Song Listened To :
Concerning Hobbits ft. Becca Myari by Senie Hunt
*Chapter 209*
"Alright, Ms. All-Knowing," Novus mumbled sweetly, he grunted to a lazy lay in the sweet, pink, Sugar Rush grass directly next to Kepa. Kepa had her knees tucked to her chest, her face buried into her arms that hugged her knees, she peered out to the huge field that Ralph and Gideon were far across, and though Ralph had made solid work of a few candy cane trees nearby, the two stopped due to an obvious pep-talk Ralph was gifting to Gideon. Novus flattened his ears and side-eyed Kepa in his peripheral, "You may come off as cool as a cucumber to everyone else with dulled senses, but think of me as Ms. All-Knowing's big brother, Mr. All-Knowing. I be knowing shit."
"I get it, Novus, I get it," Kepa muttered as she heaved a long sigh, shook her head and understood hiding emotions from Novus was impossible. Until her and Gideon were to swap codes, Kepa knew Novus was the only one she would forever be unsuccessful in hiding stuff from. Kepa shook her head and relished in the warm breeze that made the taller pink grass, that they were sat in, sway in easy flits of sunkissed leaves that spiraled into the wind. She bravely continued through yet another sigh as Novus patiently waited for her to carry on, "Gideon and I exterior swapped all night long, well into lucid state and far beyond it, into deep sleep. He may have come out of it a bit more polished, but... User, I'm SO exhausted."
"You are?" Novus worried softly, Kepa bobbed a nod and shrugged.
"Everything he's been through? The sheer wall of grief and trauma he has? I spent all night doing everything I could to shush it all," Kepa whispered sweetly, though much to Novus's huge surprise, big tears formed in her beautiful orange eyes. Novus adjusted his sitting position and, with a skillful swing of his tail, he lovingly curled his whole body about her sitting figure, as well as his much bigger wing. Kepa grimaced as the swoop of physical love encompassed her in a small, secure bubble of safety. It was a siblinghood Kepa was desperate for, she was floored it was something Novus was eager to gift to her, unabated. She choked a small squeak of a cry as all the emotions from last night now began to be too much to stifle any longer, "He may verbalize just how hurt he was, just how much garbage he's been through, just how lonely he's felt, up until now, but... Damn... Actually experiencing it all first hand is something I wouldn't even wish upon my worst enemy. Truly."
Novus frowned and peered into the side of Kepa's face, she rubbed her damp snout and sniffled in doing everything she could to remain composed; obviously failing, Novus flattened his ears and tenderly nuzzled his much bigger bat snout into the side of Kepa's face and shoulder, though this only made her unravelling broaden. She choked a small cry and now leaned into Novus's face as she embraced the undersides of his jaws and nuzzled her wet snout into Novus's. Novus lulled his eyes closed and remained a leaning post for her, knowing Gideon was her permanent foundation, he was glad he could be here in a time where Gideon was temporarily busy or away. Novus tenderly whispered into their little bubble of cocooned wings, tails, fur and arms.
"... I don't think the universe would gift you your manifesting if it all didn't think you were capable, worthy... Gideon's one," Novus so sweetly delivered, Kepa heaved a nasally sigh and rested her cheek and the side of her face to Novus's broad snout, so she could peer across the sunny field and source Ralph and Gideon, "I know this is difficult for you... But if it weren't for you, Gideon wouldn't even be here. I know he'd catch you when you fall, just like I know you'd catch him, too."
"I would," Kepa nasally whispered with a small nod as she continued to hug Novus's face, "I just wish... I could have his coding permanently, I could do the work faster. I'm stuck with just whenever we go to sleep."
"That's still progress, either way," Novus shrugged, he grit his teeth as the two so gently released one another and peered into each other's eyes for a moment, "I-I don't think his coding his stable enough for a full swap, right now, anyways..."
"I know," Kepa mumbled in girly defeat as she shyly rubbed her nose and peered across the field, once more; Novus immediately perked his ears and turned on his teasing, brotherly antics in assumption that it was safe to deploy said playful demeanor, once more.
"... Oh, do I sense a little frustration? Resentment?" Novus pawed, Kepa largely rolled her eyes and shook her head.
"No, no resentment, Novus, I'm understanding," Kepa grumbled as she hugged her knees, once more, and flattened her ears in rising annoyance.
"... But, frustration?" Novus continued to paw, Kepa squeezed her eyes shut and somehow felt more and more safe in Novus's warm, though brotherly presence, even with every single taunting, teasing notion he ever had to offer.
