kept wondering why people compared him to Kaito…

-

It was pretty cozy in the watchtower. It was by and away not the first floor Doppio had slept on, and between the fire and cuddling with Arven and the animals, Doppio would count it a more comfortable sleep than even some couches and chairs he’d slept on before. Maybe it wasn’t the best sort of…amazing wake-up that he had wanted to give Arven on such a special day, but…

Doppio still leaned in, pressing light kisses to Arven’s cheeks as he lazily watched the sunrise through the wide windows of the tower. Not what they planned, but…it was pretty cool, all the same. 

(True to his plan, Firenze had slipped out during the night, and slipped a note under the princes’ door. Letting them know that Maki had taken the boys out to the abandoned watchtower, and that they had been too tired to make the trip back so they’d return in the morning. Firenze didn’t think it’d completely cancel out every worry…well, Kaito and Kokichi would have, but it would cut down on quite a lot.)

(He’d gotten back just in time to put more wood on the fire too, making sure all the kids--including Maki--wouldn’t wake up cold.)

“Mmmph,” Arven hummed, blinking his eyes open, feeling warm. It was not the first time Doppio had woken him up with kisses, so Arven wasn’t surprised by that. But there was a brief moment where he opened his eyes and thought ‘where the hell…?’ before it all came back to him. “...wow. That all really happened, huh?” Arven yawned, wrapping his arms around Doppio.

“Mhmm,” Doppio hummed, looking fondly at Arven and cuddling into his arms more, pressing a lingering kiss to his cheek. Freed from the limp, corpse-like state of sleep, he put his own arms around Arven and held him tight. He knew what Arven had said the night before, but…

“...I’m happy you’re here,” Doppio murmured, pressing his nose to Arven’s. “You’re an amazing, bright, incredible person, and I feel like the luckiest person in the world getting to come along with you on the path you’re taking. I spend every day feeling like that, but…today especially, I want to let you know.”

“Aw,” Arven chuckled sleepily, nuzzling his face back, “I’m happy you’re here too… like, so happy,” Arven said, eyes suddenly popping open, the truth in that statement waking him up in a big way as he felt a bead of sweat form at his temple, “Like… like after last night? Yesterday? So, so, so, so–ow.”

It wasn’t a real ‘ow’, more just an impulse as a light piece of wood bounced against his forehead. He looked up to see Maki sitting in the window, raising her eyebrow at him, before turning and disappearing over the side. “I guess she thought I needed to stop that.” Arven guessed, sitting up with a yawn. Rubbing his eyes with the back of his palms… before huffing, flopping back down onto Doppio, “Five more minutes. And I love every moment I spend with you too.”

Doppio glanced up, pouting a little at Maki for throwing something…even if it was for getting Arven out of his head. But he sighed, readjusting his arms around Arven once he laid down again. Working a few fingers under his coat and shirt and tracing his lower back. “I think we can take things at whatever speed we want today…though.”

Giving Arven a sheepish look, Doppio smiled nervously. “...I was planning something? I knew that doing any serious cooking would give all sorts of people reason to lecture me about my arm, but…I, um. I was going to go to the kitchen early, and ask for some of the first round bread? And, um…I got some really nice chocolate bars and… I don’t even know what you’d call it… Not really honey-brick toast, but…like a at-home, morning version of it. Putting chocolate and…like slices of banana, and smaller dollops of whipped cream, a-and pan frying the bread on either side in just a fuck ton of butter, so it gets all golden evenly, and weighing it down with a heavy pot lid so it domes around the fillings…”

“...I thought…it’d be a nice breakfast for your birthday.”

“Mmmmm,” Arven smiled, nuzzling more into Doppio’s side, “Sounds delicious. Describe it more. Was I going to get any particular kind of drink with it?”

Doppio grinned a little more, tracing light fingertips over Arven’s hip. “I-I set up some coffee ice cubes, the other day. Um, sweetened already. If you have a glass of them…um, you can pour warm milk over, for a stronger, though kinda tepid drink, or cold milk for a weaker coffee taste, but…usually like two glasses worth.”

“Wooooah,” Arven said happily, a genuine grin splitting his face, even as he left his eyes closed, still trying to both cuddle with Doppio and still somehow get another few minutes of sleep in. “That’s so clever. You did that a few days ago? That’s such a fun idea. Oh, this all sounds really good, but do you have any protein that goes with it? The sugars great, but something solid will help me keep going all day for the hike.”

Doppio’s smile faltered a little. “...I…um, actually planned this, uh… After we decided not to go on the hike… B-but, um…sorry. I thought peanut butter would be something good for the…toasted breakfast sandwich things, a-and, um…thought we could raid some of the castle service breakfast meats since… I-I still was kinda wary about all the stuff I could get away with cooking…”

“Oooh, great,” Arven said, peeking an eye open, amusement light in his eyes, “That gives me something to do while you’re putting together all the other stuff. Cause no way I wouldn’t wanna get up with you, if you’re putting together breakfast. So I can cook some bacon in some honey, and since I’ve got the skillet on anyway, I can try out those cooked fruits we had at harvest. I bet I could make it close, anyway. Would you like that?” Arven asked, kissing against Doppio’s neck, “It’ll be fun~”

Doppio let out a little sigh of relief. “I thought so… One of my first ideas when I first found out about your birthday was to make something really big and elaborate, but…I knew that it’d be a better morning if we spent it together,” Doppio flushed lightly, “like this. I-in bed, I mean… And…it’s always more fun cooking with you anyway.”

“Those were really good… I bet you’d make them even better,” Doppio gave Arven a wobbly smile, before giving another sigh that was significantly more…breathy. And pleased. Still gentle, his wandering hand under Arven’s shirt traveled up his side slightly, thumb coming to brush up over the side front of Arven’s stomach. 

Arven hummed into the back of his throat, a flush blooming against his skin as he felt Doppio’s hand wander. That was… exciting. Very intriguing. But… “If the scary assassin lady comes back in through that window and sees me all riled up, I may actually explode in embarrassment.” Arven admitted… before snickering. Covering up his face with his bicep, even flustered to admit that. “Nnngh. Maybe we could convince her to go ahead and we’ll catch up? …no, that’d never work…”

Sighing at the injustice of the world that wouldn’t let him just make out with his boyfriend all morning without weird hyperprotective babysitters, Arven sat up with a grunt and just decided to kiss his boyfriend. Like… just a liiiiiittle bit. Just a tad. Mmm…

Doppio snorted softly, though the trepidation on his face spoke volumes that he felt the same. “...not to mention we slept on a dusty floor all night. …aaaand we both definitely have morning breath.”

But it did mean a lot that even covered in dust and grime and with morning breath, Doppio still gladly kissed his boyfriend. 

“...I still want today to kind of…go however you want it to go,” he smiled softly at Arven once they convinced each other to finally stand up. Doppio was looking at the fire, tending to its end to make sure that even with a fireplace, they didn’t commit a grand act of arson. “So…maybe later…?

“...but our schedule or not, we should…probably get Chief his breakfast soon.” Doppio glanced over to the orange cat stretching by the stair entrance. “...and offer you a ride back to the castle, Signore Cat. I’m kind of surprised you stayed the whole night…”

Maki, in the night, had tried to interrogate the cat. It was, admittedly, one of the sillier moments she had had. She still thought that cat was probably some magic bullshit, but the cat, to its credit, had mostly just stared at her, tail flicking every now and again, before stretching on its back. A very convincing lie. Not one she was fooled by, but eventually you have to stop threatening a loaf of cat with imminent death, your bluff called.

Arven chuckled, running a hand through his hair as he stretched out himself on the ground, Chief snuffling lightly in his sleep by his head. “I know you want it to be my day. But I still meant what I said last night. If it’s up to me? We’re just chilling out today. We can do all the cool stuff this weekend... except for those icecubes, which we are definitely doing today still. Cause that sounds amazing.”

Sitting up, Arven shook his head a little, his hair falling into his face even more than it usually did, before stretching and getting up, “Alright. Chief? Old man, come on, we have to  get home for munchies. Theeere you go.” Arven encouraged, while Chief– in a manner very similar to how Arven had done it– looked up, blinked, wagged his tail… before flopping onto his back. Five more minutes. “Come on, old man, none of that, it’s time to start the day.”

As Arven negotiated with the sleepy old dog, Amaian popped out of the disappearing fire, the tips of her hair set ablaze.

OOO ARVEN!!

Arven looked up from rubbing Chief’s belly, “Hm?”

                                        OVO

Down below, Maki looked up, frowning. Watching fireworks flash inside of the tower. “You’re going to scare the wildlife!” She called up.

OOO I’M NOT STUPID ONLY US CAN SEE IT!!

O.O

OOO AND CAT BURGLAR I’VE DECIDED RIIIIIIGHT NOW!

“Well…still. If chilling out is what you want, then…that’s what we’ll do. And we’ll just claim more days to a-actually go out and do things. But…yeah,” Doppio smiled, “We can do the iced coffee. If you like them, then we can make more today to freeze for another day too.”

Doppio looked up as Amaina popped out of the fire--she was there when he nodded off, though he figured she’d left to spend time with her senpai, or going through others’ dreams--and smiled…before jolting slightly at the, uh, bright display. Laughing a little in awed disbelief. 

Happy Birthday? That was kind of catchy, even if it was an Amaina-ism. 

Firenze jumped right along with Doppio, his fur puffing up before his large kitty eyes took in the fireworks…and the little doll flying around. Ah…so this was what they meant. 

Arven gapped a bit at the display, genuinely impressed… before reaching up and catching the flying Amaina right out of the sky, bringing her down and grinning at her as she stared up at him blankly. “Thank you, Amaina,” Arven said, opening up his grip and petting her gently over her head, smirking at blissed out expression, “But don’t scare the cat. I noticed that, it’s mean.”

OoO If you can’t hang with the abstract construct and illusions of joy and celebration personified, then you can’t HANG!

“Amaina, what the heck does that mean?” Arven asked, laughing a little.

OOO ME AND MY HOMIES ARE THE LITERAL EMBODIMENT OF THE CHAOS OF THE HUMAN EXPERIENCE

OoO Sometimes that comes with sudden bright lights what can I say

“Yeah, yeah, ya little weirdo,” Arven said fondly, letting her fly off, “Still be nice to cats. How are you feeling Aceto? Ready to make the trip back?”

Doppio snorted, finishing brushing the cooling ash into a bucket and heading for the stairs. They…should probably do something about all the sand in front of the tower too. Sure, with the rock there it wasn’t like people were regularly using the watchtower, so it wasn’t really a hazard…but still. It’d help bury the ash too to make absolutely sure they wouldn’t start a fire. 

“Yeah. Uh…sorry for kind of collapsing on you last night. But, um, yeah. Limbs all working,” Doppio grinned awkwardly, doing a weird little shake with his shoulders as if to exemplify, yeah. Back in good condition. 

Arven smiled at that, before considering the pile of hot ash Doppio was holding, then considering the stairs– “Hey, let me grab that for you. You can get kind of clumsy on the stairs on the best of days, but after a night like last night? I’d rather you not trip and get burning embers on yourself. Treating a burn would be a rough way to start my birthday.” Arven joked, offering to take it.

Doppio looked up before turning red, glancing away in embarrassment, though he handed the bucket over. “...yeah. Um, thanks. Was gonna haul the sand away from the door and mix it with the ash to dump to make things safer to dispose of…”

They’d already had, like, the roughest start to Arven’s birthday, and…by this point, maybe Doppio really should just…do nothing. He couldn’t ruin things more if he didn’t do anything, right? …maybe he should just take that as a life lesson…

Hands free, it seemed like the cat had noticed some free real estate, so Doppio picked him up instead, letting the cat perch and settle over his shoulders somewhat. Couldn’t drop a cat… 

“Oh, sands a good idea,” Arven agreed, heading down the stairs, watching his feet carefully. He wasn’t above tripping himself, and tripping into embers really would be a rough way to start the day too. “Oh, no, go ahead Chief, head on, ol’ man.”

Chief, having been happy to rub at Arven’s legs, trotted forward at Arven’s encouragement.

The mixed the sand in with the embers, putting it out properly, before spotting Maki, who was leaning against a tree, waiting for them. “Sorry, we’re coming!”

Maki shrugged, clearly unconcerned, though she led the way on the path back to the city.

“We really hiked out far, huh?” Arven realized, looking around, “Maki, why did you take us this far out?”

“To tire you out.” Maki called behind her. “And I like the privacy and the view. I’ve taken Timothy out here when I wanted to talk to him about things too.”

