Well.
This took awhile.
Hope y'all didn't forget about me, 'cause I brought you guys some more GamTav fluffies.
So c'mon back here and Catch-A-Riiiide!
Tavros licked his lips for what seemed like the hundredth time that afternoon. He's been doing this every five minutes in his classes, not paying attention to the instructor giving his drawled out theory on steam pressurization, or the detailed diagrams of the first mass produced labor steam bots in Skaia. No, he just sat there, eyes forward to the boards, swiping his tongue across his lips. To anyone else, he may have looked like a creep, lusting after the instructors with dazed eyes, but no. Far from the truth. He was lusting after something else entirely.
Alright, 'lusting' might not be the right term, more like reminiscing. Reminiscing about the bot whose copper lips fit so perfectly over his own like a puzzle. How the boy would tug at his hair to bring him closer. How his lips felt so warm, despite being made of metal. How he suckled around Tavros' tongue like a child with a lollipop, making him groan helplessly for the bot. The mohawked boy licked his lips again, a tingle shooting up his spine. It wasn't Tavros' first kiss (another little pleasantry taken by one miss Vriska Serket in the boy's youth), but it was undoubtedly his best. Afterwards, he held the boy in his arms, gently kissing his forehead, cheeks, eyelids, anywhere the copper bot could reach, while whispering small things about colors in Tavros' ears as he drifts to sleep. Blushing, the boy turned his thoughts to the bot who's been at the center of it all.
Gamzee.
Tavros smiled. To be honest, he never thought to ever have any romantic feelings toward the steam clown. It was a mostly platonic deal, he thought. But by the way the boy was kissing back, feverishly, passionately, clinging to Gamzee like he was his only lifeline- it certainly made the mohawked boy think a little more. Especially about his emotions. His gut-wrenching, confusing, intense string of emotions. It all scares him, but thrills him at the same time.
A thought crosses him; maybe Gamzee just did that to make him feel better. To keep his mind off his still-absent father. But the way the bot looked at him, like he would rip out his own heart, or whatever he has as a substitute, and give it to Tavros, smiling.
Tavros groaned as his forehead made contact with the cool wood of his desk. Taboo relations with steam bots are hard. It's hard and no one understands.
"Mister Nitram!"
The boy pales and heat rose to his face as he sits up. "Y-yes, sir?"
"Is there anything you'd like to add?" All eyes were on Tavros as the instructor pointed to the blackboards in front of the class.
"No, uhm, sir." He blanched.
"Then let me continue my lesson without your commentary, mister Nitram." He called out as he turned back to the board. Humiliated, Tavros dug his face into his arms, blushing heavily, as he half-listened to the teacher while he drags on about Ether, and its proper uses in steam bots and certain weaponry.
Tavros licked his lips again, a few moments after, and the cycle restarted.
Meeting Gamzee at the square always brightens Tavros' day, even in the middle of the emotional warfare taking place. Rolling up to the front of the crowd, he took one good look at the bot before blushing, the memories from last night running in his head in full force, again, and whatever conflicted emotions the boy had disappeared, replaced with contentment. Gamzee catches the boy's gaze and his normal grin grows wider against his painted face. He fumbles, the boy notices, but is otherwise immaculate in his performance. When the doves are released, he notices one of the birds sporting a chocolate brown ribbon around it's neck, rather than the normal purple. Tavros blushes slightly at the insinuation and the small, familiar butterflies flutter in his stomach.
As the crowd dispersed, Gamzee took no time in embracing the boy with his odd honking laughter, lifting him from his chair. Tavros giggles alongside him, wrapping his arms around the bot's neck, completely used to his strong hugs. A few passersby rose a brow at the scene, but the two paid no mind to the world surrounding them. The hug lasted longer then usual, but neither questioned it. It just seemed right. When Gamzee finally lowered the mohawked boy down to his chair, the bot smiled cheerfully, glancing to his left, his right, then stealing a quick peck from the boy's lips. Upon seeing Tavros' blushing face, the clown sports a grin like he's just won the biggest prize in all of Skaia. Before the boy could comment, the copper bot took his place behind Tavros' chair, pushing him forward to wherever Gamzee wanted to take him.
"I want ya to up and meet a motherfuckin' friend of mine," He commented, taking a turn leading to his shop, "Dunno if the brother's still there or not, but it's motherfuckin' worth a shot." The bot shrugged, before leaning down to nuzzle the shaven sides of Tavros' hair. A spontaneous move that made the boy shiver in his chair.
Wait, friend? Tavros didn't know the copper clown knew anyone outside Dirk. "Who, is it, Gamz?" Tavros inquired, fighting past the shudders the bot's inducing. Does Gamzee know what he does to the poor boy? Probably so, if the almost mischievous grin on his face is any indication on the matter.
