Reviews :
Burgie : You're absolutely right, it... Yeah it gets messy. But, true! The Game Over winners VERY quickly became some of my favorite characters to write for, they may be hardened dudes sometimes but they do genuinely have Gideon's, and each other's best interest at heart.
Song Listened To :
Last Chance (Alternate Version) by CHPTRS
*Chapter 159*
"I-I don't think anyone saw me," Sezeke whispered as he pushed into Turbotime's entrance, he flinched a little as the cool, late winter wind pushed his long, dark silver hair and bangs about his structured face. His eyes just barely glowed in the glint of highlighter yellow that caught with Lash's, both men stood near the train station that hung in the thicket of trees right at the mouth of Turbotime's entrance, trees that eventually spanned to Juniper's shoreline's. Sezeke sagged to the flat of his feet, he had genuinely nothing on him but the beautiful kurta-like shirt he wore, dark, lightweight linen pants that hid the huge chunkiness of his ankles, much bigger and scarier feet that mocked Kepa's structure. He gently tidied his shirt and, although he got another gloss of his eyes around the gorgeous scenery that was Turbotime's entrance, he caught eyes with Lash once more and sighed, "I'm going to be honest with you... I'm really nervous about this."
"I hear you," Lash eased in tenderness, he bobbed a nod and tossed his eyes down Turbotime's gorgeous, illuminated wire, the wire that lead to Arcadia Station. He pulled out his phone and began to pull up a few code room options. For one, he quickly coded Sezeke to the grid, though inside that, Lash bit his lip and ran through the instructions and protocls he had discussed with Ace, the act of making Sezeke an active gamer on the grid, though as if his coding wasn't searchable whatsoever. Although it took a moment, he was successful in also doing this to Kepa's coding, he brightened and returned to Sezeke's worries, "I'll help you replace your things, anything you need, I'll make sure you're set up... I do have one request of you, though."
"Anything" Sezeke's stoic, gentle voice rolled over Lash's figure like an embrace, Lash skillfully teleported the two to the arena's main teleportation pad, the one inside the dimly lit, golden dome of an intersection, one that forked to different corridors.
"So... For the past night or two, Mara and I have had Kepa sleeping over at our house, she keeps insinuating she should probably head back home and get sleep, but then ends up falling asleep on our couch," Lash murmured quietly, Sezeke took a humbled, curious look around before Lash began to kindly lead him off to the right, down a dimly lit corridor that forked further away from the others. Said corridor eventually swung around to the courtyard, where Kepa, Beaux and now Sezeke would live. Sezeke stoically tucked his arms behind his back in his and Lash's gentle, onward stroll, Lash gestured his hands and grimaced a little, "Outside of Vanellope... Kepa is taking Gideon's departure the hardest out of everyone. She seemingly refuses to be left alone, she doesn't eat, hardly has slept, it's not looking good."
"Hopefully our reunite helps," Sezeke stated with a nod, and though it was clear he was doing everything he could to remain an unmovable force, it was increasingly becoming clear to Lash that Sezeke was becoming more and more nervous with each step they took together.
"Oh, I know it will," Lash added cutely, he smiled as the two caught eyes with the glint of understanding, "I was thinking of adding a bigger room to Kepa's unit, here in the courtyard. I wanted to gage what this all looked like, but do you think you two would be okay living under the same roof? That way, she won't be so alone but is free to have her own space to grieve and exist by herself with you nearby?"
"Absolutely, if she sees fit... I surely would love the company," Sezeke assured with a nod, "I'll make sure she eats and sleeps, I'll take care of her."
"That was the other thing... Mara and I have our confectionary to man, I have game days, everyone is grieving to some extent, and though Kepa is a special case to this, and everyone is eager to help fill the gaps, everyone is spread thin," Lash huffed, though as they got closer to the darkened courtyard, alive with low lights that glinted across the lovely plants and grass areas that sprawled about, they softened their voices, "I just refuse to allow her to be neglected through this ordeal... If it weren't for half my roster on tour, and my confectionary, I'd take days off, myself, but..."
"It's a lot to juggle, I understand that... I promise, if she agrees, I'll take her under my wing," Sezeke mumbled with fatherly care he was desperate to deploy on his own kind, once more, he eyed the courtyard and began to gawk in adoring delight, "...This arena, everything here is very well thought out. I get to live HERE?"
