Word: Commencement
Real quick; I'm going off of the word definition (A beginning or start) and this story is a little different- I like the headcanon that Dakota's from the Mississippi Timeline. This story focuses on that. This is my interpretation/imagination that I used to write out this story. So, just be aware that this is a Mississippi Timeline headcanon looked at from my ideas :D
Death(?) of a loved one, married husbands, implied violence and a generally dark timeline, light language, 2.6k
"You'll be okay."
Arms wrapped around his middle. He heard the voice, but he didn't want to look at him. Not like this. Not with this ending.
"This is what we wanted, right? It's going to-"
"How is it going to be okay?!"
He ripped away from the arms holding him, one hand pressing against his eye to stop his tears, the other waving his husband away. He didn't want to do this. This wasn't how it was supposed to end!
"Bal...how can you say that it's going to be okay…?"
He didn't understand...He didn't…
"Vinnie, darling." Once more, arms wrapped around him. This time, Vincent let them. He even let them turn him around, so that he was facing Balthazar. He let them wipe away the tears, before he buried his head into his husband's chest, breathing deeply.
"Vinnie, sweetheart...I know this is hard. But it's what we worked for. This timeline was never meant to be like this, you know this. That's the reason we've been studying this since we were young. It's our responsibility to fix this."
An explosion sounded from somewhere over the horizon, as though accenting Balthazar's point. They paused their movements, listening in to the shouts of the radionmen as they guided civilians to safety, in case the Tri Army were on their way. The explosions were too close for comfort.
Sighing, Vincent played with their wedding bands. When the United States attempted to buy Louisiana and most of the westward states in the early 1800's, they ultimately failed as France teamed up with other countries financially. Not even the twenty million dollars offered for the land could sway them. After a bloody battle, the United States, now renamed the Fractured States, only managed to purchase back a few of the original coloniac states- Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, and Georgia, also snagging Florida as unimpressive compensation for the lost land. The buy, nicknamed the Mississippi Purchase, costed the land greatly- mainly in westward expansion, and tons of materials. For years now, the Fractured States have been plagued by other countries that took advantage of their lost wealth, slowly chipping away and taking away everything- the lands, the resources, the people.
And they were meant to stop it. Two young undercover time travelers. The only two out of what used to be two thousand researchers. Now, there were only sixteen of them left in total. The rest were gone. Either hurt for information they wouldn't give or dead in the onslaught.
Vincent sniffed, watching as a teardrop slipped down his cheek to drip onto the onyx wedding ring on his finger. Though resources were incredibly scarce in their screwed up land, and Balthazar and Vincent weren't originally going with such a resource intensive ring, their friends, families, and fellow time travelers had surprised them with beautiful matching onyx wedding rings with faux colored stones, orange and green respectfully. He smiled at his ring, touching his stone to Balthazar's, their little sign of peace. His partner intertwined their fingers.
"Vinnie? Love?"
At the nickname, sprouted from his real name, Vincent looked up, a little sparkle in his brown eyes. They caught Balthazar's dark teal eyes, and he couldn't help the smile that tugged at his lips. "Yes?"
His partner smiled down at him, before pressing his lips to his forehead lightly. Vincent giggled at the feeling.
"You know this is what we've always expected, right? We knew this would happen. This is why we've been hiding, why we've been researching history and finding a way to time travel exactly where we need to be. My love, you know this is what we've been working towards…"
Vincent sighed, leaning back from Balthazar's chest slightly. His partner rubbed gentle circles on his back, his other hand slipping from their intertwined fingers to brush a strand of long, curly hair that escaped his ponytail.
"I know, Balthy. I just...we don't know what's going to happen after we 'fix' the timeline. I...I don't know if I'll be able to see you again…" His throat closed before he could continue, and his eyes watered. He didn't want to think about never seeing Balthazar again. That felt like torture. Like an honest to fuck torture. He'd rather-
"Vinnie, love. I know." He looked up at his partner. "I'm scared too. I...I don't know what I'd do without you. I don't think I could live without you by my side darling."
Balthazar leaned in closer, and Vincent whined as he felt a drop of something fall on his cheek. He hated it when his husband cried. He wrapped his arms around him tight, trying to show that he'll protect him, no matter what.
"Bal...do you think...we might be able to still be in the timeline after we fix it? If we do...it'll be better. We know it will. And...and our kids will have a better life." He pulled back, wiping away at his husband's tears softly. "Remember? Paityn? Niko?"
Balthazar laughed, a sound that warmed Vincent's heart. And as he moved to kiss his palm, his cheeks were warmed as well. "Right. Or Sky. Or Aino."
