Reviews :
CHICKENM4N : He does, everyone sort of has an inkling he's gay, it's an unspoken thing between everyone. Wren sort of 'comes out' to Rancis in chapter 27, I believe it is. They have a nice father/son bonding chapter :)
Jay Sketchin : Thank you friend! I appreciate it!
Snake557 : Yes indeed! They utilize this music room a LOT in this story - and even upgrade it! Woot!
Song Listened To :
Party For One by Carly Rae Jepsen
*Chapter 25*
Within the next few days, Berri, Wren and Theo spent every waking hour that they could inside their brand new music studio. Although this was a bit of a struggle to get the kids to come to dinner, and to come home at the end of the night, the kids decided to change it up for a small while, if just for the day. Cooped up inside their music studio for days straight, Ace had kindly suggested the kids to get some sunshine, potentially throw a ball back and forth, do something that required fresh air. Although it was pushing into the Fall months and the evenings were cold, Sugar Rush's crisp Fall air was still welcoming and warm. Vivid, minty skies shroud with gorgeous, fluffy, pink cotton candy clouds, the whole palace lot was encouraged to be lazy on Arcade's only day off.
"Bear, I'm open!" Wren shouted, this time he was entirely agitated, the sheer fact that she was not throwing the ball to him had him nearly pushed over the edge, "If you throw that ball to Beaux I swear to USER!"
"You can't catch to save your life!" Berri grunted as she easily lofted the ball in Beaux's direction; a few months younger than Berri, Wren and Theo, Beaux and Mara enjoyed being able to run around and play with the big kids, no matter what it entailed. With the three bigger kids at nine Arcade months, thirteen Earth years, Beaux and Mara stood at about eight Earth years old. Beaux successfully caught the ball amidst a jolt of a laugh and began to immediately run in the opposite direction of Mara, who swiftly dart after him. Theo barreled into Berri with a loud grunt of a laugh, causing Berri to flop to the ground. Berri loudly wailed a noise and tried to collect herself as she sat up, "THEO, I said tackle, not annihilate!"
"That's karma, I can't catch and you can't get good," Wren stabbed, clearly kidding, though he easily got heated. He brushed his shorter white hair out of his eyes, ruffled the shaved part of his scale and began to begrudgingly take off his zip up coat, "They're losing anyways, can't you just throw it to me ONCE? Like... I'll open my arms wide, it'll work!"
"Wren, you open your arms too wide and the ball hits your chest and then falls to the ground," Theo instructed, he adjusted his hot red tshirt on his broadening shoulders, he ran his larger, wrecking hands and fingers through his dark green hair and shot Wren a teasing smile, "Happy medium, my dude."
"Yeah, whatever, I play the keys, not football," Wren rolled his eyes, though they collectively sighed in frustration once Beaux loudly proclaimed a touchdown, at the end of the field. With Beaux, Wren and Theo easily towering over both Berri and Mara, it was clear that they'd permanently hold height over the girls. Strong, strapping men that were coming into their own, though still bumbling with childlike innocence, Beaux and Mara quickly began to run back over to the bigger kids. Wren gestured his hands to Beaux and gave Berri a wild look of dismay, "I mean, look what I'm up against. Two huge dudes related to Wreck-It Ralph, and not to mention, all of you guys can glitch. I'm left in the dust."
"I didn't glitch-hop then, Berri told me not to," Beaux's gentle disposition now sloped to soft concern, a big ol' worry wart, just like his father, his hazel eyes peered nervously into Wren's, as if to be entirely apologetic.
"It's okay," Berri assured to Beaux as Mara shyly hung tight to her brother's side, her beautiful, pastel blue hair was shoulder length and held deep waves, clearly something she got from Ace and Tessa. Berri finally softened her teasing, girly antics and gave Wren a small smile, "I'm sorry Wren, I'm just playing."
"Play less, it's becoming much," Wren snipped, a sensitive and sweetly sour personality still coming into his own, Berri knew Wren was the kind of person that needed to be taken seriously at all times, and after a few hours of stewing, he always came back around.
