Ey so... I ain't dead. Surprise.
Not exactly in the best headspace to be honest- had to drop out of college (for now) and am currently still majorly stressed out for multiple reasons. Still wanna write and stuff but, to be honest, I've either not had the time, or not had the energy. It's the same old shtick of not having the motivation to do anything like every artist and their mom says all the time.
So I guess all I can say is here, have some content, hopefully I'll give you some more sometime, and hopefully the chapter is halfway enjoyable. Thanks as always for all the support, I really do appreciate it.
Warnings in end notes as always.
"Yakko, stop being a whiny brat."
"Whiny brat? Me? I'm making a very reasonable argument."
"Listen, I told you-"
"You don't seriously believe I can't even go buy groceries accompanied, do you?"
Rose sent him a deadpan stare.
"Yes, I do believe you can't even go buy groceries accompanied."
Yakko's eye twitched "I am in perfectly good health. I don't understand what the problem is."
She narrowed her eyes.
"May I remind you, oh incredibly strong Yakko, that not only did you faint twice in like less than thirty minutes, but you also threw up and almost fainted a third time. And it was no less than four days ago."
"… I am going to punch you in the nose if you don't get out of my way."
"Go ahead, see for how long you live, punk-"
"I would advise against punching my younger sister in the nose" StarDust finally chimed in, looking at Yakko with a stone-cold expression, even as he dropped his fighting stance "I understand if you think we are being overbearing, but keep in mind it's dangerous to go out in your condition."
Yakko was at about the end of his wits, yelling out with his hands in the air, meaning to sound sarcastic but appearing truly desperate instead "You can't keep me here! I have rights! JAILER LET ME OUT I'M INNOCENT!"
"By Zeus Yakko, calm down" Marilyn appeared behind him, looking concerned and a little bit hurt when he flinched the moment she put her hands on his shoulders and pulled himself away. She elected not to touch him again, and he looked at her with an apologetic expression "… We're not keeping you in jail, we're trying to protect you."
"Listen, I'm 16 and an adult, you said it yourself" he argued, a little less annoyed but still upset "I can handle some grocery shopping with my sibs, it's not even a big deal."
"It is a big deal when you're not in any shape to leave" it was obvious Rose was trying desperately to keep her cold stance, wanting to cave but standing firm "It's already a lot for me to be leaving you just with Elias and your siblings inside the base; if it were up to me, I'd be guarding you *personally* and we still wouldn't be going anywhere."
Rose sent a disgruntled glare StarDust's way, making it obvious who it was exactly that convinced her to leave with the rest of the Millers on a mission rather than remaining on base with the Warners. On one hand it was incredibly sweet of Rose to want to protect him so badly, but on the other, it was terribly frustrating for Yakko to be treated like something fragile, and even more so being watched like a hawk so that he doesn't freak out and hurt himself or something of the sort.
He started searching for allies, hoping someone, anyone would agree with him... but then he was forced to try and ignore how both Wakko and Dot were so obviously avoiding looking at him in the eye.
He knew he shouldn't feel guilty when he wasn't the one who messed up, but to think they hadn't spoken to him in four days... He'd admit he was a little harsh with them, but…
He had to shake his head to stop that train of thought. There were more pressing matters right now "Listen, I'm itching to do something and I haven't breathed fresh air in over 96 hours. Any more and I might actually suffocate."
"Oh my God you little Drama Queen-" Rose put her hands up in exasperation, completely missing the scathing glare Yakko sent her for the nickname "Fine, you can go outside to... I don't know, sit by a tree or something" Yakko only managed to open his mouth to say something before Rose interrupted him "But! I don't want you going into town, or meeting with anyone. There isn't much in the field that should trigger you, but seeing anyone right now would be a bad idea. You stay here, and I'm gonna have Elias supervise you."
The thought made Yakko frown, but at the very least he was allowed outdoors. He just… hated being indoors for long, or honestly in general. He hated not being able to see sunshine, to only see artificial light everywhere he went, to be unable to feel grass under his feet. If it were up to him, he'd live in a tent in the middle of the forest somewhere instead of in a house.
Finally Rose stepped out of his way and allowed him to basically sprint through the tunnel that would lead him outside. After four days of being shut inside, in a mountain where there was not enough air in his opinion, he was finally able to open the door, relax on the grass and see the blue sky.
He took a deep breath, sighing out in happiness at the soft sound of the wind blowing, the tickling on his toes from the grass slipping between them. He heard another three sets of footsteps coming his way, but he chose to ignore them in favor of sitting down in front of a nearby tree and leaning against it, looking up at the clouds with a small smile on his face.
