A/N :

I figure there are way more pressing matters than reading fan fiction, and it's thus I carry on with me, myself and I. I still hope you guys are enjoying reading, I'm sorry if I've let some of you guys down. As this saga has gone on, I've understood it's strayed so far from its source material, but it is my baby and I'll continue on, even if only 1 person reads.

To those of you lurking and still reading, you're very appreciated. I miss interacting with you guys, I miss doing the sketchdumps and such. No one put in their vote for drawings for the next sketchdump, when usually 3-4 dozen of you guys are reaching out to me, so I'm going to assume that no one is looking out for it any longer. The world has far greater issues right now, so I totally understand. I may even just have my husband come up with his own requests, and upload a sketchdump for mine and his ideas, once chapter 250 hits.

I hope everyone is staying safe and is well. My husband and I are in a good position, we have good jobs, and we're staying home as much as we can. For us introverts, it's been rather easy haha. I still am starting at Ringling College of Art and Design this Fall, here in Sarasota, though unfortunately, I think the first semester of it will be majority online classes. I can create art anywhere, so this doesn't hinder me. I'd love to actually go to campus, but I'm here, and I'm alive, and I know my time will come that campus will be a place I frequent safely.

Anyways, I hope you guys are enjoying some TeddyxTatum love. The next chapter is a sex scene, so I guess be aware of that. Miss you guys, a lot. Hope everyone is well.

Enjoy~


Song Listened To :

Trampoline by SHAED


*Chapter 207*

Theo swallowed hard and firmly held his breath. Upon quietly following Tatum through the dark, main gape of the tower's common room, his emerald eyes caught with the dip between Tatum's shoulder blades as he adamantly followed her little figure to her secluded wing of the tower. Although too dark to tell, Theo furrowed his eyebrows and could see, on her bare, rosey skin, a faint crawl of markings that lined her spine. Delicate speckles of almost stripey freckles, little brush strokes of markings that faded upon trailing up the nape of her neck. Theo knew, full well, this beautiful creature before him was not your conventional, human-like gamer, and although Theo had obviously met and come into contact with all sorts of gamers, of all shapes, sizes and designs, he felt his heart continue to firmly thump on, despite holding his breath; the urge to see her skin and hopefully get a taste of her soul was something he was shocked he had contained for this long. Upon following Tatum quietly through the narrow hallway that branched away from the tower's music studio, Theo squinted a little as the light from Tatum's bedroom so gently kissed the adjacent wall amidst the crack of her door, held just barely ajar.

She confidently pushed into her room, though Theo could see her body language and her eye sight so quickly scan her surroundings in hopes of not finding anything embarrassing laying around. Theo slowed his roll and held his eyes tight to the back of her head, to silently and respectfully give her the opportunity to potentially spot something she maybe didn't want Theo to see, like dirty clothes or anything else private, before he entered her very intimate domain. Upon seeing her flash him a nervous smile and the breadth of her eye contact, Theo knew this was a silent way of her saying the coast was clear. Theo allowed his eyes to gently scan her large bedroom, having never even been in this room before. Although this was a new addition to the tower, designed specifically for Tatum, he was well aware this was a real treat; no one ever just randomly hung out or entered Tatum's domain due to the strict reserve to give Tatum the space she had rights to, having just come out of homelessness. Theo ate up this treat, to the eyes, and remained in the most humble, grateful body posture and aura he could muster.

A rather large bed, off to his left, draped underneath a beautiful, darker canopy that kissed the ends of her lightly unmade bed, the whole room, to his right, harbored a very cozy-looking, tan love seat, a glass coffee table kissed with gold legs, and her own personal flat screen mounted on the wall, it lined up with said table and love seat. On either side of said mounted television were two floor to ceiling windows, draped with the loveliest curtains that kissed the terra-cotta tiles like a ghostly presence, her television was on and quietly droned on in an informational documentary. Although she had a lightly messy vanity tucked near her bathroom, further left of her mini-living room, her room was a lot tidier than Theo had imagined. Suddenly going from having nothing to having it all, once again, Theo was sure Tatum would go wild and allow herself to anything and everything her mind could dream up, though he was delightfully surprised to see such a dainty, minimalistic, tidy individual in all the sweet details about her bedroom. Theo's thought bubble bursted the second Tatum huffed a shaky giggle and pressed closer to her little living space.