Beaux and Theo began to excitedly exclaim the points of the previous play, going over different strategies, discussing just what they could do different or better, though just as Berri was about to open her mouth and join in on the fun, she narrowed her gaze and noticed a group of individuals far across Sugar Rush's Palace lot. Every flyer stood about Ace, Zed, Tessa, Libby, Koko and Nox. They looked to be discussing something important, the way their attentions were fixated on Balba and Lickity, who also joined in on conversation, Berri felt her mind switch gears in innocent curiosity. She was well aware the group was likely discussing their fragile, yet bumbling adorable blind flyer, Chester, who was likely struggling to get on with the clan. In a gentle gesture to Theo and the rest of her small group, she began to softly step away, her bare feet against the palace's cool, soft, bright yellow grass.
"Hey, guys, I'll be back," Berri called as she continued to quickly step away, "I'm just going to go make sure everything is okay, over there."
"Okay!" Theo waved, he huffed a hard sigh and gave Beaux a knowing look, "Okay, NOW the teams are even."
"Okay, so whose on my team, then," Wren grunted in irritation; they all fell silent, though Beaux choked a small chuckle and raised his hand, to somehow pretend that this was something he wanted, out of politeness.
"I'll be on your team, Wren," Beaux stated kindly, to which Mara and Theo both let out sighs of relief, alongside teasing laughter, laughter Wren knew wasn't malicious.
In a gentle jog, Berri slowly crossed the palace lot. Before too long, she inhaled a deep breath cued her incredible silver coding, given to her from her mother and father, and with all of Tessa's glitching lessons that came rushing to her, she flood the surrounding grass with coding and took off in a lightning bolt display of a glitch hop. In seconds flat, she finally eased into the vicinity of the group, and much like she assumed, everyone was nervously and loosely gathered about Balba, who stood proudly with Chester tight to her side. Although Chester was Beaux's and Mara's age, due to his nature, he was already a strong, tall and sturdy lykata hybrid. Although the top of his head was level with Balba's shoulder blade, and his long, incredibly powerful legs stood still and solid, his disposition was that of entire reserve. His incredible orange pelt, that eventually melted into his cream underbelly and the dark orange, blue and white markings that delicately swirled down his spine and dragon wings, was glossed to perfection. Chester's vivid, glossy, foggy and blind turquoise eyes sealed the deal and really made clear that he was an absolute gem, a rarity in of itself.
As Berri entered the conversation, everyone eagerly peered to her with gust and excitement. Berri gently sagged into Ace's side, and amidst a tender side hug, Ace lofted his gaze across Sugar Rush's grass lot and assessed the location of his two children, as well as Wren and Theo. They happily continued to throw their ball around and loudly played and laughed with each other, which had Ace's curious gaze brought back to his little sister. Her sharp blue eyes held tight to Chester in concern, Ace knew that Berri was the one that had successfully taken Chester under her wing and was the one to try and help him navigate his surroundings, due to his blindness. The fact that Chester couldn't talk made it all the more difficult, though the group knew Berri had a way with Chester, something she possessed over everyone. Ace gently tucked some of Berri's long, cerulean blue hair out of her eyes and cocked an eyebrow.
"Hey, B... You get bored of your game?" Ace wondered, Tessa, Zed and Libby continued to gently chit chat with Balba and Royal, about Chester's ever-tense predicament.
"Eh, it was an odd number of us, I figured I'd come see what you guys were doing," Berri prod, she kept her eyes tight to Chester's being.
Safely snug inside the gentle dip of Balba's feathery wing, Berri thought it interesting that Chester's haunting, foggy eyes held tight in Berri's direction, as if the sound of her voice was something he strictly recognized, and although his ears were laying flat prior, the second Berri started talking was the second his long, dark, orange wolf-like ears perked high to his head and held strict in Berri's direction, like satellite dishes that picked up every ounce of information that it could. Ace cocked an eyebrow, glanced in Chester's direction and noticed the switch up.
"You uh... You had a trick, to help Chester see, right?" Ace wondered to his little sister, who hung tight on his side in a sloppy side hug, "You used your glitching abilities... We've been trying to do the same thing, all day, and he's not responding."
"He's not?" Berri prod in confusion, she knew over the course of the last month or so, she had been successful in getting Chester to trot around, get a feel for his environment and all around help him see, via a prolonged exterior swap.
"We're able to connect with him, but then he won't really connect with us," Ace explained, though everyone now was noticing how fixated Chester was to Berri.
