Chapter 1 – Additions
This is a dumb prompt. I know it's a dumb prompt, I don't know where the dumb prompt came from, but in true Paisley fashion we are going to ride the wave of this until the very bitter end.
-:-:-
Doug wasn't sure how he had gotten to this point.
Well, actually he was, the specific intricacies that had led him to the lowest point in his existence were not entirely a mystery. He supposed the more accurate question would be how he got to this point, how the stars had aligned to provide him with pathetic surroundings that could only be the product of a terrible dramatic novel, Doug walking through the rain because he was a fool who couldn't be bothered to call a car, and he was far enough from the fashion show that he may as well commit to finding the next bus stop so he could end his evening on the pitiful note it had started on.
He wasn't sure how he'd gotten to this point.
But he did know what led him to breaking up with Evie, breaking up with everyone, and heading off into a distance that was unfathomable but at least free, however much comfort that offered him.
It wasn't much.
The beginning of his troubles – that was on him. Well, most of it was on him. Because if he'd been honest, there wouldn't have been friction. If he'd been honest, they could have talked about the problems that seemed to spike beyond his purview.
But Doug hadn't been honest, he'd been a coward. Was always a coward.
And now he was a coward walking in the rain, so maybe that was just how things were always going to turn out.
-:-:-
It was an unfortunate byproduct of genetics.
There were always quirks to be expected from the children of interspecies relationships, and for all that humans and dwarves were quite similar, there was enough of a difference between them to make Doug's conception somewhat of a crapshoot. They didn't know who he would take after, how tall he would grow, where he would live. If he took after his father, he would have been raised in Erebor, groomed to help with the craft guilds there.
Obviously, that had not happened.
Doug grew, and then just kept growing, taking on a human appearance like his mother. Perfectly average in every way, save for one.
His doctor had assumed, somewhat fairly, that he would grow into things over time.
Unfortunately, that hadn't been the case.
And it was stupid, because it wasn't like dwarves were un-endowed. They were actually comparable to um- human genitals. It was just that Doug was a runt, a being of mixed-blood, and because of this he found himself with a length that was entirely miniscule when compared to his peers. Horrifically miniscule.
His dad tried to talk to him about it, but that had been terrible, so Doug just pretended he wasn't interested in sex.
But of course he was interested in sex, he was a teenager, a hormonal disaster area, and because of his dumb dwarf blood he was ready to go at almost any given moment, usually the most inconvenient ones. Which was horrible.
So he took care of himself. He took sports electives that didn't require him to change in front of other people. He gained a reputation of being horribly modest.
It was fine. Life was fine.
And then he'd met Evie, and life had gotten both more and less substantially fine.
Evie liked him for who he was. Evie didn't seem to care that he didn't want to have sex (and he did, he just knew he'd never be able to satisfy her, so he didn't). Evie liked having him around and holding his hand and emotionally supporting him and being emotionally supported by him and it was all very wonderful and awful because Evie was intelligent and creative and really, really pretty. Her ensembles were always on-point. Her makeup perfectly applied; her hair lovely. Even in the few instances it was a mess, she was lovely, and he liked complimenting her then the most because her cheeks would blossom in a furious blush that he would capture in his memory, determined to relive it later when he was seeing to his um- needs.
Over the years – over coronation and cotillion and graduation – Doug had gotten into a rhythm with Evie. She was so hardworking and determined, she was so generous and kind and for whatever reason she liked having him along for the ride. He was glad to follow her in all honesty, and after the barrier fell, he couldn't have been more proud just to be known by her, to be considered her friend. She and the others had done so much.
And then one day she sat him down for a private conversation.
Sort of.
Carlos and Jane had been there too, and while Carlos and Evie seemed to know what was going on, Jane didn't, which effectively put Doug on edge.
Evie was smiling though, a nervous grin, but that offered Doug a bit of relief as they launched into the conversation. "Okay, there's a chance we weren't entirely honest about Isle crew dynamics with you guys," Evie explained.
She had laid out the bare basics of how Mal's crew had functioned to Doug before, and while it had always hurt to hear about the trials she had suffered, he wasn't sure what exactly she could have glazed over.