"Thank you, we put a lot of thought into the upgrades," Lash mumbled politely, though as they came to the gentle half circle that housed the handful of studio homes, the ones that hugged one end of the beautiful courtyard, both men gently scuffed to a halt and took note of Kepa's shadow deep into the courtyard.
Kepa sat slumped on a bench in the dark, a low light nearby clipped the side of her body, which included the deflated sag of her tail to the grass underneath her. She sat with her knees tucked to her chest, her head lulled into the bend of her elbow, Lash exhaled a shaky breath and could feel Sezeke's figure stiffen with the sudden hit of understanding that soaked over him. Lash raised his eyebrows in prickled discovery and looked up and to his side, to gage Sezeke's reaction, here. His eyes just barely glowed, he had a furrowed look of lovestruck grief written on his face, emotions he was beginning to have a hard time hiding. His powerful chest took in a deep, trembling breath, his tail hovered above the ground behind him in a stance of readiness, as if he was tensed in the preparation to begin running to her, though he remained frozen. Lash knew he needed to break the ice here, he gingerly rested his hand to Sezeke's lower arm and was happy his big, lovely round eyes sagged into Lash's in teary question.
"Would you like me to be the buffer for you?" Lash whispered with a gentle chuckle, to which Sezeke then adamantly nodded; he knew Kepa's hearing was unmatched so he kept his mouth shut and figured having Lash here to prepare Kepa for this monumental moment was best.
Lash smiled and now confidently began to cross the cobble stone path that wound all about the courtyard, at which Kepa sat at least a hundred feet across. Sezeke cupped his hands together and stood in baited, exhilarated, anxious wait, he watched as Lash neared his youngest daughter with care, he did his absolute best to quell the rushing squeeze of his heart. As Lash neared Kepa, her ears just barely perked, she lifted a little and only barely glossed her teary gaze to Lash's as he rounded in front of her and sat down next to her with a huff. Without needing to wonder or ask, he warmly wrapped his arm about her shoulders and was grateful she unravelled her tucked-knee sitting position and sagged into Lash's side hug. With the swathe of brotherly love Lash had grown accustomed to, he lovingly began to pet the back of Kepa's head as she inhaled a sharp sniffle and rubbed her damp nose.
"I hate this," Kepa whimpered through the crackle of losing her voice, the on and off episodes of crying and grieving was taking multiple tolls on her body.
"I do too," Lash returned in full knowing, he bobbed a nod and lulled his eyes closed as he could see his eyes very easily sag to blue. Though he managed to somehow keep his eyes either muted grey or a very faint gold during the day, they always dragged into agonizing, sorrowful blue anytime he was with Kepa, Vanellope, Ralph or any of Gideon's siblings. The sheer grief their hearts harbored was enough to swallow him whole. It was a united pain that he was well aware they'd never escape, though the sheer thought of having Sezeke here was the tiniest bit of hope for her Lash was clung to. His blue eyes glossed clear across the courtyard in subtle wondering and could see Sezeke stood in patient wondering far beyond them, he smiled and inhaled a shaky breath as he continued on, "But, hey... I know this is tough, and I know no matter what I do, none of it will ever be as grand as Gideon's hopeful return, but... I have a surprise for you."
"Surprise?" Kepa wondered daintily, even the word and the thought of it all wasn't enough to get her to even so much as use the muscles to move, to show excitement, she understood every single joyous emotion, from here on out, wasn't something she could tangibly grapple with. Kepa exhaled a trembling, teary breath and lulled her eyes closed, "What kind of a surprise?"
"You won't believe it," Lash whispered shakily with a cute chuckle as Kepa finally lifted and peered into Lash's eyes. Lash brightened, and though the look of Kepa being so physically, emotionally and mentally depleted was harrowing and becoming a big concern, he narrowed his gaze and so tenderly brushed the hair out from Kepa's eyes, "It's the best I can do, right now, but... I'm incredibly grateful you told me your original last name, otherwise this wouldn't have even happened."
"Favor?" Kepa murmured, she furrowed her brow and shook her head, "What happened? What does my last name have to do with anything?"