“Hmmm… I’ve noticed Kaito does that too.” Arven told her, frowning a bit, “He likes to go places to talk. Like scenery will help. Is that a Luminary thing?”

“I wouldn’t call it a ‘Luminary’ thing,” Maki admitted, shrugging, “He and I were raised together. Or, alongside each other. We both had family members that had a flare for the theatrics, and maybe we took that on ourselves. My mentor used to take me to the highest points in the city, when he saw I needed to get things off my chest. We’d climb sometimes for hours, just to see the lights of the city beneath us, the desert spreading to the horizon… it was a way to spend my anger before talking to him, in retrospect.”

“And Kaito had Kaede,” Maki said, “She’s the current queen of Luminary, and Kaito’s older cousin. She’s only older by a little less than two years, but you wouldn’t have thought it with the way they acted together. She was constantly giving him life advise, and she’d pick these elaborate settings and environments to do so. Ballrooms where full orchestras just happened to be playing, the center of the sand-falls, a hot air balloon. Chances are if she invited him somewhere really nice? She wanted to talk to him about something. So I suppose he and I are just used to the environment affecting the quality of the conversation.”

“Huh,” Arven hummed, “...but not a Luminary thing? Just a you two thing?”

“I suppose so.” Maki said.

Doppio looked around with some trepidation. It did give more of a reason why he was so exhausted last night but…they were way out there. Which…made sense. You wouldn’t exactly put a watchtower in the middle of a city, when, presumably, it was used to keep watch for anything coming towards the city. But…geez. Talk about overkill… This was farther out than even the walk to his house.

Doppio made a small curious noise as Maki explained this habit of sorts. The sights did sound nice, admittedly. High points always had incredible views and…well, Doppio didn’t know what a sand fall was (it sounded kind of dangerous, like the site of a landslide) and…view aside, he didn’t really trust hot air balloons, but…well. Flair for the dramatic. 

“Hm…” he hummed softly. “I feel like that’s…kind of a pattern that I should’ve picked up on already, but…good to know, I guess.” Good to know that if Kaito or Maki were trying to drag him away somewhere, it was just to talk. And…well. Maki was intimidating enough that he…probably would still follow, but at the very least he could complain more. He didn’t need to be dragged off somewhere to feel like death when someone just wanted to have a heart-to-heart. 

Arven had also been rolling over the term ‘sand-fall’ in his head. “Is a sand-fall like… an hourglass?”

“No.” Maki said.

“...is iiiit aaaaaa–”

“Amaina, spare me an explanation.” Maki said.

OOO ON It!!

Around them, the forest suddenly fell away, leaving them on a stone path. The stone path went over the center of an ever shifting sandy mud, pooling and swirling into the center– quicksand the size of a large pond or a small lake– as around them high desert canyons walls spilled over sand that fed into the quicksand, looking like thick waterfalls from every direction. 

The roaring sound of the shifting, moving sand surrounded them for a moment, the hot sun beating down from above… and then it was gone, the forest back.

“Yeah,” Maki said, ‘That place. Always want to visit on a winter day though. The wind from the summers forces you to wear full body protective clothing.”

“I’ll… keep that in mind?” Arven said, staring in stunned surprise at the forest path again… before saying, “No, wait, that was really cool!? Is that what Luminary looks like!?”

“I mean, that bit you just saw, sure.” Maki said, “Not all of it.”

“Woah…” Arven said. Still marveling at that.

“O-oh!” Doppio gasped, stumbling a little as the scenery changed. Sure, Amaina had given them something of a heads up, but…a lot of the time when she projected something, he was sitting down. And, yanno, not in movement. And though she made sure to place the path where they were walking…it was still startling enough for him to need to quickly catch himself, feeling the cat dig into his coat to brace as well. 

But when he was able to actually look around?

“...whoa…” Doppio softly breathed…before all in an instant, it was gone, and the forest was back around them. Even the arid, almost…crackly air still stung his nose, making the ‘real’ air feel…wet in a way Doppio never even considered for autumn. “I…didn’t even know that there could be…features, I guess, in a desert. I-I mean, I know what an oasis is, but…I thought deserts were just…open dunes of sand. Wow…”

“In comparison to Dicea, there’s not much to see in Luminary,” Maki said, “You should both feel lucky to grow up somewhere green and full of life. I remember the first time I ever snuck past your borders, I risked myself to spend a day just looking at the way the forest sprawled across the mountain sides. All the little things, just, everywhere, always. Strange birds, skittering creatures, plants every color under the sun… I still see new things, every time I go out to look. And that’s just here.”

“You were both born in a paradise,” she said, looking grimly over her shoulder at them, “A paradise that occasionally becomes a frozen hellscape, but otherwise a paradise. And I only say this as someone who has noticed that the kids your age around here have an odd habit of romanticizing Luminary’s ‘exoticness’. It’s hot and filthy and a lot of it is endless sand. It’s not worth leaving Dicea for.”

Arven’s eyebrows shot up to his hairline, “Woah, what? Thinking some things about Luminary are cool doesn’t mean I want to move there.”

“I don’t mean ‘move’, I mean ‘visit’. It’s dangerous there, especially right now,” Maki said, “And with the borders opening? I’m just cautioning against visiting for the ‘sights’. Go other places. Explore Dicea more. Dicea is the safe place on a dangerous continent. Take advantage and don’t throw that safety away.”

Doppio raised his eyebrows a bit. He did love Dicea. First and foremost, it was home, regardless of whatever part of the country he was in, but even accounting for that bias, it was a beautiful country. A beauty that, at least politically, people didn’t take for granted, and made sure to put effort into keeping it beautiful, between learning about and supporting native flora and fauna, weighing the geological impacts of any sort of construction project, and…well, all sorts of things that Doppio knew he didn’t even know the tip of the iceberg for. 

But, well, even being happy there, the intrigue of seeing other parts of the world didn’t pass him by. So…to hear someone discourage that? Especially about their native home?

…he…couldn’t remember if Kokichi had explicitly said he hoped for more people to literally visit Luminary, or just to gain a greater understanding, but…

Gnawing on his lip, Doppio gave Maki a mildly wary, confused look. “What do you mean especially right now? Just…instability from recovering from a civil war? Considering things, it…kind of seems like one of the safest times yet for anyone from Dicea to visit Luminary…”

“Luminary is in recovery. And one aspect of being ‘in recovery’ is that you are starting from a place of being deeply, gravely wounded,” Maki said, her expression growing grim, “There’s a lot of desperate people in Luminary right now. A lot of fear. We’re on a path forward, yes, but for outsiders coming in? It’s probably more dangerous now than it was before the war. Unstable as things calm down and new normals are established.”

Even then, Maki wasn’t confident Luminary would be what Dicea was, not in her generation. Living in Dicea sometimes made Luminary’s improvement feel like standing at the bottom of a sheer cliff. You technically knew there was something better at the top of the cliff, and you could climb it, but… it was still a daunting prospect. And Maki had done all she could towards its improvement… and honestly, she was a bit of a pessimist at the moment, about how well Kaede could do. She was hoping to be happily surprised.

But she wasn’t counting on it, and it bothered her, thinking of any of these people risking themselves to see a home she couldn’t vouch for. She had dragged everyone she cared about to Dicea for the war, but she intended to argue with any of them who ever considered going back. Piper every now and again said things like ‘someday’ she’d return, and it took everything Maki had not to shake her. Over her dead body. 

“But, I mean… you haven’t been back yourself, right?” Arven said, “Since you left? How do you know things are more dangerous now? Or still dangerous?”

“It’s been less than six months since I left,” Maki said, “Maybe give me a year or two before deciding I don’t know what my home was like.”

“...sorry.” Arven said, feeling a little chastised, “But maybe someday it really will be worth visiting. Ten years is a long time. A lot could happen in a decade. Dicea looked unsafe too, two decades ago.”

Maki considered that… before nodding. “I suppose that’s a point.” She conceded. “Wait a decade then. Maybe two.”

Doppio wasn’t…totally sure about that. Not that it wasn’t safe now. It was different enough but…if his dad was actually charged, and his trial managed to spark an enlightened investigation into Passione? Sure, it was the mafia, and the whole organization had been dangerous, but…people being scattered and feeling hunted and defensive would make things a lot more dangerous. And even more for people who would just be unlucky enough to be in proximity, sometimes, where, unless you were involved with the underground, you would most likely be left alone. 

Doppio did understand that aspect…but he’d also heard a lot of things that indicated that being a Dicean in Luminary during the war was…one of the worst circumstances you could be in. After all, it wasn’t like there were Dicean refugees going to Luminary, so anyone that ended up there was…ah… 

Well. He supposed comparing the situations wasn’t all that important. 

Smiling awkwardly, Doppio half-shrugged, trying not to disrupt his kitty passenger too much. “There’s still a lot to explore in Dicea, so…I guess there isn’t a rush. Plenty in the rest of the world too. Though…uh…”

Doppio flushed, looking down and fussing with his fingers. He hadn’t…really been thinking about it a lot, but just talking about long-term travel sparked the idea and…yeah, he guessed he did want it… Even if saying it to his world-trekking boyfriend and ever-exploratory best friend maybe…wasn’t the best thing. “...I-I dunno,” he said softly. “...it might be nice to live somewhere for more than a few months.”

“Well, it’s good you feel that way, since I’m pretty sure Kaito’s about to personally make sure we stay here for at least the rest of high school.” Arven sighed, “The guy wanted us to sleep in his room last night.”

“Kaito both wouldn’t and couldn’t keep you here if your guardians allowed you to move somewhere,” Maki said, “You could leave if you wanted to.”

“...” Arven frowned, “...well, I guess I just don’t really want to, too. I really just want to be wherever Aceto is. Traveling is all well and good, but I’m kind of done with it for now.”

Doppio glanced over, a bit of relief relaxing his shoulders. And, with another breath, he nodded a little to himself. “I, um… We did kind of talk about it before, since I want to be where you are too, and since we’re both here already, it kinda…makes sense to just stay here… Um. When I got the timeline stuff from CPS, they said they’re making…like, case folders, I guess, of possible candidates of, uh, people who want to adopt me, so I can get an idea of people before just having to meet them from square one. Um…a-and one of the criteria I asked for was living and staying in Usott, w-which is why I bring it up, so… Yeah.”

He smiled awkwardly. “Think we might be here for a bit.”

O.O

OoO They should also be hot redheads.

O.O

OoO Hot redheads make good dads.

O.O

OoO Not that I mean anyone in particular.

To Arven’s surprise, it was Maki who chastised her before Arven could, “Could you not say things like that? He already has a complex about these morons, and it’s stressing out both him and his husbands. He’s not their parent. He’s just an adult that cares about them. Little comments suggesting he should be more is just gonna make him feel guilty about not doing enough, which will make him feel guilty for adding more stress to his family, and so on and so forth, and then I have to hear him whine about it. Which isn’t the main problem, but it is still a problem.”

Arven frowned at that. Kaito felt guilty for not doing enough? The guy was overbearing enough as it was, how could he possibly think he still needed to do more?

O.O

OOO I WASNT EVEN TALKING ABOUT THAT REDHEAD SHEESH

OoO Presumptuous much???

Doppio gave Amaina a strained, complicated look, but just like Arven, he was surprised when Maki spoke up first. Though, the content of what she said was much less surprising. He knew about Kaito’s weird sense of responsibility…though he did feel bad to hear how much it affected the other members of the royal family. There was some amount of stress, he guessed, since Doppio brought a lot of danger with him, and Kaito had already admitted that he was taking a chance, bringing that danger into his and his family’s lives, but… Was that what Maki meant? Or…

Sighing, Doppio smiled tiredly at Amaina. “I don’t think, um…looks are really something I’m going to consider much, when it’s time. …I still don’t really know what I want to consider at all, actually.” Looking down, Doppio chewed on his cheek nervously. “I mean…if CPS a-and the UAA are making a folder, then…that probably means they’re good people, right? So… I-I’m not really sure what I should be…considering. What would make anyone better or worse. I-I dunno if I’m just…supposed to say yes to any option at all or…what.”

“No?” Maki said, stopping and turning back to Doppio, giving him an incredulous look, “I’m sorry, did we really go through all of this bullshit for you to just take the first option given, no standards whatsoever? That’s a waste. We didn’t do all this just for you to throw yourself into another potential bad situation.”

“Well, none of them will be ‘bad’,” Arven frowned, “Isn’t that the point.”

