Reviews :

Lyssdoodle : Thank you! It definitely benefitted Gideon, but it doesn't come without regret or doubt. And, as for babies, this story likely won't have any more babies. I guess that could eventually change, but as of right now, no babies are planned for the rest of Favor's Game. The 6th story, on the other hand...

Burgie : Yes, agreed. He definitely has a tiny circle he eventually becomes really tight with, and it's already forming.


Song Listened To :

Paradise by Coldplay


*Chapter 63*

On the evening of his very first birthday, Gideon stood in the center of the universe. Having requested his birthday party be in the code room, Zed and Tessa bowed to Gideon's request and made sure the code room was safe to have a mass of people inside of it. Obviously large enough to house everyone on palace grounds, which also included all of Zed's brothers, Calhoun, Felix and their friends from Hero's Duty, alongside Turbotime's crew, Gideon was well aware this was his night to feel special, his night to feel on top of the world. Although catered to, loved on, acknowledged and given a world of attention he was desperate for, his lonely soul still quietly whispered to him that this was not for him. Confused by all of this, coming to grips with becoming a tattered, tired and emotionally drained adult, Gideon was well aware his next chapter, in life, was to truly learn just how he could better receive love. Frustrated that he spent his entire childhood without this knowledge, he long blinked in a lull of defeated acceptance, at said fact, and tried to enjoy the night for what it was.

Now fully grown, Gideon stood at a whopping six foot five, his powerful figure easily mocked Ace's, though he was a bit more lean in his lower body. Long legs dressed in his favorite pair of tattered black jeans, his strong, broad chest was dressed in a tidy, short sleeved button up that hung open a few buttons down from his collar to reveal a thin undershirt. Incredibly handsome, auburn hair tossed in a cute waft of an organized wreck atop his head and shaved by his ears, the golden fire in his eyes peered up to the gorgeous code boxes high over everyone's heads. Having been inside his own party for a few hours now, he was honored to toast a drink with his family, have a few gifts exchanged and touch on the excitement of his very first day at Academy, though the swirling, becoming-tumultuous imagination inside of his heart was desperate to be touched on. Having stuffed it for so long, Gideon was well aware no one here would truly resonate with it. Desperate for a fresh new soul to unload on, he stood poised as his eyes glossed in aimless, smiling defeat; he assumed his very first day at Academy, starting tomorrow, would hopefully bring about new friends and fresh faces.

"She's beautiful, huh," Tessa's gentle voice ushered; although not the shortest woman on palace lot, the top of the Queen's head came to about the center of Gideon's chest. He raised his eyebrows in collective surprise, yanked his brain from the clouds and smiled down into her eyes in a show of unending warmth, a solace he knew he'd always have with her.

"She is," Gideon finally mumbled in cute knowing, his fully deepened, husky voice reverberated from the back of his throat like dark honey; kissed with all the maturity in the world, Gideon tossed his handsome eyes back up to the dome of the code room ceiling, understanding Tessa was referring to her very own code room and all of her inner workings, "Works hard for us."

"I was born in here," Tessa eased in nostalgic tenderness, to which Gideon peered down to her, once more, in curious listening. She blurt a giggle as Gideon finally showed a peak of his charming smile, youthful just like Vanellope's, "So was Berri."

"So was a lot of other people, huh?" Gideon mumbled, he shook his head and heaved a long, hot sigh through his nose, "Not me. Typically left out of the fun."

"Oh, stop, you were born in the same place you were made," Tessa rattled, though they both wildly wrinkled their noses in hot disgust and erupted into laughter, "Eh, wait... That SOUNDED more beautiful and heartfelt in my head, but..."

"I get it," The bass of Gideon's voice grumbled, he bobbed a nod and side-eyed Tessa in cute delivery, "You having fun?"