"...I found your father," Lash whispered kindly, and for the first time since Gideon's absence, Kepa's ears gingerly perked higher than her cheekbones. Lash grinned in shaky chuckling and kept his eyes gripped with the broadening bulge of Kepa's eyes.
"That's... Impossible," Kepa whimpered as she shook her head and tucked her hands to her chest in concerned curiosity, though Lash shrugged and tossed his eyes over his shoulder.
"If that's the case, then, I have no clue who that man is over there, who claims to be Sezeke Favor," Lash murmured cutely as Kepa whirled around in a sit and firmly stared in a hard glower of shock across the courtyard.
As if her heart had grown wings, Kepa stood in a stiff, upright shoot of full purpose and scoffed a trembling little noise of unadulterated shock as her eyes kept tight to her father, across the way. She murmured a noise of concern, the split second moment of second-guessing if this was really her father, though as she hurried across the courtyard in cautious steps of uncertainty, as she got closer, she could see the long-blink of his lovely, familiar eyes, the faint, yellow glow of his being was like a beacon guiding her home, and as she choked a hiccup of a gasping inhale, she clenched her fists and immediately took off running in the grimace of wanting to explode into more tears she was shocked her body was still producing.
"Dad," Kepa whined, almost in a question, and as Sezeke confidently loosened his stance, once and for all, he began firmly pressing towards Kepa in return, so to catch her in the inevitable collapse she was prepared to take into his arms.
"It's me, I'm here," Sezeke's deep voice grunted through the croak of the onset of tears, and as Kepa finally erupted into his bubble, the two collided in a firm grapple of an embrace, to which Kepa expelled every last cry her lungs had inside of her.
"Daddy," Kepa's staggering, heartbreaking wails of despair had the courtyard echoing with her fervent love for her father, family she thought was long gone with the unplug, she grappled her arms about his chest with the squeeze of a thousand tons.
"I've gotcha, I'm here, I'm here," Sezeke shakily whispered down into her ear as he firmly grappled his strong, fatherly arms tight about her upper body and shoulders, he firmly cupped the back of her head in his trembling hand and gingerly swayed her back and forth. Alongside Kepa's cries were the gentle huffs of his softer bouts of weeping, he grimaced into her little shoulder and cradled Kepa's adult figure tight against his strong chest, the little girl he was certain was long gone now safely cocooned in his arms, never to waver. His trembling hand firmly pet the back of her head, he relished in the feel of her soft ears, the sound of her sweet, womanly voice that coat the sky with trembling cries of despair and relief, he firmly tucked the side of his head into hers and grimaced through the squeeze of his clenched, teary eyes as he whispered into her shoulder, "I thought I lost you... My baby."
Kepa allowed every single last burden of childhood grief lay in the care of her father's arms, every staggering, gasping inhale coupled with the firm exhale of full grief, into his chest, was greatly welcomed. He grappled her in slow, easy swaying and eventually unfurled a much larger set of dragon wings than hers, something Lash flinched at to fully witness from the two dozen foot amount of space he respectfully gave the two. Kepa's cute, little body was already engulfed by the mass that was her father, though with the unfurl of his wings, which he never had on proper display, he embraced her to the fullest, to the point where the only thing peaking from their union was the length of her tail on the ground. Sezeke soothingly whispered into her ear and continued to pet the back of her head, sweet nothings of full, promised reassurance, affirming that his presence was due to being nowhere but here from now on. After a few minutes, Kepa's loud cries subsided to whimpering, to the eventual sag of her full exhaustion in her father's strong arms. Lash could hear Sezeke's deep voice tenderly whispering continued notions of affirmations in their secured bubble of wings and tails, Lash did everything he could to stop the roll of tears even he was battling, though once he noticed Kepa and Sezeke finally begin to unfurl from their cocoon of loving embrace, Lash began to slowly brave their bubble.
"You're just as adorable as I remember," Sezeke hissed in a nasally whisper as he cupped Kepa's cheek and firmly took tears off of her wet left cheek, she eagerly leaned into his touch and peered up into his familiar face, and although almost a decade had passed, they hovered in each other's presence as if zero time had passed at all. Sezeke blurt a cute chuckle and shook his head as Kepa finally cracked a loving smile of full relief, "Lookit you, getting me to actually cry."