“Fine. Pick a good one then.” Maki said dryly, “It doesn’t have to be bad to not be good. Just have some standards.”

Doppio huffed softly, though by the way he rubbed his nose it was more apparent he was more frustrated with himself than Maki. “That’s the whole…thing. What is a good one? What does that look like? How can I tell? What should my standards be? I-I get nervous around new people constantly, how…am I supposed to figure out who I should accept trying to be my parents?”

O.O

OoO Hotness?

O.O

OoO CRIMES??

“Not those things.” Maki said, turning to go down the path again, “I’d suggest someone who makes you feel safe. Maybe not… physically safe, but…”

Maki paused, thinking of Nekomaru. Of Kyoko. “...the safety of being valued. That you’re the priority. Don’t pick someone who you’re an accessory for. Or even someone who considers you some sort of task. Pick someone who likes you, and finds you uniquely valuable.”

“...that almost sounds like good advice, until you try to imagine actually figuring out who values you like that.” Arven pointed out, “We’ll barely know these people. How are we supposed to be able to tell if they like us? More than just how people should like each other to begin with?”

“I don’t know,” Maki admitted, “Kaito liked you right away. It should be obvious, once you see it.”

“...what if no one ever does?” Arven asked softly. Doppio not the only one thinking of future guardians, “What if that just never happens?”

“Hmmm,” Maki considered that, “...pick someone with resources who’s easy to manipulate?”

“That is such wildly different advice.”

…he still didn’t know what that looked like. And…well, Doppio did know that Kaito liked him…but Kaito did tend to gravitate people who were a little fucked up, because he was nosy about it, and then put his all in for people who were upset or needing help because he liked being needed. And…Doppio was kind of with Josie on the advice he’d given before--Doppio didn’t want to be someone’s project. 

But even within that… “I mean…the people I’m gonna get are people who’ve applied for adoption, and…with my case in particular, it’s a few categories of special needs,” Doppio wrinkled his nose, “So…I think there’d probably be at least some amount of a savior complex in any of them… I dunno why anyone would apply for that otherwise.”

Glancing over at Arven, Doppio sent him a worried look. Honestly, Doppio couldn’t imagine anyone getting to the point in the process where they could meet Arven and not just immediately falling in love with him. Like…as a human. Arven was incredible, and anyone would be lucky beyond belief to have him as a kid. That’s why Doppio thought his mom was so insane. But…

“...I mean…there are, like, foster families that are more there just for support than, like…actually trying to be parents,” Doppio mumbled unsurely. “Don’t think you’d even have to manipulate anyone in that situation to have access to the resources you need.”

Maki nodded, “Join a foster family. Gain their trust. Impress the head. Convince them to announce you heir. Take out your competition. Hire someone like me to ensure the head doesn’t use up your fortune in their old, or, middle age. Get your fortune and power. Have kids yourself. Assume the same thing could never happen to you. Take on a protege–”

“Don’t you have a million siblings or something like that,” Arven asked, “Why don’t you just adopt me?”

Maki startled at that, looking over her shoulder. “?”

Arven smirked, “Hah, see? You’re not the only one who can say a bunch of weird shit. I’m figuring you lot out.”

“Oh,” Maki said, blinking… before looking back, “Hm.”

“...” Arven stared at the back of her head. The joke weirdly hanging between them. “...I mean, I’m just looking for someone who makes sure I survive until adulthood, right? I have my own house. A whole house, by the way, not just a room in a hall…a backyard for another dog–”

“I feel like you’re accidentally talking yourself into something.” Maki said, not looking back at him, “Think about it more before you try to convince me.”

Arven frowned, looking at the ground. He wasn’t sure where that had come from himself. It had just entered his head, he had joked about it to catch her off guard, but once it was out in the air…

…he wasn’t sure something about that had sounded… worth thinking about. He genuinely wasn’t sure.

(He already knew Maki was good at being present without being everything.)

(She was already taking care of another quiet, grumpy boy with a dog. One who, for whatever reason, thought Arven was cool.)

(Arven… didn’t know if she liked him.)

(But she kept showing up.)

(And honestly there was just something about her. Fascinating and reassuring at the same time.)

Kids always got a little weird, around Maki. 

-

The morning once they got back to the castle was…oddly normal. Or maybe it just felt that way because of how weird everything had been before. Insistent on not showing up to the dining hall covered in dirt and in a coat over his pajamas, Doppio got his morning shower, though considering Arven had declared it a chill day, he stole some of his boyfriend’s sweats to wear instead of getting dressed in his own clothes. 

From there the plan was just to eat, make a pit stop upstairs to make those iced coffees then…hang out. And that was mostly what happened, except for being stopped by Lake, who gave Arven a Required and Traditional Birthday Hug with a full 16 spins (as well as a small potted Mother of Millions succulent, apparently a new plant trade from the western border of Luminary and Novoselic), and being passed a card that was from Kokichi. It was adjoined by a simpler note saying that he was sorry for missing them that morning, but he would be by later that afternoon for proper birthday greetings. 

But. Finally, it felt like, they’d made it to their room, and while Arven was looking over his things, Doppio pulled out a neatly wrapped gift with a gold ribbon bow from under his clothes, turning with a small amount of nervousness. 

“Um, well…if you’re getting others… Do you want mine too?”

Arven was still pleasantly looking over his new plant– it was lovely. Perhaps he should ask Lake to be his mother? He’d get plants out of it– when he looked up, grinning at Doppio, “You got me something? I really thought the making me breakfast and taking me on a hike thing was going to be enough, thats so sweet, Aceto.”

Arven paused… before grinning, “Okay, but now I desperately want to know what is it. Yessss, I want yours too. A present from my boyfriend~”

Blushing a bit, Doppio shrugged shyly. “Well… I didn’t really consider breakfast, and…the hike was going to be something we’d do together, though, um, the crab dinner was going to be a present, for sure. A-and still is. But…” He looked a little unsure. “When I was first learning about birthdays, Kaito said it was always nice to get something to unwrap, even if the, um…major gift, I guess, wasn’t an object. So…”

Shaking his head a little at himself, cutting off the rambling, Doppio stepped over to Arven and presented the gift. Hesitating for a moment before trying out the phrase he’d, bafflingly, heard a couple times that day, as he and Arven went around. “...happy birthday.”

It wasn’t anything huge. Doppio had just remembered one of the first conversations he and Arven had together, about their handwriting. About how Arven had cultivated his so picture-perfect neat because trying to write on the road had a tendency to warp paper and ink. So…Doppio had gotten him a leather-bound travel journal with, at least advertised, waterproof paper, and an ink-contained pen that was, again, advertised, to be able to write even while holding it upside-down. 

Arven may not be planning any big trips in the near future, but Doppio didn’t think that’d keep him from the outdoors as a whole. And…he thought they’d be useful. 

Arven laughed, though his face lit up red at the small ‘happy birthday’ from Doppio. His boyfriend was so sweet and cute, sometimes. Well… all the time, really. It was a lot. Cute…

And then Arven lit up, opening the present. “Oh, I know this brand!” He said excitedly, looking up at Doppio and then, in excruciating detail, telling him all about it. 

It came from so and so region, by so and so company, one that Arven really admired, especially for their pens. Do you see how dark that ink is? It was the formula they used, it allowed the ink too be less diluted by still non-toxic. And look! He scratched a line onto the front page, at the corner, and then smeared it with his thumb. Or, tried too, showing off to Doppio that the ink had already dried the second it hit air. 

When Doppio had shyly explained its other traits, Arven had lit up, “Oh, this is those models?” before immediately getting on his back and, holding the journal upside down, jotting something onto the page, his hair hanging off the edge as he grinned. Before passing the journal to Doppio, turning onto his stomach as he smirked.

It wasn’t anything written. Just a little heart, the line he had scratched in turned into a small, simple arrow through it. “The page looks pretty empty with just a heart, huh?” Arven said meaningfully. Playing with the edge of his lip with his canine tooth, smirking.

In the face of Arven’s excitement, Doppio’s anxiety had no choice but to completely melt away. Listening raptly to Arven explain all he knew about the, uh, apparently famous brands Doppio had gotten, and…well, admittedly being a little more enthralled by his boyfriend’s grins and the bright passion lighting up his eye. 

Just…being a part of Arven’s happiness. There really couldn’t be anything better. 

(Maybe that smirk was holy shit aaaaaaaaaa)

Flushing, Doppio looked at the heart before shyly clarifying, “Um…can I write you something then? It’d…be like a foreword or something…”

“Heh, yes.” Arven laughed, sitting up and wrapping his arms around Doppio’s waste and pulling him in, resting his head on his stomach and looking up at him, “That’s what I was hoping for.”

Doppio flushed harder but smiled down at Arven, gently running his fingers through his hair for a moment before taking the pen and starting to write. 

To my boyfriend Arven, 

I’ve never claimed to be good with words, and that’s giving me trouble now since I really don’t know how to convey just how much you mean to me. My life is immeasurably better from having met you, and I’m endlessly grateful for it; every day I wake up to a world that has you in it is a blessing and an adventure that’s a blast, whether it’s a ‘real’ adventure, or just walking familiar paths with Chief. 

You’re incredible, tesoro, and you will always be precious to me.

Doppio chewed his lip, turning scarlet, before he steadied his hands. Making sure to write this the neatest he could. 

Ti amo, tesoro

Buon sedicesimo compleanno

Tuo amichetto,

Aceto

Arven took the journal back, reading it over… and his eyes went wide at the last part. Glancing up at Doppio, before looking down to reread it again… before he put the journal aside and, standing up, took Doppio’s face in his hands. Memorizing him for a second, before leaning in to kiss him. Taking in that sunshine…

“...I love you too,” Arven whispered against Doppio’s lips, “Thank you for my gift, Aceto.”

Before kissing him more. Caught up in his warm, happy feelings. Someone telling him they loved him for the first time since… he couldn’t remember. 

Doppio was still bright red, and he watched Arven hopefully…but it was telling that he didn’t look away. Embarrassed and flustered, expressing his feelings…but secure in what those feelings were. And how they would be accepted. Not that he necessarily expected Arven to match them, but…he trusted Arven with his heart, his vulnerability. 

And, well. It turned out the full expectation was there anyway. 

Slowly grinning, Doppio put his arms around Arven’s back, kissing him as well. Feeling something almost overwhelmingly warm (though not in that it was getting hot. Just…such a gentle, tender warmth that was a lot) well up in his chest, and…passing that feeling through his lips seemed like the most natural thing to do with it. 

It’s a great thing, to love and be loved in return. 

 Admittedly, Arven waited a good long while to say what he probably should have said… this morning. Maybe even yesterday, Definitely what he had been thinking for a few hours now. But after getting to spend a bit of time with Doppio that day, drinking their coffee and getting his gifts and making out for, like… a solid forty minutes? Arven finally took a breath, resting holding Doppio and resting their overworked lips a bit…

“...look, I know you’re not going to want to,” Arven said softly, “because it’s my birthday and all of that, but… maybe we should reach out to Dr. Mariah today? You were…” Arven frowned, “...literally wailing, this morning. And died. That’s… I mean, that sort of sounds like… what are they called? The things she’s mentioned about why you’d need to talk to her in an emergency… uh… crisis? Is that it? That sounds like a crisis.”

It had been…really nice. Doppio didn’t really think that being with Arven was an escape, necessarily, but…well, were you going to think of a bunch of other stuff when you had a hot guy kissing you?!? So, uh, Doppio had been focused. Happily so. And even as they just cuddled each other, catching their breath, Doppio found himself just…pleasantly existing. 

…but, as always, the rest of the world was still there. 

Doppio’s face immediately scrunched, even with Arven calling him out. He could feel the impulse to argue, to insist on their day resting together, appreciating Arven’s birthday this way, and…it wasn’t like Doppio was feeling like he was going to hurt himself, so it wasn’t a super crisis. Probably just like the not-crisis he’d shown up to Dr. Mariah’s office with before, just feeling bad because things were bad. 

…but…

Frowning, Doppio stroked down Arven’s side as he thought. “...would you go with me? I mean…it’s all scary for you too.”

“Me?” Arven frowned, giving Doppio a confused look, “Is that even allowed? And even if it is, you sure you wouldn’t be set up to, I dunno… not talk? I mean, I won’t claim I haven’t been scared by all of this, but mostly just because of how you’ve been forced to deal with it.”

Kissing Doppio again, Arven whispered, “I worry about you, Aceto. You were screaming this morning.”