"He is eagle-eyed on her, right now," Lickity blurt a small chuckle, and with her concluding words, everyone tenderly peered to Chester and fell silent.
Berri felt her heart begin to surge in knowing, she smiled in Chester's direction, his broad, cream colored chest expanded with a refreshed inhale as he stood a little taller, more confident, and with such, Berri dared to take a step out into the circle. With flyers and adults towering over her, she tried her hardest to only keep her gaze to Chester's blind eyes, hauntingly peering straight through her, she knew his stare was strictly curious and friendly. As she eased about a dozen feet from Balba and Chester, Balba gently and lovingly flattened her ears, nuzzled her motherly snout into the side of Chester's face, lined with two prominent spines, a physical appearance Chester had gotten from Royal and Orion. Balba eased a few loving words to her tall, growing pup, in which he lulled his eyes closed and returned said gentle nuzzles, though before long, he fixated his blind gaze straight into Berri's soul, once more.
"Seems to have some sort of bond, with Berri," Boss pointed out, him and Lickity bobbed eager nods, in which the whole group now fell silent as Berri came within six feet of Chester.
Chester gingerly shifted on his feet, tilted his head down a little and continued to hone his incredible hearing tight to Berri's presence. In a gentle wash of Berri's silver coding, a streak of circuits and glitch lines easily swarmed Sugar Rush's color-changing summer grass, like snakes that side-winded their way for Chester's paws, Berri knew this little trick was nothing new to anyone, though how Chester would receive it had everyone holding their breath. In a gentle swarm of Berri's silver coding, Chester's paws swarmed with the marbled, iridescent display, though before long, Chester's wings, held tight to his sides, slowly began to relax in a warm display of a thawing disposition. Before too long, Chester's beautiful, marbleized forest green coding finally cooperated with Berri's and soaked into a gorgeous display of silvered, swirling greens and greys.
"There he is," Zed chuckled, he crossed his arms and softly lofted a curiously cheeky smile in Tessa's direction, and as they watched their daughter interact with their resident, blind, hybrid lykata, a sense of pride swept through the group the second Chester's wings unfolded, bumbling paws stepped forward, and a happy tongue dangled out of his mouth like an excited puppy dog.
"Chester," Berri called in a coo, concluded with encouraging kissy sounds. Chester gently sprawled his wings, shook his fur a little, licked his nose and began to clumsily trot over to Berri in whole delight. Berri giggled a loud noise as Chester's much-too-big-for-his-body paws came flopping to the tops of Berri's bare feet, he jostled Berri and grumbled a faint noise of delight as he nuzzled his whole snout into her opened hand, "Easy, boy! Geez!"
"Remind you of anyone?" Nox's deep voice wondered, he crossed his arms and gently gave Tessa a cute smile, he gestured to Lickity and shrugged, "You told us you won Lickity's heart by exterior swapping, like such, right?"
"Like mother like daughter," Koko stated in a knowing, happy tone as the whole group shifted and peered to the adorable situation with whole relief.
"C'mon, Chester, over here!" Berri called as she gently glitched away and in a totally different direction, though outside of her voice, she shifted her position to about fifty feet off, in a different direction than where her voice previously came from.
To everyone's surprise, the paw pads on Chester's feet still held solid with his and Berri's exterior swap, his whole posture was that of entire confidence, a lithe and beautiful lykata that easily scanned the plains with suspected eyesight, Chester's whispering voice barked a soft noise, as best as he could, and with a bit of a clumsy start, Chester began to gently dart straight for Berri, a bee-line in her direction. Berri breathed a hard giggle and, upon Chester reaching her, she swiped his snout out of love and quickly rushed off to a new location, closer to the group. Chester successfully began to run towards her, his rudder-like tail functioning out of instinct, his gorgeous wings flopped a bit, not knowing that whilst running, he needed to keep them tight to his body. Due to this, he clumsily fumbled, though rushed Berri in speeds no one had seen from Chester, nonetheless.
"Good boy, Chester!" Berri encouraged as he finally dove his snout right into her face and began lapping at her cheeks. She loudly laughed and shoved on his chest as he overflowed her with gratefulness, "Y'think he'd let me ride him?"