Gamzee answers confidently in an uncoordinated mess of words containing 'Karbro', 'Best friend' and 'Palebro' thrown in at times (the 'best friend' comment made Tavros' stomach drop, if it was jealousy or not, he wasn't sure). A few moments of Gamzee's random babble (with the mohawked boy chiming in when it seemed right), the duo steadily reached the shop and Tavros wringed his hands on his lap, a wave of nervousness drowning him. Gamzee didn't outright see the anxiety, but he could feel the tension radiate from the boy. The bot hugged him from the side, before going to the entrance. It didn't help.
Opening the door, Gamzee, in his usual cheerful demeanor, calls out into the shop. After hearing an angry reply from inside, the bot perks up and merrily wheels the boy inside.
And Tavros' hands are shaking now and he looks down at his lap. Social awkwardness at its best.
"Palebro!" The bot's jovial tone rang through the shop. Hearing the echo run through him made the boy shudder.
"Call me that again, asshole, and I'll dump your metal frame in the lake and watch it spark." Was the less than pleasant response.
Whatever Tavros was expecting, it wasn't that. Gamzee laughed as he wheeled the boy in further and Tavros took a chance to look up to the source of the threat.
Tavros had to blink, however. The voice does not match the owner in the slightest. 'Palebro''s short- the boy could tell even being in a wheelchair, his hair is black and unruly, pale like he's never set a foot outside, and held crimson eyes that nearly made Tavros wheel back if Gamzee wasn't already there. The raven's face is set to an intimidating scowl as he leans back against one of the worktables behind him, crosses his arms, and runs his ruby color gaze through the boy, apprising him, almost.
If it wasn't for the blood-colored eyes holding enough fury to power a whole army of steambot soldiers, Tavros could almost say he looked like a mad puppy.
"This him?" the stranger grunts out, looking up at the bot.
"Sure is bro!" Gamzee placed a hand in the boy's small arch of hair, tousling it, while using his free arm to snake around the boy's shoulders. "This mIrAcUlOuS motherfucker here is Tavbro." He informed in his usual mirthful tone, like everybody in Skaia should be aware of this fact.
Tavros finally found his voice as he flinched away from Gamzee's constricted hold. "I-it's, Tavros," the mohawked boy corrected, as the bot tightened his hold around him.
The pale raven scoffs before eyeing back at Tavros. "Karkat fucking-Vantas. Pleasure to meet your fucking ass." He shouts out and wow, rude. Tavros was about to reply before Karkat glared daggers back at Gamzee. "You couldn't wait to sodomize the kid behind closed doors?"
Tavros blushes. Hard.
Karkat sees this and points to the boys lips and hair. After fumbling around the clown's hold, the boy felt around, and sure enough, when he pulled back, greasepaint stained his fingers, as well as his lips and parts of his hair. Letting out a very manly yelp, Tavros tries to wipe off the paint with his shirt, while still struggling with Gamzee, who only chuckled, tightened his grasp, and nuzzled the boy underneath him, earning another squeak from Tavros.
"Just up and showing a motherfucker the love." The clown replied with a small smile. Of course.
Karkat rolled his eyes. "Well stop it. It looks like the kid is suffocating." He remarked before straightening up and moving to the couch, leaving the affectionate bot and very confused boy to their devices.
Tavros learned as much about Karkat as he knows about engineering- next to nothing. He spent ten minutes in the main room in his wheelchair in front of the couch with Gamzee on his lap fussing with Tavros' hair while the clown told numerous stories about Karkat in his youth, said raven spitting out threats like poison. The stories were entertaining, but they lead to no true facts about the paler man. So in a bout of awkward fidgeting, he rolled off with Gamzee when the bot announced that he needed to feed his birds. Karkat almost looked relieved to see them go.
"Don't worry 'bout Karbro." He informs, opening the cage to his beloved doves. "'Motherfucker gets used to his loud noise," he leans down to catch a quick kiss on the corner of the boy's mouth, who didn't flinch from the contact this time. Gamzee chuckles as Tavros tries to wipe off the excess face paint.
"Well, I don't know if, I can get used to it, yet. Or, any time soon." The boy stammers out, giggling alongside the bot. Gamzee flashes one of his large grins at the mohawked boy before the bot turns to the pin and starts cooing at the birds in front of them. Tavros giggles again at the sight. It's really an odd spectacle; Gamzee, the usually lax steambot who loves performing in front of various crowds, focused and attentive over the care of birds. The boy gets why- the doves are a big part of his act. But he figured it was more then that. He feeds, cleans and interacts with every bird individually, a task Tavros doesn't even have patience for. When the boy asked the bot about this, Gamzee only shrugged and mumbled out "motherfuckin' habit". The way he answered, sullen and distant, scared the boy, so he promptly dropped the subject.