"You guys know that crew is everything," Carlos took over, his hands twisting together in a show of nerves. "We got each other's back through thick and thin, but um- we were a little more than that. More than friends."
Doug and Jane were quite intelligent people, but even without that, it wasn't hard to connect the dots.
"You guys dated?" Doug offered, knowing they didn't really have an equivalent for dating on the Isle.
"Essentially," Evie said. "The four of us- we were everything to each other." In every capacity they needed to be. "And here things aren't as dire, so we tried going our own ways…"
"You're dumping us," Jane surmised.
"No." Carlos surged forward, cradling her hands in his own. "No, that wasn't the point of this. We um- we wanted- since you know all of us now…"
"You want us to also date you?" Doug hazarded, though it didn't seem to be real. If anything, it was too good to be true.
And yet, that was what made Evie smile. "Yes!" she chirped. "I know it's a lot to ask for, but if you guys would think about it, I'd- we'd appreciate it."
"All four of us dating?" Jane asked, sharing a look with Doug. "That's what you want?"
"Yes," Carlos said, squeezing her hands. "But only if you're interested."
The thing was, Evie wasn't asexual.
At least, as far as Doug knew. She had needs that Doug couldn't help her with, and while she assured him it wasn't a problem exactly… well, he knew that he'd been living on borrowed time as it was. Evie was brilliant. The fact that she had stayed committed to him alone for this long was astounding. He couldn't be greedy. He couldn't ask her to be solely dedicated to himself, even if that was what he wanted.
Well, mostly he wanted Evie to be happy, and this seemed to make her happy.
So it wasn't hard for Doug to muster up a smile, to pretend to be okay enough to offer them a shy grin. "I'm interested," he decided, tucking a stray strand of hair behind his ear to keep his hands occupied. Evie knew most of his nervous tells, so he made an effort not to engage in any of them.
"Me too," Jane said half a second later. He wasn't sure if she actually liked the idea or if she was compromising the same way Doug was, but it didn't really matter in the end. They were together now, the four of them.
"Really?" Evie said, not seeming to believe it. "You guys can think on it more if you want."
"We don't need to," Doug hummed. "I like the idea of being committed to you guys."
"Me too," Jane repeated.
And that seemed to be that.
-:-:-
Things were hectic, with Evie and Jane balancing school with legislature work and Evie all in on her business and training to be the heir to Hanover. Comparatively, Doug and Carlos just had school – though Carlos tried to help with the legislature stuff and Doug with Evie's business. It was a nice distraction from the fact that his girlfriend was definitely having sex with two other people, and while Doug thought that maybe he could have opened up to her about his predicament, he was pretty sure he couldn't do that now. One of the big things with polyamory was not keeping secrets.
The secret Doug currently had- that was for him alone. He'd deal with it.
Carlos and Jane, of course, already knew about Doug's supposed sexual orientation. They knew he was good with kisses and light affection, cuddles, and it was sort of awful to get two new very brilliant people who were invested in his life, who he had to daydream over, knowing all the things his stupid anxiety kept him from doing.
It wasn't hard for Doug to fall for Carlos and Jane.
He tried not to, honestly. He tried to look on it more as gaining two best friends than he did acquiring additional partners, the problem was that Carlos's dedication extended beyond Evie. He'd been serious about being attracted to Doug, and expressed as much in the sweetest ways possible when Doug least expected it. He was fighting a battle that shouldn't exist, because Carlos shouldn't be complimenting Doug's looks or tucking hair behind his ears with a look of fondness Doug had only ever caught from Evie, he shouldn't surprise Doug after class with his favorite coffee pick me up and walk hand-in-hand with him to the limo Mal always had on standby for them, because she took care of her people. He shouldn't look Doug over like he was a treat, then blush furiously and apologize for his attraction that shouldn't exist at all before changing the conversation to whatever book Doug was reading that week for pleasure – at least when he could sneak in time between managing the financials of Evie's 4Hearts and his own coursework.