"This is a rerun," Tatum muttered cutely, she swiped her television's remote and began to turn her tv's volume down, a little, "I've probably watched every episode of this series. I can't keep myself from it."

"What is it?" Theo wondered warmly, though it was in this opportunity of her well-lit bedroom, via the beautiful, simplistic chandelier dangled in the loft of her vaulted ceiling, his eyes soaked up the more prominent view of the markings along her spine, something only her lower-cut cami blessed him the opportunity of. Said markings looked like what he anticipated, messy, brush stroke-like stripes that fluffed to what looked to be very short tufts of fur that gathered in short, one-inch long strands further down her spine. Theo furrowed his eyebrows in sweet surprise and now felt a further swathe of curiosity crown him blushed with dewy desire, more questions began to brim over the edge of his brain as he clumsily carried on, "I-I... I've never even heard of this channel, before."

"History channel, it's... It's a human channel, I Googled it," Tatum stated sheepishly, she shrugged and gave Theo a warm smile as she lofted her remote back to her love seat, the volume of her television now so low, it almost couldn't be heard, "I guess Game Over is similar, in that aspect... Something you kind of have to program the code room for. I only get this channel because, well... The Arcade has internet, and Zed very kindly allowed me the privilege of choosing."

"Seems as if you're becoming good friends with my uncle," Theo choked a small laugh and bobbed a nod, to which Tatum furrowed her eyebrows in cute contemplation.

"... Oh yeah, he totally is your uncle, huh," Tatum chimed sweetly with a shrug, "I keep forgetting. You're not related to him, though, right?"

"No, I'm related to the Queen, Tessa's my aunt by blood... My dad's older sister," Theo assured with a nod, he dared to step a little deeper into Tatum's bedroom, making sure to leave her bedroom door agape; an innocent message he was hoping resonated with Tatum, as if to alleviate the pressures of doing anything intimate that would require full privacy. He knew that if anything were to become heavier in the realm of intimacy, he wanted to give her the power and right to close her bedroom door if she so pleased. Theo grinned and now allowed his eyes to traverse her room with a bit more of an obvious ogle of curiosity Tatum was cued to, "Zed's obviously family, as far as I'm concerned. Though, once I learned I wasn't related to him, I was low-key bummed. Blue hair is really cool."

"What's the difference, you have green hair, I think that's cool," Tatum quickly defended with a grin as she gestured to Theo's muted, emerald colored hair; he grinned and bashfully looked to his bare feet.

"Thank you, I... I guess uncle Zed and my mother are from the same game, where brightly colored hair is the norm," Theo eased a boyish smile and shrugged, "My mother's hair is really beautiful. I just wish I got more color, I guess."

"What color is your mother's hair?" Tatum wondered daintily, though it was here did Theo understand the weight of this romantic pursuit; the raw fact that he'd eventually need to bring Tatum home to meet the parents. Knowing, full well, both of his parents would likely adore Tatum, it still caused a lump in Theo's throat, one of anxiousness for the unknown.

"Oh, it's like... The color of my eyes," Theo gestured to his vivid, emerald green eyes, "BRIGHT bright green. Get her, Zed and Berri in a room together and you'll go blind."

Tatum blurt into hard laughter and narrowed her sweet gaze, and though Theo joined in and eased up in the act of stepping a little closer to her, he grinned and felt the urge to compliment Tatum's adorable little laugh, the contagious grin she harbored, the beautiful toss of her maroon-colored eyes. Although Turbo and Throttle warned against giving too many compliments so soon, Theo maneuvered his own way through this and was well aware likely one would do more good than harm.

"Your laugh is really contagious," Theo stated through the continuation of their sweet camaraderie of chuckling, he was relieved Tatum's grin only broadened amidst the blushing glance down to her feet.

"Aw," Tatum meeped in a delicate show of warm receiving, though Theo understood now just what Turbo and Throttle were insinuating; one little compliment went far, though much more, after this one, in rapid succession, would likely push Tatum into an uncomfortable arena of not knowing how to respond. Theo eagerly quit while he was ahead and only opted to sagging his thumbs into the pockets of his lazy grey cotton shorts, that stopped above his knees. Tatum tucked her hair behind her ears and gave Theo a grateful smile, "Thank you."