“Because I had a nightmare,” Doppio murmured back, a silent sigh in his chest as he cupped Arven’s cheek. “...of course I’m scared and freaked out. Something scary and freaky happened…but I don’t…feel like I’ve been forced to put it on the wayside, or ‘deal with it’ in some…way that doesn’t actually let me. It’s been a day.”

“...I dunno if it’s allowed, but…the princes go to their appointments together,” Doppio pointed out, even knowing that they were specifically going to relationship therapy so that was kind of a necessity. “And I really don’t feel like you being there would keep me from talking. A lot of the time, I feel like I can actually order my thoughts better with you around.”

Smiling softly, Doppio stroked Arven’s cheek before pressing their foreheads together, the smile slipping away. “...and… I mean, if you wanted time to yourself, I-I wouldn’t keep you from that. But…I don’t really want to be away from you for…like, a significant amount of time.”

Arven closed his eyes, leaning into the forehead press, taking comfort in the soft stroke against him, “...alright. What’s the worst she can say, no?” Arven mused, opening his eyes with a small smile, “And I was planning to just hang around outside the building anyway, You said she has some sort of really cool aquarium?”

His smile returning, Doppio placed a soft kiss against Arven before nodding. “It’s really astounding. I mean…Kaito’s is based off hers, so you can kinda get the idea, but…imagine his, but long-established. I, uh, try not to get too distracted by it during our sessions, but it’s really something…”

-

At first, Doppio had just thought to leave…but considering the hubbub over his disappearance yesterday, he left both a note in their room, and shyly asked some of the guards on duty at the gate to, if anyone (probably Kaito) came looking for them, let people know they’d gone to his therapist’s.

And so…they’d gone.

And feeling…a bit more sheepish than he had when Arven proposed the idea, Doppio waved shyly to Blair, feeling pretty aware that more often than not these past few weeks, Doppio had asked for an emergency session during the week. 

“Um… Hi, Mr. Con. Does Dr. Mariah have an opening for an emergency session today?”

Blair raised an eyebrow at Arven’s presence, before telling them both to wait in the lobby. He headed down the hall, having a small conversation with Dr. Mariah inside, before heading out, “She’s just finishing her lunch, but she can take you, yes. Give her five minutes.” Blair said, before looking at Arven, “Let’s do some paperwork on you. Come here, fill out this form…”

By the time Arven had everything filled out, Dr. Mariah– Arven was always a little surprised to see her. She really looked like she should be sitting in a middle school classroom, not in her own office–came out to fetch them, having them both sit.

Arven marveled at the aquarium display, as Dr. Mariah said, “So, I’m not surprised to see you really, Doppio. I imagine this week has been stressful, with the court case beginning yesterday. Though, I must ask… Arven, is there a specific reason you’re joining us today?”

“Aceto asked me to come,” Arven said, sitting down next to Doppio, “...he’s a bit worried this stuff is affecting me too.”

“Understandable. May I ask for you both to sit on opposite ends of the couch?” Dr. Mariah asked, explaining at their confused looks, “I understand it’s comforting ,but that’s specifically why I discourage that sort of contact during sessions. A certain level of discomfort is necessary for these appointments. Concerns expressed in the arms of a loved one will be portrayed and perceived differently than concerns expressed in the midst of self-soothing techniques.”

“Uh… I don’t really understand, but alright?” Arven asked, looking at Doppio.

Doppio smiled a bit as Arven took in the aquarium--it really was incredible, and he was delighted to see some of his favorite fish (some that glimmered with a sort of pinkish gold) were up by the front of the tank--but…well. Just as he tried not to get too distracted watching the fish during his normal sessions, they didn’t come just to aquarium-watch. 

He pressed against Arven’s shoulder as they sat…before giving Dr. Mariah a confused, unsure look. But…he did trust her judgement, and with a small shrug at Arven, he affectionately pressed to his shoulder once more before getting up and moving to the other side of the couch. 

“Um…” Doppio started with a nervous breath. “Well, I don’t really feel great about the trial but, um, kind of…bigger?” He glanced over at Arven before swallowing, looking at some of the detailing of Dr. Mariah’s dress as he said with about as much confidence as he could say such a thing, “...I died yesterday.”

Ever the professional, Dr. Mariah didn’t miss a beat as she said, “I’m terribly sorry to hear that happened. How did you die?”

“I don’t really remember it,” Doppio mumbled, before explaining more clearly…after another bracing breath. “I got in a fight with Kaito and…stormed off I guess. ‘N someone came up behind me… For me, the next thing was me waking up in the castle hours later, but…apparently I just went missing a-and…um… Amaina made the person that murdered me go away.”

He flinched a little at ‘murder’, glancing over at Arven again. 

Arven glanced back, chewing on his low lip with his canine tooth… before shrugging a little helplessly. Yeah, that was essentially what happened. Though, feeling the need to contribute, he added in, “He might have been gone for most of the day. We’re not really sure. Kaito last saw him after dropping me and his son off at school, and it was close to sunset when he showed up in Prince Kokichi’s room.”

“Unfortunately, if Doppio can’t recall when he was first respawned, rather then when you woke up, that doesn’t mean much for establishing how long your respawns take,” Dr. Mariah said, before smiling gently at Doppio, “In my professional opinion, I’d recommend just avoiding repeating the process in general.”

“We only know he, uh…” Arven winced, “Died at all because Amaina told us. I think she saw it happen. She was… really emotional this morning, and that freaked out Doppio, and everyone started screaming–”

“Actually, if it’s alright, let’s have Doppio explain to me how that moment went first,” Dr. Mariah said, “It’ll be helpful for reflecting on his initial feelings on hearing the news. Then, we can discuss your reflection on his reflection in that moment. The ripple effect of reactions, if that makes sense, Arven?”

Arven paused, before nodding, “Sure, alright.”

“Doppio,” Dr. Mariah said, “Explain to me the moment you found out you had died.”

Doppio winced a little and nodded in agreement. If he could avoid ever dying again? Then, uh, yeah, he’d do that. He didn’t even remember it, but still, 0/10 experience, wouldn’t recommend. 

…same with the aftermath. 

Hugging around his middle, Doppio hunched over himself a little, not really looking at anyone. “...I-I was already freaked out from my nightmare, um, this was kind of…the middle of the night, a-and I woke up because of a bad dream and woke Arven up, so…yeah,” he mumbled, outlining the setting of finding out. “Then Angelo showed up, w-which was good since she’d been gone all day, and…she called me dumb a lot and started hitting me and…told me I died.”

Arms tightening, Doppio’s gaze went even more downcast. “...it was bad enough just…h-having a blackout and going missing and feeling scared, but…” He huffed. “...someone killed me. I was dead. And…my best friend just had to watch it. And everyone was so worried all day…”

“...I just started crying more, then Amaina started crying more and getting angrier and…i-it kinda kept up until Arven called for Maki.”

At that, Dr. Mariah’s eyebrows went up ever so lightly. 

Well, well, well, if it wasn’t her old arch-nemesis of consistent background influence. Maki Harukawa’s presence had showed up in another therapy appointment. Not something Dr. Mariah had expected to happen twice, admittedly.

She didn’t need to prompt, as Arven volunteered immediately, “I called out to her cause I knew she was watching our window that night. I think it was to make sure no one could come in and hurt Doppio again. And I just…” Arven paused, before scoffing a bit, “Kaito keeps telling me over and over again that I can’t be expected to handle all this stuff by myself. He’s danced around it a thousand times, but when he was high for that holiday of his? He just straight up told me that Doppio’s issues were going to be too big for me. I don’t remember how he worded it exactly, but he just kept calling Doppio big. And when everyone was freaking out, it just occurred to me, yep… this is too big for me. I need help.”

Arven paused, “...sorry, I didn’t mean to actually say that much. I’m just explaining why I called out for Maki. I just knew I couldn’t figure out what to do about this.”

“That’s not a failing, if you feel guilty about it,” Dr. Mariah said, knowing he did. His explanation tasted like a bitter green apple in the air, Arven clearly wishing he had been able to handle it himself, “Obviously I’m biased, but there are many entirely common issue and problems you can see a loved one go through and feel lost and overwhelmed in how to help them. Consoling someone after the reveal of their death, while also juggling someone who witness their friend die? It was smart to seek help. That is ‘big’.”

Arven nodded, a little relieved at that, as Dr. Mariah turned her attention to Doppio again, “Hearing from your distraught friend that you yourself had died is the sort of nightmare scenario that turns disturbed ghosts into violent phantoms. That is to say, your reaction of being devastated is also entirely understandable. I’d actually be more concerned if your reaction had been anything less. Grief and fear for your own life is a natural way to feel. Do you resent how you found out?”

Doppio looked over at Arven, his expression softening. It felt…important that Arven had called out for help. That he had looked at the situation around him, judged it to be too much for him to handle on his own, and had sought help. It was far from the first time Doppio had seen his boyfriend do that, but…it still felt significant. 

…especially taking Kaito’s advice about it. Doppio raised his eyebrows, hearing about what Kaito had apparently said while he was high. …he called him ‘big’? …it felt petty but…Doppio couldn’t help but grumble in some part of him that that was a pretty big turnaround to calling him scrawny just the other day. At least that first bit of advice was good…

Looking back up at Dr. Mariah, Doppio grimaced. A little…worried hearing someone say straight out that ghosts were real and, in some cases, just as terrifying as the horror stories based off them…and more hearing that compared to him. But…devastated… Devastation was…a good word to describe how he felt, hearing the news…

But though it had obviously been bad…

Doppio chewed on his lip before slowly shaking his head. “...no, I don’t think so. I think…I would’ve rather have heard it from Angioletto than anyone, and… I dunno. I don’t know if it was…’good’ to find out I’d died at all. But… I don’t know. Finding out what happened and why…at least I know I’m not…just going to drop off the face of the earth for no reason.”

“There is power in knowledge, as the old saying goes. And while it is terrible to hear about something so traumatic happening to you, it’s important to know that someone had followed through on that decision to harm you… which, you said Amaina made…” Dr. Mariah looked between them, “...go away?”

“That’s how she explained it to us.” Arven said, “We didn’t ask for details. She seemed confident it was solved though.”

Well, if Amaina had killed them, what more was there to say about it? You couldn’t exactly make a mental construct answer to the law. And that was only assuming Amaina had killed the person. She was a creative sort. And honestly seemed to delight in being difficult to predict.

“We’ll take her word for it for now. In other circumstances, I’d be insisting you need to go to the guardforce with a name of the person who attacked you, but,” Dr. Mariah smiled a tad sadly, “When magic enters the discussion, the rules change. You can’t prove a murder was committed with no body. No one would understand. So, some things we must simply handle ourselves and accept. Though, acceptance can be the difficult part. Are you afraid of being attacked again, Doppio?”

Doppio nodded slightly. While it was horrible, knowing the horrible thing that had happened…knowing that a horrible thing happened, and wasn’t just a what-if or hyperbole was important. A…wake-up call, to a point. 

“I don’t even know who it was,” Doppio muttered. “I guess Angelo would, but…I dunno if she’d tell us, and…l-like you said, it wouldn’t matter. I died…but I came back. And there’s…not really a good way to explain that to the guards.” Not without sounding crazy. He did know there were other immortal-not-immortal people out there, but…he guessed that was what Dr. Mariah meant. That when magic was involved, the magic people harmed just had to handle it themselves and accept it. 

…honestly, that was a concept Doppio was all too familiar with. 

Wincing, Doppio chewed on his lip, looking a little…ashamed. And he nodded softly. “I just…”

He sighed softly, closing his eyes. “...I feel so stupid,” he murmured. “Maki even said she was baffled how anyone got the drop on me. I… I-I’m used to being aware that someone could, and probably would attack me at any moment… But I just…let my guard down. And scared everyone… I guess…”

“...I guess expecting that…everything would go away once my dad was arrested was…pretty dumb.”

“Not at all,” Dr. Mariah said, “You’ve had many reasons to believe you are safe, Doppio. You have had, in fact, several adults in your life absolutely determined to give you a sense of security. It’s not your fault that you internalized it.”

“I’m actually blaming Kaito,” Arven admitted. 

“Oh?” Dr. Mariah asked, certain she knew why, but opening Arven to speak about it, “How so?”

“He let Aceto walk away!” Arven said, gritting his teeth, “I was cursing him out the entire time we were looking for him too. Kaito wants to act like a controlling freak with every other part of our lives, but they get into one fight, and Kaito lets him walk off into the city alone on the same day as the first court case!? He’s so… spineless! Whenever he gets into an argument,” Arven scowled, “He treats fights like they’re these all or nothing things. He’s either literally shouting and tackling people, or he’s this whimpering whining little, little… bitch–”

“Take a breath,” Dr. Mariah cautioned him, “For a minute. It’s understandable you’re angry, but sometimes anger can distract from the emotions you’re really trying to process.”