"Yes, Novus, I'm ten whole arcade years old and am just excited to experience things, okay?" Kepa firmly muttered in full, sisterly irritation, something that Novus donned a playfully bullying smile about, "I'm just impatient, I know what you're going to say, I don't want to hear it, Novus."
"Yes you dooo," Novus groaned as he adjusted his wings and grinned, "Want me to get on Gideon's case about it?"
"No, cause I stupidly agreed to be the ring-leader of it all," Kepa loudly blurt as she flung both her hands out, in Gideon's direction, "You can get on his ass about it all day long and it would STILL fall on me. He'd tell you that he was waiting for my word."
"Well, where's the problem then! Just look him in the eye and be like... Oh my god, take me now!" Novus stabbed in a full-tease of mocking a high-pitched voice; he howled with laughter, at his own joke, to which Kepa shoved her forehead into her arms and hid a wide grin, though she couldn't hide the shaking of her figure as she unfolded into annoyed laughter.
"It's not that easy, Novus," Kepa sighed through her shy giggling, she shook her head and lulled her eyes closed as she lifted, once more, "Sure, we don't have to swap, but... I kind of wanted him to be the leader in this mess, and I went and STUPIDLY crowned myself King..."
"I mean, can't you just sit him down and say you want to drop a bomb but HE'S to be the one to fly the plane?" Novus smartly and sassily snipped, Kepa rolled her eyes and shook her head.
"No, cause if I have to ask, then it's moot," Kepa rushed, Novus narrowed his gaze and shook his head.
"Why! He TRULY wouldn't if he didn't want to... Asking or not!" Novus argued.
"But I want HIM to want it without me having to ask him to do it," Kepa volleyed.
"Then hand the baton back to him," Novus chuckled with a shrug, "Be like, hey... I actually don't want this responsibility any longer, you seem better fit for finishing the race with this baton, sooo.. Here y'go."
"But I told him it'd mean a lot to me if I'd give it up in MY bed," Kepa loudly and sharply whispered, Novus perked his ears high and bugged his eyes as Kepa loudly groaned into her hands, to which she shoved her face firmly into.
"... Oh, you on your own, fam," Novus muttered tightly in hot dread.
"I'M SAYING," Kepa urgently stabbed, "So NOW, I have to endure exterior swaps, goo-goo eyes, the way he fiddles with his lip piercing, with his teeth, that STUPID little smolder he likes to give me literally at random... And now he's out here SHIRTLESS-"
"Ohh, wait, I totally see what's going on, now," Novus muttered in loud, groaning dread as Kepa perked her ears high and firmly peered into Novus's eyes, as if to be terrified of any of his findings, "He knows exactly what he's doing, he KNOWS that you're nearly too shy to speak up, so he's doing EVERYTHING he can to make you squirm."
"Uh-YAH," Kepa huffed sarcastically as she firmly pressed her palms to her upper chest, under her collar bones.
"Damn, yeah... I'm team Kepa," Novus murmured, he gave Kepa an apologetic smile and shrugged, "Hey! The fireworks will be bigger because of it?"
"Those won't be fireworks, they'll be nuclear bombs that lay waste to any brain cells I have left to my name," Kepa tightly muttered, almost to herself, though Novus erupted in happy laughter. Kepa dragged the extension of her arm outward, in a sweep, and dramatically bugged her eyes, "EVERY radio tower of pent up frustration just fully flattened. The lasting little embers of single neurons firing will be strictly reserved for reminding me to breathe."
"I REALLY need a play-by-play, by the way," Novus sarcastically muttered, Kepa rolled her eyes and shook her head.
"So, yeah... There's my frustration, for yah," Kepa shyly murmured into her arms as she returned to hugging her knees to her chest, "If you need me, I'll be doing everything in my power to keep a straight face around that man."
"... I'm telling you, I can talk to him, for you, if you'd like," Novus teasingly droned, Kepa lulled her eyes closed and huffed a long, dramatic sigh.
"I'll be fine... I'll figure out a way to tell him, I just feel as if it might be too soon. We only JUST had this conversation last night," Kepa mumbled sorrowfully.
"You might be overthinking all of this," Novus finally sighed through all of his teasing notions and swung back around to loving tenderness, "I'm not exaggerating when I say this... That kid ADORES you. He could never take a single breath because he couldn't stop talking about you, on all those flights him and I took home after a long day of hanging out with you. He could hardly imagine he had made a best friend, a lover out of you."
