Authors note (Sketch):
My gosh, so many thanks to those who reviewed, you guys are so sweet.
As you can see, this story did get a second chapter in a timely manner. My partner and I hope to bring one to you once a week. If you check out our profile page, you can see I put up some information on –when- we update. We're going to attempt to keep to that schedule, however chapter three will be an exception. Irony and I are both going to otakon, and we won't have time to post while there, so chapter three will be posted either on the upcoming Thursday or the Monday after otakon.
As a side note, I'm going to be selling in the art alley at otakon. S and S studios will be near the middle of the room.
If you're attending and fancy commissioning some Kodd art, you know where to come. ^_^
But I digress, here's the next chapter, I hope it lives up to all your expectations! Art for chapter two will be listed under the art section on our profile page, make sure to check it out after reading.
Until next time!
x-x-x-x-x-
Hours passed as Toad shook, coughed and sweated the sickness out. In the arms of Morpheus, he slowly, so damn –slowly, revived.
Floating through cotton-ball nothingness, Toad waited to be jarred awake in the Brotherhood house by a crash, smack, or likewise. When nothing happened, he tentatively drew sense back around him like a nest of briars. Pale ears strained, but all was calm. Quiet… Peaceful.
… Never a good sign.
Squinting between his lids, Toad caught sight of –blue- and felt memories gurgle to the surface; Something about flies and darkness and… fuzz?
Blinking, the boy looked up. Sure enough, he had coiled himself around the strangely-colored mutant, a loose arm apparently enough to keep him there. "Gya!" With a jolt, the skinny boy jerked back. "Wh-what? What the he- ah!" Scrambling back, flat palms suddenly met air and there was a sharp pain as his spine connected with floor.
"Nn..." Dazed, Toad stared at the medicinally white ceiling. Oh, right. Illness. Nightcrawler. It was all coming back.
Kurt snapped out of his thoughts (which had somehow managed to drift all the way to the usefulness of silverware as weapons during the long wait) and flipped over, stomach on the bed as he peered down at the rather confused looking Brotherhood member.
He couldn't help the smirk that came to his face. Just the look of bewilderment Todd was wearing. Priceless.
Plus, Kurt had just realized exactly what kind of teasing fodder he had to work with now.
"So you've finally woken up, mein...Bekannter. Please tell me you didn't break your back with that, because then we'd have to put you on bed rest yet again. And I can only be your teddy bear for so many hours at a time, you know."
The X-man's face was practically –looming- above him, all grinning fangs and fire-colored eyes. At the mocking comments, Toad's pale cheeks flushed darkly. He had been holding the other mutant pretty closely… and for hours! Sputtering like a tea kettle, the boy sat up, bringing their faces close so he could glare more evenly at the enemy. "Yeah, well… ya didn't seem to mind!"
All traces of lethargy were gone. In a practiced motion, Toad quickly brought his heels under him. The added height cracked his forehead loudly against the other mutant's. "And yer the bek… beka… you're the dumb one!"
The Brotherhood boy's scowl molded into a leering smirk and his eyes darted off to the sides. He was in the mansion. Xavier's infamous mansion, full of pretty, little secrets. "We hate each other, remember? Dumb fleabag… Ya never should have let me in."
Kurt gave a sharp yelp, pressing his face into the bed for a moment to recover from the blow. When the pain dulled enough for him to see straight, his eyes shot up towards the other boy, the golden spheres all anger and hate.
Why did he bother being a nice person? At least, why to scumbags like this.
"'Bekannter' isn't an insult, you creep. But I'm starting to wish it was!"
Tail lashing out behind him, Kurt sprang at his rival, tackling him to the ground.
"And you're not going to get a CHANCE to do anything, Wartface!"
Nightcrawler's gleaming eyes made Toad's skin prickle. That was more like it. Insults and snarls were his language. Familiar.
Hate was safe.