"Well, I think I finally figured it out" Rose drawled out with a risen eyebrow and a soft smirk as she came out of the cave "Yakko photosynthesizes. He's clearly just a Black Pansy."
"Ha-ha, very funny, Rose" he rolled his eyes, but was too happy at being outside and under the sun to bother snapping something back at her. After all, she had allowed him to go outside in the end. That had to count for something.
"By the way," he spoke as an afterthought, not wanting them to leave just yet "Do you guys have some colored pencils by any chance?"
"Colored pencils?" Rose seemed genuinely surprised at the request, while Marilyn cheerily said "I have some, stay right there" and disappeared inside the base again a moment later.
"Yeah, I was thinking of drawing something" Yakko smiled, but the thought of the last time he'd actually drawn something and the way The Girl had acted up made him frown again "… I'm probably terribly rusty, it's been a while... But if I'm not going anywhere anyway I might as well do something."
"... You… like drawing…?"
The soft way Rose's voice sounded prompted him to actually look at her, seeing her staring at him with a faraway look in her eyes. She looked… nostalgic.
"Yeah, ever since I can remember... What's up with the melancholic face?" his frown deepened a little.
Almost instantly, she shook her head as if to clear it and smiled nervously "It's nothing, I, uh, liked drawing when I was a kid. It's just that Rob- Um... Father hated it when I drew, or, well, did anything with colors."
Yakko's frown deepened. From the sounds of it, the man had hated pretty much everything.
Star seemed unaffected, but her hand came to rest on her younger sister's shoulder anyway "The Neanderthal broke your crayons all the time."
"And my coloring books... " Rose's ears lowered, looking far away, but jumping and looking composed again once Marilyn reappeared, holding some blank pages, some colored pencils, and an old book to use as a makeshift desk.
"Here you go! Might not be an amazing arrange of colors, but I'm sure it'll suffice" she handed him the supplies, her smile only leaving her face once she noticed how angry he suddenly looked "Something wrong?"
"... No, nothing's wrong."
He tried to get his frown to let up, but it just wouldn't. The thought of the Milers' father always made his blood boil, but knowing how much he hurt Rose in particular made him a special kind of pissed. If the man hadn't been dead he'd have found him and given him one hell of a lecture... as well as a well-deserved punch to the face.
… Maybe he'd just stomp on his grave a little sometime. Or a lot.
Rose cleared her throat, trying to bring the attention to her and, most importantly, back to the mission the Milers were supposed to be leaving on "This reminisce has been fun and all, but we should really get going. The poor won't feed themselves."
"That's for sure" Yakko mumbled as Marilyn and StarDust passed by him, waving goodbye to him.
When Rose was in front of him, her expression still slightly bothered, he spoke up.
"Hey, Rose," he called for her, feeling his heart break a little when she turned to look at him with a fallen expression. Still, he tried giving her a determined look "What was your... father's name?"
He said father as if he'd been spitting venom. He knew she hated calling the man that.
Rose seemed surprised "Uh... Robert. Robert Milers. That... That was his name" she clenched her teeth, but did nothing else to signify she was upset.
He nodded in understanding. Hopefully this would make things easier for her "Now I know who he is. So, if you're ever going to talk about him... You never have to say he's "your father" ever again. I'll understand who you're talking about."
At first she looked surprised, even slightly confused. Then, a smile appeared on her face and she bit her lip. He thought he could see a bit of moisture in her eyes.
"I..." she gave a shocked, tiny laugh, and then she shook her head, turning so her back was to him "I can't tell you how much that means to me... Thank you. I'm- I'll get better, one day."
"You have all the time in the world" he chose not to look at her. She'd turned her back so that he wouldn't be able to see her, after all "And if it never happens... That's okay too. You'll go about it your own way."
He heard a tiny sniffle and a mumbled "Why the fuck are you so considerate all the time...?" but he knew he wasn't supposed to answer. Instead, when she cracked out a "bye" under her breath, he returned the sentiment.
"Be safe!" he finally shouted as he saw all three Milers walking in the distance, in the direction of Artemis. He only wished he could have gone too, even if it had just been to go get some stupid groceries with his siblings.
It was official; none of the sisters were allowing him to go more than twenty feet from the base, and even then, they said that they'd rather someone was with him at all times- which was why Wakko and Dot hadn't gone with them and were currently inside with Elias, probably pestering the prince or doing whatever it was that they did when they weren't practicing or taking classes. Rose had explicitly told Elias to watch him, knowing that he would keep him in his place considering the prince had such a negative opinion of him.