"...Really?" Kepa hummed in a lilt of tender uplift, Novus sweetly nodded and allowed his humble smile of warmth to return.
"Really... That's why him leaving devastated me, I was the only one who knew just the depth of love he has for you," Novus murmured as both him and Kepa tossed their gazes out across the field and watched Ralph continue to give Gideon a proper pep-talk, it looked serious and much-needed, "I don't think a single second ahead of you is too soon, not for you two, not for THIS intense of a romance. Sure, let the coals cook, there's probably fun there to be had, anyways, but... I don't know, that kid will do literally anything for you with the biggest smile on his face and the hugest pep in his step. Even if you do end up having to ask, you know it will be delivered with full sincerity..."
Kepa lulled her eyes closed and allowed tears to glide down her velvety cheeks, tears that had been gathering during Novus's loving mass of encouragement. She bobbed a soft few nods and looked down to longer fur on the outsides of her upper arms, of which were still hugging her knees. She breathed a long, nasally sigh through her nose and felt her heart wildly flutter, the idea that Gideon was now the keeper of her heart, one to guard and fill with love, she knew Novus's words were true. No matter the instance of who says what or what timing all played out to, Gideon truly would deliver with every ounce of zest and unconditional love that the whole universe had to offer. She finally smiled and glanced up into Novus's loving blue gaze, the gape of his pupils held to hers in the a whole, secret realm of compassionate fragility stored deep in Novus's heart, reserved just for her. A being so important to Gideon, Kepa knew to treat Novus with the same fervor of love and protection she'd give to Gideon, and with a gentle sag of her hand to Novus's snout, she lulled her eyes closed and eased him a notion of full gratitude.
"I'm so lucky to have you, Novus," Kepa's warm, womanly voice so kindly embraced Novus's heart, "I love you."
"I love you," Novus humbly assured with a gentle nod, "You two will be fine. Don't think too hard on it. He's returned, he's eager to bridge gaps and rebuild trust... I'd say just enjoy. Enjoy him, his presence, his advances or maybe taunting lack thereof. You know his every move is rooted in love. You don't have a single thing to worry about."
"I know," Kepa sighed softly in authoritative disappointment towards herself, she closed her eyes and softly straightened the hunch of her sit, "I'd take it all over not having him here, obviously. I'm just burning out, one can only do so many parking lot donuts."
"And he's on the side of the highway parked like an idiot, enjoying the view," Novus stabbed with a laugh that Kepa was easily wrangled into.
"Sounds like Gideon!" Kepa pressed in sarcastic cheeriness. She heaved a long, giggling sigh, ogled him from across the grass and did what she could to not swoon, "I can't stay mad at him, I'm crazy for the guy."
"You're crazy for him, he's crazy for you, and the rest of us are GOING crazy watching you two miss your exits!" Novus and Kepa continued to loudly choke laughter out into their bubble of joyous siblinghood, "Just so much as getting you two in the same zip code is a colossal chore no one wants to endure ever again!"
"It's a game of cat and mouse, I know it well," Kepa loudly giggled as she thumped her head and the side of her upper body into the fluffy press of Novus's much bigger shoulder and upper arm. She heaved a long, giggly sigh and shook her head as she leaned against Novus's equal sag of a loving lean, "Except... Gideon is the mouse and I wanted him to be the cat."
"... But YOU'RE the cat," Novus argued, Kepa stiffened to a normal sit and bugged her eyes.
"UH- Not last night I wasn't!" Kepa roused in loud, sarcastic giggling that Novus easily fell into, as well; a grin of fangs from both creatures.
"C'mon, y'got it, just really think on everything I just told you, bud," Ralph firmly encouraged as he gestured his huge hands in Gideon's direction and held them still and sprawled for emphasis. Due to Gideon's wrecking and manifesting being muted, the way Gideon was able to wreck was due to a held exterior swap with his father, one of solid purple coding between both men, wrecking powers fresh from the source of it all. Gideon's coiled coding wiggled with the unbridled power Ralph's wrecking coding exuded, and with such a notion of crazy-amounts of power, Gideon did what he could to keep his mild tremors under control as his father lovingly carried on, "I know it's easy, right now, to let anger fuel you... I know that's what you'll want to lean into, but really try to come at it from a place of simply just doing an action, and we'll go from there."