That wasn't including the work on his Master Artist portfolio, which was supposed to be a secret anyway. The committee was still on the fence about letting him submit because Doug was only half-dwarf, but his dad had made the argument that Doug had picked his craft – same as any other dwarfling. He'd committed to it and practiced it and if he cleared that and the passage of combat, he should be allowed the opportunity to present the music he composed. To perform his music in front of the king of Erebor to see if he could join the ranks of masters his home was known for. It was any dwarf's life ambition, to be a master of their craft, and while that could vary from music to metalworking to scribing to weaving, Doug's trumpet had called to him since he was little, and he wouldn't disappoint it now. Not when his father was part of the company that had protected Queen Snow during Queen Grimhilde's hunt.
He had to do his family proud. He had to do Erebor proud. He had to keep his head above water.
He couldn't disappoint them with his half-human parentage. He knew his conception had been a drunken mistake, his mom kind enough to keep him but not to stay around and raise him. He knew his father felt terrible about that, that he always did his best to ensure that Doug had felt wanted and loved, but that didn't change the fact that Doug had grown up an outsider in his own home, as little as he'd wanted to do so. It was part of the reason why he went to school outside of Erebor, so he had a chance at fitting in.
That didn't stop him from wanting to prove his worth. Prove to Erebor that he was one of them. That a son of the seven wasn't a failure.
So he kept pushing along. It was all he could do.
He took a small comfort in the fact that Jane seemed just as uneasy as he was. She was better at hiding it from Evie and Carlos like Doug was, but when it was just the two of them, she seemed content to let her guard down.
"I try to look at it as a positive thing," she said when she'd cuddle with him, which was great because cuddles but also awful because Jane was adorable, and before Evie had come over from the Isle Doug had spent a lot of time trying to build up the courage to ask her out on a date. "It's not that I wasn't enough, it's that I also get a cute new girlfriend and boyfriend. It's just hard to believe sometimes that Evie likes me."
It wasn't hard for Doug to believe, not when he'd accidentally walked in on Evie eating Jane out once, which was the resurrection of a fantasy he'd long since abandoned. Thankfully he'd managed to retreat before they realized he was there, but he'd spent that time being humiliated and stupidly aroused in the comfort of his own bathroom, wishing he could just be normal for once.
"I feel the same way about Carlos," Doug admitted, nuzzling as close to Jane as he dared before his body decided to react. "But this makes them happy, right?"
"Right," Jane echoed. "And it's kind of nice to know that even if I mess up, you and Evie can keep him happy."
"You couldn't make him unhappy if you tried," Doug said, trying to nip that in the bud even though he felt the exact same way about Evie. "Just- you're right, this is a positive thing, we have more people to love. We um- have each other now, and honestly, I was trying to work up the courage to-"
"Oh, me too," Jane gushed, and then she was leaning up to claim his lips in a soft kiss that made Doug melt, because that was actually validating in itself.
So obviously it wasn't hard for Doug to fall for Jane and Carlos. They were Jane and Carlos. They were clever and hardworking and cute and kind, and when the full force of that was unleashed on Doug, how could he stand up to it?
He'd never had a chance.
There was a chance Doug let himself get more invested than he should have, but wasn't that the point? Evie wanted them all to date and Doug liked dating Carlos and Jane. He actually sort of felt like their boyfriend, he certainly knew they cared for him. It made life a bit more complicated, but not by that much, right?
At least, that was his thought until he had gotten sidetracked in the workshop area Evie had set aside in her cottage for Carlos' use. There was a chance Doug had been flirting with the young De Ville because he had been a bit withdrawn lately with the official transfer of Cruella from the Central Auradon Mental Care Facility to the newly established Mental Care Facility for the Criminally Charged that had just finished construction, which wasn't much different save for some additional safety measures.
The rest of them had been making dedicated efforts to raise Carlos' spirts as he retreated into the familiar call of his work, and Doug had been buoyed by the fact that he actually seemed to be dragging Carlos out of his funk, if the small smiles he was winning were any indication.
"You're stupid, Doug," Carlos informed him, but he was laughing in that sweet way of his that left Doug breathless, had him pressing in for more when he should really pull back.
"I'll have you know I've got all A's, baby," Doug drawled, trying to imitate Jay. Maybe it was stupid to double major in Music Composition and Public Administration, but Doug's dreams were just as big as Evie's, and he was going to prove himself one way or another. "I also might have a copy of that new game a certain someone's been eying, but I can neither confirm or deny this. At least, not without some recompense."