But he wasn't prepared for the X-man to actually –attack-. Toad tried to back away- but too late. He hit the floor hard with a loud 'Umf!' and felt pain gush through his back. Gasping for breath, the skinnier boy rolled, fighting to gain the upper hand. He could feel his chest push against the other's and –this- was the contact he knew how to deal with. "We'll see about that, Night-creep!"
In the heat of battle, red rings pooled around the Brotherhood boy's irises. "Seriously! Letting someone like –me- into your home?" Somewhere behind the spat insult was genuine curiosity. Squeezing his knees between them, Toad kicked out. It was a move he had used countless times, but for some stupid reason, he found himself holding back. "What were you thinking?"
Kurt went flying. He'd learned long ago to not fight against Todd's kicks, else he risk having his ribs bruised or worse. It was best to go with the blow, offering as little resistance as possible, and be thrown back twenty feet with only the wind knocked out of him.
Though as he tumbled into a roll to break the fall, he had to notice that he hadn't even had his breath taken from him.
Toad must still be off his game.
Kurt leapt to his feet, pivoting to face Todd, hands up and ready to attack.
"I vas thinking that you needed help. That even -you- of all people shouldn't have to end up passed out under the bleachers from a fever. But I guess I was wrong, jah?"
The side of Toad's mouth curled up as he stared at his opponent. At school, Kurt was always the center of attention, laughing and joking, completely unfrazzled. That he could see the X-man riled up and angry was… strangely satisfying.
At least, it would have been if the sensation of Nightcrawler's fur wasn't lingering on his skin. Unnerved, Toad edged away till his back connected with the wall. "Oh I see! You saved me like you'd save a… a spider in your room." Resting his weight on it, Toad tilted his head, scrutinizing. "Yeah. You seem like you would…"
Looking around, the skinny boy rubbed his arm where he could remember the warmth of Nightcrawler's body. He hated hospitals. Even the school nurse's office made him uneasy. On gritty streets, he blended in and there was nothing there to break that wasn't already worthless. Here, the clean whiteness was blinding.
In a restless gesture, Toad scuffed his sneaker against the floor. "That's why ya brought me back here, but the… other stuff-?" He broke off his half-question and chuckled bitterly. "Duh… because you're nice. Stupid… you… you would have done the same for anyone."
Kurt's stance relaxed slightly, but his expression became more guarded, the anger disappearing behind mistrust.
"...Jah, I did something for you because you're a -person-. What's so wrong with that? Would you have prefered I leave you there? You'd be in even worse shape if I'd done that."
Golden eyes squinted at the smaller boy, both trying to figure out why he'd backed himself against a wall during a fight, and why he seemed so angry for Kurt helping him.
"Vhat do you want from me, Toad? Do you want me to have done this because we're friends? Because we both know we're not."
The hair on Toad's neck seemed to bristle at the comment. He started to reply, then hesitated. If Nightcrawler hadn't followed, he would still be passed out behind the bleachers. Or worse, found by the rest of the Brotherhood. Despite everything, Toad couldn't honestly say he was sorry to be saved.
Luckily, lies were practically second-nature. "Of course not! I was just trying to see what's in it fer you." Catching the change of subject, Toad pointed at the other mutant accusingly. "I think I figured it out. Ya like to think yer sooo nice with the stupid compassion and dumb jokes and.. and...fuzzyness!" Ok, that last one was lame, but his point remained.
Pale fingers retreated to scrape through the teen's grungy hair. "It's bull, yo." His liquid amber eyes left the floor and returned to Nightcrawler. "Living here, all plush and cozy with the rest of the X-geeks… one day on my side of town, living with the guys, and ya wouldn't be so nice anymore."
Kurt froze at that comment.
What the... Was he serious? Wanting others to not be dying in a ditch was suddenly a self-serving act? He made himself put up with the pain that was Tolensky just so he could feel good about his moral code?
Either Americans were far stranger than he thought, or he had more strange things about him than the tail and fur.
"I would be the same person after a day on... 'your side of town'. Just because you've let yourself become a jerk because of your situation doesn't mean everyone will in the same circumstances!"