Gideon softly nodded once, though in the few minutes that had passed, Ralph took note of Gideon's fourth attempt in apprehensively stealing an ogling glance in Kepa's direction, as if to show full anxiety over the fact that she was a proper spectator in these raw instances. Ralph finally cocked an eyebrow, broadened his gaze from his and Gideon's bubble and took note of just what Gideon was glancing over to. Kepa sat with Novus in a tight sit atop a small mound of pink Sugar Rush grass, securely cocooned in the hefty swathe of shade from a nearby, fully-blossomed candy can tree. Her's and Novus's ears were fully taut and held in patient listening to the group, and even from fifty or more feet away, Ralph understood that both Kepa and Novus could hear the two. Ralph finally caught eyes with Gideon, once more, and wondered if Gideon could see that the two were paying full attention, he wondered if he could somehow worm a bit more information out of Gideon while Kepa could secretly hear him, he hoped that Gideon could get whatever issue he was having off of his chest without the added tension of having to look Kepa in the eye.
"... I'm now wondering if it's not the wrecking you're worried about and how it pertains to you, but rather... To someone else," Ralph mumbled sweetly, Gideon heaved a trembling sigh and looked down to his big hands in twiddling stimming.
"Y-Yeah, I'm... I'm having a hard time committing to attempting wrecking while Kepa is watching," Gideon's deep voice shyly grumbled, he looked off through the dappled lighting, in the opposite direction of Kepa and Novus, and did absolutely everything to keep tears at bay. With how vulnerable he had allowed himself to Kepa, last night, he feared it had opened a flood gate of sorts. Now any shred of tender loving care that was lofted his way was something his fragile, needy inner self was desperate for in full force. Gideon nodded and sucked in a huge breath to attempt to quell the need to cry, "I-I don't want to... Scare her off."
Ralph long-blinked in delirious surprise and now did everything he could to not erupt into laughter, so to care for Gideon's feelings. Ralph raised his eyebrows in a swipe of almost-smiling annoyance as he stood straight, put his hands on his hips and firmly peered in Kepa's direction. It was clear to Ralph that she was listening due to the cute way Kepa donned a shy smile and looked down to her lap. Novus was seen giving her shoulder a gentle, brotherly nudge, the two caved into warm chuckling that Ralph could only see and not hear. Ralph began to grin due to this and finally peered back down to his precious, fragile child. He shook his head and patiently watched Gideon's becoming-glassy gaze nervously scan the field opposite the direction of Kepa, he firmly continued to blink said glassiness back and took in steady, thick inhales through his nose. He kept composed nicely, though Ralph felt the urge to push Gideon over the edge, to prove to him that becoming unravelled here was safe to do. Ralph tenderly knelt to one knee, and though this meant getting underneath Gideon's eye line, it was only by about six inches. Gideon squeezed his eyes closed in a tight-lipped show of knowing dread, and as he finally peeled his eyes open and visited with his father's closer, tender gaze, his lip quivered in the shy unravelling Ralph was hoping for. Ralph guffawed a whispery little laugh and held his much bigger hand so lovingly cupped about the whole of Gideon's upper left backside. Although he cocooned Gideon away from Kepa's and Novus's sight, Ralph knew that he could still be heard by them.
"Listen to me," Ralph patiently started, Gideon squeezed his eyes closed, once more, though this time tears properly rolled down his cheeks, "You competed in Game Over and won, you managed thirty-seven whole kills and endured it all without taking a breath... You, by textbook definition, are a murderer, a full-blown criminal."
Gideon's eyebrows furrowed together in a grimace he concealed, though he sweetly scoffed a shaky little exhale and allowed his teary gaze to gloss deep into his father's warm eyes in full defeat, humbled regret, the tremors in his arms and neck got to be a bit more animated and anxious. With this, Ralph shook his head and now lovingly began to rub Gideon's upper back, adamant about giving Gideon a proper amount of specific love that spoke to him in full, as opposed to painting every single one of his children with a broad stroke; Gideon's heart required finer details thought of, a learning curve Ralph was adamant about getting right, this time around.
"Gideon, this is no secret whatsoever. She KNOWS this, to her full extent, she's well-aware. That's beyond enough to scare anyone and everyone off, and yet?" Ralph's words lilted into an upswing as he raised his eyebrows in a slope and was floored to maintain Gideon's heartbreaking eye contact, "There she sits... Taking notes. She's eager to see just how she's going to adapt once your coding is permanently hers, bud."