"You should try, Berri, you've gotten him this far," Balba warmly encouraged as she proudly watched he two become further acquainted, she gratefully peered to Berri and flattened her ears in a polite manner, "That may help him get around even better, if you're there to help him see the whole time, y'know?"
"Hmm, whatdoyahsay, boy?" Berri prod as she peered up to Chester, though he perked his ears and honed in the direction of the other kids, across the lot, and listened in on the nonsense they were getting into. She bit her lip in contemplation and peered to Chester's spine, which was about at Berri's eye level. She knew she had to be careful and gentle in this endeavor, and as easily as she could, she lugged herself against Chester's side, hoisted herself up onto his spine and successfully straddled him, bare back. Berri beamed the group a wide, excited smile and gestured down to Chester in a rile of fast-moving excitement, "I did it!"
"GREAT Bear! See if you can get him to look around, have him run around a little," Zed gestured his hand in encouragement, and with such, Berri inhaled a deep and shaky breath, peered down to the back of Chester's head and suddenly felt like a fish out of water.
"Alright, Chester, let's... Take it easy, then," Berri's voice shook in excited nervousness as she tenderly hunched over Chester's shoulder blades.
She softly grappled the long, gorgeous fur of his mane, which eventually dribbled to smooth, large scales. She admired the gorgeous patterns of blues and oranges down his strong spine, and as she readied herself, she allowed their exterior swap to heighten a little, her live-wired palms softly met with his fur and scales, ultimately upping their connection. Berri gasped a small noise and felt as if the switches in Chester's brain were now turned on, and as she closed her eyes, she felt a weird sense of otherworldly existence come to her. She relished in the eyesight Chester was now given, a sort of sonar-like approach, every single inch of the palace lot was mapped out in strict grid lines and glowing heat points from each being that was within the vicinity. Once Berri reopened her eyes and glossed her own eyesight across the lot, she immediately felt her heart soar.
"C'mon, bud, we got this," Berri cute, girly, adolescent voice whispered quietly as she properly leaned forward, upped their shared coding and silently willed him to ease forward, a promise that the eyesight she was gifting to him wouldn't fail him, and in this bout of new territory to map, Chester leapt forward in full trust and started out in a clumsy trot of wanting to climb to an eventual gallop. Berri huffed a small giggle as his massive, cleat-like paws did everything to fall into correction, the proper form of a gallop, and with a wobbly start, Berri beamed a widening smile and loudly encouraged Chester with further zest, "That's it, Chester, y'got it!"
"Babe after my own heart," Tessa concluded sweetly as she crossed her arms and proudly watched the two get the hang of their new chore, she hung tight to Zed who narrowed his loving gaze, his aching heart soared.
"She's one hellofa girl, that's for sure," Zed quietly breathed with a smile of disbelief.
Berri huffed a small noise of surprise the second Chester's fumbling feet began to find some form of rhythm, her heart raced, a fire ignited within, she fumbled to get a proper riding position against Chester's bare scales, and with a soft mutter down to the fluffy mane on his neck, she tilted her head down and honed her tight, incredible eyesight over the top of Chester's head, a wind whipping flicker of fanned embers that so easily roared to an open fire, let loose to the palace lot. With boyish paws that fumbled to an eventual proper thud of a gallop, Berri loudly whispered Chester another jolt of encouragement, and in the sugar rush of it all, even time nearly couldn't escape Chester's top speed. Like roaring thunder over the palace's acres, cleat-like claws that viciously tore through the lot's now dead, blue, winter grass, the two heavily panted in the fog of December's cold, morning air.
Sat hunched in a proper, immobilized riding stance, fit with proper riding boots, straddling a sleek riders saddle, Berri kept her hands tight to the two spikes, on the sides of Chester's shoulder blades, his more matured, adult body finally showed his majestic pelt, spikes and thorns that all came through his adolescent stage and straight into the speed demon he had become. With Chester reaching top speeds of about seventy-five miles an hour, around the bend of the circled Sugar Rush lot, Berri narrowed her gaze through her flight goggles and did everything to prepare Chester for the next bend of their running exercise; bobbing and weaving through the tree-covered bend of the Sugar Rush lot, the flyer's enclosure. Now only a week away from her first birthday, and starting Academy, Berri's matured voice huffed through Chester's deep, quick, raspy inhales and exhales, she saddled herself tighter to Chester's spine and readied herself the second they flew past Ace's and Libby's tower, near the edge of the flyer's jungle enclosure.