"Drew."
"Amity."
"Renata."
"Alvis."
"Nick."
"Vivi, short for Viviana.
Just like Vinnie."
Vincent stared at his husband for a second, before snorting and shoving his head into the male's chest to hide his blushing face. "Oh my gosh Bal, you're so cheesy!"
Balthazar laughed, hugging him closer. "I wouldn't be, if you weren't so adorable."
"Balthazar!"
"I love you too."
With a little bit of a huff, Vincent accepted the kiss that Balthazar offered, leaning into him a little. It felt safe. Warm. Happy.
It was a shame it couldn't last longer.
Balthazar pulled back, and though Vincent wanted to follow him, he leaned back as well, looking into saddened teal eyes. They knew what was going to come next. "Are you ready?"
"As I'll ever be, I suppose."
Balthazar leaned in to give him another quick kiss, something he gladly accepted. "Think of it as the beginning of something new, love. Something we've worked years to create. For our future."
Vincent chuckled, standing with his partner. They intertwined their right hands together, clinking the dark wedding bands together. "I guess you're right. A new start for our new lives."
Once all the important members boarded the time travelling vehicle, after saying goodbye to friends and family, the next few hours were a complete blur to him. He remembered hugging Balthazar goodbye- he was part of the group that was meant to distract the country leaders who would band with France to buy most of the United/Fractured States. It was meant to force France into allowing them to buy Louisiana, since they'd be more desperate for money.
They shared a long kiss, their small group allowing them the tearful goodbye, holding their bands together for one more moment before Vincent disappeared into the timestream with his group. They were meant to keep the discussion of buying the westward lands in the right direction.
He really didn't remember it too much. He and three others arrived at the correct day and time. Apparently, his husband's group had been successful, as the leaders they spoke to didn't have as much money. He remembered speaking up once or twice, but about what, he didn't know. He just remembered his group members sighed in relief as the Mississippi Purchase officially became the Louisiana Purchase.
And when the leaders went to shake hands, when a sudden bright light emitted from their hands, Vincent wasn't as scared as the others were. Instead of yelling and running, like the others, he just stood where he was, and kissed his wedding ring-
And allowed the bright light to wash over him easily.
"Not…'ead, least...still...where…?"
He groaned. Holy shit where was he? And why did his head hurt so much? And his bones too- Actually, scratch that. Everything hurt.
"Hey, kid."
Voice...sounded strange? Not like anyone he knew. And not in the early 1800's lingo they'd just been speaking in at the Purchase.
The Purchase.
Vincent sat up with a yelp, eyes flying open. Someone in front of him jumped back. Clearly surprised. Though the bright light hurt his eyes- a lot actually- Vincent knew immediately that he couldn't recognize the man...or his style...or any of the people's styles around him either.
"Woah! Kid, ya scared me! You doing okay? You know where you are?"
Vincent groaned, raising an arm to hide his eyes because no, he was not doing okay. His eyes were in so much pain right now.
"Light's too bright?"
He nodded, grunting as a flash of pain made itself known in his head.
"Sorry about that. How 'bout now?"
Hesitantly, Vincent lowered his arm...and sighed in relief as he saw that the room was dimmed considerably. "Better."
"Good. Now. Ya know where ya are?"
He shook his head.
The man in front of him, who was kind of tall and bulky, with a slightly intimidating look, looked at him thoughtfully. "You're in the Tri-State Area. And I'm going to assume that you don't know when...and judging by your face, you don't know where the Tri-state Area is either, huh?"
Vincent shook his head, a little overloaded with the information. Tri State Area? When? What the hell was going on? Didn't they fix the timeline?
The man sighed, getting something from the table behind him, which he only now noticed. An orange folder, weathered down with age and usage. One he and Balthazar handled often. In pretty green calligraphy, his husband's work, was written "MISSISSIPPI TIMELINE- CONFIDENTIAL" Vincent joked that confidential information was typically in red, and with less calligraphy, but he loved his husband's attempt nonetheless.
Where was Balthazar?
"We found this atop you. I was going to my car, and you just kinda...appeared or something.. With this on you, and surrounded in burnt metal. Tell me kid. What's the Mississippi Timeline? Where are you from?"
Vincent took the folder with shaking hands. Inside were all the details he and Balthazar wrote together about their timeline, and how they were meant to fix it. He looked up with wet eyes.
Balthazar…
"H-has anyone else...come here?"
The intimidating eyes softened slightly at his tone. "I'm sorry kid. No one else."