Arven clenched his fists. Taking a breath. Another. “...Aceto felt safe cause Kaito keeps telling us we’re safe now. That’s why we live in the damn castle right now, and haven’t been able to leave it half the time we’ve been there, and why we listen to him whenever he wants to talk our ear off or drag us somewhere. Aceto thought he was safe. Kaito basically left him, as far as I’m concerned.”

Doppio grimaced a little. He…did think it was his fault for internalizing it. Sure, he’d seen enough to accept that he was safe in the castle…but he was out of the castle a lot. And Doppio specifically knew all the ways being out in the city could quickly become unsafe. He had been one of those things, just a month ago. Letting his guard down while he was alone walking the streets was incredibly dumb, and no one telling him otherwise would change that reality…so it was Doppio’s fault for just…being careless. 

Risky. …he really hadn’t changed much at all, huh. 

Though of everyone to blame… Doppio quickly looked over, his eyes widening in surprise at Arven’s vitriol. 

“...Kaito is an easy target to blame for a lot of things,” he murmured, once Arven was just fuming. “And…if we had stayed together, no one probably would’ve attacked me. But…” Doppio sighed. “...I don’t remember what we argued about. But I do know how bad our arguments can get. Kaito staying by us and being so…maddeningly overbearing, because he thinks the second he looks away we’ll die is…something we’ve both argued with him about. And that that kind of…sense of personal responsibility is unfairly stressful on him, and drives us crazy. I don’t know what happened…but I can easily see a scenario where he insisted on staying with me, despite every protest, and…it’d be something I’d never forgive him for. Even if, in this other case…I died.”

Doppio sighed, looking sad and tired. “...there’s no way to have known what would happen. And if I came to you after school yesterday talking about… I dunno. Thinking legitimately about getting a restraining order again? You would’ve been furious with him for that too.”

“...I don’t care if either way he doesn’t win,” Arven frowned, glaring at his knees, “I just… he should have done something.”

“Sometimes terrible things just happen,” Dr. Mariah said, “Which is a horrible thing to say and to hear. But it’s one of the most true things I can offer. Especially when you’re looking for blame. The only person to blame is the person who attacked Doppio. All everyone else could do was react to the aftermath of their attack.”

Arven huffed a bit at that… before looking softly at Doppio, “I just wish it hadn’t happened to you. I’m sorry.”

“I know,” Doppio said quietly, turning to rest his hands on his calf (shoes still off the couch) while he faced Arven. “...I feel like I just…repeat myself over and over with worse stuff. …I’m sorry that shit keeps happening. I know it’s not fair.”

Looking down, Doppio smiled warily at the couch cushion, a small shakiness to his voice. “...I wish I could’ve just promised, when we met, that…the hardest thing about striking up a friendship was a busy work schedule. That the worst thing we’d go through was walking back to your house and complaining about what jerks The Rabbits were today.”

“...I never wanted to put you in a position where someone you care about keeps…being hurt and tossed around and k-killed. That’s…horrible, and I never wanted horrible things for you.”

“It’s horrible for you!” Arven insisted, “I would have also preferred you were just… too busy sometimes! Without a jerk drowning you! And another jerk trying to control your life! And a third jerk, like, actually killing you!”

“It’s not a competition,” Dr. Mariah reminded him, “You are both struggling through an ordeal, together.”

“I, well… then yeah! This sucks so much. And I have no idea how to help.” Arven frowned, clasping his hands together, “I mean… what do you say to help someone who died?”

“I couldn’t definitively say,” Dr. Mariah said, “Why don’t you ask him?”

“Ask…” Arven startled, before looking over to Doppio, “...Aceto, what do you… need from me? After all of this?”

A little pitchy laugh came from Doppio, his eyebrows pinching as he closed his eyes. “Believe me, I know i-it’s horrible. Considering the amount of times I’ve broken down crying o-or had panic attacks or…all sorts of things…I know. I just…recognize that it’s bad for you too.”

Rubbing the bridge of his nose a little, Doppio opened his eyes and looked up at Arven, tired and strung out. “...what we’ve been doing? I just…want to hang out with you, a-and do fun things when we have the energy to, and… A-a hug? Hugs are good. And…I know you hate seeing it, but…being there when I’m crying? I do want to be alone sometimes but…it…it feels better a lot of the time when you’re there.”

“I don’t think there’s an action possible that would…make me dying be okay,” Doppio said quietly. “So… Us just…drinking coffee together? Or brushing Chief? Just…being there helps. I feel…”

Sighing, Doppio closed his eyes again and clutched his hand over his wrist, over his watch. “...I feel less crazy. And useless. Just…being around you. Doing stuff that makes us happy. I don’t need anything else.”

“Well, I can do all that,” Arven agreed, which was nice, since that was all stuff he was going to do anyway. “That stuff helps me too. I just… well, you said it yourself, this all just happened, and I just wish I knew some magic way to make this all better immediately.”

“Arven,” Dr. Mariah said softly, “‘Better’ is a subjective term… but even at our most generous idea of it, it will take time. This will take… well, potentially the rest of your lives.”

“What?” Arven frowned, “The rest of our lives?”

“Trauma recovery isn’t a straight line. It comes and go,” Dr. Mariah explained, “You get better at coping as time goes on, which is the major appeal of therapy. But the negative feelings of having experienced a trauma are feelings you maintain, not eradicate entirely.”

“Oh…” Arven slumped a bit, “Damn.”

“It does get easy to a point where it barely feelings like a challenge,” Dr. Mariah offered, “But it will take time to get there. Much longer than a day.”

Despite the literal existence of magic, and being a person kind of made of magic, a ‘magic way to make everything better immediately’ kind of…sounded impossible. Because even entirely forgetting that things happened didn’t mean they didn’t. And those consequences still existed in the world…and trying to exist outside of the world just so you couldn’t experience pain just…gave yourself other kinds of pain. Ones that were a lot lonelier, and a lot crueler than just…allowing yourself to live. With all of the scary and all of the beautiful things. 

Doppio nodded a bit. “...as much as constantly breaking down feels horrible…it’s kind of because… I mean, Arven…we haven’t even known each other a month. For, like…singular…traumatic events, I guess, some people are still in the dredges of processing that for years. Acting like the back end of a batting cage of course is gonna leave you battered.”

He smiled wanly, glancing over at Dr. Mariah. “...things feel bad because, in fact, they are bad. Just ‘cause I’m walking around doesn’t mean it’s over emotionally, I think…”

“Exactly, well said.” Dr. Mariah nodded. “It’s admirable to want to spare your loved ones pain, and it’s understandable wishing you can brute-force yourself well again. But the reality is that sometimes recovery is just enduring the initial pain, and learning to cope as time goes on. If the pain is ever truly unbearable, there are temporary medications I can put you on, but–”

“No, no, not for me,” Arven said, shaking his head, “I mean, I’m sad about all of this, but not ‘numb the pain’ sad. Though, Aceto?” Arvena asked, looking to him, “Would you want that?”

Doppio blinked, startled, and he just looked at Arven for a moment before frowning softly. Looking Arven over with worry before shaking his head. “No. I might change my mind later,” he sent Dr. Mariah a nervous glance, “but… I don’t know. How I feel is like…I’ll never move past this point if I don’t process what’s happening, and…I can’t do that if I don’t feel everything I’m feeling now. Maybe once I…get through understanding what’s happening, and that pain is just pain, I’ll want more help…like…that sadness becoming an inhibitor, rather than just…me. But for now…”

He sighed, rubbing his wrist. “...I hate freaking out so much, but…it doesn’t feel reasonable to…postpone it. And…I think freaking out while everything’s first happening is a little more reasonable and…feels better than putting it off and freaking out once everything’s been over for a while.”

“To be honest, I likely would have refused to write a prescription unless you made a very compelling argument otherwise.” Dr. Mariah admitted, “But it’s good to know that options are available, in an absolute worst case scenario. But neither of you are in a worst case scenario. In truth, you’re both already coping with this well, for the circumstances.”

“We are?” Arven asked, scratching the side of his cheek, “Because it’s all felt so crazy, lately. Out of control.”

“It’s like Doppio said. You’re feeling rough because you are having a rough time. You still have as much control over your life as you ever had, but luck has always been a factor. You are not doing anything wrong for feeling bad.”

“I get that, I just…” Arven clenched his hands shut, frowning, “...I don’t know…”

Dr. Mariah tilted her head at him a bit, studying him. “...correct me if I’m mixing up my facts. Arven, you went on a cross-country quest to find a cure that by that point was strictly legends, to cure your dog of… disease?”

“Aging.” Arven said without missing a beat, “Old man was on his last legs…”

“Right,” Dr. Mariah said, “...Arven, would you say you have difficulty with accepting helplessness?”

“No.” Arven said, “...I don’t know? I’ve never been helpless. Not really.”

“Hm,” Dr. Mariah hummed. Tapping against her journal. “Arven, I think I’d strongly recommend therapy.” 

Doppio smiled softly. As bad as everything felt…there still was some hope and…pride, hearing that he was coping well. He’d heard often enough that ‘if the world wasn’t fair, then make it fair’. A creed that spoke against just accepting hardship and pain because ‘that’s the way things were’. It had never been something he lived by himself, but…in his own ways, Doppio believed fiercely against stagnation. 

But feeling pain because something bad happened to you wasn’t stagnation or settling for outdated ways of thinking. It was a reaction, not a preparation. So…to hear that he was doing about as well as he could, licking his wounds, was…good. 

It could be frustrating to not ‘do’ anything about it, though. 

…helplessness. That was a way to put it. Arven’s endless assertion that he could just leave situations, and that authority had no hold on him. 

Chewing on his cheek, Doppio looked at Dr. Mariah with a quiet, almost guilty sort of sheepishness. “...um… You said you were going to send a pamphlet ‘n recommendations in the mail. I-It’s only been a few days, so, um… I mean… If you had some of them, it’d…be easier than the mail.”

“Oh,” Arven said, looking to Doppio, “Is that what those were? I got those pamphlets. I assumed they were for you, I just didn’t mention them because you already had a therapist.”

“Here, I have copies.” Dr. Mariah said patiently, standing up, “While I fetch them, Doppio, would you please make us some tea? If you do not mind.”

“Oh…” Doppio trailed off, blinking. “That’s…a quick turnaround. Um, sorry,” he muttered, giving Dr. Mariah a nod. He hadn’t been trying to say anything like he was getting impatient or anything about what she had told him about sending! It really had only been, like…two days. But he still felt a little bad about pointing it out when she’d already done it. 

Eyes widening a little, Doppio popped up from the couch and nodded, offering a shaky smile to both Arven and Dr. Mariah. “Uh, yeah, no problem. Um…a-any requests for the kind?”

“White tea, please.” Dr. Mariah said, heading to the door.

“Oh, let me help,” Arven offered, getting up to follow Doppio, “Or, well, let me come with anyway.”

That was fine. Dr. Mariah just wanted to give the boys a moment to process anyway. Neither of them were overwhelmed, but Dr. Mariah sometimes encouraged breaks even when things were okay. It helped reserve energy for them later, when they needed it. Besides, so far it wasn’t truly a crisis situation. Doppio wasn’t on the verge of destruction. He was just going through something awful and needed someone to talk to, and Arven needed reassurance that things were under control.

A perfectly reasonable way for Dr. Mariah to spend an hour. But nothing inherently urgent. If at worst the two boys left the session just feeling a little less stressed, she’d consider this a success.

Following in the kitchen, Arven looked around, before asking Doppio, “So, this is where you go every week. It’s nice, I can see why it’d help.”

A softer smile steadied on Doppio’s face as Arven offered (or, more demanded) to come along, and he nodded, leading the way over to the office kitchen. He…kind of hoped Dr. Mariah hadn’t just asked him to make tea so she could say something privately to Arven, and he was relaxed to hear no objection from her as they left, so…it was just more time spent with his boyfriend. Which was always a good thing. 

Setting some water to boil and getting out all the dishes and tea needed, Doppio nodded shyly at Arven’s judgment. “It does help a lot… More than I kinda thought therapy would do, honestly. It’s been…good, telling someone everything. I kinda hate to say it, but Kaito was right.”