"I can't believe you," Carlos said with a laugh, abandoning his project as he advanced on Doug with bright steps. "How did you get an early copy?"
"I have my ways," Doug mused, deciding not to touch on the fact that Chad, of all people, had sent it to him, stating that he didn't have time for such things and Doug liked video games, right? Like they hadn't been roommates for six years. "So? Gonna pay the toll?"
"I'll pay the toll," Carlos murmured hotly, hooking a finger into Doug's collar and dragging him close for a soft kiss that progressed into something more, until Carlos was clinging to him, seeming intent to make out with Doug with a renewed sort of dedication now that he'd rediscovered the wonders of intimate relations.
It was fine, though. Doug enjoyed it and he knew as long as he detached before his body got too invested, things would be okay. They could have this for a few more minutes, at least-
"What the hell?"
That was Jay's voice, at the door. Jay's voice that had them pulling apart with rapid blinks, because even though they'd been in their new relationship for at least a month, they hadn't let the rest of the world in on the development. Doug had assumed Evie and Carlos had told the rest of their crew, though. They hadn't talked about it, but seeing as crew was everything, it just sort of seemed implied.
The way Jay was staring at them seemed to indicate otherwise, though.
"Did you break up with Jane?" Jay continued, aiming the question at Carlos, dismissing Doug right out of hand.
"No," Carlos huffed. "We're dating Doug and Evie now."
"You-" Jay cut off as soon as he registered what Carlos said, as though he'd been about to chew the young De Ville out. "What? You mean all four of you?"
"Yes." Carlos gave Jay an unimpressed look. "You think I'd cheat on Jane? That Doug would cheat on Evie?"
"Why do you think I was surprised?!" Jay pressed, his cheeks heating in a dark flush. "And you can do that? All of you date, I mean?"
Carlos shrugged. "The pirates are doing it. I don't see why we can't."
At the mention of Uma's crew, Jay's flush darkened, his head ducking to the side in a distracted manner. "Tell me about it," he muttered before running a hand through his hair. And then that sharp gaze was back on Carlos. "Why didn't you tell me?"
"We were getting settled," Carlos pressed. "It's a recent development. We've only been dating for a few weeks."
"I mean, why didn't you tell me this was your plan?" Jay elaborated. "You didn't think I would want to be involved?"
That probably shouldn't have shocked Doug as much as it did, but there he was, feeling entirely surprised at the sudden turn of events.
"I don't know," Carlos huffed. "You seemed so invested in Gil."
"Come on, man," Jay griped, as though he didn't take frequent weekend trips with Gil to explore the wilder parts of Auradon. "You fucking know I didn't stand a chance with him. You know I love you and Evie first, but I let you go so we could pass for normal and then you started dating anyway? Fuck, you don't think I wouldn't treat Doug and Jane like royalty? Because I would, I wouldn't fuck that up."
"Jay," Carlos said, the entire edge of his annoyance seeming to disappear in the wake of a soft look. "I didn't think that."
"Then why would you cut me out?" Jay seemed entirely wounded by this prospect, enough that even Doug ached for him. "I know I fuck up a lot of things-"
"You don't," Carlos interrupted, his voice hard. "You really don't, Jay, that wasn't why we did this. We just… we thought you moved on, like Mal."
"I couldn't move on from you if I tried," Jay said, offering a brutal sort of honesty that left Doug breathless, that made him ache inside because he never thought he'd see this side of Jay, the side that Evie and Carlos spoke of rarely. "I can pull back if that makes you happy, but there's no moving on."
"Idiot," Carlos chided, making Jay's shoulders slump. "Is that why you stayed single all this time?"
"I thought it was kind of fucking obvious," Jay huffed, seeming embarrassed.
Carlos let his head fall back with a sigh. "Stay for dinner," he ordered, which immediately left Jay perking up, communicating to Doug that they were going to have another important conversation.
It mostly ended with Jay making many pledges and assurances to Doug and Jane. It was very hard not to crumble in the wake of his earnest eyes, the Agraben kneeling on the floor in front of them, holding their hands as he tried to win their favor, as though he was not one of the most charismatic and highly sought-after individuals in all of Auradon.