"C'mon, Chester, y'got it this time, just picture every tree ahead of time," Berri's sweet, matured, womanly voice encouraged over the whipping wind, her long blue hair was tightly woven into a long braid, down her spine, though it easily whipped about behind her as Chester's whole body galloped in the roll of a cheetah's run, his spine so easily flexing with the rhythmic pumping of his long, powerful legs, and cleat-like claws that successfully lunged him forward with each huge stride, Berri hunkered tighter to Chester's spine and upped their familiar exterior swap, so to map out each upcoming tree for Chester, she called to him through the grit of her teeth, "We're making good time, bud, you got this!"
The second Chester's incredible speed began to encroach the towering trees of their enclosure, Berri grit her teeth and prayed; the last dozen times they attempted this resulted in being thrown, due to brushing or full on colliding with a tree. With clenched teeth and a tight, motionless posture aboard the rocket that Chester had so successfully become, Berri did everything she could to make his eyesight training easier, mapping out every single tree that he could potentially come in contact with, and like taut sails on the sea, Chester's rudder-like tail so diligently guided and steered him through the maze of trees he now plummeted into. Berri held her breath and looked ahead of the game, something Chester couldn't do on his own, and with great success, he weaved in and out of tree trunks, ducked through low branches, soared through the mess of vines and leaves as if he were out on the open plains, all whilst keeping his incredible speed and momentum. Berri choked him a loud few words of encouragement as they, lightning speed, approached the end of the enclosure, and with a pop out into the open sunshine, once more, hot orange and blue exploded from the muted winter foliage like a bolt of lightning.
"Here they come," Theo's deep voice muttered, they hung in the gaping, open walk way that circled the entire palace lot, the high walls that held a lovely breezeway the entire way around.
"Shit, they might actually make it," Wren mumbled, he cocked an eyebrow and peered down to the ticking stop watch he held in his gloved hand, he glossed his eyes to Theo in nonchalance as Theo's larger thumbs typed away on his phone, he quietly smacked on a piece of gum, "...How did you know they were coming without looking?"
Theo raised and waggled his eyebrows amidst a smacking, cheeky, boyish grin and began to wiggle his toes; Wren looked down to his bare feet in confusion and could see his glitching, lime green coding easily sapped into the earth underneath, cueing to Wren that he could feel Berri and Chester on their way due to the vibrations in the coding. Wren lulled his head back, rolled his eyes, held out the stop watch and let his lazy, aimless and annoyed gaze peer down the cool, sunlit corridor they hung in the gape of, and as he exhaled a long, irritated, fogged breath of defiance, Chester's whole body suddenly whizzed by the two, nearly as fast as the speed of light. The rush of wind, to follow, had Wren wobbling, both boys' hair easily fluttered in the sudden gust.
"Time," Wren muttered to himself in further annoyance, Chester was now easily more than a hundred feet off, though Wren sighed and could see Berri finally sag down to Chester's saddle, ease up on the reigns and cue Chester into a slow gallop that eventually bumbled to a cool down of a trot as they began to turn around and make their way back to where Wren and Theo were waiting.
"Any good news?" Berri called from a now fifty foot distance as she sat up straight on Chester's spine, he slowly trot over to the two boys, he panted hot, fogged breath out to Sugar Rush's cool air.
"You didn't beat nor fall short of your record," Wren called as Theo stood from his leaning position, sagged his phone into his thick jacket's pocket and anticipated his cousin's return via Chester's strong, sturdy, thudding paws, "Right on the nose..."
"Welp... Guess that's likely it, then, bud," Berri grunted, she lovingly pat the side of Chester's neck and mane, a job well done, "He successfully dodged every single tree... Not a single scathe. That's huge."
"Go Chester," Theo encouraged as Chester finally slumped to a gentle halt, he flickered his tail and fanned out his long feathers, on the end of his tail, in proper lykata form, though he lifted his left wing a little and assisted in Berri dismounting his spine. Berri's boots crunched to the cold earth underneath, and she slowly grimaced in taking off her flight goggles to sag them onto the crown of her head. Theo lovingly began to stroke Chester's snout as Wren began to anxiously tick the start and stop button on the stop watch he held onto, "Y'think flying will be on the agenda anytime soon?"