“I know you know everything, and I’ve talked to other people too, but…” Doppio sighed softly, face focused as he measured out the dry tea into the teapot’s strainer. “...I guess there’s something about…this being a dedicated space to just…word vomit everything on my mind? It kind of feels…detached, but in a helpful way. Like…life as usual is things constantly happening, so it’s hard to…order my thoughts, or take time to consider my feelings when I’m talking to people, but this is the place to order and consider things and…when I get stuck, Dr. Mariah is really good at figuring out the sorts of things to follow up on to help me get across what I wanted to, or come to a conclusion I only had scattered thoughts about. It helps…”

Glancing over, Doppio chewed on his cheek, watching Arven for a moment. “...what…do you think about it?”

“Well, I’ve always known therapy was useful,” Arven said, grabbing some sugar to add to his own tea, otherwise leaving most of the fussing to Doppio as he leaned against the counter, “But it’s one thing to hear about it and another thing to see the process. It’s actually not the first time I’ve been told by someone I should get therapy, but I don’t know, it’s never really seemed necessary for me.”

“...until now,” Arven admitted, shrugging, “It’d be nice to talk to someone about at least some of the things going on this last month without it being something I bother you with. Not that I bother you, I think, you’ve never seemed annoyed with me talking about what’s going on. But, then, I suppose I don’t talk about it very much… if I’m honest, I mostly want to do it just because you’re doing it. You make it sound appealing.”

Nudging Doppio a bit, Arven said, “Was this a good idea? I know I asked you to come here, so… your therapist didn’t actually seem that worried. Are you okay?” Arven paused, “Or is that the wrong question for this situation? All that ‘its okay to not be okay’ thing?”

Doppio nodded a bit, taking off the stovetop kettle once the water began to boil and carefully pouring it in the teapot. It was widely known that therapy was like…the thing. You’re having issues, or even just kinda stressed? Something traumatic happened? Try out therapy. But…it was different actually going. And…well, Doppio wouldn’t say he’d thought he was perfectly adjusted before, but actually going through the process of therapy was…a little annoying. Just from realizing that all those PSAs were right. 

Carefully picking up the tray with the teapot and cups, Doppio looked up at Arven, eyes a little wide in surprise hearing his boyfriend actually…consider therapy. When he had been so nonchalant about it before. 

“You don’t!” Doppio quickly clarified. “You never bother me, wanting to talk! But…I think it is like the princes said before. It helps having more people to talk to…and probably with someone with more…perspective than me,” he smiled awkwardly. “We have our own conversations, and I’d be sad if those stopped, but…I think it’d help, having someone else to help too.”

Walking back to the main office room, Doppio sighed. “I think it was a good idea…even if I don’t…really think I’m in crisis. But while that’s kinda the spur for having an emergency session, Dr. Mariah told me last time to still come even if it isn’t really a crisis.”

“...I think it’s mostly a ‘it’s okay to not be okay’ kind of thing,” he said softly. “But…even with that…I feel the most okay I think someone could, in this circumstance. It’ll probably hit me again later, but…that’s alright. I know I’ll have help to ground me. And…in that okayness, I’m just…happy to spend time with you.”

“Same,” Arven said, before laughing, “That feels like a dismissive way to answer all of that, but it’s just how I feel about it. I’d feel bad if us going to therapy meant we didn’t talk to each other about stuff that’s bothering us. And it helps to be around you anyway. You make me happy… even when I’m really worried about you. Or sad you, well, died. Maybe even especially when you’ve died. That is definitely when I want to spend time with you the most.”

Sitting down on the couch again, Arven chuckled lightly, picking up his cup of tea, “You definitely make my life more interesting.”

Dr. Mariah came in, “Here you go. These are local therapists that I thought might be right for you.” Dr. Mariah said, passing Arven the pamphlets. 

“What about you?” Arven asked, barely glancing at them, “You seem good.”

“We could try it, but I would encourage you to at least look at your other options. These therapists are actually well known for their work with teenagers specifically.” Dr. Mariah explained. “Some of them might resonate with you more.”

“Okay, okay…” Arven looked over the pamphlets. Who was ‘Miss Crystal’? Weren’t these all supposed to be doctors or something?

As Arven looked over his options, Dr. Mariah took her cup of tea, settling down and taking a sip, “...mmm, thank you, Doppio, this is excellent.” she said, “You said you had a nightmare. Do you remember of what?”

“I guess that’s true,” Doppio murmured. Taking his own cup of tea, he couldn’t help but sigh. Arven had once told him plainly that even if it was for a minute, he’d be sad if Doppio died. He…guessed that had completely come true, in practice. It was accurate, but…somehow ‘sad’ didn’t seem to even begin to cover all the emotions from yesterday. And that morning, he guessed. 

Glancing over with an encouraging smile as Arven looked through the pamphlets, Doppio brightened up more at the compliment to his tea preparation…before deflating with another sigh as they got back on course. “No, I don’t… I mean…I’d assume it’d have to do with the stress of everything, but…I don’t know for sure.”

Wincing a little, he sipped from his tea. “...I get nightmares every now and then. And I rarely remember them. I’m just…usually left with that…raw, cold, lonely feeling we talked about before.”

(Along with gasping for air and shaking and on the verge of sobbing, but trying his best not to make a sound from any of those reactions.)

(Just normal nightmare things.)

“Do you find your nightmares are usually eliciting such a strong reaction?” Dr. Mariah asked, “Or does this feel unique to this morning?”

“Amaina screaming at him probably had something to do with it.” Arven pointed out.

“That’s a point. Should we invite Amaina to todays session?” Dr. Mariah asked. “...assuming she’s not been quietly here the whole time.”

OoO I would never.

O.O

Doppio looked up at Amaina before humming quietly to himself. He reached into a pocket in his jacket and pulled out a bundled cloth, unfolding it to reveal a small teacup, and he leaned forward, tongue peeking out in concentration as he poured Amaina a tiny cup of tea. 

This all went unacknowledged by him before he sighed. “...I dunno. This one definitely feels on the worse side of things…but maybe not, like, the worst. Like…not so bad by leaps and bounds that there’s a distinction, I mean.”

OvO

Amaina fluttered down, doing a little spin in the air before flopping onto her butt, taking the tiny teacup and giving it a happy little sip. 

Arven, in turn, gave Doppio a deeply worried stare, “This morning wasn’t that bad? How bad are your nightmares?!”

“Hmmm…” Dr. Mariah seemed to consider this, before offering, “We can work on some coping techniques for when you’ve woken up from a nightmare. Some grounding techniques, essentially. Doppio, would you feel comfortable laying down?”

Doppio frowned, curling into himself a little as he shrugged. “...I mean…it kind of turned into a bigger deal than usual… Usually I just…sit with it until I wake up enough to move on, but…you were there, a-and then Angelo told us what happened and that freaked me out more, then Maki was there…”

It was harder this time too because…Doppio couldn’t just get an earlier start on his day. There was no house laundry day to get started on, or an elaborate breakfast to make, or deep scrubs to put his back into. There had just been…the night, and a boyfriend he had woken up. 

Giving the ground a skeptical look, Doppio made an indistinct noise before setting his teacup down and shuffling to the ground, pulling his hood partially up to create at least some separation between him and the floor. Feeling a little silly, he peeked up. “...like this?”

She had been going to recommend the couch, but she didn’t want to make Doppio feel silly as she said, “Yes, thank you. Now, tell me what your usual process is, when you first wake up from a nightmare. How you react, how you feel, what the rest of your night looks like.”

Arven, sitting on the couch, rested his elbows on his knees, and his chin on his palms, squishing his cheek a bit as he looked down at Doppio, “...you’re super cute down there.”

“Focus, Arven.”

“Sorry.”

Doppio flushed a bit, glancing to Arven, before he took a breath. Feeling…weird about doing this when it wasn’t a necessity. When it was the only motions and actions and decisions he even felt capable of doing--no decision at all, really. 

“Um…well, a lot of the time, I feel that thing we talked about before,” he started, glancing to Dr. Mariah. “And…it hurts. I feel really scared and alone but…like on…on a, um, cellular level. And it’s hard to breathe and I cry a lot but…that’s annoying so I try to stop it. O-or just…muffle it. And…sometimes I have, um…scary thoughts, and that just…makes everything worse.”

He’d mentioned those kinds of thoughts before, but…Dr. Mariah had never asked after them. And…with a nervous glance at Arven, Doppio wasn’t sure he wanted to get into them now. 

“Um…a lot of the time, it’s just…early in the morning, a-as opposed to the middle of the night so…once I stop crying, I’d get up for the day,” Doppio explained, lightly tapping his fingers together over his chest. “Make myself a list of things that needed cleaning, or try to plan out some…elaborate breakfast that would take a few hours so it’d be ready by the time Dad woke up.”

“I see,” Dr. Mariah said, tapping her journal lightly, “Let’s focus on processing the alarming feelings first, before deciding if you’d rather still get up for the day or try to sleep a little bit. Let’s try this… the first thing I want you to do is to touching your own palm with that same palms fingers,” she said, holding up her hand and moving her fingers up and down her palm, “Like this.”

Arven, in turn was frowning. Deeply unsettled by the idea that Doppio was waking up and just… quietly sobbing beside him, some morning. His boyfriend cried so much… “Can I join him?”

“On the floor?” Dr. Mariah clarified, “If you’d like.”

Arven hurried down, laying beside Doppio. Staring at the ceiling, he lightly scratched his own palms with their same hands.

“Okay…” 

Frowning softly, Doppio half held his hands up, letting his elbows rest on the floor, while he touched his fingertips up and down his palms. At first going with a rather quick tempo, before he purposely slowed himself, guessing that this was supposed to be a self-soothing method and…with shaking, stiff hands, doing anything quickly would just turn into incomprehensible jerking.

Glancing over to Arven as he joined him on the floor, Doppio blushed a little before looking back at Dr. Mariah. Giving her a sort of grim and strained grin. “...so muffling myself is something to stop, I gather?”

“My current goal is to give you some quiet self-soothing techniques that won’t inherently require you to ‘hide’,” Dr. Mariah explained, “The touching of your own palms with your fingers is the easiest, quickest and quietest way to assure yourself you’re actually awake. It’s a feeling that, as far as anyone’s recorded, can’t be replicated in a dream. Some people, if they’re still not sure, will lightly graze their fingernails on the center of their hands as well. Reassurance that you are awake, and the dream is over.”

“Okay,” Arven said, still lightly scratching, “But he’s going to be crying, right? So… what next?”

“Next, is to take one hand and point it so that your index and middle finger are both sticking out together,” Dr. Mariah said, showing them, before touching both fingers to the tip of her nose, “And put it on your nose. Take your other hand, and place it on your chest.”

“...are you hazing us?” Arven asked, even as he did it, “This feels silly.”

“It accomplishes a few things. It makes you extremely conscious of the air coming in and out of your mouth, the movement of your chest, and the benefit of a familiar scent. Your scent.” Dr. Mariah explained, “And you’re not expected to hold it forever. It’s just a grounding technique for when you first start crying. A way to manage deep breathing when it will otherwise be difficult through sniffles. The goal isn’t to stop crying, the goal is to calm any panic you’re experiencing through crying, and push you towards the more soothing side of it.”

“Now,” Dr. Mariah said, “Take deep breaths. In… and out… in… out… and you can drop the hand on your nose once you become too conscious of it, then it’s done it’s job, but I’d recommend holding onto the feeling of your chest rising and falling. In and out…”

“Oh…” Doppio hummed curiously. “I’ve never thought about testing if something is a dream. …that’s kinda weird, that you can’t do something so…basic, I guess.” He wasn’t…entirely sure if he was frightened of still being in a dream when he woke up and freaked out, but…well. Couldn’t hurt to try. Even if it made him loud…

Though…ever since Kaito back in the hotel, no one had been mad at him for being loud…

Following Dr. Mariah’s instructions, Doppio put his fingers on his nose and his other hand on his chest, indeed feeling a little silly…but as Dr. Mariah explained the purpose, he let out another considering hum. This was a way to not…heave sobs? That would certainly be quieter than muffled ones.

Taking deep breaths, though Doppio wasn’t particularly feeling panicked at the moment, he practiced the motions for a few moments before moving the hand at his nose to join his chest, looking at Dr. Mariah curiously. “So…do this when I wake up to calm down faster? I, uh…” he offered a crooked smile, “I don’t actually have nightmares that often, so I dunno if I’d be able to report back in a week if it works for me.”

“That’s alright. Consider it less a homework assignment and more just advice you can hold onto for your next nightmare. I don’t make a habit of assigning home exercises in emergency sessions anyway.” Dr. Mariah explained, “...Arven?”