Gamzee closes the cage momentarily, mumbling to the doves about their food, before grabbing the bird seed at the side of the cage. Or at least tries to. The moment he lifts the bag from the ground, the bottom splits, spilling the remaining contents all over the dirty land.
"Motherfuck." The bot crouched over the mess, investigating to see if the seed is in any way salvageable. Tavros covers his mouth trying his best not to laugh. Gamzee spares the boy a glance before chuckling alongside him. "Well, Tavbro," he straightens up, brushing the dirt off his pants, "If you motherfuckin' think this is all funny and shit, you can up and get me more motherfuckin' feed." The bot walks over to the boy and leans in to place a small, lingering kiss on the boys lips. The simple lip-lock lasted no longer than a minute, but it left the boy breathless nonetheless. Pulling away, the clowns lips quirked. "It's near the motherfuckin' front."
Tavros could swear that Gamzee was a little evil.
Gathering his bearings, Tavros nodded, panting in shallow breaths. "O-okay, Gamz…" Gamzee winked at the boy before turning back to the cage and there's the butterflies again. Taking a deep breath, the boy makes the trek inside, wheeling through the back door and bracing himself for the inevitable run-in with Karkat inside.
"KK, I don't like thith. And I know you don't either. But for fuckth thake I have to."
Tavros stopped dead at the sound of a new voice. He rolled back, hiding beside the bookcase. The boy leaned forward a bit, wanting to see what was going on. He noticed Karkat sitting on the far side of the couch, cradling a brass clockwork recorder in his hands, similar to the one that was given to Tavros from his father earlier that week.
"I would rather be in bed. With you, perhapth. But according to them, I'm the 'best helmthmen in the fleet'. In other wordth, thit crathes to fuck if I'm not there. My dad and Mituna'll be there, tho it won't be total hell."
Karkat rubbed his eyes with his sleeve and mumbled out a 'fuckass'. Tavros blinked in realization over the transmission.
"I'll be home thafe. When we kick the gog out of those pirateth, we'll come home to a big party and you'll be there with tearth in your eyeth and we'll argue at each other like I never left."
The voice on the other end of the recorder chuckled and the raven snuffed.
"I love you, K-Karkat."
The message cuts dead after that and Karkat breathes, restraining himself from bursting into tears. "I love you too.." he breathes out into the empty air, like whoever it was on the other side could hear him.
Tavros had to shake himself back to reality. He feels sorry for Karkat, though he knows all too well that pity is the last thing he would want. But now he's faced with a dilemma. If he just rolls in there, Karkat's going to know he listened in on a moment where he's vulnerable. Maybe if he's quiet he can sneak back toward the back yard…
Or lose his handling and crash into the bookcase. Smooth.
"Who the fuck is there?" The shout sounded more irritated than angry, but Tavros knew its source. Craning his head over his mess, he saw Karkat glaring at him like he could burn the boy with his stare. The gaze didn't hold as much anger as it did when they first met minutes ago, but it was enough to scare Tavros to death.
Bracing himself for the barrage of angry threats, Tavros wheeled forward, trembling with nervousness. "I-it's just, um, me…" The boy weakly mumbled as he came to view. Karkat eyed him for a moment before shaking his head and grunting out some rude invective, then lowered his head back to the device, shuffling it around in his hands. The mohawked boy blinked at the lack of screaming curses before rolling over to the front and searching for his objective. Spotting the feed near the door, he dragged it to his lap, making his way toward the back once more, maneuvering around all the worktables and other litter.
Before he left out the back, he glanced back at the pale raven, who was exactly as Tavros left him; slouched over with a copper recording device in his hands, glaring at it through distant eyes.
"B-Batterwitch? Or, Condesce?" The names of the two steam fliers that left earlier that week. The question left Tavros' lips before he could stop himself.
Karkat rose his head to meet Tavros, before raising a brow at him, confused, before the inquiry clicked. "…Condesce." Was the raven's only answer. The boy nodded.
"My, dad's… On the Condesce, too." Was Tavros' only reply. Figuring that was all he could really say, the boy left, meeting the bot out back.
Tavros found Gamzee right where he left him, by the bird pin, mumbling praises at his doves. Gamzee was too distracted with the feathered creatures to notice the boy wheel next to him, his smile slowly coming back. The steambot finally noticed him and turned the boy's way when he reached the bot's side, the smile on his copper lips matching Tavros'.
" 'Bout time, Tavbro. You up and got lost in there, my adorable motherfucker?" That was one way to greet him. Swooping in for one quick peck on the boy's lips, the bot takes the bag from his lap and shakes it, satisfied.
"No, I ran into, Karkat," Tavros shrugged, not thinking if the clown could see it.
"Oh?" The boy cold of sworn the indigo glow in Gamzee's eyes sparked with mischief.
Tavros blinked. The evil bot.