Gideon nodded and firmly sniffled as more tears escaped down his cheeks and collected at his sturdy jawline. Ralph reached his free hand up, swiped the back of his pointer finger underneath Gideon's chin as if he were simply Ralph's own little toddler, once more, a roll of fatherly routine he knew he'd never forget about. Ralph's voice softened as he narrowed his eyes for loving emphasis, he collected with Gideon's twinkling, teary gaze once more.
"If she didn't think this was all worth it, trust me... She definitely wouldn't be here. This is really telling of her character," Ralph encouraged, his voice was hushed as he continued to cutely swipe at Gideon's tears, whether they hovered on his cheeks or escaped to the stubble on his jaw, Gideon patiently allowed Ralph's much bigger fingers to wipe Gideon's tears away, "She sees the heart of gold you have and is willing to take your hand, to help you through your struggles, for the rest of her life... If going to Game Over, and the dozens of other things I can list, isn't enough to scare her off, you wrecking down some candy cane trees won't be it... I promise, son."
Gideon nodded with a bit more confidence and allowed his bare chest to expand to a full inhale, however trembling it was. Gideon let it all out and looked down to his lightly-quaking hands as Ralph kept close to him, as if to prove that he wasn't going to stand up and proceed until Gideon was fully cared for.
"Thanks, dad," Gideon's voice croaked in a teary whisper as he shyly glanced in Kepa's direction, once more.
He revisited with Ralph's gaze and wanted to step into Ralph's figure for a hug he felt he needed, though he scuffed his right heel forward a little and fully hesitated. Gideon sweetly looked down to his hands and opened his mouth to continue on, though Ralph scoffed a small laugh and noted Gideon's hesitation, he flexed his hand and arm, that was already about Gideon's upper body, and snugged him into a big hug.
"You're welcome," Ralph mumbled into the side of Gideon's head as Gideon firmly pushed into Ralph's much broader chest and shoulders for a squeeze of a loving embrace, "Now, c'mon... Let's take it slow, show Kepa just what you're made of. Can't imagine how someone with claws moves forward with wrecking abilities and remains humble, but... Fifty-bucks says she doesn't lose her head."
Ralph felt his pupils tighten as he could see Kepa unfurl her beautiful wings, leap to a quick, low glide across the field, and firmly flap to the two with a gust of warm spring air about them and huffed to a small jog up to Gideon and Ralph, lightning quick. Kepa put her hands on her hips as Ralph kept Gideon tightly squeezed into a hug, though his sheepish eyes met with Kepa's in a rouse of smiling banter to be had.
"Don't make that bet, Gideon, you'll lose," Kepa muttered with a cute smile as her and Ralph burst into laughter, Ralph cautiously unhanded Gideon and watched as he loosened his stance and shyly fixed his positioning and wet gaze to Kepa's. Kepa bobbed a nod and gave Gideon a loving, forlorn look of full understanding, "I can totally see why you're worried about this, Gid... But, your dad's right. If I were to be scared off, it would've been LONG ago. These powers make you who you are, seeing you in action won't scare me because I know I have nothing to fear. You wouldn't use your wrecking powers against me, would you?"
"No, not at all," Gideon quietly begged, Kepa firmly shrugged and gestured outwards.
"Well, there y'go, easy," Kepa chirped lovingly as she reached her hand for his and gripped it in a loving squeeze, "C'mon... Be proud of who you are, even if you have to relearn it. You're learning right from the source, and I'm happy to take it all in. I've showed you how to use mostly all of my abilities, seeing your side of this is really cool. You haven't scared me thusfar."
"I don't think anything can, at this point," Ralph warmly muttered with a shrug as he grunted to a stand, "Palace gargoyles are put in place to protect and defend. If she thought you were bad news, she would've done away with you already."
"I can smell BS from a million miles away," Kepa smirked as she firmly tapped her damp snout, to which this finally got a genuine grin and a shaky chuckle out of Gideon's figure.
"C'mon, we got over two months of wrecking to catch up on," Ralph's voice cooed over the two, and though Kepa was due to returning to her positioning with Novus, she was eager to see just what all of this would entail, just how Ralph would move forward with this fragile predicament, and with this notion, Kepa understood that she wasn't just in Gideon's care, here. She was floored Ralph had risen to the challenge of re-earning Gideon's trust, it was relief so clearly written all over Gideon's face, a notion that had Kepa feeling more at peace than she had in a long while.