Vincent adjusted the strange glasses on his eyes with a sigh. They felt strange. Though, he supposes that made sense. With the Mississippi Purchase Timeline successfully replaced with the Louisiana Purchase Timeline, the United States (no more Fractured States, whoo) did more westward expansion, found more resources and fought battles easier. At the very least, these battles seemed to have been tamer than in his timeline. He breathed out. Even though it's been weeks since he inexplicably slipped into this new timeline, his head still reeled from the new history.
It was so strange. By all means, he shouldn't be here. He should be gone, like the others from his Timeline. Like his husband. He shouldn't even be here.
He raised his hand from where he was playing with his wedding band without realizing it. He adjusted the glasses. As heavy as they were with these once-scarce resources, they were nice. He liked them. They had tinted orange glasses, colored just well enough to hide his now heterochromatic eyes. It seemed that, in exchange for being spat out in this timeline against his will, he got different colored eyes. One his usual brown, though a tad more red, and the other the soft blue of a moving ocean. He was certain it was to remind him of his now lost husband.
The doctors that checked him also told him he had photophobia, and some other stuff, but at that point, he stopped listening. What point was there? He wasn't even supposed to be here. What did it matter what was wrong with him.
Sighing, Vincent looked up, finding himself in the garage of the B.O.T.T, who were kind enough to give him a stable job, since he already had extensive time travel knowledge from his world. It always amazed him that they had so many time vehicles here, all ready at a moment's notice. It took them centuries to make even one, and it was a nightmare to hide. Here, it didn't matter.
...Nor did it matter if he used one. Sure, he technically wasn't allowed to use them yet. But he had been using them anyway, to explore this new timeline. Especially a taco stand in one era.
Damn, now he wanted tacos.
You know what? Why the hell not.
He could just take that student driver car that was standing there, it wasn't like anyone would miss it. Probably.
Plus, it looked like there was already someone inside, maybe he could get them to drive him, he was kind of tired. They were wearing a too familiar dark green, and had ashy golden hair- actually, they kind of looked like-
Like…
"Holy shit."
Like Balthazar.
Vincent forced himself to keep from launching straight at the man, whose hair was styled weird and outfit completely unlike what he used to wear (though it suited his personality, strangely). He stood his ground, finger absently twisting his onyx ring, watching through tinted sunglasses in shock. Block had said that no one else had shown up from the Mississippi Timeline. What was Balthy doing here?
...Oh.
Unless it wasn't his Balthazar.
But how was that possible? How the hell was it possible that his husband was here, in this timeline? As far as he knew, none of the people, famous or not, from his timeline made it into this one. Jack Stevefold, the president to win back Florida, Updos Evente, the general of the radionmen, Wenduz Truis, the one who lost almost all their states? None of them existed here, replaced by 'Theodore Roosevelt', 'Robert E. Lee', and 'Ronald Reagan'...how the hell could his husband be here?!
...Except, that, he wasn't. Vincent felt his heart drop as he spotted the male raising a hand- a hand that was missing a beautiful onyx wedding band, decorated in a faux green jewel. It felt wrong to see him not wearing it. It felt wrong to think of him as not his.
But that's what he was now, wasn't he? He wasn't his anymore. Not his husband. At least, not in this timeline.
It felt like a treachery as he slipped off the wedding band, slipping it into the pocket closest to his heart in the brown leather jacket. He felt like crying.
But he wouldn't.
Balthazar- Cavendish. Was here now. He might not be his husband, but Vincent would be damned if he wouldn't stay in his life. He knew nothing of their previous life, so Vincent would make new memories.
And he'd be damned if he ever let Ba- Cavendish get hurt.
"Think of it as the beginning of something new, love. Something we've worked years to create.
He doesn't have his past anymore, so he'll do good on his husband's words. He'll think of it as the beginning of something new- he'll make it the beginning of something new.
And as he slipped into the time vehicle, pretending not to know the man who acted so painfully like his husband when he first met him, Vincent found himself stumbling upon his introduction.
"My name's...Vinnie. Vinnie Dakota."
If he couldn't have his husband, at least he'll have his awful (ly adorable) nickname.
And slipping into the timestream against B- Cavendish's protest, Vinc-Vinnie knew that they were indeed the start to something new.
There we go! I hope it wasn't too long or choppy- I always liked the idea of this headcanon, but I never really thought about it in depth until now! This is just my idea of it, what do you guys think of it/what do you think would have happened? Let me know, reviews and constructive criticism are always loved! I hope you all have a splendid morning/afternoon/evening/night and make sure you do something you love!