"I knew you had it in you," Kepa erupted into stuffed-up giggling and firmly readjusted her grip to give her father a big hug about his neck, to which he firmly welcomed in another squeeze of an embrace. Kepa heaved a trembling sigh and shook her head in full, unadulterated shock, "I missed you so much, papa..."
"You have no idea," Sezeke mumbled sweetly, and as the two pulled away officially, Kepa sagged back and took note that Lash had come within their bubble and hung nearby about a dozen feet.
"Thank you," Kepa whimpered to Lash as he finally strolled up to close the gap, and as he came near, Kepa pushed into him for an embrace, as well, to which he gladly welcomed.
"Anything for you," Lash whispered as he rubbed her upper back, and as him and Sezeke met eyes, he grinned and gave Kepa one last final squeeze, "How old was Kepa when you last saw her?"
"Ohh, a wee-thing," Sezeke chuckled as he wiped his face free of tears, he put his hands on his hips and now had a better view of his daughter as Kepa and Lash gently unhanded one another, "She couldn't have been older than five months... She was just old enough that her wings had become strong enough to attempt branching. Vyekindra had only JUST turned one."
"...Vyekindra?" Lash questioned delicately as Kepa twiddled her fingers and glanced to her father in almost shy question.
"That's her full name, Vye was a nickname," Sezeke explained, to which Lash cocked an eyebrow and peered to Kepa in the further prodding of curiosity. Sezeke choked a small laugh and shook his head, "Oops... Sorry, Kips, were the full extent of your names a secret?"
"No, it just never came up," Kepa muttered.
"So, what's Kepa short for?" Lash ogled as he put his hands on his hips and eyed Kepa in teasing, smiling knowing.
"Kip," Sezeke snipped playfully, to which Kepa grinned in full annoyance and looked off with a hefty, nasally sigh, "C'mon, love. Got a billion nicknames, your full name is beautiful. Tell it."
"Kiprinka," Kepa murmured shyly, to which Lash politely dropped his hands and gave Sezeke and Kepa a gentle gawk of sweet, shocked delight.
"Kepa," Lash mused in a lilt of reactive warmth as Kepa bashfully avoided eye contact with Lash, "That's really pretty, why didn't you say anything? You just prefer Kepa?"
"Well, yeah, that's one name," Kepa whispered through sighing relief as she peered to her father in a full show of pride, she stood a little taller, Lash was relieved that this at least soothed the gaping wound that left her heart mangled.
"When she was a kitten, we'd call her Kip, or Kit, Kitty, and it morphed into Kepanka," Sezeke wistfully listed as he looked up in pondering thought, "There was a season of time where we called you Pancake."
"Pancake," Kepa erupted into a fit of giggling with remembrance, and as she wistfully sighed and peered into Lash's smiling eyes, she grimaced as big tears gathered in her eyes, once more. She shook her head and shrugged, "How do I even begin thanking you, Lash... Seriously."
"Tell me about it," Sezeke murmured.
"This was all you, Kepa," Lash eased with a nod, "You opened up and trusted me with your secret... You told me your official last name, and had I not gone to Sugar Rush to find that Callum had left for the internet, then-"
"...Wait, WHAT?" Kepa suddenly erupted, and though Lash flinched in surprise, Sezeke heaved a long, hard sigh and looked up to Turbotime's glorious, crystal clear, nighttime sky.
"Yeahhh... Not only do you and I have ten years to catch up on, but the drama surrounding Gideon isn't just a simple conversation over tea, either," Sezeke's deep voice mused with a chuckle, Lash inhaled a deep, steady breath and gestured to Kepa's home, which was once Gideon's.
"I offered to make your father another room in your home, here, Kepa... So you have company," Lash gestured gently to Sezeke, Kepa perked her ears and heavily nodded.
"YES, yes, please," Kepa fervently assured, the two squeezed into another huge hug as Sezeke grinned into the top of her head.
"We got a LOT to discuss, little lady," Sezeke assured as Lash gestured for the two to follow.
"The night's still young," Lash mumbled with a knowing smile, "C'mon... Let's get you two officially settled inside."