"... Are YOU? This is your party, dude," Tessa blurt; though the crowd about them was very loud and rambunctious, constantly ebbing and flowing with all sorts of conversations from all sorts of gamers, Tessa was surprised at just how skillful Gideon was at eventually winding up the odd man out, of any gathering. Whether that be the nature of flowing conversation, his quiet and tender personality that got thwarted by louder souls, Tessa felt bad that she was the only one to come over and tuck Gideon under her wing, on his big day of all days, "Y'excited for tomorrow?"

"Academy? I mean, yeah," Gideon heaved a hot sigh and shrugged, "Hopefully I meet some new people... Callum finally offered for me to sit with the lot of them for lunch and I turned him down."

"... Why?" Tessa pressed in whole confusion, she shook her head and gestured her hand out, "Isn't that, like..."

"What I've always been wanting? Yeah, yeah it is," Gideon choked a sarcastic laugh and shook his head. His bigger hands sagged with his thumbs lazily eased into the pockets on his lower hips. He sagged in on himself, his broad, strong chest eased in a solid, steady exhale as he gave Tessa a conclusory smile, "I don't know... Feels too little too late."

"Are you maybe holding a grudge you shouldn't be?" Tessa cautioned, though Gideon rolled his eyes and looked off.

"I don't know, Tess," Gideon mumbled, and though Tessa wanted to get on his case, she stopped herself for the sake of his fragile birthday spirit staying in tact.

"Nonetheless... I gotcha a little something," Tessa chirped in soft, definitive tenderness. She reached into her pocket, pulled out a small, flat box and gently handed it to her little brother. Gideon's posture stiffened and reanimated with purpose as he drove his gaze into Tessa's in soft, apologetic, smiling surprise. Tessa crossed her arms and flagged her hand in the direction of the box that Gideon now delicately tried to open, "I figured, y'know... If you're struggling to find exactly what you're looking for..."

"Ohh," Gideon's voice huffed with a small trail of a chuckle as he slowly opened the box. On thick, black thread was a beautiful charm, a decorative, expensive little lighthouse with a cute, turquoise-like glossy charm embedded in the crown of the lighthouse, where the beacons would cast. Gideon gingerly lifted the thick black thread out of the box, slowly peered his eternally, bittersweet gaze of pure gratitude into Tessa's sweet eyes and scoffed another huff of an elated chuckle, "This is..."

"Here," Tessa whispered, she gently took the box from Gideon's hand, took the necklace and stood on tip toes so to cutely tie it securely around his neck. Upon the latch, Tessa's bigger hand warmly glossed down the cold charm on Gideon's lightly-muscular chest, she pat the center of his broad sternum and so lovingly smiled up into his eyes, "It'll guide you home. Wherever you find that to be, bud."

Gideon's eyes peered hard into Tessa's in a sting of frozen, understood, enchanted urgency, simply as she whole-heartedly understood his fragile plight in life. Without hesitation, Gideon slowly scooped Tessa into a huge hug and squeezed her tight, to which she eased a shaky giggle and returned the grapple about his neck. Gideon largely frowned, pushed his face into her little shoulder and shut his eyes tight, his heart thud in bittersweet arrival, as if to have Tessa's blessing to wander was the thing he needed to find his footing and follow just where his wild, wandering spirit would take him. Tessa choked a soft little noise, and as they both pulled away, they scoffed little chuckles of annoyance towards each other at the fact that they both had welled with tears, with such a deep sentiment.

"I love you," Gideon ushered, he bobbed a nod and gently looked down at the beautifully crafted, expensive little charm of a lighthouse proudly displayed on the crest of his strong sternum. He picked it with the tender grip of his big fingers and smiled deep into her eyes, "Thank you, this... You don't know what this means to me."

"I love you, too, dude," Tessa whispered as she tried to compose herself. She blurt a giggle and wiped her eyes, to which they both erupted into a bit of louder laughter with one another, "That, and I know your favorite color is turquoise. Whew! I'm glad I don't wear makeup, I'd be ruined."