Kurt felt his stomach sink, a stone of guilt seeming to weigh him down as he recalled something. His first day here, and the day that he royally screwed up.
"And you could've lived here too, dummkopf. The Professor gave you that choice. You said no."
And it was partially his fault...
What the hell was a dummkopf?
"Yeah well, this place wasn't so inviting." Toad muttered, brushing it off. "Besides, it ain't like I want.. –wanted- to come here anyway." Thin shoulders shifted in an uneasy shrug, covering the slip of tenses. Again, they were swapping words instead of punches and the amphibian couldn't control his tongue. Not in that way.
Toad shuffled nervously, fingers sliding deep into his pockets. "Look, I dun really feel like kicking yer sorry butt today. Maybe I could… let you off easy." Yeah, that made it sound good. "Whaddaya say? Poof me back to the bleachers and I'll be gone. No one has to know."
The teen glanced around. Illness had mucked with his inner clock. There wasn't a window in sight, but surely Nightcrawler couldn't have stayed with him too long. He was stupidly nice, but even he wasn't –that- nice. "What time is it anyway?"
Feeling more relaxed now that Todd had called off the fight, Kurt went from a fighting stance to a casual arms-folded-over-his-chest pose.
"That sounds fine to me. And it's... Ummm. One-twenty? No..." Kurt glanced down at his image inducer, which managed to keep its watch function active even when the rest of it was trashed.
"One twenty-nine. School's almost over. But you have enough time to meet the other Brotherhood members I think."
As if knowing the time suddenly made Kurt's muscles remember how long he'd been sitting in one position, they began to ask him to stretch. He complied, stretching his arms out above his head and leaning backwards.
He smiled as he heard and felt his vertebrae pop.
"Did you even sleep last night, Tolensky? You were practically...um...I believe the word is comatose?"
Toad used his shoulder blades to push himself off the wall. With the unspoken truce hanging in the air he swaggered confidently over to the X-man. "Well someone had to keep Pietro from passing out face-down in the can…" The biting tone was a thick coat over worry. Pietro didn't usually get sick.
… wait, what had Nightcrawler just said? "One thirty! Jeez, that long?" A cord twinged somewhere in Toad's chest. "Doesn't that mean you missed class and stuff? I dun care, of course but won't ol' baldie be mad?"
Standing so near, Toad had to look up if he wanted to meet Nightcrawler's gaze. He was shorter naturally and his slouch emphasized it. Unconsciously, he straightened up a bit. "You could have left, y'know. I was out like you said, comatose and all. I wouldn't have noticed." No, now that he thought about it, that wasn't entirely true. And waking up to softness was certainly… different.
Kurt's hands fell back to his sides, and he blinked at the other mutant, thrown a bit off guard by being approached by anything other than a frog-like hop.
"Well... It's not like I could go to class anyway. You broke my inducer. I can't go anywhere until we make sure it's fixed...And we need to ship it off to the people who made it to do that. It takes at least a day. The Professor knows I would've been at school if I could've been..."
Kurt scratched the back of his neck, and looked to the side.
When they were fighting, Kurt never really noticed it. But Todd had a powerful kind of gaze. Or at least it felt that way. Most people didn't stare at him for very long, so Kurt didn't exactly have a reference to compare this rather...uncomfortable moment to.
"And I guess I could've left... But I didn't want to take the -risk- of waking you. You needed the sleep. Plus you seemed to think that me leaving meant me telling people you were here. And with Wolverine's nose, and the Professor's way of knowing what I'm thinking without reading my mind...It vas just better this way."
Kurt wasn't going to mention that some small part of him had thrived at being touched so long. But the light blush on his face wasn't helping him keep it under wraps. He just hoped it was light enough that it didn't shine through the short fur on his face. This whole situation was too strange and embarrassing for its own good.
"But...Anyvay... Do you want to be dropped off at school or the boarding house?"