Yakko sighed, letting his back slip slightly downward on the tree trunk. It just wasn't fair. It wasn't his fault that he couldn't get any pills... though it was his fault that he hadn't told anyone. He had just wanted to be useful again, and just cooking wasn't cutting it for him.
- I should probably just relax for a bit. Draw some trees, some flowers... Maybe I'll try drawing that move Rose taught me a while ago. Seems like a good pose for practice. -
With these thoughts running around in his head, he began sketching a rather vague looking warner, not giving them any distinctive traits that might make anyone associate them with anybody he knew. With his luck, he'd end up drawing Rose and that would just be embarrassing. He wouldn't be able to do her justice.
He was able to draw in peace for a while, aside from having to glare at an equally annoyed Elias whenever he'd open the door to the base a little to make sure Yakko hadn't gotten kidnapped or something while he wasn't looking. Thankfully though, he remained inside for the most part.
It was as he was absentmindedly drawing a leg kicking the air with force something of an hour into his drawing session that he heard the rustling of leaves, and he instantly looked up to see if either of his siblings wanted to enjoy nature with him. Or maybe it was just Elias looking to piss him off after checking on him, either option was equally possible.
However, he didn't see anyone coming out of the base… in fact, the door was closed, and the camouflage was up, which he supposed was a good thing considering just leaving their door open would attract unnecessary attention, but then what…?
He turned his head this and that way, looking at trees and at the ground, at bushes, trying to spot the source of the sound. Birds? Squirrels?
No animal jumped out, and everything was actually eerily quiet now that he stopped to listen. He began feeling nervous. What if someone was there, spying on him?
The mental image of huge red eyes staring at him from the darkness in a foggy night instantly popped up, but he tried his best to push it to the back of his mind. He was being ridiculous. The day was beautiful, it was way too clear for anyone to try to spy on them. He would be able to see them a mile away... right?
- Whatever it was, I don't like this. Let's go back inside. -
"But we just got here!" ... was what Yakko wanted to say, but his heart had already started picking up the pace and his hands had started shaking.
If the voice was worried, he should be worried too.
Deciding that, screw it, he could come back out the next day if he really wanted to, he got up quickly and started looking around, not wanting to go to the door just yet in case someone was spying on him and would find their hideout.
- Keep an eye out. -
He almost said it aloud, and he gulped and wondered how the voice could "keep an eye out" if he didn't have eyes to look with.
But the voice never failed him.
- On it. -
Slightly less nervous with his support, Yakko finally started walking toward the door, then stopped. When he couldn't hear anything shuffling around, he quickly revealed the pad and punched in the code, hiding it with his body as much as possible. Hopefully if someone was indeed watching and he'd just led them right to them, they at least wouldn't know the code.
- Hurry, I'm getting the creeps. I haven't seen anything, but it's too quiet. There aren't even any birds chirping. -
Indeed, the field was far too quiet for being in the middle of nature. Even as he managed to open the door and quickly close it behind himself, breathing quicker than normal as he stared at the tunnel ahead, he knew that something wasn't right.
He was definitely telling Rose when the Milers got back, even if it was possible it was just his paranoia acting up. He didn't like taking chances.
"… You know we're going to have to apologize sooner or later, don't you? Playing the silent game with him never works."
"I know, I know!" Dot practically yelled out, holding the sides of her head with her hands as she desperately paced around the room, trying to calm down "But what are we supposed to say? "I'm sorry for talking about your schizophrenia before you were ready to talk about it?""
Wakko looked up from the magazine he was looking at, the one Dot had instructed he search in for some kind of gift that could undo the "horrible betrayal" they'd committed, and lightly bounced on his bed "… Yeah, that sounds about right."
"But- But it just feels so empty!" she lamented, looking about ready to cry as she sent a pleading look to her brother "I hate that I'm not sorry. Well, I mean, I am sorry that he felt bad, but I'm also *not* sorry because we really needed to talk about it!"
"Classic Mom Dilemma" Elias chimed in from across the room on Marilyn's bed, a magazine also in his hands. Not that he would know what kind of gift would appease Yakko, but if it made Dot feel better... "You want to apologize for yelling at your son about eating too many cookies, but you also know you were in the right because he needs to learn that he can't just do that, because it's bad for him."
"I'd say this is a lot more serious than Yakko eating a few cookies" Dot sighed dramatically, hiding her face in her palms "And besides, he's our older brother. Not only did we hurt his feelings, but his pride as The Oldest Who Does Everything By Himself too."
"Well, if he's got too much of an ego that's his problem" Elias huffed, grimacing "If he doesn't accept your apology I'll personally punch him for you."