"You're welcome," Theo encouraged with a nod, though he inhaled a deep breath and took yet another look around, "Weird that I've lived in this tower for the past six months and I've never seen this room, ever."

"Designed it myself," Tatum cheekily boasted, though she sagged and let loose an easy giggle, "I'm kidding, I think either Tessa or Zed did."

"This is certainly my aunt Tessa's work," Theo bobbed a nod and took note of the gorgeous crown molding, the way the room had soft edges, everything was ethereal, simplistic and pristine, a clean aesthetic she crowned the whole palace with, "She designed the majority of the castle's grounds. Pretty incredible."

"It really is," Tatum sighed in grateful relief as she peered up to her beautiful chandelier, "It's NOTHING like Castle Run... Though, I didn't live in the palace, then. Just in the suburbs."

"We stayed in the palace, recently, though... I guess it's not the same game, we're talking about," Theo stated sadly as he looked off, he wondered if he was potentially treading into sensitive territory, here, though he eyed Tatum and figured she wouldn't have allowed him into the foyer of her heart if she wasn't prepared to ease all his inquiries. Theo sighed his shivering, gentle conclusion, "Your home game being... Castle Run's predecessor, and all."

"Surely was still beautiful, though, I mean... Castle Run now, for what it's plugged in to be, is probably a more polished, finite version of my previous home," Tatum shrugged, she heaved a small sigh and looked down, though upon further inspection and the draw of Theo's eyes to the movements of Tatum's shoulders, he furrowed his eyebrows and noticed the tiniest little fluffs of darker, rosey grey fur peaked off of the edges of her shoulders, where it met with her upper arm. Tatum pressed on as her eyes lazily glossed her bedroom, "I'm not sore over it, anymore. I miss everyone IN my home game, but Castle Run, now, is a much prettier version of what I knew. More amped, boasts all of its beauty, y'know?"

"Entirely," Theo agreed carefully, though he narrowed his gaze and now wondered if he could potentially begin to dip his toes into these little, intimate aspects of their blooming friendship to romance, "Tay, can... I ask you a personal question?"

"Oh, sure," Tatum chirped nervously, she cupped her hands over her center and apprehensively peered her beautiful, dark eyes to Theo's in anticipatory anxiousness she tried to conceal, though Theo bashfully eased his gap-toothed grin and carefully gestured his larger fingers to his own shoulders, for reference.

"You... I-I never noticed, but you have these cute little tufts of fur on your shoulders," Theo stated in the greatest, safest amount of non-intrusive warmth he could possibly muster, he was thrilled Tatum's raised eyebrows and straining glance to her right shoulder was accompanied by a smile that almost proved to Theo that she was potentially caught red-handed.

"Ah... Yeah... Flying sort of does that to my skin and hair, and... Fur. Makes everything 'floofy'," Tatum sheepishly muttered in a small smile, though Theo frowned the second she began to slowly though vigorously palm the fur on her shoulder, as if to mat it down to her skin like it always had been; Theo nervously gestured his hand and pressed a little closer to her.

"No, no, don't... Get rid of it," Theo cautiously complained in sweetness, Tatum firmly halted what she was doing and peered her bewildered expression tight to Theo's, as if to be shocked that he'd want that somehow shown. Theo swallowed nervously and adamantly kept her mental safety tight at the forefront of anything he did or said, here, "It's great, it adds nice detail. I just never noticed it about you, and I'm sorry I hadn't said anything sooner."

"You hadn't noticed it because I flatten it down every day," Tatum volleyed in a snarky way, though her little smile of sullen innocence proved to Theo that she wasn't trying to take stabs at him.

"Well you don't have to hide it, around me, I mentioned it because it looks nice," Theo stated in warm defeat as she continued to flatten down the tiniest, softest tufts of fur on the crown of her shoulders; he sagged his shoulders and knew to leave it be, it obviously being a sensitive topic. He bit his lip and wondered if he could somehow get more information out of her without digging at a wound, "I never knew gargoyles had fur. That's really interesting."