Blue-boy's inducer was…Oops. The skinny teen sheepishly folded his thumbs outside his pockets. He hadn't meant to wreck the watch-thing, just to glitch it up a little. Though if breaking it was why Nightcrawler stayed, he might have to do it again-
Toad's eyes widened slightly. Where the heck had that thought come from? Stained teeth dug into his chapped lower lip as he stared, unabashed, at Nightcrawler. Stupid, stupid, stupid. This was fuzz-face for crying out loud! His enemy. One of the good guys.
"Uh… the house, I guess. But stop block or two away. I dun want the guys ta see me poofing in with ya." Uncertainly, Toad lifted a hand, then paused. Just where did one hold when teleporting? It's not like there was an etiquette guide for that sort of thing. Sure, Toad had been poofed around in battles countless times, but he was always pressed right up against the other mutant, skinny limbs tangled. And last time he had been frikken' –carried-. "Am… am I supposed ta-? Aw ferget it." Stepping close, Toad wrapped both his scrawny arms around one of Nightcrawler's furry ones.
The warmth in Toad's face mirrored that against his skin so he quickly looked away, hiding the red burn on his cheeks. "I-I think I hear someone coming, Fuzzy. Do yer thing."
Kurt's attention snapped from the tiled floor to Todd, looking at him strangely.
Tolensky was...Holding his arm...
This was...Weird...
But strangely...Not bad...
Kurt shook his head, trying to dispel the thought.
He really needed to get over this touching thing. It just wasn't normal. Besides, it's not like Tolensky wanted to touch him anyway (and the feeling was, of course, mutual). Kurt's sharp ears knew very well that no one was coming.
"R-right. I know a good spot."
In an explosion of sulfur the two mutants found themselves transported into a tree, perched on a branch, hidden from sight by the leaves.
It was a perfect spot for Kurt. Out of sight, easy to get into and out of, and his natural balance made it easy to land.
Unfortunately, he hadn't thought through how this spot would work for two people very well.
The branch sagged under the extra weight of the Brotherhood member, and Kurt instinctively crouched to keep his balance. Feeling Todd about to topple, Kurt's tail lashed out, wrapping around the smaller boys waist to steady him.
It was a second after that when Kurt wished he could kill his past self for making this awkward moment possible.
At the port, Toad impulsively held his breath. Last time, being sick and all, it had made his stomach twist like a knife-edged parasite. This time, the lurch sent a jolt of adrenaline shooting up his veins, similar to the swoop of a roller coaster.
Slightly giddy, the boy felt his feet connect with something solid. A second later, gravity took hold and attempted to introduce him to the ground. Letting out a rather high-pitched yelp, the teen braced himself for impact.
Instead of pain, however, he felt something hook around his narrow waist. Nightcrawler's tail. Coiled like a warm whip, it held tight and kept him from falling. No surprise there, Toad knew from battles how surprisingly strong that blue appendage was. Rocking back and forth, he quickly dropped into a crouch. Too quickly. Rubber-soled heels slipped on the bark and Toad instinctively reached out for something stable.
In an instant, thin arms closed around Nightcrawler's middle, tensing and un-tensing as his sneakers found their hold. When equilibrium began to return, the amphibian slowly drew his arms back, finger-pads lingering. It was another stalled second before he mumbled. "S'alright, I'm good now."
Something in the left side of his chest, the boy's heart rapidly hurled itself against his ribcage. Yells and insults bubbled up his throat, but it was laughter that spilled from the teen's mouth, the was the 'something-awful-could-have-happened-but-it-didn't' sort of laugh. "J-jeez, dawg, did ya plan that at -all-?" The question could have been accusatory if he wasn't grinning like a loon.
Kurt carefully drew his tail back, careful to not upset the smaller boy's newfound balance.
Kurt's expression showed none of that caution, a sheepish grin on his face, framed by shoulders giving an apologetic shrug.
"Hah, Sorry, Dude. I wasn't thinking that through very well. I've never had to use this spot for anyone but myself."