"It's not just for them," Jay pledged, nuzzling their hands. "I knew anyone they picked was special – I knew that. I've been watching you guys for years, and I couldn't help but fall in love with you too. Please, please give me a chance to prove that."
It was difficult to believe, at least for Doug. He had a feeling Jane had a difficult time believing this as well, but she was a lot like him. They didn't make waves. They didn't demand reports. They went with the flow.
"Okay," Doug said so Jane wouldn't have to go first, the fairy echoing a second after him, same as always.
"I promise it will be good," Jay said, pressing kisses against their knuckles like it was the greatest gift, his cheeks dusted in a pretty flush. "I'll be a good boyfriend. I am a good boyfriend."
"We didn't doubt that, Jay," Evie soothed, running a hand through his long silky hair the way she did with Doug sometimes, gifting him a grin that couldn't hide her open affection for him.
The thing with Carlos was that at least Doug was sort of born from the same cloth. They were both nerds. They both liked organization and paid attention to detail.
Jay though, he was the epitome of a jock. He was all easy charisma and muscle and inherent charm, and if Doug had felt like nothing compared to him when they were friends, things were worse when he got in a relationship with a guy, because now he knew Evie could turn to Jay to have her needs more properly seen to than Doug could ever manage.
It didn't help that Jay threw himself into their relationship, choosing to focus his efforts mostly on Jane and Doug, who he had rightly deemed the flighty ones. He took aim and dialed his charm up to a million, leaving Jane and Doug floundering in the wake of his attention. More than once Doug had caught Jay walking hand-in-hand with Jane through the garden, heard him pouring out all the compliments he'd apparently been keeping inside all this time for fear of scaring her off. He took her to the beach so they could play in the shallows and forced her to take breaks between legislature binges, because somehow Ben had pulled her into that too.
And then he'd do stuff with Doug, which Doug insisted didn't need to happen. Like, he got it, there was a good chance Jay wasn't going to be in love with all of them – that was four other people. Four people you were trusting yourself to. But Jay wouldn't hear it, because apparently he was super in love with Jane and Doug as well. So he'd do stuff like laze nearby while Doug was practicing his trumpet, offering words of encouragement and compliments. Stuff like dropping in on Doug while he was doing paperwork and sneaking him some of his favorite chocolates. Stuff like giving him foot massages that always left Doug worked up but thankfully Jay wouldn't notice anyway, so they were just kind of great and awful at the same time.
And then they'd kiss, and Doug – with the others he always felt a little equal, but with Jay there was a presence. There was no question that Jay was in control, that Jay was the one pinning Doug against the wall, that Jay was the one determined to kiss him senseless.
"Sorry – fuck," Jay would say when he got too into it, a certain firmness brushing against Doug's thigh because apparently Jay got turned on by him. "I'm just- I'll be right back, and then I'm gonna massage your shoulders, okay?"
"Okay," Doug would whimper, something Jay would miss because he was so flustered, and then Doug would go to take care of his own business, because apparently he was attracted to Jay now.
He wasn't sure if that meant good things for him. It likely did, seeing as he was dating the guy.
-:-:-
Every once and a while, Doug would get dragged from the growing chaos of his life out to have lunch with Chad, which was actually a nice to return to normal Doug hadn't realized he'd been missing until Chad was talking about the newest plants growing in his garden.
"They're thriving, Douglass," Chad would chirp, showing Doug pictures of his work because Doug was one of the few people that knew Chad liked to get his hands dirty. "But enough about me – how are you doing? Are things going well with Evie?"
"Things are going great," Doug lied, finishing it off with a laugh that sounded entirely awful but Chad was kind of dumb so he didn't read into it, which Doug was grateful for. "Second quarter sales are already looking up, and her heir studies are progressing adequately. Queen Snow's beginning to invite her to more functions to properly introduce her to the Hanoven nobility-"
"I um, meant your relationship," Chad interrupted with a few blinks. "Is that okay?"
The way he asked made it seem like things maybe weren't, or that he thought as much, so Doug spent the next five minutes maybe being a little too intense as he described how perfectly wonderful things were going for them at this exact moment in time.
"What about your music?" Chad tried when they fell into a tense silence. "How's your portfolio coming along?"