Gamzee chuckled before opening the bag and filling the bowls in the cages with the bird seeds. Smiling, the bot handed the bag to Tavros. "Wanna help, Tavbro?" The boy giggled, accepting the offer almost immediately. The duo laughed as they both played around the cages, throwing the feed at one another, overfilling the bowls, Gamzee eating some himself (as a dare made from the boy), the two hardly noticed when a certain pale raven decided to crash their fun.
"GAMZEE! CRIPPLE!" Owch. Rude. "What the hell are you doing? The whole neighborhood could hear you! And Gamzee! Stop overfilling the damned bowls! And stop eating the fucking seeds!" Karkat looked silly, flailing his arms about in a fit.
Gamzee lethargically explained his actions: his birds deserve the extra treat, he was checking to see if it wasn't poisoned, and Karkat just spewed out more threats of violence, adding Tavros to the mix too ("You fucking encouraged him."). The yard was so rowdy with commotion, that the boy and the bot didn't notice the front door slamming shut.
That is until a new face frantically joined the three.
"Karkat!"
The said raven freezes on the spot as the mohawked boy and clown bot turns to the intruder. He looked suspiciously like Karkat, except his hair is neater (if not also a bit tussled), his posture is straighter and refined, and he wears an obnoxiously bright red sweater (Seriously? It's nearing the summer months), and a simple purple timepiece hanging off his hip. He's also out of breath, breathing in deeply for a moment before calling out again, "Karkat."
Karkat regained his movements and turned to meet the new person, "Gog fucking Kankri! You managed to hop off that noble's dick long enough to retrieve me? Too bad, I'm not going."
Gamzee leans down and whispers in Tavros' ear, "Kankri. Karbro's motherfuckin' twin bro." Tavros nods in confirmation.
"Karkat!" Kankri's voice was laced with offence as he straightens himself. "Normally I would warn you about your disproportionate use of expletives, but now is not the time, for there is an issue that needs your urgent presence." He almost shouted in a rush. Karkat groaned, rolling his eyes.
"Really now?" The louder twin scoffed, sounding almost condescending. "What could be so fucking important for you to-"
"The Condesce has returned!" The other twin interrupted. Karkat stiffened, and Tavros' head perked. Kankri coughed and continued, "I-I apologize for interrupting, Karkat, but as I stated-"
"They're back?" Karkat sounded in disbelief. Tavros practically started to jump in his chair in glee, if Gamzee hadn't placed a hand on his shoulder and chest to clam him down. The twin glanced behind Kankri, as if he was waiting for someone to appear. "Is he here? Where the fuck is Sollux?" The raven nearly pleaded.
"Interrupting is rude, Karkat. And yes, Cronus informed me of their return nearly an hour ago." He informed, before taking in a deep breath, preparing himself, presumably, "And there is a problem."
Karkat paused and Tavros stopped squirming. The angry twin took a step forward, "Spit it out." Those words were drawn out slowly and dripping with venom. Kankri visibly shivered before continuing.
"Pirates have ambushed them near one of the Checkpoints near one of the other major cities." Kankri paused, thinking about his next few words carefully. "The surprise attack resulted in the total destruction of the Batterwitch, nearly taking most of its crew with it." Another pause. Tavros starts to squirm again, this time in discomfort. Gamzee kneels down to his level and tried to hold him close, despite the wheelchair obstructing the action. Karkat growls.
"What. About. Sollux." That wasn't a question.
"I was getting to that. The Consesce took heavy fire, but managed to escape the fight with little more than half its crew still intact. The Captors…" The neater twin tried to avoid the pure venom pouring from his brother's gaze and spoke once more. "Their father is dead. Mituna…" Kankri took a deep breath in, composing himself, "has suffered severe brain damage. As for Sollux…" Karkat started to shake. "He's been rendered blind."
Karkat bolted. The raven ran past his brother, not caring what happens, not caring where he is, not caring that he has no idea where to go. Tavros watched as he ran straight out the yard in total disbelief. But the boy was stuck in his own thoughts.
What of his own father?
Kankri turned to face the other two, a sad gaze fixing on them. "I apologize for this incident. Gamzee and… Sir." He nodded in Tav's direction before setting off, presumably after his brother.
Tavros took in one of the bot's hands, squeezing it, trying to calm himself down. He glimpsed at the bot, indigo meeting bronze, hoping he could read the boy without having to verbalize himself. He can't seem to find his voice. Luckily, Gamzee squeezed back, lifting himself and taking his place at the handlebars "I'll take you motherfuckin' home."
The boy wished he was faster. He's squirming in his seat, impatiently, every step the bot making behind him louder than the next. After an eternity, the boy reached his home. He found it as empty as the hour he left it. Gamzee stood by his side, silently like a shadow, staying close to the boy.
They waited.