"Don't punch Yakko" Wakko quickly scolded him before he could even think about the possibility too much, shaking his head when the prince just shrugged. Then, he turned to look at Dot, his expression reassuring "You know he'll forgive us so long as we apologize, right?"
"... It's been four days" she sniffled, running a hand under her nose "To think he- he hasn't even said anything that wasn't a "good morning" or "goodnight"... Even-" she hiccuped "Even when we were playing Pictionary he didn't ask to join in- He loves that game!"
Both Elias and Wakko jumped slightly when she began sobbing "He's ignoring me! Why- Why did I have to open my big stupid mouth-!"
"Dot- Dot, he's not ignoring you, he's just waiting for us to apologize" Wakko quickly rose from his bed and hugged his sister, patting her back somewhat awkwardly but still reassuring "You know how he is when it comes to this stuff. Plus, you just said it, he's doing the same with me."
"But I started it- He's never going to forgive me- He- He probably hates me and- he won't tell me bedtime stories anymore and- and-" she fumbled with her words as she continued sobbing, finally giving up and just crying into her brother's shoulder.
"Some brother" were Elias' mumbled words as he clenched his teeth, looking like he wanted to hug Dot as well but knowing he wasn't close enough to them to do that yet "Is this how he "cares about you"?"
"Look, it's not great, but you have to be a little understanding," Wakko practically pleaded with him, holding his sobbing sister in his arms as he looked at the prince "Yakko's really sensitive about his schizophrenia. Back on human territory, people either wanted to coddle him or called him a freak. I don't know how mental illnesses are treated socially in WarnerStock, but it's seriously not well taken back where we were."
"And besides..." he sighed softly, sadly "Yakko's still trying to teach us how the world works even now. He probably really is waiting for that apology because he's upset, but also... Because he wants to teach us to truly apologize to someone, meaningfully. I guarantee that he'll apologize for even getting upset about it once we do."
Elias' cold look melted just a little bit, looking to the side as if unwilling to admit that he saw Yakko's point and sort of, maybe, felt a little bad for him "Still... She shouldn't have to cry about it."
Dot let out another sob, but this one was slightly softer. She seemed to be calming down, and Wakko softly pet her hair, trying to get her to let the last of the bad feelings out "It'll be fine, she's just stressed out. This isn't the only thing she's upset about… the only thing we're upset about."
And boy, did he know it. They were both seriously stressed out. The only reason he wasn't crying along with Dot was simply because he felt like he had to be the older brother for her right then.
They didn't know how they were going to maintain their family relations with both William, Elias, and Yakko. They didn't want to hurt any of them, but then again, how were they going to convince Yakko that he wasn't being replaced by Elias, and how should they convince Elias that he wasn't going to be left out because of Yakko? They already practically hated each other, no matter how much they were clearly trying to be amicable for their sake. Add to that the stress of the revolution they were cooking up and just the fact that they'd had to move house and still weren't entirely used to it, and they were ready to explode at any moment.
Needless to say, they were not having a good time lately.
Elias' soft hum in response to his words brought Wakko out of his thoughts however, enough to notice that Dot had stopped crying and was now lightly pushing at his chest to get him to let her go. And he did, very gently, so as to not startle her.
"You okay?" he asked, giving her a once over and noticing that besides the puffy red eyes, the runny nose, and the disheveled hair, she looked a lot better. Her expression of determination threatened to disrupt the silence their older brother had made between them.
"... Yeah" she sniffed, accepting a handkerchief Elias offered and blowing her nose on it "I'm... I'm gonna go see Yakko."
"That's my sister. Let's go show him how mature we are."
Wakko smiled proudly as Dot began walking decisively out the door with him in tow. Elias followed them as they walked out the bedroom, hoping to catch the younger siblings' apology and Yakko's reaction, no doubt expecting a shitshow to occur.
It didn't take them long to locate Yakko- despite the fact that he'd made such a big deal about being outside in the morning, he was inside the base, staring blankly at the door as if deep in thought. Usually, that meant that they probably shouldn't bother him, but this was an exception, and Wakko decisively grabbed his sister's hand and almost dragged her forward when she faltered at the sight.
The moment they entered his peripheral, Yakko turned his head to them lightning fast, only seeming to relax once he'd scanned each of their faces and realized they weren't a threat. Wakko would bristle at the thought if he didn't know how generally twitchy his older brother was; he meant nothing by it. So, instead of focusing on that, Wakko got both himself and Dot close to their brother, fully prepared to begin talking and even clearing his throat for it, but Dot basically shook in place like a bottle of soda about to explode before actually exploding into words.