"Well, it's... Really only some of us," Tatum eased softly, though amidst her flattening, Theo was surprised to see Tatum absentmindedly give up, and in potentially allowing Theo's warm words to resonate, she delicately went against the weft of her fur and began to aimlessly fluff it out, once more, "Gargoyles, in Castle Run, come in three different breeds... There's a dragon breed, a hawk breed and a lion breed."

"That's really cool, is there like... Social stature to each one? Or is it just simply breed, a normal everyday thing?" Theo cautiously pressed, Tatum shook her head with a calm smile as she allowed the fluff of her fur to remain, for now; she sagged her shoulders, dropped the act of flattening her fur and peered up into Theo's welcoming eyes.

"There's... Social stature. The most common breed of gargoyle is the dragon," Tatum pressed, almost sorrowfully, she long-blinked and looked off a little, "Hawk breeds are typically a bit more secluded, the majority of them are monks that live off in high mountains and remain in monasteries."

Theo's unwavering eye contact softly peered to her wavering little soul, the pages of a book he so desperately was burning through, somehow the next chapter couldn't come fast enough. Theo inhaled a soft breath, and although he was prepared for Tatum to continue, he narrowed his sweet gaze and pieced together the puzzle she had laid out for him.

"... You're a lion gargoyle," Theo assured delicately with a nod, proud of his findings, and with further assurance, due to her silence, he confidently dug a bit deeper, "The rarest...?"

"Yep," Tatum chirped in almost bittersweet sorrow, she sighed and looked down, "We're far and few in between, we're the only breed of gargoyles trusted to defend the palace. Since there's so few of us, we're sought after, in that realm. We're agile, stealthy, can see in the dark, have a reputation for protectiveness."

"... That's really beautiful," Theo encouraged with a nod, though he furrowed his eyebrows, "You... Don't seem too thrilled, over it."

"It's just... I'm bred for greatness, but I'm only really half that," Tatum complained, she gestured her arms out, pivoted on her feet and took a few meandering steps away from Theo in thought, she looked off and sighed as Theo remained still and hooked his eyes tight to the back of her head as she pressed on, "My father was a thorough bred, but... Once the palace found out he had fallen in love with my human mother, and... Was due to having a bastard child..."

"Tatum," Theo lilted in mild offense, Tatum shook her head and peered tight into Theo's eyes.

"It's not easy being proud to be part of two species that mildly oppose each other, Ted," Tatum huffed with a small chuckle, she flagged her hand, as if to extinguish his fire; he sagged his shoulders with such as she carried on, "I'm proud of where both my parents come from, but I'm just... Sort of left this, this... Half-being. I can only fly. Full bred lion gargoyles are MUCH much cooler. They... They have long, beautiful tails, some can breathe fire, some can turn to stone, they look INCREDIBLE guarding such an important structure up against a night sky-"

"Tatum, you saw how fast I ran out the back door to see you?" Theo complained with a wide grin as he pointed to Tatum's opened bedroom door, he huffed a chuckle and was glad this halted her inadvertent self-deprecation, "I don't care if you're all of those things or none of those things, you're pretty freaking awesome as is. You don't have to fit a standard of Castle Run, I mean... You're in Sugar Rush. You belong here, y'know?"

"With human-like gamers, right?" Tatum volleyed, she crossed her arms, "I can't fit in fully here because I'm not entirely human, but I can't fit in THERE cause I'm not entirely a lion gargoyle."

"That may be a stigma that should be fought, but... It doesn't change how I feel about you," Theo braved, words that came out of his mouth without hesitation or filtering; said words halted Tatum's arguing for good as she raised her eyebrows in soft, prickled surprise. Theo inhaled a shaky breath and looked down, "It's just... I-I may not understand the weight of your situation, but I understand sticking out, a little. That's why I'm glad you're here. Our group is kind of an eclectic band of misfits, anyhow, I mean... You're in with Turbo, and his brothers, for User's sake."

Tatum bobbed a nod and looked down, Theo's warm words coat her cold soul, warmth she was desperate to take shelter under. She hugged her arms a little and looked off as the feeling of tears stung her eyes.