Doug had never told Chad about his intentions to apply to be a Master Artist – that was something the blond had put together for himself as he'd watched Doug's attempts at music composition progress over the years.
"You're half dwarf, right?" Chad asked when Doug just sort of blinked at him in surprise. "And your craft's music. I thought – aw man, did I assume again?"
Strangely enough, he was the only one to figure out Doug's work, and as such, always asked about it the few times they got together. He even seemed to be interested, which was a development Doug didn't understand, but was entirely thankful for.
So Doug gratefully latched onto the change of subject, feeling his heart lighten as he talked about the one thing that seemed to be coming naturally to him nowadays, something that had Chad grinning too, even as he fell into the familiar pattern of wheedling Doug to name a piece after him.
"The Charming Overture, Doug," Chad chirped. "But make it entirely trumpets. Only my roommate's instrument will do."
"That is not a balanced piece," Doug complained, but he was still laughing, still feeling lighter because Chad was such a goof, but he was an honest one, and sometimes you needed that in life.
-:-:-
Things… progressed? They progressed. Carlos and Jane had sort of already been living in Evie's cottage on Evie's insistence, and Jay had been bouncing between Auradon Castle with Mal and Ben and Evie's place. It wasn't that big a change for him to shift to entirely staying with them at the cottage, though there was a difference between having him there and having him share their beds, having him casually drop in, having Carlos sneak into bed with them because even that was still kind of weird and Doug had been dating him for even longer.
"You don't mind?" Jay would ask as he traded kisses with Evie, his dexterous hands cupping her breasts, making the princess's lashes flutter with a deep appreciation. "You can always watch, if you want."
"It's um, okay," Doug would say, pretending to be embarrassed rather than aroused at the hand Jay was sneaking under his girlfriend's skirt, wishing it was his hand, wishing he could be a useful contributor to their relationship in any capacity.
He ended up spending a lot of time in the small library and Carlos' workshop while the others did things. They had even numbers now and a tendency to trade rooms, so sometimes Doug would get ready for bed and return to find Jay having sex with Jane and then go to the other room only to find Evie having sex with Carlos and then end up in one of the spare bedrooms, beating one off and feeling sorry for himself before he went to bed alone.
At least now he didn't have to worry about bothering Evie with morning wood?
That was a good enough benefit to hold onto. It had to be.
-:-:-
Endnotes:
If you're wondering if this full ride is Doug not using his words even when it would be substantially helpful – why yes, yes it is. Welcome to another Paisley classic ;)
I don't actually remember what inspired this one at all. I definitely, definitely did not expect his random brain nugget to be as long or involved as it is, but here we are. If you think it's going to only become a bigger mess from here – you are absolutely right. Can't have angst without making it soap opera levels of nonsense.
This story will consist of ten chapters of story content. I update once a week, generally on Sundays, but because things have been so crazy lately, I decided to make an effort to update twice a week. So there will be one update on Sunday and one update on Wednesday/Thursday for now :D
Please let me know if I missed anything in the tags. I prefer to ere on the side of caution with these things, but when you've been staring at something for so long, it can be easy for things to slip through the cracks. I'm also pretty sure I'm missing some sort of body confidence tags for this one, but I'm not entirely sure how to explain it, so if anyone has any idea, please comment! :)
Just a heads up – I update the story tags as I go in order to avoid spoilers. So characters, pairings, content warnings – all will be updated in correlation to the appropriate chapter as they are posted. Also, if you see a tag you're worried about, check the forenotes – the more hard-hitting stuff will have more thorough warnings listed there.
Story notes:
Despite what I have set up, there is a grand total of one time jump in this story, and it was that first scene. That's it. No worries, things are straightforward from there :)
Erebor is taken from Tolkien, it is a kingdom of dwarves.
Doug is just all kinds of mixed up in this one. He should also probably do more research into asexuality since there is a very lovely spectrum out there, and there are definitely asexuals who are okay with giving but not receiving, so to speak. Like, he could have worked something out, is my point, but that wouldn't have allowed for this dumb relationship drama so we're just going to let Doug's brain fart slide on this one ;)
Hanover is my name for Charmington – Snow White's kingdom – because Charmington is a dumb name and I can't take it seriously.
Until next time :D