"Oh my God Yakko, I'm super super sorry for making you upset, I didn't mean to just blurt it out like that, I just wanted to help-"
Wakko had to put a hand on her shoulder before she could word-vomit anymore "We're both really sorry it went like that… but it's important that the Milers know what they need to do to can properly take care of us, so they needed to know."
Yakko was silent for long enough that Dot started going again.
"Yeah! And- what if things got worse if we didn't say anything! 'Cos- 'Cos we just want you to get better- and we can stop ignoring each other now!" Wakko's hand gently squeezing her shoulder gives Dot the courage to stop and take a breath before continuing at a much calmer pace "We just… worry about you. We don't want you to get hurt…"
Yakko seemed rattled at first, a little surprised second, but finally, he just looked at them with a thoughtful expression. Wakko heard his sister take a breath to say something else, but Yakko beat her to it.
"No… I'm sorry, guys" he sighed, his fists lightly clenched "It's hard to say this, considering I'm the one who's supposed to look out for you guys... but even if I can't entirely blame myself for being upset… you guys were right" sheepishly, he scratched at his neck, giving them a soft, sad smile as he sighed "Thanks for taking care of me and my stubborn butt. I really wouldn't have said anything if you guys hadn't talked first."
And like he'd said the magic words, both Dot and Wakko excitedly jumped to their older brother to hug him, making a little squealing noise when Yakko decided to turn the tables on them and squeeze them until they started giggling.
"You're very welcome for our service!" Dot grinned in her brother's arms, only giggling more when Yakko started ruffling her hair.
Yakko returning that smile full force and mumbled something about being sorry for getting upset about stupid stuff, all as Dot hugged his middle and jokingly patted his head, Wakko chuckling under his breath while being just as trapped in the group hug.
"Told you" Wakko mouthed smugly to Elias who watched the whole spectacle, a grin on his face. The prince merely sighed, but smiled at seeing the whole issue resolved in a positive way.
"Now... Who wants to play some Pictionary?" Yakko suddenly grinned as he showed them some paper and pencils they could use to play.
"I do! I do!" and it was undeniable that all three Warner siblings loved this game, so much so that Wakko and Dot chanted together with big smiles on their faces.
"What's this "Pictionary" you all keep talking about?" Elias looked confusedly around them and squinted at the paper in Yakko's hands, as if they held the secrets of the universe and he just had to pay close attention to figure them out.
Yakko snorted "Who wants to explain the rules to the Little Prince?"
While Elias sent him a glare, Dot eagerly explained how to play the game. They all sat down on the floor, playing for hours, laughing and having fun as the sun began to set.
Elias got constantly frustrated that Yakko and Dot were winning (how dare Yakko be winning against him, who had only just learned how to play the game), Wakko constantly tried to steal the cookies they were using as the betting chips for which team would win each turn, Dot was having the time of her life drawing kitty faces on her paper, and Yakko seemed sort of happy and relaxed for once.
As Rose, Marilyn and StarDust came back, wide eyes staring at the Family Game Night happening in their living room, Marilyn asked, with shining eyes, if they could play too. "Go ahead" was Yakko's response.
Even though they were clearly exhausted from the mission they had been on, the Milers seemed to be having just as much fun as the Warners were. Rose couldn't handle losing and complained about Yakko cheating constantly, to which he merely smirked every time and argued that he was just the undefeated Champion of Pictionary. This meant war and they both made it their mission to sabotage each other from then on. StarDust attempted to analyze the game like a puzzle, as if she would find a hidden meaning if she stared for long enough at the "cards" they'd made because they didn't have the actual, physical game. Marilyn was constantly excited, almost shouting her answers to what the drawings were and eating her share of the cookies with a big happy grin, probably hopped up on too much sugar.
They played late into the night, only taking breaks to go to the bathroom and get some snacks, and later, proper food.
Wakko couldn't help but smile at everyone enjoying their time together, acting like a big, weird family, looking so happy...
If they stayed like this forever… would it really be so bad?
Warnings: Really just references to the hot mess that was last chapter's reveal of Yakko having schizophrenia, and Yakko being a little paranoid about things he honestly SHOULD be worried about. Not much else happens this chapter.
* I've opened up my PMS on " twitter skelliesandmore" for prompts. The pinned tweet says what I will and will not do but basically I'm open to writing a bunch of things. I did not include any Animaniacs stuff in there but basically as long as it's not incest between Yakko, Wakko and Dot, I'm open to almost anything (including 18+ stuff, but if I find out you're a minor I will have some words)