"You're loved by so many gamers, in the Arcade, NONE of them care if you're thoroughbred lion gargoyle," Theo huffed an incredulous chuckle and gestured his arms out, "I wouldn't care if you were anything or nothing but."

"Thank you, Teddy," Tatum meeped in warm conclusion, though her voice crackled with the indication of tears.

Theo sagged his shoulders and felt his heart break a little, he furrowed his eyebrows and was unsure now how to navigate this new, fragile realm of exposure. She sniffled and rubbed her cute nose, tears streamed her cheeks as she hugged herself in self-soothe, though Theo was well aware he likely needed to step in and complete the endeavor of being a safe place. Theo smiled in an apologetic way and in the soft few steps he took, to close their gap, he slowly approached her with the show of his gentle, exposed palms and arms, to make clear he was inviting himself in for a hug. Unwavering, Tatum peered her curious eyes tight to Theo's and allowed her hands to sag out of the tight self-hug she had been giving herself, and with ease, Theo carefully raveled her into a loving squeeze of an embrace about her little shoulders, the biggest, warmest bear hug he could offer.

Tatum squeezed her eyes shut, crumpled into a grimace of teary desperation and gratefully sagged herself deep into Theo's much larger embrace. She silently cried into his chest, the weight of everything the past year had entailed came falling all over her in the form of a sweet release, and although she quietly wept, Theo was careful to stand still and be her rock. He warmly tucked her hair off of her shoulders, delicately pet the back of her head and squeezed her close. Due to their stretch of a height difference, Theo could clearly see the whole top of Tatum's head, as well as the nape of her neck and the little tufts of grey fur that lined her spine. Theo raised an eyebrow in soft contemplation, and as he did everything he could to soothe her shivering soul and be the foundation she needed to pick herself back up, he held his breath and very bravely allowed his bigger finger tips to trail down the back of her neck and to the little, fluffy, even-line of fur. His heart raced as he felt the differential from her soft skin that melted into the softest little patches of fur, softer than velvet, the weave of thickness on par with the denseness of that of a chinchilla's, Theo felt his mind race in soft curiosity and was floored to feel her spine and shoulders relax amidst the sensation. Theo lulled his eyes closed and very quickly understood, here, that she was potentially touch-starved.

"All your secrets are safe with me," Theo assured above a whisper, he gently nodded and allowed his bigger fingertips to trail between her shoulder blades, the velvety feel of her fur was something he simply couldn't get enough of.

"This is stuff not even Gunner knew about me," Tatum nasally whispered, she lulled her eyes closed in teary relaxation and, in the act of slowly getting comfortable, Theo was surprised to feel her little arms and hands do what they could to find a snug grip about Theo's upper midsection, to properly return their prolonged hug.

"... You were with him for over a year, I'm shocked by that," Theo staggered quietly in genuine surprise, Tatum heaved a hot sigh and rested her ear and the side of her head into the center of Theo's strong, broad chest.

"Don't be, it says a lot about you and your character," Tatum revealed in a soft breath as she kept her eyes closed, she squeezed Theo's midsection and was thrilled their embrace didn't waver, nor did the gentle, innocent tracing Theo persisted between her little shoulder blades.

"Thank you," Theo eased with a small, shaky chuckle, the aura about them glowed gold, Theo so gently swayed her and squeezed his grip, about her little shoulders, a little tighter, "I'd love to learn more about all of this... Please?"

"You just want to see my wings, don't you," Tatum muttered, the two were quietly rocketed into sweet laughter with one another amidst their tight embrace; Theo heaved a shaky, chuckling sigh and bobbed a nod.

"I'd eat up any and all information you're willing to give me," Theo mumbled in teasing, smiling annoyance as he finally cupped his hands to his own arms amidst an even tighter grip about her shoulders. He squeezed her and bravely allowed his nose to just barely meet the top of her head, the pale pink hair that tickled the skin on his mouth, "Whatever that looks like. I'm grateful."

"Me too," Tatum sighed in teary relief, she smiled in Theo's chest and felt secure in this position, something she hadn't felt in a long while; although battling with herself, she was prepared to take the plunge and allow someone deeper into her fragile soul, deeper than anyone had ever gone.