Silence. “Ah, right, you all didn’t get much sleep last night,” Dr. Mariah recalled, watching Arven softly snore on the floor, one hand on his chest and the other plopped onto his face. “Though, that was very quick, for only being horizontal for maybe five minutes.”

Amaina fluttered down, landing on Arven’s face– or, well, the back of his hand– and then coo’ing as she pet his forehead, Sleepy sleepy little king, sleepy sleepy seeeenpaaai~

“Please wake him up, Doppio, and we’ll put some tea into him.”

Doppio looked over, before propping himself up on his elbows, looking over Arven fondly…though not without a little guilt. “Arven was the one who encouraged me to reach out today…but we mostly planned on just…relaxing. But…at least we won’t have to wait for my arm to heal whenever we want to do his birthday hike, I guess…” Doppio mumbled. 

Reaching over, Doppio gently tapped his boyfriend’s shoulder. “...Arven? Arven, wake up.”

Arven’s eyes peeked open, looking around blearily, before almost automatically turning over and wrapping his arms around Doppio’s waist, burying his head into Doppio’s stomach, “Nnf.”

“Tea, Arven, it will help.” Dr. Mariah insisted, watching as Arven sighed before sitting up, reaching up to grab his tea from the center coffee table. “Worn down?”

“No.” Arven said, drinking deeply from the tea, leaning against Doppio, “Just a fast sleeper. Was there anything more to the nightmare thing?”

“No, you got the gist of it.” Dr. Mariah smiled, “You both have had a difficult few days. I would still recommend rest, even if being newly healed makes you feel more ready to take on challenges. Your healed shoulder, Doppio, came with some pretty hefty psychological damage… but, you can both feel free to interpret that need for rest in terms of getting out of responsibilities, not the things you’re looking forward to.”

“I think your therapist is saying I should skiiiip school,” Arven smirked.

“To a reasonable extent.” Dr. Mariah said, “But, essentially, yes.”

“Eep!” Doppio quietly squeaked in his throat, turning red. Though, tellingly, he just as automatically cupped the back of Arven’s head, gently scratching his scalp. The affection was very cute, but, uh…they were on the floor of his therapist’s office. It was…a little embarrassing. 

Sitting up more properly as Arven rose, Doppio got his teacup back as well, taking a sip. He didn’t often struggle with getting to sleep but…wow. That was an enviable skill. 

He gave Dr. Mariah a sheepish nod, before glancing over at Arven fondly. “...I’d be happy spending tomorrow with you too. Though…would you want to go to chess club this week? And…um, Giovanni did say he was going to work on some, um…what did he say… Model sketches? Of some of our designs, so…I dunno. It’d be nice to see people at some point this week.”

“Sure, we can do all of that,” Arven shrugged, clearly not all that concerned about it one way or another, “So long as I’m with you? We can do whatever.”

“Did you have any questions, Arven, about the pamphlets?” Dr. Mariah asked. 

“What do you think of that ‘Miss Crystal’ one?” Arven asked, “Her’s seemed sort of fun.”

Dr. Mariah forced herself not to show any amusement, “You could certainly try with her. Would you like me to send word to her on your behalf for a trial session?”

“Mmmm–sure~” Arven shrugged again, “Her pamphlet said all her clients get one free meditation crystal, so at the very least I might get a pretty mineral stone out of it.”

“That’s the spirit,” Dr. Mariah said, looking to Doppio, “How are you feeling now? We can explore more, I have the time. It just depends on what you want to talk about.”

…

…well, there was still that tournament that weekend. Arven had been looking forward to that, to meet with his new friend. There was still that. 

Doppio gave Arven a slightly puzzled look, the phrase ‘meditation crystal’ pinging something in his brain that he couldn’t quite connect…but, well. He would support Arven trying out therapy, and he’d be happy if he found something worthwhile in meeting with Miss Crystal. 

“I…think I’m alright,” Doppio slowly said, glancing down at himself, as if taking stock. “I mean…I reserve the right to be not fine later, but…I dunno. It’s fucked up. But…I think I’m in a moment of calm between melting down at the fuckéd-ness.”

Though, even as he said that, something flickered through his expression. 

Dr. Mariah took a small breath. Someone was letting their feelings cook a little too long, based on the taste of the buttered steak that was radiating through the air. Hmmm…

“You do reserve the right to not be fine later,” Dr. Mariah said gently, “But it’s also okay for you to not be entirely fine now, even if you’re not actively breaking down. And you have my time and attention. You really can feel free to make use of it, if there was anything on your mind?”

Glancing up, Doppio blinked, before sighing. Muttering under his breath, “You and Kokichi are too good at that…”

Looking to the side, Doppio rubbed his wrist as the corners of his mouth turned down, a guilty, ashamed look coloring his features. “...I know…I shouldn’t. Shouldn’t…care, or anything. But…” Another sigh as he hid behind his teacup a bit. “...I just…wondered if anyone told my dad I went missing, while that was going on yesterday.”

Arven’s eyes widened slightly… before he looked up at the ceiling, “...ooooooh. I have… no idea.”

“Doppio,” Dr. Mariah said, her tone gentle, but stern, “Is there any possibility that your father ordered the hit? Because that is a relationship I would more strongly recommend you break-off.”

Doppio sighed, closing his eyes as he pressed his forehead to the teacup. Quiet for a moment. “...I don’t think so. My dad never hesitated to order hits to accomplish his goals, and…if this was before I talked with him, that would’ve been a possibility. But…he’s done with me. And explicitly said he wanted me to live, even if he didn’t think I’d make it far. He wouldn’t expend that kind of effort on something he sees as inconsequential.”

“...if it was someone from Passione?” he quietly said. “Which…that’s probably more likely than a random murder. Then it was probably someone pissed off about the open investigation. Without Dad…” Doppio sighed. “...a lot of the groups handle their own day-to-day business, but with anything for the direction of the organization itself, or broader orders…everything’s going to be thrown into chaos without anyone giving orders. And…I know there’s not, because Dad wanted me to do it.”

His voice growing a little dry and detached, Doppio mused, “Right now, all the smaller groups are probably centralizing within themselves, trying to avoid prosecution. Some might try to sabotage others, throwing them under the carriage so the government is too busy dealing with easy pickings to search out those with a plan. Likely…someone tried to take me out to avoid information leaks…even if I’m not being questioned.”

-_- hmmmmm

OoO and now the mountain grows

“I can’t answer if anyone told your father that you were missing,” Dr. Mariah said, “Though, if Kaito was truly as desperate as you make him sound, he might have asked for your father to be questioned. I could only guess he’d do that though, not how they’d react to that.”

“But,” Dr. Mariah continued, as Arven nodded along with that, “On our end, it’s more important to talk about the desire, not the reality. You say you ‘wonder’ about it. Is there an answer you find yourself hoping for?”

Doppio was quiet for another moment before groaning, frustration just radiating off of him as he rested his arms on propped up knees. “I know it’s stupid. And that’s it’s just…useless and I need to stop.”

Doppio’s eyebrows pinched. “...but there’s a part of me that just…wants someone to have told him, and for him to have cared. I know he doesn’t, and…other than someone questioning him if he was involved, no one would tell him, and I know even having that hope in the first place…sucks! It’s bad for me. M-my father isn’t in my life anyone and I c-can’t care what he thinks! I know that.”

…but he still had the impulse desire.

Arven scooted over, and wrapped his arms around Doppio, leaning his head on his shoulder… and sticking out his tongue at Dr. Mariah when she gave him a pointed look at that, “Come on, look at him. He deserves a hug.”

“I’ll allow it, but you’re on thin ice, young man,” Dr. Mariah smirked, before her expression softened looking to Doppio, “...Doppio, your life has been spent, grappling with that desire. A closeness and connection that he refused to offer you… there’s nothing foolish or even unexpected, that you still feel that way now, after everything. Emotions are never that logical.”

“But, even knowing that your feelings are understandable, and indeed, unavoidable… I want you to remember this,” Dr. Mariah said softly, “People, yesterday, did notice you were missing. They panicked. They looked for you for hours, and were ready, I believe, to look for you for much longer. In that moment, there were people who wanted to find you, more than anything.”

“You are someone who is deeply cared about, Aceto Doppio,” Dr. Mariah said, “It’s important to keep that knowledge close to you, even when you reflect on the person who couldn’t step up in your time of need.”

Doppio looked up at Dr. Mariah, strained…before leaning into Arven, resting his cheek on his head and stroking down his arm a bit. “...I know. …I didn’t even really start thinking about my dad until way later.”

He closed his eyes, nuzzling Arven a bit. “...Prince Kokichi all but sprinted over to me, when Maki took me over to the princes’ room. He tries a lot of the time to be respectful of space, but he didn’t even hesitate before hugging me. His eyes were red too… And when they talked about how you and Kaito had been out for hours… I felt awful…”

“...but I really liked it,” Doppio admitted in a whisper, scrunching his eyes tighter. “I was so scared… And…having all of them fuss and care in their own ways, and…and they even called the Guardforce to look for me. And you guys kept looking even though Kokichi said he couldn’t find me…”

“I…” He’d felt cared about. Like he was a person, and not a thing, or some…dreamy wisp that just drifted around in the world that no one paid attention to. People noticed he didn’t greet Arven after school, and spent hours looking for him. They worried and fretted and crushed him in hugs when they found him, made tea and got food, brainstormed how to explain things to people to protect him. 

…people loved him. And…

“...I liked it,” Doppio muttered, repeating himself, but not knowing how to express those feelings any other way.

“Hold onto that, even while you explore the pain,” Dr. Mariah said, “It can sometimes be the only line of defense, when reflecting on parental neglect.”

“I don’t know about that,” Arven said, his observation almost idle, even as he lightly rubbed his fingers against Doppio’s side, “Sometimes it’s enough to just know they suck and move on.”

“You don’t feel like you make decisions based on your feelings with your absentee parents, Arven?” Dr. Mariah asked.

“No,” Arven said, before pausing, “...does sabotaging my grades count?”

“Incredibly.”

“Well, okay, then maybe a little.” Arven shrugged, nuzzling into Doppio’s side. “But Doppio has me, and I have him. That’s enough.”

“It’s not, actually,” Dr. Mariah said, “But it is a start.”

His father may not have loved him…but a lot of other people did. And just because his dad was important to Doppio, it didn’t mean those people weren’t too, or that they were somehow lesser, or their love meant less. Sure, they were newer in his life, but…Doppio didn’t think that meant much. And while his dad was a sore spot…there were a lot of other people Doppio was grateful for. 

And…even if Arven didn’t see it that way, it was like that for him too. 

Doppio gave his boyfriend a bit of a side-eye before sighing and holding him closer. “...it’s a really good start. I know you can’t be my only reason for…everything. But…” Doppio blushed. “...I do love you a lot, and…that’s a lot.” He smiled wryly. “A good reason to pull out of bed and go to therapy.”

Arven smiled, leaning into Doppio’s hold. Arven, honestly, probably needed more convincing that he really did need anyone other than Doppio in his life. He liked having Kaito intrude on his life in an almost sort of ‘take that’ against his mother, and also because Arven had been alone and struggling enough in his life to recognize that things were considerably easier with an adult helping. But none of those were necessarily… ‘emotionally fulfilling’ to him. In the same way that when he looked at Maki, he didn’t necessarily ‘like’ her, or really believe she liked him, but he could objectively see how she’d made his life better, if he asked her too.

And it was strange, to know someone might entirely re-shape their lives, just because he, well… asked them too. Was there anything more reassuring? Arven didn’t know if he needed that, but it was mindblowing to have it as an option.

But when it came to ‘love’? To affection or togetherness? The warm and fuzzies? Doppio and Chief were enough. 

For now.

“I love you too,” Arven said back, entirely sincere, it just truth to him by this point. “And I’m glad we did this instead of hiking.”

O.O

OoO Okay but can we do, like, ANNNNYTHING fun soon??

“Chess club, weird tournament stuff and hiking soon, Amaina, chill.” Arven said, rolling his eyes.

Amaina pouted, flopping onto her back. 

“We could make some cookies soon, Angelo,” Doppio tried, hoping that was exciting enough to cheer his friend up. “I wanted to make some for your friends,” he nodded to Arven, “and partly so Josie could take some to give to his friend that made the cookies he gave us before. They were really good, so…gift.”

Though actually talking about that could wait until his proper appointment. 