"Doubtful," Berri sighed, everyone peered to Chester as he flattened his ears and huffed a long, raspy noise of agreeing, as if to state that Berri was indeed correct. He grimaced a teasing smile, glossed his blind eyes in Berri's direction and wrinkled his nose in a snotty way, as if to tell Berri that it'd take an entire lifetime of convincing, "I think Lickity and Royal attempted to teach him to fly, a few weeks ago, but... I mean, once you're in the air, there's no ground or anything your coding and grip to, so to see properly."
"He'd literally be flying blind," Wren mumbled, he felt agitated due to the whole 'no coding' nonsense and argument him and Theo often got into, though it became easier to stuff it and let it all just get swept under the rug. He fixed his tan beanie, atop his head, and finally sagged his glove covered hands into his nice, grey button up winter coat, "I don't know how you're not cold, I'm freezing my ass off."
"Oh, here comes Throttle," Theo chimed in gentle kindness as he gestured his shoulder; Throttle casually made a bee-line right for the small group, he wore warm clothes and a lovely, thick, black scarf tightly woven about his neck.
"I guess after the first few seconds of near eighty miles an hour winds stabbing you in the face, you forget just how cold it is due to your face going numb," Berri stated with a huff, the tender speech impediment she had acquired, due to her face being so cold in this instance, was further proof that she was indeed telling the truth.
"We should go inside, get some hot chocolate or something," Wren suggested as his teeth now began to chatter, Chester chuffed a noise and softly nuzzled his nose into the side of Berri's face, causing her to wobble in a choke of a giggle.
"Hey, Throttle," Theo called kindly as he was now within earshot of the small group, his dark shoes crunched the torn up path that Chester had left, he smiled in the kids' directions.
"Hey, guys," Throttle eased, he shrugged and shook his head as he sagged into their gravity, "Was watching your run out my windows... Chester's incredibly fast. Teaching him well, your highness."
"Why, thank you," Berri chimed in a sweet tone of gratitude and a small head bob; she was the only, single individual on the palace lot, inside Sugar Rush's hierarchy, that actually enjoyed going by her social status, outside of Tessa being referred to as Queen in serious matters; it was something that everyone dutifully took note of. Berri sighed a wistful, smiling sigh and lovingly let her larger hand sag down Chester's warm snout, "He's a pro, now... Our next massive chore is flying. Not so sure how well that'll go, but... Won't know until we try, huh bud."
Chester blurt a small, raspy noise and flattened his ears, he grimaced Berri an annoyed smile, yet again, and, as creepy as it was, his foggy eyes shook in a trembling dart into Berri's gaze, as if to state that he was well aware of their conversation and could fully understand everything being said, despite the fact that he couldn't talk back to anyone. The group warmly laughed as Berri rubbed the side of his neck and mane, to reassure him that there was no pressure on him, in their endeavors.
"I just got a message from Rancis, not too long ago... I guess a handful of people are in the main building, having some sort of argument," Throttle prod, he didn't seem way too worried, though Berri, Wren and Theo all furrowed their eyebrows in confusion and heartily peered to one another in a show of further hesitancy.
"Guess it's time to put out some fires," Wren grumbled in tender dismay, all six individuals now began to cross the lot, pass Throttle's abode and head for the old castle's Great Hall, which eventually lead to the palace's sprawling kitchen, "You remember the last thing Tessa and Aunt Vanellope fought about?"
"No, what was it?" Theo blurt a chuckle as everyone kept in tow with each other, their shoes alternatively crunched on the dry, cold ground.
"Something about daylight savings time, since California recognizes it, and blah, blah, blah," Wren waggled his hands about, as if to insinuate it was all nonsense.
"Ohh I remember," Berri choked a laugh and gave the glowing, pristine spires of the palace a proud, devious smile, "I think mom won that debate."
A/N : And if you're wondering Tessa's opinion on day light savings time, it's that she hates it and is SO glad Florida now doesn't recognize it anymore, just like Arizona. I'M TIRED.