"Me too," Gideon's voice ushered in solid seriousness, though they choked into happy, playful laughter once more as Tessa nudged his arm.

"You want me to meet up with you and walk you to Academy, tomorrow morning?" Tessa inquired as she cleared her throat and, although it looked like she could continue weeping over her's and Gideon's fragile little moment, she reined it in nicely, "Or, did you want to just have a moment with mom and dad, and... Maybe we'll bump into each other."

"I'll be okay, I'll say my goodbyes to mom and dad, and... See you inside," Gideon tip-toed around her very kind sentiment; now wanting to press out on his own and be guided by his own feet, he was relieved that Tessa accepted this with a kind nod.

"You can have lunch with me, if you'd like," Tessa sighed as she put her hands on her hips, "I've unfortunately, stopped sitting with the gang because... I just end up having more work to do. Not to mention, some of my students see me lounging in their common space and I think it makes them uncomfortable."

"Thank you, I'll consider that," Gideon bobbed a grateful nod and gave her a loving smile, "I'm sure you don't want my mopey self bothering you."

"I offered, my guy," Tessa mumbled, she nudged Gideon's lower arm, once more, "No pressure."

"Thank you," Gideon tenderly relayed, to which she bobbed a nod, and as the night grew tired and old, people began to say their departures and give Gideon their final pushes of well-wishes, Gideon looked on to Academy in the morning with a very healthy amount of nervousness.

Casted in Arcadia Station's gorgeous, Arcade morning sunshine, Gideon nervously stood with Ralph and Vanellope dead center between the gap of Fix-It Felix Jr.'s outlet, and Sugar Rush. Gideon's wavering, nervous golden eyes casted in Academy's direction a couple times as Vanellope's sweet, motherly voice ushered Gideon a few last minute notions of encouragement. Ralph's energy radiated that of stoic stillness, as if to potentially be the stronghold for Vanellope's very visibly crumpling demeanor, as if he were the one to cutely remind her that her motherly doting may eventually become too heavy handed for their matured little birdy now due to leaving the nest. Just like Ralph thought, Vanellope sucked in a cute little hiccup of a breath, gingerly tossed her hand to the center of Gideon's chest, caught with the beautiful necklace Tessa had given him and gave him a teary, crumpling smile.

"My cute little Giddy," Vanellope whimpered in teary deflation, to which Gideon tsked her a cute noise and shook his head.

"Mom, I'm gunna come right home after, you know that, right?" Gideon's deep voice so warmly cooed down to his mother, she bobbed a nod and kept her hands to herself, and though she did her best to compose herself, Gideon sagged his shoulders with a deflated little smile and warmly welcomed Vanellope into his much bigger, strong embrace. She huffed a noise, urgently wrapped her arms about Gideon's thicker midsection and squeezed. Ralph chuckled in warm understanding and firmly rubbed up and down Vanellope's shoulders and upper back, though he eventually wrangled his massive embrace about Gideon and Vanellope and swayed both beings with an eternal amount of love. Gideon grinned and felt the love, though his veins still wiggled with apprehension, "It'll be just like Pre-A."

"Except you're a whole adult, now," Vanellope whimpered through her tears.

"He still lives with us, at least," Ralph mumbled into the top of Gideon's head, to which Gideon rolled his eyes and looked off in smiling defeat.

"You guys will have to kick me out... I have no desire to move out, right now," Gideon mumbled, to which Vanellope furrowed her brow.

"You know Tessa could make you your own abode on palace grounds," Vanellope encouraged, and although she didn't want Gideon to leave, in any sense, she knew it was only natural for him to go off and find his way as a full adult.

"Mom, let's... Not get ahead of ourselves, this is my first day of school, I want to live at home with you guys," Gideon urged gently, he furrowed his brow and wondered just if he'd have to start begging, though he was relieved when Ralph bobbed an affirmative nod and smiled.