His tail waved behind him, keeping his balance completely in line as he scratched the back of his head, and chuckled along with Todd, his smile widening with relief that the Brotherhood member wasn't trying to gut him for the folly.
" I guess I'm a bit of a dummkopf myself, jah?"
There was just enough room on the branch for Toad to settle in a frog-legged crouch, facing Nightcrawler. Trees were comfortable for him, the height reminiscent of city skyscrapers. Countless skipped classes had been spent spread out along thick boughs, fast asleep.
As the X-man drew back his tail, it slid over Toad's bottom ribs, sending pleasant prickles along his arms and there seemed to be a chilliness in its absence that wasn't there before. Trying to shake off the feeling, Toad looked around. It really was a useful place. Close to the Brotherhood house and well hidden. He'd have to remember it.
At the German's words, he cocked his head to the side. "Dummkopf? I dun know about that… mostly 'cause I got no clue what it means." Looking down, he tugged at one of his undone laces. "Besides, calling you names is my thing. Dun go trying to outdo me, Fuzzy." The ends of his mouth quirked and he flicked up his fever-colored eyes. "I got ya covered."
Kurt's smile weakened, his cheery, if not embarrassed, mood put out by the prospect of being insulted.
Granted, that smile Todd wore made it seem a bit like a joke, but still... Kurt could think up enough things on his own without his enemy's help.
"Ah...Yeah. Sure..."
Kurt put a hand over his mouth, coughing lightly into it and looking away.
"But if you wanted to know, the translation of Dummkopf is...um... basically 'stupid head'."
"Oh is that what it is… wait, so you called me 'stupid head'?" The muscles in Toad's legs clenched, ready to launch at the offending X-man. Then he caught sight of the other's tail and remembered the sensation of it around his waist. The boy shifted and the tension faded. "Well, at least it's original. Dummkopf… I'll add it ta my list."
Toad glanced in the direction of the Brotherhood house. The guys would be getting back soon. "So I guess I'll see ya at school tomo- oh wait, that's right, yer little watch-thing is all messed up." Something akin to guilt threatened to burrow into the teen's scrawny chest. Awkwardly, he poked at a few ants crawling along the bark. Too small to eat, really. He popped one into his mouth anyway.
"Wanna skip?" the words were out before Toad thought them through. "I-I mean… yer gonna be out anyway, and I dun really care about going to school and- uh…uh…" The boy visibly faltered "… Ug! Ferget it." With a quick jump, he landed on the ground below. His face was on fire and his heart was hopping around dementedly.
Kurt blinked, still trying to process Todd's quick transfer from words to being on the ground.
...From what he'd gathered, Todd was asking if... He wanted to do something together?
The X-man frowned, something akin to a blush on his face, though he had no idea why.
"Wait."
Tempted to follow, but the lack of his disguise not allowing him to, Kurt simply called down to the other boy.
"...If you're not going to school anyway, I wouldn't mind a distraction while I'm having another 'sick day'."
Tail twitching with a mix of playfulness and nerves, Kurt grinned smugly.
"Besides, you need help. Vhat kind of bully can only say insults in one language?"
At the call, Toad looked up at Nightcrawler looming above him. The X-man seemed do that a lot. Loom. In fights, the furry mutant was always the first up on a wall or tree or the ceiling.
Distraction huh? Well, that was better than enemy. Toad could live with being a distraction. "It's on then." The phrase came out as a challenge out of habit. He softened it by teasing "You can teach me how to cuss out teachers. They'll absolutely love you for it… I'll meet ya behind the bleachers." Without giving Nightcrawler a chance to refuse, he turned and crouched.
The teen was just about to spring, then paused. "Hey, Fuzzy?" Keeping his back turned, Toad picked anxiously at one of the rips in his jeans. "All the stuff you did… y'know…" Under his breath, he muttered something, then hurriedly hopped away.
If Toad had been talking to a normal human, he wouldn't have been heard. As it was, the hushed word was just audible to demonic ears.
"Thanks."