“While I want to make a more standard batch too…I could try and figure out your ideas for marshmallow and pretzel cookies, Angelo,” Doppio tempted. 

Amaina kicked her legs into the air, considering this with a stern, intense pout. Appraising the merits of this idea… before deciding it was acceptable, as she spun up and shouted, WE WILL MAKE THE COOKIES OF A GENERATION!

“Sounds like a plan,” Arven grinned, before booking to Dr. Mariah, “Um… is this it, by the way? You haven’t said anything in a while.”

“Sometimes my office is just a safe space,” Dr. Mariah said, “I think we’ve come to a point where you could safely leave at any point, but I have no desire to hurry you out. I want you to leave confident you can face the rest of the day.”

Doppio smiled fondly at Amaina before turning to give Dr. Mariah a more grateful smile. “...I know you encourage it, but…thanks for seeing us today. I…think I’ll be alright. And…prepared when things aren’t alright.”

Glancing at Arven, Doppio tilted his head a little, silently asking the same of him. 

(It was kind of why Doppio had wanted Arven to come along to his appointment in the first place. It was all scary and overwhelming for him too.)

Arven entirely misinterpreted the meaningful head tilt, leaned in and kissed him. “Ready to go?” Arven asked, pinking a little.

Flushing red, Doppio made a wobbly sound in his throat and looked down, muttering, “I-I mean, i-if you are!”

“I am,” Arven grinned, taking Doppio’s hand and getting up, “Thank you for seeing us, Dr. Mariah. And thank you for taking care of Doppio.”

“Of course,” Dr. Mariah nodded at him, “Please tell Kaito hello for me.”

“Huh? Oh…” Arven rolled his eyes, heading out.

Kaito was leaning against a street-lantern pole, looking up at the unlit lanterns. It was going to be a shame, he thought, the day these were all replaced by electric lights. He liked the warm glow of the fires. Made him want to have another night hike soon. Watch the pretty lights of the city, contrasting the dotted glows of the sky…

Kaito glanced to the right, grinning, “Hey! Got your message!”

Making sure to clean and re-wrap up Amaina’s cup (that was once Kokichi’s cup, and while the prince had said it was Doppio’s now, and he never needed it back, Doppio did feel a certain amount of stress in keeping the cup in good condition and…not lost), he and Arven left the office back into the crisp fall air, shaking his head a little at seeing Kaito in a familiar spot. 

However, Doppio hesitated for a moment before gently letting go of Arven’s hand and walking up to Kaito. Closing his eyes as he gave him a tight hug. 

“...I’m sorry for scaring you yesterday,” Doppio quietly said, his voice a little muffled. “...and thanks for caring about me so much.”

Kaito tensed up, genuinely uncertain what was happening for a second… before he lit up. Eye growing watery as he grinned, before hugging Doppio back tightly, “Hey, it’s okay! We found you! Or, well, you found yourself, but it’s still a win!”

Kaito chuckled, lifting Doppio off his feet a bit, holding him tightly, before setting him down… before, like a viper striking, reaching out and grabbing Arven, pulling him into the hug when the teen dared wander too close, “Hah. Got you.”

“Gah!” Arven gasped, as he was squished in next to Doppio, Kaito holding them both tightly, “What’d I do??”

“Got in hugging range, obviously. Your own fault really,” Kaito smirked. Glancing up to look at Maki, who was chilling on top of the building, and giving her a small nod. They hadn’t coordinated both of them being there, but Maki had beaten him to it, so he was mostly just trying to convey he had it from here. “Phooo… are you two okay? Did the emergency session help?” Kaito asked, forcing himself to let them go.

Even with all their issues, Doppio still couldn’t help but melt in Kaito’s hug a little, feeling his insides shake like gelatin but…in a good way. Almost in a painful way, but…a good type, if that made any sense. If there was anything Doppio could believe in when it came to Kaito, it was that the man cared about him, and…well, he couldn’t remember if he’d gotten around to thanking him the night before. So…the second best time was right now. 

Snorting a little as Arven was snatched up into the hug, Doppio just doubled his efforts in hugging for a moment, before Kaito let them go. And, catching his breath a little, he nodded, finding Arven’s hand. “Yeah… I mean, I wasn’t exactly melting down when we left, but…I think it helped. We, uh…” Slotting the corner of his lips between his lips, Doppio gnawed as he looked to the side bashfully, “She gave some calm-down techniques for when I’m freaking out so…hopefully those will be useful.”

“Did…it help you?” he asked Arven, glancing over. 

“I think so,” Arven agreed, tilting his head a bit at Doppio, “I mean, I’m less worried about you, anyway. Not that I’m not worried, but I was really worried an hour ago, and now… it helped, I think, to hear from someone who knows that your reaction isn’t… unusual, I guess? I was worried we weren’t doing enough to help.”

Kaito gave Arven a smile at that, though there was something strained in it. He wished he could spare the kid that sort of anxiety entirely. Spare both of them all of this. He wanted them to be normal teenagers so damn badly…

“Oh,” Arven said, looking at Kaito, “I’m supposed to talk to you about that, actually.”

“Me?” Kaito asked.

“Yeah, Dr. Mariah kept saying you’d… I don’t know. I’m supposed to talk to you more about the ‘big’ thing, I think.”

Kaito squinted at Arven, “...big thing,” he echoed, “...which big thing?”

“You were high?”

“Oh god which big thing??” Kaito whispered, far more alarmed.

“You make taking you seriously really hard.” Arven told him plainly, “I’ll explain more later, if we end up talking, I guess.”

Kaito looked alarmed at that, stressing, “No, no, we can talk! Whenever! About whatever! Big things or otherwise! I have time!”

“Well, I don’t, we’re going to go make cookies,” Arven said, taking Doppio’s hand, looking at his boyfriend, “Right?”

“I don’t think it’s a bad idea to ask around, just ‘cause things don’t always occur to me… But I think you’re doing great,” Doppio smiled softly, squeezing Arven’s hand, “And if I feel like I need something more, I’ll tell you. For now, you’re perfect.” He glanced down, giggling softly. “...I mean, you’re perfect a lot of the time, but…you know what I mean.”

Looking between Arven and Kaito at the exchange, Doppio hummed a little, before giving Kaito a soft smile. “I mean, you’re welcome to bake with us, Kaito. And we can talk while we do. Honestly, I think another set of hands will be good.” A little awkwardly he half shrugged, starting to lead the way back to the castle. “I’m…kinda half-way between wanting to bake, and just…wanting to take a nap. Or maybe three-quarters, towards baking. I’m…uh. Kind of tired…”

“But fresh cookies will be nice.” Pressing against Arven’s shoulder, he smiled. “We can make a special flavor on your request too, for another special birthday thing.”

“Oh, man, I am an expert at cookies!” Kaito grinned, and for some inexplicable reason, bringing his arms up to flex his biceps, winking as he said, “When I was volunteering in the kitchen a lot? I was a master mixer! Could beat that batter for days!”

“...” Arven kept a straight face for a moment… before snickering. And then, embarrassed he had snickered, he covered his face. Snorting into his hand. Oh, that was so lame to find that funny, pull it together.

“But, yeah, if I’m invited? I’d love to join in! It is still Arven’s birthday, it’d be nice to just spend time with you.” Kaito said, glancing at Arven, “...do you have any strong feelings about… swords?”

“We talked about the swordsman thing,” Arven reminded him, “You wanted Maki to teach me to fight?”

“Well, no… I mean, yeah, that’d still be a solid choice, but I mean…” Kaito rubbed the back of his neck, “...eh, did you guys get Kokichi’s gift yet?”

Arven lit up, “The zoo? He did! I’m really excited to see it. I haven’t been to the zoo since I was little.”

Kaito grinned, “Aw, that’s awesome. He’s great at giving gifts, I’m glad to see he’s still knocking it out of the park.”

Doppio smirked a little, before glancing over at Arven, smiling a little wider in the face of his mirth. “We’ll definitely use your skills, then…though you won’t have to for days. I’ve found that cookies are hard to over-mix, but soft, chewy cookies are unequivocally the best kind.”

Giving Kaito an odd look as they started talking more about Arven’s birthday (...swords? Why did that…?), Doppio lit up alongside Arven, his grin hesitant yet excited. “It was nice of him to drop off the present though he’s busy for the morning. Mm…depending on what we make, the cookies might be done when he’s done for the day too, so…”

He cut his musings short, looking down while giving off that same sort of nervous excitement. “I’ve never been to a zoo… It sounds really incredible, though.”

“You two will have fun,” Kaito said confidently, “...would you mind taking Firenze or Maki with you when you go?”

Arven looked up at Kaito, frowned… looked at Doppio… before saying lightly, “I don’t know. I guess.”

“They don’t have to be with with you, you guys have seen how they work, they’re great at, like, professional stalking! …just for a bit,” Kaito explained, scratching the saved side of his head, “Look, I got my bodyguard because people throw food. That’s, in comparison to a lot, basically nothing. You two? Could really, sincerely use a bodyguard. Maki’s volunteered to act as one for now, but I could also ask Firenze to watch you guys on days he’s meant to be watching me. Honestly, I’d take a thousand coffees to the face if it meant nothing happened to either of you.” Kaito shrugged. So long as Miyako wasn’t in his arms at the same time, anyway. “Easy decision.”

Doppio’s expression tensed a bit. “...you do know it doesn’t make us happy if people hurt you, right?”

Sighing a little, he stroked his thumb down the side of Arven’s hand. “...I wouldn’t mind if someone came along, I guess. But we’re not paying for their ticket,” he pouted at Kaito, “This was a gift from Prince Kokichi, so Arven shouldn’t have to take on any responsibility while he’s just meant to enjoy the gift.” Glancing down, he flushed a little, pouting at the ground now. “...I mean…I’d pay, but… As a guest I don’t…think it should be,” he winced, almost looking pained to say it, “...my. Responsibility. Either.”

Doppio looked a bit sick, like the words were rotten.

Kaito glanced over at Doppio. He had been about to say ‘of course not’, but seeing the stress that ran across the kids face…

“Hmmm,” Kaito hummed, smoothing out his goatee, “That’s a good point. Well, considering I’m the one that wants you to have a bodyguard, I guess I could foot the bill?”

“Um,” Arven said, raising an eyebrow, “Yeah?” Not adding in the ‘duh’ that was clearly at the end of that statement.

“Mmhm, mmhm… I guess I could just ask one of my husbands to pay for this months hot pants.” Kaito said, sighing, “Though, as a good dad, I should maybe give up this months sexy low-risers in the name of Miyako’s latest onesie supplies.”

“You get a new pair of pants every month?” Arven gasped, “Why??”

“It is a PRIVILEGE of being a TROPHY HUSBAND! Thank you very much!” Kaito pouted, “It was written into the treaty between Luminary and Dicea when I first got married! Monthly hot pants!”

“...pff,” Arven snorted, “You’re so full of it.”

Doppio nodded distantly. It was still weird, all the times that Kaito and Kokichi had bought him things, or pressed money onto him after the fact and didn’t take no for an answer. At least for stuff like clothes, they were necessities so his budget, being under the care of CPS, was part of sectioned and understood government spending, but…Kokichi paying for his dates with Arven? There had been a lot of money in the envelope with the tickets too, Kokichi writing that it was for all the other parts of having a day out… 

It wasn’t like he couldn’t pay, Doppio very comfortably could. But…there was so much that people kept telling him wasn’t his responsibility so…he was trying to…not fight it as much, at least. Even if it super weirded him out. 

Though, never one to be shown up, Kaito would always be the weirdest. Doppio looked up, squinting at Kaito unsurely. “...I thought you liked seeing your husbands in shorts, more than wearing them. And I think you’d actually die wearing shorts in this weather.”

“Eh?” Kaito said, looking genuinely confused, “Who said anything about shorts?”

Arven leaned forward, looking up at Kaito from around Doppio, “...tell us what ‘hot pants’ are.”

“...” Kaito started to sweat a little, “...pants that make you look hot?”

“I thought you were a fashion guy!? You don’t know what hot pants are!?”

“I don’t need to know about fashion to know I look hot in some good pants!” Kaito insisted, before pouting, “I don’t know? I’m not a ‘fashion’ guy, I just like nice clothes that show off my waist line. What are hot pants?”

Now Doppio started to doubt himself. He definitely wasn’t a fashion guy, and, well, Arven had heard the stories of his clothing discoveries. A bit more hesitant, now, he glanced at Arven before looking up at Kaito. “They’re…short-shorts, right? Like…shorter than boxer-length, short-shorts…r-right?”