"That room was built for you, my guy, it's yours for however long you want and need," Ralph lovingly assured as he refrained from ruffling the top of Gideon's head, due to his now tidy waft of lovely auburn hair, "You'll do awesome, my guy. Contact your sister if you need anything, okay?"

"I will," Gideon bobbed a nod and felt his muscles want to issue him a step backwards, though he remained still and could tell Vanellope likely was due to requiring another embrace. Gideon lovingly peered into her teary eyes and scoffed her a knowing laugh as she crumpled, once more, and sagged into his chest. Gideon grinned in cute delight and firmly grappled his arms about his mother's shoulders, and with a soft sway he lulled his eyes closed and remained a safe spot for this hard moment, for his mother, "I love you, mom. You'll see me later, I promise."

"Okay," Vanellope whimpered, and as the two ever so slowly parted with the grip of his much bigger hands in her littler ones, they finally sagged from proximity and released fingertips. Vanellope inhaled a shaky breath and was welcomed into Ralph's caring side embrace, she gave Gideon one last little wave, "Have fun, okay? Can't wait to hear all about it."

"I will," Gideon assured as he gave his mother and father one last look of kindness over his shoulder, and as he finally turned heel, he pressed on towards Academy with a powerful stride full of purpose.

Although the sun beat down on him, the stars aligned and everything seemed right in the world, Gideon long-blinked in unadulterated confusion and felt a very strange sense of dread come over him. Wrought with a wall of firm intuition that banged on the back of his skull, he powered forward in solid confusion and peered down Academy's doors as he neared. Knowing, for sure, this was the right path to take, diving head first into studies and finding a subject to major in was exactly what he wished for, he furrowed his brow and climbed the massive stoop to Academy as if he was trudging against a ripe tide. In molasses-like confusion, Gideon rolled to a gentle halt the second he got to the top of the stoop, right before Academy's gleaning, gorgeous, towering entry doors. Students of all sorts filed past him, both Pre-A and enrolled for years, Gideon felt as if he had now laid his forehead against a glass wall.

With pin-prickled, heart-stopping dread, he was displeased to suddenly see Chase and Zee making their way into the building, their fully-matured selves, they bantered back and forth like they were friends since they were born, and it was here did Gideon feel his feet glue to the gorgeous white concrete under his feet. He heavily breathed through his nose and rapid-fire assessed the situation at hand, directly before him. Everything he had ever thought he had yearned for was beyond those doors. Watered down camaraderie he now fervently rejected, following in the footsteps of the people older than him simply because he was absolutely certain this was his path, and with the sheer notion that he could stumble into the lot of the people that have hurt him, time and time again, he held his breath and dared to allow the unthinkable into his thought stream. As if Academy's doors had huge red X's on them, the universe's way of assuring to Gideon that he better turn back now lest he get in too deep to crawl his way out, he exhaled a shaky breath and cautiously looked over his shoulder so to see the whole of Arcadia's glowing station, out before him.

His eyes stabbed to the place where he had left his mother and father, delighted to see that they had likely watched Gideon walk up to the doors and part ways themselves, Gideon felt the sun shine down on him with the promise that he was entirely alone, in this raw instance. With a shifty drag of his golden eyes about Arcadia Station, his heart raced in confusion, fleeting ideas that were now strangely brewing to correction, his eyes firmly fixated on Turbotime's rugged, though beautiful, golden outlet. The hot sun gleaned down on him, and as the lighthouse charm on his sternum began to heat up in affirmation, Gideon bravely peeled his feet from Academy's stoop and began to descend. So not to look suspicious, Gideon nonchalantly sauntered down the stoop and across Arcadia station with his lazy, tattered, brown shoulder bag in which he secured further up his shoulder. Bare feet that drove him away from the typical, he held his breath and officially sagged into Turbotime's outlet, in search for what, he wasn't quite sure. With purpose filled eyes that peered forward into the black, he did everything he could to follow the call, no matter what this all looked like.